Chapter 530 - サメは最強
Players are boarding a super-dreadnought Ghost Battleship that appeared in the open ocean shrouded in thick fog. Most are entering through holes opened in the ship's hull, but Parfait and her group opted for an aerial insertion.
Lion, dressed like a magical girl, used a method of transporting everyone one by one while holding a magic stick that allowed the permanent use of wind magic. Since there was a possibility of being attacked by Undead on the deck of the Ghost Ship, they decided to transport the strongest members first. Benitsuru went first, and while the order was supposed to be random after that, Abel insisted he wanted to go quickly, so he became the second.
Thus, Lion transported Benitsuru, but it seemed the mechanics of the area involved flying Undead interfering with aerial intrusions; they were attacked normally by a Pteranodon that was nothing but bones.
However, since this was something other players had already tested and discovered, Simon used his bow to shoot it down. It wasn't a hard-fought battle, and Parfait felt a slight sense of melancholy at the business-like elimination of the threat.
Lion brought Benitsuru to the deck of the Ghost Ship without any particular problems, but when she returned, she seemed flustered.
"There were many Undead on the deck! Benitsuru-san is in danger, so I'll transport the rest of you immediately!"
"Benny-shishou will be fine, so you can take it slow."
"Yeah, yeah, let's go calmly. But, let's go fast!"
"Just what is that sense of trust...?"
Parfait and Abel remained calm, in inverse proportion to Lion's fluster. Moreover, Abel seemed unable to contain his excitement, his eyes sparkling with a face that practically said, "Come on, carry me!" to Lion.
Though they were a young man and woman of that age, Lion gripped Abel's hand without any apparent resistance and flew off using her magic stick in her other hand. Abel was carried away while letting out a voice that clearly showed he was quite delighted, shouting, "Hyahhoo!"
"Abel has parts of him appropriate for his age, too, it seems. Usually, he acts more like an adult."
"He's usually in a state of acting as a performer, after all. That over there is his true self."
"Seeing that, I can accept that his personality makes him Cecil's child. His appearance definitely resembles Ash, though."
"But his hobbies belong to Instructor Ren, don't they?"
"The fruit of a gifted education, I suppose."
As Simon said this, he shot down a bony Pteranodon that had approached Lion and Abel.
Parfait wondered if a love for hexes counted as a gifted education. While she was pondering such questions, Lion returned again. This time, rather than being flustered, she was tilting her head in confusion.
"Not that much time has passed, but the number of Undead that were on the deck has decreased considerably..."
"That's just Benny-shishou. Wasn't she cutting down Undead while humming a tune?"
"Rather than cutting them down, it's more like the surrounding Undead are vanishing just by her standing there..."
"Benny-shishou's draw is almost invisible, you know."
Lion's thoughts ground to a halt at Parfait's casual tone, which sounded like everyday conversation about the weather, but whether she decided she hadn't heard it or simply chose not to try and understand it, she called for the next person: "Who's going next?"
Wilnel and Luty both raised their hands at the same time, perhaps wanting to see Benitsuru's sword draw, but it was decided by rock-paper-scissors that Luty would go, and Lion headed for the deck via flight in the same manner.
After that, Lion transported Wilnel, Parfait, and finally Simon to the deck. Regarding the bony Pteranodons that appeared when transporting the last person, Simon, Parfait shot them down from atop the deck using the gun-shaped Beelzebub, and finally, everyone had moved to the deck.
The members of the Explorers' Guild led by Luty stayed on their ship and began moving, aiming to intrude through the holes opened in the Ghost Ship.
It was then that everyone finally confirmed the situation on the deck, but everyone except Parfait, Abel, and Simon simply stood there with wide eyes. Benitsuru was defeating Undead without moving from her spot. Furthermore, she was defeating Undead that were clearly out of reach of her katana. And she was doing so without using any game-like skills at all.
"Everyone's here? I've secured the safety of this area—bravo to me!"
"I don't know the initial situation, but there are hardly any left on the deck."
Part of it was the thick fog, but for now, there were no Undead within visible range. And the moment one was recognized, Benitsuru's invisible draw would strike the Undead. It was at the point where one couldn't tell which side was the monster.
"Man, Benny-san really is amazing. At first, there were tons of Sahagins within sight. Ah, the ones that had undergone Zombification, of course. Watching them just disappear one after another, Benny-san is the real horror here!"
"Abe-cchi, are you actually praising her?"
"I am praising her!"
"Um, Benny-san, if you wouldn't mind, could you leave a few monsters? I was thinking I'd like to try fighting too."
When a slightly excited Luty said that, Benitsuru made a slightly awkward face and said, "Ah."
"Sorry, sorry, I went a bit too far. But something strong-looking is coming, so how about we make it so I don't touch that one?"
As everyone strained their eyes at Benitsuru's words, a giant skeletal monster emerged sluggishly from the thick fog.
"It's a Shark!"
As Abel said this happily, sounding as if his mental age dropped every time he spoke, a giant shark-like monster about fifteen meters in total length appeared.
"This is a Megalodon. As Abel says, it is a Shark, but a shark that existed on ancient Earth."
Simon spoke about the appeared monster in that way, but Parfait, thinking that honestly didn't matter, immediately voiced what was bothering her.
"It's floating, though...?"
"What are you saying! If it's a Shark, that much is natural!"
"Abel-kun, what are YOU saying? It's not that, I'm talking about whether it's strong or not."
Since this was a Virtual Reality fantasy, it didn't matter if a shark floated or flew. In the first place, the fact that it was moving despite being bones was already beyond that. However, Parfait felt that if it could move through the fog as if it were in the sea, it would likely be a very difficult fight.
"Of course it is! Sharks are the strongest!"
"What is this sense of trust you have in sharks? Were you always such a shark lover?"
"You don't get it, Parfait. Listen, since long, long ago, there have been massive amounts of movies about sharks and Zombies...!"
"...Huh?"
"An actor who hasn't been bitten by a Shark and a Zombie is third-rate... there's a maxim like that in the world of movies. Every actor loves sharks and Zombies!"
"Is the world of movies okay? Wait a second, Lion-chan, are you trying to go get bitten?"
"Ah, no, I just thought, somehow, it seemed like it would bring good luck..."
"Oh! Lion, well said! You're punning on 'luck' and 'acting'! (T/N: a pun on 'engi' meaning both 'luck/omen' and 'acting') Usually, this is where I'd give you a zabuton cushion, but sorry, I don't have one!"
"Wait, Abel-kun, bring your tension down? Lion-chan, let's calm down too?"
While trying to somehow calm Abel and Lion, whose excitement had spiked in a strange way, Parfait gripped the sheath of Beelzebub tightly, preparing to fight the skeletal Megalodon.
[Author's Note]
I apologize for mentioning another work, but the latest chapter of the comicalization of "Slow Life of the Dead" has been released on the TO Books website. Please check the activity reports for the URL and other details.
Also, I have posted one chapter of the web novel version. Please take a look if you like.