Believer, the Red Pill Is a Secret!

On a peaceful afternoon, at lunchtime, when the sun had just begun to tilt from its zenith.

The street, which had seemed peaceful as always, was engulfed in flames in an instant.

Because they had trained for contingencies, including an emergency communications network, citizens immediately began evacuating to the subway, Climber guild buildings, or the Association.

The drills they had repeated regularly, born from the vague fear that Incheon Tower might collapse someday, saved countless lives from the sudden terrorist attack.

From firefighters to police officers and soldiers stationed in Incheon, everyone was dispatched to suppress the rampaging monsters.

And among them were the Climbers ascending Incheon Tower.

"President, could this be the work of the [Six Great Evils]?"

"Isn't it obvious?"

Despite the grandiose name, that was what the world called the Climber terrorists trying to bring down the six continents where people lived.

They had no unified belief.

One had awakened just before being unjustly executed and wanted to change the nation's system.

Another believed they were chosen beings and wanted to exterminate the old humans who could not keep up with the new humanity known as Climbers.

Another destroyed everything to become the master of a country using the strength they had gained.

Another simply wanted to rampage however they pleased, following their desires.

Another wanted to destroy civilization through a Tower collapse, believing that the Tower had been sent by God to judge humanity.

And another was ashamed and unable to bear it because their profession was fucking goats.

Their missions, goals, and beliefs differed so completely that it was almost miraculous they did not treat one another as enemies.

That was why the World Government suspected a mastermind controlling them from behind the scenes—but even after ten years, criminals, terrorists, and socially maladjusted individuals continued to appear.

Even if the Tower filtered out extreme candidates, it was impossible to prevent people with indescribably broken personalities and twisted desires from emerging.

When the Towers first appeared, how many cities vanished after people attacked and destroyed them, triggering Tower collapses? Some orphans who had grown up without parents in those places were chosen by the Towers. The [Six Great Evils] were an independent faction that sometimes took such people into their ranks.

They were a group of madmen with connections to one another, but could never be called a team.

On top of that, they had followers, so there was no shortage of headaches. At least every one of them had their 『identity』 completely revealed by the Tower, but most possessed the extreme occupation of 『Legendary Class』, making them difficult both to restrain and to kill.

"It doesn't look like they came to cause a Tower collapse."

The Association president calmly observed the scene outside the window as he assessed the situation.

As the country's greatest source of power, he was in no position to act rashly. If he moved before determining exactly what they intended or what they were targeting, he might end up acting according to their plans.

For now, it did not seem that they were aiming for a Tower collapse.

Although every Tower had different gimmicks and characteristics, and their collapse conditions varied widely, they could be broadly divided into three common categories.

1.Leave the Tower unattended. Most Towers collapse this way.

2.Collapse the Tower from outside. The higher a Tower's floors, the greater its durability; a 100-floor Tower like Incheon Tower would not collapse unless a nuclear missile was dropped on it.

3.Clear the Tower and cause a Tower collapse. This was effectively the easiest category.

After clearing a Tower, one could hand the items and equipment obtained there to someone else and abandon Tower climbing, losing every ability gained through climbing.

It was an utterly insane thing to do, but the difficulty of a Tower increased with each cumulative clear, even if it was a low Tower.

That was why the Association president no longer climbed Towers.

However, abandoning the climb also erased the number of clears.

Even then, the cleared Tower did not return, but their goal was a Tower collapse in the first place.

They equipped themselves with the best gear, climbed the Tower quickly, and deliberately destroyed it.

"Have new personnel been added to Incheon Tower?"

"No. All they did was release monsters. We are subduing the followers, but... we believe they came down from Seoul after crossing the sea from China."

"They're really digging at a painful wound...."

The release of countless monsters was probably the work of the vile [Collector]. Had the bastard obtained a 『Legendary Class』 by collecting people as well?

A man in this age who broadcast sadistic acts involving people and did not hesitate to violate every principle of humanity.

But in terms of greed, he was arguably the most depraved of the [Six Great Evils]—so crazed with lust that he might have been insane.

"It seems they are after the same goal as us. What do you think? Do you think Department Head Won Da-hye can handle it?"

"Ah, well... we've just received a request for support. [Drake] is currently heading toward the operational area."

