320. Raid Rehearsal
320. Raid Rehearsal
***
A raid rehearsal.
Holding a rehearsal for a raid was a slightly funny way to put it, but Sua considered it absolutely necessary.
Not fearing failure and not thinking about failure at all were two completely different things. And Sua was thinking about failure, and about how to minimize its possibility as much as she could.
And Sua was not the type to take preparation lightly or treat it as easy.
She was the type who believed that promises made in advance, things she had agreed to do, and anything else that had been decided had to be kept. In that sense, the raid rehearsal was ironically like a rehearsal for exactly one person.
'Bloody Night.'
The raid member who had been added last.
Honestly, she had no worries at all about working with Serin. Matching her pace was something Sua could handle on her end, and with Serin's skill level, there would be no problem. In the end, she considered syncing with her to be the most important thing.
...
Monday, September 6, 4:21 p.m.
Sua's house space in Another World.
Once again, three women were gathered in Sua's personal space.
"So, the plan is to move around hunting grounds for about four hours today?"
When Yujeong casually spoke up, Sua nodded as if to say that was correct.
"You know all about the Zervallua Raid too, Yujeong. So today's purpose is to sync up with each other."
As Sua said that and turned her head, she saw Serin listening calmly.
Serin, wearing her usual red light armor and pure-white Crescent-Moon Weight, met her gaze.
"Sounds fine. So, have you decided which hunting grounds we're going to?"
"Yes. They won't be as intense as a raid, but I've put together a route focused on party hunting grounds that are good for syncing up. First is the Demon Realm, then the Giants' Grand Garden. We'll try to get in sync at those two places."
Sua answered without hesitation. Serin nodded along, but her gaze drifted toward the other woman.
Sua, a beautiful blonde knight radiating light, was certainly eye-catching enough, but there was a woman who drew the eye even more.
'I can't get used to it no matter how many times I see it.'
Yujeong's appearance in a black suit that clung to her body was enough to make me feel embarrassed every time I saw it. The black suit itself wasn't really that provocative, but Yujeong's figure was so absurd that it synergized with the suit.
To be completely honest, Yujeong's very existence looked too lewd.
[What is this right after the stream started? Damn.]
[Today's collab is insane]
[The eye candy is unreal, seriouslyyyyy]
[Oh my god...]
[Bloody Night, you're killing meeeeeee]
[This is the game! This is my country!]
[Agreed agreed]
[No but, her chest is actually insane right?]
[Her figure is seriously unreal]
[Wow...]
[Dayum]
As proof of that, the chat window visible at the edge of my vision was exploding. Among the comments, occasionally unsavory ones appeared, and I found myself frowning without realizing it.
"I'll ban anyone who crosses the line in chat right away, so viewers, please control yourselves."
"Seriously, it's total chaos... Chat, you know to stay in line while I'm still asking nicely, right?"
Sua also checked the chat and chimed in with a troubled look.
It had only been about twenty minutes since they'd turned on the stream by mutual agreement, but the chat was already overflowing with talk about Yujeong, who had joined the collab unexpectedly.
I found myself checking on Yujeong's state, but outwardly she seemed fine.
"Pfft..."
The moment our eyes met, Yujeong let out a small laugh.
"I'm really fine. And I do understand where the viewers are coming from, but I hope they'll control themselves so they don't get banned?"
In a way, Yujeong was the only ordinary person here.
'Will she be able to handle this kind of chat?'
Should we not have turned on the stream? Even as that thought crossed my mind, I found myself asking.
"Are you really okay with sharing a chat like this?"
Every chat that Sua and I were seeing was also displayed prominently at the edge of Yujeong's vision. So all the various line-crossing comments were already being seen by Yujeong as well.
I wondered if Yujeong, who wasn't even a streamer, would have any tolerance for this kind of chat.
"Both of you are streamers, so I expected this level of chat from the moment the stream started. Honestly, it doesn't really bother me."
She actually smiled softly with her eyes, looking completely at ease.
Seeing that, I thought she must have really strong mental fortitude, and a faint breath escaped me.
We had definitely told Yujeong before turning on the stream that she would receive certain benefits. But it still felt like we were imposing on her, and I couldn't feel entirely comfortable.
"Well, that's a relief, but... Sua, I think it'd be better to head to the hunting ground quickly."
It seemed necessary to change the stream content quickly, so I brought it up.
"Yeah. Looking at the chat, I think we need to go to the hunting ground and spill some blood for them to calm down."
Sua nodded repeatedly in agreement.
...
The Demon Realm.
It was one of the hunting grounds always mentioned when discussing the most unsettling and difficult hunting grounds in Another World, and it had once been notorious as the most difficult known hunting ground. But through continued content updates, it had since lost its position as the most difficult hunting ground.
Even so, no one denied that it was still a good hunting ground.
The Demonic-Energy Crystal, which dropped only in the Demon Realm, was an alchemy material traded at a fairly high price, and the drop rate for Legendary Items there was also famous for being higher than other hunting grounds, making it a place sought out by rankers and many top-tier users.
