The first thought that went through Animalia’s head was that it was impossible. They wouldn’t be able to beat this thing.
(Strange…… Is this the true power of a Unique Monster?)
Indeed, the strategy employed here by the members of the SF-Zoo was so flawless and powerful that it could even affect Phantasmal Dragon, one of ShanFro’s strongest monsters, for a whole one minute, rendering it completely immobile.
For example, that strategy would allow them to subjugate the boss of this area, the Usurper Dragon, without as much as breaking a sweat. Thanks to the cooperation of the high-level players and strongest restraining magic out there, there was not a single boss, mob or rare enemy that would dare to resist them. …… Or so she thought.
「 Now then, Lukaan-chan, I wonder how your fur feels to the touch?」
Pushing aside her anxiety, Animalia’s curiosity got the better of her and she started to approach the Night Prowler.
Animalia’s unique weapon, “Key of Hades” granted her access to the unique spell called “Hand of Tartarus”, an ultimate restraint spell that would render any creature immobile for a set period of time, no matter the kind of creature.
The trade-off for this wonderful effect was that for the next five minutes she would not be able to recover HP and would continuously take small amounts of damage every second. Eventually, at the end of those five minutes her HP would sit at the whooping value of one.
For Animalia, however, death was a small price to pay if it meant that she would be able to satisfy her curiosity and grope the animal she was chasing after for a whole one minute. A twisted logic, but logic still.
For Itsukushima Maria couldn’t play with animals in real life.
Ever since she was little, Maria would suffer from severe allergic reactions to various kinds of animals, which for an animal lover like herself was a true torture. Even being in the same room with a single hamster could prove fatal for her health.
Throughout her childhood Maria tried to interact with animals on many occasions, which would always end up with her being hospitalized for a long period of time. She already lost count of how many tears she shed because of that. That is why for Maria, since it was so realistic, ShangriLa Frontier was a Godsend, a true Paradise on Earth.
You can pull weeds out of the ground. Your boots leave their marks in the soil. Stones you pick up have different shapes and sizes. Ripples form on the water’s surface when you throw something into it.
So if the game can even replicate fleas running on the animal’s body, it is no wonder that the physics of the animal fur would also be super realistic.
So the ultimate reason for why Itsukushima Maria created Animalia and established SF-Zoo was not because she wanted to fight the monsters, but to get to know them and collect as much data on them as humanly possible.
(A giant wolf…… I wonder what kind of feeling its fur will have? Is it fluffy? Or maybe hard and rough?)
“Hand of Tartarus” is a spell that no creature can oppose. No one who gets caught up in it can move an inch.
Yes, no move was allowed as long as “Hand of Hades” was active. That is why Animalia was sure Lukaan was immobilized and didn’t exercise any caution, and other members of SF-Zoo started cheering and taking screenshots.
(Fufu, it’s good to be the leader. At least I have the privilege of first touch.)
Of course, she didn’t forget their original purpose. After they touch it all they want, they will critically strike it a hundred times, fulfill the requirements for the EX Quest and then off to Rabbitz they go!
At first she was disappointed that she couldn’t go to Rabbitz right away, but right now it was different. For the perspective of reaching Rabbitz was finally well within her reach. She could almost taste it.
If she would have received full access to Rabbitz, she could cuddle and play around with cute bunnies as much as she possibly wanted.
(Think we can combine touching it with scoring those critical hits……?)
Their eyes meet. At that moment, Animalia was convinced.
Luukan was unable to move…… It wouldn’t be able to even if it wanted to.
Those eyes were empty and lifeless, just like that of a doll. Its golden eyes kept on staring into nothingness, devoid of any sign of sentient life in them.
But if those were not its eyes, then who was staring at Animalia right now?
(The night…… The night is staring at me……?)
But there was nothing out there. Just the darkness of the night and the remains of the fortress that could be seen in the distance.
But Animalia could clearly feel it. It was staring right at her. Not from over here, but from somewhere else entirely.
「 …… Impossible.」
She could feel something staring at her out there, hidden in the deep, black night. The intense feeling emanating from that gaze…… Yes, it was the same kind of gaze with which a predator looks at its prey.
It was at this moment that Animalia finally noticed.
The true identity of the Night Prowler Luukan, a black wolf that attacks people at night at random locations.
No, the truth is the order is reversed here.
