kscans

Chapter 382 - The Reunion and a New Feature

The battle in the Ruined City Clear ended in victory for Hayato and his allies.

The rare monster Last One, or Lee Sladra, had regained her memory just moments before she could defeat Hayato. Afterward, Lunaria defeated Lee and gained command over the golems. With the golems, she assaulted the New Demon Lord's Army and destroyed their Area Stone. The New Demon Lord's Army put up almost no resistance, and the match was decided swiftly. It was said they had given up once their plan to use Last One had failed, but Randa alone suspected something else and was gathering information.

Still, a win was a win. They returned to their base in high spirits, but shortly after, Lee herself arrived. Hayato felt he should hear her out, but he had his cafe job in the afternoon. He asked Relic and Sonia to handle things and logged out.

And then, night came.

Hayato logged in after finishing his work and preparations for the next day to find the usual victory celebration underway at their base. While many members were making a racket, Relic and the others were at a slightly separated table, talking over glasses of wine.

"Never thought I'd end up drinking with you guys."

"It's fun, like a Prison reunion."

"You're not wrong there. Alright, let's drink till we drop today!"

"Stop it. Making wine isn't free, and it takes time."

"Oh, you old folks are no fun. If we don't drink on a day like this, when will we?"

Sonia nodded in agreement at Lee's words, and Relic sighed.

"Sonia, you're close to my age, aren't you? What are you agreeing with?"

"Don't talk about a woman's age. You have no tact."

"Sonia's talking about tact. That's the second surprise of the day."

Lee said this and laughed. On the battlefield, Lee had worn a vicious grin, but here, that smile had changed. She was drinking with genuine enjoyment. When Lee noticed Hayato, she gave a light wave of her right hand and beckoned him over. As Hayato approached, Relic prepared a chair for him, and he sat down.

"I heard a lot from Relic and Sonia. But first, introductions. I'm Lee Sladra. Nice to meet ya."

"I'm Hayato. It's a pleasure to meet you, too. Um, Lee-san, you're..."

"So formal. Lee is fine. And hey, this wine is something you made, right? Let's have a toast to this meeting."

Lee placed a glass in front of Hayato and immediately poured wine into it.

Hayato thought for a moment. He still had things to do, but drinking here wouldn't make him actually drunk. It might make him feel a bit better, but that was said to be a placebo effect. After considering various things, he decided to have "just one glass." He rarely drank in real life, but he remembered that he would at least drink what was offered when he worked in sales.

Hayato drained the glass in one go. It could be called mere grape juice, but drinking in such a cheerful atmosphere made it delicious.

"Looks like you can hold your liquor. Then have another..."

Lee was about to pour more wine into his empty glass, but Relic stopped her.

"Even if this is virtual reality, refrain from pushing drinks on people. Hayato-sama has many things to do after this."

"'Hayato-sama,' is it? You two must be really grateful to him."

"Huh?"

"I heard the story, and it seems Relic and the others are grateful to Hayato. Of course, they're grateful to that Ney and Diite girl too, but it seems Hayato is number one."

"Don't say such unnecessary things. You'll trouble Hayato-sama. I apologize, I would appreciate it if you would ignore what this person says."

"It's difficult to ignore what you just said. I'm grateful to you too, Relic-san and Sonia-san. So we're even."

Hearing those words, Relic and Sonia smiled, looking a bit embarrassed, and nodded.

"Good grief, I'm just full of surprises today. To think I'd see such faces on the worst criminals in Prison, the King and Queen."

King and Queen were names that represented the ranks of criminals in Prison at the time. Relic was King, and Sonia was Queen.

"You were Jack yourself, weren't you?"

At Sonia's words, Lee laughed and said, "So I was."

After that, the topic shifted to Prison, who the Ace was, and how so-and-so might have been the Joker. Hayato couldn't keep up with the conversation, but the names of criminals famous enough to be in the history books came up, along with the fact that they were acquaintances, so it was quite enjoyable just to listen.

However, Hayato couldn't let the conversation end there. When there was a lull in the talk, Hayato looked at Lee.

"Lee-san, there's something I'd like to ask you, if that's alright."

"Of course. Actually, I came here because there was something I wanted to ask, too."

"Oh?"

"You can go first. It might be what I wanted to ask anyway."

"...Alright. Why did you get your memory back?"

"Knew it. I came about that too."