"......Why are you only telling me that now?"

"You were smiling, President, so I assumed you were confident..."

The future of this country was bleak. The Association president sighed so deeply that the ground seemed to sink.

Why did he suddenly miss the days when he could simply run into the field and beat things senseless?

"With the next Association president right beside us, what is there to worry about? As long as no unexpected incident occurs, we should be fine."

"That unexpected incident is exactly why we received a request for support...."

"You're taking a pay cut."

※※※

Department Head Won Da-hye did not panic at the sudden terrorist attack.

Someone as promising as Wakamo Inarizushi was more than worth targeting.

Especially with her unusual identity as a fox god and her confidence in revealing herself instead of hiding behind her broadcasts. It would have been strange if she had not become a target.

That was why she could not help remaining tense, wondering where one of the [Six Great Evils] might emerge.

Although she might not look it, she was a Climber who had cleared Chungju Tower's Floor 50, so a mere handful of monsters could be handled with the guns she carried without even using a [Skill].

Her level of combat experience was simply different.

While helping the citizens evacuate, shooting the apparent followers on the spot so they couldn't try anything, she received situation reports from the agents stationed around the collaboration venue.

A [Drake] from Floor 22 had appeared.

Perhaps it was in a frenzy; with bloodshot eyes, it moved faster than an ordinary Drake.

She immediately ordered the team members under her command to stall it as long as possible while she made her way there.

'Manager Wakamo is maintaining her VTuber concept. She probably put on that lousy disguise because she doesn't want to reveal herself in front of people any more than necessary.'

Who could fail to recognize a giant that size?

They simply refrained from speaking to her because they understood the consideration owed to a VTuber's red pill.

Everyone standing in that line was there to enjoy the collaboration event because they liked VTubers.

And Department Head Won Da-hye knew better than anyone that the manager was crazy about VTubers.

Even after losing her divine powers and becoming unable to use sorcery, she had rushed out to attend the event that had been moved forward, despite it being reckless and practically impossible.

'There is no doubt that information leaked from somewhere.'

Moving the collaboration forward ahead of schedule had been a joint effort by the Climber Association and the government.

It had been an event on the scale of a single company at most, so naturally, government support had sped up the preparations. It was an overseas collaboration, and they had prepared the limited-edition collaboration goods in advance, which was why such an unreasonable schedule had been possible.

Conversely, this meant that the [Six Great Evils] had noticed the schedule had been moved up and launched a terrorist attack.

Their target was none other than [Wakamo Inarizushi]!!

No matter how talented she was, she was still a bottom-floor Climber on Floor 9.

Fighting a [Large Monster] thirteen floors above her would have been reckless, with an obvious death awaiting her.

'There aren't any other large monsters! This is so blatant!'

The Association had made a mistake by failing to account for a situation like this.

She would try to hide her identity as a VTuber, so she probably would not step forward to fight, but if this incident caused her to hole up completely, they would be in trouble.

If they missed this opportunity, they might have to wait until next year at the earliest, and even then, they might have to go to Japan to find her!

However.

An unexpected incident far worse than the trouble she had imagined erupted.

"What?!"

Along with an urgent report from an agent, what she encountered as she ran across the tops of buildings was—

A Drake resembling a Tyrannosaurus resurrected from ancient times into the modern era, racing furiously down the road and crumpling cars like empty cans as it ran.

And standing in front of that Drake, having thrown off her hat, was the Fox God!!

※※※

Countless thoughts flashed through my mind.

A mother screaming as she hugged her daughter. People scattering in panic.

There were simply too many people gathered there, and as they moved frantically, they became tangled up, collided, and fell, making the commotion grow worse.

"Freeze!!!"

A shout that struck the eardrums.

The commotion stopped at that cry, and everyone's attention focused on me.

"Believer, you know the red pill is as important to a VTuber as their life, right?"

I smiled at and looked toward the believer, who was staring so blatantly that there was no way they could possibly have failed to recognize me. Several young men standing there blankly nodded.

Because of their consideration for VTubers, they had recognized Wakamo but refrained from speaking to her and kept their distance.

Since they could not upload photographs, they would probably do no more than write a post on the community.

