8
Chapter 8
After the post by Melee-type Spy, nothing was uploaded for four days.
As if by some unspoken agreement, the community fell silent. It was the first time the forum had ever been this quiet.
What on earth happened to make everyone go silent?
The author of the next post was the same person who had written the last one.
[Melee-type Spy: Just survive.
Team up? Clear the game? Go home? Not a chance.
You all saw the dark clouds moving, right? It was damn dark all day, so there is no way you missed it.
Why do you think George's Raid Party went silent? And why are the rest of you quiet?
You've all figured it out. That is why you are all just lurking.
Stop having these delusional fantasies and think about it.
Was Survival as a Holy Knight ever a game you could actually clear?
It was a survival RPG. And what exactly is a survival game?
Isn't the goal just to survive for as long as possible? The RPG elements are just a side thing.
Hey.
You can't go home. You can't win.
Just give up.
Stop acting out and just live quietly until the end.]
...What exactly were those dark clouds?
I can only assume that something terrible happened to George and his raid party.
The community remained silent for several hours even after Melee-type Spy's post.
[Shotgun Attack: What is this?] (2)
[Pushung Pashung: Where am I?] (4)
[Not a Netkama: This is the game Survival as a Holy Knight, right?] (7)
[Morning Tent Installation Knight: I am trapped in a cave right now. Can someone please call the police or the fire department...] (4)
The community only became active again after fresh posts from newbies who seemed to have just joined appeared.
[Dino Punch: Gathering Diary #1
Today's find is an infected giant larva.
It was so huge that it took a long time to roast over the fire.
It is crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. I think I gagged about five times while eating, but I finished the whole thing.
Lesson: Bugs are useless even in another world.]
Ah, so this is when Dino Punch's gathering diary began.
[Bramanda: Newbies, read the old posts.
There is plenty of useful information for survival.
I'm pretty busy myself right now, so I can't explain everything one by one, but if there's something you don't know, just ask in the comments.]
[Samurai Jackson: Question for the newbies.
Did anyone here start with the Two-Sword Style?
If you did, join our 'Dual Wield Crew'.
Let's spread the word that the Two-Sword Style is the perfect swordsmanship for both offense and defense.]
This one actually got some comments.
[Morning Tent Installation Knight: Aren't dual blades a symbol of defeat?]
└ [Samurai Jackson: I told you it's the Two-Sword Style, not dual blades.]
[Abraham: I smell green tea somewhere.]
[Full Play: Historically, the end for those who wield dual blades has never been good.]
└ [Samurai Jackson: I'm fine because I use the Two-Sword Style.]
[Not a Netkama: Two-Sword Style? Are the two swords different sizes?]
└ [Samurai Jackson: Exactly. One is short and one is long. The short one can be used for defense. It's a practical and professional style of swordsmanship.]
└ [Not a Netkama: It would be better to just carry a sword and a small shield. The height of inefficiency.]
└ [Samurai Jackson: Maybe it's because you're a netkama... you have no sense of romance.]
In the end, there were no other Two-Sword Style users.
The influx of newbies and the constant stream of nonsense posts revitalized the community, which had been stagnant due to George's silence.
[Twangki: Twangki's Growth Diary #1.
I'm going to write a growth diary every day starting today. It'll be more interesting than Dino Punch's gathering diary.
I hit level 2. I have a feeling that among the Infected, carnivores give more experience than herbivores.
Is it because carnivores are stronger, or because they've eaten so many other herbivores?
Well, whatever. I'm sick of the Infected. It's time to aim for something bigger, so I'm thinking of heading down toward the village. Avoiding the Devil's Sight is too easy now. They're so slow they can barely even move.
With my current strength, I could probably take down a Worshipper with ease.
Richard who bullied me, the teachers who just watched, and that bitch Stacey who humiliated me by calling me a white pig...
Now I can handle them by infusing my blade with holy light.
I'm no longer a fat dwarf under 160 centimeters.
I am a holy super-soldier with the body of an alpha male. I call myself 'Paladin the Thundercock'.
You can do it, Twangki!
Mom, Dad, watch over me from Earth!]
Growth Diary #2 by Twangki was never uploaded.
...This is practically a black comedy.
[Not a Netkama: Finished binge-reading the community posts.
So, what happened to George?
Is he dead? Or is he just too scared to speak?
Why is Melee-type Spy the only one fuming?]
Some users tried to poke at sensitive topics, but naturally, there was no response.
Not a Netkama... you've always been clueless.
