bookbashuk Page 45
Page 45
"Are they from the same organization?"
Upon hearing this, Kotoko Iwanaga frowned slightly.
The person who entered that eerie hotel but didn't deal with the floating corpse spirit, and the person who injected the survivors with the virus and implanted locators on special infected individuals in this instance, and who is conducting experiments on an entire city, are actually from the same organization.
"Yes."
Asagiri paused for a moment before speaking softly.
"The mysterious organization they belong to is called..."
"Blackwatch".
80
Chapter 80: The Profound Meaning of the Player's Identity Transfer Right
"Blackwatch?"
Kotoko Iwanaga, Megumi Kato, and Asuna Yuuki exchanged glances, none of them having heard of this name before.
"What kind of people were they?"
"Simply put, it's a mysterious military organization, but..."
Asagiri took the water glass that Yuuki Asuna handed her, took a sip, and then continued speaking.
“Every member of Blackwatch is a battle-hardened, impeccable fighter with the most elite combat personnel. However, they are completely different from the general military.”
"In order to complete their mission objectives, they do not care about the casualties of civilians or innocent people. Even if the target is an unarmed person, they will not hesitate to kill them, nor will they feel any pangs of conscience. They are ruthless."
“Every member of Blackwatch is like a brainwashed fanatic, never feeling panicked or afraid no matter what kind of enemy or situation they face.”
"I tested it before leaving the instance. After Alice activated her exclusive skill, only four members of the thirteen-person team died because their mental strength failed the test. This is enough to prove that, because of their unwavering belief, the mental strength of the Black Watch soldiers is far higher than that of ordinary people."
"I also heard the commander in the white combat uniform report to headquarters and request support when he thought my attack on them was some kind of weird event. Based on this, it can be concluded that Blackwatch not only understands weird phenomena, but also has mastered some means to eliminate weird phenomena."
Upon hearing Asagiri's description of Blackwatch, Kotoko Iwanaga, Megumi Kato, and Asuna Yuuki all wore somber expressions.
"It's unbelievable that such an organization exists in the world where this instance is located... Fortunately, we don't need to worry about how to deal with them for now..."
"No, you're wrong."
Kotoko Iwanaga interrupted Keiko Kato with a serious expression.
"You've forgotten one thing."
"whats the matter?"
Kotoko Iwanaga slowly opened her mouth and said something that made Asuna Yuuki and Megumi Kato feel a chill run down their spines.
"As long as you can get the phone of a dead player... you can register to become a player."
"You mean... if those Blackwatch members get hold of the deceased players' phones, they can also enter various pre-set dungeons and get rewards, just like us?"
Upon hearing Asuna Yuuki's words, Kotoko Iwanaga nodded first, and then added.
"Moreover, according to Asagiri's description, their biggest advantage over players in our world is that they are an organization. If they collect enough phones and transfer enough player permissions, they can easily allow a dozen or even a hundred people to enter the dungeon together. The players who enter the same dungeon with them will become the targets of their interrogation to obtain information."
"This……"
Both Asuna Yuuki and Megumi Kato realized how terrible what Kotoko Iwanaga was talking about.
Although the two of them have almost adapted to the battle, they are still just high school girls who have only recently become "players". Their combat awareness and skills cannot compare with the elites of Blackwatch.
And the members of this team...
They are already at the top of the current player level, and it's even possible that their captain, Utsunomiya Asagiri, is the strongest player since the game's launch.
Even so, despite ensuring her own safety and having laid an ambush beforehand, Asagiri could only kill five members of Blackwatch.
There's no need to worry so much.
Seemingly sensing the somewhat heavy atmosphere, Asagiri, though exhausted, still smiled and spoke.
"Have you forgotten? When entering the game, we are not allowed to bring any weapons or equipment. Although the Blackwatch group is well-trained, if they fight against us, who have superhuman strength and enhanced physical abilities, without firearms, then they are the challengers."