The Demon Realm's stat requirement was quite high, demanding level 63 or above plus at least two Mythic Items. But Serin's party heading to the Demon Realm now mostly far exceeded those conditions.
Their average level was over 65, and as for equipment, Sua and Yujeong had nearly all their gear decked out in Mythic Items.
Among them, only Serin's equipment could be considered lacking compared to theirs, and that point bothered Sua deeply.
...
"So, about that. We're planning to use the budget that way. What's your opinion, Yujeong?"
"Yes. I'm fine with it too. Honestly, just the contract is enough for me."
"Ah, that's a relief."
As Yujeong accepted her words without any particular objection, just as they had agreed beforehand, Sua smiled brightly.
At that, Yujeong glanced at Serin and gave a small nod.
'Definitely.'
Compared to her known reputation, Rin's current equipment looked far too inadequate.
Her Mythic weapon and bracelet certainly had good options and were fine, but it was a bit ironic that most of her armor was Unique-grade, not even Legendary.
Before even mentioning raids, who entered the Demon Realm wearing Unique Items? Honestly, if it weren't Rin, the equipment alone would already have been enough to cause controversy.
Of course, Mythic Items cost tens of billions per piece, so they weren't items that could be easily obtained, but still, someone like Rin should at least be able to get Legendary gear.
So one question came to mind.
'Is Rin deliberately wearing equipment like that?'
Feeling a small question, she glanced at Plea.
She called it project budget, but the person managing it was none other than Plea anyway.
She was the one who had started this project, and she was the one leading it now. Honestly, for Yujeong herself, the amount written in the contract was sufficient compensation, so she didn't care how the budget was spent.
As the two of them exchanged those brief words, Serin couldn't quite understand the content of their conversation.
"Wait. You're saying you want to spend the project budget on me?"
So when she voiced her question directly, Sua nodded with a calm expression.
"Yes. That's why I was asking for Yujeong's consent just now."
When Sua answered that the conversation she'd had with Yujeong was openly about that, Serin looked at Sua and still couldn't understand.
"Wait, why? If you do that... I'd be the only one getting benefits. It should go to Yujeong and you too, Sua, at some level."
She wasn't normally the type to refuse things, but the current situation was completely different.
Using the project budget to buy equipment for me, of all people.
'It's not fair.'
And right now, during the stream. She wondered if Sua's action of openly asking Yujeong for her opinion like that was really the right thing to do.
Even if Yujeong said it was fine outwardly, she might not actually think so on the inside, and it was hard to rule out the possibility that she had said it was fine because of the situation.
"Well... Serin. No one doubts your skill. Not me, not Yujeong here, not any of the viewers watching the stream."
Sua answered calmly, and after speaking, she slowly took in Serin's appearance with her eyes.
"And before the raid, among the three of us, I thought the person who could increase our combat power the most was you, through upgrading your build. That's why I was asking for consent. I thought it wasn't a bad idea."
Even as Sua explained the situation with a bright expression, Serin's expression continued to harden.
"Yujeong and I don't really lack anything in terms of equipment. So if we concentrate the project budget on you, then definitely that combat power..."
Serin coldly cut off Sua's continuing words.
"Enough."
A cold voice.
As if she didn't want to hear any more, Serin let out a small sigh and slowly swept her hair back.
"Let's just buy potion-type items that would help everyone instead. I don't want to receive the project budget for that kind of reason."
At Serin's unprecedentedly cold tone, Sua looked at her in involuntary bewilderment.
Yujeong's opinion had already been arranged in advance, so she had been planning to reveal this to Serin like a surprise gift. She hadn't expected such a cold reaction.
'...Why?'
As Sua wondered why she was refusing and found herself at a loss for words, Yujeong chimed in.
"Rin. I'm really fine with it too. You can just accept..."
"Yujeong, it's because I'm not fine with it."
When Serin coldly cut her off, Yujeong nodded blankly.
Watching Serin's resolute attitude, Sua hesitated, searching for words, then decided to follow Serin's wishes.
"...Okay. I guess I was too hasty. I'll use the budget as you said, to stock up on potions for emergencies or prepare something else."
As she looked at Sua, who was outwardly showing her bewilderment, Serin relaxed her hardened expression.
'The situation is awkward.'
Honestly, even if I hadn't refused this strongly, even if I had accepted it, it might not have caused any major problems.
I knew that Sua had brought it up out of goodwill and favor toward me.
But still, the fact that she had brought it up on stream could later become a source of controversy for Sua, so I couldn't help but be cautious.
If things were to flow in a strange direction later because I had accepted this, that alone seemed like it could become a problem.
Sua, who had been gazing at Serin's faintly smiling face as if entranced, soon laughed awkwardly and tried to change the subject.
"Ah, then shall we just do what we originally came for and sync up?"
"Yes. Sounds good."
Yujeong, who had been silently watching the two of them, nodded with an enigmatic expression and answered.
Immediately after, the three of them arrived at the domain of the Demon Realm, where deep darkness and a gloomy atmosphere hung in the air.
—Ting.
As they passed through something like a transparent veil, an entry notification appeared.