kscans

Chapter 192 - Perspectives Turn

“—…This is bad.”

The moment he saw the water-filled field, a bitter mutter escaped Goldow’s lips.

“This is very bad…”

“Oh dear…”

Hinayo and Mi-na, popping up on either side of him, followed suit with wry smiles. They all glanced in the same direction, towards the tenth-ranked boy, the [Undying] Tetra.

“No good?”

“It’s no good, obviously.”

As the adjacent Ri-na tilted her head, he stated it bluntly with a sullen look.

“What’s the plan? There’s no way I can do any stealth operations in this.”

“I know…”

Tetra's originally planned role was the “assassination of a certain player”—the target being a Southern rank holder who would be a natural enemy to the new ninth seat (Ninth) making his grand debut in this war.

Sotalm’s fourth-ranked player, [Full Auto]—player name [Fuji].

Ever since entering the ranks along with the South’s fifth-ranked [Adamant], he has been a constant participant in the Four Pillar War. He’s a mage.

Being a high-ranking player naturally meant he was a monstrously strong opponent, but his particular characteristics were recognized by everyone except Haru himself as being extremely effective against their new face… [Haru the Acrobat].

An enemy to their point-getter, whose performance was directly tied to victory or defeat—it was no exaggeration to call him the top-priority elimination target for this battle.

That was why the role had been assigned to Tetra, who could completely shut down the [Full Auto] player through a thorough game of matchups, but…

“Just so you know, getting close to him without stealth is impossible. I’ll just get riddled with holes and become another ‘Undying (lol)’ meme. That’s how it’ll end.”

“I know that. Dammit… what do we do?”

The stage for the Four Pillar War is always unknown until entry. With one exception, there had never been an environmental setting that significantly affected strategy before…

—Compared to the hellscape of flowing lava rivers, perhaps this was still on the milder side.

“Should I act as your escort and we take him down together?”

Irori made the suggestion, but Goldow shook his head.

“If rank holders are moving in a group, that Fuji guy will never show his face. His motto is ‘turn back from a battle you can’t win.’”

“...Even if we chase him, if he runs into Haru, it’ll be a disaster. Well, I’ll leave the thinking to you.”

“Yeah. You and Genkotsu can proceed as planned and charge in once the maze opens.”

For ten minutes after transferring to the field—a grace period likely intended for situations just like this—it is impossible to enter the maze area.

At the end of the long, wide, water-filled path, he pointed to the gaping fissure in the black rock and told them to stand by. The [Sword Protector] and [Twin Fists] both nodded and walked off.

“I… think I should go provide some support.”

“I’m counting on you. Go get the mobile units organized.”

Seeing the players who seemed unsettled by the unexpected environment, Hinayo found her task and left the circle as well—

“Hey, Gossan. Is big brother even going to be okay in this?”

“Huh?”

All that remained were Tetra, waiting for an alternative plan, and the pair of Mi-na and Ri-na, who would be on defense duty at the base. Mi-na splashed her feet in the water as she looked towards the castle where ‘big brother’ was waiting.

For various reasons, the underground castle Ruvalest is normally embedded in a mysterious space, but the version that manifests on the Four Pillar War field is a spatially synchronized replica. Thus, its bizarre, hybrid Japanese-Western appearance could be seen now.

At any rate, the girl’s attention was not on the familiar building, but on the young man inside, waiting for his cue.

“Stealth is one thing, but this is bad for a runner, too, right? I’ve never played an agility build, so I don’t know, but can you even run on a field like this?”

“I don’t think so.”

“No way.”

To Mi-na’s tilted head, Ri-na answered with knowledge, and Tetra answered with experience.

“The game's 'environmental correction' is more pronounced than in reality.”

“It pretty much ignores avatar stats. No matter how extreme your agility build is, trying to run in water like this will put a huge strain on you and drain your stamina like crazy.”

“I see… So, Ri-na-chan, where did you study up on that? It makes me look as clueless as big brother, so please stop.”

“Information is everywhere on the net.”

