kscans

Chapter 14 - Labyrinth of the Wasteland

“That’s Alicia White-san. She actually holds the title of [Sword Queen], not ‘Strongest Sword King.’”

“Huh… she seemed more like a ‘Princess’ than a ‘Queen.’”

“Fufu, you’re right. Most people agree that ‘Princess’ suits her better, so that’s what she’s commonly called.”

“Though she herself doesn’t seem to care about being called a queen or a princess,” Sora added. As expected, she was well-informed. After finishing our lunch break, I had met up with her again at the fountain plaza in Istia, where my surprisingly knowledgeable partner was sharing her wisdom with me.

“So she’s really famous, huh. I mean, she’s on TV and called the strongest, so I guess that’s a given.”

“Among the players who appear in the media, she’s by far the most popular. She’s incredibly beautiful, after all.”

True, that avatar was on another level. If there was a character creation service, you could probably charge money for that.

“But still, it’s pretty cool that a girl that cute is the strongest. It feels very fantasy-like.”

So there’s no performance difference between genders in virtual reality. I guess there are still individual differences like reflexes and reaction speed, though.

“Alicia-san is truly amazing. There should be a lot of war archives on video sites, so I recommend you watch them, Haru-san.”

“Oh. So they really do stream videos like that.”

At my impressed remark, Sora gave me a look that said, “What is this guy talking about?”—well, yeah, I guess so. I’m probably the only one who would dive into a grand world like virtual reality after a three-year gap with absolutely no information.

“Hmm…”

It’s not like it’s a secret, so I could just tell her, but… for some reason, I feel a strange aversion to bringing up real-life topics in a game like this.

If I confessed that I was going in with no prior information, the conversation might spiral into my three years of high school spent as a part-time-job warrior. Talking about my real self like that would feel like I was just talking about myself, which is embarrassing.

I’ll just answer if she asks.

“Alright, on to Stage II.”

As we chatted idly, an arch about three meters high with an elliptical shape appeared before us. Made of intricately carved white porcelain, it was a transfer gate that connected to the external fields.

There were several of these gates set up within the city, but since you could choose your destination, it didn’t matter which one you used. Now then, the second area for beginners was—

“[Rocky Wasteland], huh…”

Having cleared the boar-infested [Plains of the Horizon], the second field appeared in the selection list. As I muttered its name, the empty transfer gate, which had been reflecting the scenery beyond, was instantly filled with a blue phosphorescence.

Passing through this light, which rippled like the surface of water, would transport us to the external field.

“I wonder what kind of place it will be.”

Sora’s eyes sparkled as she excitedly imagined what lay beyond the gate.

It seems that while she’s done some research, she knows nothing about the maps or strategies. Since we’re teaming up, it’s better if we’re both going in blind, so I’m grateful for that.

“Come on, Haru-san, let’s go!”

Sora, whose demeanor and speech usually made her seem more mature than her apparent age, had a strong sense of curiosity and would show her innocent side in situations like this. I wasn’t trying to figure her out, but I couldn’t quite tell if she was older or younger than me, and more importantly…

—The contrast is just unfair.

Even if I had categorized her as my little sister, her beauty remained unchanged. Pushed from behind by an eager Sora, I suppressed my fluttering heart and passed through the transfer gate.

“—Whoa…”

“—Waaah…!”

Beyond the light of the transfer—we were greeted by endless rock walls that seemed to pierce the heavens, and we both let out cries of admiration.

Spread out at our feet was a wasteland with only a few patches of dry grass. And towering around us, forming a “path” about five meters wide, were giant rock walls. Indeed, it was truly a [Rocky Wasteland].

The entire area was a dull brown, and the rock walls were so high that they completely blocked out the sunlight, leaving us in a dim shade. Being sandwiched between the walls also created a strange sense of pressure, an unsettling feeling.

“…You don’t think these walls are going to suddenly close in and crush us, do you?”

“I-I was thinking the same thing… Please don’t say such scary things!”

When I voiced the thought that had just occurred to me, a nervous-looking Sora chided me.

Yeah, well, I doubt they’d be so sadistic as to kill us in such a way… right? I can tolerate being beaten to death by a monster because of the fantasy filter, but I’d rather not experience a death I can vividly imagine, like being crushed by walls.

“W-Well, anyway… let’s move on. I’m counting on your support.”

“Understood…!”

We both took out our straight sword and shortbow and began our exploration of the ‘Rocky Wasteland’—


◇◆◇◆◇


Compared to the first stage, an endless plain where boars were scattered about as if to say, “Feel free to play,” the second stage took the complete opposite approach.

If the boar plains were “open,” this was a “closed” labyrinth of rock walls. The monsters here were not carefree extroverts running around at will, but introverts lying in wait for wandering players.

Mob number one, a large lizard called a [Wall Lizard] that clung motionlessly to the rock walls. They generally lurked on the upper parts of the walls, and if you tried to pass beneath them without noticing, they would drop down and ambush you.

