Chapter 29: The Start of the Event Preparation

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The level of [Pharmacology] skill has increased.  

The level of [Alchemy] skill has increased.  

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Setting aside the specifics of the dungeon I would create, my current focus lay in the realm of production through [Alchemy]. That’s because, just as Lady Yifa mentioned earlier, my comrades also received the same request. It was suggested that we convene and discuss this task.

I also believed that information exchange was necessary, so I had no problem. It occurred to me that the other members might have received the request from a different goddess than Lady Yifa, meaning there could be valuable insights I had yet to come across. Given that we were all working on the same quest, sharing information was crucial.

“Oh, you’re back.”

“Yeah, welcome back…?”

The first one to return was Jigoro, or at least, the figure before me was supposed to be Jigoro. The reason I couldn’t be confident was due to the substantial growth in his height, now resembling that of a tall adult male. Could it be…?

“Have you evolved?”

“Yeah, I have become the Thunder Berserk Hobgoblin now.”

Surprisingly, he had already evolved! How fast!

“I’ve become a Fist Fighter in my job. It may sound arrogant, but man, I’ve become incredibly strong,” 

“Ugh, he’s one step ahead…” 

At level 18, I was now two-levels below Jigoro. Although I, who’s not a real-life cheater, had strived not to fall behind in levels, it seemed impossible to outpace Jigoro, who ventured outside to hunt monsters relentlessly.

“Don’t be so down. Anyway, did you accept the goddess’s request?” Jigoro asked.

“Of course,” 

To be honest, I wasn’t particularly interested in the goddesses’ goal of increasing the number of monster-type players. Well, I did think it would be more entertaining if they multiplied, but for now, I was content with honing my villainous persona while adventuring with my current companions.

I was surprised to hear that there were only five of us left, but that was all. It didn’t directly affect me. If the numbers increased in the second batch and they needed help, I would lend a hand. That’s what I thought, at least.

More importantly, the allure of the quest lies in the fact that I can become the villainous boss of the dungeon. Perhaps Jigoro finds satisfaction in battling strong players, but our motivations differ. Nonetheless, there was an undeniable appeal to the role.

“Hehehe, I want to fight all sorts of people!” Jigoro exclaimed.

“You’re a battle maniac, aren’t you? It doesn’t seem like you have any intention of holding back,” 

“Of course not! I’m itching with anticipation for the hero’s party and the woman riding on horseback… It’s making me excited just thinking about it!” 

He truly enjoyed the thrill of combat. While I did find some enjoyment in battles, it was not to the extent that Jigoro did. I wondered where this almost insane desire stemmed from.

“I’m back…”

“I’m here.”

“I’m home!”

Ah, all three of them have returned. Oh? I don’t know about Iris, but Ruby is carrying a dagger I don’t recognize, and Genjuro has a massive sword that is unfamiliar to me.

“It seems you all managed to overcome the trial safely. Congratulations!”

“Th-thank you….bery much~~…” Iris stammered.

For some reason, Iris seemed quite exhausted. I wonder what happened.

“Well, it was good that we fought the little Bunny in the southern trial…” Ruby said.

“But when we were about to finish the trial and return, we almost ran into players who wanted to challenge the trial as well.” Genjuro said.

“We managed to escape without being detected, but it left me completely drained,” Iris concluded.

Iris who primarily focused on production wasn’t skilled in combat. Even in the recent cave exploration, she struggled with firepower during boss battles and could only focus on restraining. While being able to restrain was better than nothing, it was true that she fell far behind the rest of us, including me, in terms of combat ability.

Considering her limitations, it must have been tough for her to take on the “Trial of the Azure Moon” by herself. And on top of that, she had encountered some top players who were fully prepared to take on the trial. Hiding and moving around undetected can be quite stressful. It’s no wonder she ended up feeling completely exhausted.

“Good job.”

“Thanks… I’m so tired~~.”

“So, what were the rewards?”

“Well, it was a growing type of equipment. I got a set of two daggers.” Ruby said.

