The One Blocking the Bridge
[Upon analyzing the blueprint, Mental Tolerance belongs to the 'Hidden Skill' category. In other words, it is highly likely to be MR-grade.]
“Hidden skills? So do I have to take down some hidden boss or something?”
MR.
A tier of Random Box that only unlocked once specific conditions were met.
Every MR so far had worked exactly that way.
[No. According to my analysis, DQ contains a variety of hidden skills beyond Mental Tolerance. The unlock conditions for each are believed to differ entirely.]
“In other words?”
[The only method is to throw yourself at anything that strikes you as even the slightest bit strange. If you dawdle, there's also a high chance someone else will claim it first.]
Another distinctive feature of DQ was that it introduced a unique game concept known as the 'Season System'.
Seasons changed once a month, measured in ⟨Human Realm⟩ time.
Special events and unique monsters appeared exactly once per season.
If another gamer completed a special event or slew a unique monster, no one else could challenge it until the season ended.
The problem was that there was no telling whether those same special events or unique monsters would even appear in the next season.
[The Mental Tolerance skill is very likely tied to a special event or a unique monster.]
“Confirmed. You truly are the hero.”
The receptionist beamed as she handed over the reward.
The main compensation consisted of magic stones that could be liquidated in the ⟨Human Realm⟩ and in-game currency usable within DQ.
Ryu Hwi glanced around the 'guild' hall. He could feel the gamers sneaking glances his way.
“A lot of gamers gather here, huh?”
“Yes, of course. We're in the business of catering to them.”
“Then would you happen to have any information on special events or unique monsters? Information on hidden skills, for example...”
“I'm sorry. I don't know the details of the game labyrinth's contents.”
“Ah, I see.”
There was no telling whether she genuinely didn't know or simply didn't want to say.
The moment he finished his business and turned to leave, the receptionist suddenly grabbed him.
“Oh, wait—you're Ryu7017, aren't you?”
“What?”
“I knew it!”
He never imagined he'd hear the name 'Ryu7017' from a game labyrinth resident.
“You're quite famous among the residents. To think I'd actually get to meet the man himself. Moving here was worth it.”
“You... moved here?”
“Yes! I originally came from another game labyrinth called FF... oh.”
The receptionist hastily clapped a hand over her mouth.
But FF?
It was probably an abbreviation of some other game labyrinth's name, yet no labyrinth that could be shortened to 'FF' came to mind.
“What kind of labyrinth is this FF? And what do you mean, 'moved'?”
“It's nothing, so please forget about it. Actually, did you know? The 'Guild System' here was devised by the residents of the game labyrinth themselves.”
“The residents?”
DQ had 'guilds'.
Not guilds founded by gamers, but a system designed to resolve the various problems that arose within the game labyrinth.
He'd assumed it was a system the labyrinth had prepared, since it handed out quests—but a system created by the labyrinth's residents?
'No, that's nothing to be surprised about.'
The residents of game labyrinths were not NPCs doomed to repeat scripted lines.
They were sentient, intelligent beings—as proven by the fact that they had organized the Blood Pact and cleared a dungeon on their own.
“Why are you telling me all this?”
“Ah, I suppose I got carried away by the excitement of meeting you. So? Have you gotten used to DQ?”
Come to think of it, most of the S.E.N were 'beings of the labyrinth'.
They were entities who, for some reason, had fallen into 'ᚨᛒᛇᛋᛋ' and been born from it.
Wasn't it entirely possible that the woman before him could become an S.E.N as well?
The thought made an involuntary chuckle escape his lips.
Would he really be satisfied living that way, hostile and suspicious of everything?
It felt as if someone's voice had whispered into his ear.
“Well, I've gotten used to it.”
“That's a relief! DQ is a wonderful world, so please enjoy it to the fullest! If you ever need my help, don't hesitate to ask.”
“Then, first, about that important request—”
“I make it a policy to keep personal feelings out of work.”
