Chapter 107: PK (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 107: PK (3)
First, I took a peek into the chamber.
"Aaagh!"
"Don't run away!"
Missha and Carlson were busy dealing with the orcs. It would have been over already if they could kill them, but they couldn't do that thanks to my instructions.
I won't have to worry about that for a while.
I quickly took Jencia's equipment off of her unconscious body: a two-tier leather top, a boot with a blade that appeared as I was taking it off, a wrist guard that popped out a concealed weapon when I pressed on the groove, etcetera. Examining each piece, it was clear that they were designed to kill people instead of monsters. I stuffed everything into my backpack at random and couldn't help but smile.
Some of these I can just give to Missha. Thanks to that, we saved some money.
Jencia's equipment was fairly decent. And the crown jewel of it all was her long sword, which exuded extravagance starting from the handle.
No, wait... Isn't this a numbered item?
I pulled it back out of the backpack and studied it more carefully. The sword glowed green. If I was right, this was No. 5991: Serpent's Fang. It had no active effects, but gave the user a large bonus to Penetration and doubled any poison damage inflicted through the sword. I'd need an appraisal to be sure...
But it seems I've found something valuable.
Serpent's Fang was a core item. It may not have been the greatest there was, but if used as a poison-type item, it was definitely useful up to the mid to late parts of the game. And of course, regardless of the number, it was very expensive.
If this really is a Serpent's Fang, I'll have to get Missha to use it before selling it.
With that thought in mind, I stood up. Now that I was done looting, it was time to talk. I had a few questions to ask, but before that, I'd have to establish the right setting for a conversation.
Smack!
I slammed down the mace. My target was Jencia's ankle. I didn't hesitate because I had already taken all the equipment that could be sold for money off her body.
"Grgh!" The moment her thin, white ankle was crushed under my mace, Jencia's upper body shot up like she'd just been electrocuted. I pressed my foot on top of her chest to pin her down. "N-No!"
Smack!
Then I did the same to her other ankle. Since I took care of one wrist earlier, all that was left was the other. As my stance shifted, my eyes met Jencia's. Apparently, she'd done something similar to this before, because it seemed like she knew exactly what I was trying to do.
"S-Stop... please... I-I'll do whatever you want..."
Really? "Then stay still. Let's finish talking." I raised my mace above my head.
"D-Don't! I won't resist! So let's just use our words—!"
Smack!
"Aaaaaah!" One last scream rang out and a suitable environment for conversation was finally established. Limbs had been crushed, and all equipment had been stripped from her person. So I could rest assured...
Oh, I guess I didn't strip everything.
"You, use Armed Shift."
It was beginner's level stuff, but this bitch still had equipment she could swap into. However, at my request, Jencia stopped moaning in pain and just stared blankly at me. "How did you..."
What do you think? What other skill can change all of your equipment at once?
Instead of answering, I lifted my mace. Jencia's complexion turned even whiter. She must have realized that the only thing left to crush was her little head.
"I-I will!" Soon, new equipment appeared on Jencia's body, ordinary equipment that would come out to about five hundred thousand stones. I took that off too and put it in my backpack.
Now, it was time to move on to the main topic at hand. "I have a question for you."
"A-Anything!"
First, I asked what kind of essences Jencia possessed. She had a total of four essences: Iron Knight's (Armed Shift), Dinictis' (Beast Walk), Saint Assassin's (Revenge)...
And Toxin Bestow, huh?
I was once again wary that this might be a suicide bomb situation, but her last essence was a Hobgoblin's, which Missha also had. To summarize, she had absorbed two sixth-ranks, one fifth-rank, and one seventh-rank essence. It was a pretty solid haul. It was a pity that all she did with it was loot others.
No, when you think about it, she's just found her proper niche.
As an adventurer facing monsters, Jencia was only a rank-six. However, in battles against other people, she must have been above rank five.
