Chapter 17 ~ Stone Gorilla.
Hikari and Rentarou reached the edge of the boss arena — a circular expanse of gray stone, surrounded by a low ring of gently swaying grass. The moment their boots stopped just short of crossing the boundary, the ground beneath them seemed to sigh in anticipation. A breeze swept across the plateau, rustling Rintarou's ash-gray hair and making Hikari's golden strands dance around his eyes.
The ambient music, once a calm exploration theme, began to fade as if in reverence to the silence that ruled over boss zones.
Rintarou's gaze was fixed ahead, but his voice wavered. "I think I have a phobia of this boss... Stone Gorilla. I'll never forget this fight for the rest of my life."
Hikari looked over at him, eyes steady. "You talk like it's already a memory."
That earned a weak chuckle from Rintarou. "Well… I doubt I'll lose with you beside me."
Hikari's expression softened into a wry smile. "Quite the shift, coming from someone who was scared of me a few minutes ago."
"Of course I was scared," Rintarou said, gesturing with his hands. "It's my first time meeting a Player Killer here! Some of the players in this game are terrifying—like those ninja guys. So how scary would a PK be? Naturally, worse. But you, Raising Star… you're different. I think I'm actually curious to hear your story now."
Hikari raised an eyebrow. "You mean my villainous flashback arc?"
Rintarou laughed and, with a deep breath, summoned his weapons. A simple iron sword materialized in his right hand, and a round metal shield locked into his left forearm. His voice turned serious. "Alright. I'm ready."
Hikari's eyes drifted over his gear. "You're going in with just that? No elixirs?"
Rintarou looked down with a sheepish smile. "I got lucky. Helped a blacksmith save his daughter—he gave me this set as a thank-you gift. Without it, I'd be completely helpless."
He looked up again. "You know the Blue Bolt Elixir?"
"The one we picked up in Maria Town," Hikari replied.
"Exactly. Strongest in the B-rank tier. That and the Amber Stamina Flask are more than enough to take this boss down. Problem is, most players waste their elixirs later in the game. Still… both are sold in Maria, going for seventy-five to a hundred Diamo each."
"You got 500 Diamo as a starting bonus, right? Why not just go back and buy more?"
Rintarou's shoulders slumped. "I'll tell you about the ninja squad later."
Hikari's gaze sharpened. He instantly understood. The ninja group he'd clashed with before… Rintarou must have been one of their victims.
Wordlessly, Hikari extended his right hand. With a soft chime and a burst of digital shimmer, his blade formed — a metallic blue-gray longsword, edged in faint electric light and pixelated particles.
Rintarou's eyes widened at the sight, but before he could speak, a voice chirped out — young, feminine, high-pitched.
| "Huh?! That's the Aqua Fang Blade! How does someone at your level even have that?" |
Hikari tilted his head slightly. That wasn't Signora's voice. It was… someone else's. He muttered, "What was that?"
| "Mind your own business, young companion. Don't ask Hikari about weapon names." |
Signora's voice echoed crisply into the air, cool and commanding.
Rintarou blinked. "Hikari? Is that your real name?"
Hikari groaned, brushing his fingers through his hair. "Seems like party formation links both players' AI companions. We can hear them all now."
Rintarou's eyes flicked to the side in realization. "So that's how it works…" Then he smiled faintly, clearly impressed by how quickly Hikari had put the pieces together.
But before another word could be exchanged, Hikari took one step forward. His boot struck the stone floor of the arena with a sharp click.
"I'd advise both of you to stop talking unless I give permission," he said calmly, gaze locked on the slumbering beast ahead. "We can mute the AIs anytime… but right now, I have a bad feeling about this boss."
As if in response to his words, the gorilla stirred.
Its eyes lit up — glowing red squares set deep within a craggy stone face. The beast was massive, nearly seven meters tall, its shoulders wide enough to crush trees, its chest as solid as mountain rock. Hikari narrowed his eyes. This is supposed to be a starting zone boss? For a new player?
Silence reigned.
Then, slowly, the battle theme began. A low, rising rhythm like the heartbeat of a drum.
The crunch of shifting stone echoed as the gorilla moved. It placed both massive hands on the ground and pushed itself upright.
A gust of dust scattered outward as its full form came into view — a creature of living rock, shaped like a gorilla but sculpted with angular precision. Cracks ran across its arms and chest like veins of magma, and its bulk cast a shadow that seemed to drag the temperature down around them.