NPCs were humans who had lost their real-world memories and lived in this virtual reality thinking it was real. However, the memory manipulation wasn't perfect. If something happened to jolt their real-world memories, they would recall them with a splitting headache. But in Lee's case, she had shown no signs of that until just before she got behind Hayato.

"About that, I'm a criminal just like Relic and the others. Meaning, I was ordered by the warden of Prison at the time to come here."

"Um, so you have some kind of machine embedded in your body too?"

Lee said, "That's right," and tapped her right temple with her right index finger.

"In the real world, I have a microchip embedded right around here. That thing does all sorts of stuff for me. I heard Relic and the others were the same, so I figured that had to be it."

Hayato nodded. He could accept that, but there was something else he couldn't. Why now?

Ban, who had received orders from Prison in a similar way, had regained his memory and fought Hayato's group before. He had apparently succeeded in having the microchip removed and was now working in agriculture on Colony "Farm," but Hayato didn't know anything beyond that. That was irrelevant. The problem was why they would do something to restore Lee's memory now.

Hayato asked Lee about it, but she just shook her head, apparently knowing nothing. She said no particular orders had come through.

"I was originally sent here to pilot Aphrodite. They figured if Relic and the others took control of this spaceship with hacking, the autopilot would be gone."

"So you can manually pilot a spaceship?"

"Well, yeah. A long time ago, I used to smuggle things not just on the surface but to the colonies, too. Small ships, large ships, I can handle anything. Anyway, they told me if I succeeded in stealing the spaceship, I'd get a full pardon, so I had no choice."

"We had no intention of doing such a thing."

Sonia nodded at Relic's words. Lee held up both her palms and shook her head.

"I figured. Not hearing who the hackers were was my first mistake. If I'd known it was you guys, Sonia, I would've done a lot more. Well, it seems they didn't trust me either, because they sent Ban. Oops, I got sidetracked. So yeah, I don't know why they restored my memories now. On the contrary, I came here thinking that Hayato, who was right in front of me at the time, might know."

"I see. No, I don't know either."

"Hayato-sama, I actually spoke to Ney-sama about a similar matter earlier, and I requested that she investigate Prison, or rather, the current Scorpion."

"What did Ney say?"

"She readily agreed. She should be in the process of contacting Scorpion in the real world right now."

"I see. I'm sorry, I should have been the one to ask."

Hayato said this and bowed his head. In the real world, Ney was Relic and Sonia's employer. Relic and the others were executives at the Libra Foundation's security agency. They also served as instructors and were apparently quite reputable, with a move to a new colony already decided. Hayato imagined it must have been difficult for them to ask their employer for a job. He was certain Ney wouldn't be bothered by such a thing, but he considered Relic and Sonia's hesitant feelings.

Relic flustered at the bowing Hayato.

"No, no, this is a matter that we should be handling, if anything. Hayato-sama, you have so much to do in both virtual reality and the real world, so if you could leave just this one thing to us, nothing would make us happier."

Relic said this with a gentle smile.

(It's amazing how a person can be so unsuited to the word 'criminal'.)

Hayato thought this and bowed his head again. He continued to talk with Lee and the others after that, but he couldn't get any particularly useful information. They settled on waiting for word from Ney.

Meanwhile, Lee began to talk about how frustrated she was that she couldn't log out and that she wanted to go to Earth right away. Apparently, there were vehicles that her comrades had used at their base on Earth, and she wanted to dispose of them and send them to her comrades.

Normally, permission to leave places like Earth's Central, High Bridge, or Big Wall wasn't granted, but apparently, they were going to ask Ney to get permission for this as well.

"That girl is great. She said she'd hire a criminal like me without a second thought. It's because you guys, Relic, have been so well-behaved. I never thought I'd get a job in the real world."

"Let me be clear. If you cause any trouble, neither I nor Sonia will stay silent."

"Ooh, scary. Don't worry, my real self can't push it that hard. I'll live a modest life. Hey, hey, don't look so gloomy."

For some reason, Relic and Sonia made strange faces. In their place, Lee was smiling, but Hayato didn't understand the situation.

"Um, what do you mean?"

"Oh yeah, Hayato is the same, huh."

"Huh?"

"It's a little different from you, Hayato, but I can't walk anymore. I messed up a long time ago, and in the real world, I live in a wheelchair."

"Ah..."