"Um, is that it? If you had just asked, I would have answered—"
I was just getting started. I went straight to the next question. "Why did you attack us?"
"My description is known throughout the Adventurers' Guild. So I wanted to keep everyone quiet..."
"So you were going to kill whoever came into the rift."
Jencia squeezed her eyes shut and nodded. At this point, she could've just asked me to kill her, but those words never left her lips. That wouldn't change anything, though.
"Then why did you open the rift? It looks like you have no room for another essence. If you hadn't come here in the first place, there wouldn't have been any need to keep other people quiet."
"For the Heart of the Snowfield. I heard that that item is only available here." Oh, so that was why. "Besides, I wasn't even worried about the silencing part. I thought everyone would be a rank-eight adventurer at best—" As I listened to the last thread unravel, Jencia suddenly clamped her mouth shut, her eyes going wide in a way that suggested she'd noticed something important. "You knew I opened the rift...?"
...That was my bad. "What are you talking about?" I casually replied, picking at one ear. But Jencia wasn't fooled.
After a long silence, she came up with an explanation. "No way... are you a player too?"
Given the look in her eyes, I didn't think there was a point in denying it now... But there was no need to confirm it, either. "Player? Are you an evil spirit?"
At my question, she stared blankly into space. Then, apparently coming to her senses, she wriggled and put her face on my leg. I looked down quietly.
"Mister, please don't kill me." Hope. "I want to go home. I can't die in a place like this. You have no idea... what I've had to do to survive in this fucking world. Yeah? Please..." Pent-up anger. "Oh, I didn't apologize, did I? I'm sorry. I-I was wrong. I thought you were an NPC. I never would have done all that if I had known. W-We're real p-people, right? Wouldn't that be murder?" Desperation. "Please... say something. Yeah? Fuck! Say something! You asshole..." Despair.
Jencia's expression flipped from one emotion to the next as I continued to watch.
Thump.
Surprisingly, my heart was calm. I didn't feel even the slightest shred of sympathy, much less sadness. There was no PK in Dungeon and Stone because it wasn't an online game. Instead, it was possible to kill NPCs. Because of that, I had also used to enjoy playing a looter.
What do you think? What other skill can change all of your equipment at once?
Instead of answering, I lifted my mace. Jencia's complexion turned even whiter. She must have realized that the only thing left to crush was her little head.
"I-I will!" Soon, new equipment appeared on Jencia's body, ordinary equipment that would come out to about five hundred thousand stones. I took that off too and put it in my backpack.
Now, it was time to move on to the main topic at hand. "I have a question for you."
"A-Anything!"
First, I asked what kind of essences Jencia possessed. She had a total of four essences: Iron Knight's (Armed Shift), Dinictis' (Beast Walk), Saint Assassin's (Revenge)...
And Toxin Bestow, huh?
I was once again wary that this might be a suicide bomb situation, but her last essence was a Hobgoblin's, which Missha also had. To summarize, she had absorbed two sixth-ranks, one fifth-rank, and one seventh-rank essence. It was a pretty solid haul. It was a pity that all she did with it was loot others.
No, when you think about it, she's just found her proper niche.
As an adventurer facing monsters, Jencia was only a rank-six. However, in battles against other people, she must have been above rank five.
"Um, is that it? If you had just asked, I would have answered—"
I was just getting started. I went straight to the next question. "Why did you attack us?"
"My description is known throughout the Adventurers' Guild. So I wanted to keep everyone quiet..."
"So you were going to kill whoever came into the rift."
Jencia squeezed her eyes shut and nodded. At this point, she could've just asked me to kill her, but those words never left her lips. That wouldn't change anything, though.
"Then why did you open the rift? It looks like you have no room for another essence. If you hadn't come here in the first place, there wouldn't have been any need to keep other people quiet."
