Vol 2 Chapter 3 (1/2)

Volume 2 Chapter 3 Part 1

s.h.i.+n and Schnee ran Indian file across the Plains and into the forest. Detouring around the adventurers heading towards the Plains, they set a course straight for Tsuki no Hokora. Along the way, they came upon the base that had been left untouched, and retrieved everything, including the interception items. Apparently, Wilhelm and Ras.h.i.+a had decided to prioritize escaping. Which was not surprising, as Wilhelm would not have been foolish enough to waste time on the items in that situation, so everything was still where they had left it. For s.h.i.+n, leaving the items where they were would have been no loss at all, but then the place posed the danger of being utilized as a fort or fixed artillery battery, so the two of them took care to completely dismantle everything. There were traces of the interception magic having activated, which proved that several Skull Faces had actually been sacrificed to the contraption. As the base wasnt that far removed from the Plains, several of them had made it all the way over here.

Oh by the way, didnt you accept some work? Are you done with that?

s.h.i.+n asked Schnee when he was almost done with collecting the items.

Im not completely done, but my role is pretty much over. What is your role? The safekeeping and redistribution of items. The current job involved an international unit formed by several countries, so I was a.s.signed the role to prevent countries from stealing a march on the others. ...... Is it perhaps related to the uproar just now? Of course. Are you serious ......

s.h.i.+n sighed at how he had just stuck his nose into another large incident, unintended though it had been. Not knowing that it was something big enough for countries to make a concerted move against, he had impulsively went all out. He was regretting it a bit now, but hindsight was 20/20. While asking Schnee for the full details behind the current situation, he wracked his mind trying to remember if there had been any eyewitnesses of the battle. After making conversational noises for a while, he finally concluded that to the best of his knowledge, there hadnt been anyone else aside from Schnee who had been close enough. There were those knights and adventurers that he had helped out with the fireb.a.l.l.s, but they should only be able to confirm the direction from which the fireb.a.l.l.s had come from.

Getting back on topic, dont you have to go distribute those items? Since your role is over, it might be appropriate to head back to wherever their base of operations or meetup point is. Ill be fine for a while. Though Im supposed to split everything fairly and evenly, if I start early then itll become a case of first-come-first-served. Thats why Im waiting for all the squads to get back first. Considering the distance of deployment, it would take roughly a whole week for everyone to reconvene. There is not much need for me to hurry.

Deciding to give up on the issue of the eyewitnesses, as there was nothing that he could do about it at this point, s.h.i.+n asked Schnee about her schedule. If Schnee ran at full speed, she would arrive much earlier than the agreed upon time, so she could afford to spend this time with s.h.i.+n. Both s.h.i.+n and Schnee had so much to ask each other about. While heading towards Tsuki no Hokora, the two of them continued filling each other in on their own current situations.

I have a ton of stuff to ask you, so it might be better if you went first. Its not like Ive a whole lot to say anyways.

In light of the amount of time that they have together, they decided that s.h.i.+n would be the one to answer questions first. In actuality, s.h.i.+n had been in this world less than a month, so there wasnt much to talk about.

Understood. In that case, please allow me to go straight into asking several things on my mind.

Schnee asked s.h.i.+n three things.

Firstly, where he had been up to now. Secondly, why his battle power was so much higher. Thirdly, what his plans are from now on.

She wanted him to go into detail for each and every question.

Alright, lets start with number one. Though you ask me where Ive been up to now, to be honest, for me its been less than a month since I left for that last dungeon. What do you mean by that? As it sounds. You remember when everyone saw me off and I set off to defeat Origin, right? Yes. After that, I defeated Origin. Everything was supposed to have ended then, but there was this gigantic door in the boss room at the lowest level ofGate of the Otherworld, you see. It opened after Origin died.

Explaining everything to Schnee brought his memories of that time to the surface. How the door that he had thought was just decoration had opened with a heavy, grinding sound, and the scene beyond it.

The door ...... you say. Yea. Then thats where I lost consciousness. When I came to, I was lying in the middle of a really big meadow. After that, I went to Tsuki no Hokora and heard a bit about the current times. I was so surprised when I realized that more than 500 years had pa.s.sed since my time! So in summary, I havent actually been anywhere these past 500 years. I see, so thats how it was.

Schnee looked like she believed what s.h.i.+n was saying. A look that spoke of a rea.s.surance that had not been present during heir initial reunion came over her face.

