106 - The Basis for Judgment

Even in World of Arceria, which was incredibly realistic, there were several spots where it didn't quite feel like reality. For instance, when enemies fell, any gory scenes were automatically mosaiced, and bodies didn't linger as corpses—they just vanished after a while. Conversations with NPCs were the same. At first, you might mistake them for real people, but that only held for interactions on specific topics. They never unfolded their own stories. Ask about what they ate yesterday or their family members, and they'd clamp their mouths shut like they'd glitched out.

That's probably why I was so intrigued by Adella, that NPC. Her responses were so vivid they made you think you were duoing with a real person. You had to dig deep into conversation before sensing anything off. If I had to compare, it was like the difference between a robot injected with memories and a dementia patient who'd lost theirs. Adella was closer to the latter. Once you started seeing her as human, that impression stuck in your head like glue.

What defines humanity, anyway? Acting human was just mimicking, something easily fulfilled. Even I, as a kid, had grown attached to Lily the fox merchant selling worn boots and potions in Legacy of Legend. I had no clue how far this era's tech had advanced, but if game NPCs were at this level, the singularity of technological revolution couldn't be far off.

The amount itself wasn't shocking, but the message he sent piqued my interest. Long ago, in a Korea without mana, there lived a queen—not a literal one, but an athlete of queenly stature. In a documentary from her childhood, a PD had asked her the exact same question. I still remembered it. She'd replied, "What do I think about...? I just do it."

People who can "just" do it are usually extraordinary. That's why, in my first life, I made it my life motto—it resonated deeply. Was there someone like her in this world? I hadn't looked, so who knows.

Truth be told, I didn't think anything special while gaming either. Her detached answer made a bit of sense now.

"Thanks for the 1 million won donation, Overdose. Thinking... thoughts, huh."

But saying I had no thoughts would be a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠lie. And it wouldn't be what he wanted. Thoughts were layered complexly, hard to sum up in one go. After a moment's deliberation, I tossed my dual swords to reset the penalty and decided to give the donor a satisfying answer.

"I'll tell you what I think about while gaming."

NoName was smarter than most. Intelligence was relative—you needed comparisons. Having spent more days in her past life surrounded by the continent's top ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠prodigies and legendary heroes, she tended to undervalue herself.

"Three shield-bearing knights are charging from the front. Don't forget to scan and memorize the view in the direction you've confirmed. They look like they're coming at the same speed, but their varying strides suggest attack timings offset by a half-beat, so I won't counter that. Instead, I'll turn the tables on the student targeting me from behind. Dispel reverses casting order, so..."

As NoName said, the one with the widest stride kicked off first, leaping with a downward slash. The others, having slowed, flanked with follow-ups. Reacting after seeing would have trapped her perfectly, leading to certain death. But by forcibly dispelling the boy's wand-sparking magic, the valuable mage became a frail hostage.

"1st Circle magic has low power but high efficiency and drastically shortened cast times. Instead of one big spell, chaining multiple in sequence opens paths even in 10 limited seconds."

No sooner said than done—she snatched the boy's wand, syncing with the laurel wand. Wands skipped recording and injection steps. Five magic circles hummed behind her, firing sharp beams everywhere but forward.

"Judged high risk seizing long-reach weapons from reachers, so targeted sword-and-shield knights restricted by shields first."

She shattered the legs of a knight disoriented by the five-pronged flash. He flailed wildly, but she dropped low, evaded, and planted her left hand. Her right leg swept a wide arc. A sharp wind whistled; the knight groaned.

"Urk..."

"Can't chase a stumbling foe and die to a blind arrow."

Whoosh—! She ducked a rear-headshot arrow. From first-person view, it was invisible; it exploded into the ground—not a plain blunt arrow, but one with a detonation scroll. She stomped a rolling shield to vault and cover.

Boom!

"Wide sightlines were key there, dodging the archer's aim from behind the first knight unscathed. Hiding compresses threats to six cases; prepped for the deadliest."

Dark smoke swirled in the wind. No breather—a heavy-armored knight swung a greatsword from behind his shield, sweeping fiercely.

Clang!

Shield parried the heavy blow, staggering NoName. Mass always brought recoil. The recovered greatsword slashed horizontally in rapid combo.

"Handled unblockable attacks with pre-cast magic for quick response, securing a great weapon unscathed."

Closing on the disarmed knight, face punch, spin-elbow to gut. Tough guy? Forehead smash sealed it.

"Dispel covers healer's inefficient mana recovery, so use skills on cooldown. Acceleration over heal for sure kills."

Greatsword had superior reach, but limited time. "Greatswords are more blind-spot vulnerable than one-handers; turning blindly exposes to varied attacks, so assess first—like now—"

Clang—!

The heavy greatsword over her shoulder snapped the thrusting thin sword from behind.

"Backing a streetlamp gives shadow cues in sight for preemptive defense, like just now."