Chapter 327: The Wolf's Wound Lurking in the Night Shadows

Sunraku: "Alright… let's do this."

I adjusted the gray bird mask—now tinged slightly darker—with a few small shifts to settle the fit, then quietly began tailing the knights as they slipped into the forest.

After pulling through that bloodbath and, as a bonus, having a huge brawl with the scorpions, there was a bit of scorpion-baseball with yours truly as the ball, but I'm doing fine. I rushed to make preparations after that, even asking the Golden Scales for help. Managed to scrape everything together in time, and now I'm on a stealth-tailing mission you'd never guess was in a hack-and-slash game… wait, what game am I even playing again?

Sunraku: "Eh, whatever… okay."

Clear conditions: rescue the former king, Toravante, and the first princess, Aria; and secure physical evidence that the Third Knight Order explicitly intended to harm the royals. The stealth-action part itself I can handle normally, but how far will it hold up without system corrections…? If I get hit with that master-type cliché of "Did you really think you were hiding your presence with THAT?" there's nothing I can do.

Well, from what Lutia-senpai told me, the commander of the Third Knight Order isn't that strong… but just as scenarios where the strongest monster in the setting gets one-shot by a cheese strat are a dime a dozen, the reverse isn't exactly impossible, either.

Sunraku: "………"

I considered tracking them by leaping from tree to tree, but it made more noise than expected, so I scrapped that. In the end, I'm tailing them on foot, same as they're moving… but they're slow. So damn slow, these guys.

I've felt it plenty of times before—the gap between the game system's darkness processing and player vision corrections. NPCs seem to lean toward the former, and these guys are also moving cautiously, torches raised. Granted, at night, there are stealth-specialized owl-wannabes and rumored dragons that spawn, so the caution isn't entirely unreasonable… but since this is a real-time game, there's no skip button. I want them to get on with it already. So I can shut it down.

Sunraku: "…Can't see the king and princess."

I'm tailing from the very rear, so obviously I can't. They're likely in the middle of the formation. Meaning, unless the knights stop and shift ranks, or I close the distance further, I can't get a visual on the king and princess. Best I can do is barely pick up the chatter of their obviously-mob underlings.

Sunraku: "Hmm… interception."

Can't hear 'em because it's too choppy? Well then, it's time for our wiretapper, Emul-san. The normally folded ears of the muffler wrapped around my neck perk up—pyokon! They twitched about for a bit, and she apparently succeeded in intercepting the underlings' conversation, replaying it right by my ear.

Emul (replaying a knight): "Why do they need to go all the way out into the boonies to kill the former king and the princess… de wa."

Emul (replaying a knight): "The new king wants the 'fact' that the demi-humans of the New World turned hostile… de wa."

Emul (replaying a knight): "Our commander wants glory that'll surpass even King-Approved Warrior-sama, so he took on a job like this… de wa."

Can I turn off the sentence-ending tic from the settings page? Still, I'm starting to get a rough picture of the background here. The so-called new king doesn't just want to kill his father and sister—he wants to control the narrative of who killed them. And the target is the demi-humans living on the New World… elves are a thing here, right?

Sunraku: "So basically, he wants a pretext."

He took the throne via a rushed, slapdash process. Depending on how you look at it, it reeks of usurpation. Well, the question "Why would the first prince—already the guaranteed heir—bother usurping the throne?" probably keeps suspicion from being cast in the first place. But that aside, the current king hasn't amassed enough loyalty to push through unreasonable orders. That's exactly why he needs a reason to send military force to the New World. Still, if that's the case, then why does he need to make enemies of the races living on the New World…? That question hits a wall, though.

Emul: "Sunraku-san, what're we gonna do, wa?"

Sunraku: "Plan hasn't changed. Once they do their smug confession and we've got it recorded, we'll just beat 'em half to death or something."

Emul: "…Feels like you're running a Vorpal Soul deficit there, wa."

Sunraku: "I think so too. But it's a rescue mission, so…"

Thinking about it like that, the Vorpal Soul parameter is a real pain. You've gotta constantly fight higher-rank monsters. Well, I've got a hunch it also triggers based on situations, so even against hordes of trash mobs, it'd go up…

Sunraku: "Emul, if you use magic, what are the odds you'd get found out?"

Emul: "…For magic that affects anyone besides me, it's a bit iffy, wa."

Sunraku: "I see… Can you use Active Sonar? I want to know if there are monsters around."

Emul: "Hai na."

A little while later, she reported back: no monsters in the area. So it IS event progression, huh?

