LRAB Chapter 114 : What Happened That Day (5)
Chapter 114 : What Happened That Day (5)
What Happened That Day (5)
The free RPG Belkhazium had a reputation for being a game like Cheongyang chili peppers: it could make you cry with its spiciness.
'It was really like a chili pepper!'
Not only was it unfriendly, but the game balance and level design were absolutely terrible.
This caused the largest problem of all, namely—
'Random death. Sudden, pointless deaths.'
Suddenly appearing powerful NPCs, as well as skills and artifacts you'd never seen before, would kill you instantly before you knew it.
A 'roguelike' RPG pulling the fighting game move of, "If you don't know, you have to get hit"?
No, it wasn't even, "If you don't know, just get hit~."
'If you don't know, you have to die?'
'If you don't know, you die, and the character you raised for hundreds of hours gets wiped?'
Because of this, regular gamers and newbies kept their distance and ran far away.
I hated this attitude.
If you played diligently, there was no game more boundless in its possibilities.
That's why, under the nickname 'SoupChung' in the Belkhazium community, I used to hand out the occasional sweet tip.
And now,
back to Belkhazium in reality—
The eyeballs floating in the air were sucked into the battalion commander.
No matter how familiar the phenomenon was in pixel graphics, it felt vastly different in reality.
"H-heoooh!"
This grotesque sight triggered my Belkhazium database.
The chance my memory was wrong was almost zero.
'It's because my nickname "SoupChung" became famous after I wrote an analysis on the artifact used by the rabbit beastkin.'
Artifacts referred not to items crafted by NPCs, but to items found in the labyrinth.
Most of these were equipment,
But sometimes they were single-use items, skills, and very rarely, even OOPArts.
Among them, the orb artifact used by the rabbit beastkin was a single-use item called the "Ten Thousand Times Cursed Eye".
It was once nicknamed a newbie-slayer.
Which meant—
'The 4th-rank old man is going to die soon.'
At this realization, hopelessness weighed on my knees like sandbags.
As my body felt heavier, Ralph rushed past me and swung his Strong Sword at the battalion commander.
Swish!
He sliced the rabbit beastkin's body in half.
As the lower and upper halves fell to the ground, guts and blood spilled everywhere.
And yet, the rabbit beastkin's face still wore a smile.
As if it didn't hurt at all, he said—
"You worthless leatherheads. Either way, you're all finished."
Of course, I knew the reason that bastard was smiling.
Sure enough, strange things began happening to the rabbit beastkin's body.
Jaga-jajak, jagajak.
Cracks ran from the tips of the rabbit beastkin's hands and feet, transforming them into eyeballs.
Those eyeballs too flew towards the battalion commander.
The battalion commander kept screaming,
And after Ralph, Lantz arrived and cut off the rabbit beastkin's head. Slice.
But, of course, it was pointless.
'That's just a clone made by the artifact.'
While Lantz and Ralph took turns slashing the rabbit beastkin,
Hank grabbed and shook the battalion commander, shouting.
"Battalion commander! Please come to your senses! Battalion commanneeer!!"
His green eyes stood out against his blood-red face, and even tears had gathered there.
Feeling a brief mix of emotions at that sight,
my gaze shifted to Schutmann, who was observing the situation from a little farther away.
'That bastard.'
The company commander and battalion commander hadn't noticed,
But since I hadn't let my guard down, I'd picked up the rabbit beastkin's suspicious behavior.
The only reason I couldn't help was distance—and my own limitations.
'But did Schutmann also miss it?'
Was he, like the others, just careless and overlooked the rabbit beastkin?
I swallowed my boiling anger to figure out what was really going on inside him.
But for some reason—
'He looks flustered.'
Schutmann, too, seemed completely unaware of what was happening; he rarely furrowed his brow, but now he did, hard enough to show through his mask.
If that's the case—
'Even Schutmann didn't expect this to happen.'
Schutmann was flustered, of all people.
Could it be that White Fang, who wanted to take down Granfen, had actually formed an alliance with the beastkin?
I'd considered this small possibility, but maybe not?
'No, that's not the important thing right now.'
Even if the Ten Thousand Times Cursed Eye was infamous as a newbie-slayer,
there was a counter-strategy.
To try to prolong the battalion commander's life even a little bit,
and to preserve our fighting strength, I shouted out.
"Hank, Company Commander! Get away from the battalion commander! Now!!"
The curse was about to activate.
I needed Hank to be separated from the battalion commander.
But Hank wasn't the type to listen quietly to me, the outsider.
"Shut up, outsider! You noticed first and did nothing!!"
His nonsense made my blood boil, but time was of the essence.
Pointing at Hank, I yelled,
"Ralph! Pull him away! We'll all die if you don't!!"
Ralph hesitated for just a split second, then moved toward Hank.
At that moment,
the rabbit beastkin's sharp voice called out to me.
"Hm? And what is that, you?"
I turned and looked at the rabbit beastkin's head.
