BSO Chapter 166

[Getting to the Climax, Great War of Extermination!]

The Great War of Extinction—the biggest PVP event in online game history, where 250,000 players clashed—was nearing its climax.

“Haa, haa… destroy the Goddess’ Side…!”

“You’re going down, Demon King’s Side players…!”

The exhaustion among the players was evident, with heavy breathing echoing across the battlefield.

Although controlling avatars didn’t cause physical fatigue, it demanded mental endurance. Many lost their concentration in the midst of the melee, leading to fatal mistakes or surprise attacks and ending up dead.

It was only natural; while we had taken a break, we’d been fighting for over two hours. Even the most seasoned players would find themselves drained by this point.

–So, it was time for the true sore losers to make their stands.

“Face my blade! Activate sword arts, ‘Iai Slash’, ‘Crescent Moon Slash’, ‘Skyward Rend’!” Zansword brandished his sword, unleashing a series of flashy sword arts that drew the enemies’ attention.

Meanwhile…

“Come at me if ya dare! Activate fist arts, ‘Throat Trust’, ‘Black Drunken Fist’, ‘Special Technique・Sky-Reaching Cannon’!” The baldhead swung his fists, dishing out fist arts of various styles.

They remained as reliable as ever, and it seemed they had activated their ultimate skills, given their continued use of arts without taking MP recovery potions.

“‘Apex of the Sword’, a skill exclusive to those with a swordsman-type job at level 80+, and ‘Apex of the Fist’, a skill for those with a barehanded fighting-type job at level 80+.”

These skills were straightforward but extremely powerful. For a set period of time, they would restore MP with each attack made using a sword for ‘Apex of the Sword’ and with each fist strike for ‘Apex of the Fist’.

Simply put, they allowed for the spamming of arts.

Not to mention, Zansword’s ‘Samurai Master’ job reduced the MP cost of sword arts, while the baldhead’s ‘Power Grappler’ job increased the power of his arts at the expense of higher MP.

The skills were a perfect match for them. Zansword could use his arts at rapid succession with barely any MP cost, and the baldhead could unleash devastatingly powerful arts.

“They’re reliable companions, aren’t they, Merlin?”

“My, just as I anticipated, you noticed me.”

When I turned around, there was Merlin—the handsome dude all decked out in pink—with his weapon drawn.

“Your ability to detect enemies never ceases to amaze me. It is the same with those two, but how do you managed to stay so focused, Yuri-chan? ou’ve been in the thick of this battle for quite a while now.”

“Yeah, I’ve faced off against a lot of rivals.”

I’d fought against Alice, Seele, Korin, Kirika, and other people whose name was still a mystery to me, giving it my all in each fight.

Just moments ago, I even took down a virtual idol and over a hundred of her fans.

But I had to keep fighting.

“I can’t afford to get tired until we secure victory. I’ll keep fighting so that all the rivals I’ve defeated can take pride in having faced me.”

“Heh, you’re as straightforward as ever…”

Merlin chuckled wearily.

He raised his blade and enveloped himself in lightning.

“Hey, isn’t that…”

Advanced enchantment spell ‘Thunder Enchant: Suicide Bolt’. It was a spell that enhanced the user’s speed and added a paralysis effect to attacks at the cost of slowly draining HP, making it suitable for short-term decisive battles.

Him using it in the midst of this chaotic melee could only mean one thing…

“You planning to die, Merlin?”

“Yes, I’m already at my limit. I mean, I’ve always preferred discovering and unraveling games’ mysteries over fighting.”

But still, Merlin glared at me.

“…I’m a man, and men are stubborn. If I can bring down the ‘Demon King Yuri’ in my final moments, wouldn’t that be the ultimate achievement?”

“Heh, you’ve got a point.”

Merlin, the guild master of the information guild, ‘Serpent of Wisdom’.

He had shared his wisdom with me, but at the same time, he had set the stage for this great war by sacrificing himself—my fated enemy.

This Great War of Extinction was a hell lot of fun no doubt, but the way he had manipulated me into kickstarting it still pissed me off. I really wanted to give him a good thrashing right now.

–But that would have to wait for another time.

“Sorry, Merlin. But it seems like someone else has made a reservation with you.”

In the next moment, a spear suddenly appeared beside Merlin.

One of my comrades, the ‘Brave Lancer’ Yario stealthily thrust his spear towards him.

“Wha?!”

Merlin promptly dodged, leaping backward with lightning-fast speed.

But at that very moment, a dark shadow closed in on him, matching the swiftness of his enchanted state.

My other comrade, the ‘Beast Riser’ Crutteruo, delivered a powerful kick to Merlin.

“Ghh?! Y-you…!”

Merlin’s eyes widened as he looked at Yario and Crutteruo, who now stood before him.

This wasn’t their first meeting. They had previously cooperated with each other to clear the ‘Cursed Island’ just the other day.

“My, my… you didn’t seem to come here for a joyous reunion. Have I perhaps offended you in some way?”

“Oh no, you’ve never Merlin-san,” Yario responded, brandishing his spear, “It’s just that when we met the other day, you said something while looking at Yuri-san, didn’t you? ‘While I wouldn’t mind playing with the two of you, your boss is way out of my league’–you said.”

“Eh, th-that’s–?!”

“I mean, I got where you were coming from! Yuri-san is strong, no doubt about that. But…!”