Emul: "Also, a little further and we'll reach an open area, wa."

Sunraku: "Huh… I've got the general flow now, but…"

It's suspicious. Way too straightforward. Something annoying is definitely gonna happen… I got shipwrecked for seven days against a deep-sea octopus just for helping some bratty boy-pirate. Not to put too fine a point on it, but fighting the "Knight Order" is the kind of problem Josette and her people could handle on their own. I've had chances to chat with the Saint's Divine Guard members here and there, and apparently, Josette holds a title in the same category as Rei-shi's "Maximum Firepower Attack Holder"—the "Maximum Defense: Defense Holder." Meaning the toughest tank in this entire game IS Josette. In terms of defense, she's way more suited for this than I am.

But this quest was outsourced—specifically requested of a player outside the Guard… no, outside the Shining Knights. We really don't have enough info. I don't want to believe a non-Unique quest would have a super-elaborate setting, but… man, pulling a Unique is great and all, but it's mentally exhausting.

Sunraku: "No monster reactions… no, wait. Event progression might spawn some. If that's the case, are they planning to make me deal with the knights and monsters at the same time?"

If so, that might actually make this a cakewalk… Hmm, tough to predict in advance. Whether by instinct or coincidence, one of the knights who sensed something approached my position. To hide, I used Gravity Zero to "stand" upside-down on a tree branch, keeping an eye on things while my thoughts kept spinning. You just got lucky, mob knight. If this were a horror game, you'd be Victim Number One for sure. I could ambush from above right now, but losing even one knight would definitely raise the alert level.

I stared—intently—at the knight from the treetops, inverted like a bat. But perhaps recalling just how reckless solo action in this demon-infested wilderness was, the mob knight shuddered down his spine, then returned to the formation.

Emul: "…Sunraku-san… I'm, I'm gonna fall… wa…"

Sunraku: "Show some guts… honestly."

Just as Gravity Zero expired, I twisted midair and landed, then circled ahead to the open area among the trees where the event would likely unfold. Now then—allow me to demonstrate the stealth arts of the man who's assassinated even a bright-red (communist) tyrant.

Toravante: "So you… you intend to kill me. To kill us."

Julian: "Indeed, Former King. You shall serve as a cornerstone for the glorious future of His Majesty, the New King Alex."

Not exactly fat, but you'd never guess he'd ever been in combat… how to put it—a middle-aged man just starting to show a gut addressed a fairly flashily-dressed knight in a frail voice. That must be the rumored… what was it, Mr. Desperate Straits or something? With an epithet like Die Hard, life's gotta be rough. NPC, but still.

Toravante: "Julian… will you not reconsider? Those who live on this continent possess lives, as well. There is no high or low, no superior or inferior among them."

Julian: "What are you saying? They are base and inferior savages… beings unworthy of comparison to us."

Ohh, magnificent. A textbook bigot character. If demi-humans exist, you've gotta have this type of character. Like summer and cicadas—you'd feel something missing without them. Heroic tales require someone's misfortune… hmm, a paradox of justice, or the karma of good and evil, maybe.

Julian: "…That said, I do not despise demi-humans quite as much as His Majesty the New King."

Toravante: "Then…!"

Julian: "What I seek is a new battle. A stage to achieve martial glory surpassing even that man nailed to the royal castle… that is all. And that happens to align with His Majesty the New King's wishes…"

Toravante: "They are not mere fodder for your glory…!"

Ooh… King, nice words. Good. When the rescue target is a decent person, it motivates the protector. If Pencilgon were the one who'd accepted this quest and the king was an asshole, she wouldn't be out of line beating him half to death and posting the video online. What worries me is the first princess. Scared? Exhausted? She's looking down, so from this angle, I can't see her face well. I can confirm the faces of Die Hard-san, the king, and the other mobs, so why do I feel this… vague unease? No, a prickling dread? What is this weird emotion… am I, Sunraku, feeling FEAR?

But, well—the background's confirmed: "New King Alex wants to annihilate or subjugate the demi-humans," and "Die Hard-san wants more glory than that King-Approved Warrior guy." The idea of racking up more fights to level up—that concept itself is something I won't dispute… but isn't this inefficient? If you want to train anti-personnel skills, picking fights with pioneer players would boost your technique more. If you just want levels, go kill monsters instead of demi-humans. I recommend Crystal Nest Cliff. That place is legit heaven… a divine spot that's got the three-hit combo: leveling, mining, AND Vorpal Soul farming, plus it's almost never saturated with players.