“I got a large sword on my back and a necklace.” Genjuro said.

“I got a wooden hammer and an axe~~.” Iris said.

I see. It seems Iris and the others had one less reward than Jigoro because they didn’t get the reward for defeating the boss alone. As for me? Well, I have four rewards, including the first conqueror’s reward. Is there a problem with that?

“That’s good to hear. Now, I wanted to exchange information about that matter we discussed. Is that alright with you?”

◆◇◆◇◆◇

The exchange of information regarding the quests given by the goddesses had come to an end. However, the information we all received was more or less the same, and as I had been the most attentive listener, I didn’t gain any new insights from it.

“So, is everyone here planning to take on the role of the boss? Jigoro and I have already agreed to do it,” I asked.

“I’m in too,” Genjuro replied.

“Me too! Our approach may be slightly different, but if there’s an event to participate in, I want to be a part of it!” Ruby added.

So, Genjuro and Ruby were on board. What about Iris?

“Um, I’m not very good at fighting… Is it still okay if I participate?” 

I understood what Iris was trying to convey. It was something only the five of us present here knew, but the boss battle in the upcoming event would be featured in the promotional video for the second wave of players. Iris, who struggled with combat, probably didn’t believe that her own fight would be suitable for the promotional video. That’s why she had been the only one among the five of us who had been undecided.

“It should be fine, right? They didn’t explicitly say we have to win,” 

Lady Yifa had mentioned that there was no need to lose. However, that didn’t mean we had to win at all costs. Besides, since we would be using the boss’s exclusive avatars, it wasn’t as if she would be fighting with Iris’s production-specialized race. There was no need to be so worked up about it.

“Well then, I’ll give it my best shot!” Iris exclaimed with determination.

With that, all five of us were now participating. Although we couldn’t act together, I hoped that each of us would enjoy the experience.

“Well, how about we aim for the depths of the sewer tomorrow and the day after? With our current strength, we should be able to defeat that Rat boss, right?” Jigoro suggested.

I pondered Jigoro’s proposal. He must be referring to the Ratman General, who, apart from being a formidable monster with a level of 30, had an entourage of followers, Ratman Knights, on par with the boss of “Trial of the Azure Moon”.

When we first encountered him, even the battle-maniac Jigoro acknowledged that there was no chance of winning and retreated. But now, things were different. Our levels had increased, and all of us had equipment from the rewards of the “Trial of the Azure Moon”. If we prepared potions and such properly, we would have more than enough chances of success.

Moreover, battling formidable enemies and achieving victory would boost our confidence. It would be the catalyst to dispel Iris’s worries.

“Alright then. Let’s challenge them together on Saturday, two days from now. I can log in the afternoon, but how about the rest of you?”

“Count me in.”

“I’m in too.”

“Me too!”

“I’m good with that as well.”

“Alright, once we gather on Saturday afternoon, we’ll take on Ratman General and his subordinates!”

With the plan settled, the meeting came to a close. Now then, let’s work on raising our levels as much as possible. We’ll charge into the sewer with the determination to exterminate the Ratmen!

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(Luke or hero’s POV)

I felt a similar sense of floating as when logging in, and before I knew it, we had transferred from the trade city of Secant to the starting Firth City.

“Oh, so this is intercity warping. So convenient…”

Having successfully vanquished the second field boss situated east of Firth City, we made our way to the trade city of Secant. After updating our respawn point, we used the warp function to effortlessly travel between the towns we had previously visited, eventually returning to Firth.

“As for the bulletin board-related tasks, let’s leave them to Aina, and then let’s have a celebration!”

“Sounds great!”

“A victory party is important.”

Rose, Meg, and the rest of the group engaged in a lively discussion about where to hold the celebration, commemorating our triumph over the field boss and our first arrival in Secant. In VR games nowadays, it was customary to have the ability to indulge in food and drink, and in FSW, our characters even had a satiety level, making meals an essential aspect of the experience. Well, it couldn’t deceive real hunger, though.