Hikari stood firm at the front, his blade lowered but ready. Dust clung to his boots. Behind him, two steps back, Rintarou trembled.
A bead of sweat slid down Rintarou's cheek — not just his own reaction, but a projected one, generated by Wystoria's stress-sensors and visualized in perfect realism.
The gorilla opened its mouth.
Inside, jagged teeth of polished stone lined its maw, glinting faintly like metal. Its breath came in hot gusts, and then—
"HOOOOUUUUUAAAAHH!!"
The roar cracked through the air like a sonic quake. Hikari's golden hair flew back with the force of it, yet he didn't flinch. His blue eyes narrowed, focused, his brows angled low. Calm. Centered.
Behind him, Rintarou's eyes widened in horror, gray irises quivering.
'He's still standing…
That roar—
That damn roar's the only thing I can think of during every attempt I made before…
Four tries, and every time… I just ran.
But him? From the very first attempt—he's steady.'
Rintarou squinted up at the massive stone gorilla towering above them. Its red, squared eyes radiated a cold, merciless presence—an apex predator not of flesh, but of carved wrath and ancient might.
Above its head hovered its name in crisp white letters outlined with faint black:
[ Stone Gorilla - Lv.10 ]
Below it, a thick, bold crimson HP bar stretched nearly the width of its shoulders:
HP: 10000 / 10000
To a veteran player, this boss was barely a warm-up. But to anyone under level ten, it was a nightmare sculpted in stone—a rite of passage soaked in fear.
Rintarou's grey eyes tracked every twitch of its limbs.
'Why is it so agitated this time...? he wondered, sweat gathering at his brow. I've fought it three times already… but this… this feels different.'
The echoes of its previous roar faded, giving way to a slow, rising tension in the background—the unmistakable sound of battle music swelling like a storm on the horizon.
Raising his chin, Hikari exhaled slowly, his fingers tightening around the hilt of his azure-blue blade. His golden hair fluttered in the cold breeze, eyes still calm. He stepped forward, composed.
Suddenly, the gorilla slammed its massive stone fists and feet into the cracked earth, launching itself into the air with a deafening, thunderous leap. Stone shattered under the sheer force.
Hikari's brows tensed as he looked up, his hair whipping back from the pressure of the gorilla's movement.
Rintarou's mouth fell open in shock.
'Did it just… jump? That's—!'
His hands trembled. Clang.
His sword and shield slipped from his grip and crashed to the ground. He couldn't move.
'This isn't fair... is it using new moves because we're in a team? This... this isn't...!'
A shadow engulfed him.
Above, Hikari had already launched into the air with a sharp gust, his blade trailing glowing droplets of blue water that shimmered like stardust. His body curved through the air like a dancer of death.
Below him, the gorilla raised a mighty stone fist, preparing to crush them both.
In that instant, Hikari gripped his blade tightly with both hands, twisting his body mid-air.
A rush of water spiraled around him.
"Aqua Fang Ring!" he cried.
A vortex of cerulean light burst from his blade—a wide, elegant ring of pressurized water, etched with glowing runes, spinning so fast it screeched like the song of a tidal storm.
CRACK!!
Water slammed into stone.
A brilliant arc of liquid force collided with the gorilla's arm.
SHHHRRAAAACK!
Rock split like paper. A clean, diagonal gash tore through its massive forearm, spraying fragments of stone and spritzes of glowing water into the air. Tiny droplets scattered like rain, catching the light as if the air itself wept in awe.
The severed arm hit the ground—BOOM—one half crashing to Rintarou's left, the other to his right.
Dust and water mist rolled outward from the impact. Even Rintarou's hair trembled from the shockwave.
His eyes widened.
The mighty beast landed with a controlled, earthshaking thud, standing tall once again—but now missing half an arm.
The precision of its fall sent another gust through the field, tugging Hikari's hair from side to side as he touched down calmly.
His boots scraped against the cracked stone ring. He stood still, blade down, his gaze sharp and unwavering. The wind rustled his clothes, but his focus never flinched.
A moment later—ping, ping, ping!
System notifications flared in the air:
– Damage dealt: 1500
– HP: 8500 / 10000
Rintarou stared at Hikari's back as the numbers faded. The boy hadn't moved from his spot.
'Fantastic… this boy... I can't even put into words what I just saw...'
[ A/N ]
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