–––– It was the darkness of the night which took the form of a giant black wolf!
The moment she realized that, Animalia’s body was lifted in the air by a tremendous blow coming from the side, a blow that all things considered simply ignored the laws of physics.
In ShangriLa Frontier, there are two ways of assessing the damage that was dealt to you: one was the numbers, the second one was the sensation that accompanied the blow.
「 Hyi……!!!」
With the corner of her eyes, Animalia could pick up a slight movement. It was low quality but it looked just like a pair of big and sharp jaws. The jaws that grabbed Animalia and bit into her flesh, thrashing her around like a ragdoll.
(It’s biting…… What power, and it’s growing even stronger…… Am I going to get eaten……?)
Animals are cute, precious and way better than humans could ever hope to be.
But not this one…… This one, it was different from the rest.
Animals are creatures you should love and they will love you in return.
「 No, help me……」
Soon enough, Animalia was about to be eaten by an apex predator, something that not every average Japanese person could experience firsthand.
Then its jaws suddenly closed…… And Animalia’s avatar was shattered into a million pieces by an attack so brutal and graphic that probably none of the SF-Zoo members have ever witnessed before.
「 Uwah……」
Even though I have seen some pretty gruesome images throughout my career as a gamer, seeing Animalia’s body break and twist like a shrimp sent chills down my spine. It was realistically brutal.
Maybe ShanFro should be age restricted if such vivid images could be shown here? I can certainly see minors becoming instantly traumatized by them.
And what followed was even worse.
Anyways, debuffers became pretty much obsolete in this battle at this point. Because no matter how many times they would try to capture Luukan, it would simply create a new alter ego and simply transfer its consciousness into it. Not to mention that because of the clouds covering the moon, visibility was already poor as it was.
The tank squad was targeted first. And their VIT stats as well as defenses were superb. But it was impossible for them to tank against a super mobile enemy the movements of which they simply couldn’t predict.
It was no longer a battle. It was a one-sided slaughter. Or playing billiard with humans instead of balls.
With the tanks being sent flying into the rest of the group, the chaos that ensued was far too great for them to coordinate in any kind of coherent fashion.
And the fact that the tanks were taking so long to kill was only making the suffering of the group that much longer and greater.
「 Now the worst thing they could possibly do is to bundle together.」
It so happened that all of the tanks fell down roughly at the same time, and as they were desperately trying to avoid imminent death, the invisible predator broke through their ranks and started slaughtering the debuffers.
「 Uwah, it’s pretty damn amazing in a horrifying way, seeing human bowling balls and pins……」
Some of them disintegrate on the spot, while others bounce off the ground or roll all over it for a moment before coming to a stop.
Even high-level players with appropriate equipment were unable to withstand the sheer brute force of Luukan’s attacks and started dying one after another without being able to defend themselves or resist.
The fact that their leader got massacred right in front of them certainly wasn’t helping. Without the tanks the battle was already over, and even if the mages somehow managed to revive them in time, it would hardly make a difference at this point.
「 This is just too cruel.」
Watching that horrifying spectacle from behind the rocks, I muttered those words in a silent voice.
Those of the people who died were now laying on the ground with their equipment stripped off of them, awaiting respawn at the inn.
About three people were left on the field, and they all chose to commit suicide rather than having their stats decreased and their equipment stripped off of them. It was a wise decision on their end. The battle was already lost and staying alive would accomplish nothing at this point. It would be a fool’s errand.
Umu, I knew it would happen. If even someone like Saiga-0 got decimated with one blow by this monster, then SF-Zoo didn’t stand a chance in the first place. It was foolish of them to even think they would be able to pull this off. As for Luukan…… It was just sitting there, licking its own paws. Talk about a picture of carefree right after the battle’s end.
Thank you, Animalia. Thank you, SF-Zoo. There was one more person left there on the battlefield, half-dead and looking our way as if begging for help. He was saying something, but from this far I was unable to understand what his words were. Look, sorry man, but I’m not going to risk my own neck for your sake.
「 Thank you for reference material, you can now rest in peace.」
You wouldn’t be able to tell because of the mask on my face, but I was smiling in a really nasty way. Also, I was shifting one of my thumbs up and down continuously before eventually bringing it down.
The guy didn’t see that, however. His body erupted into red polygons just a second before my thumb went down.
…… Now, whatever shall we do?
