"That's total cheating!"
650: Anonymous Adventurer: 2059/05/02 (Tue) 11:43:35 ID: Ia13nig10T
"Isn't that cheating?!"
651: Anonymous Adventurer: 2059/05/02 (Tue) 11:44:09 ID: sUo5tONan0t
"I envy those who possess blessings!"
652: Anonymous Adventurer: 2059/05/02 (Tue) 11:45:50 ID: HkOj33sSn
"By the way, a fully equipped blessed individual has top-tier weapons and armor, mastery of combat skills and magic, and their avatar's physical abilities are rumored to be high-spec."
653: Anonymous Adventurer: 2059/05/02 (Tue) 11:46:35 ID: Ia13nig10T
"That's just cheating!"
654: Anonymous Adventurer: 2059/05/02 (Tue) 11:47:32 ID: lip9S616rm
"That's cheating!"
655: Anonymous Adventurer: 2059/05/02 (Tue) 11:47:35 ID: Ia13nig10T
"It's totally cheating!"
656: Anonymous Adventurer: 2059/05/02 (Tue) 11:48:09 ID: sUo5tONan0t
"I'm so envious of those who have blessings! So envious! So envious! So envious!"
657: Amishu: 2059/05/02 (Tue) 11:50:11 ID: Am3Sh6sh
"Oh, by the way, I also have an A-class blessing with infinite magic power! (*ノωノ) Eek!"
658: Anonymous Adventurer: 2059/05/02 (Tue) 11:51:50 ID: HkOj33sSn
"Wait, what?! What a surprising confession right now!"
To reach Drake's lair, one must traverse the magical wilderness swarming with magical creatures south of the water city of West Yolpa and navigate the dragon valley where flying Drakes roam.
We were now racing across the treacherous wilderness on two running Drakes.
"Ugh, what a pathetic sight we are…"
"Hey, hey, hold on tight or you'll fall off!"
Trinity teased me as I clung to Ava's waist.
The riding technique for a running Drake is similar to that of a horse, so most adventurers can manage it.
…But I had never ridden a horse in my life.
That's why I ended up tandem riding with Ava, who somehow knew how to handle a horse.
There was also a suggestion to ride behind Trinity, but she didn't have much riding experience either, and my pride refused to let me rely on her.
By the way, most beginner adventurers from another world can't ride horses, so there are guides who start them with riding lessons for long-distance travel.
"Two o'clock, three life signs. What should we do?"
"Of course, we'll detour."
Ava was running the Drakes while scanning for threats, allowing us to avoid combat with monsters so far.
However, even though we were managing to steer clear of battles, the number of monsters detected by Ava was alarmingly high.
"Eight o'clock, several dozen. Definitely monsters moving in a pack.
They don't seem that fast, so let's pick up the pace and shake them off."
"Maybe it's a giant ant—a C-rank monster. Normally, it would be classified as D-rank, but because they act in swarms, they are treated as C-rank.
It's true that monsters that form hordes can be quite troublesome. However, being D-rank means that with the right approach, they are definitely not unbeatable.
"Really, this cursed wasteland is teeming with C-rank monsters. Who knows, I might even run into a B-rank Ava the Angolem... Why on earth am I sprinting through a place like this?"
Trinity gazed into the distance with a look of resignation. For D-rank adventurer Trinity, this dark wasteland was an area she'd rather avoid, and her feelings were entirely understandable. But, well, one could say she brought this upon herself.
"Three o'clock, five monsters. Ten o'clock, three monsters."
"Hey, isn't that an overwhelming number?"
"Yeah, it is. Normally, we shouldn't encounter this many monsters."
Ava, who had a good grasp of the monsters' positions, skillfully navigated through the gaps between them. Yet, things don't always go smoothly in life. Just ahead, as if lying in wait, another monster blocked their path.
"One o'clock, three monsters. This is definitely one we can't dodge. What do we do?"
If we double back and take a wide detour, we should be able to avoid them."
This will consume quite a bit of time.
"Let's take care of the monster in front. Ava and I will handle it, so Trinity, please provide support from the back."
"Got it."
"What!? Are we really going to fight?"
Drake sprinted forward, allowing us to confirm the monster's appearance.
It had the head of a lion, the body of a goat, the tail of a snake, and the wings of a bat—a classic fantasy chimera.
"Wait! A chimera?! Even if it's classified as B-rank, it's definitely a dangerous C-rank creature!"
I can't afford to waste time on Trinity's complaints right now.
Ava and I dismounted from Drake and readied our swords.
Fighting while mounted would be impossible, so we had to hit the ground first.
Trinity also got off, pushing the two Drakes behind her.
This Drake is quite smart; unless something very serious happens, it won't stray far even during combat.
"Ava, blast!"
Ava took the initiative, unleashing a burst of ice magic that hit all four chimeras.
Wait, how can she use magic as a beginner?
Could it be that her being a beginner is just a cover, and she's actually a seasoned player?
One of the chimeras flinched, but the other two were enraged and charged at Ava.
Nevertheless, she handled the situation calmly and without panic.
With a water-blue sword at the ready, I charged at the chimera.
"Graaa!"
"Graaah!"
Though I had swung the sword sideways, it somehow left three deep gashes across the chimera's face.
"No way, that's the tri-edge sword technique..."
From behind, I heard Trinity's astonished whisper, indicating it must be a high-level skill.
Seriously, who is Ava?
"Suzanne, please take care of the chimera behind us. I'll handle these two," Ava said confidently.