A red-pill crisis already on my sixth day of VTubing.... But I was the one who had run out because I wanted to attend the collaboration. And there were so many people here who liked VTubers.

A child holding their mother's hand might even have been on their first overseas trip. When they ought to be making a happy memory, surely I couldn't let this become the worst day of their life.

My red pill won't be exposed anyway!!

There was something more important than preserving that appearance. Since I loved the efforts and passion of VTubers, what could I do for the fans—as a Climber who streamed as a VTuber and cared about her viewers? Though I had never signed an autograph before, I had none to give.

"Today is a good day. The dream collaboration I've wanted so badly is finally happening."

I stepped out into the street.

How long would it take for the other Climbers to arrive? People hiding on rooftops burst out and fired at the Drake, but the attacks did not seem to do much damage. They were so desperate that I could almost read their emotions on their faces despite the distance between us.

Were there really so few Climbers in Korea? That was a sad state of affairs.

In that case, the Climber VTuber had no choice but to do something.

"I have no choice but to protect the happiness of VTuber fans...."

Don't weigh the dreams and romance of VTubers against the gains and losses of reality, Wakamo!!

Once a VTuber decides to go through with it, it's as good as done!!

※※※

"So, to explain, the situation was rather disastrous. When a [Large Monster] appeared, our guild sent me, the closest person."

The [Fighter] Class, who was climbing Floor 30 of Incheon Tower, glanced once at the horribly demolished road visible outside before continuing to answer the reporter's question.

Since he was not carrying a heavy melee weapon and had high physical stats, he reached the scene faster than anyone else. That was why he had been able to see it.

"As you know... the Tower grants Skills according to one's occupation. [Xingyiquan] or [Imitative Fist]... what people commonly call Chinese martial arts. For example, I can use [Monkey Fist], which imitates the movements of the most agile and nimble animal, the monkey. But that's only a [Skill]. When I use it, mana wraps around me like this."

The [Fighter] demonstrated the Skill directly, kindly explaining that the mana rising around him like heat haze was the sign that the Skill had activated, and recalled that moment.

The woman stood well over two meters tall. He was even more surprised that the giant was a woman, but the opponent charging toward them was a [Drake] twelve meters long, twice the woman's height, and four meters tall at the shoulder.

The [Drake] charged at forty kilometers per hour. Lowering its head as far as possible, it opened its jaws wide to devour the enormous Fox God and rushed in, its tail whipping in every direction.

It was the charge of a [Large Monster] so heavy that its footprints were clearly stamped into the asphalt road.

"Just because someone is on a higher floor doesn't mean they're automatically stronger. Unless you're a tank, you don't block something like that head-on."

Even a tank would not block it that way.

The [Drake]'s bite force was at least 5,700 kilograms—the equivalent of six compact cars falling from above and crushing something beneath them.

"Even a Floor 30 tank would be crushed along with their shield and armor. At least, that's what common sense says."

For a moment, the [Fighter] looked at the road outside again, but not at the dinosaur's footprints.

He pointed with a finger at the small footprints clearly stamped into the asphalt.

"I mentioned [Skills] earlier. Maybe that was an illusion. To put it more simply, perhaps it was intimidation... an illusion produced by fighting spirit. Would you believe me? I may have witnessed the genuine [Imitative Fist]."

In front of those small footprints lay—

A vivid mark where something had been pushed backward along the road, leaving two deep, parallel tracks shaped like the number 11.

"A 200-kilogram bottom-floor Climber overpowered a seven-ton Drake in a test of strength."

※※※

It was the worst possible situation: coming to a collaboration event only to be caught in a terrorist attack and perhaps killed.

Yet an astonishing sight unfolded, enough to make everyone forget both their fear and the fact that they were in such a situation.

The believer saw it. Even the Tyrannosaurus from Jurassic World looked bewildered.

They had thought the intimidation was on another level and that they were going to die, but—

Their oshi, who had been trying to hide their identity, stepped forward and lowered their body as though preparing to run.

What was she trying to do? No matter how you looked at it, she was a bottom-floor Climber. There had to be a limit to recklessness!!

However, as if betraying the believer's worries—

The Fox God's poised figure vanished, and what burst forth was—

A giant whose massive body was impossible to imagine as human.

