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ShangriLa Frontier Chapter 285 Part 1

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Translator: Kurehashi Aiko

Editor: ryunakama

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ShangriLa Frontier Chapter 285: Even Though That Person Is No More, The World Keeps on Moving Forward Part 1

  

 

「…… “Young buds, from West to East, grow and raise over the dead leaves, bloom into fine flowers……?”」

 

If you were to read this poem on the surface level, this text is nothing more but an encouragement from the Sword Saint to those who are willing to undergo the journey on the path of the sword. However, if Kyogoku was to be believed, it was something of a farewell message filled with the feelings. Feelings that a Grandfather was holding towards his grandchild.

 

「…… “Ryuuguin style is the style that reduces the mistakes of your own movements based on the close observation of your opponent. However, in doing that, the user of the Ryuuguin Style tends to fail to see the other party as a human being”.」

 

The essence of the sword techniques that made my grandfather who he was. The ways of achieving the very same state, taught by the virtual version of my grandfather that I have met inside of a video game.

 

That is why Kyogoku would come to realize the reason why her grandfather told her those specific words all that time ago. “Do not become like me”.

 

She was sure that it was supposed to be the truth that she was to uncover all on her own. It was surely the truth that Kyogoku was supposed to uncover had she actually tried to learn the ways of her grandfather’s sword.

 

That was the reason why she could not dare to challenge the secret boss that was her own grandfather inside of that video game. That is why she was not ready to challenge the legacy that her grandfather left behind.

 

Kyogoku managed to conclude that it must have been something that her grandfather realized after crossing swords with her on that one time, and that it was the result of the despair that overcame him upon realizing his flaws in his last years.

 

「This name is…… Well, how about Kyogoku-Ultimate? Sounds about right?」

 

Although this name was very cheesy and often ended up being mispronounced by other players and her acquaintances alike, for Kyogoku there was no greater player name out there and she took much pride in it.

 

–––––– It was also the name that her grandfather genuinely praised.

 

Because of that, once Kyogoku started playing video games, that name was the only player name that she could think of naming her avatar with. It was also the time when she got recommended a certain game. A game that Sanraku also happened to play, and which could pride itself in a very tight, precise and realistic PK system amongst its competitors. It was the time when she decided to enter the world of “Tsujigiri/Frenzy Online”.

 

「In other words, it is like a battle game where the player base is divided into two distinct camps?」

 

It only took her a short amount of time to investigate, but apparently this game was created with the PK being the main intent in which the players would interact with one another.

 

And indeed, it was a kind of game where Kyogoku felt right at home. It’s mechanics were somewhat inferior to those of ShangriLa Frontier, but it was nothing that would prevent her from wielding her sword to its full potential.

 

And most importantly, it would be a good place where she could train her sword wielding skills, so that she could one day return to that digital dojo and challenge her grandfather once more. She swore an oath that she would best him in combat once more.

 

 

 

 

But Kyogoku did not know.

 

That a player named Sanraku was in fact the one who was ridiculed with a moniker of “Shitty Game Hunter”.

 

Both the official website and screenshots were littered with garbage slogans like: “All players in here are good friends!” All for the sake of good publicity.

 

So you can imagine the shock of someone who thought that the game experience is going to be rather friendly but intense, once they realized that the environment stylized after the late Tokugawa Shogunate Japan, was not all that sweet and that it was vastly ridiculed throughout the gaming community ––––!

 

 

 

「Alright, let us start with the tutorial for now.」

 

「Welcome, welcome! Now, Divine Punishment!」

 

「Eh? Huh!? Ah ––––」

 

She got slashed by the long sword from the shoulder all the way to the waist. And since Kyogoku just started playing the game, her equipment was that of a standard ronin set, unable to withstand the blows of the seasoned players who would regularly hunt the spawn points and kill new players.

 

「Sorry to break it to you, fresh meat, but that’s the dusk of the Edo period for you……」

 

「Here! Afterglow Divine Punishment!」

 

「Ugyobeh!」

 

The vision of Kyogoku was then dyed red as the head of the player who was about to kill her split open, revealing the white bone and grey brain mass. Apparently, another player sneaked up on him from behind and opened his head with a heavy axe.

 

「Response Hunting, what a cheap tactic……」

 

「Because I still have way too few experience points, I must make up for it somehow!」

 

「Wait……」

 

His throat torn out, the man died on the spot.

 

「Alright, level up, see ya later!」

 

「What are we going to do? Revenge Divine Punishment?」

 

「If we surround him and overwhelm him with numbers, we can do it. Go and call on the others.」

 

「Alright, I’m really good when it comes to time…… Should we go with meat shields type? Uwaaah! Divine Punishment!」

 

For a short while she was just standing there, watching other players discuss their strategy to fight against the one who just happened to assault them and left just like that.

 

「Ahh, that’s the kind of game this is! Kuh, that’s not all that good…… Hm?」

 

For some reason, there was a sword falling from the sky just now. It pierced Kyogoku’s chest on the spot, skewering her to the ground and casing her to die on the spot.

 

Then, swords started to rain down from above onto the other players, skewering them and throwing the whole squad into a wild sense of panic. Kyogoku could only watch them scream.

 

「Wait, this is the “Sword Rain”…… Gueh!?」

 

「Speaking of which, tactics like that have their names thanks to the fact that certain weather conditions were pretty common in that particular time period.」

 

「Does that mean you have come here just so that you can replenish your swords because you have run out of your own!? Run away, people! Or not! First, we take that guy’s rare swords!」

 

Her vision was starting to become dark and cloudy, but she could still see that the group of players was thrown into chaos by the appearance of yet another new player who thought to take them all down. As for who that new player was……

 

「Sa…………」

 

Once she saw the face of that player who seemed absolutely confident in the middle of the battlefield, she opened her mouth and screamed his name with a mixture of slight joy and a whole lot of pure and undulated anger.

 

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