“There’s so much I don’t know what to look at…”

While squishing her deadpan partner’s cheeks with both hands, Mi-na turned back to Goldow. “So?”

“What about our dear big brother? If the runner can’t run, the whole strategy falls apart—”

“He won’t have to worry about that.”

The one who answered the girl’s question was not the general standing before her. The trio of smaller players turned to see a male player in red robes with flaxen hair.

“Yo, Rotta—you done?”

“Perfectly. General Commander.”

Brushing off the girl who started playfully clinging to the familiar face, the [Insightor] handed the scroll in his hand to Goldow.

With a firm nod, he opened it—and on it was a map of a complex, winding maze. The entire layout of this 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 former title holder’s [Insightor] authority and his own skill.

In the Four Pillar War, where the system’s map function is sealed, how quickly one can reveal the full extent of the giant maze is a crucial factor affecting the battle.

Each faction has its own specialist who has mastered map-making as a personal skill, like Rotta—but the East’s [Insightor] is praised as being unparalleled in both accuracy and speed.

He has contributed greatly to victories and good fights in past Four Pillar Wars; it would not be an exaggeration to call him the hidden cornerstone of their strength.

…Having said that.

Thanks to the efforts of Hinayo and the various squad leaders, the troops have more or less settled down.

The grace period will soon be over, and the path to the maze will open.

He had received what he needed from his steadfast right-hand man, who had been with him since they entered the ranks together.

—Then, all preparations were complete.

He took a dramatic step forward, and the players who had been watching the general’s every move in the final moments before the opening reacted. They straightened up, naturally forming ranks, and he walked out into the center of them—then, the [General Commander] touched a finger to his temple and spoke.

“It’s about time for your entrance. Come on out.”

Was he still nervous, or was he getting impatient from the wait? He sent the message through the war-time exclusive skill 《Telepathy》, and a reply came from the back of his mind—

“Yeah. What? Don’t be such a downer. Times like these call for a flashy entrance… alright, alright, I get it.”

He remained perfectly composed, even as he drew the attention of nearly three hundred people. He continued his conversation with ‘someone,’ seemingly unburdened, and looked up at the sky.

“Do as you please—it’s time for your debut, [Acrobat].”

In that instant.

Before they could even process the name they’d heard,

Before they could follow his gaze to the sky,

A figure of white and azure descended silently beside him, capturing every single line of sight.

A white costume woven from feathers, with armor the color of the night sky protecting his limbs.

Many were drawn to the overwhelming presence of the dagger at his waist—and then they strained their eyes to see into the darkness beneath his deeply drawn hood.

It must have had a concealment effect. All that could be glimpsed was his mouth, from which they could barely infer that he was a young man.

“A formal self-introduction would be pretty lame. Got anything to say, Haru?”

“Huh, a word…—uh, um…?”

And the voice that escaped his twitching lips in response to Goldow’s words was, as many had guessed, that of a young man.

Not quite panicking, but he—[Haru the Acrobat]—scratched the top of his hooded head in distress.

“...He……………………Hello? Nice to meet you?”

—The moment I delivered what I myself knew was a PAINFULLY lame greeting.

Gossan, who couldn’t hold back his laughter at my pathetic display, and the red-haired girl with a provoker’s smirk incarnate, both jabbed me from either side.

Groaning in this extremely unwelcome environment, I turned my head in search of an ally… only to see the composed face of Ri-na, and the face of my junior, who was trying to look composed but was clearly holding back laughter.

And Rotta, who was just casually standing there. Hey, you, what’s with that outfit?

So not only were you a former rank holder, you weren’t even a swordsman to begin with? You completely fooled me, I will NEVER forgive you.

“Just forget it… let’s just get this started already…”

As the red-haired girl, who must have had nothing better to do, shook me back and forth, I let out a sigh and decided to escape reality by staring at the big, beautiful moon.

—In my mind, of course, I didn't forget to start the countdown for her punishment.

Five seconds later, it goes without saying that a fool's scream echoed through the starry sky.