Chapter 192 - Perspectives Turn
"This is… not good."
The moment Goldow laid eyes on the water-filled field, a bitter mutter escaped his lips.
"Not good at all…"
"Oh, boy…"
Hinase and Mi-na, peering out from either side of him, followed up with wry smiles. The gazes of all three were fixed on the same person: the tenth-ranked boy, [Undying] Tetra.
"Is it a no-go?"
"Definitely. No matter how you look at it."
When Ri-na, beside him, tilted her head, Tetra affirmed it with a sullen expression.
"What's the plan? Stealth operations are obviously impossible in this."
"Yeah, I know…"
Tetra's initially assigned role was the assassination of a certain player—the target being the Southern Faction's ranker who would undoubtedly be the natural enemy of the new Ninth, set to make a grand debut in this war.
Sotalm, fourth seat: [Automata]—player name, [Fuji].
He was a mage who, along with Sotalm's fifth seat, [Adamant], had participated in every Four Pillar War since they first entered the rankings.
It was a given that anyone in the upper ranks was a monstrously strong player, but on top of that, it was a well-known fact to everyone—except the person in question—that his abilities would be extremely effective against the Eastern Faction's newcomer, [Haru the Acrobat].
He was the nemesis of their key point-getter, a player whose performance would directly impact the outcome of the battle. It was no exaggeration to call him the top-priority target in this war.
That was precisely why the role had been assigned to Tetra, who could completely shut down [Automata] in a game of matchups…
"Just so you know, approaching him without stealth is impossible. I'll just get turned into Swiss cheese and become fodder for more 'Undying (lol)' memes. That's how it'll end."
"I get it. Ahh… what should we do?"
The field for the Four Pillar War was always a mystery until the moment you entered. With only one exception, there had never been an environmental setting that significantly affected strategy, but…
Still, compared to that hellscape with a river of lava, this is probably on the tamer side.
"Should I act as your escort? We could go take him down together,"
Irori proposed, but Goldow shook his head.
"If two rankers are moving together, Fuji will never show his face. That guy's motto is 'If you can't win a fight, turn back.'"
"…And if we chase him around and end up running into Haru, it'd be a disaster. Well, I'll leave the thinking to you."
"Yeah. You and Genkotsu can proceed as planned. Charge in as soon as the maze opens."
For ten minutes after teleporting to the field, entry into the maze area was restricted—a grace period likely intended for situations just like this.
At the end of the long, wide, water-filled path, the mouth of a black rock fissure gaped open. Goldow pointed toward it, telling them to stand by. The [Sword Protector] and [Twin Fists] both nodded and walked away.
"I… think I should probably go provide some support."
"I'm counting on you. Go rally the skirmisher units."
Observing the other players who seemed unsettled by the unexpected environment, Hinase found her own role and departed from the group.
"Hey, Gossan. Is onii-san even going to be okay in this?"
"Huh?"
The only ones left were Tetra, who was waiting for an alternate plan, and the pair of Mi-na and Ri-na, who were on defense duty at the base. Mi-na splashed her feet in the water as she looked toward the castle where 'onii-san' was waiting.
For certain reasons, the underground castle of Ruvalest was normally buried in a mysterious space, but the castle that manifested on the Four Pillar War field was a spatially synchronized replica. Thus, its bizarre, pseudo-Japanese-Western exterior was currently visible.
In any case, the girl's attention was not on the familiar building, but on the young man inside, waiting to be called to action.
"Stealth is one thing, but this is bad for runners too, isn't it? I've never built an agility-type, so I wouldn't know, but can you even run on a field like this?"
"I don't think it's possible."
"No way."
As Mi-na tilted her head, Ri-na answered from a place of knowledge, and Tetra from a place of experience.
"This game's 'environmental corrections' are more pronounced than in reality."
"Yeah, they pretty much ignore your avatar's stats. No matter how extreme your agility build is, trying to run in this much water will put a crazy amount of strain on you and drain your stamina in no time."
"Huh… So, Ri-na-chan, where did you learn all that? Stop it, you're making me look as clueless as onii-san."
"Information like that is all over the internet."
"There's too much, I don't know what to look for…"
While squishing her partner's cheeks with both hands, who had answered with a prim expression, Mi-na turned back to Goldow. "So?"