"For the Heart of the Snowfield. I heard that that item is only available here." Oh, so that was why. "Besides, I wasn't even worried about the silencing part. I thought everyone would be a rank-eight adventurer at best—" As I listened to the last thread unravel, Jencia suddenly clamped her mouth shut, her eyes going wide in a way that suggested she'd noticed something important. "You knew I opened the rift...?"
...That was my bad. "What are you talking about?" I casually replied, picking at one ear. But Jencia wasn't fooled.
After a long silence, she came up with an explanation. "No way... are you a player too?"
Given the look in her eyes, I didn't think there was a point in denying it now... But there was no need to confirm it, either. "Player? Are you an evil spirit?"
At my question, she stared blankly into space. Then, apparently coming to her senses, she wriggled and put her face on my leg. I looked down quietly.
"Mister, please don't kill me." Hope. "I want to go home. I can't die in a place like this. You have no idea... what I've had to do to survive in this fucking world. Yeah? Please..." Pent-up anger. "Oh, I didn't apologize, did I? I'm sorry. I-I was wrong. I thought you were an NPC. I never would have done all that if I had known. W-We're real p-people, right? Wouldn't that be murder?" Desperation. "Please... say something. Yeah? Fuck! Say something! You asshole..." Despair.
Jencia's expression flipped from one emotion to the next as I continued to watch.
Thump.
Surprisingly, my heart was calm. I didn't feel even the slightest shred of sympathy, much less sadness. There was no PK in Dungeon and Stone because it wasn't an online game. Instead, it was possible to kill NPCs. Because of that, I had also used to enjoy playing a looter.
But you killed them because they were NPCs.
This wasn't just a game. Although I wanted to believe that it was, there was so much evidence to the contrary that I couldn't help but know that for a fact. She probably knew that just as well.
So my response to her was short and blunt. "You. You're an evil spirit."
An evil spirit—an entity that did not belong in this world, yet an entity that had to assimilate into its mind, body, and soul in order to survive. Yeah, what did it matter if she was a player or an NPC? That changed nothing. Whatever the modifier, this woman was nothing more than a plunderer, and a dangerous person who now knew that I was a player.
"You bastard!"
Therefore, I raised my mace. In a manner befitting a person who had fully adapted to this world, and knowing she would've done the same if the situation were reversed, I gripped my mace tighter.
Slide.
Jencia no longer begged for her life. She just stared at me with hate in her eyes, as if she never wanted to forget my face so she could curse me even in death.
Gasp, huff....
Every time she let out a ragged breath, her round chest rapidly rose and fell. I didn't have to bring my ear to it to know how fast her heart must have been beating. I realized something at that moment. She had seemed to have only malice left in her, but there was actually one other thing left: fear.
Soon, Jencia closed her eyes. She let go of her hatred and finally sought peace. What could she see beyond those closed eyes? "M-Mom..." I brought down the mace before I could hear the rest.
Smack!
Flesh and blood splattered. Blood poured out of her nose and mouth each time her body convulsed. Of course, that didn't last long. Soon, her body completely stopped moving. I let out the breath I had been holding and turned around.
[Achievement Unlocked
Condition: First Player Kill
Reward: Permanently increases your Spirit stat by +1.]
I had killed a player for the first time. However, I tried to push aside my feelings about it and took a step forward.
Step.
Whether the act had been easy or difficult, whether her flesh and blood had brought me excitement or fear, whether I felt cynical for wishing she would end up back at the place she had seen behind her closed eyes, or, if not that, whether I felt miserable about seeing myself gradually reduced to a savage... emotions didn't matter.
Step.
It had had to be done. The moment I woke up in this savage world, that was the path I had decided to take.
***
"What took you so long? I thought something happened to you!" As I left Jencia's body back in the open cavern, Missha scolded me. Mm, I had wrapped it up as quickly as possible, though... Only about three minutes had passed.
"H-Help us!"
When Missha glanced away from the battle to look at me, Carlson was helplessly pushed back by the orcs. However, I remained in a spectator position. "Missha, you can kill it now."
