Chapter 29
Chapter 29
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Movement (3)
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01.
"...Farewell, Sol. Rest in peace."
In Fukuoka, Japan, Hana Mitsuko—guild master of the renowned Thousand-Year Cherry Blossom, Japan's undisputed top guild—quietly swallowed her tears upon hearing the news that Korea's prestigious Ace Guild and its leader Sol-sol had been utterly annihilated while preparing a raid on Selverion.
Having maintained a long friendship as fellow guild masters focused on PvE content, Sol-sol's death struck Mitsuko like the loss of a close family member.
And the killer was none other than the most vicious stage boss, Selverion. The news hit too hard, one shock after another, making it impossible to calm her rattled heart.
"Selverion..."
Mitsuko, known by her nickname YUKI Shiro, leaned back in her office chair and gently closed her eyes. In the darkness behind her lids, like a blank canvas, she slowly pictured December's stage boss, the God of Ruin Selverion.
—G-Guild master! Movement sealed!
—Armored troops, step forward and protect our allies! Priests, dispel status ailments! Mages, block Selverion's approach with firebombs...!! Ugh!!
"..."
Her only memory of that white snowflake girl was from the raid—her head sliced clean off. All Mitsuko could envision was a gruesome scene of blood spraying and her guild wiped out in an instant.
"Haa..."
A natural sigh escaped her lips as she recalled that nightmare she never wanted to think about again. A nagging headache began to creep in.
"Selverion... what am I supposed to do with you...?"
Mitsuko cradled her throbbing forehead. Her mind, filled with visions of Selverion, was gripped by fear and refused to settle.
Even if the boss was thought to have gained intelligence and shown relatively docile behavior, in Mitsuko's memory, Selverion was nothing but a ferocious, cruel monster.
She couldn't even imagine the girl sitting peacefully, sipping tea.
Besides, even if Ace had provoked her first, the result was that her friend Sol-sol had died by Selverion's hand. Mitsuko's anxiety doubled.
Above all, where was Korea? Not some distant land across the Pacific, but Japan's closest neighbor. It felt like Selverion could cross the sea and come for them any moment.
"I'm anxious. So anxious."
Moreover, with that fox-like woman Han Yeonhwa—now Korea's de facto player leader—there was a chance she could twist Selverion to her own ends. Mitsuko's unease grew even deeper.
It felt like a time bomb planted right next door—one that could explode anytime, and whose owner might even exploit it maliciously.
How could anyone live with a sound mind?
That bomb had to be defused as soon as possible.
"Selverion..."
But the bomb was none other than Selverion—the undefeated time bomb that hadn't been cleared once in eight years.
Selverion had overwhelmingly triumphed even against a raid of 3,000 top-tier guild members. There was no way her Thousand-Year Cherry Blossom could defeat her physically.
And now it wasn't a game but reality. With Selverion gaining intelligence, all accumulated data was worthless scrap, and her combat style would be unpredictable.
If she crossed the sea recklessly out of mere anxiety, Mitsuko would end up boarding the train to the afterlife alongside Sol-sol.
"Dialogue..."
So, Mitsuko considered a more peaceful approach. Rumors said Selverion had true intelligence and had even warned Ace, showing rational judgment.
Then maybe dialogue was possible. They could calmly enjoy a morning salad and black tea, chatting peacefully in a relaxed atmosphere.
Selverion's presence next door was unsettling, but subjugating her was impossible. No matter how she thought about it, Mitsuko and her guild's only option was persuasion through talk.
Load up treasures and gold, appease her somehow, secure Japan's safety. If possible, build a close relationship to prevent Korea from using her maliciously.
"Yes."
No matter how she pondered, dialogue was Mitsuko's last card.
If she didn't try it now and secure safety, her chronic worry would keep her from sleeping a wink.
"I need to send someone right away."
Thus, she decided to dispatch someone immediately to Korea, to Seoul, to wherever Selverion might be.
In a world where players and monsters only exchanged blood and steel, this would be the first olive branch of dialogue.