"Moreover, at this stage, the system is unlikely to arrange a dungeon that requires players to face the Black Watch. Such a dungeon will only appear after the players' overall strength reaches a certain level."
"Since we speculate that the game difficulty will increase by one level every month, that is, after all surviving players have cleared the dungeon excluding the tutorial at least once, then I think it will be at least two or three months before a dungeon that is hostile to Blackwatch appears."
Upon hearing this, Asuna Yuuki seemed to be deep in thought.
"So, the ultimate enemy this game has assigned us... is Blackwatch?"
"Maybe, but..."
Asagiri paused abruptly at this point, and Yuuki Asuna, seeing his expression, couldn't help but ask him curiously.
"Why do you look like you want to say something but can't? This isn't like the person I know."
"There is a possibility that I'm afraid you won't be able to handle if I say it."
"What's the possibility?"
Asagiri slowly began to speak: "Since we, as players, are going to another world every time we enter a dungeon, then..."
"If the Blackwatch members became players and chose to enter dungeons, is it possible that they would come to our world?"
Upon hearing this, Asuna Yuuki and Megumi Kato fell silent, while Kotoko Iwanaga remained calm, picked up her teacup, took a sip, and then said indifferently.
"If that's the case, then we have another reason to become stronger."
"Well, that's true."
Asagiri nodded slightly and looked at Yuuki Asuna.
"What's your reward for clearing the level this time?"
Yuuki Asuna then remembered this and quickly replied.
"My rating for clearing the dungeon this time is A+. It's probably because I spent too much time in the dungeon, so the score was lowered. However, I killed so many special infected and gained a considerable boost through my exclusive talent. Overall, it was definitely a win. As for the rewards... well, you can check them out."
Asagiri took the phone from Yuuki Asuna and saw on the app the rewards she had received after clearing the dungeon: a piece of equipment and a passive skill.
【Crimson Cloak (Quality Blue, Excellent)】
Wearing this equipment will partially conceal the player's true appearance and slightly increase the player's stamina recovery speed.
Passive Skill: Swordsman's Resolve
[Swordsman's Resolve: Stamina consumption is halved when attacking with sword-type weapons (Stamina consumption for active skills is also halved)]
"A passive skill and an item of equipment... that would suit you quite well."
Upon hearing Asagiri's comments, Asuna Yuuki nodded first, then asked curiously.
"And what about you? As a high-level player, you can customize the quantity and type of rewards, and you even achieved the highest level S+ completion rating this time. What kind of rewards do you plan to customize?"
"Um……"
Asagiri spoke while pondering the matter.
"I'll focus on physical enhancements and skills. After all, weapons and equipment can be obtained in dungeons, and they will definitely be replaced and phased out as strength increases. Compared to those external things, I still prefer pure numerical enhancements at this stage. Our team is currently lacking tanks, and Shura can fill the main tank vacancy. I'll be the off-tank, since Asuna's abilities are more geared towards physical main DPS."
Upon hearing these words, Kotoko Iwanaga's eyes flickered slightly.
Asuna?
When did Asagiri start calling Yuuki Asuna by her first name, "Asuna," instead of "Yuuki-kun"?
Could these two have secretly done something while I and Kato Megumi were away from the instance?
While Kotoko Iwanaga was pondering this, Asagiri had already taken out her phone and confirmed the type and quantity of the custom reward for clearing the level in the app.
[Your customized reward has been confirmed as: one skill and enhanced physical attributes.]
[Rewards: Significantly enhanced physical attributes, skill "Spear of Frost"]
【Frost Spear: Consumes a certain amount of mental energy to create a sharp frost spear that shoots at the enemy, dealing physical damage with frost attribute.】
After receiving the physical enhancement reward for clearing the level, Asagiri's physical fitness rating on the panel displayed in the app increased from "original professional athlete level (not including the passive enhancement effect of Human Asura)" to "close to the human limit". If the passive effect bonus of Human Asura is also taken into account, his current physical fitness has already broken through the human limit.
