Chapter 182: Chapter 117: Embracing the Light of Ambition Part 3 Part 1

「…… The boss of this area is known as “Dragon Usurper”……」

「…… Umm.」

「The tricky part about this fight is that it uses “Steal” magic to snatch magic attacks and skills and shoot them right back at its opponent.」

「Hmm, I see, I get it…… I don’t get it, really……」

「Additionally, since it is a dragon-type monster it can fly in the sky and breathe fire, so it is important to know when to attack and when to switch to defense, kind of like a turn-based battle.」

「Fumu, fumu, so basically it’s like and old school RPG, when you and your opponent throw attacks at one another interchangeably……」

「…… Also, once its HP drops below a certain amount, its attack patterns and behavior will change as well. For example, when in “dying” state, it will try to steal skills and even weapons from the player…… If it catches you off guard, your weapon will be stolen. But it can drop the weapon if dealt enough damage, so you can always get it back.」

「Yeah, it’s cool and all that, but say…… Aren’t we lost?」n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

「…… No, I don’t think so?」

Rei replied to me with a really unnatural voice. The sun was already set and the moon was already high in the sky, illuminating the surrounding with its silvery radiance.

No, I mean, I know that I’m still a newbie when it comes to this game, but I’m already a level ninety nine player. I have some experience and even if this area was larger than anything else in this game so far, it wasn’t possible for someone to be lost inside it for a couple hours straight.

「…… Umm, sorry about that.」

「Ah, no, it’s not that I mind. It’s just that, I’ve been wondering about that for a while now……」

But saying that seemed to have quite the opposite effect on Rei, who started to apologize even more than before.

In fact, this little detour of ours allowed me to get some good item drops and my pockets were starting to be filled more and more, so it wasn’t an entirely bad thing.

And even if we are lost now, we still have time to reach Fifthsia by tomorrow morning, so no worries on my part.

But with the mood suddenly becoming so depressed, I needed to come up with a topic to direct the conversation somewhere else. However, since we talked so much already, I was afraid that most of the topics we could talk about now were already exhausted. Something else that we could talk about…… Oh yeah, that’s right!

「I know that ShanFro’s engine is amazing, but won’t you take a look at that! The moon looks so beautiful tonight!」

There are many games that utilize Western-like landscapes, but none of those games could possibly hold a candle to ShanFro at the current moment.

VR, Virtual Reality…… Even though the scenery and images in the night sky are based on the real world, in here they still looked different, but not any less beautiful than in the real world.

Not to mention that the game even took care of the weather conditions, for the night air is much colder than during the daytime. Talk about a high quality.

「T, this is, I think I could die happily right now……!」

「WHY!?」

Was the moon too beautiful to her or something like that? And why was she looking at me instead of the moon? What was that all about? And why was she looking like a samurai ready to commit Seppuku right now?

「Come on now, I know that we can respawn and all that, but don’t you think that dying just like that over nothing is a little bit much? Instead, why don’t we enjoy this game to the fullest, huh?」

「He……? Ah, t, that’s right! The graphics in this game surely are realistic…… Hahaha…… Hahahahahahahaha…… Haaaaaah……」

Did she think I meant something else? Oh well, doesn’t really matter. Even though it was the middle of the night and I had problems seeing her facial expressions, it shouldn’t really be that much of a problem.

「Say, Rei? Does the monsters change in here depending on the time of the day?」

「They do, as a matter of fact. In this area, one of the most dangerous monsters at night time is a monster called “Majority Hound”. They usually appear in packs.」

「Ah, oh, is that so? Good to know.」

Majority Hound……? That bastard, huh……? Or maybe these ones differ in some way or another?

「But there are also monsters that can apply various curses, so we need to watch out for them……」

「Ara, won’t you look at that? If it isn’t Sanraku and “The Strongest One” Saiga-0.」

Suddenly being called by our names like that, together with Rei we turn towards the place from where the voice originated.

「…… Animalia, -san?」

「Ara, it is an honor to have such fine Top Players remember my name.」

If only she was alone. Behind Animalia, there were a dozen players all fully equipped and looking as though they were going to war. Not your typical Sunday picnic, I suppose.

「Sorry for prying, but…… What are you doing here, you guys?」

「…… Capturing a zone, as you can see?」

「Is that so……? You wouldn’t think that judging by how heavily equipped you guys are. Double Booking, perhaps?」

Double Booking? Is there some event that is currently going on here? I turn towards Rei, but she just shakes her head, apparently not knowing anything about it.

「Arthur Pencilgton, that bastard, and that other asshole…… I knew that you guys may be hiding something, so I was right to doubt you. And won’t you look at that? So could you not get in our way? Or you can try to stop us, go right ahead, but surely you realize that we have an advantage here and that going against us would be a really foolish endeavor, right?」

「Ah, wait, wait, wait just a second! What the hell are you talking about? Weren’t you all supposed to go to Rabbitz or something?」

Why is this woman so hostile towards me all of a sudden? Could it be something Rabbitz-related? Sure thing, I am hiding something from them, but they shouldn’t have discovered it yet, so they had no reason to be hostile?

Whatever their deal, the members of SF-Zoo with Animalia in front of them were now armed and ready to fight. Were they so angry at me that they decided to convert into a PK guild? That would be the worst development possible, but for now there was still something fishy about this whole situation.

「Umm, forget about it. We asked you for a surefire way to visit Rabbitz constantly, but now it doesn’t even matter…… It’s okay. Sorry to say this, but what say you we burn it to the ground?」

「…… I don’t seem to follow. What’s the full story? What the hell are you even talking about?」

「I’ll tell you…… If you promise that you and this here Saiga-0-san get the fuck out of here right this instant.」

I cast a quick glance at Rei and she nods her head. Apparently Rei seemed to understand and lowered her sword, which she had at the ready this whole time.