IGTL Chapter 38

Chapter 38 – Being Asked for Welfare in a Game World Turned Real Was Not My Problem (3)

“AAAA! H-Hey, what the hell are you doing!?” I yelled. “Are you stupid!? You’re stupid, right!?”

No sane person would think a level-one, F-rank adventurer could land a hit on an intermediate-dungeon roaming boss.

What were you even thinking!?

Did you tick off the Naming God so badly you finally snapped!?

Or did you put too much faith in that cursed gear, “Wrath of the Naming God”?

You can’t overestimate that thing!

All it does is give temporary physical and magic immunity!

Your attack power is still level one!

“U-Uhn…”

AAAA, who’d been swept sideways by the Volcano Dragon’s tail, wore a vacant, stunned expression.

“H-Huh? That’s weird. I definitely attacked the Volcano Dragon… so why…”

“Yeah, you did, but this is not the time!” I snapped. “For now, let’s get out of here, okay? Value your life! I’m the one who brought you here, but still!!”

AAAA kept staring blankly at the Volcano Dragon.

“A-Ahahahaha…”

Looks like his legs had finally given out.

He hadn’t taken damage thanks to “Wrath of the Naming God,” but he was drenched in cold sweat.

“Now is not the time to laugh!”

I lunged in front of AAAA. The Elementals flared with light and drove a critical strike into the Volcano Dragon.

As the Volcano Dragon collapsed, I left perimeter security to the Elementals and turned back to AAAA.

“K-Kakeru…”

“No, you pushed way too far forward!” I barked. “What were you thinking, charging a boss monster at level one!?”

If you didn’t have “Wrath of the Naming God,” you’d be dead!

Sure, I was the one who made you equip cursed gear, and sure, I dragged you into an intermediate dungeon, but come on!

There were a thousand better ways to go about this!

A level-one adventurer attacking an intermediate-dungeon roaming boss was straight-up suicide!

You’d die!!

“B-But I just felt like I could do it…”

“You seriously rushed a boss monster on a flimsy vibe!?”

“Wrath of the Naming God” granted temporary physical and magic immunity, but “temporary” depended on level.

At level one, it lasted one minute.

If more than a minute had passed before that tail sweep, AAAA might’ve been dead.

“For now, you stay right there!” I ordered. “Stay put. I’m going to power-level you, so don’t do anything!”

“Y-Yeah… got it…”

Honestly, I didn’t trust him.

If he bolted again, I was finished.

So I hardened my heart, raised the Mob-Fenrir Bazooka, and fired a binding “Gleipnir” round to make sure AAAA couldn’t pull anything.

AAAA screamed as the magical chains wrapped him up.

“Gyaaaaaah!? What are you doing, Kakeru!? I can’t do anything like this!”

“…Huh?”

You were planning to do something?

You literally just said “got it”!

“No! You don’t need to do anything!” I shot back. “Please don’t do anything extra!”

Thank goodness I restrained him before he could act on whatever dumb impulse he’d cooked up.

Now I could power-level him in peace.

To level efficiently, I used paid items where AAAA couldn’t see: “Rare Drop Rate +500%,” “EXP Gain +500%,” “Booster Pack,” and “Monster Respawn.”

Alright. Setup complete.

Now all that was left was to wait for the festival to begin.

“K-Kakeru!? Something feels off!?”

“Heh… you’ve got sharp instincts.”

Of course it felt off. I’d used “Monster Respawn.”

As expected of a veteran player who’d spent forty years living off his parents.

He was sensitive to danger.

The moment AAAA cried out, the ground centered on me glowed red in a wide circle, and monsters began spawning one after another.

“Let the Monster Festival begin…”

The respawned monsters bared their fangs, drool dripping from their jaws.

They probably thought we were prey.

They were wrong.

To me, they looked like piles of experience points.

“Gyaaaaaah!”

“Gishaaaaa!”

AAAA’s shrieks echoed alongside the monsters’ roars as I gave the Elementals an order.

“Alright, Elementals. Turn them into experience.”

Light flared through the Elementals. They swept over the monsters’ heads, and a brutal storm erupted.

One after another, the monsters were converted into drop items and experience points, and by the time “Monster Respawn” wore off, AAAA’s level had reached fifty.

◇◆◇

“…I overdid it.”

I hadn’t just overdone it. I’d gone completely overboard.

Countless drop items littered the ground in front of us.

I’d forgotten something important: now that the game world had become reality, the only person who could mass-produce drop items was, as far as I knew, me. Probably.

