Chapter 894: December 20th: A Grand Journey, With That Great Feat in Hand
Author's Preface
Because I got hyped up, and this is the interest on my debt.
◇
The player "Sunraku," also known as Tsuchinoko-san, boasting some of the highest name recognition in all of ShanFro.
His general character build and playstyle, and beyond "Sunraku"... the personality of the Person behind the avatar. Though only in rough outline, Garunose had begun to grasp the ‘contour’ formed by combining all of those elements; even after grasping that much, however, his conclusion remained, ‘You can never be too cautious.’
(To begin with, as long as what lies within his hand remains unclear... it wouldn't be strange no matter what he pulls. I have no choice but to face him not by anticipating 'what' he will do, but 'how' he will execute it... huh.)
A mobility-specialized ＆ skill-specialized character build that shaved VIT down to the absolute limit, paired with the aggressive playstyle needed to master it. And... on top of that, the caution to try and see through his opponent's depths. He intuitively understood that the player known as Sunraku was the exact opposite of Garunose... yet the exact same type of player.
(You're not just looking to win... you're a player who looks to win on your first try, aren't you?)
He'll observe the situation, but he refuses to accept losing just to wrap up that observation phase. Believing that victory in a single, decisive match is the Highest Evaluation... Garunose was far too familiar with that mindset, and because of that, he became convinced that Sunraku was the same kind of player as himself. The only difference was whether they chose to "conquer by evading with mobility" or "conquer by enduring with defense."
In the previous clash, both had their Final Line broken, and Garunose was even forced to activate his prized trump card, "Beautiful Memory Form Loss". However, if his own attack had also broken through his opponent’s Endure, then experience left him with only one route to victory.
(Only the ‘strengths’—force only the strongest parts of my first-encounter kill gimmicks on him and crush him before he can answer them... that’s the only way.)
───Overwhelm him with raw firepower before he can do anything.
Ironically, this was the exact same "strategy" Sunraku had resolved to execute against Garunose.
In other words, right here and now, the all-out collision between Garunose and Sunraku begins.
◆
"Imperial Gold Sword!!"
"Supreme Trampling Dragon Hoof!!"
The moment I pulled a lump of metal out of the Inventoria was the exact same moment Garunose changed his equipment.
I finished feeding the metal lump to the Imperial Gold Sword first, followed closely by Garunose's equipment morphing into a completely pitch-black full-body armor.
The metal the Imperial Gold Sword devoured... my trump card for ‘operating’ this weapon: an Alloy I had Bilac make after dumping an outrageously unreasonable request on her!
The item name is Mixed-Rigid Alloy, made from Amursidian Quartz, Aroncares Lapis Hard-Crystal, Crystal Scorpion outer shell, and... anyway, it was some kind of chimera super-alloy with all sorts of stuff mixed in, if I remember right.
When I said, "Well, I say I'm gonna make a weapon out of this, but it's really just going to be a disposable blade (lol)," Bilac seriously tried to murder me......... Or rather, if I didn't have Endure, the amount of damage I took would have undoubtedly killed me.
When I experimented with it later, it turned out that if you don't properly balance the composition, an Alloy is extremely difficult to handle as a material—in fact, it's practically useless. Bilac completed a handful of those ingots with an intensely dissatisfied look on her face, and they ended up becoming ammunition for the Imperial Gold Sword.
Having deliciously consumed that "failed product" with a history, the Imperial Gold Sword generates a blade of Mixed-Rigid Alloy. The Imperial Gold Sword forms a differently shaped blade depending on the material it consumes, and this time............ a thick, single-edged blade, huh? Nice. No matter what shape the blade takes, it maintains a length and size categorized as a longsword, so there are no issues regarding skills.
And just as I finished growing the blade and took my stance, Garunose completed his own preparations.
Pitch-black......... armor that, no matter how you looked at it, was not a mass-produced model. In this game, when you look at strong equipment, you can somehow tell that considerable labor and resources went into it. No matter how hard you try, low-rank materials leave the detailing crude, which is why higher-grade equipment has more complex detailing.
And on his head, which had been exposed until just a moment ago, was something like a crown, or horns......... Ah, that's it. A Caucasus beetle. He's equipped a three-horned, full-face helmet that completely eliminates any skin exposure, looking exactly like that. Going out of his way to change his armor...... is likely because he wanted the specific effects enchanted on it.
Furthermore, there was a massive black shield that looked as though it had been meant to ‘exist alongside’ ‘that’ from the very beginning, and the pitch-black mace he had been holding all along... looking back now, I realized he had taken only that one piece out of that combination first.
I recognized it: it was like taking a jumble of parts from entirely different plastic models and forcing them to count as the ‘same thing’ through a unified paint job... an after-the-fact conversion into a Complete Set.
I know this. Yes, I definitely recognize it. If anything, I should have been able to do the exact same thing. But at that time... right, my weapon was slightly disqualified. Because it was a special exception slot.
But perhaps... yes, perhaps. If what Garunose had been wearing when he accomplished that was certainly special, but not an exception.
If the gear had properly received the boon bestowed in recognition of the great feat of defeating ‘That.’
"That is way too far beyond my expectations, Garunose, you───!"
Garunose's mace. That easily maneuverable, one-handed weapon was now,
"......【Scale of the Little People】!!" [*1]
Right in front of my eyes...... it enlarged, and was swung with full force.
Author's Afterword
Just as the hero who bathed in dragon's blood became immortal in the spots the blood touched, [*2]
Weapons and armor used to slay a dragon are sublimated into "Dragon-Slaying Gear."
Weapons that are bathed in that power and overcome it evolve into "Gear that Houses the Power of a Dragon."
However, merely wielding it leaves it nothing more than a weapon.
Only one who has made a feat worthy of the gear—not merely a title, but what defines them as its wielder—can draw out its true power.
A weapon and its wielder—only when those two come together does it reveal its true worth.........
Setting that aside, an insanely enlarged weapon bringing along two non-corporeal hitboxes for a 3-hit combo is just totally nuts, isn't it?
The manga version of Shangri-La Frontier goes on sale October 17th!
The manga is on the 17th! The anime is currently airing every Sunday at 5:00 PM! The first episode is already available on various video streaming sites, so please, please check it out.
Translator's Notes
- [1] : Brobdingnag is the land of giants in Gulliver’s Travels. The name pairs with the defeated dragon Gulliver and its gigantification/shrinking abilities.
- [2] : This alludes to Siegfried, who gains invulnerability by bathing in a slain dragon’s blood, apart from a vulnerable spot that the blood does not reach.
Comments
Post a Comment