Chapter 30
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Your 【Pharmacy】 level has increased.
Your 【Alchemy】 level has increased.
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I had set aside the question of what kind of labyrinth to build and devoted myself to production with 【Alchemy】. The reason was that, just as Iifa-sama had explained earlier, my companions had also received the same request from their respective goddesses, and they had asked to discuss it together.
I had no objection, since I thought exchanging information was necessary. The others must have received requests from goddesses different from Iifa-sama, which meant they might have information I had not heard. Since we had all received the same request, sharing information was important.
"Hey, I'm back."
"Oh, welcome back...?"
Jigorou was the first to return. At least, I thought it was him. The reason I wasn't certain was that he had grown to the height of a large adult man. Could it be...?
"Did you evolve?"
"Sure did. Apparently, I'm a Thunder Beast Berserk Hobgoblin."
He had already evolved?! That was fast!
"My Job changed to Pugilist too. I know it sounds weird saying it myself, but I've gotten ridiculously strong."
"Ugh, you've moved one step ahead of me...!"
My level was still 18. That meant Jigorou had gotten two levels ahead of me. I had been determined not to let him surpass me in level, at least, but keeping ahead of Jigorou—who spent all his time hunting outside—was clearly impossible for someone like me, who wasn't a real-life cheat.
"Don't let it get you down. More importantly, you accepted the goddess's request, right?"
"Of course."
I wasn't particularly interested in the goddesses' goal of increasing the number of monster-type players. Well, I did think it would be more fun if their numbers increased, but as long as I could adventure with my current companions and hone my villainous side, that was enough for me.
I was surprised that only five people remained, but that was the extent of it. It had nothing to do with me directly. If their numbers increased with the second wave and they asked for help, I would probably lend them a hand, at least.
The real appeal, though, was being able to play the villainous role of a labyrinth boss. In Jigorou's case, it was probably the chance to fight strong players, but although our directions differed, there was no doubt that he found it appealing too.
"Heh heh heh. I wanna fight all kinds of guys!"
"You really are a battle maniac. You don't seem to have the slightest intention of holding yourself back."
"Of course not! A hero's party, a woman on horseback... I'm already itching with anticipation!"
He really did enjoy fighting. I enjoyed combat to a certain extent myself, but nothing like he did. Where did this desire, almost strong enough to be called madness, come from?
"I'm back..."
"I'm back."
"I'm home!"
Oh, three of them had returned too. Huh? I couldn't tell with Iris, but Ruby was carrying an unfamiliar dagger, while Genjuro had an unfamiliar great sword strapped to his back.
"Looks like you all made it through the trials safely. Congratulations!"
"Th-thank you very much..."
For some reason, Iris looked completely exhausted. What had happened?
"Well, fighting that bunny in the southern trial was great, but..."
"When we were leaving after finishing the trial, we nearly ran into a player who was just about to challenge it."
"You managed to escape without being found, but ended up completely worn out, huh?"
Iris had originally focused on production and wasn't good at fighting. Even in the cave the other day, she had been able to handle ordinary exploration, but during the boss fight her damage output had been lacking, so she had no choice but to focus on interference. Being able to interfere at all was better than nothing, but the truth was that she was still far weaker than the other four, myself included.
It must have been difficult enough for her simply to challenge the 'Azure Moon Trial.' Afterward, she had to flee from top players who had made thorough preparations to challenge the trial. Sneaking around and moving while hiding was quite stressful. It was only natural that she had ended up groggy.
"Good work."
"Yes... I'm exhausted..."
"So the rewards were...?"
"Yeah, they were equipment that grows stronger. I got a pair of daggers."
"I received the great odachi on my back and this collar."
"I got a wooden mallet and a hatchet..."
I see. Jigorou had one more reward because he had also received the solo-kill reward. Me? I had four, including the first-clear reward, thank you very much.
"That's good to hear. Then, shall we exchange information about that matter?"
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We finished comparing the information we had received from the goddesses. That said, there were hardly any differences in what we had heard. In fact, I had received the most detailed explanation, so there was nothing in the discussion for me.
"So, is everyone going to take on the boss role? Jigorou and I accepted."
"I will as well."
"Me too! The direction is a little different, but if I can participate in the event, I want to join!"
Genjuro and Ruby were in. What about Iris?
"Um, I'm not good at fighting... Is it really all right for me to participate?"
I understood what Iris was trying to say. The other four didn't know this, but the boss battle in the next event would be used in a promotional video for the second wave. Iris wasn't good at fighting, so she probably didn't think her performance would be suitable for the video. That was why she was the only one of the five who had left her answer undecided.
"Wouldn't it be fine? We weren't told that we absolutely had to win."
Iifa-sama had said that we didn't need to deliberately lose. But that didn't mean she was telling us to win at any cost. Besides, we would be using a dedicated boss avatar, so Iris wouldn't be fighting with her production-specialized Race. There was no need for her to take it so seriously.
"Then I'll do my best!"
Saying that, Iris nodded firmly. That meant all five of us were participating. We wouldn't be able to act together, but I hoped each of us could enjoy ourselves.
"Then how about we head beneath the sewers tomorrow and the day after? The way we are now, we should be able to beat that rat boss, right?"
At Jigorou's suggestion, I considered the matter. He was referring to the Ratman General. Not only was it a formidable level-30 monster in its own right, it also had Ratman Knights accompanying it—minions whose level alone made them a match for the boss of the 'Azure Moon Trial.'
