Chapter 293: There Are Two Continents

To a player who only knows the Vorpal Bunny country "Rabituza" through the Unique Scenario "Tour of Rabituza," it's nothing more than a Unique that gets you some decent magic. But if you clear the Unique Scenario "Invitation from Rabituza," you learn the meaning hidden behind it.

The existence of the Unique Monster "Vysache the Immortal," and his long-standing feud with the Unique Monster "Goldhuneenay the Inexhaustible," connected by tunnels deep underground. But that's still just a Unique Scenario — a detour in the grand flow of Shangri-La Frontier.

But if Saintess-chan is involved, that changes things.

Eristella, the Saint of Love. An NPC who's clearly the type to be tangled up in the main story. The World Quest — whatever that terrifying flag is — is steadily racking up its count, and there's no way this saint isn't mixed up in it. Hell, they dropped the massive bombshell that "Saintess-chan can see the future," and I'm still kind of panicking over here. And talking to her means that fact gets exposed. Did the Saint's Divine Guard let me through without realizing that? Or did they deliberately let me find out so they could use it as a bargaining chip? Ahh, I get it — they forced an upfront payment on me to increase what they can pull from me later...

Josette: "..." (A look that seems to be philosophically pondering the mysteries of the universe, beginning with the question: why is Saintess-chan so unbelievably cute?)

...Yeah, okay, maybe she's not thinking about anything at all. Ah, whatever. Gamers run on guts. I'll figure out a plan after I'm dead.

Sunraku: "Understood. I'll take the job."

Eristella: "Thank you, Sunraku-sama. By the three gods, I swear this reward shall be..."

Josette. I don't think you can get a nosebleed in a game.

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Sunraku: "So yeah, that's why I've gotta head to the New Land... I mean, Rabituza's on the New Land anyway, right?"

Emul: "Hai na! But but, Rabituza is an island nation, wa! So even if you go outside Rabituza, getting to the mainland is really hard, wa!"

Wait, so Goldhuneenay dug a tunnel under the ocean floor? One wrong move and that thing collapses...

With Emul parked on my head, I walk through the Rabbit Palace, still in female mode since I haven't died once after getting kidnapped by the Saint's Divine Guard.

Sunraku: "Anyway, gonna get my gear sorted, then head to Firstia."

Emul: "...? Why, wa?"

Sunraku: "Just that the world's harsh on the unemployed, that's all..."

Yeah, I sure as hell didn't expect to get asked for ID inside a game. Blew my mind.

The New Land Research Vessels — three newly built vessels named after the three divine beasts of the Three Gods Faith. I forget the actual names. Only pioneers with their strength guaranteed to some degree by the guild — or some equivalent organization — are allowed to board. Realistically, any player who's made it to Fifticia will have that guarantee from the guild by clearing quests on the guild board... unless they pulled some fox kunoichi RTA-speedrun nonsense.

Yeah... if they belong to a guild, that is.

Sunraku: "Saintess-chan's name power's supposed to handle that part, but even so, being unemployed is apparently a problem."

Emul: "I don't really get it, but it's a cruel world, wa?"

Sunraku: "Honestly, sneaking into the cargo hold and stowing away sounds kind of fun too."

Now that's the true Vorpal spirit of society. A different kind of thrill from facing down a massive monster... not that I'm looking for that kind of thrill in a game. Ptooey!

Sunraku: "For now, I'll swing by Aniki's place and Bilac's, get my weapons sorted, buy up all the items, and then we charge in."

Seems like the Teleport Gate can only send you to places you've already been, unless it's during an event. So I'll have to backtrack from Secondale... hmm. Guess I'm taking the scenic route.

Sunraku: "Anyway, let's just die real quick and then head out."

Emul: "Casually throwing your life away isn't very Vorpal, wa!"

Sunraku: "Hahaha, just gonna go visit my buddies, the scorpions, at their cliff house."

Emul: "Buddies...?"

They notice me the second I show up, and I'm crazy about them (their materials and mining items)... what else would you call that if not buddies? Though, if I'm being honest... yeah, "mortal enemies" is probably closer.

Vash: "Oi, ya made it..."

Sunraku: "Yo. So, Aniki, about that weapon you mentioned—"

Vash: "Hold up a bit... I'm gonna have Bii hear this story too, y'see."

