Chapter 515: Invitation from the Netherworld

Author's Preface
I want El Shaddoll Redame

I'm terrified that the moment I put it on, a needle is going to stab into my neck and inject me with Riot Blood, so I've sealed that helmet away strictly for display purposes.

The design is simple and exactly to my tastes, but the process of acquiring it was straight-up horror... I emailed Katzo later to casually ask about that executive "Bishamonten," but he was completely useless.

After getting home, whether it was the thread of tension snapping or the caffeine from the Energy Kaiser keeping me alive finally wearing off, I fell into a deep sleep like someone pulled my plug. As a result, I woke up to a perfectly refreshing morning...

"Huh? Is it true that there's a massive Genesis Kin outbreak on the Old Continent and things are getting crazy?"

"You... didn't know?"

"Ah, yeah, well, I was a bit tied up with something else."

The information relayed to me by the hardcore ShanFro addict herself, Saiga-san, held enough power to completely blow my mind.

Apparently, a "Blue Horse" appeared near Thirdrema, and a "Green Swarm" is hanging around the Forest of Mythology... With Siegwurm and all, everyone thought the New Continent was at the cutting edge of the game's progression, but it seems the transition to the next stage triggered by Siegwurm's defeat is blowing the winds of chaos across the Old Continent as well.

"Other than that, I've heard... things are getting hostile between the Lord of Thirdrema and the King."

"So the interpersonal relationships are progressing too..."

Let's look into this a bit. Ugh, "Channel 8" is still trending... No, ignore that, let's see here. What's this...

"Raid monster attacks Thirdrema, the nation refuses to send support and demands the Lord of Thirdrema's daughter as a bride in exchange..."

So they pulled a "Please give me your daughter, sir" in the middle of a catastrophic emergency, and now the Lord of Thirdrema is absolutely livid. Oi oi, the interpersonal drama is turning into a messy, viscous milkshake! If I took a sip, wouldn't it be as sweet and delicious as nectar?!

"Apparently, it's an enemy where... the lower your level, the more advantage you have in the fight..."

"Given the spawn area, is it supposed to be a beginner-friendly raid monster...?"

I wonder about that... This game has a habit of prioritizing lore over balance adjustments, so you can't entirely rule out the possibility that it just turned out that way by pure coincidence.
ShanFro has a massive player base filled with all sorts of gamer types, so unless a significant majority corroborates it, you can't really prove the credibility of any information. In particular, the info regarding the "Black" and "White" is completely jumbled up right now.

So far, the raid monsters I'm aware of are the "Blue" and "Red" on the New Continent side, and the "Red" and "Blue" on the Old Continent side. I suspect that bizarre, muscular cyclops that the Devouring Great Crimson Clad briefly revealed might be a raid monster for the New Continent, but... hmmm.

"I guess I won't be able to get involved with this Blue Horse thing, then."

"Right... because apparently, it shaves off your maximum HP entirely."

That's brutal. My regular HP is already garbage so the ceiling is only so high, but if it's the type of status ailment that can't be blocked by my Scars, I'd end up dying either way...

"Did you hear how Black Sword is going to move?"

"My sister... is returning to the Old Continent to prepare for the Lycaon subjugation. However, there's also information that a raid monster appeared in the Forest of Mythology, so..."

Ah, wasn't that the area where you can get rare items? If you leave a raid monster alone, it might completely ruin the environment, so the top clans probably can't just pretend they didn't see it.

"It seems Team 10PM is going to focus entirely on the New Continent..."

"Heeeh..."

Well, regardless of how Team 10PM moves, I know one guy from there who absolutely refuses to leave the Leviathan out of sheer stubbornness.
I know my mouth has no right to spout this, but unlike Unique Monsters which tend to get hidden away by certain players, it's confirmed that Raid Monsters will respawn as many times as needed after a set amount of time. Since the Old Continent still has a larger player base, information travels much faster there. Now that things have come to this, the top players will also have to choose whether to stay on the New or Old Continent.

"What are... you going to do, Hizutome-kun?"

"Since we have Vorpal Transport, I feel like we don't really have to choose... But I guess I'll keep pushing forward with the Leviathan capture?"

"If I recall correctly... the first layer is supposed to be incredibly vast..."