"Ah, is that okay?"
"Yes. If possible, try using your newly acquired abilities."
"Huh? I've never used them before, though..."
That's why I'm telling you to do it.
There was no mafia anymore, and an Ice Orc was a good opponent.
"Ugh! I-I can't hold them back any long—"
While Carlson blocked another axe strike with his dented shield, Missha closed her eyes and activated her skill.
[Missha Karlstein has cast Enhance.]
A faint white light appeared around her hand. This was the active skill of the rank-seven monster Vitol. Normally, the basic combo here would have had Missha use Toxin Bestow, but...
[Missha Karlstein has cast Cold Condensation.]
Blue particles appeared around Missha as if they had been separated from the air itself, and promptly sank into her body.
[Missha Karlstein's Cold Sensitivity stats have significantly increased.]
She must've sensed that something had gone right because Missha opened her eyes.
Whip!
Swinging her swords in a fierce arc, she cut off the wrist of the orc who was trying to attack Carlson.
Slice!
The attack wasn't enough to slice through the bone in one go. The orc's hand partly dangled from its arm, still holding the axe. However, I was focused on something else.
"Ch-cheeek!"
Its wrist had been cut by a sharp blade, but no blood flowed from the wound. That was because the wound was frozen red and frosted over.
Is that Frostbite?
The Cold attribute stopped any bleeding. That seemed at first glance to be a drawback, but it also blocked healing, so it was quite useful depending on the type of enemy you were facing. It also had the advantage of limiting the opponent's range of motion.
"Chwi, chwiik!"
Of course, Ice Orcs had high Cold Resistance, so only their wrists were frozen. A normal monster would've been different, though; they would have frozen up to the elbows. A monster with negative Cold Resistance might have even ended up in the Frozen condition.
Missha wasn't finished warming up yet, so—"Missha, try aiming at the neck this time."
"Hmm? Okay!"
One of Missha's swords lodged itself in the orc's neck. Orcs had high Bone Strength stats, to be fair. It must have been difficult to cut through it in one swing. However, as the area around its neck began to freeze, the orc stopped moving and began to tremble in place. It seemed that the cold had reached even its brain.
Crunch!
Now that I'd finished confirming everything I needed to confirm, I crushed the orc's head with my mace. At the same time, the entire chamber shook and powdery ice began pouring down from the ceiling. The roar we heard earlier vibrated through the space.
"Gwaaaaaa!"
"W-What the hell?!"
What do you think? This is the start of the fourth stage.
[The tyrant Tarunbas has awakened from his long slumber and has recovered all his strength.]
Now that I'd even experienced an unplanned PK, it was time to take down the boss and get out.
But you killed them because they were NPCs.
This wasn't just a game. Although I wanted to believe that it was, there was so much evidence to the contrary that I couldn't help but know that for a fact. She probably knew that just as well.
So my response to her was short and blunt. "You. You're an evil spirit."
An evil spirit—an entity that did not belong in this world, yet an entity that had to assimilate into its mind, body, and soul in order to survive. Yeah, what did it matter if she was a player or an NPC? That changed nothing. Whatever the modifier, this woman was nothing more than a plunderer, and a dangerous person who now knew that I was a player.
"You bastard!"
Therefore, I raised my mace. In a manner befitting a person who had fully adapted to this world, and knowing she would've done the same if the situation were reversed, I gripped my mace tighter.
Slide.
Jencia no longer begged for her life. She just stared at me with hate in her eyes, as if she never wanted to forget my face so she could curse me even in death.
Gasp, huff....
Every time she let out a ragged breath, her round chest rapidly rose and fell. I didn't have to bring my ear to it to know how fast her heart must have been beating. I realized something at that moment. She had seemed to have only malice left in her, but there was actually one other thing left: fear.