They were formidable enemies, about two meters long (big), with decent AGI (fast), and considerable STR (painful). But as long as you paid attention to what was above you, you could avoid the ambush, so they were merciful.

Mob number two, a frog called a [Rock Toad] the size of a basketball that camouflaged itself as a rock by the roadside. When you entered its detection range, it would break its camouflage and attack.

Its body movements were sluggish, but its attacks were nimble. It would whip out its frog-like tongue, but the tip was hard and enlarged like a rock, and its power was insane. However, contrary to its rock-like appearance, it had paper-thin durability, so it was merciful.

Mob number three, a [Dust Bat] that would occasionally appear from the sky visible through the gaps in the rock walls, possibly a random encounter. I will never forgive this thing. It pecks at you with needle-like sand particles from a place my sword can’t reach, and when you try to counterattack from a distance, it instantly moves away to mock you, and it follows you relentlessly, and the experience points for defeating it are pathetic, HAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!

“Sora-san, finish it!!”

“There goes your personality again…”

As I gave the order in a fit of rage, Sora, who was already getting used to handling her shortbow, moved with a wry smile.

With a fluid motion, she drew her bow, and the released mana arrow struck the unforgivable damn bat without missing its mark.

“How dare you reptiles try to coordinate your attacks…!”

I cursed at the large lizards that had launched a bold offensive, relying on the cover fire from above, and charged forward from my previously retreating position.

Two Wall Lizards were in front of me—despite their size, they were nimble, but without the annoying harassment, they couldn’t keep up with my AGI-maxed legs.

I measured the distance to the giant that was opening its massive jaw to meet me—now!!

“Roar, Acrobatics!!”

I used my newly acquired DEX-assisting passive skill to its fullest, bringing my triple-digit AGI completely under my control.

As a result, my body, which had been running at a speed easily surpassing a short-distance runner, turned at a right angle while maintaining top speed—I leaped, planted my feet on the rock wall, and turned into a pinball.

Rock wall, rock wall, ground, rock wall, wall, wall, wall, ground, wall!!

“This is what gaming is all about!!”

I bounced around inside the passage with movements impossible for any human—or any living creature, for that matter—and sliced the Wall Lizards to pieces with the straight sword in my hand.

Can I be honest? This is SO damn fun!!

“And that’s the end of that!!”

As a finishing touch, I cleanly sliced off the heads of both lizards and landed with a dramatic pose. I then showily spun my straight sword and activated `Quick Change`, and the weapon vanished into thin air with a faint light effect…

To put it mildly, this has to look cool, right—if only my face wasn’t so plain!!

“Ahaha… you’re really enjoying yourself, aren’t you?”

“Well, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime other-world experience, so you have to have fun. My stats have gone up, and I can finally move like this.”

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to try a STR-focused muscle build, but… for now, I’ll focus on mastering the high-speed warrior path.

“‘Like this’… I’ve never seen anyone move like that…”

“Hmm?”

A mutter reached my ears. When I turned my gaze, I was met with a somewhat exasperated, deadpan look from Sora-sama.

“It’s nothing… I’m going to heal you, so please stand still.”

Sora’s healing skill was area-targeted, not player-targeted, so it would apparently dissipate if I moved around too much.

So I understood her warning, but… her tone and expression were exactly like someone scolding a restless child.

Wait, is that the image I’m projecting now?

It’s true that my combat style is becoming like a migratory fish that dies if it stops moving, but… I felt a slight sense of dread as I skimmed through the results screen that had appeared.

EXP gained, items acquired, `Dust Bat Wing Membrane`, `Wall Lizard Rough Claw`, and so on—

“Hmm… so this game probably doesn’t have direct equipment drops, huh?”

It was still early, but so far, all I had gotten from battles, including bosses, were material items.

I’m sure you could get them from events, but it seemed unlikely that regular enemies would drop them.

“What’s the deal with that, professor?”

“P-Professor…?”

Now that I had stepped into this world, I had no intention of continuing my self-imposed information ban. I wanted to avoid major spoilers, but Sora seemed to be a blank slate when it came to strategy, so I probably didn’t have to worry about that.

I would humbly call her professor.

“Um, I’m sorry. My knowledge is mostly from watching videos, so it’s rather narrow and shallow…”

“I see.”

So it’s skewed. She has a shallow understanding of what she knows, but knows nothing about what she doesn’t.

“Oh, but the blacksmith players are famous. The crafting system in Arcadia is said to be incredibly free, and it’s been bustling ever since the service started.”

“Ah, so it’s mainly crafting, huh.”

I received a納得 a flash of healing light and let my thoughts drift to the glittering equipment I had yet to see.

In a game with such a broken level of freedom, you could probably create your own one-of-a-kind equipment. The possibilities were endless.

I wanted to graduate from my plain, store-bought iron sword as soon as possible, so I decided to push forward with clearing the content.