"What about our dear onii-san? If the runner can't run, the whole strategy falls apart—"
"You don't need to worry about him."
The one who answered the girl's question wasn't the general standing before her. When the three small figures turned around, they saw a male player with flaxen hair, dressed in red robes.
"Yo, Rotta. You finish up?"
"Perfectly, General Commander."
Brushing aside the girl who started playfully clinging to the familiar face, the [Insighter] handed Goldow the scroll he was holding.
With a firm nod, he unrolled it—revealing the intricate and winding paths of the maze. It was a complete map of the current wartime field.
"Same as always, but it's amazing you can do this in just a few minutes… We'll be putting this to good use again."
"Please, by all means."
It was a combination of the [Insighter]'s authority as a former title holder and his own personal skill.
In the Four Pillar War, where the system's map function is sealed, quickly and accurately revealing the full layout of the giant maze was a crucial factor that could influence the tide of battle.
Each faction had its own specialists like Rotta who had mastered map-making as a personal skill, but the East's [Insighter] was famed for having no equal in terms of accuracy and speed.
It would be no exaggeration to call him the shadow cornerstone of their forces, as he had greatly contributed to their victories, or at least their valiant efforts, in past wars.
…And with that, things were in motion.
Thanks to the efforts of Hinase and the squad leaders, the troops had more or less regained their composure.
The grace period would soon be over, and the path to the maze would open.
He had received the necessary tool from his steadfast right-hand man, who had been by his side ever since they entered the ranks together.
—The preparations were complete.
He took a grand step forward, and the players who had been watching the general's every move in the moments before the opening reacted. Their faces hardened, and they naturally fell into formation. He strode into their midst, and the [General Commander] tapped his temple and spoke.
"It's about time for your debut. Come on out."
Was he still nervous, or just tired of waiting? He sent the message via the war-exclusive skill `Telepathy`, and a reply reached the back of his mind—
"Yeah, yeah. Huh? Don't be so gloomy. Moments like these call for a flashy entrance… Alright, alright, I get it."
Even as the sole focus of nearly three hundred people, he was completely at ease. With no sign of pressure, he continued his conversation with 'someone' and looked up at the sky.
"Do as you please. It's time for your debut, [Acrobat]."
The instant those words were spoken.
Before anyone could process the name they had just heard,
Before they could follow his gaze and look up at the sky,
An azure-white figure landed silently beside him, capturing every single gaze.
A white garment woven from feathers, with armor the color of the night sky protecting his limbs.
Most were drawn to the overwhelming presence of the short sword hanging at his waist—and then, they strained their eyes to see into the darkness beneath his deeply drawn hood.
It must have been enchanted with a concealment effect. All that could be faintly seen was his mouth, and from his overall atmosphere, one could only guess that he was a young man.
"A formal self-introduction would be pretty lame. Got anything to say, Haru?"
"Eh, a word…? U-uhm…"
Just as expected, the voice that stammered out of his tense mouth in response to Goldow's words was that of a young man.
He wasn't quite panicking, but he—[Haru the Acrobat]—scratched his head over his hood, looking troubled.
"…N-Nice… to… meet you all?"
—The moment I delivered what I knew was the most pathetic greeting imaginable.
Unable to contain himself at my pitiful display, Gossan burst out laughing, while the red-haired girl, the very embodiment of taunting, jabbed me from both sides.
Groaning in this intensely hostile environment, I looked around for an ally… only to see Ri-na's prim expression and the senpai (who's technically my junior) putting on a similar face while clearly struggling to hold back laughter.
And then there's Rotta, who's just casually here. Hey, you, what's with that getup?
So not only were you a former ranker, you weren't even a swordsman to begin with? You completely fooled me. I'll n e v e r forgive you.
"Just get on with it… let's start already…"
While being violently shaken by the red-haired girl who, for whatever reason, had gotten carried away, I let out a sigh and decided to escape reality by gazing at the big moon.
—Of course, I didn't forget to start the mental countdown for her punishment.
Needless to say, five seconds later, the scream of an idiot echoed across the starry sky.
From an outsider's perspective, it was an artistically perfect level of annoying pestering, so it's probably forgiven. In fact, the fans are probably thinking, "Thanks for the scream."