Schnee? Fufu, its nothing. Oooook then.

Question marks were dancing above s.h.i.+ns head as to why Schnee was in a strangely good mood, but he didnt want to pour water on her parade, so he decided to not press further.

Well then, the next one. My battle power, or to be specific, my stats, have risen because of the Gifts that I received from defeating Origin. Gifts, you say? What kind of Gifts are they? There were three in total:Limit Breaker,Accomplished One, andLiberator. The boost to my stats is because of the first two. It was my first time coming across these Gifts, but have you perhaps any knowledge of them? No, all three are Gifts that I have never heard of before. What effects do they have?

s.h.i.+n explained the Gifts succinctly and briefly.Liberatorwas not relevant to his stats, but he explained it as well, feeling that there was also some sort of significance to it.

...... That sounds crazy. I know right. When I first saw my stats I thought it was some kind of a joke.

s.h.i.+n understood completely the current feelings of the Schnee who had just interrupted him. If a Chosen One got their hands on even one of these Gifts, the power balance of the entire world would be destroyed.

However, I dont think there is much to worry about on that count. Why not? Because of the achievement requirements. Though monsters do exist in this world, there has never been the phenomenon of the exact same monster sp.a.w.ning in the exact same location. There will probably never be another Origin again, so it would be impossible for anyone else to defeat it. In addition, the dungeon that Master went to has completely disappeared. I see. Then that would be impossible, youre right.

From Schnees point of view, after s.h.i.+n had left for the dungeon but failed to return even after several days, all of s.h.i.+ns support characters had headed together to the dungeon themselves. However, when they reached the place, the place was completely barren, and there wasnt even a single trace of anything having been there previously. When they later decided to temporarily halt the search and returned to Tsuki no Hokora, they heard reports from other support characters of their own masters disappearing too, and realized that s.h.i.+n most likely had been successful in clearing the dungeon. That led to the question why they themselves had not disappeared, as was the plan. They decided to split up to investigate. Some held out hope that the fact that they had not disappeared as proof that s.h.i.+n might still be in this world. However, the changes in the earths crust had thrown all of the continents into chaos and confusion, so they turned their efforts towards helping those in need. Gradually, with the exception of Schnee, who decided to remain at Tsuki no Hokora, the rest of the support characters split into two groups, one which decided to continue searching for s.h.i.+n and the other which decided to go back home to help and protect their own race. Somehow, s.h.i.+n was able to visualize who went to which group.

But then, wait a second. Does this mean that the Dusk of the Majesty did not occur right after me defeating Origin? Master, considering where Tsuki no Hokora was placed at that time, it wasnt strange at all that the information didnt get to us immediately. Do you remember where we were? ...... True.

s.h.i.+n had noticed a strange time interval before the ruckus caused by the support characters, but as Schnee then pointed out, Tsuki no Hokora had been set up right next to a boss monster area in a remote region. As the support characters were incapable of using the Chat function, it was normal for some time to have pa.s.sed before information made its way over.

Thus, I dont believe anyone else possesses the same Gifts that Master mentioned. But in the off chance that Im wrong, please take care of them, Master. Gonna shove it all on me, huh. Naturally. If someone as strong as us came into possession of those Gifts, Master would be the only one who could stand a chance against them. Therefore, please allow us to leave it all to you if it ever happens. Well, you do have a point.

The greater a persons original strength, the more effective doubling their stats would be.Limit Breakeraside, if a Chosen One with high stats got their hands onAccomplished One, even several Schnees working together might still not be enough to oppose them. With all this said, with the achievement requirements being as impossible as they are and s.h.i.+n being someone who had already maxed all his stats before the Gifts, Schnee did not believe that anyone strong enough to be a threat to the two of them would ever appear.

By the way, Schnee. Yes, what is it? Umm, the way you keep calling me Master, can you change that somehow?

Though it was completely unrelated to the conversation so far, it was something that was really bothering s.h.i.+n. It was alright back during the game because there was a clear distinction of her being an NPC, but it was extremely embarra.s.sing being addressed so in the current circ.u.mstances.

Whats wrong with calling Master Master? I mean, its not exactly a problem ...... OK yea its a problem. Schnee is someone pretty famous in this world, right? If someone like you calls me Master, there will definitely be a huge commotion. Mu, I see your point.