I often see players charging into Crystal Nest Cliff—whether out of ignorance or recklessness—but if you're going straight ahead the whole time, you're second-rate. The pros know it's better to rock-climb along the cliff face for a set distance. Also, wall-tanks become complete garbage here, so I think it's better to ask them to kindly leave. Though, even if you leave 'em alone, the residents will make 'em leave anyway.

Toravante: "Julian… at the very least, could you not spare Aria alone?"

Aria: "Father!"

Julian: "My apologies, Former King. Burying the First Princess as well elevates the quality of the 'tragedy.' We, too, are knights. I guarantee you both a swift end by the blade, without any vulgar violence—she shall follow you in death."

Toravante: "Guh…"

What is this—the rustling in my heart won't stop. I've mostly finished recording, so all that's left is to make a cool entrance and save them… So why does this one step forward feel like reaching a foot out over a cliff where the path's completely crumbled away? Why… why is it like this…!?

Sunraku: "Emul… steel your heart. Consider everything past this point a killing ground…"

Emul: "…Eh? R-Right, hai na?"

I stow the recording item, pull out a "weapon," and… draw a breath. Perhaps resigned to it as just a job, Die Hard-san showed no sleazy grin at the prospect of killing a king—he simply drew his sword with businesslike detachment. Before he could raise it…

Sunraku: "HALT!!"

Julian: "!? …Who goes there?!"

Uh, is this one of those moments where I should try to look cool? Give me two seconds, I'll think of something… Okay, got it.

Sunraku: "Malice that seeks to spread through these untrodden lands—though you cloak yourself in night's darkness and deceive the very heavens, you cannot escape MY eyes! That is why men call this 'JUSTICE'!!"

Julian: "Show yourself!"

Sunraku: "Gladly! Hup!!"

A shadow soared from the top of a massive tree—its trunk a full size thicker than the surrounding ones—that had loomed behind the former king Toravante and the first princess… Aria. Twisting midair, I hurled the "greatsword" I'd held in both hands into the earth. It stabbed vertically into the ground, and I landed on the pommel.

Julian: "A demi-human… no, a masked man, is it? Hmph. Do those eyes of yours see 'justice'?"

Sunraku: "These eyes see through wicked hearts… and lay bare the wicked hearts of evildoers…"

Repurposing the flavor text from the Staring Bird Mask days straight into my lines, I let a grin spread beneath my mask. Perfect… I gave this entrance fifty-fifty odds, but looks like I won this gamble. That said, if this entrance fails, it's a double-edged sword that ends with a direct crotch-shot. I ate three failures during practice, and even with SLF's damage system numbing pain, the mental damage is so brutal it's fair to call this a high-difficulty technique.

Julian: "May I have your name?"

Uh, give me five seconds. Let me think of something… Okay, got it.

Sunraku: "I am a wandering sword! A blade wielded in answer to the Saint's wish, sworn to protect the King and Princess!"

The "Flame General's Executioner Sword" and "Noble Cysilence"—two weapons connected by a background story. The item "Never to Be Parted Again," obtained as a reward for clearing the Unique Scenario "Love Brings Sorrow, and Sorrow Brings Death"… turned out to be an item for combining those two monster-dropped weapons by using them as materials. Thus, linking the two "swords" and merging them with the tears shed by a woman who fell to become an incarnation of death—that is this greatsword, "Memento Mori"! The True Quiet-related weapons all have this spine-tingling, chilling appeal to them, I swear. Mmm, black history.

Toravante: "A wandering sword… you… could it be…?"

Sunraku: "Worry not, Your Majesty. The Wandering Sword—Avenger—and the Three Gods Faith… Saint Eristella is acting for your protection."

With the True Eye Bird Mask on, no one would notice me smiling. But even so, I smiled and turned around… and that smile froze.

Sunraku: "………?"

Sunraku: "You've gotta be kidding me…"

Wh-Why… It can't be… This is SLF…

The first princess, Aria. Tears welling in her eyes, yet a light returned to those eyes that until moments ago had been clouded with despair. The graphics make her impression feel slightly different, but there's no way I'm mistaken. Because… I once spent so much time staring at that face… that I wanted to dropkick it…

A castaway Bugman: "So many different friends live on the New World!" The King: "Huh, they're rational—maybe we can open relations." The First Princess: "Wow, I'd love to meet them." The First Prince: "Ugh, there's more of these gross things? Gross."

A four-line summary of the mess on the royal side.