"Finally, I cleared the dungeon again!"
Asuna Yuuki stretched lazily and rubbed her eyes sleepily.
"No, I'm so sleepy, I really need to take a nap."
Upon hearing this, Kotoko Iwanaga immediately stretched out her hands to Asagiri, revealing a sweet and innocent smile.
"You've worked hard too, so let's go rest together~ As a special reward, you can sleep with your head on my chest~"
Asagiri glanced at Iwanaga Kotoko's barren chest, shook her head, and replied earnestly.
"Forget it, your chest is too hard, almost unshakeable. I'm afraid I'll hurt my head from using it as a pillow."
Kotoko Iwanaga was furious, waving her fists and complaining like a Chihuahua whose tail had been stepped on.
"Hey, hey, hey, aren't you going too far? Aren't you afraid of hurting my pure, fragile, delicate, and sensitive girlish heart?"
"You should just give up already. Your heart is yellower than a mango, yet you still act all innocent, fragile, delicate, and sensitive?"
Seeing Kotoko Iwanaga's face turn red with anger, Asagiri stood up and suddenly changed the subject.
"Let's go."
Upon hearing this, Kotoko Iwanaga couldn't help but look puzzled.
"Where...to?"
"Where else can I go?"
Asagiri replied calmly, "Of course I go to school."
81
Chapter 81: Kaguya Shinomiya's weakness is fully exposed.
Later that evening, in the classroom of Class 1-A at the private Shujiwon Academy.
The homeroom teacher, Ashikaga Miwa, was giving a lesson, and the students below were all focused. After all, the students who could enter Class A were all excellent students, which is commonly known as the elite class.
However, in a corner of the classroom by the window, a student was slumped over his desk, fast asleep like a baby, a stark contrast to the scene of students diligently studying.
While Kaguya Shinomiya appears to be listening attentively, she secretly glances at Asagiri, who is openly sleeping in the corner of the classroom and has not been criticized or woken up by the homeroom teacher, Ashikaga-sensei, every time she lowers her head to take notes.
"Utsunomiya-san... is actually sleeping during class?"
Kaguya Shinomiya frowned slightly, feeling quite puzzled.
You should know that Asagiri Utsunomiya was the top scorer in the entrance exam for Shuchiin High School and also the top scorer in the Sakura Province Joint Examination. He was a true genius. Although he hadn't shown much diligence in his studies since the start of the semester, he had never slept in class before.
Why is this happening?
Could it be that... the other person entered a dungeon last night, or early this morning, and was severely sleep-deprived, which is why they fell asleep during class?
Why not just ask for leave?
Kaguya Shinomiya couldn't come up with a reasonable explanation. To be honest, she didn't even really understand Asagiri Utsunomiya.
Logically speaking, if the other person is truly a "player" and is suffering from severe sleep deprivation due to entering a dungeon, they would definitely find an excuse to ask for leave. After all, the homeroom teacher, Ashikaga-sensei, treats them with extraordinary respect, which is obvious to anyone with eyes to see. Asking for leave is not a difficult thing for them.
However, it's also possible that they're using counterintuitive logic to clear themselves of suspicion...
No, that's not right.
If that's the case, wouldn't it mean that Asagiri Utsunomiya, as a "player," has already begun to suspect that there are other "players" around him, and even that he has already suspected him and Chika? Otherwise, who would he be trying to impress with his illogical arguments?
Kaguya Shinomiya couldn't come up with a convincing answer, so the only way was...
Go and test the waters with the other party.
……
The morning classes ended quickly, and before we knew it, it was lunchtime.
“Utsunomiya-kun.”
Kaguya Shinomiya stood up, left her seat, walked to Asagiri, and spoke in a calm tone.
"The spring exams are next week, and you still have the leisure to sleep in class at this time. It seems that the top spot in the grade is mine this time."
This was the most reasonable and least suspicious explanation that Kaguya Shinomiya had come up with after much thought.