"Please... let dialogue work..."
Mitsuko could only pray her bold new attempt succeeded.
02.
Just as cars need preheating and food needs resting, every endeavor requires an appropriate cooldown.
So, four days after clashing with Ace Guild in Yeouido, I made no special moves, simply spending time at home.
If Selverion appeared repeatedly, stirring things up, people would panic, and unimaginable events would pile on.
It wasn't a stage boss outbreak, and the monsters in Korea now were manageable by players alone. No need for me to step out.
—Um, I have a great plan to pursue with Lady Selverion! I need to prepare, so I'll head out somewhere! No betrayal! Nothing suspicious! Please wait for me!
Even Kim Arin, sparrow-like as she was, had dropped me off in my neighborhood four days ago, said those cryptic words, and vanished. I returned to my quiet daily life.
As the snowflake spirit Selverion, needing no sleep or food, I had twice the free time of an ordinary person each day.
And the biggest chunk of that time? Monitoring domestic and international situations, of course.
No mere player but Selverion herself—I had to track the ever-shifting landscape.
Especially since starting to pay attention to overseas guilds four days ago, I focused more on foreign news articles than domestic ones.
Any other stage bosses besides me showing up? Countries reclaiming their cities quickly? Causes of this unprecedented crisis uncovered? I endlessly surfed the internet's world of 0s and 1s.
"Hm..."
But the more I searched overseas news, the more my expression hardened. Each scroll grabbed my eyes with headlines too horrific to witness.
📰 Breaking News [North Macedonia: Capital Skopje engulfed in flames by single dragon... Survivors estimated below 1%] [Germany: Monster invasion swells refugee numbers, announces full border closure] [France: Deploys player units to neighboring countries to repel anomalies] [India: 14 states' 'non-game zones' obliterated... Total deaths and missing near 4 million] [Congo: Government declares 'beyond control'... Effectively state collapse] [Haiti: Anomaly invasion hits hard... Port-au-Prince falls, deaths estimated over 100,000] [Togo: Entire territory confirmed occupied by anomalies... National flag remains, nation vanishes] "......"
Korea avoided the worst thanks to the government's unusually swift response, but other nations weren't so lucky.
Poor countries with low VR game penetration and few Season Off Fantasy players suffered even more miserably.
Without players, they couldn't stop the oversized monsters pouring in. And no one could spare aid—everyone was in dire straits.
...For nations lacking both help and the means to fight back, there was only one end: annihilation.
The urgent headlines confirmed numerous governments had fully collapsed.
"Players..."
Season Off Fantasy players—the only ones who could fight monsters. Their numbers were limited, especially high-rankers who could handle top monsters.
In this overturned reality, players were weapons, resources, politicians, commodities.
With finite numbers and no nations developing anti-monster superweapons, their value and power would only rise as the crisis dragged on.
Ace and its master Yoon Sol could act recklessly because they held overwhelming power as the capital's top guild.
Without Han Yeonhwa, SPR committee chair above them, the capital's fate would bend to Ace's whims, breeding more chaos.
Now city-level, but soon players or guilds eyeing nations, even world conquest, would emerge.
The situation was tailor-made for players to dream of such impossible goals.
I had an inexplicable hunch that player conflicts would spark greater chaos and wars sweeping the globe.
"......"
...Skimming the articles, I moved to the community next. Alternating news and forums, freezing occasional monsters at my door—it had become my little routine.
"Huh...?"
Entering the community, I sensed a frenzy. No voices, but the post update speed and excitement screamed that something big had broken.
The shock of my—Selverion's—appearance hadn't faded, and the community was in madness.
Scrolls lagged wildly, loading failed. Finally reaching the hot posts list, I understood why.
📰 Breaking News [Breaking) Live from Hawaii: November stage boss Nevacal appears] ...In the central Pacific between Hawaii and the US mainland, November's stage boss, the Sea Lord 'Nevacal,' had emerged.
"Ah..."
Finally,
Stage bosses besides me were starting to move.