No wonder you write creepy, bizarre things like 'Has anyone here killed a person from this world?'
Anyway, George's story ended here. The user with the nickname 'George' never posted in the community again.
As the small hope George had ignited fell pointlessly, the community that had been devoted to survival and strategy died.
[Ghoulle: Dinner recs (meat-focused)] (7)
[Odo-daejangbu: A maiden seen in my dreams~ I love you~] (4)
[Corrupted Power Knight: How to season weeds deliciously.txt] (5)
[I Trusted the Monkey Uncle: In real-time, this Holy Knight is taming a twisted dog of the underworld] (2)
[Not a Netkama: Tell me your type in men before you go]
[Melee-type Spy: └ That guy above is totally pretending to be a girl~]
[Full Play: Has everyone tried board games?] (11)
It was reborn as a community you could find anywhere, filled with venting, daily chatter, and hobbies.
***
A week has passed since Kanto and the warriors began clearing out the Infected.
"I'll be back!"
- Don't overdo it.
A repetitive daily life with nothing special happening. I've gathered about 2,000 points and gained a new blessing.
[Divine Descent: Allows you to attach to a vassal's body. Prolonged use may cause extreme fatigue.]
Divine Descent. A blessing that lets you enter someone else's body. It's basically no different from possession.
The funny thing is, I'm already possessing a game character, and now I can possess someone else's body within that.
It would be what you call double possession.
Now I don't have to spend all my time on the community in this fixed body. This is great.
It's not that I was writing posts and comments constantly, but just reading old ones, which was still mentally draining.
This was because there were so many posts that used clickbait titles to lure people in, only to leave them furious with garbage content.
[Melee-type Spy: Some kind of god descended on the Capital? Is everyone seeing this right now?
'S.. sorry. Actually, I've never seen such a thing. I just wanted attention...
Huh? You're not that angry?
I knew it, everyone clearly loves me~~!'
"Sigh... Hey, Kozaburo. Handle it."
Kozaburo: 'YES SIR—.[MASTER]—. Executing [Transcendent]'s orders—.[SYSTEM: THE SLAUGHTER] activating—.'
'Hey, hey, why do you have a red rabbit tattoo on your belly!!! Wait, when did you get so close..!!! Aaaaagh!!! Help me!!! It hurts too much!!! I'm sorry!!!'
Kozaburo: 'I have [Terminated] the target's [Life Cycle].'
Transcendent: 'Excellent.']
[I Trusted the Monkey Uncle: In real-time, this Holy Knight is touching a nun's breasts
Goodness... you little brat!! That's xxxx~]
You crazy bastard. Don't make me remember that.
I can only describe it as a march of pain.
"...Are you going to do it now?"
Paya, the High Priest of the Blue Moss Tribe, glances at me.
We're still awkward with each other. We haven't really bonded, even after a week.
It's not that I didn't try to start a conversation... the timing was just always off.
Paya's also in charge of educating the tribe's children, essentially moonlighting as a kindergarten director, so she's been very busy.
- Let's do it.
I answered quickly.
Since I've spent so much time on the community alone, I've started daydreaming even when someone's right in front of me. I need to be careful about that.
I bestowed the blessing 'Divine Descent' upon Paya.
The screen faded to black...
My eyelids flutter closed, and as they open, a small, soft hand enters my field of vision.
- Seems like it worked.
"Wow...!"
- You may move.
Feet begin to toddle.
"Where should we go?"
- I want to see the tribe.
Since my descent ceremony, the tribe members hadn't gathered at the Altar.
There was some reason—something about Lord Loa feeling uncomfortable or it being bad luck. Regardless, now is my chance.
"Yes."
Paya trotted toward the tribe.
Thinking this way makes me seem like a loser who's too immersed, but these are the people I have to protect, so I wanted to see their faces. I barely saw them the first day because everything was so chaotic.
Either way, I am their god now. That is my role, and if it's unavoidable, I must embrace this sense of duty and responsibility.
It'll come naturally once I start caring for them.
...Melee-type Spy's post comes to mind (not that shitty Kozaburo).
He said to give up, to stop acting out and just live quietly... right?
I believe the entity known as Loa has quite a bit of potential.
In the 'New Content Proposal' I sent to the game developers, Loa's role was essentially that of a DLC boss.
Right now, it's just a pathetic piece of wood called the Dragon Totem, but there's no telling what it'll become as it grows. It's a gamble worth taking—a chance for a massive late-game power spike.
That's why I'm not ready to just give up.
I mean, damn, I'm a god for now. Let's see what I can do.