Chapter 15
I headed northeast from the Western Forest, following the map. The enemies along the way were nothing special, and my evolved magic dispatched them in an instant.
But the biggest reason I was making such smooth progress was probably my new equipment. The Hourai Staff's 【Magic Effect Increase】 and 【Magic Power Enhancement】 were powerful. The former increased the effects of all magic, while the latter raised my maximum magic power.
Furthermore, the familiars I summoned while wearing the Skull Mask were tougher and stronger than before. Two of them together could beat a Brown Bear to death, so it was definitely thanks to 【Necromancy Enhancement】.
As expected of gear with the highest quality and rarity. I'll continue to take good care of it. That only makes the weakness of my other equipment stand out more, but there's nothing I can do about it. Things will work out somehow.
And so, I arrived at the foot of the Northern Mountain. I should let Iris-san know I've reached it. There were no new posts. She must be waiting patiently.
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131. Izam
I've reached the foot of the mountain.
132. Iris
Ah, Izam-san! Run away right now!
133. Izam
Did something happen?
134. Iris
The top players from the strategy group are conducting a mountain hunt right now! They'll kill you just for being a monster!
135. Izam
Aren't you in danger too, Iris-san?
136. Iris
I'm fine! So please, run away!
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Well, being told to run away is all well and good, but...
"There it is, over there!"
"Drive it into a corner!"
Oh, players. They're decked out in solid equipment. Are they the strategy group? It seems they're chasing something. Their target is... a Goblin? In stories, Goblins are often among the weakest monsters, so why would they go out of their way to chase such a weakling? I'll watch and see.
"Gugyaaah!"
"Tch, it's just a weakling. Wrong one!"
"We won't let anyone else take the Nightmare's head! We'll hunt it ourselves!"
"We'll make a name for ourselves and show that smug harem bastard what's what! Let's go!"
...They're gone. They didn't even bother harvesting the corpse, so they must be in quite a hurry. Let's analyze this. From the words "wrong one," their target is definitely a Goblin. Next, there's the word "Nightmare." In other words, their objective is a "Goblin called the Nightmare."
I should thank them for telling me everything I wanted to know. I don't know or care who this smug harem bastard is, though. I should report this to Iris-san.
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137. Izam
Ah, sorry. I was avoiding some players. Are you safe, Iris-san?
138. Iris
Y-yes! I'm fine! Are you all right?
139. Izam
Yes. No problem. By the way, I heard their target is the 'Goblin called the Nightmare.' Does the 'smug harem bastard' ring any bells?
140. Iris
Um, both of them are famous... You really don't know about them?
141. Izam
I was practically a shut-in and didn't use the bulletin board.
142. Iris
I see. Then I'll explain.
First...
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According to Iris-san's explanation, the 'Goblin called the Nightmare' is an absurdly strong Goblin living in the Northern Mountain, while the 'smug harem bastard' is a handsome player who's popular with women to a degree worthy of a light novel protagonist.
The former was one thing, but I definitely wouldn't get along with the latter. It wasn't because of jealousy or anything like that. He was a half-official hero, having received the blessing of Aaruru, the 'Goddess of Light and Order.' I don't know whether it's an affectionate nickname or mockery, but apparently he's commonly called 'Hero-kun.'
I'm a heel role-player. Befriending a babyface is out of the question unless siding with them would make the story more exciting. In other words, if I encounter him, I should kill him immediately.
Gishaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
As I was indulging in those fantasies, a piercing battle cry and the sounds of combat began echoing from deep within the forest. Since the noise continued, the Nightmare must be fighting. This is...
"I might as well take advantage of this, right?"
If I had facial muscles and skin, I probably would have been making the kind of face that every single one of a hundred people would call evil. I should say a word to Iris-san before I go.
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154. Izam
Iris-san, did you hear that sound? I'm going to take a look.
155. Iris
Whaaa!? You'll die!
156. Izam
That Goblin-san might be a player, right? If so, I'm going. We monster-type players have to help each other out.
157. Iris
Izam-san...
158. Izam
Then, I'll see you after the battle.
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There, that should do it. Now then, shall I go? I have to make my entrance as dramatic as possible!
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I'm Jigorou. Nothing special, just an ordinary FSW player. If I had to name the differences between me and other players, I'd say I like fighting a little more than most, and I'm a monster-type character. That's about it.
"Gishaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
With a battle cry full of spirit, I charge at the shield-carrying guy in front of me. My fist was blocked by his shield, but that wasn't my real target. His legs were!
"Guaaah!"
"Shaah!"
I slammed a low kick into his knee. Though my frame was tiny, my Skill-enhanced strength easily snapped his knee. Then, as the bastard lost his balance, I tore open his neck with my claws. One down.
"You bastard!"
"How dare you kill our friend!"
The two who remained after I killed their companion lost their tempers. A pincer attack from both sides, huh? They've got plenty of spirit, but they're leaving themselves wide open! I leaped into the right-hand opponent's range, closing the distance, and drove my fingers into both his eyes.
The man was screaming. If you have time to yell, just back off! He was too noisy, so with the hand I hadn't jammed into his eye, I grabbed his neck and squeezed until it snapped. I've got some scary grip strength, even if I do say so myself.
"You son of a bitch!"
