Chapter 131: Epilogue: Once in a Lifetime, Again and Again
Sunraku: "Man, this Fool is a jackpot among jackpots... I can recover in the safe zone anyway."
Emul: "It's perfect for you, Sunraku-san, wa!"
Sunraku: "You mean, 'you're a Fool—an idiot'? Huh?"
Emul: "Honestly, if you weren't an idiot, you wouldn't think about taking on Lycagon half-naked, wa."
Sunraku: "Hey, stop hitting me with perfectly reasonable arguments! You're making it sound like I'm an idiot."
Psyger-0: "..........."
Sunraku: "And stop looking at me like, 'Ah, he really has lost his mind...'! It was Lycagon's fault in the first place!!"
Sunraku and Emul kicked up a racket as they dashed into the back alley. The “Arcanum” event, which triggers upon reaching level 99, was now over; Arcanoom, who had bestowed the Fool Arcanum, had already vanished. According to Library’s research, this old NPC, said to have existed since the kingdom’s dawn, is believed to determine the Arcanum based on the player’s play history up to that point. And among all the Arcanum, the Fool Arcanum's conditions are one of the few that have been at least partially figured out.
(If I recall, the shorter the time it took to reach level 99, the easier it is to obtain the Fool…)
For example, the “Wheel of Fortune” is said to depend on how many rare drops the player acquired before hitting level 99, while the “Emperor” and “Empress” are commonly drawn by players who have commanded many others as clan leaders. The conditions for obtaining Arcanum like the “World,” which Psyger-0 herself possesses, or “Judgment” remain unknown. But since reaching level 99 guarantees you’ll receive one of the Major Arcana, players are actively theorizing about the requirements.
Anyway, Sunraku hadn’t even been playing SLF for a full month. And yet, wherever he had done his power-leveling, by the time Psyger-0 met him again yesterday he had already stepped into the “Extend” domain — an area only accessible to those who have defeated monsters over level 100. That he had reached a domain that normally requires several level-99 players acting as supports, practically by himself, struck Psyger-0 with a mix of shock and resigned understanding.
(He’s cleared so many impossibly difficult games already, so if I think about it, it does make sense.)
The numerous games she had once bought as conversation fodder with Rakuro Hizutome were all titles that even Psyger-0 — one of the top players in SLF — had been forced to give up on. If that was the case, then it was hardly surprising that in a game where even she could reach level 99, he would reach that height much faster.
Before she knew it, Sunraku and Emul had vanished from the alley. Psyger-0 let out a long breath, releasing the tension that had been coiled inside her since last night. It had been a single all-night march — something she’d experienced many times before — but this one had been impossibly dense. The fact that they had defeated Lycagon the Nightslayer was proven by the special status “Guiding Light,” now displayed in her status window. In a single night, and a completely impromptu one at that, they had taken down the opponent her sister had chased for roughly a year. What on earth was she supposed to tell her? Psyger-0 — no, Rei — agonized over it. Honestly, when Lycagon was involved, her sister became a real pain in the ass.
(Big Sis went so far as to force her way into staying here, saying, “Since this involves a Unique, I’ll investigate it myself”…)
Originally, she was supposed to be pioneering the New Land with Psyger-100 leading the charge. But with the sudden emergence of the clan “Wolfgang,” which had hoisted the banner of defeating “Wethermon the Tombguard,” her sister had stubbornly insisted on remaining here. If Rei were to tell her, “I ended up defeating Lycagon with Sunraku-san,” what would happen? There was a roughly sixty percent chance she’d say something like, “Then do it again! And include me this time!” and set off on a quest to capture him and hunt Lycagon once more.
Rei knew all too well that her sister was, in both good and bad ways, a forceful person. It was the kind of charisma that pulled many people along with her — the sort that could give even Arthur Pencilgon, the very “avatar of trouble” her sister constantly griped about, a run for her money when it came to dragging people around.
(…Wouldn’t it be fine to just tell her in a week or so?)
A combination of exhaustion and post-achievement burnout made Psyger-0 think that almost involuntarily. Sunraku had said he was going to restock consumables and repair his weapons before their next meeting, and the same applied to her. Her over-the-top preparations, which had ended up being exactly what was needed to face Lycagon, had served her perfectly — but they’d also put a serious dent in her wallet. Money wasn’t the issue, but the sheer hassle of reacquiring everything was another matter.
(I should log out too, and have some gyokuro tea…)
Sunraku had faced Lycagon without taking a single hit, while Psyger-0 had continuously timed her attacks to ensure they landed. Their avatars’ wear and tear was one thing, but the players’ own fatigue was not to be ignored. As Psyger-0 took a step toward the base of the clan “Schwarz Vulf,” she recalled the dreamlike hours from last night until now, and a smile crossed her face.
When she first met him, he was just one face in a crowd. Somewhere along the way, she found herself drawn to the sight of him returning home cheerfully no matter what kind of day he’d had. She’d tried her hand at the things he was so passionate about and failed more than a few times — having her crops trampled by giant creatures right before harvest was enough to break her spirit. Even so, she wanted to understand what he enjoyed, wanted to know him, and sometimes took advice from collaborators, which led her to where she was now.