The first thought that went through Animalia’s head was that it was impossible. They wouldn’t be able to beat this thing.
(Strange…… Is this the true power of a Unique Monster?)
Indeed, the strategy employed here by the members of the SF-Zoo was so flawless and powerful that it could even affect Phantasmal Dragon, one of ShanFro’s strongest monsters, for a whole one minute, rendering it completely immobile.
For example, that strategy would allow them to subjugate the boss of this area, the Usurper Dragon, without as much as breaking a sweat. Thanks to the cooperation of the high-level players and strongest restraining magic out there, there was not a single boss, mob or rare enemy that would dare to resist them. …… Or so she thought.
「 Now then, Lukaan-chan, I wonder how your fur feels to the touch?」
Pushing aside her anxiety, Animalia’s curiosity got the better of her and she started to approach the Night Prowler.
Animalia’s unique weapon, “Key of Hades” granted her access to the unique spell called “Hand of Tartarus”, an ultimate restraint spell that would render any creature immobile for a set period of time, no matter the kind of creature.
The trade-off for this wonderful effect was that for the next five minutes she would not be able to recover HP and would continuously take small amounts of damage every second. Eventually, at the end of those five minutes her HP would sit at the whooping value of one.
For Animalia, however, death was a small price to pay if it meant that she would be able to satisfy her curiosity and grope the animal she was chasing after for a whole one minute. A twisted logic, but logic still.
For Itsukushima Maria couldn’t play with animals in real life.
Ever since she was little, Maria would suffer from severe allergic reactions to various kinds of animals, which for an animal lover like herself was a true torture. Even being in the same room with a single hamster could prove fatal for her health.
Throughout her childhood Maria tried to interact with animals on many occasions, which would always end up with her being hospitalized for a long period of time. She already lost count of how many tears she shed because of that. That is why for Maria, since it was so realistic, ShangriLa Frontier was a Godsend, a true Paradise on Earth.
You can pull weeds out of the ground. Your boots leave their marks in the soil. Stones you pick up have different shapes and sizes. Ripples form on the water’s surface when you throw something into it.
So if the game can even replicate fleas running on the animal’s body, it is no wonder that the physics of the animal fur would also be super realistic.
So the ultimate reason for why Itsukushima Maria created Animalia and established SF-Zoo was not because she wanted to fight the monsters, but to get to know them and collect as much data on them as humanly possible.
(A giant wolf…… I wonder what kind of feeling its fur will have? Is it fluffy? Or maybe hard and rough?)
“Hand of Tartarus” is a spell that no creature can oppose. No one who gets caught up in it can move an inch.
Yes, no move was allowed as long as “Hand of Hades” was active. That is why Animalia was sure Lukaan was immobilized and didn’t exercise any caution, and other members of SF-Zoo started cheering and taking screenshots.
(Fufu, it’s good to be the leader. At least I have the privilege of first touch.)
Of course, she didn’t forget their original purpose. After they touch it all they want, they will critically strike it a hundred times, fulfill the requirements for the EX Quest and then off to Rabbitz they go!
At first she was disappointed that she couldn’t go to Rabbitz right away, but right now it was different. For the perspective of reaching Rabbitz was finally well within her reach. She could almost taste it.
If she would have received full access to Rabbitz, she could cuddle and play around with cute bunnies as much as she possibly wanted.
(Think we can combine touching it with scoring those critical hits……?)
Their eyes meet. At that moment, Animalia was convinced.
Luukan was unable to move…… It wouldn’t be able to even if it wanted to.
Those eyes were empty and lifeless, just like that of a doll. Its golden eyes kept on staring into nothingness, devoid of any sign of sentient life in them.
But if those were not its eyes, then who was staring at Animalia right now?
(The night…… The night is staring at me……?)
But there was nothing out there. Just the darkness of the night and the remains of the fortress that could be seen in the distance.
But Animalia could clearly feel it. It was staring right at her. Not from over here, but from somewhere else entirely.
「 …… Impossible.」
She could feel something staring at her out there, hidden in the deep, black night. The intense feeling emanating from that gaze…… Yes, it was the same kind of gaze with which a predator looks at its prey.
It was at this moment that Animalia finally noticed.
The true identity of the Night Prowler Luukan, a black wolf that attacks people at night at random locations.
No, the truth is the order is reversed here.
