Chapter 783: December 14th: The Name of the Carved Scars is the Most Feared Night

In this game, there exists the Merfolk, or Mermaids.

However... that universally imagined image is strictly in terms of appearance; their true nature is akin to an anglerfish, where the human portion acts entirely as a lure.

So why do they possess a form mimicking humans? ......In short, it's because humans are included in their target prey. Carnivorous organisms and monsters that prey on humans—this is a common trait among "half-humanoid monsters."

Therefore......... wouldn't monsters that are only humanoid from the waist up, or humanoid everywhere except for their limbs...... essentially view the human species as "food" before they view them as "living beings"?

Imagine trying to have an important conversation with your boss, only for the tea and the manju served alongside it to start blabbering incessantly. How would you feel? If it were me, I'd just bite them on the spot to shut them up.

But given the place and the situation, it makes sense why they're biting back like this.

"You bastard.........!"

"A mere Human......!"

A Centaur...... right, the Chief of the Centaurs and the Patriarch of the Harpies. Their names are......

"Horse SashimiBasashi and Chicken TendersSasami."

"Human, they are Lord Bazara and Lord Sazani."

"Ah, thank you, Ur Idim-shi."

Horse Sashimi and Sasami. Memorized them perfectly.

They were directing glares so hostile they were far from friendly, looking ready to attack at any moment, but...... Vash showed no signs of rebuking me, nor did he seem inclined to reprimand them.

Right, this is playing out exactly like a delinquent manga. It means they won't stop until someone establishes clear dominance.

"Oi, oi, oi, this is an important multi-species summit. You shouldn't be leaving your seats without permission, get back to your seats right now. And sit down."

"Then First, we must Eliminate trash like you who does not Belong in this place......"

"Oh? You wanna go? Just so you know, I'm pretty strong."

I took a single step forward. And mysteriously, Horse Sashimi-kun took a step back. Looking closely, Sasami-chan's feathers were also bristling for some reason...... Heh heh heh, did you really think I came to this place with absolutely no information? Unfortunately for you, I have a lot of acquaintances among the cats. I've gathered intel from Aramis regarding the kinds of guys who would look down on humans, and on top of that, I fully understand the strengths of the entity known as "Me"......!!

"What's wrong, Horse Sashimi-kun and Sasami-chan? You look as terrified as if you've encountered a wolf in the dead of night......... Why don't you just take a seat and calm down."

"Tch."

Lycaon the Night Raider. The assaulting night, and my nemesis against whom I keep my hatred burning brightly by constantly spinning my 'Damn you Lycaon' counter. Might as well do my dailies now, damn you Lycaon.

But looking at it from another perspective, Lycaon is also the strongest beast-type monster in this world. Furthermore, it's a shitty enemy that has been randomly encountering players across the continent, rampaging as it pleases, and then leaving ever since the game's service began.

Despite being a bizarre creature that defies standard ecology, that wolf holds a position akin to a shining sun situated far above the very tip of the apex of the ecological pyramid on the New Continent.

From that Lycaon's perspective, both Horse Sashimi-kun and Sasami-chan are literally just walking horse sashimi and flying chicken tenders. Naturally, they possess an inherent fear of the entity known as Lycaon.

And then there's me. The infuriating scars carved into two places on my body. This isn't just a simple "Curse"; it is the "Scar" I earned by (reluctantly) emerging victorious over Lycaon, even if it was just a shadow. The pure, simple fact that this signifies is singular.

"My bad for making a racket, but I was in the middle of a life consultation with my dear neighbor over here, so I was getting a bit heated too......! And unfortunately, I can't just leave either."

I don't particularly care about the solidarity between monsters, but the problem is that my coming here and being present is an interlude in Vysache's Unique Scenario EX.

Anyone who has played a bit of ShanFro knows that this game possesses absolutely no player-friendly design meant to "guide the player to the clear." Even if it did exist, such kindness is entirely stripped away from high-difficulty Unique Scenarios. In other words, the only thing I need to worry about is Vash's affection rating. Therefore, for the sake of my Vorpal Soul and my status as a guest of Rabituza, I cannot show an uncool, pathetic display here.

As the human who triumphed over Lycaon the Night Raider, I will make the monsters gathered here recognize my existence. And......... use this momentum to completely write off the fact that I totally blew off the first day of the multi-species summit and showed up late!!

"Oi Sunraku, is it a fight?"

"Nah, it's not really a fight, just sit down."

"Is that so......"

Survival, who had been watching the tense atmosphere, stood up, but I stopped him with one hand. However, from the opponents' perspective, it was as if they had acquired a target other than me, and Sasami-chan shot a fierce glare specifically at Survival.

"What is it."

"Do not mock me!"

It seems those wings weren't just for show after all. Flapping the wings growing where her arms should be, Sasami-chan lifted into the air. Relying on whatever propulsion force she used, she unleashed a literal flying dropkick with feet equipped with sharp talons aimed right at Survival.