The fact that she was included in the things he laughed and enjoyed. The fact that she had been able to do something fun together with him. All of it became shining memories, etched into the data of Psyger-0 and into the mind of the person called Rei Saiga… and that made her unspeakably, uncontrollably happy.
Psyger-0: "Ehehehe..."
The giant knight looked like a suit of armor that had decayed through endless ages and then begun moving again, a hulking figure whose very incongruity became part of its menace. Psyger-0 did not notice the sailor NPC staring at her in astonishment as if he had seen a snake standing bolt upright, after hearing the utterly unguarded little laugh leaking through the gaps in her helmet. She looked ready to start skipping on the spot, but then suddenly remembered the other person present. The person in question, Akitsu Akane, had only half-listened to Sunraku’s farewell as she gazed around the streets of Fifticia and squealed in delight, but now it seemed her thoughts had finally returned to the present.
Akitsu Akane: "Oh, Sunraku-san went off to Rabituza, right? …Then shall we go to Rabituza too, Ceecrue-san!"
The mantle draped over the fox-masked ninja girl fluttered as if crying, That's why a mantle doesn't talk, de gozaru—!! But that wasn’t what sent an alarm signal from Psyger-0’s ears to her brain. What had she just said? That Sunraku went to Rabituza — no, not that. That she was going to Rabituza too…?
Psyger-0: "W-What did you just say…?!"
Akitsu Akane: "Huh?"
Psyger-0 found herself calling out to Akitsu Akane before she could stop. Faced with that blank, dumbfounded expression visible even through her mask, Psyger-0 steeled herself and asked the question.
???: "Daaah! Dammit!"
BANG! A fist slammed down on a desk that prioritized function over appearance. Not even trying to hide his irritation, he let out a long, long sigh and collapsed onto his bed.
???: "Julie has family circumstances, Ken is in mourning... Dammit, I don't have enough members...!!"
He pulled out his mobile device, entered his password, and opened his email to find a pile of messages from invitees, each citing their own reasons for declining.
???: "At this rate... damn, I can't rely on another team either..."
As he scrolled through the chain of rejection emails, he opened one from further back in the dates. It was written in text that had clearly been forcibly rendered into Japanese using a translation tool.
‘I look forward to our rematch. In the next GGC as well, my “Shooting Star” will once again overcome your “Lava.”’
???: "...At this rate, we'll end up with the pathetic result of a forfeit... Somehow, somehow I have to find members..."
It was then that he remembered it — a “matching” he had half-jokingly considered once. The strongest hero he would face at the coming festival… and the figures of friends who might be able to hold their own against the powerful foes supporting her.
He was out of options. The whole thing was a personal grudge between her and him to begin with, so most of his teammates had no room in their schedules on that day. The ones he’d been counting on had also dropped out due to sudden obligations. With his back against the wall, what he needed was to fill the “remaining two slots.”
???: "Ahh, man... I'm going to pay for this later..."
Even as he muttered about how much he’d be squeezed for the huge “favor” this email would incur, the corner of his mouth unconsciously formed a smile — the kind born from imagining the slim possibility of hope coming true.
Subject: A Favor to Ask From: Modor Katzo To: Sunraku, Pencil Warrior Body: I’ll cover travel, entry fees, everything — so you two, wanna come play at the Global Game Competition?
Mold: "The realism really is incredible..."
Rust: "And there are mechs. I acknowledge it as an unquestionably god-tier game."
At a certain inn in Fifticia, two pioneers checked out for the first time in a full half-year since they’d checked in. One was a small girl with brown skin and silver hair, a strange bow with no string on her back, and a drowsy expression that couldn’t quite hide her anticipation. The other was a strapping young man covered in scars all over his body — yet clearly wearing mage’s robes with books dangling from a leather cord at his waist. Speaking to each other with voices that still carried traces of youth, they gazed at the morning sun rising over the harbor town, which was growing noisier as NPCs and players alike logged in.
Rust: "...Let's head to the meeting spot."
Mold: "Right."
While NPCs and players alike rushed busily toward the harbor, the pair ambled along at a leisurely pace toward a dense cluster of buildings that had clearly been designed to look unsafe — where a gloomy atmosphere physically blocked the sunlight. A massive shipwreck lay settled over the entire area, as if the dark corners of the bustling harbor town had been swept, buildings and all, into a single pile. The corpse of the ship, only half remaining after being split in two, blocked the light of the rising sun.
The street’s nickname was “Deadbeat Alley” — literally a dumping ground for ruffians, born from the kingdom’s hastily developed harbor town. And deep within it, by defeating specific NPCs in brawls and following a chain of encounters, one would receive a Unique Scenario from a certain pirate. That scenario was exactly what the two intended to present as a bargaining chip to a certain individual.
Mold: "Still, I wonder how we'll recognize Sunraku-san."
Rust: "...He said we'd know when we saw him."
If he had a distinctive visual trait, did that mean he was wearing some kind of joke equipment? The young man — Mold — was pondering this when he casually turned around.
And there he saw a half-naked bird-head staggering toward them like a wraith.
Sunraku: "Gooood morniiing..."
Mold: "Eek!"