Even s.h.i.+n fully understood the influence of the name of Tsuki no Hokora. The reason for that was undoubtedly Schnee herself. If someone suddenly appears that she would revere as Master appears, theres no way it wouldnt cause waves in the world.

Right? I would like to avoid being the center of attention if possible. Therefore, please stop calling me Master. But then what should I call you by? Eh? Cant you just call me by name like normal? ?! Th-Thats ......

For some reason, Schnee was looking downward and squirming about while opening and closing her mouth silently. After a while, she looked like she had readied herself for something and raised her face to look straight at s.h.i.+n.

Th-Then ...... s.h.i.+n. Ye, yea.

Schnee said it almost as a whisper. Her cheeks were a faint shade of pink, and her ears were completely red. On s.h.i.+ns part, he was thinking Eh, what is up with this reaction?! while embarra.s.sment filled him from head to toe. Schnees reaction was something very commonly seen in manga and games. s.h.i.+n was very familiar with this kind of situation, but his ability to handle it was a different issue altogether. If one was being objective, this situation could be glossed over with a Ah, this always happens, I know this, but it was very hard to do that when it actually happens. It wasnt that s.h.i.+n didnt have any experience with love, but he didnt have so much of it to be unaffected by this. In additional, Schnees expression had rarely changed back during the game, so this gesture of being so obviously embarra.s.sed while looking at himself with upturned eyes and calling his name so softly was extremely, exceedingly, exceptionally moe.

Such ...... destructive power ...... Eh? Ah, dont mind me.Un, really, dont mind me. So yea, lets go with s.h.i.+n from now on. Understood. From now on, I will be calling you by Sh-s.h.i.+n.

Schnee was trying really hard to act calm, but the blush in her cheeks and ears betrayed her. Being so familiar with her normal calm self, this sharp contrast was causing a very intense agony in s.h.i.+ns chest.

(So this is the famous gap moe. I get it ...... because I am so familiar with her normal self, this is proving so much more powerful than when Selica-san does it.)

For a while afterwards, neither of them said anything, busy trying to calm themselves down. The one having the most trouble with it was Schnee, though. After confirming at the corner of his eye that Schnees ears had returned to their normal color, s.h.i.+n resumed the conversation from before.

Ah, we kind of digressed quite a bit, shall we return to the questions from just now? Yes, lets. I apologize for showing you such an unsightly side of myself. Im fine now.

s.h.i.+n felt that her voice was still a bit on the squeaky side, but he let it go in order to continue the conversation.

So, I was pretty much done explaining about my battle strength. So, the last question. For now, I plan on just going to different places and prioritizing information gathering. Information? Yep, before I do anything else, I need to know more about this world first. Im going to do some more research at the kingdoms library, but I do also want to try going to one of those Holy Sites. Have you been to one yet, Schnee? Yes. However, it was a shallow investigative mission, so I still dont know what the center of it is like. I see.

He didnt know if the key to returning to his former world laid inside those Holy Sites or not. The only way to make sure was to go there in person.

Umm ...... s.h.i.+n. Nn?

Schnee called out to s.h.i.+n as he was thinking about going to Holy Sites. Slightly different from before, her voice was now a bit stiff.

If you really do find the way ............ Are you really going to go back? ............ Yes, I am.

He was silent for a while before finally answering. He had noticed how Schnee was, and had been pondering over how to best answer her, but covering it up here was not going to change anything. As long as the possibility existed, he did not intend on giving up. There would be no meaning in giving a vague answer. As for lying ...... there was no way he could lie to her.

...... I see, yes. That makes sense, I suppose. ...... Sorry. Please dont be. From the way you were talking just now, I had already sort of realized that that is what you had decided.

Schnee nodded with an understanding smile on her face. Though it greatly resembled the rea.s.sured look from just now, s.h.i.+n felt a twinge of something being off.

So, Schnee. How much do you remember from before, from back when this was still a game?

s.h.i.+n asked this to put his finger on the sense of unease. Based on several words that Schnee had used in the conversation just now, he kind of saw it coming.

Everything. Everything ...... ? Yes. From when I first came into that place with you by my side. Starting from that time.

All the way up to the current moment. Volume 2 Chapter 3 Part 2

Running through the beginner areas. Being depressed after getting his b.u.t.t kicked in PVP. His eagerness to raise his stats. All hisnakamafrom the guild. Laughing loudly while sending entire armies flying. Risking his life to clear dungeons. Shedding tears for those who he failed to save. Wielding an a.s.sa.s.sins dagger. The promise with that person.