AAAA stared at the drops with eyes wide.

“Kakeru… am I dreaming? It looks like there are drop items everywhere…”

“Yeah…”

“S-So… it is a dream, right…?”

No matter how many times he rubbed his eyes, it didn’t vanish.

For reasons I didn’t fully understand, any monster my Elementals and I defeated turned into drop items without exception.

“Can you punch me once?” AAAA asked. “I can’t believe what I’m seeing…”

“Huh? You sure?”

Honestly, that was incredibly convenient.

I stepped right in front of AAAA and drove a strike into his solar plexus, knocking him out cold.

The level gap was so absurd that he rolled his eyes back, but whatever. He would live.

“…Whew. That was close.”

I’d proceed with the narrative that everything he saw was just a dream.

Before AAAA woke up, I collected the drop items, dragged him to the Transfer Gate “Yggdrasil,” and returned to the Central Kingdom.

“Now then… what do I do with this guy…?”

As I stood there, unable to decide his fate, AAAA finally came to.

“Ugh… what was I…?”

“AAAA! Are you okay!?” I said, putting on a face like I’d been worried sick. “You suddenly collapsed, and I panicked!”

The way I could improvise on the spot, I might’ve had talent as an actor.

A terrible actor, maybe, but still.

“Huh? I was in an intermediate dungeon just now, wasn’t I…?” AAAA muttered. “And I think I saw a ridiculous number of drop items… Was that a dream?”

I sighed and shook my head.

“What are you talking about?” I said. “The moment you put on that cursed gear, you started shrieking, charged the Volcano Dragon, and passed out. Don’t tell me you don’t remember?”

“I charged the Volcano Dragon… But I should’ve been protected by ‘Wrath of the Naming God,’ right…?”

Keeping my expression as concerned as possible, I set a hand on AAAA’s shoulder.

“You’re exhausted,” I told him.

“W-What!?”

“Look, you remember charging the Volcano Dragon, right? That’s enough. It’s not weird you’re stressed. I dragged a level-one guy into an intermediate dungeon. That’s on me. I’m sorry. Here, buy yourself something good to eat.”

I handed him 10,000 Col from my Item Storage.

“Huh? I can really take this?”

“Yeah, of course,” I said. “And your level is fifty now. If it’s a beginner dungeon, you’ll be fine.”

“Huh? …Yeah, I guess a beginner dungeon would be…”

“Good, good. That’s a relief.” I smiled. “I was worried you’d turn into a shut-in again even in this world. But now I can relax. Plus, you’ve got ‘Wrath of the Naming God.’ With that, you can safely explore for at least fifty minutes after entering a dungeon. Once you level up more, you’ll be able to handle intermediate dungeons solo too.”

I gave his shoulder a light pat and, without letting him interrupt, kept talking with a cheerful grin.

“Alright, I’ve got stuff to do now, so you do your best. Kyle’s gotten strong enough that he might graduate from F-rank soon, so next time go explore an intermediate dungeon with him or something. Okay, I’m heading out.”

“Y-Yeah… you’re right,” AAAA said uncertainly. “Maybe I really was dreaming… Anyway, see you.”

“Yeah. Later.”

I waved with a smile and started walking toward the Drowsy Inn.

“Man… I learned my lesson. Next time I’ll go into a dungeon alone…”

I was done with trouble.

AAAA was such an unbelievable idiot that things somehow worked out, but if that had been any other player, I’d have been in serious trouble.

I absolutely had to keep my “monsters drop items when I kill them” situation a secret.

In that case, for a while, I should focus on exploring advanced dungeons where other adventurers didn’t hang around.

Yeah. That sounded right.

“Oh, it’s been a while. Have you been well?”

On the way to the Drowsing Inn, someone dressed like an alien spoke to me.

I didn’t know this person.

I’d never seen someone this unsettling before.

But I couldn’t say that.

If they were somehow an acquaintance, I could land myself in a mess.

So I decided to match their tone, like I was talking to someone I knew.

“Y-Yeah, it’s been a while. Have you been well?”

“Huh? Y-Yes…” the alien-looking person said, blinking. “You seem well too. But what’s with that way of talking? I feel like you used to be a lot more overbearing.”

Of course I did.

Because I had no idea who you were.

Asking “Who are you?” outright felt rude, and if this was some high-ranking person, one wrong word could get me punished.

While I watched to see where this was going, the alien-looking person continued speaking.