Soon, Jencia closed her eyes. She let go of her hatred and finally sought peace. What could she see beyond those closed eyes? "M-Mom..." I brought down the mace before I could hear the rest.
Smack!
Flesh and blood splattered. Blood poured out of her nose and mouth each time her body convulsed. Of course, that didn't last long. Soon, her body completely stopped moving. I let out the breath I had been holding and turned around.
[Achievement Unlocked
Condition: First Player Kill
Reward: Permanently increases your Spirit stat by +1.]
I had killed a player for the first time. However, I tried to push aside my feelings about it and took a step forward.
Step.
Whether the act had been easy or difficult, whether her flesh and blood had brought me excitement or fear, whether I felt cynical for wishing she would end up back at the place she had seen behind her closed eyes, or, if not that, whether I felt miserable about seeing myself gradually reduced to a savage... emotions didn't matter.
Step.
It had had to be done. The moment I woke up in this savage world, that was the path I had decided to take.
***
"What took you so long? I thought something happened to you!" As I left Jencia's body back in the open cavern, Missha scolded me. Mm, I had wrapped it up as quickly as possible, though... Only about three minutes had passed.
"H-Help us!"
When Missha glanced away from the battle to look at me, Carlson was helplessly pushed back by the orcs. However, I remained in a spectator position. "Missha, you can kill it now."
"Ah, is that okay?"
"Yes. If possible, try using your newly acquired abilities."
"Huh? I've never used them before, though..."
That's why I'm telling you to do it.
There was no mafia anymore, and an Ice Orc was a good opponent.
"Ugh! I-I can't hold them back any long—"
While Carlson blocked another axe strike with his dented shield, Missha closed her eyes and activated her skill.
[Missha Karlstein has cast Enhance.]
A faint white light appeared around her hand. This was the active skill of the rank-seven monster Vitol. Normally, the basic combo here would have had Missha use Toxin Bestow, but...
[Missha Karlstein has cast Cold Condensation.]
Blue particles appeared around Missha as if they had been separated from the air itself, and promptly sank into her body.
[Missha Karlstein's Cold Sensitivity stats have significantly increased.]
She must've sensed that something had gone right because Missha opened her eyes.
Whip!
Swinging her swords in a fierce arc, she cut off the wrist of the orc who was trying to attack Carlson.
Slice!
The attack wasn't enough to slice through the bone in one go. The orc's hand partly dangled from its arm, still holding the axe. However, I was focused on something else.
"Ch-cheeek!"
Its wrist had been cut by a sharp blade, but no blood flowed from the wound. That was because the wound was frozen red and frosted over.
Is that Frostbite?
The Cold attribute stopped any bleeding. That seemed at first glance to be a drawback, but it also blocked healing, so it was quite useful depending on the type of enemy you were facing. It also had the advantage of limiting the opponent's range of motion.
"Chwi, chwiik!"
Of course, Ice Orcs had high Cold Resistance, so only their wrists were frozen. A normal monster would've been different, though; they would have frozen up to the elbows. A monster with negative Cold Resistance might have even ended up in the Frozen condition.
Missha wasn't finished warming up yet, so—"Missha, try aiming at the neck this time."
"Hmm? Okay!"
One of Missha's swords lodged itself in the orc's neck. Orcs had high Bone Strength stats, to be fair. It must have been difficult to cut through it in one swing. However, as the area around its neck began to freeze, the orc stopped moving and began to tremble in place. It seemed that the cold had reached even its brain.
Crunch!
Now that I'd finished confirming everything I needed to confirm, I crushed the orc's head with my mace. At the same time, the entire chamber shook and powdery ice began pouring down from the ceiling. The roar we heard earlier vibrated through the space.
"Gwaaaaaa!"
"W-What the hell?!"
What do you think? This is the start of the fourth stage.
[The tyrant Tarunbas has awakened from his long slumber and has recovered all his strength.]
Now that I'd even experienced an unplanned PK, it was time to take down the boss and get out.