When we first saw it, even the battle maniac Jigorou had honestly admitted that we had no chance of winning and retreated. But things were different now. Our levels had risen, and all of us had equipment from the rewards of the 'Azure Moon Trial.' If we prepared plenty of potions and the like, our chances of winning should be quite good.
Besides, fighting a powerful enemy and emerging victorious would build our confidence. It ought to help dispel Iris's anxiety.
"All right. Then let's all challenge it the day after tomorrow, Saturday. I can log in from the afternoon onward. What about everyone else?"
"I'm in."
"So am I."
"Me too!"
"I'm fine with that too."
"Then, once everyone has gathered on Saturday afternoon, we'll challenge the Ratman General and its minions!"
Once our plan was decided, we brought the discussion to a close. Now then, let's get to leveling up so we can improve our odds even a little. We'll go in with enough momentum to wipe out every Ratman in the sewers!
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After feeling the same floating sensation as when we logged in, we teleported from the commercial city of Sakan to the starting city of Fars.
"Oh, so this is intercity warping. How convenient..."
We had defeated the second field boss after heading east from Fars and reached the commercial city of Sakan. After updating our respawn point, we used the function that let us warp between cities we had previously visited to return to Fars.
"As for bulletin-board matters, let's leave those to Aina. Once that's done, let's have a victory celebration!"
"Yay!"
"A victory party is important."
Rose and Meg were getting excited over where to celebrate defeating the boss and reaching Sakan for the first time. Eating and drinking were perfectly normal in recent VR games, and FSW had a fullness gauge, so meals were important. Well, they couldn't actually fool the hunger of our real bodies.
"Luke, what's wrong? You look so glum."
"Ah, yeah..."
Rose and the others didn't notice, with their innocent smiles, but Kikuno, an older woman, seemed to see right through me. I considered trying to brush it off, but that wouldn't work. I might as well be honest.
"It just felt similar to when I respawned, that's all."
"...So that's what this is about."
Our party was quite strong, if I did say so myself. I thought it would be fair to say that we were among the top players, perhaps even competing for first or second place. That was why it was rare for us to respawn—in other words, to die.
That was precisely why I remembered being defeated so clearly, whether I wanted to or not. We had been beaten after failing in boss battles, and we had also been taken down by monster ambushes.
But my most bitter memories of defeat were still the 'Nightmare of the Northern Mountain' and the battle against the 'Silver Mask.'
Luke, there were all sorts of things we couldn't have expected in that battle. I'm not saying you should forget it, but don't dwell on it too much."
"I know that in my head."
Our battle against the Goblin known as the 'Nightmare of the Northern Mountain' had gone well until halfway through. Just as we were closing in for the kill, the mysterious 'Silver Mask' suddenly appeared. Because of him, the rear guard of the extermination force suffered devastating losses, which contributed to the defeat of the entire force.
"Taking a game seriously is kind of childish, isn't it?"
She was right. This was a game. When a player died, they only suffered a minor penalty before coming back to life. In fact, after the members of the extermination force respawned, they complained about it, but they didn't seem genuinely upset.
But I had been terribly frustrated. Losing one-on-one was bad enough, but what hurt most was seeing my party members slaughtered and being unable to do anything at the time. I would absolutely repay the Silver Mask for that debt. I had made up my mind.
"It might be childish. But I'm like that too."
Kikuno gave a wry smile and looked ahead. Meg was laughing happily in the direction of her gaze.
"When Meg was killed, I lost my head and went berserk. In a way, that was the biggest reason the extermination force was wiped out."
"That..."
Kikuno had apologized to everyone about it during the post-defeat debriefing. She should have kept her cool, she had said.
"But in an immersive VR game, getting fired up is exactly what you need."
"Huh?"
"Back in the early days of immersive VR games—especially ones like this that used quasi-personality AIs—some pro gamer said, 'You should think of this kind of game as starting a new life in a foreign country or another world.'"
A foreign country or another world. That made sense. The game was so realistic that thinking of it that way felt more natural.
"So people like you and me, who can get fired up, are the ones who improve. The people who can truly commit, who can throw themselves completely into the world, are the ones suited to immersive games. The other four are the same, aren't they?"
Come to think of it, she might be right. Aina immersed herself in examining this world's culture and history between strategy sessions, while Rose enjoyed cooking with ingredients that didn't exist in reality and researched every day how to recreate them in the real world.
Meg had befriended the NPC children and played with them whenever she had time, while Renge frequented the temple and socialized with the elderly people there. Our interests were different, but all of us had become completely absorbed in this world.
"I don't know how to put it... but I don't dislike the fact that you can take things seriously."
"I see... Thanks for comforting me."
"Hah, that wasn't what I meant."
Kikuno raised her voice and smacked me once on the back. Even someone as dense as me, despite often being called that, could tell that she was just hiding her embarrassment.
"Luke! Kikuno! What are you doing? We're leaving you behind!"
"Hm? Oh, I know."
"Hey, wait up!"
That's right. I had companions. The more I enjoyed traveling through this world with them, the more the sadness and frustration I felt whenever they were hurt would grow.
I didn't think that was uncool or foolish. That was what it meant to live in this world—to play it. For now, I would enjoy this world with everything I had. And for that, first came the victory party!