I felt a strange sense of protection from Ava. However, judging by the earlier battles, it was clear she was the strongest among us. A twinge of frustration flickered within me as a man, but I obeyed her orders and moved toward the chimera behind us.
Standing before the chimera again, the fear of exposing myself to such a monster made me freeze. When I faced the horned rabbit, I hadn't felt much fear—it was merely a giant rabbit—but the chimera was a true predator, radiating a palpable aura of menace, even in VR.
In a game, standing before a monster seems normal, but in reality, it's clearly a reckless act. If you think about it, no one can be expected to confront bears or tigers just because they're holding a katana.
Yet, succumbing to fear and doing nothing would mean I couldn't help Yuki.
I suppressed my fear and steeled myself with killing intent as I faced the Chimera.
Recovering from its moment of hesitation, the creature lunged at me with a vicious bite.
"Grrr!"
I sidestepped with a quick step forward, avoiding its jaws, and as we passed, I slashed with my sword technique.
This time, unlike with the Horn Rabbit, I felt the blade slice through tougher flesh.
"Damn, it's tough. No surprise for a C-rank monster."
The Chimera immediately pivoted and swung its claws at me.
I took a quick step back to create some distance. As its claws came down, I rushed forward, unleashing my sword technique again, this time aimed at its head.
"Take this!"
My blade, enhanced by its Luna Metal composition, successfully cleaved the Chimera's skull. Yet, true to its nature as a magical beast, it still tried to attack me despite its broken head.
I saw it take a deep breath, a prelude to its fire breath attack.
Panicking, I attempted to back away, but before I could, a rope entangled its leg.
"Ruf=Grand Rope Sword Style: Whirling Piercing Shot!"
Trinity spun the rope around, pulling it in with her right hand to draw the Chimera closer.
Using the momentum from the entangling, I thrust my short sword, held in reverse grip, into the Chimera's throat.
Just before unleashing its fiery breath, a muffled explosion erupted from the Chimera's throat, and it collapsed lifelessly.
"Phew, that was a close one. Better be grateful!"
Trinity said, grinning widely as if the victory was entirely his own.
While I appreciated the help, the truth was, I had drawn its attention, allowing Trinity to strike.
"Yeah, thanks. So, that rope wasn't meant for binding otherworlders, huh?"
"What?! Of course not! Are you saying anyone with a rope hanging from their waist is a criminal?!
That rope is for my martial arts style! Well, I did use it for a different purpose that time..."
His voice trailed off at the end.
On another note, it seemed a new term had surfaced.
"Is the martial arts style you mentioned earlier 'Ruf=Grand Rope Sword Style'?"
"That's right. I'll explain the details later. For now, we should get out of here as quickly as we can."
He was right. The monster in front of us was defeated, but others were approaching from both sides.
Glancing over at Ava, I saw she had no trouble at all; both Chimeras lay dead at her feet.
Upon closer inspection, one of them had its head severed.
"I'm not charging in again..."
"I get how you feel, but it's best to face reality...
Anyway, let's get out of here quickly."
I called back Drake, who had been standing a little away, trying to mount him, but Ava stopped me.
"Wait a second! Since we're here, let's take the Chimera with us.
Trinity, you can gather some materials from the Chimera, right?"
"Uh, yeah. You can extract the core magic crystal from it... but seriously, even taking one would be a stretch, right?"
Ava smiled and began casting a spell.
"Shadow Gauge."
With the magic released, Ava's shadow distorted unnaturally and rippled outward.
Trinity looked at Ava in disbelief.
I was shocked too.
This was the storage magic that Ava had mentioned—rarely mastered by anyone.
"What?! Ava, what do you mean?! I had no idea you could use Shadow Gauge!"
"Oh, yeah. I learned it while waiting for Trinity in the capital."
Wait, learned it? That's not something you just pick up easily!
Meanwhile, Ava was placing three Chimeras into her shadow.
"Is my sense of logic completely off here? Seriously?"
"Didn't we decide not to get involved anymore?"
I couldn't blame Trinity for feeling that way. Ava was truly exceptional—there was no denying it. As she had mentioned, this situation worked in my favor as well. Even though it meant leveraging Ava, her abilities were indispensable for finding Yuki, especially with our next destination being the lair of Drake, which had an A-level danger rating.
"Look, monsters are closing in from the 4 o'clock and 8 o'clock positions," Ava observed.
"We should get out of here quickly. Trinity, stop avoiding reality and let's move."
"I'm not avoiding reality! I was questioning your common sense!"
◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇
After that, we found ourselves surrounded by monsters again, forcing us to charge through several times. Thanks to our efforts, we managed to escape the cursed wasteland before sunset and reached the entrance of the Dragonfly Valley.
"This is as far as we go for today. It's too dangerous to traverse the valley after dark."
"Yeah, I'm not reckless enough for that."
"Then we need to set up camp."
Even though we had emerged from the cursed wasteland, camping right in the open wouldn't be wise. So, I asked Trinity to find a suitable spot, and we moved there. Once our camp was set up, we grilled the leftover chimera meat from the magic crystals we had harvested and prepared for dinner.
"If Ava could use the Shadow Gauge, I would have prepared better food," I mused.
"True, just meat alone isn't very nutritious. It fits the adventurer vibe, though," came the reply.
For travel rations, dried meats are the mainstay, as they last long. They merely fill the belly, with taste taking a backseat.
As Trinity pointed out, if I had known Ava could use the Shadow Gauge, I would have packed some vegetables and spices, making for a more lavish dinner.
"Well, it's still good," I said, sinking my teeth into the grilled meat, only to be met with a predictable retort.
"This is why men are the way they are..."
"Young folks just love their meat!"