Chapter 372: The Fastest World
I PULLED SUMMER ZOOEY AAAAAAAAAA GRANBLUE FANT ASY
Elke: "...That, you see, is what's called 'High Connection'?"
Emul: "Con-con-nection?"
Sunraku: "Emul, stop kneading my head."
Emul: "Ah hah hee ho ho heh ho hee heh ru hito wa ha ha hi tte ru he fu wa—!"
If I inject yeast into Emul's cheeks, they'll puff up even more... wait, isn't that just mumps?
Sunraku: "So, what's so amazing about this High Connection thing?"
Elke: "Well... first of all, with High Connection, there's no limit to the number of skills you can link at once?"
You're kidding.
Elke: "Also, you don't have to worry about how the skills interact with each other. You can even link an attack skill and a defense skill."
You're kidding!
Elke: "And then... you can unlink the connected skills whenever you want."
You're kidding!?
Elke: "Normally, you'd have to consume a whole lot of experience to apply the Secret Art... but guess what? I can use 'High Connection' through a different method entirely."
You're kiddingddddd!!
Elke: "And right now, the special offer is... one hundred million Mani per skill to link them up."
......
...Wait, seriously? I can solve this with money? This is the best.
Sunraku: "So if I want to link three skills, that's three hundred million?"
Elke: "That's how it works, yep."
Emul: "Onee-chan! Isn't that a bit too much of a rip-off, wa!?"
Sunraku: "No, Emul. Even at two hundred million per skill, that's still pretty cheap."
Emul: "Wha!?"
After all, this is a game. You can do anything if you keep at it, but when it comes to which one hurts more to lose—experience points or money—it's definitely the former. Money is for spending. Experience is for saving. At the very least, once you hit the big leagues of five-link or ten-link, the experience you lose won't be just a little. And looking at Wethermon's level-down field, if it affects your stats too, it'll hit your actual combat performance directly.
But if it's money, the whole story changes. Sure, there's market rates and the economy and all sorts of complications, but a gem sold by a level 1 player is worth the same as a gem sold by a level 100 player. And you don't even need to think about which one earns money more efficiently.
Unlike real life, in a game, as long as your avatar data survives, you can bounce back even from zero cash.
Sunraku: "Once we're talking billions, I'll need to farm with money as my main goal. Is Crystal Nest Cliff still the most efficient...? No, but..."
Elke: "Oh, that's right. 'High Connection' has one more condition."
Sunraku: "Which is?"
Elke: "Originally, skill pruning is a technique that changes the flow of a person's mana. For kids who've reached a strength beyond their previous limits, their capacity increases. But for 'High Connection' to work properly, the person themselves has to imagine the techniques more strongly..."
I spend five seconds processing the conversation in my brain. Then another five seconds trying to understand its meaning. Then five more seconds to reach a rough conclusion. After thinking for about fifteen seconds total, I shut out roughly seventy percent of Elke's words from my thoughts, chew on the remaining thirty percent, and speak the conclusion I've reached.
Sunraku: "So basically, I need to go see something that can serve as a model for the skill I want."
Elke: "Correct! Here, have a reward."
·100 Mani
What a money-grubber...... But I'll take it.
Sunraku: "...Hmm."
Sunraku: "A student is meant to surpass their teacher, but before that, they chase after their teacher's back."
That's why, if I'm to use someone as a model, the one worthy is none other than that rumored "Tachyon"—said by the other Bounty Hunters to be an even higher-tier version of Lutia's "Superspeed Mach." Elke's explanation was abstract, or rather, as in-game system descriptions go, there were a lot of vague parts, so I can't say for sure. But it seems like simply seeing the model isn't quite enough.
Sunraku: "The back of the fastest Bounty Hunter—how far can my current self chase after it? I can't help but want to find out."
Tias: "...Fine."
Alright! I was a little worried, since it's probably a trump card, but the bribery plan worked.
Tias: "Master, one slice of cake."
Master: "Understood."
...? Why cake? No, I just want her to show me, so I don't need to draw my sword... but still, why cake?
