Chapter 74: The World Advances, Heroes Revealed
The major update — Shangri-La Frontier was abuzz with its contents. And then, it happened. Truly, utterly without warning.
Clang... Clang... A solemn bell tolled, deep and resonant. While most newer players looked around wide-eyed, wondering what was happening, those who'd been playing since the service first launched recalled — this was what a Game Master announcement sounded like.
『To all players currently enjoying Shangri-La Frontier, we bring you an announcement.』
???: "Huh? What's this?"
???: "Maybe some kind of bug from the update?"
???: "Ah, probably something like that."
As most players speculated that some flaw had been found in the just-implemented update, the announcement that followed sent every single one of them reeling.
『As of this moment, we have confirmed the subjugation of the Unique Monster "Wethermon the Tombguard." The subjugators are three players: "Sunraku," "Oikatzo," and "Arthur Pencilgon." Additionally, in accordance with the subjugation of this Unique Monster, we report the advancement of the World Quest "Shangri-La Frontier."』
???: "WHAAAAAT?!"
???: "W-Wait, a Unique Monster?! They seriously took one down?!"
???: "With just three people?! And I've never even heard of this Wethermon the Tombguard!"
Seven monsters — beginning with Lycagon the Nightslayer and Siegwurm the Sky Ruler. So-called World Enemies, the kind treated in other games as singular existences — only one of each, and every last one of them overwhelmingly powerful. And now, a mere three players had cleared one. The news spread like wildfire through Shangri-La Frontier's player base, and identification of the named players began at once.
???: "Arthur Pencilgon... that's the one from Ashura Kai, right?"
???: "Wasn't Ashura Kai wiped out by a coalition of top clans?"
???: "Sunraku — wasn't he that bird-masked player with the rabbit...?"
???: "How does a player who was supposedly in Thirdrema just recently end up in a Unique Monster takedown?!"
???: "And who the hell is Oikatzo?"
???: "Never heard that name... Oi-katsuo? Like bonito flakes?"
Meanwhile, a different kind of commotion was stirring among others.
???: "Oi, can anyone contact 'Professor' in real life?!"
???: "Professor's wife is in Schwarz Vulf, right? Somebody ask her to call him over!"
???: "To think one of the unknown slots among the Seven Colossi would be revealed here..."
???: "Siegwurm, Lycagon, Ctarnidd, Orchestra, and now Wethermon... two unknown slots remain."
Clan "Library." A clan of players dedicated to investigating the world and lore of Shangri-La Frontier. With this sudden unveiling of a new element to analyze, they sprang into frenzied action.
???: "A messenger's been sent to his wife — hopefully he's logged in..."
???: "Wait, are all the Unique Monsters actually on this continent?"
???: "No — just because one appeared here doesn't mean the actual battle took place on this continent. Besides, Ctarnidd and Orchestra are Unique Monsters whose existence was revealed through NPC accounts — we don't even know where they are."
???: "Even Lycagon and Siegwurm, which have actually been sighted, are random encounters. Wouldn't be surprising if they were on the New Land."
???: "No, the World Quest should be our top priority. Is it separate from the Grand Quest?"
???: "It's probably safe to treat it as distinct from the main story. If the broad story is 'cooperate with NPCs to pioneer the world,' then the World Quest could be thought of as 'the world itself advancing to the next stage.'"
???: "In that case, some kind of change may already be occurring. Should we ask Schwarz Vulf's group to investigate?"
???: "Before that, analyzing Wethermon the Tombguard comes first. We need to make contact with the players who took him down..."
???: "His wife says she's dragging Professor out of bed and sending him right over!"
???: "YES! Thank you, Professor's wife!"
???: "Poor Professor getting dragged out of bed..."
Naturally, the news also reached the top clans — still buzzing from Ashura Kai's collapse.
???: "Arthur Pencilgon was nowhere to be found, and now this...?! She was hunting a Unique Monster!"
???: "Wait — Sunraku... isn't that the one who got hit with Lycagon's curse...?"
???: "Commander!"
???: "Commander!"
The gazes of the clan members converged on a single point. There, a woman silently rose to her feet. She wore armor that prioritized ease of movement yet somehow boasted both higher VIT — and thus defense — than standard heavy armor, alongside striking visual design.
Psyger-100: "Goodness. To think there were players who would beat us to taking down a Unique Monster... so much for the top clans' reputation."