Hayato had also injured his leg, and the fear and pain from that time made his body freeze up, making it difficult to move suddenly. Thanks to virtual reality, he could move quite a bit now. Lee could move so vigorously in virtual reality, but the reality was that she couldn't do the same.

"I'd forgotten I hurt my leg, but I remember the wheelchair. To think I'd make a golem that transforms into a wheelchair, that's pretty ironic, isn't it?"

Lee said this and happily drank wine straight from the bottle.

It should have been a dark topic, but Lee, whether she was being considerate of them or just being herself, seemed to be enjoying herself as if it didn't matter. Hayato understood the feeling. Considering the possibility that she was forcing a smile, he thought about changing the subject slightly.

"Um, did you make that transforming golem, Lee-san?"

"I did. If you have Crafting Skill, Woodworking Skill, and also Riding Skill and Spirit Magic Skill, you can use a magic called Create Golem. Have you heard of it?"

"No, first time I've heard of it. Ah, but there might be players who use it. I think there are players called Doll Masters, so maybe they know about it."

It was widely known that combining skills could lead to other things, but Hayato thought that few people had thought to take both Woodworking Skill and Riding Skill, so it was a little-known combination.

"I thought that golem was something you got as a prize from a Clan War."

"I didn't participate in the Clan War, so I didn't get a prize. But when they asked me how I wanted to live my next life, I hadn't thought about it, so I said I wanted to live while protecting my comrades' graves. And then they made me a monster, isn't that awful?"

"Ah, so that's why you said that."

When Lee appeared before Hayato, she had told him not to desecrate the graves. Hayato understood that in this virtual reality, the Ruined City Clear had been set up as the grave of Lee's comrades.

"I never thought they were asking about what kind of life I wanted in virtual reality. I was just acting as a grave keeper in a place no one ever comes to."

"You've always been bad at listening to people properly."

"What's with that tone? You're not my mother... though your real age is exactly that!"

"You're tactless too. Let me tell you, I'm twenty-eight in the real world, you know?"

"You're lying about your age way too much! What are you thinking, saying you're younger than me?!"

"I look that way, so what can I do? Thanks to young miss Ney, I got a family register that says so, so I'm a genuine twenty-eight."

"Ugh, I can't believe it. You've got a man now, so stop lying about your age."

Sonia and Lee were getting worked up about their ages. Relic must have sensed something. He sent a glance to Hayato, and his mouth formed the words, "Let's leave."

Hayato also had a bad feeling and decided to leave.

"Um, well then, I have things to do, so if you'll excuse me."

"Ah, my bad. Well then, I'll be counting on you from now on."

"From now on?"

"I can't participate in this event's battle, but I plan to cooperate in various ways. My legs don't work, but I want to be buried in the reality where everyone was, so I'd be in trouble if the world were conquered. If I can get out, I have no intention of staying in virtual reality."

"Ah, I see. In that case, I look forward to working with you."

"Sure thing. Hey, hey, why is Relic trying to leave too? You have a duty to explain the situation here, don't you? For starters, go ahead and explain properly what happened with you and Sonia. I'll have a good laugh."

Relic made no effort to hide his displeasure, but he sighed and sat down in his chair again.

"Hayato-sama, please go about your work. I will stay here and make sure Lee doesn't cause any trouble for those around us."

"Ah, yes."

Hayato felt guilty, but he left Relic behind and moved away from the table.

(I feel bad for Relic-san, but I'll have to ask him to hang in there. Now then, let's go talk to the others. After that, it's time to make Excalibur.)

With that in mind, Hayato went to show his face at the other gatherings.

After talking for a while, he returned to his room in the base. There was a lot of information, but what concerned Hayato was the movements of the New Demon Lord's Army. Something was different from before. It was just a hunch, but that's how Hayato felt.

(According to Ivan, Lutz-san was just observing and probably wasn't serious, and as for Nanagi, Benny-chan and Simon said she was mainly defensive and held back on her attacks. They said it was highly likely she was doing so to lure Lee-san to the Area Stone...)

Lutz aside, Nanagi had, until now, completely ignored strategy and just cut down any opponent she saw. Now she was leading allies and acting to lure out Benitsuru and Simon. And the situation where Lee regained her memory at just the right time. Was it a coincidence, or was the enemy doing something? Not knowing was unsettling.

(Hypnos's actions are also a concern... No, I'm not going to find the answer just by thinking about it. I'll leave that to Randa-san. I have to do my best as a production player.)