Yario and Crutteruo simultaneously glared at Merlin.

“We’re top players too. We’ve got our own pride. We can’t possibly let it slide when someone underestimates us…!”

“Ou, ou… that’s why we’ve decided on it…! In this war, we’d track down that annoying pink hot dude and teach him a lesson…!”

I’ve scoured every corner of this hellish battlefield, searching for you, Merlin, Yario declared.

I got taken out by Kirika, but I clawed my way back from the dead after surviving the repechage just to teach you a lesson, Merlin, Crutteruo said.

“E-eeeeeeeeehhhh…?”

Merlin flinched, facing the two who were now approaching him in a ghastly manner.

Haha, his plan to take me down before died was unraveling right before his very eyes.

“Well, there you have it, Merlin. Squeeze out every last ounce of your remaining energy and fight them as best as you can… and then, if you manage to beat them, break your limit and come face me. A real man doesn’t spout feeble excuses about reaching his limits.”

“Yuri-chan…”

“It’s not every day we get this kind of great festival. So, don’t limit yourself and let loose until the very end, okay?”

Merlin shook his head helplessly, “You really know what to say to light a fire under people, Yuri-chan,” and then, with a determined gaze, he pointed his blade at Yario and Crutteruo, “Very well, today I will eliminate the higher ups and the leader of Demon King’s side…!”

“Yeah, that’s more like it.”

Merlin cast aside his usual air of intellect. Raising his blade, he charged headlong towards his two challengers.

But not before leaving some parting words.

“Don’t drop your guard, Yuri-chan. There are still two assassin players who are on par with Pendragon-chan, you know?”

“Huh?”

Then, in the instant…

Zansword and the baldhead were sent hurtling beside me…!

“Wait, what?!”

Both of them were covered in wounds. Blood was quickly pooling at their feet.

“Gh… that girl is strong…!”

“Heh, didn’t know there’s that tough of a guy among the enemy…!”

The two struggled to their feet. It seemed that while they had managed to avoid fatal wounds, the damage they had sustained was quite considerable.

“You guys okay?”

I took out two potion bottles and poured their contents over them.

The potions didn’t need to be drunk, but Zansword pursed his lips for some reason, so I gave him a smack on the face. He sure never let up with his idiocy.

“Hey, don’t hit your ally, Yuri! These aren’t foes to take lightly!”

“You had it coming, you Idiotsword. …But yeah, gotta agree with you. We can’t be messin’ around against them.”

My rival duo glared ahead with a vigilant expression.

Then, slashing away the black smoke, two figures came into view.

“—Ah, so you were here, Yuri-san. Goodness, you wouldn’t believe how many people I had to kill before finding you.”

One of them was the girl who had been with the robot and the warrior earlier.

Her striking heterochromatic red and silver eyes, combined with her long, flowing blond hair, made for quite a striking appearance.

Her magical scythe, etched with intricate runes, and the mechanical scythe with its menacing chainsaw blade made an indelible impression. Clad in a militaristic attire that billowed in the wind, she offered me a cute smile.

“My name is Ange. Just like you, I’m the top player—with a capital T—of the game called ‘Yggdrasil Online’.”

As she introduced herself, the scythes in her hands emitted a low growl.

A sanguine-hued wind swirled around the blade of the magical scythe, resembling a deadly drill.

Simultaneously, the chainsaw blade on the mechanical scythe began to spin, producing a thunderous noise that reverberated across the battlefield.

Both weapons seemed like sinister instruments of execution. As I studied them, Zansword leaned in and whispered, “‘Yggdrasil Online was the first R-rated VRMMO’, introduced through a trial service several years ago. It earned its R rating not for sexual content but due to the gore—splattering entrails and such—and the minimal pain suppression, which caused quite a controversy at the time.”

“For real…? And you’re telling me that cute girl is the top player of that kind of game?”

“Yes. Then again, you’re cute and crazy strong as well, so maybe it’s not that strange.”

“Shaddap.”

Leaving the question of whether I was cute aside—this meant that Ange was used to almost realistic life-or-death battles. You really couldn’t judge a book by its cover.

“But the other guy seems just as strong as he looks…”

I shifted my attention to the masked black-haired man.

His well-built physique was adorned with traditional Japanese attire.

But unlike Kirika’s or my glamorous dresses, his clothes looked more like the ones worn by the Dead Kirika had summoned, giving him a menacing appearance.

Moreover, he sported a pair of horns on his head, making him look like a devil straight from hell.

…And, was it just me, or did he actually seem really pissed?

“…I’m the former top player of ‘Darkness Soul Online’, and now I’m a tester for various new VR games… wait, who cares about that…!”

His crimson eyes bore into mine, exuding overflowing killing intent that made me flinch.

W-why are you glaring at me like that?! We’ve never met before! I don’t remember ever accidentally offending you like Merlin did?!

“Are you Yuri?!”

“Y-yeah, why?!”

“I see! So you’re the one who defeated my Alice—my real-life fiancée?!”

“Wait, so you’re that lolicon fiancé of hers?!”

He was the Arata guy who was in love with Alice, who looked like an elementary student?!

“I’m going to kill… I’m going to kill you…!”

Arata, the devil, unleashed tremendous killing intent.

But upon thinking that he was simply a gamer who had lost his temper after learning that his loli fiancée had been defeated in a game, he didn’t seem all that frightening anymore.

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