The entire copied body had disappeared; only the head remained,
and its pink rabbit eyes were staring intently into mine.
"That magic on your chest...... don't tell me, th—."
Before the head could finish, it changed into an eyeball and vanished.
Jajagak. Srrk.
But chills ran down my spine.
In the breast pocket of my padded armor was the Nash that Schutmann had given me.
And that Nash had been enchanted with Plerine's magic.
'Did he recognize it?'
Judging from the look and tone the rabbit beastkin's clone showed as it vanished, it seemed he had.
Moreover, not just recognized—he began to say, "Don't tell me, th—."
'Could he have been someone who knew Plerine?'
As I was mulling this over, Ralph and Lantz barely managed to pull Hank away from the battalion commander,
and the last eyeball entered the battalion commander's mouth.
"Hnnngh! Kyaaaagh!!"
Tremble tremble.
The battalion commander began shaking so violently his whole body lifted from the ground.
Suuuung.
A magic array with a 3-meter diameter was drawn around the commander.
"Battalion commanneer!"
"Protect the battalion commander!"
As everything spun out of control,
the soldiers and officers at camp finally noticed something was wrong and rushed outside.
'Damn it.'
I shouted to the incoming soldiers.
"Everybody stop!! I said stop!!"
Ralph joined me, shouting at the soldiers too.
"Stop! That's an order!!"
Two figures burst forward from the soldier crowd, blocking the way with their arms spread.
It was Ricky and Zaiya.
Only then did the soldiers halt their march.
'Good job, my kids.'
Turning my attention back toward the battalion commander,
Lantz was still gripping Hank's shoulders, holding him back.
By now Hank was weeping and kicking in desperation.
"Let go! Let me go, I said! Let go!!"
But Lantz only pinned him down more firmly and asked me,
"Lieutenant Ian! Do you know what that rabbit-bastard has done?! What in the world...?"
Sharp as ever, Lantz asked, but I couldn't answer.
There was no time.
Above the battalion commander's head, an eyeball the size of a fist appeared in midair, 30 centimeters up,
and the magic array started to dim.
Activation was imminent.
"I'll explain later! Just hold down Company Commander Hank for now!"
With Hank's wailing as background music, I dashed to the battalion commander.
Perhaps because the curse setup was done, his trembling had stopped.
I shook the battalion commander hard and shouted.
"Battalion commander! Battalion commanneer!!"
Thankfully, my voice seemed to reach him; he opened his eyes halfway.
As expected from a veteran, his mental stat must be high.
But there was no time to celebrate.
"L-Lieutenant Ian...?"
His face was drenched as if he'd just washed in sweat.
He was trying to understand the situation,
but now was the time for action, not understanding.
"Do you remember the duel of honor between me and Sergeant Pab?"
The battalion commander looked at me as if wondering what I was on about,
but instead of answering, I backpedaled out of the magic array.
The eyeball above his head started to spin round and round.
"W-what is this...?"
"Do you see a number, perhaps?"
"Yes, I do. The number is spinning."
Well, if there's any silver lining—it's that with the eye above his head, the battalion commander can't actually see it himself.
"I'll explain ahead of time, so just react as I say."
I tossed One Point, the rapier lying on the floor, to the battalion commander,
and the light returned to his eyes as he caught his weapon.
As expected from a sharp old man.
'He understood the situation immediately.'
I felt a sudden assurance: perhaps the battalion commander would last much longer than expected.
Then the eyeball above his head stopped, and I saw a three in its pupil.
I shouted instantly.
"Front-left and rear-right, javelin-throwers appear! Don't try to dodge—parry both attacks!"
Before I even finished saying it,
shadow soldiers appeared on the magic array.
In exactly the positions I described.
"Haha. So that's what this is."
A faint smirk crossed the battalion commander's lips.
Clang! Clang!
Two sharp stabs came at him at the same time,
but he parried both easily and with poise.
Once the attack pattern was broken, the shadow soldiers and the eyes melted away, and slrrrk,
a new eyeball appeared and began revolving again.
In the game, they activated almost instantly in succession,
but reality had far more delay between them.
That would let the battalion commander survive longer.
Whirrrrr.
"......."
This time, it was five.
"A shadow beast charges you from the front. Ignore it and, while evading, take down the monkey!"
Roar!
Almost as soon as I finished speaking, a gigantic tiger lunged at the battalion commander,
but he rolled low and fast and—almost supernaturally—lunged right through a monkey's brow with his rapier.
His motions were short and precise, without a single wasted movement.
It was less swordsmanship than a living formula of calculations; I admired him inwardly.
Again the shadows disappeared and a new eyeball spun above. Whirrrr.
"What a bizarre curse. Haha. What happens if someone else stays in this array with me?"
After brushing off the two attacks, the battalion commander looked to me for further explanation.
We had about five seconds before the next curse triggered, so I replied.
"You'll both suffer the same curse. But if you escape the array, you're freed at once."