However, Sasami-chan didn't know. She didn't know that this Nekama named Survival...... was once the Guerrilla Gorilla "Vivaal" who picked fights with every single server using nothing but his bare hands in the Survival Gunman Greek-Letter Servers.

That when it comes to buying and selling fights, he possesses an even deeper understanding than "Atobird," who was similarly living as a gunpowder-fueled barbarian. And......... that in close-quarters combat within a one-meter radius, he is a brawler with a proven track record of defeating a fully armed Atobird, equipped with guns and iron plates, in less than a minute.

"Hah, sorry 'bout this, Sunraku. But if a fight's being sold, I've got no choice but to buy it."

"Ko, pah.........!?"

Wow, I almost feel sorry for Sasami-chan...... Having taken that exact move myself, I know firsthand that it's a complete newbie killer.

Sasami-chan had launched a surprise attack from the air, but Survival, who had been in a combat-ready stance from the very beginning, was much faster in standing up and unleashing a high kick.

Survival's Anti-Air High Kick. I don't know what kind of kinetic vision this lolicon possesses, but against a surprise attack from above, he can flawlessly unleash a kick that lands his heel precisely on the opponent's jaw. When he did this to me on the solitary island, I barely managed to avoid a one-hit KO only because my "Sunraku" avatar in Saba-Gan was a child completely min-maxed for agility, and because I guarded at the very last possible millisecond.

But Sasami-chan is the Patriarch of the Harpies, meaning her specs are higher than a normal Harpy's...... which meant that the superior propulsion force compared to a standard unit was directly added to the sheer impact of the heel stabbing into her jaw. Honestly, for a second I seriously wondered what we'd do if she died...... She made a weird "kokyoh" sound, and her neck was bobbing back and forth like a shishi-odoshi, but since she's twitching and convulsing rather than dispersing into polygons, she's probably alive.

"Whoa, there's the Anti-Air High Kick."

"I spammed it plenty while farming Tias-chan gacha with the Dress-Up Squad, so it hasn't rusted yet, you know?"

"I suppose it's not my turn yet...... A gun would probably be a bad idea, right?"

"Round table............ Meeting......... Internal competition......... Boss...... Taking responsibility for ad-libbing........."

"Sorry, it is your turn. Calm down and take a deep breath, Overwerke-san. Private, now. Private, now."

"Private...... now......"

We're not partying up with an unexploded bomb, damn it.

But it seemed Horse Sashimi-kun's patience had exploded. Taking the signature pose of a horse rearing up on its hind legs, Horse Sashimi-kun wound up a punch with his human upper body and charged madly at me with his horse lower body. Heh.........

"Seiten Style 【Wave】...... Secret Art,"

The Seiten Style allows one to learn three types of skills for each of its seven branches: Wind, Thunder, Wave, Sky, Cloud, Heat, and Ash. However, when one of those three is sublimated into a "Secret Art"...... the possibility of the other two becoming Secret Arts is permanently lost. It's as if bundling three thin threads together to focus them into a single, thicker possibility.

Throwing the Armilet Gargantulas to death over and over again in Sigmonia had paid off. Leveling up, and the subsequent strengthening of skills......... Oh Wethermon, the time has come to finally graduate from imitation.

This is the genuine article.

"───「OoshikeTidal Rush」!!"

The fastest and most powerful throw. When referencing the player's STR stat, "the more it stands out compared to the other stats," the throwing speed and the weight that can be thrown increases—the strongest massive wave of the Seiten Style. Right now, having swapped my STR and LUC with the Indigo Chalice to obtain maximum physical strength, it didn't matter if his lower body was a horse or a hippo.

"This is the Human Power of the Raging Waves."

Good for you, you got to experience being a Pegasus.

While watching Horse Sashimi-kun violently crash into the wall, I turned my gaze toward Vash......... How's this? Is this good enough!?

Author's Afterword

・Seiten Style Secret Art "Ooshike"

A Secret Art derived from AranamiRough Wave. It compares the user's STR against their other stats; the greater the difference, the larger the positive modifier applied to the throwing animation speed and the maximum weight that can be thrown. If Massive Dynamite learned this, it would be a terrifying skill. If the difference is 100 or more, the correction is so massive that a human can throw weights equivalent to large vehicles (however, the heavier the target, the more the "smashing" damage decays...... but in exchange, the heavier the target, the more separate impact damage is dealt by their own weight upon crashing down).

・Seiten StyleSystem

The Seiten Style is primarily categorized into sub-categories based on techniques such as 【Wave】and 【Wind】.

Within a sub-category, a player can learn three types of skills, but only one can be derived into a "Secret Art." The moment one skill is derived as a Secret Art, the other two skills become unusable. Or rather, they are unlearned and disappear entirely.

Versatility is certainly good. However, know that the path to mastering the Seiten Style lies solely in the discipline of single-minded devotion.

By the way, the Secret Art derived from "SakinamiBreaking Wave" is "OouzushioGreat Whirlpool," and the Secret Art derived from "HikinamiPulling Wave" is "DaiharouGreat Surging Waves."