She cut him off cleanly, all while smiling.
“Though, honestly, I don't think you'll even need to ask. From now on, the important requests will mostly be routed to you, Ryu7017.”
“Why?”
“Because we have our own evaluation criteria. Before long, we'll be showing it to all of you in a very easy-to-understand form—especially those so hopelessly absorbed in playing 'hero'.”
Those words made something click for him, in more ways than one.
“I take it the request completion rate is unexpectedly low?”
“A lot of people accept requests with a quest-gamer mindset, taking on jobs they can't possibly finish, and figure that if they fail, they can just cancel.”
The requests posted to this 'guild' probably weren't generated by the system at all. More likely, the residents themselves submitted what they needed, and the guild simply organized the postings.
In other words, when gamers failed to complete a request, the penalty fell squarely on the residents' shoulders.
Since it directly affected their own lives, it made sense that important requests would go first to those with high completion rates.
Ryu Hwi swept his gaze across the guild's interior.
The place was brimming with a festive, field-trip energy.
It was probably the backlash from how much more 'entertainment-oriented' things had become since 2.0.
But he couldn't exactly force these people to take their requests seriously.
How a gamer chose to enjoy a game labyrinth was the gamer's own business.
“Well then, I look forward to working with you again.”
Leaving the receptionist behind, Ryu Hwi walked out of the guild.
[What will you do next?]
“The church. For the time being, I'll make that my base of operations.”
Every town in DQ had a special location called a 'church'.
Once you left a 'Record of Adventure' there, you could conduct your adventures out of that church, and even if you suffered a game over, you'd wake up back at the church.
First things first: grinding levels with this town as his center.
Unlike the other game labyrinths, which had required no real leveling at all, playing this one properly—with its plugin functionality—demanded a fair amount of it.
For the time being, he'd have to grind levels while gathering the information needed to progress through the labyrinth.
Above all, he needed intel on special events and unique monsters.
It had been a half month since the game began—half of a season—and he hadn't seen a single special event or unique monster yet.
He hadn't even heard rumors of other gamers finding any. Even now, everyone was still just guessing at what the conditions might be.
He let out a sigh and checked his current stats.
=YggON SYSTEM ON=
DQ Plugin Running
⟫ DQ stats will now be displayed.
LV 27
Strength(+) Lv1 0/1200
Defense Lv4 2900/4000
Resistance Lv5 3600/5000
Agility Lv5 2700/5000
Wisdom Lv4 3800/4000
DQ Spells/Abilities Acquired :
Thunderfall-Megaden Lv1
Fly-Luora Lv1
Demon God Slash Lv1
Equipment :
Weapon – SSR Shuffle Gun
Armor – SR Gemini Armor
Shoes – SR Feather Shoes
Accessory – MR Draupnir
Accessory – ??? Golden Headband
Vehicles :
SR – Rider Bike (Standard)
↳ Rider Skills 4/4
System :
SSR – Delete
SSR – Rider-On Air Road System
SSR – Sage's Spellbook
↳ Memorize 4/4
Skills :
LR – Gate of the Origin Lv1 (Restricted)
SR++ – Seyril's Blessing (ygg) Lv☆
SR – DQ Strength Lv1
=SYSTEM OFF=
There were spells and abilities usable only within DQ, but his overall combat capability had definitely dropped compared to before.
Losing the Heavenly Demon Divine Art as material for Gate of the Origin had hurt the most.
On the other hand, the Shuffle Gun's deck was far better stocked than it used to be.
The [Lv 2UP] he'd purchased a few days ago was essentially an upgraded version of [Lv UP], and he'd been putting it to good use.
[Thanks to that accursed Draupnir, your RP is piling up at an obscene rate. Are you still not spinning the Random Box?]
“After I unlock the MR.”
His plan was to hoard as much as possible, then spin the Random Box once a Mental Tolerance–related skill became available.
