Chapter 66: Momentary Thoughts Part 13 Part 1

「How should I say it? That’s the first time I’d actually wanted to log out of the game and log back in instantly.」

「Ah, I get you. I totally get you, my friend.」

As we enjoyed the feeling of slowly being set adrift in the vast space of the game, we watched as the boss arena started to load up. It was roughly the same size as the Hidden Garden, but when it comes to design it was the complete opposite.

The spider camellias were all but gone, replaced by barren ground that resembled more of a hardened stone than actual soil.

The colors of the background seemed to have been reversed, for there was an ominously white sky on which the black moon was shining…… It was beautiful…… but also unnerving. You could say that there was something completely unnatural about it.

And as for the dead tree right in the middle of the area…… just like the rest of the “reversed” map, it was now completely different than what it used to be.

「Can dead trees bloom again all on their own?」

That tree was supposed to be withered away and dead. It was supposed to be like that. But right now it was alive again and in full bloom, so abundant with pinkish petals that it wasn’t able to hold them all in at once, scattering them on the gentle wind.

There, at the root of the tree, there was a simple grave marker…… And right behind that.

「…… Is that?」

「That would be it, I think.」

「…… Sure looks like it.」

It was rusted and full of cracks. …… However, even though it looked intimidating, you could see that it was standing here for a long time, seeing as how it was covered with moss traces and withered cherry blossom petals.

I see. It was just as Pencilgton said. It was best to describe this thing as a mechanical samurai.

「……………」

It was clad in mechanical black armor from head to toe, without showing an inch of unprotected skin. Even its face was completely mechanical, covered in a mask that only let its eyes be visible, which were two bright red dots, like some kind of robot from a kid’s show. Each of his body parts was making a slight mechanical noise and was shaking slightly, as he reached towards his waist and drew his sword.

And is it only my imagination, or is he almost three times as big as we are?

「Well then…… You certainly are quite something when it comes to the looks department.」

I take both Pencilgton and Katsu by hand and we start walking towards the mechanical samurai…… A unique monster, Setsuna-san’s lover, “undead” according to Weissash’s words…… as we approached it, its size was gradually starting to shrink.

I would like to say that it was just like in the Western duels scenes, but it was actually quite the opposite. I realize that with each of our steps the tension and anxiety in my body were growing more and more.

「!!!」

Finally, the distance between ourselves shrunk to less than one meter…… The samurai took a stance. Good, have it your way…… Give us an opening and we shall take full advantage of it.

「Gravekeeper Wezaemon, let us have a good fight and……」

「Tachikaze.」

Contrary to its rusted appearance, it was moving quite fast and was also fast to unleash an ultra-fast attack! Its arm moved in a swift motion, and judging by the bright light that I saw emanating from the blade it must have been one of its insta-kill moves! It was aiming right at our necks!

「Right! It’s game time!」

It was as if the time started to pass in slow motion. I bent my head, and the crystal-like blade passes right over me, missing my ear by millimeters. I then lose my balance and stagger, losing sight of the Gravekeeper for a moment.

Thus marked the beginning of our long and hard battle against the Gravekeeper Wezaemon.

「That’s the first time I was actually able to avoid an insta-death attack like that.」

「But what do we do now?」

Also avoiding the blade, Katsu asked me that question briefly right as the battle was about to begin.

Over the past two weeks we discussed many different strategies and approaches that we could take against the Gravekeeper. For example: is it possible to stagger or stun him? How much armor has he exactly? Are there any body parts that we can aim for possible extra damage? It was those sessions of “what if” that now allowed me to actually be able to dodge his attack successfully and not get killed instantly.

But Katsu must have been aware of the fact that simply dodging its attacks would not get us anywhere, and that the battle would only get increasingly more difficult from that point forward.

「I shall start my preparations, so for now, Katsu-kun, try to stun it with the pre-made items I gave you.」

「Roger that!」

Seeing Katsu rushing forward, Pencilgton removes a few items out of his inventory on the spot.

「Please, Scale-chan……! This battle is for you……!」

Bringing a smile on his lips, Pencilgton recited those words to the small scale he was holding in his hands right now, and the item started to shine in bright gold color.

At that time, I was doing my best to not get hit by the enemy’s attacks that would instantly turn me into a mass of red polygons.

Somehow, I’ve managed to avoid another hit that I thought would hit me for sure. All of Gravekeeper’s attacks were fast, strong and hit hard, so I felt as though I was balancing on a really thin tightrope all the time.

「Someone switch with me! And we need information!」

「It’s impossible right now! Try to dodge it for a little bit longer!」

「Roger……!」

While retreating slowly, I was constantly asking myself that question: “Is there anything valid that we can do to inflict some serious damage onto this guy?”

「Hyiii, the gap is too great!」

「Really now……!」

Even though we were only two or three minutes into the fight, my Empire Bee Sword’s were already brought down to forty percent of their durability. As I hurried to switch them to some other weapons, I watched Katsu doing his best to avoid the Gravekeeper’s attacks.

「Gah! I would be willing to pay a fortune for some swift response right about now……!」

Not to mention that just a moment ago I would have been a total goner if it wasn’t for the item that Katsu threw at me the moment I received the Gravekeeper’s attack head on.

Amongst the items that the players could possess, there was one that was proving exceptionally useful right now: an item that allowed for full rejuvenation on condition that it was used on the player during the ten seconds after receiving a fatal blow –– “Tears of Rebirth”.

「I don’t know if I should be in tears or be laughing right now…… But thanks nonetheless……!」