"I see. Did you all hear that? Don't come near me, under any circumstances. Hahaha."
He said it to everyone, but it was clear he was speaking to Hank in particular.
"Battalion commannnder......."
Maybe because the battalion commander had handled the pattern twice in a row,
Hank seemed calmer than before,
but I kept my eyes on the battalion commander only.
"How high do the numbers go?"
"From 1 to 10."
No sooner had I spoken than this time, six came up—damn it.
"A soldier appears front-on and swings normally. Don't try to dodge; just parry."
Clang.
With a normal, slow Dominating Sword attack, the battalion commander parried and said.
"How bland. Haha. Did I really have to parry it?"
"Yes. If you dodge, it attacks faster. It keeps coming until you take the hit."
"So the higher the number, the harder it gets? Or are they all random?"
He asked hopefully, but my face grew even grimmer.
"The higher the number, the harder it gets—except for six. Six is the worst."
"Hmm. I see. Hahaha."
Unlike pattern 4 or 5, when six came up, the eyeball did not disappear even if you beat the pattern;
a new one appeared beside it, spinning around.
* * *
The Ten Thousand Times Cursed Eye has 10 patterns, from 1 to 10.
Each is tough in its own way,
but if you know the raids and have seen them before, you won't fall helplessly.
However, even knowing the counter-strategy, there are situations where death is unavoidable.
Like now, when six comes up, that eyeball remains in wait.
If six appears three times in a row—forming 666—
'A shadow soldier will do an aura attack that's guaranteed to hit, no matter what.'
The only way to block it is to parry with an aura attack of your own.
In other words, anyone below fourth rank dies.
Which is why the battalion commander will sooner or later die.
The odds of rolling a six three times in a row with a ten-sided die are extremely low,
but if you roll ten-sided dice forever, eventually, it's certain.
"It's only a matter of when."
Hearing my explanation, the company commanders' faces twisted up.
Even Schutmann looked grim.
My own feelings got complicated.
'Why is this guy so grim?'
If the battalion commander dies, Granfen will collapse.
Shouldn't that be to his advantage?
'I just can't read Schutmann at all.'
Frustrated, it felt like a hammer was pounding inside my skull when—
Thwack!
My vision popped and filled with stars as I crashed to the floor.
Blood filled my mouth and my jaw blazed with pain.
"Hank! What the hell are you doing!!"
Freed from Lantz's grip, Hank had apparently punched me in the face.
He really was a brawler—the pain was disgusting. Ptoo!
"Commander Lantz! Didn't you hear this bastard spewing treason?! We have to kill—"
"Hank!!"
At the battalion commander's voice, all eyes turned to him.
The old man, having figured out all the patterns from my explanation, was focused on defending against the shadow patterns.
"If it weren't for Lieutenant Ian, I would already be dead. Not only me, but you would have been caught up in the curse and died as well. Would you still behave this disgracefully?"
"But battalion commander. This bastard says you're going to die!"
Hank's gauntlets trembled, but,
facing death, the battalion commander was unmoved.
He spoke gently to Hank.
"I'm asking you, Hank. Please be my pride. I want to see you at your best at the end."
"B-Battalion commander......."
Finally, Hank slumped to the ground, sobbing.
Until now I'd only seen Hank as a petty schemer,
but maybe it was excessive loyalty to the battalion commander that was actually the problem.
Of course, that doesn't mean I understood what he did to me.
He was just that kind of idiot.
At that moment, Schutmann asked me,
"Lieutenant Ian. Is there no way to break this curse?"
At his question, everyone's attention focused on me.
I dusted myself off and answered.
"There is, actually."
"Then why didn't you say so count—!"
As Hank tried to go ballistic again, Lantz dragged him back,
and I continued.
"You have to kill the real body of the person who used the artifact."
The Ten Thousand Times Cursed Eye creates a clone of the caster.
The clone activates the curse by bringing the orb to a specific body part of the target.
So the only way to break the curse is to kill the real user.
"Obviously, that rabbit-bastard must be well hidden by the Heroni beastkin."
In effect, that was a declaration there was no way to break it.
However—
'Huh?'
Hank's green eyes, which had been sunk in despair, started to glow.
Shit. I had a bad feeling.
'Don't tell me...?'
Around Hank, mana and energy surged.
His eyes, crackling with green mana, contorted in a lightning-like way, and that green light seemed to burst out from beneath his skin.
'Is this succession? No, it doesn't seem like it—what is it?'
His skin flushed red as if about to split, and his trembling muscles stood out.
His breathing now sounded more beast than man.
Even Lantz couldn't hold him back,
and Hank's voice boomed out, pointed toward our base.
"Hank's companyyy!!"
His pupils had turned a fluorescent, poisonous green.
"From now on, we're raiding the Heroni outpost! Everyone—prepare for attack!!"
This wasn't loyalty—it was much closer to the madness of burning himself up, refusing to accept a reality without the battalion commander.