After leaving a Record of Adventure at the church, he took a casual lap around town.
It wasn't a particularly large town, so a single circuit didn't take long.
He'd half-hoped to stumble across some clue, but the conditions for triggering a special event didn't come together that easily.
Then again, every other gamer had probably already tried combing the town.
After that, he headed for the tavern.
The tavern was a place where not only gamers but the labyrinth's residents gathered too.
He'd hoped the tavern might yield some fresh information, but...
“I'm a fan!”
“C-can I get your autograph?!”
The gamers came swarming in.
[You've become enormously famous. Shouldn't you set the Disguise MOD to default at all times now?]
Do I really have to?
Fame itself didn't bother him, but honestly, it was a huge hassle.
While he was forcing smiles and dealing with the other gamers, YggON turned his attention toward a group of gamers in the corner.
[They're discussing something intriguing. I shall amplify the audio.]
“Doesn't that mean Ryu Hwi can actually beat that thing?”
“Honestly, it didn't seem like it was made for anyone to win...”
“Should we at least go tell him?”
Now that was a story worth hearing. Ryu Hwi turned toward the gamers YggON had pointed out.
“You two over there—could I hear more about that story?”
“Huh?”
“Y-yes?!”
“I overheard something rather interesting, and I'd very much like to know what it is. I'll make it worth your while. Care to tell me?”
According to them, at the end of the eastern road out of this town stood a bridge—and some unidentified man was blocking it.
He let the town's residents pass freely, but he stopped every gamer from crossing.
Countless gamers had challenged him so far, and not a single one had managed to get past him.
Curious, he'd had YggON run a search, and quite a flood of posts came pouring out.
'Could it actually be a unique monster?'
A unique monster that openly obstructed the game labyrinth's progression...
Either way, he'd need to confirm it with his own eyes.
After handing the two informants a hefty pile of magic stones as a token of gratitude, he rose from his seat at once.
[If you depart now, it will grow dark.]
“Doesn't matter.”
Ignoring the gamers swarming out after him, he summoned the Rider-On bike.
An Air Road for the bike to tear down stretched out toward the sky.
“Well then, off I go.”
The bike carrying Ryu Hwi shot down the Air Road in an instant and rocketed eastward.
The gamers who'd been chasing after Ryu Hwi watched the scene from a distance and marveled.
“Wow, so you really can ride a Rider-On bike in other game labyrinths too.”
“Must be nice...”
“Isn't that a little unfair? That's straight-up cheating.”
“Damn it, hogging all the good stuff for himself.”
Some admired Ryu Hwi, while others envied his power.
The receptionist, who had just stepped outside briefly after finishing her guild duties, watched the gamers with an air of resignation.
“In every era, gamers have never been short on the ugly ones.”
Before long, Ryu Hwi arrived at the bridge of rumor.
A bridge spanning a deep canyon. If you wanted to reach the other side, this road certainly seemed to be the only way.
He could easily cross using the Air Road system, but Ryu Hwi's goal wasn't the far bank—it was the unidentified being who was single-handedly halting this game labyrinth's progression.
He stowed the bike in his inventory and set out on foot to see who this being was.
Before long, he spotted the figure blocking the middle of the bridge.
'Big.'
The man's frame had to be well over two meters.
A man in a hoodie with sleeves rolled up to bare his arms. Judging by that modern, contemporary design, he was not a being of the DQ game labyrinth.
His well-trained body was like an artist's sculpture, but the serpentine tattoos coiling around it ruined the image.
Perhaps because dusk was creeping in, his pale skin looked all the more ghostly.
No—more than that, Ryu Hwi knew exactly who he was.
He'd seen him from afar once, even if only dimly.
Ryu Hwi clicked his tongue.
Not a unique monster. Not a special event.
“Why are you here?”
He was, if anything, exactly what the other gamers had described—an infuriating presence obstructing the game.
“Orochi.”