Moreover, mounted on a horse proportionate to that enormous body and clad in golden armor, a heavily armed knight wielding a shield the size of a car and a poleaxe suddenly appeared in front of the Drake.

How could anyone not be shocked!!

Mana : 434,571 -> 421,983.

A gigantic form created by casting [Form of an Idol].

If I had to give it a name, I would call it 【Imitative Fist: Tree Sentinel】!!

"Grrr?!"

The charging Drake hurriedly braked.

It had no choice. A giant holding a shield and weapon had suddenly appeared, and it stopped while instinctively remaining on guard.

Unable to distinguish with its natural eyesight that the being before it was an illusion made of mana, the Drake mistook it for something real and growled.

But that was the beast's mistake.

The knight's charge was faster than a beast's ability to react.

Mana : 421,983 -> 321,980.

Spending the absurd amount of 100,000 mana to strengthen both legs with [Mana Manipulation], Wakamo shot forward.

With a roar like a missile exploding, she flew horizontally like a projectile, leaving flying fragments of road behind her.

The Drake had no time to respond to the fierce charge of the [Tree Sentinel]. It collided with the enormous shield and began to be pushed backward.

Even as it planted its legs and held its ground, the enormous dinosaur staggered backward under the knight's charge.

Because it had lowered its head, it realized that something had touched it, but had no time to figure out what.

"If a dinosaur supported by two legs and a horse balanced on four legs fought at the same weight, of course the horse would have greater pushing power. But in reality, she weighed only 200 kilograms. For a bottom-floor Climber to push back a Drake comparable to seven tons should be nearly impossible..."

Though the footage was later made private, a scientist who studied Towers and Climbers said this after the terrorist attack.

"It wouldn't be impossible if she had acceleration comparable to a rocket."

If there was propulsion, the story changed.

Because of that propulsion, the weight behind the impact immediately after the collision would be—no different from the illusion the Drake was seeing!!

Mana : 321,980 -> 241,062.

'Gaaah...!!'

The charge that consumed 100,000 mana was so effective that it could rightly be called rocket propulsion.

Wakamo slammed into the Drake with both arms crossed, gritting her teeth as more than 80,000 mana vanished in one massive chunk.

So this is what taking damage feels like...!! This debilitating weakness is worse than I expected!!

Of course it was!! I had rammed into a Floor 22 [Large Monster]!!

Grateful that she could always move at peak condition, she quickly climbed onto its head before the Drake could recover.

She stomped on the Drake, using it as a foothold to soar into the sky.

The scene visible through [Form of an Idol] would have looked to the Drake like the [Tree Sentinel] raising its forelegs high above it.

"I'm a taekwondo black belt──!!"

Do you know what the strongest strike humanity can drive into something is?

By ordinary human standards, the legs possess three times the strength of the arms.

She poured mana into her toes with [Mana Manipulation], flipped her body, and spun violently. Since her body did not feel dizzy, she could push herself as hard as she wanted!!

She loaded her body weight onto the tip of her foot with the centrifugal force of her speed and brought her heel crashing down!!

Mana : 241,062 -> 40,964.

A 200,000-mana strike!

Do you know that VirtualAlive's otherworldly hero is a master of taekwondo?

"Altair Kick!!"

A supersonic spinning kick struck the exact center of the Drake's head!!

The Drake's head, which had been lifting itself, was driven straight into the ground.

Kraaaang!!

With a thin crackling sound, the asphalt road split, buildings tilted, and a fire hydrant exploded, sending a column of water soaring into the sky.

Along with the sound of destruction, the point struck by her heel literally caved in. The Drake's skull shattered, its eyes rolled back, and it foamed at the mouth.

It was an unbelievable overkill.

"Whew.... That cost me."

She gave a bitter smile and slumped down on the spot.

The Fox God, sitting astride the dinosaur, waved at the stunned believers.

".....You really went far beyond what I imagined."

"Who?"

Then agents in black suits and a woman she had never seen before gathered around Wakamo.

As if answering with a demonstration rather than words, the woman showed Wakamo the screen of her fan cafe.

Her rank was listed as Cafe Manager.

"Would it be enough to say I'm a fan with you as my oshi, Wakamo Inarizushi?"

"I had a female fan...?"

That was even more surprising than the Drake. Good heavens!!