Streamer Crazy About Slaughter - Chapter 6
[Switching to manual operation.]
The hologram didn’t bother me at all as it obstructed one side of my view.
Ariane quickly turned direction and moved rapidly toward the place where someone had attacked.
Becoming aware of the subtle unrealness of the passing wind, my heart gradually began to cool down.
‘Game.’
It’s just a simple game.
A game that merely mimics the reality of virtual reality.
That ‘thing’ that attacked me was just a character in the game.
No longer was I the version of myself venturing into the world of ‘Black Ark’ who felt pain as if my consciousness might be severed at any moment.
Swoosh!
Whoosh!
Projectiles enveloped in dazzling blue light hit the air with a huge noise, rushing towards me in succession.
“…”
Looking at it, I instinctively tightened the reins of my words.
It was as if I were controlling my Ariane in the actual ‘Black Ark’ world. I began to control it with such familiarity.
Ariane flew, gradually rotating its body at strange angles following my hand.
My body, having done nothing for days, instinctively maneuvered as if it were imprinted with instinct, displaying acrobatics.
It flew at bizarre angles, weaving through the projectiles that continued to be shot at me.
In moments, the sound of fierce wind brushed past me. It struck my ears loudly, and at the same time, silver hair danced brilliantly, continuously distracting my vision.
Whoosh!
The gust of wind created by a projectile barely missing me.
Even that didn’t feel realistic.
Compared to what I had truly felt, it was like a gentle breeze that made anything feel unreal.
Without blinking, I led Ariane to fly and soon discovered a red-glowing silhouette.
Swoosh.
Then, in a daze, I stroked my cheek.
Was the wound that initially brushed against my cheek healed by now? No more bl**d was flowing.
I had not felt any pain afterward, but judging by the slight sensation where I felt the brush, it seemed that the game had some kind of internal safety measure to prevent severe pain.
Even a wound that disappeared in just a few minutes… was truly not remotely realistic.
Yeah.
It was definitely a game.
Even if I reached out my hand without hesitation, it wasn’t like I was killing a real person.
Recalling the day I first killed someone in the world of ‘Black Ark’—when I was trembling with both hands—made me chuckle.
“…sh*t, am I really some kind of ranker? I dodged all that!?”
Not even thinking of creating distance, a man muttered something.
His appearance seemed quite appealing; perhaps he was a high-level user with good equipment.
[Outlaw – ‘Ashibal Jukdeunga’]
As I looked at the man, a hologram reading ‘Outlaw’ appeared above him.
Ding!
An alert sound still notified me of danger with a time lag.
Slowly, I stepped down from Ariane and landed on the ground.
Thud.
Cleaning my thoughts, I thought he might be that sort of person.
It was a faintly remembered recollection, but if it was an online game, surely there would be users who enjoyed PK.
Therefore, I didn’t find that man’s ambush too strange.
I was not someone who had played for just a day or two, and I could understand the system at a glance.
The term Outlaw probably referred to users who enjoyed PK (Player Killing).
They were notorious for killing people excessively, which was likely why that man had been marked so distinctly with a red outline.
Vroom!
The Crescent Moon Blade struck the air, resonating.
Swoosh.
At the same time, I twisted my head again to dodge the incoming projectile.
Having kept my eyes on the man’s figure without taking them off even once since I landed, predicting the direction of that massive crossbow was easy.
“Crazy… b*stard.”
The man, sounding stunned, kept muttering something strange.
Considering the huge ornamental crossbow he wielded, the opponent seemed to be a ranged class.
Yet even now, he wasn’t trying to create distance.
Even though I had closed in so much, he didn’t even attempt to create space.
It was as if he had no real combat experience at all…
He truly seemed to be someone who only relied on his in-game specs to overwhelm his opponent.
Tap, tap.
I tapped the ground with my feet, gradually getting my physical sense.
Since I had just logged into this game, I didn’t even know what my exact class was or my specifications.
Though today was definitely the first time I had properly moved this character.
I felt no particular fear.
Once more.
Swoosh!
A projectile enveloped in a blue aura.
It wasn’t like an arrow. I could only feel it as I watched.