The Rabbit Palace, the throne room where Vash sits. I wait about five minutes, and Bilac comes hurrying in, looking all kinds of tense.

Bilac: "P-Pops... y'really gonna teach wachi about... about Gratefuls?"

Vash: "Hell yeah I am. So open up yer damn ears and listen good...!"

Vash glances at Bilac, who's nodding so hard her whole head's bouncing. Then he holds up the Decayed Areadbhair I handed over and starts talking, slow and deliberate.

Vash: "Gratefuls, y'see... most of 'em have lost their original power, just like this one here. So, y'see... a smith like us... we gotta understand what it is that a Grateful... is lookin' for."

Take the Decayed Areadbhair, for example. The blade of this sword-spear was stuck in Goldhuneenay's dragon snake for years, and it's rotted away. So to make it shine again, it needs something. Vash explains.

Vash: "Areadbhair, y'see... it's a sword o' calamitous fire, burns dragonkind to ash. In this rotted body, there ain't no pilot light left... So, Sunraku, you gotta find the 'seed flame' that'll get it burnin' again..."

Sunraku: "Seed flame..."

Vash: "Ain't just any fire that'll do. It's gotta be somethin' like 'a flame that roars up from the depths of the earth and burns the very sky'..."

Sunraku: "...Huh?"

From the depths of the earth, at high volume, burning the sky... Man, I feel like I know a natural phenomenon that checks all these boxes... wait. But that place... isn't that a top-five location you absolutely cannot charge into half-naked? Like, you'd go ssss. You'd definitely go ssss.

Sunraku: "Wouldn't I melt?"

Emul: "What do you mean, melt, wa?"

Sunraku: "I mean, there's only one thing that's a fire erupting from deep underground with tons of smoke and debris, right?"

Emul: "...Ah! A volcano, wa!"

Vash: "And yer already talkin' like divin' in's a done deal, huh..."

No, I mean, it's not gonna be "scoop up some lava, the end," right? It's definitely gonna be "dive deep underground, fight some lava-golem-type enemy, and rip out its core." That's how these things go.

Sunraku: "Shakkotsu Breaker basically solved my equipment problem, so fire-resistance armor... nah, wait. There are no active volcanoes on the old continent anyway. Definitely a New Land thing..."

Its Japanese name literally calls Fellfate Caldera a dead-crater lake, and it is a lake to begin with. Hoping for fire-element stuff there seems like a long shot. I'm half-wondering if they'll add some convenient Magma Diver job when—

Vash: "Huh? That mountain ain't dead yet, y'know."

Sunraku: "...Yer shittin' me."

According to Vash, that dead volcano stopped being a volcano for an extremely forced, physical reason. I have absolutely no idea what that means, so I casually press for more info. What I get is...

Sunraku: "Siegwurm... physically used the 'Red Dragon' from two generations ago as a 'lid' and shoved it deep underground???"

Vash: "Don't make a lick o' sense, do it... kehehe. But that's just the kinda shit that bastard can pull off, y'see."

That's not the only thing blowing my mind right now — I mean, yeah, that too — but dragons having generations? And combining that with what he said earlier, there's a hidden area at the bottom of that lake... like the Hidden Garden where Wethermon was. And why the hell does this gangster rabbit conveniently know all this stuff...?

My thoughts have turned into a simmering stew of emotions, so I just force the lid shut. Whatever. Screw it. I'm getting tangled up 'cause I'm in online-game mode. Switch to console-game mode. When the story feeds you information bait, the player just has to open their mouth and wait. Whether it's a gourmet meal or a buggy piece of shit, you chew and swallow.

Sunraku: "If I do actually dive... like, tying weights to my legs..."

Emul: "That looks like an execution or something, wa..."

Vash: "...Well, you can figure that part out on yer own."

Honestly, I thought of a solution in two seconds flat, so no problem there. The legend of my invincibility just keeps getting updated... Guess the only thing left to worry about is water pressure?

Vash: "Oh yeah, and one more thing... Bilac."

Bilac: "Nn?"

Vash: "The Areadbhair repairs... you're doin' 'em."

Watching Bilac jump four, maybe five meters straight up, I'm reminded once again—yeah, she's definitely Emul's big sister.

[Succession is triggered by "death," but the definition of "death" is different from that of ordinary lifeforms.]