"...It sure was vast."

If you're doing a run restricted to the Ant-Bikes, it's basically a mini road trip... Since it actually functions like a proper dungeon, the sheer distance can't be hand-waved, so if you genuinely get lost, it's gonna be rough.

"Um... you're on the Second Shell Layer right now, right, Hizutome-kun? If I catch up... maybe we could explore it together..."

"Eh? Sure, I don't mind."

"Really?!"

I should've expected no less from Saiga-san... Securing a commitment to accompany me—the person who's made the most progress capturing the Leviathan so far—using a real-life conversation is incredibly shrewd. As expected of a hardcore addict...
You could call it a masterstroke that exploits my psychological state of "I don't really have any reason to refuse, so I might as well accept."

"Heh... You really are amazing, Saiga-san."

"...???"

Is this her passion for ShanFro shining through?
Tucking that feeling of awe away in my heart, we kept up our lively conversation until it was time to part ways for our respective classrooms, just like any other day.

 ◆

How should I put this? Even if I've only been logged out for a few days in real time, the time I spent in that other game was so dense that standing here feels like it's been ages... I'm even starting to feel something akin to, like, nostalgia?

"...There's a lot I want to ask you, but I'll start with this... What is this?"

"Disappointment (Seriously?): Even if you are the Contractor (Master), this unit cannot help but doubt the actual existence of your Intellect (Intelligence)... This is paper."

"Nobody's asking for the raw materials, you piece of junk! I'm asking for its purpose!"

"...? Primarily as a recording medium for writing and the like..."

"Ah, yeah. My bad. I phrased the question wrong."

"A hundred hearings is whatever," as the saying goes, but even if I asked her a thousand questions, I still wouldn't be able to grasp the situation.
Like, why is she wearing a dress that makes her look like a hostess club girl? Or where did she even get that in the first place? And seriously, what the hell is up with this envelope? ...Well, I suppose looking inside will answer that.

"...An invitation?"

"Affirmation: The Contractor has fulfilled the designated conditions for Protocol 'Orchestra'. Therefore, based on the Conquista Doll provisional regulations, an invitation to the 'Concert' is being presented."

───I (This One) am waiting for you. Please, a song for you...

An emotionless style and a concise message. Yet, it was an invitation packed with a powerful heat (emotion) that couldn't be dismissed so simply. And it seemed that opening the envelope was the trigger... While it's probably not something people normally get used to seeing, a familiar window popped up for what was now the seventh time.

『You have fulfilled the conditions for a Unique Scenario EX.』
『Do you wish to begin the Unique Scenario EX: "A Melody (Song) Dedicated to You"? Yes / No』
『You have acquired the Title 【Observer of the Seven Stars】.』

Yaaay, I finally completed the set.

"Seriously...? By the way, what were the conditions for Protocol 'Orchestra'?"

"Explanation: A contract with a Conquista Doll, along with a specified retention of Old Humanity knowledge based on the provisional regulations."

"............I see."

The conditions are way too lenient. Compared to Wethermon which was basically a "spot the difference" puzzle in a sea of trees, Vysache's bullshit restriction quotas, and the sudden gal-game route with Goldunine, these requirements are... I'd bet my money that Orchestra is the type you can rematch.
In that case... should I leak it? Hoarding all these secrets is getting a bit old, and sooner or later, a "next one" is bound to pop up anyway.

"Alright then. Let's drop by Library's place before heading off to this concert."

"Acknowledgement: Proceeding with Protocol 'Orchestra'."

Good grief, my gaming life never has a dull moment, does it?

"By the way, is there a dress code or something?"

"Would it not conform to general common sense?"

"The absolute sincerity of showing up completely unarmed—isn't that basically formal wear?"

"Correction: To put it mildly, won't you be turned away at the door?"

Then I guess I'll throw on a Mantle (Cloak) to boost my fashion level. Go ahead and call me the maverick of the ShanFro fashion world...!

Author's Afterword
The picture of heroine-chan bouncing around chanting "Date! Date!" while Iwamaki sighs.

Translator's Notes

• [1] El Shaddoll Redame: A joke combining the "El Shaddoll" archetype and "Redame" (Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon) from the Yu-Gi-Oh! card game.