The sight of his back as he left for the last time.

I remember.

Schnee replied softly, pressing her hand to her heart.

Even if you tell me to forget, I will remember. No way I would tell you to forget.

The smile that she was directing his way was so dazzling that he unintentionally responded in a brusque manner. As she had not been able to make this expression back when she was an NPC, s.h.i.+n was secretly a little glad that she could now make a face like that.

Wait a moment. Does this mean that you were saying those programmed lines despite having self-consciousness? Not exactly. Though I did have a self, it was when the death game began that I became fully aware. Before then, it felt like I was watching a movie. Like having an overhead view of myself without feeling any particular emotions.

In other words, Schnee was saying that though it was her own memory, it felt like it was someone elses. It was a very subjective experience, so s.h.i.+n could not empathize. However, he perceived the situation of being fully conscious but completely unable to control ones body as a painful experience, and thus decided to not press the topic any further.

I see. In other words, you also know about the logging out, and everything beyond that.

The true meaning behind the words going back. s.h.i.+n had his suspicions from the way Schnee was talking earlier, and apparently he had guessed right. If she had memories of the game era, then everything makes sense.

Yes. That time, when dying had turned into a real concern, it came to the lips of many adventurers every once in a while. That there was another world different from this one, one that they called real. Yea ............ Oh, I see now, thats why those who set off to look for me split off from those who decided to wait. ............ Yes.

Schnee affirmed his deduction with a troubled smile. The last battle in the death game. If s.h.i.+n wins, then Schnee and the rest would disappear. If s.h.i.+n loses, then they would lose their Master. Whichever way the coin fell, there would be no happy ending. When faced with the baffling situation where s.h.i.+n had clearly won, but they still continued to exist, it was understandable that each of them reached a different answer to the question of what path they were to take next.

You all should have consulted me beforehand is not really something that I should say, huh. If we did, then it would only have served to unnecessarily worry s.h.i.+n. What we did was the best course of action back then. Even if you say so ......

When he had left Tsuki no Hokora, he had done so with full intention of ending things. However, if he had known about this hidden problem of his support characters, it might have caused him to hesitate at a critical moment. In addition, it wasnt like he could have done anything about it even if he had known.

At that time, we were not yet fully autonomous. We had only a small degree of control, and were incapable of speaking like we are doing right now. So it was impossible anyways. Well, come to think of it, I did feel like the NPCs were acting strangely human-like after the death game started. Hearing that you guys were self-aware is making me think about all sorts of things. Your personality is still as difficult as ever, eh, s.h.i.+n? Oh, shut up ...... Leave me alone.

s.h.i.+n responded gruffly to Schnee, who was grinning wryly with a troubled face. When he had learned that the support characters had been self-aware, the first thing that came into his mind was the question Did I treat them right? Schnees remark had been right on the mark.

Even if you knew it, though, you would have gone off to fight. ...... Thats true, yea.

Several tens of thousands of human lives weighed against a bunch of 0s and 1s. Even if the data had a bit of self-awareness, the question of which is worth more was a no-brainer.

And on top of that, you made that promise, didnt you? ............ Yes. Yes I did.

To help as many people as possible go home. That was the promise that s.h.i.+n had made. It was precisely because they knew of that promise that Schnee and the other support characters couldnt say anything.

Alright, how about lets wrap up this solemn atmosphere. Its our long-awaited reunion, after all. ...... Good call. Whatever we say now is too late anyways, so lets call it quits with the dark reminiscing. No more!

Schnee clapped her hands together loudly and adopted a more cheerful stance before the mood got any more depressing. Going along with it, s.h.i.+n decided to raise his voice too.

First of all, were going back to Tsuki no Hokora and having a big party to celebrate our reunion. Dont worry about the ingredients, Ive got a ton of them stored away in my inventory. Good idea! Im going to unveil the results of the many years that Ive poured into my Cooking skill! So, what level is it at now? About a month ago, I finally got it to level IX. Are you serious?!

