Chapter 88: The Packaging Matters More Than the Contents
In an area where the recommended clearing level is likely over 100, you could safely say that the various items obtainable there possess potential on par with over-technology Legacy Weapons. At the very least, considering the restrictions placed on the many non-standard armaments we currently hold, it seems that weapons crafted from rare items surpass weapons from the Divine Era in terms of versatility. If that's the case, then what we're aiming for is what you'd call "lazy gathering"—repeating suicide rushes into level-inappropriate areas to snag items you're meant to acquire much later. It's a little trick that, in a normal RPG, could easily make the whole game a cakewalk. Though, that being said, it's also a fact that there exists a breed of people who can't help but love beating bosses to a pulp with strong weapons and the brute force of levels. I've dubbed this "The Great Shotgun-in-a-Horror-Game Debate."
Well, that aside—second attempt. I return to Eighthold from Rabituza, dash up the steep slope, and barge back into the Crystal Nest Cliff. This time, I hold my breath and go for stealth.
Sunraku: "...Ah. Hello there."
Busted. Dead. Let's try the next one. Third attempt. This time I accelerate with skills to search for any items. The instant the Crystal Scorpions wake from the crystal and turn their hate towards me, the effect of Transient Lone Wolf finally activates, its conditions met. It stings that I can't activate Overheat, but instead I go for a full skill burst—an all-out release: Ignition, health adjustment via Nitro Gain, Climax Boost, Off-Road, and even the Six-Fold Jump all woven in, to pull away from the Crystal Scorpions swarming from behind in one burst. Reinforcements will be here soon, and the others will go active too. Before that, at least an item... Found one. A vividly colored, natural crystal tower that practically screams, "Plant your pickaxe right here, okay?" I momentarily forget the tremor of approaching danger and pull my pickaxe from my inventory.
Sunraku: "Alllll riiiight!!"
Clang. I slam it with all my might, and without properly examining the lapis-blue ore that spills out, I cram it straight into my inventory. The surging horde of scorpions is an unavoidable metaphor for death... no, make that a direct metaphor—they're hitting me with straight-up, unadulterated murderous intent. But I'm not naive enough to just lie down and die. I activate Moon Jumper and leap with all my strength toward the one place the Crystal Scorpions aren't swarming from all directions—the sky above. In a few seconds I'll fall, but by genuinely stepping into the air against gravity, I've managed to momentarily evade the death swarm's rush. The scene spreading out below is just like a Hollywood movie pile-up on a highway. Each scorpion charged full-force into the spot where I was, and as a result, the crystal-shelled scorpions have collided against each other's toughness, presenting a hideous spectacle. Shells are cracking, pincers shattering, and the worst-off among them are being trampled by other individuals. That said, I've already reached my apex. With not even wax wings to my name, all that's left is to fall—and right below me is a churning hell of crystal shards and rampaging scorpions that makes a bed of needles look like a warm bath. A scorpion-mixer.
Sunraku: "Falling down there and dying from fall damage would seriously break my spir—gubof!"
A true masterstroke, like snatching a fly out of midair with chopsticks. Skewered by a tail stinger that shot out from directly beside me, I just barely manage to deduce that I'm now poisoned—and then I die.
Aroncaleth Hard Lapis: A crystal of extremely high magic concentration, produced over long ages through repeated compression and purification within geophagic monsters. Its hardness itself is unremarkable, but its true worth is revealed when employed as a coating agent. Geophagic creatures ingest ore, excrete ore, cultivate ore, and finally offer their corpses to ore. It is truly a cycle completed between stone and life.
Sunraku: "Phew... This reeks of a payoff outweighing the effort."
I respawn in Rabituza, log out once to finish lunch, then log back in. I check the item I obtained and confirm that those crystals are indeed a treasure trove. For now, a few things have become clear from my attempts. First, the detection mechanics of the Crystal Scorpions. It seems those scorpions sleep camouflaged as crystals when inactive, but go active when certain conditions are met. That condition is likely applying vibration to the crystals within their detection range. In short, if you don't want to be noticed—fly. Next, the Crystal Scorpions' AI. They're not that smart—frankly, they probably fall into the "dumb" category. Though honestly, if high-performance AI were installed in those monsters over level 100 that overwhelm with sheer mass and numbers, there'd really be nothing you could do. What bothers me, though, is the massive crash when I dodged straight upward.
Sunraku: "Those... their shells and stuff were peeling off... weren't they?"
Maybe, just maybe... I wasn't aiming for "that," but I'd like to challenge the possibility. Now, with that in mind, let's identify the problems and solutions.
Sunraku: "First problem: the spawn placement where pulling a crappy RNG means an encounter on step one... no, I guess I can only pray on that one."
I don't hate prayer games, but if it's a prayer game from start to finish, I don't call that a game—I call it a fortune slip with pictures and sound. Next, that absurd detection precision. How to deal with Crystal Scorpions that might activate from even a single flick to a crystal... Actually, I already have the answer.
Sunraku: "'Easier said than done,' as they say, and they're absolutely right..."