–––– It was the darkness of the night which took the form of a giant black wolf!
The moment she realized that, Animalia’s body was lifted in the air by a tremendous blow coming from the side, a blow that all things considered simply ignored the laws of physics.
In ShangriLa Frontier, there are two ways of assessing the damage that was dealt to you: one was the numbers, the second one was the sensation that accompanied the blow.
「 Hyi……!!!」
With the corner of her eyes, Animalia could pick up a slight movement. It was low quality but it looked just like a pair of big and sharp jaws. The jaws that grabbed Animalia and bit into her flesh, thrashing her around like a ragdoll.
(It’s biting…… What power, and it’s growing even stronger…… Am I going to get eaten……?)
Animals are cute, precious and way better than humans could ever hope to be.
But not this one…… This one, it was different from the rest.
Animals are creatures you should love and they will love you in return.
「 No, help me……」
Soon enough, Animalia was about to be eaten by an apex predator, something that not every average Japanese person could experience firsthand.
Then its jaws suddenly closed…… And Animalia’s avatar was shattered into a million pieces by an attack so brutal and graphic that probably none of the SF-Zoo members have ever witnessed before.
「 Uwah……」
Even though I have seen some pretty gruesome images throughout my career as a gamer, seeing Animalia’s body break and twist like a shrimp sent chills down my spine. It was realistically brutal.
Maybe ShanFro should be age restricted if such vivid images could be shown here? I can certainly see minors becoming instantly traumatized by them.
And what followed was even worse.
Anyways, debuffers became pretty much obsolete in this battle at this point. Because no matter how many times they would try to capture Luukan, it would simply create a new alter ego and simply transfer its consciousness into it. Not to mention that because of the clouds covering the moon, visibility was already poor as it was.
The tank squad was targeted first. And their VIT stats as well as defenses were superb. But it was impossible for them to tank against a super mobile enemy the movements of which they simply couldn’t predict.
It was no longer a battle. It was a one-sided slaughter. Or playing billiard with humans instead of balls.
With the tanks being sent flying into the rest of the group, the chaos that ensued was far too great for them to coordinate in any kind of coherent fashion.
And the fact that the tanks were taking so long to kill was only making the suffering of the group that much longer and greater.
「 Now the worst thing they could possibly do is to bundle together.」
It so happened that all of the tanks fell down roughly at the same time, and as they were desperately trying to avoid imminent death, the invisible predator broke through their ranks and started slaughtering the debuffers.
「 Uwah, it’s pretty damn amazing in a horrifying way, seeing human bowling balls and pins……」
Some of them disintegrate on the spot, while others bounce off the ground or roll all over it for a moment before coming to a stop.
Even high-level players with appropriate equipment were unable to withstand the sheer brute force of Luukan’s attacks and started dying one after another without being able to defend themselves or resist.
The fact that their leader got massacred right in front of them certainly wasn’t helping. Without the tanks the battle was already over, and even if the mages somehow managed to revive them in time, it would hardly make a difference at this point.
「 This is just too cruel.」
Watching that horrifying spectacle from behind the rocks, I muttered those words in a silent voice.
Those of the people who died were now laying on the ground with their equipment stripped off of them, awaiting respawn at the inn.
About three people were left on the field, and they all chose to commit suicide rather than having their stats decreased and their equipment stripped off of them. It was a wise decision on their end. The battle was already lost and staying alive would accomplish nothing at this point. It would be a fool’s errand.
Umu, I knew it would happen. If even someone like Saiga-0 got decimated with one blow by this monster, then SF-Zoo didn’t stand a chance in the first place. It was foolish of them to even think they would be able to pull this off. As for Luukan…… It was just sitting there, licking its own paws. Talk about a picture of carefree right after the battle’s end.
Thank you, Animalia. Thank you, SF-Zoo. There was one more person left there on the battlefield, half-dead and looking our way as if begging for help. He was saying something, but from this far I was unable to understand what his words were. Look, sorry man, but I’m not going to risk my own neck for your sake.
「 Thank you for reference material, you can now rest in peace.」
You wouldn’t be able to tell because of the mask on my face, but I was smiling in a really nasty way. Also, I was shifting one of my thumbs up and down continuously before eventually bringing it down.
The guy didn’t see that, however. His body erupted into red polygons just a second before my thumb went down.
…… Now, whatever shall we do?
