Bungee Jump Without a Rope

「So, what happened after Alto disappeared?」

「Then there was no one I could rely on anymore! I was confined to the hut except for hunting!」

Ah… I see, that’s how it turned out.

I really need to apologize for this.

I didn’t mean to drive Yamikage into a corner out of malice, but that was the result.

My principle is to make games enjoyable.

Just like during the Tsumugi incident, I cannot overlook any playstyle that prevents everyone from having fun.

However, you had the leisure to go hunting.

That’s why you’ve learned new magic and skills.

You’re quite thick-skinned for being a shut-in, aren’t you?

「There were also many strange dreams I kept having! Suddenly I found my speech ending in ‘gojaru’, acting as a body double, or watching over some unsavory hero from the shadows. Which was reality!?」

「What are you talking about!?」

This is bad.

The loneliness has reached the point of causing bizarre hallucinations.

Even before that, the problem is that your first-person pronoun is unstable, shifting between『gojaru』and『bō』.

Make it clear whether you’re speaking as ‘jibun’, ‘sessha’, or ‘bō’.

You may actually be in quite a tight spot, huh?

「It feels like I haven’t met with the Kizuna-dono and the others for about four years!」

「Surely that’s just your imagination.」

It’s probably been a month and a half at most.

I’m sure of it… most likely… probably.

I had dreams about becoming a hero, being imprisoned in a labyrinth, fishing over and over, and adventuring with a guy like Brave Peckle, but none of that actually happened.

「Anyway, sort out your first-person pronoun. Stabilize your character.」

「So loneliness can drive someone this far, huh…」

Yamikage seems to be in worse shape than I imagined, so I’ll try to stabilize her for now.

Would the pronoun ‘sessha’ stabilize her character?

「Anyway, Yamikage, I finally managed to call you to this island. Sorry for the sudden summons.」

I bow my head and sincerely apologize.

「No, I’m angry that you didn’t call me sooner!」

「I really am sorry. If I may make an excuse, if Peckle hadn’t caused trouble, Romina probably wouldn’t have called you, so blame Peckle.」

「Are you really shifting the blame after coming this far!?」

「I guess I have no choice but to throw you off a bridge.」

Is that what you want me to do?

I’ll do it if it’ll make you forgive me, but honestly, I’d rather not.

I’ve fallen quite a few times already.

But Alto, you’ll be coming with me this time.

You’re the one who drove Yamikage into a corner in the first place.

「It’s too much for my heart! Last night, a huge hand came out of the floor in the middle of the night and attacked me!」

What kind of event is that?

The developers are way too malicious.

And it looks like I’m going to be blamed for that event too.

But I’ll have to deny any responsibility for the horror event.

「This could be the management’s mischief in a sense. Like, the members who cleared the ghost ship disappearing one by one, and then…」

「The foreshadowing seems a bit too blatant, don’t you think?」

Romina interjects with a rebuttal.

Well, yeah.

It probably would have been better to restrict it to party members who cleared the ghost ship.

「Maybe they were concerned about solo players clearing it? So they could bring in people suited for developing the area.」

「Well, looking at the Kizuna-kun and the others, there are plenty of elements that could lead to discord.」

Yeah, that’s true.

It would be more natural for all the players who participated in the Limited Dimension Wave to develop the area together.

Like a long-term quest.

But why did they split them up?

Even if they were going to split them up, there could have been a way for them to be scattered to different locations and then converge while completing quests.

「This sounds like something the management would shamelessly call a ‘second life’ experience.」

That’s a scary prospect in terms of the content.

Is it really okay as a game?

There are games out there that advertise PvP elements, so in that sense, you can’t deny whether the game’s content and the management’s policies align with what the players want.

If they say it’s a feature, then that’s just how it is.

「Anyway, I’m going to offer atonement gifts to Yamikage for the terror I’ve caused.」

「Wh-what do you mean?」

I handed Yamikage a set of custom-made equipment that Romina and I had prepared for her.

