“Everyone, don’t get careless. We don’t know when it might appear. Don’t lose focus, and get ready to intercept.”
The next day, in the afternoon… The captain addressed his subordinates, who positioned themselves in a defensive line in preparation of an attack by the skeleton horse.
Just as he said, no one knew when it might appear. All they could do was be ready when it did.
They managed to drive it back the previous day, but in all honesty, they were fighting a losing battle.
And if they were unable to put it down for good, the people living in the nearby settlements would not be able to live in peace.
Magic knights protected people’s lives and living. These guards could be said to be a part of that, and he took pride in their work. But as he checked on his subordinates with a burning sense of duty…?
“Hn…?”
He noticed someone he did not recognize.
He was wearing black from top to bottom, and had twin swords on his back that appeared to be his preferred weapons. This young man seemed too young, more like a child.
“W-what are you doing here? This area is sealed off. A dangerous monster will appear here, so hurry up and…”
“I know. That’s why I’m here.”
“Ah…?”
The captain spoke to Isaac, wondering how he managed to slip in, and his expression turned to confusion when he heard his reply.
Isaac took one look at his expression, and snorted a little as he ignored the captain and looked around.
“…Almost time.”
He knew all about this quest, and its reward.
It was a useful item in the early stages of the game. Isaac went there to get it, and chuckled as he confirmed the effects of his ‘Covert’ skill.
(I’m glad I got it. No one stopped me on the way here, and this old man only saw me because I showed myself.)
The Covert skill erased one’s presence, and allowed the user to go undetected by enemies and more easily evade their attacks. It was a skill Isaac liked when he played Luminous History in his previous life.
And now that he went beyond the framework of the game and confirmed that he could use it outside of battle and field exploration, he was happy with how it was even more useful than he thought.
He had some vulgar thoughts, thinking he could use it to peep all he wanted, but stopped because that was no way for a hero to act.
And as he thought about this nonsense, he sensed a presence approaching, and the tips of his lips rose into a smile.
“It’s here. Right on time.”
The monster ran while bathed in the sun… And Isaac whispered with an amused tone as he watched the skeleton horse.
He was happy about the arrival of what was the centerpiece of the quest, and the moment he saw it, he ran out.
“Eat this! Serial Slashes!!”
“Gunh!!”
Isaac put his high agility stat to use as he quickly approached the skeleton horse, and activated a skill as he swung his twin swords.
He opened his arms and swung the swords horizontally, as the skeleton horse let out a sound that was like a groan, at an attack that was faster than it predicted and caught it off guard.
“That young man is fast! He delivered a blow so easily…!?”
“B-but who is he? A villager…?”
(Yes…! This is it! Those eyes and words of respect towards a great swordsman that suddenly appeared! Feels so good!!)
They were the reactions of people around him that he could not experience in the game.
As he fought a dangerous monster as a main character and heard the speculation of people around him, Isaac was filled to the brim with a sense of enjoyment.
The guards had a tough time with this monster when they all fought it, but a mysterious person was actually getting the better of it. And that person was none other himself.
Despite being mob characters in this world, magic knights were pros in that field, so hearing what sounded close to respect coming from them did not feel bad, as the skeleton horse counterattacked.
“Hihin!!”
“Whoa!? That was close, close…!!”
Isaac made use of his agility to barely evade an area of effect flaming attack.
He took distance from the monster, and both glared at each other, as a smile formed on Isaac’s face.
(Sorry, but you’re dying here. It’s easier that way…!!)
The end of this quest diverged into two paths depending on the player’s choice.
The path was chosen here in this fight… The story changed depending on whether the skeleton horse was taken down or not.
If the player did not kill the skeleton horse, it would move towards a happy ending, but.. Isaac wanted the reward he was after even if he had to crush the skeleton horse here.
If the player was going for the good ending, they had another troublesome fight after this, so it was not the most efficient in terms of gaining experience. And so, Isaac saw it as a bother.
What he wanted was the reward, not a perfect ending.
It was more efficient to take down the skeleton horse, get what he wanted, and leave.
If he could achieve that goal… It mattered little what happened to the skeleton horse, the guards, the people visiting that plain, or the people living in the surrounding settlements.
They were just mob characters. He could not care less about people whose names and faces he did not know, and had nothing to do with his life.
(I’ll beat this thing quickly, and get that drop! Nothing’s more important than efficiency!)
He felt next to no guilt, and focused on ending his job of slaughtering the skeleton horse quickly.
He sensed the wonder and respect from the guards around him, and felt good as he swung his twin swords, but then…
“Wait! Stop fighting it!”
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Christ what a Kirito cringe lord parody.
It’s kind of funny that he’s a Kirito parody that doesn’t care about NPCs when that’s a total inversion of Kirito.
I wonder if Zenon was also an inverted parody of someone.
His character really sounds like a edgelord’s idea of “cool” lol. He even has the solo leveling aspect to it too.