Chapter 740 - Confusion Encounter
Just over half a year. Compared to the veteran players, my history was still shallow. Even so, it was a period of time I could say I'd been immersed in this virtual world for a good while.
From the day I first dove into Arcadia until now, there have been three existences that have made me tremble.
It wasn't surprise, or fear, or awe, or even tension… things that, while unknown, I could still imagine. It wasn't something I'd encountered many times, looking back.
There have been three exceptional encounters that have truly, in various senses of the word, made me shudder from the bottom of my soul.
One was [Tsarkalv of the White Throne]—the grotesque white dragon, now gone from this world, that once pushed me to my limits and, in a way, became the very catalyst that led me here.
One was the [Sword Saint]—with an overwhelming presence seeping from her serene form, she toyed with my heart for a time after we met, and is now my precious master.
One was the [Sword Queen]—the moment we met that day. I will never forget, now or ever, the sensation of my instincts and reason screaming in unison, 'Kneel.' My princess.
Each was an encounter that contained a major element in shaping the person I am today. Even without my gifted talent, they are vivid memories that will never fade, no matter how much time passes.
And the sensation I'm feeling now is close to those. This is, perhaps, the fourth time.
Short legs, long arms. Its form was somewhat comical, which was precisely why it held an indescribable strangeness and eeriness. The instant I registered the stony figure, something tremendous shot through my entire body.
Leaving behind a fleeting moment of question and confusion, a violent, sickening premonition seized my heart.
"Tch—[Eyes Oculus]!"
There was no way I could find an answer to this mystery in an instant. I tossed aside every last one of my useless thoughts and, without hesitation, slammed one of my greatest trump cards onto the field.
Both golden and silver eyes opened. Thought acceleration, times three.
Whether I was going to end this or just survive, I had a mere twenty seconds flat of activation time to leave a bare minimum of MP as a safety net. Not a single second could be wasted.
My mind and body naturally shifted into their absolute limits. The moment it activated, my vision was plastered with lines of attack prediction from the countless homing bullets. I 'memorized' them and switched from defense to offense—or rather, resistance.
I activated [Desperate Crimson], calculated a route, set my trajectory, and selected the jewel-like bullets that stood in my way. Furthermore, I deployed Ouka Ryoran, and via Loading, began the phased excitation of my Sakura Sword.
Alright, no brakes.
"[Rocket]!!"
I had no clue what it was planning, but my gut screamed at me with a ferocious premonition. The optimal solution was to not let it do a thing. Having made that call, my body shot out, tearing through the sky at the speed of sound. Swallowing the flower petals, my sword's output surged, transforming from a straight sword to a longsword as it brutally carved a path forward.
And so, a little over a second after my decision, I arrived. Behind the lump of rock—the something that seemed to be imitating a [Chosen Stone Doll]—I brandished not my fists and feet.
Hey, rock-for-brains. You know what? In a virtual world, generally speaking…
"A sword is stronger than a kick!!!"
…even against a pebble like you.
My thoughts aside, I moved at a speed that likely left the other three on stage, let alone the audience, unable to follow. At the end of my full-speed dash, the blade I swung down with neither mercy nor hesitation…
…conveyed a slight resistance to my hand before cleanly bisecting the stone doll.
"—————…Huh?"
Then, naturally, a massive sense of wrongness washed over me.
The sensation of the cut was undeniably that of magic, different from a normal enemy. I wouldn't mistake the feeling of my gluttonous sacred sakura devouring its meal, not at this point.
So, what was this thing?
What was this thing that had unleashed one of the most shocking presences in my personal history upon its arrival, only to be cut down without resistance before it could even twitch?
The one who drew this phenomenon was none other than the famed 'Eastern Wings'… If so, then…
There's no way it ends here, with nothing else happening.
That was the moment this obvious thought crossed my mind.
Dispersing with a single blow… or so it seemed. The remnants of the doll shimmered and writhed as light. Blue light danced through the air, the same effect that occurs when an enemy's life is scattered.
And so, after about three seconds of watching with my accelerated thoughts…
It wasn't that I was just dumbstruck. After a long, long few seconds of being forced to observe while being hounded by the renewed onslaught of a bullet storm…
"—Tch, what the!?"
"—Wha…!?"
My voice and Hina-san's, raised in unavoidable shock from a distance, probably represented the entire world. In a turn of events that was utterly impossible to predict, the abnormality manifested along with a sandstorm.
The dissipated light converged, and what appeared next was a Great Serpent—another unforgettable sight, a colossal giant. It was the form of my old nemesis, the [Dusty Worm, Great Serpent of Dust].
I don't get it. None of this makes any sense. And the transformation that had begun showed no signs of stopping.
Its form existed for only a few seconds. Scattering sand, the giant dissolved back into light, and what appeared next was… ah, this too was a nostalgic sight. A hollow suit of great armor.
It was the form of [Angalta, God-Wedge Sword-King], which Sora and I had encountered when we were so hopelessly weak.
It scattered again, vanished… and as a swarm of crimson gems and the lord of the sacred peak followed, I finally managed to make a prediction. I had a faint inkling of where this was heading, and the blood drained from my face.
It was confirmed from the very first stone doll that these were not phantoms, but had physical substance. Therefore, what was being drawn here was not a mere screening of my memories, but something akin to whatever-her-name-was…
A reproduction, complete with substance and properties. There was no doubt.
—This is bad. This is bad. This is bad. This is BAD!!!
Wait a minute, isn't that way beyond just being 'against the rules'!?
I could only imagine one thing.
Right now, there was only one thing to be terrified of.
Therefore…
"Hina-san!!"
"Don't you dare fail to catch this!"
There wasn't a millimeter of mental leeway left.
She responded to my desperate cry in an instant, and I caught the sun-like crimson flame she sent with my Sakura.
Devouring the immense heat, my sword emitted a light so brilliant it burned the eyes. It released petals, which the longsword then swallowed again, transforming into a greatsword—and further boosting my acceleration rate to times five.
And so, convinced that this was the only way to end it, praying that this would be the end…
At the end of my mad dash, ignoring the nightmare…
"—…………………………Let me just say this. You have got to be kidding me, you utter bastard."
My words were met by a full-blown smug face and a genuinely languid, tired face. And then…
With claws that could pinch and stop power through some as-yet-unknown ability, a shadow blocked the sacred sakura that was closing in on the creators' throats, unleashing a torrent of killing intent I never wanted to face again.
And then, in the next instant…
ROOOOOOAAAAAAARRRRRRR!!
A jet-black cannon of light erupted with the beast's roar, filling my vision with a searing darkness.