“Luke, what’s wrong? You look down.”

“A-Aaah…”

Unbeknownst to the carefree laughter of Rose and the others, it seemed that Kikuno, being the older woman she was, had seen through me. I contemplated whether to deceive her, but it seemed futile. Perhaps it was best to be honest.

“For some reason, that sensation felt similar to when we respawned,” 

“…I see,” 

Our party, if I do say so myself, was quite formidable. We were among the top players, vying for the first or second spot. Consequently, the need for us to respawn, or, in other words, to die, was extremely rare.

That’s precisely why the memories of when we were defeated remained ingrained in my mind. There were times we failed in boss battles or fell victim to a monster’s ambush.

However, the most bitter memory of defeat was undoubtedly the battle against the “Nightmare of the Northern Mountains” and the “Silver Mask”.

“Luke, that battle was full of unexpected surprises. I’m not telling you to forget about it, but don’t dwell on it too much,” Kikuno advised.

“I know that in my head, but…” 

The battle against the small goblin known as the “Nightmare of the Northern Mountains” had been going smoothly until a mysterious “Silver Mask” suddenly appeared when we were closing in on victory. It was because of that person that the rear line of our raiding team suffered a devastating blow, contributing to the overall defeat of our entire team.

“How childish to take a game so seriously,” I said.

Indeed, this was a game. Even if players died, they would quickly respawn with only a minor penalty. In fact, while the members of the raiding team complained after respawning, I didn’t think they were truly devastated.

But I was filled with immense frustration. It wasn’t just because I lost in a one-on-one battle, but more so because my party members were mercilessly slaughtered and I couldn’t do anything about it. That feeling of helplessness was what hurt the most. I made up my mind that I would definitely repay this debt to the “Silver Mask”.

“Indeed, it may seem childish. But I’m the same way,” K

Kikuno spoke with a wry smile, looking ahead. In her line of sight, there was Meg who was happily smiling.

“When Meg was killed, I lost control and let my anger consume me. In a way, that was the main reason for the raiding team’s complete defeat,” 

“That’s…” 

Kikuno had apologized to everyone during the post-defeat reflection session for that very incident. She acknowledged that she should have remained calmer.

“But you know, with fully immersive VR games, it’s only natural to get so deeply involved,”

“Eh?” 

“In the early days of fully immersive VR games, especially ones that utilize sophisticated AI like we have now, there was a professional gamer who said, ‘It’s better to think of these types of games as starting a new life in a foreign country or another world,’” 

A foreign country or another world, huh? It’s true that the level of realism is so high that it does feel more appropriate to think of it that way.

“That’s why people like me and Luke, who get so passionate about it, become skilled at it. Those who can truly immerse themselves and fully enter the world are the ones suited for fully immersive games. The other four are the same, right?” Kikuno asked.

Now that she mentioned it, this might be true. Aina would immerse herself in contemplating the culture and history of this world between our quests. Rose would enjoy cooking with ingredients that don’t exist in reality and conducting daily research to recreate them in the real world.

Meg would make friends with the NPC children and play with them whenever she had the chance, and Lotus would often enter and exit the temple, engaging in playful banter with the elderly folks. Although our approaches were different, we were all deeply engrossed in this world.

“I don’t know how to put it… but I don’t dislike someone like you who gets so serious,” Kikuno admitted.

“I see… Thank you for comforting me,”

“Ah, I didn’t mean it that way,” 

Kikuno raised her voice and gave me a light smack on the back. Even I, who was often called insensitive, could tell that it was her way of hiding her embarrassment.

“Luke! Kikuno! What are you doing? We’ll leave you behind!?”

“Huh? Okay, okay,” 

“Hey, wait up!”

That’s right, I had my companions with me. The more I enjoyed exploring this world with everyone, the stronger the sadness and frustration became when my companions were hurt.

But I didn’t find it embarrassing or foolish. That’s what it meant to play and live in this world. Now, let’s fully enjoy this world. To start with, let’s have a victory party!