Tias: "Sunraku, stand over there for a bit."
Sunraku: "Huh? Okay."
I don't really get it, but I stand up. At that point, I finally notice I'm still half-naked, so I put on some clothes. It'll probably take about three minutes.
......
......
Glitch: "Gyahh!!?"
Sunraku: "Whoa, what!?"
A man dressed in a career woman's outfit—who is not a woman—Glitch suddenly snaps backward and tumbles over with his chair. I'd noticed him glancing over here, but I'd let it slide out of mercy from one guy to another... Incidentally, the master was serving customers without the slightest change in expression. He's a powerhouse in a completely different way from just combat ability, isn't he?
Tias: "Oh? There was some cream on your cheek."
Weird. Cream getting in a spot so far from my mouth... Yeah, it's sweet.
Tias: "......Can't be helped."
Sunraku: "Huh?"
Tias: "Sunraku, use your skills and try to catch me at 'full power.'"
Sunraku: "Huh? Here?"
Tias: "Yes. Don't hold back. Even if a drunk Toole rampages, this place won't break."
And besides—sensei declares, lifting the corner of her mouth.
Tias: "Even if I move second, I’m still faster."
Bring it on. If that's how it is... alright, let's do this. That said, some of my skills are triggered by actual combat and bloodshed, so with the combinations I can pull off right now...
Exceed Gravity. Secret Art of Mount Kurama. Space Charge. Hermes Boot. Wolf Fate Sign. Bloodburn Burst. And Levin Trigger: Hazard. And finally, using Quantum Gaze—at full speed. I can even run through the sky right now.
Sunraku: "Here goes...!"
I won't charge head-on. I'll shift my trajectory slightly, approaching from the right diagonal and putting a hand on sensei's head!
Power gathers in my legs. With eyes imbued with Quantum Gaze's effect, I trace the route and step forward—
Tias: "Tachyon."
(......Huh?)
My body won't move. The first thought that comes to mind is a freeze caused by the VR system glitching. But in that case, the layered safety mechanisms would kick in and log me out, so it's no problem. But no. If the problem were on the VR system side, a notification window should pop up immediately. Which means this is within the intended behavior of the game SLF.
And after about one second of confusion, I realize. It's not that my body won't move. It's as if everything has gone slow-motion... Yes, as if only my thoughts are accelerating while my body has been left behind.
Sunraku: "...Wha—"
That's when I notice. Only my perception is running at normal speed. Everything else—including my own body—is in a world of slowness... as if it's stopped.
munch munch
And there, as if it's the most natural thing in the world—at normal speed—is Tias, munching on cake.
Tias: "You can still see me... then—"
Teleportation... no. Tias, having accelerated even further in this situation, stands before my eyes. Damn. My eyes can move, but they're slow.
Tias: "Sharing."
A slender hand casually extends. The fork at the end of her fingers holds a piece of apple, topped on the cake, and it's tossed into my slightly open mouth...
And then time resumes.
Sunraku: "Huh? Ah... fwugyan!?"
Glitch: "Huh, why am I... gyaah!?"
Tias, no longer in front of me. My body's control, released by the lapse in tension. Tripping feet, tumbling body... wait, is this déjà vu?
Not to brag, but I pride myself on having experience as the ball in just about every sport—basketball, volleyball, baseball, soccer, golf, American football—through dodgeball tournaments with my friends. However, being the ball in bowling rather than the pin is a first. After rolling across the ground twice and crashing ass-first into Glitch's face, I send chairs and tables flying with a spectacular crash.
Tias: "Impressions?"
Sunraku: "I'll follow you for life—mad respect, little-girl Tias-sensei."
She's the strongest Bounty Hunter, no question... Even with multiple Triple-digit Skills activated, I can barely register that I'm a punching bag. I've got zero chance of winning.
Watching little-girl Tias-sensei proudly toss the last bite of sliced cake into her mouth with a satisfied huff, I can't help but feel a pang of sympathy for the aspiring Avengers who'll have to fight this monster to become one.