If they'll crash into each other and damage themselves on their own, then by repeating that process I could aim for mutual destruction and then reap the spoils. But to do that, the existence of a "safe zone" is absolutely essential. In this case, a safe zone isn't just a place attacks can't reach—it must also be a place where you can hide until your hate vanishes, depending on the situation. However, that abnormal detection precision multiplied by massive bodies and overwhelming numbers, and above all, the Crystal Nest Cliff—which is just rough terrain but could still be called categorically "flat"—has no place to hide. You're found before you can hide; even if you hide, you'll get crushed.
Sunraku: "Safe zone... safe zone... hmmmmm..."
No good, nothing's coming to me. If I could fly, I could probably evade the Crystal Scorpions' detection, but unfortunately, the bird face on my head is purely decorative. My two arms are mammalian, and no matter how fast I flap them, I can't fly.
Sunraku: "...No choice. Guess I'll just keep slamming charge attacks and pray the RNG tilts my way."
Emul: "Giving up isn't an option... wa?"
Sunraku: "Listen, Emul. A pioneer doesn't fear death. Why, you ask? Because the unknown is there!"
Emul: "You're just covered in material desire... wa. Pfft, I wish you'd spare a thought for my feelings, having to open the gate every single time... wa!"
With an almost audible pun-suko! sound effect, Emul opens the gate leading to Eighthold. Perhaps her MP has dropped from opening the gate so many times—she pulls an MP recovery potion from her inventory and drinks it down...
Sunraku: "Emul, stop for a sec."
Emul: "Nn-muh!?"
With the magic liquid in mid-gulp, Emul freezes, and I stare at her intently.
Sunraku: "Inventory... MP... physical disappearance of matter... re-emergence... That's it!"
Emul: "Nn-bufuh!? Cough, cough. What on earth... wa!?"
A genuine revelation. At the answer fired off by my gray brain cells, I can't help but scoop Emul up and lift her high into the air.
Sunraku: "Nice idea, me! Nice action, Emul! Ahaha, victory is mine!"
Emul: "Pyahhh! Don't move me right after I drank water... urp."
Sunraku: "Whoa there, settle down, Emul. Good boy, good boy... no, good girl."
Something to do before my next attempt. But if my prediction is right, I can clear this scorpion-style crystal minefield teeming with monsters over level 100 as a total cakewalk.
They are no longer a threat to me. In high spirits, not even fearing the sound of my footsteps echoing, I advance over the crystal-covered cliff. Perhaps I've stepped into their detection range, as three Crystal Scorpions activate and turn their hate toward me. At this rate, a future where I'm trampled by three Crystal Scorpions is unavoidable—but if I run, thirty scorpions will crush and swallow me whole.
Sunraku: "Hehehehe... In the end, the last laugh belongs to technology, I say. Hail civilization! [Transfer: Storage Space — Enter Travel]!"
In an instant, the world shifts. Not the crystal zone where death was closing in with mass, but a bizarre space constructed not of stone—something that would be difficult to replicate even at Shangri-La Frontier's civilization level—but of metal. This is the storage space that only those who possess Inventoria are permitted to enter. Since I need to wait a little while, I take a good look around this space for the first time.
Sunraku: "Ah, so that's how items are stored."
When I glance upward, I see monster materials floating in the air—probably put there by Oikatzo or Pencilgon. The faint blue glow suggests they're floating by some arcane mechanics, I suppose. But the centerpiece of this place isn't the items floating in the air. When I shift my gaze from above to straight ahead, four beasts forged from steel and science stand there in quiet stillness. Sleeping while suspended from fixed hangers in what you'd call storage docks, they are shaped—true to their namesake—like the beasts that govern the four cardinal directions, a concept that fiction treats about as often as the seven deadly sins.
Sunraku: "The Kirin is just stupidly huge. So the ones players can actually use are about this size."
Since I was stuck dealing with Wethermon the whole time, I'd only ever seen the Kirin itself, but that brain-dead enormity—like a dump truck with legs attached—is seared into my memory. In contrast, these four golems (?) are just a bit bigger than a kei car, I'd say. The Eastern-dragon-looking one and the "nah, that's-not-a-phoenix"-type bird might get a bit bigger if they spread their wings or stretched out, but... Whoa, awesome, this turtle has a cannon mounted on it!
Sunraku: "Oops, gotta be careful... Should be about time, huh? [Transfer: Real Space — Exit Travel]."
I chug the MP recovery potions I shelled out big money for all at once, and chant the activation spell code to return to real space—the reverse of when I came to the storage space. The world switches, and I return to the crystal zone where fantasy born from science forms fantasy upon fantasy.
Sunraku: "Heh... hehehehe..."
Holding back the urge to burst into uproarious laughter, with a smirk still plastered on my face, I look around, pick up the crystal plate-like... carapace that had fallen at my feet, and put it into my inventory.
Crystal Scorpion's Carapace: The crystal carapace that Crystal Scorpions wear upon their bodies. Extremely sturdy, while simultaneously possessing the effect of repairing damage by channeling magic through it. Due to their aggressive nature, Crystal Scorpions frequently damage their own bodies, but they can repair their flesh by consuming surrounding crystals.
Sunraku: "Hehe... hehehehe... Muahahahahahahahaha! Money for nothing! It's an all-you-can-loot buffet! Waaaahahahahahahahaha! Oh crap— [Transfer: Storage Space — Enter Travel]!"
Honestly, my blood ran cold when eight Crystal Scorpions activated in response to my stupid laughter and surrounded me.