「Wh-what is this? Just by equipping these, my stats will increase to nearly three times what they were!」

Well, I did drive you into a corner.

According to Romina, the equipment levels are still low, so they only seem extraordinary, but they’re expected to increase drastically going forward.

If a weapon’s attack power was around 30, and the new equipment has an attack power of 90, it would indeed be three times higher.

It’s not that unusual for a game to start with those kinds of stats but end up with an attack power of 2,500 or so.

「There must be some ulterior motive for the Kizuna-dono and the others to give me such powerful items!」

Ah, you’re being extremely cautious.

Yamikage, you understand us quite well.

But you’ve equipped everything, haven’t you?

The stat requirements must be pretty high… and you’re stockpiling energy too.

Until now, I thought you were in the same class, but could it be that you’re actually as skilled as Shouko? Is that where this is going?

「Good job, Kizuna-kun! You’re an understanding comrade!」

Alto, don’t give me a thumbs up.

Are you into that kind of thing?

「I should be glad to be understood… or perhaps I should lament instead.」

Shouko’s line is painful.

「It’ll be interesting to see how strong Yami-chan has become, won’t it, Onii-chan!」

That’s true.

If his abilities have increased that much, she may be able to easily overcome the problems we’re facing.

But, speaking of spectacles, why are you looking down on her like that?

「Yamikage-kun, this Kalmira Island development area may be a side quest, but it’s undoubtedly a place further ahead than where the frontliners are fighting. That equipment was something we worked hard to create. Can I ask for your cooperation?」

「Come to think of it… everyone’s equipment has changed. Can I do anything?」

「Depending on the situation, I may have called you instead of Tsumugi.」

Of course, I explained the circumstances that led to choosing between Tsumugi and Yamikage.

I naturally showed how rationally I made the decision, like a scumbag.

Yamikage seems to be making a rather ambiguous expression, but I’ll ignore that for now.

「I see… I’m glad to have joined up with everyone after being separated since the ghost ship incident.」

And so, Yamikage accepted the equipment we gave her and changed into it.

Alright, I managed to bring her on board smoothly.

…No, I don’t actually intend to stoop to being a scumbag though.

Just going with the flow, so to speak.

「Now I feel like I can do anything. Kizuna-dono, what do you want me to do?」

「Ah, I want you to challenge the hidden boss that appeared because of Tsumugi’s blunder.」

「A hidden boss, huh? This is shaping up to be an exciting development!」

I point up at the area under Wrath Pengu’s control.

Yamikage seems to have realized something and nods after taking a deep breath.

「So, this is the long-awaited debut battle for our reinforcement, Yamikage.」

「By the way, when are we doing that ‘throw off a bridge’ punishment game?」

Tch! Yamikage, you remembered that!

Needless to say, I was made to do the punishment game.

Let’s do bungee jumping without a rope!

Of course, Alto has to do bungee jumping without a rope too!

And Tsumugi too, bungee jumping without a rope!

And so the masterminds disappeared under the bridge.

3… 2… 1…

Accessing the sphere of light in front of Wrath Pengu’s domain starts a countdown, allowing us to challenge him again.

Just like last time, it seems to start with Brave Peckle lying down.

「Oh yeah, there was a book called The Legend of Brave Peckle available in the library we built.」

「Ah, the library where books were stocked as soon as it was constructed.」

「It only contained a portion of the collection. According to the librarian Peckle, books are supposedly buried all over the island, can be fished up, or are held by certain Peckles.」

What a mysterious system!

So there are still undiscovered materials out there?

I bet books will come out like when fishing for Peckles.

「Don’t worry, any books you find will be transferred to the library.」

Books emerging from underwater being transferred to the library… that sounds like it could get messy with them being wet, but I guess it’s okay since it’s a game.

Then again, if I start nitpicking about that, I’d have to question how monsters can drop equipment too.