???: "Your orders? There's still the matter of the New Land expedition..."
Psyger-100: "The New Land plan remains unchanged, but I and a few others will stay behind. There's the matter of Lycagon's curse as well — I find myself suddenly quite eager to hear what they have to say."
???: "What about Arthur Pencilgon? She's even more trouble than that escaped Orcelott, isn't she?"
Psyger-100 — leader of the clan Schwarz Vulf — recalled one of the names just mentioned. The vice-leader of the PK clan Ashura Kai, which had just been crushed... and in all likelihood, the very person who had sold Ashura Kai out through an information broker. A player whose face she knew all too well.
(That woman... so this is what selling out Ashura Kai was for. Which means Ashura Kai was hoarding a Unique Monster in secret. We were used beautifully — played like fools...)
At present, Schwarz Vulf held uncontested status as the top clan on the cutting edge of progression. But their ultimate goal was "the subjugation of Lycagon the Nightslayer." And now Arthur Pencilgon had used them as convenient pawns, snatched the glory of a Unique Monster takedown out from under them, and on top of it all, had the crucial player called Sunraku right under her thumb. The fact that Pencilgon — with whom Psyger-100 had no small history — was several moves ahead made her grind her teeth. But she quickly shifted gears.
(For now, somehow establishing contact would be ideal. But depending on the situation, I may have to consider negotiation through "laundering"... fufufu, this is getting exciting...!)
The clan members eyed Psyger-100 warily as a carnivorous grin spread across her face. Then, suddenly, she noticed the absence of someone who should have been there.
Psyger-100: "Hm? Rei... ahem. Where has Psyger-0 gone?"
???: "Now that you mention it, she's not here."
???: "She used 【Friend Rescue (Friend Warp)】 a little while ago — said her friend was in trouble."
???: "Friend...? Ah, right — she mentioned something about registering a certain someone as a friend..."
When she'd heard that her little sister — who'd lived a life utterly removed from gaming — had started playing the very game she herself was deep into, Psyger-100 had thrown a celebration unbefitting her age. But then learning it was all to get closer to some boy she was interested in — and that her little sister was outpacing her, her man-starved older sister — had left her utterly dumbfounded. Momo Saiga briefly wore a distant, hollow look, but ultimately decided to sincerely support her sister's budding romance, and told the clan members not to worry about it.
At this point, Psyger-100 had absolutely no way of knowing that Psyger-0's friend... was Sunraku.
Stunned. Aghast. Flabbergasted. There were any number of words for it, but to sum it up: Orcelott sat in blank, bewildered shock as he listened to the GM announcement.
Orcelott: "Wethermon the Tombguard... beaten?"
That Wethermon — the armored warrior who, even as a PKer, had cut him down in seconds despite his pride in being among the best players in SLF. The same Wethermon against whom even his older sister — superior to him, loath as he was to admit it — could barely last a minute. And three people had taken him down? The fact alone was so staggering that it blew away Orcelott's rage under an avalanche of confusion and shock.
???: "Sunraku — wasn't he the one who..."
???: "Why is Pencilgon-san with him?"
Orcelott had no composure to spare for his murmuring clan members. He simply sat there, mouth agape, dumbfounded. Everything he'd built had crumbled in a single night. The sense of superiority he'd felt — knowing a Unique Monster that even the top clan Schwarz Vulf and the lore clan Library hadn't grasped — had been smashed to splinters. His emotions couldn't keep pace with the unfolding reality.
And then — a distortion formed at the center of the Hidden Garden. From it, three players emerged.
Oikatzo: "Oh hey, Pencilgon's prediction was right. That's the 'Failing-Grade Orcelott' those two were talking about?"
Sunraku: "What's with that lame nickname? Sounds like a Wethermon knockoff."
Pencilgon: "Ahaha, my idiot little brother doesn't need some grandiose title."
They were clearly utterly exhausted. Pencilgon, for her part, wasn't even holding a weapon. But all three wore unmistakable expressions of triumph on their faces. And more to the point — normally, dying to Wethermon meant respawning at a save point. The fact that these three had emerged into this area reaffirmed one thing beyond all doubt: Wethermon's subjugation was real.
Orcelott: "Y-You... you bastards...!"