Now she could cook even high level monsters. At this level, even a simple, low-leveled soup made by her would turn into an amazing dish that grants bonus buffs. In the majority of guilds, chefs were valued as highly as blacksmiths. Making dishes out of rare ingredients could give unbelievable buffs. If two players with the exact same level, profession, and skillset were to fight, the one who ate something beforehand would win, hands down. One of the reasons why Rokuten had been so great, aside from the members and their stats, was because they had a level X chef in the guild. Through eating, maxed out stats could be boosted slightly beyond the cap for a limited period of time. Incidentally, the only people who knew this fact was only s.h.i.+n, who had maxed out all his stats, and the other members of Rokuten. It was they who had noticed that s.h.i.+ns damage output was different from usual due to the food. No one else in the game knew because no one else had been fully capped.

Though Im not as good as Cook-sama, you may keep your expectations up! h.e.l.l yeah! You can count on me for the ingredients!

His eyes swept over the rows of ingredients in his inventory as a fu fu fu escaped from his mouth. They had been in there since the game, but he had already confirmed that everything was still fine to eat.

By the way, s.h.i.+n. Theres something completely unrelated to the questions just now that I wish to ask about. Nn? What is it?

Just as the conversation was taking a lighthearted turn, Schnee asked a question while looking above s.h.i.+ns head.

May I inquire after the ident.i.ty of the one over there? Over there? ...... Oh.

After repeating a bit of her question, he quickly understood. She was talking about Yuzuha, who was sound asleep on top of his head.

I can only see its name and level. Does that mean you Tamed it? Yea, due to certain circ.u.mstances, I ended up contracting it as a partner. Its name is Yuzuha. Ill tell you this only because its you, but its race is Elemental Tail. ............ When I saw the tails, I thought that it was just a demon fox, but I see. So its an Elemental Tail, huh.

Schnee had frozen for a split second after hearing Yuzuhas race. However, she went back to normal almost immediately, as if saying Well, its s.h.i.+n after all.

Tails? ? s.h.i.+n, could it be that you havent realized it yet?

s.h.i.+n tilted his head in confusion, not fully understanding what Schnee was talking about. He didnt remember Yuzuhas tail having such noticeable characteristics. Moreover, plural form?

Just the fact that there are three tails erases any possibility of it being a normal demon fox. Three, you say?

It registered all of a sudden. He realized that he had been feeling a tail hitting him from both behind his head and near his ears for a while already. He raised his right hand and grasped a tail. It was fluffy.

Fumu.

Next, he raised his left hand and grasped a tail. This, too, was fluffy.

......Fumu.

Lastly, he focused his senses on the back of his head. There was indeed a slight perception of fluffiness.

............Fumu.

For now, he let go of the tails, held Yuzuha by its torso, and brought it in front of his face.

Kuu? Indeed, there are three.

Yuzuha woke up from being moved. As it did so, its three tails began to wave to and fro lazily. When s.h.i.+n checked its level, he discovered to his surprise that it was now over level 400.

...... No way, it cant have gone upthatmuch!

Considering that its level had been slightly above 200 earlier, the change was too abrupt. The monsters that they had defeated while raising Ras.h.i.+as level had not been enough to level Yuzuha up even once. With that as a reference, it was ridiculous to think that the fight with the Skull Face Lord afterwards had made Yuzuhas level jump up by almost 200.

All I can think of is that something else must have happened.

s.h.i.+n was convinced that something must have happened without him knowing about it. He had previously heard about the average leveling up rate of partner monsters from Cashmere, another member of Rokuten. Thats why he was so sure. This ridiculous growth spurt was impossible. The first probably explanation that came into s.h.i.+ns mind was that conditions had been cleared for a hidden quest. It had happened to him many times during the game, so he was extremely familiar with it. If his memory served him right, there were indeed quests related to partner monsters.

Schnee, how are hidden quests treated in this world? To the extent of my knowledge, I have never heard of any quests activating. Also, after s.h.i.+n disappeared, I have never again heard the voice from the sky. I havent heard anyone mention anything even remotely similar to it.

The voice from the sky that Schnee was talking about was most likely the system announcements. There were quite a lot of hidden quests in THE NEW GATE that activated when certain conditions were met. Unlike the quests that could be picked up at the Guild, when the activation conditions were cleared, there would be an announcement informing the player of the details of the quest that had just been activated. Originally, this was what s.h.i.+n thought had happened, but there had been no announcement, so he hadnt even noticed Yuzuhas new level. In the first place, according to what Schnee said, the probability that the system was still around was extremely low.

At any rate, is the fact that there are more tails now because of the higher level?