"Gehehehe♪"
The last one must have gone crazy, because he started swinging his spear around wildly. I caught the spearhead and yanked it toward me with all my strength.
Then, while he was making a terrified, idiotic face, I drove my knee into him and destroyed his face. And that's one six-person party sent home.
This place really is great. Nobody complains no matter how violently I rampage. I practice martial arts in real life too, but the stupid rules make it boring.
Martial arts are, when you get right down to it, a way to kill your enemies with your bare hands. That's what my master taught me. Eye gouges, groin strikes, biting, targeting vital points, breaking joints. They're all strictly forbidden in sports, but I can use them here. There couldn't be a happier world for me!
"That's far enough!"
"Geh?"
What the hell? I was enjoying the afterglow of a good fight, and some bastard had to interrupt me. Don't get in my way, asshole.
"Looks like one idiot jumped the gun."
"Sure, why not? It's not like we knew why those people were here anyway."
They're wearing ridiculously glittery armor... Wait, what the hell!? More of them are coming out! Three parties, eighteen people? Are they going to kill some kind of monster or something?
"You're the Goblin aberrant species, aren't you? We'll exterminate you!"
Aberrant species? I'm an ordinary Goblin! Though I should be able to evolve soon.
Wait, did these guys gather just to kill me? Did they bring all these people for my sake?
Well then... I'm more than happy to oblige!
"Shaaaaaaaaaa!"
"The front line, focus on defense and don't overextend! Watch your legs too!"
"Yeah!"
Tch, this is making things difficult. They're lining up those huge shields and focusing entirely on defense? They're like turtles.
I slammed my fists into them again and again, but although I dented the shields, I couldn't break them. If I'd evolved already, I might have managed it!
"Magic, fire!"
"Gagah!"
Once they stopped my advance, colorful magic came raining down in torrents. I immediately jumped backward in a zigzag, but I couldn't dodge everything and took several hits. I'll lose ground at this rate. In that case...
"Kehhhhhhhhhhh!"
First, target the people in back! Without their magic, the front-line fighters are just useless lumps!
"Hah!"
"Not on my watch!"
"Geh!"
This guy's the first armored bastard! That's a fine sword stroke! The other woman isn't bad either. This is getting exciting!
"Keh!"
I bent my upper body backward to evade both their swords, then continued bending until I placed both hands on the ground. While standing on my hands, I kicked both of them at once with my legs. I'm quite the acrobat!
"Aah!?"
"Guh... n-now!"
"Graaaah!"
Damn it, magic again! And arrows are flying at me too! I can't dodge them all!
I forced my battered body upright after taking damage from several spells. I haven't lost yet. If you haven't lost, you stand up. That was my master's teaching.
I see. You intend to finish me off for good, huh? Surrounding one person and beating them down must be easy. But I'm not going down for free. I'll drag as many of you down with me as I ca...
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Player Izam has sent you a party invitation.
Would you like to join the party?
YES/NO
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What the hell is this? Who's Izam? And he's sending me a party invitation when I'm in this state? Is this guy an idiot?
Well, fine. I'm a battle maniac too. If we're both idiots, then let's dance together, Izam-san!
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You accepted Izam's invitation.
You joined the party 'Nonhuman Brothers.'
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...What the hell is this lame name? The instant I thought that, the world was covered in darkness.
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Jigorou accepted your invitation.
Jigorou joined the party 'Nonhuman Brothers.'
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Good, that's done. I'm glad this game has a function that lets you send a party invitation to a player isolated in the middle of combat. It's probably meant to be used when you're forced into an unfavorable fight with a monster, but since the function exists, I'll use it.
"Magic Boost, Magic Boost, Twin Trap Array Setup..."
Jigorou, the so-called Nightmare, moved with incredible skill. This was what people called a real-life cheat.
Now that I could control my avatar as naturally as my own body, I could reproduce almost anything I could do in reality. It felt more natural to think of this as being lost in another world. Movements that only a small number of athletes and martial artists could perform in real life became possible in the game with the system's assistance. I'd read somewhere that this was the true appeal of VR games.
So what happens when someone who can perform those movements in reality plays the game? Suppose there were a technique called a 'straight punch.' Normally, using it in a game would consume some kind of resource or put the skill on cooldown for a set period.
But someone who could do it in reality could perform the same movement repeatedly without consuming anything or being subject to any restrictions. By ignoring the game's systems, they were literally cheating—unfair by design.
Apparently, to maintain balance, using the system's assistance now generally added effects or increased power. Even so, every game still had a certain number of real-life cheats among its top players. A newspaper article had called that a troublesome barrier in the game industry.
Jigorou must be a typical example. Furthermore, all the sounds I understood through 【Linguistics】 were delighted laughter. He had an aggressive personality—or rather, he was a battle maniac. Apparently, that was why he had caused so much damage, eventually leading to the formation of an extermination party.
"Interesting. This is interesting."
Yes, it was interesting. Could there be anyone else in peaceful Japan with nothing on his mind but fighting? There probably were, but they had to be extremely rare.
Throwing away my connection with a man like that would be a waste—an enormous waste. In that case, there was only one thing I could do!
"That's precisely why I'll support you with everything I have. I'll create a situation where you can enjoy what you seek—battle! Now, let's make this a lively one! Black Field!"
Black light burst from my staff. Part of the Northern Mountain was enveloped in darkness.