Pencilgon: "What is it, little brother? If you've got complaints, spit 'em out. You kept picking the most boring-ass methods, so I beat you to it. That's all."
Orcelott: "......! ...!"
The sheer, breathtaking unfairness of her words choked the curses and abuse that should have been pouring from his mouth right back down his throat — the rage was just too overwhelming.
Sunraku: "I mean, screwing over your own clan and then saying that is pretty harsh, isn't it?"
Pencilgon: "No, no, Sunraku-kun. These guys are third-rate posers who don't understand the essence of PK — all bluster, no substance. They got fat, got scared of slimming down, and chickened out... So I just punched 'em in the gut and made 'em spew everything up. That's all."
Oikatzo: "Whoa... genuinely pissed-off Pencilgon is kind of a rare sight, isn't it...?"
Sunraku: "A big sis with strong opinions about PK is terrifying..."
Orcelott: "You've got some nerve, you shit-sister...! Fine! I'll kill every last one of you right here... I'll strip every drop item you got from Wethermon and take it all...!"
At those words, Ashura Kai's remnants raised their weapons and encircled the three. The three in question, however, remained utterly composed — as if to say, Exactly as predicted. Every single thing about it grated on Orcelott's nerves. Especially that half-naked one. That absurd, mocking getup — yet he had a Unique no one else knew about, and on top of that, he was in the Wethermon subjugation party. Every last fact about him was infuriating.
Originally, Orcelott had wanted to boost Ashura Kai's strength — they'd been targeted by multiple clans — and the fact that a beginner possessed a Unique that even no-lifers didn't know about had rubbed him the wrong way. A newbie who barely understood SLF's systems — he'd figured a little intimidation would make them easy to handle. He was only now realizing how wrong he'd been. His greatest enemy had been on the inside. By the time he'd noticed the web spreading beneath the surface, everything was already too late. The members who'd left had departed for reasons so incomprehensible they'd simply said, "Something just felt off."
With nothing — nothing — going his way, Orcelott finally snapped. He began applying strengthening magic to his weapon: the Slaughter Bringer.
(First, the half-naked Sunraku. Then that Oikatzo character. And finally, the whole group mobs my shit-sister into the ground...!)
Orcelott didn't notice. He didn't notice his sister Pencilgon letting out a sigh. He didn't understand what it meant that Pencilgon had known all along that Orcelott and his group would be here — and had still chosen to come out.
Pencilgon: "Good grief... I'm always telling you to maintain a big-picture perspective, but you just keep biting at the bait right in front of you..."
Oikatzo: "He's the type who, in an FPS, would rage at his teammates for being useless while his own score gets farmed over and over by a sniper."
Sunraku: "Ah... yeah, I can totally see that."
Why were these three so utterly calm? What allowed them to maintain that attitude in this situation? The players other than Orcelott — whose blood was boiling past his brain — wore baffled expressions. And then, the very next moment—
Pencilgon: "Well now, this is certainly an unexpected reveal of Sunraku-kun's social connections. But under the circumstances, it works out rather nicely."
A magic circle manifested before the three of them — or to be precise, before Sunraku. Something that shouldn't have been here began to fix its existence in place, starting from the feet and solidifying upward. Platinum-white armor — sturdy enough that a half-baked attack wouldn't leave so much as a scratch, yet simultaneously radiating divinity. An armored knight. At the sight, not only Orcelott but every other Ashura Kai member opened their eyes wide in shock.
One of the anti-PK measures added in the previous update. When a player encounters and is attacked by a PKer, a distress signal is sent to that player's friends. And if one of those friends possesses the skill 【Friend Rescue (Friend Warp)】...
Pencilgon: "In an MMO, nothing ever goes exactly the way you want, does it? That's why I've been telling you forever — you're better suited to offline single-player games."
Sunraku: "Oh, and if you're looking for a single-player game, I recommend Fearia Chronicle Online."
Oikatzo: "Sunraku, you absolute demon..."
Orcelott: "Psyger-0...?!"
He could never forget. The nightmare that had just recently — and spectacularly — blown Ashura Kai's base to smithereens. The genuine, unmistakable Maximum Firepower (Attack Holder) stood before him.
Psyger-0: "...'Apocalypse.'"
From there, roughly fifty seconds until Ashura Kai — minus Arthur Pencilgon — was completely wiped out. That was the limit of defanged player-killers.