It looked almost insubstantial, like it had no physical entity.
Gripping the Crescent Moon Blade tightly, I slowly brought my hand toward the projectile’s direction.
I could have dodged it, but I was curious just how similar this game was to what I knew of ‘Black Ark.’
Right now, that was what I wanted to know.
Ding!!
The Crescent Moon Blade clashed with the blue aura, producing another burst of light.
Feeling a small rebound, I took a step back at the same time.
I had been bracing myself with strength throughout my body, so it didn’t feel awkward.
Every feeling of the impact upon contact and the load that came in that brief moment felt vivid.
“What the? She’s a hacker or something.”
I inadvertently tilted my head at the man’s voice, which sounded dazed right in front of me.
From the red outline, he surely seemed to be a user who engaged in PK, so I was puzzled that he didn’t understand the system I had just checked.
Among the systems of Black Ark, one of the more advanced techniques, Parrying.
It was a technique that one had to master in order to survive.
When blocking an opponent’s attack or projectile with a weapon, it would completely ignore the level of that attack, allowing one to block 100%. So they could absolutely thwart the opponent’s attack.
However, if the timing of receiving it was off, or if merely bringing my weapon against the opponent’s attack would trigger an ‘Imperfect Parry’ even if the parry activated.
Then it would become worse than dodging.
Why did one try to block an attack they could dodge? Even if one succeeded in parrying a ranged attack, it offered little merit.
The technique was attempted as a confirmation, but I felt no inkling that I would fail.
After all, in the world of Black Ark, there was a trash group commonly referred to as ‘wolves’.
More vicious than hunting monsters, they sought to exploit individuals for their own gain.
Wherever one went in the cities, there were wanted posters everywhere to catch them.
However, after mastering this parry, I ceased to fear those wolves.
Those entities who lived as ‘wolves’—at some point, they became afraid of facing monsters and were no different from the kind of laggards whose personal growth was stunted.
I had learned to parry to not d*e against those wolves.
Now failing to parry an attack from a basic Outlaw would be irony.
The opponent’s attack was clearly visible, making it easy to predict its direction and when it would reach me.
Moreover, due to differences in level or equipment, there was a system indicating differing stamina consumption. I wondered if that aspect applied here in this virtual reality as well.
Just now, I had only stepped back a single step.
That indicated the opponent was roughly at a similar level to me; as I grew slightly more accustomed to my body’s sensations, without a moment’s hesitation, I leapt towards that man.
Ding!
Clank!
Clank!
Clank!
Like a combo technique, I emitted blue auras consecutively.
As I watched it directly, I continued to successfully parry in midair, and there was no recoil as my body was pushed back.
When standing still, I would recoil, but if I succeeded in parrying, it felt like I could move forward without feeling the recoil at all.
A system indicating that if I did not merely want to block the opponent’s attack, I should use my feet to jump forward.
Such minor elements felt strikingly similar to what I knew about Black Ark.
“sh*t… sh*t!!”
The man who continued cursing only started to try to create distance when I was already just 2 meters away.
I had already swung my arm.
The figure of the projectile rushing in a crescent arc came forward quickly.
The curve of that Crescent Moon Blade was so clear.
Yet I didn’t draw out any red energy from my body to enhance its destructive power.
I knew nothing about this game, and I didn’t even know about myself.
Thus, in a way, it was nothing more than a simple attack akin to a basic strike.
“I probably won’t take him down in one blow.”
As I thought this simultaneously.
Thwack!
With a chilling sound, the man’s face crumpled.
Yet, being a game, it didn’t display the brutal visuals of reality.
It appeared hazy, like it had been pixelated.
Still, anyone could see it was a clear clean hit.
I felt that familiar sensation, like when I smashed something in my hand.
[Outlaw. You have defeated ‘Ashibal Jukdeunga’.]
“…Huh?”
No matter how accurately I hit the head, can one d*e so easily?
Whoosh!
I instinctively retrieved the Crescent Moon Blade as if it were a habit.
Is there a system where getting hit in the head leads to d*ath?
Though it’s a game with specifications, I wondered if there were any elements of reality that resided in it.