Hayato thought this and focused on creating Excalibur. The probability was extremely low. He had already created several Philosopher's Stones, but making more would be difficult due to the rarity of the materials and the time required. If he couldn't make it this time, it probably wouldn't be ready for the final battle between Lunaria and Amanda.

Hayato took a deep breath. It wasn't a particularly meaningful action, but when the probability was low, there were times when he wanted to rely on an occult-like routine. In Hayato's case, he relied on an occult belief related to time, like doing it when the second hand overlapped with the minute hand. This was the result of hearing that when processing probability in a program, the system's internal time is often used. The chances of it actually being so were low, but it was also a hunch from experience, having made hundreds of millions of production items like Hayato had.

Hayato confirmed that the Philosopher's Stone and Excalibur Replica were in his item bag. Next, he displayed the menu from his beloved hammer and selected Excalibur. Then, watching the clock, he placed the Excalibur Replica on the anvil in his room and brought the hammer down.

A high-pitched kang echoed in the room. Immediately after, one Philosopher's Stone disappeared from his item bag. Furthermore, the Excalibur Replica also shattered. (Failure means all items are lost. Considering the merit of succeeding, I guess it can't be helped... Alright, next.)

Hayato continued to create Excalibur after that. The sound of the hammer rang out many times in the room, but he failed to create it again and again. (Three more...)

He had many five-star Excalibur Replicas, but not that many Philosopher's Stones. Just to make the Philosopher's Stones, he had asked the members of major clans to go to great lengths. In order not to waste that, he fired himself up to succeed no matter what.

Hayato took a deep breath and waited until the time when the probability seemed to increase, watching the clock. And when the time came, he struck with the hammer. A king, a sound different from usual, rang out. Furthermore, the sword began to glow with a rainbow light.

"Whoa! ...What is this?"

When a five-star item was created, it always glowed with a rainbow light, but this time the effect was long. Furthermore, the entire room shook. Light overflowed from the sword, and the moment Hayato was swallowed by that light, his surroundings became like outer space.

"Huh? What is this?"

He hadn't actually gone to space. It was just an effect. Hayato could feel the floor under his feet, so it just looked like space. Hayato remembered when Diite had taken him to space before and felt a sense of nostalgia. After that, one of the shining stars in space began to move, heading towards Hayato, or more accurately, towards the sword, trailing a tail like a meteor. When it hit the sword, the rainbow light shone even brighter. The light was so dazzling that Hayato covered his eyes with his hand and squeezed them shut.

He waited for a while, and when he felt the light had subsided, he cautiously opened his eyes. The image of space was already gone from his surroundings. It was his usual room. The only difference was that in front of him was not a replica, but the real Excalibur. This was one of the joys of being a production player. The joy of creating a low-probability item was irreplaceable. The fact that there was a special effect he didn't know about was a nice surprise, and Hayato was satisfied.

"I wonder if Diite-chan didn't say anything because of this..."

"Announcement."

Suddenly, the voice of a world announcement echoed.

"Player Hayato has successfully created the Holy Sword Excalibur. I repeat..."

"Huh? It gets announced?"

Hayato was surprised by this, but more than that, the area outside his room was getting noisy. Then the door was thrown open with force. Lunaria was outside the room, with cream on the corner of her mouth. Behind her, Rosalie and the others were peering into the room, holding the sweets and forks they must have been eating.

"I believed you would do it, Hayato-san."

"Thank you. You rushed over in the middle of eating cake, huh? That said, it doesn't have the no durability feature."

"That's something I can handle, so don't worry about it. More importantly, this is a revelation that we should continue the party even if it means staying up late. More cake, please."

"...Is that why you came? Well, alright. Then just wait a minute. I'll make some and bring it over."

Normally he would refuse, but Hayato's spirits were higher than they appeared, so he readily agreed. After Lunaria and the others left, he started making cakes and other sweets, but in the middle of it, he suddenly noticed something. The status window showed that his Blacksmithing Skill was 200.

Hayato hurriedly checked the situation. After a moment, he let out a long sigh.

"My Blacksmithing Skill must have hit 200 with that Excalibur. But what am I supposed to do with this new feature...?"

His Blacksmithing Skill had reached 200, and a new feature was unlocked. It wasn't the "add arbitrary effect" that came with reaching 200 in Sewing Skill, but a "Modification" feature that further strengthened equipment.