“Eh.”
A beauty with bright red hair.
Her hair shone like flames, reflecting even more brilliantly under the desert sun.
The smile that appeared on her beautiful face was radiant.
Her eyes crinkled with laughter, forming pleasant curves.
I stared blankly at her face.
Wow.
She’s a pretty older sister.
Where have I seen her before?
Ah.
When I was doing my second run of ‘Orc King’s Cave’, I had felt the gaze of a red-haired woman looking in my direction.
It was a bit dark at the cave entrance, there was some distance, and I couldn’t see her face clearly because I quickly ran away due to the crowd.
But it was definitely that woman I saw in the cave then.
Looking at her under the sun now, I realized anew.
She was really pretty.
Her figure was great too.
Elegant and delicate curves of her hips and waistline.
Even her chest was big.
I felt a bit spiteful.
She must have increased it with customization, right?
Pat pat.
I touched my own meager chest for a moment.
The comparison was stark.
Should I have increased mine a bit with customization too?
A cute pig face was drawn in the center of her nice uniform costume that emphasized her toned figure.
It was the exclusive costume that could be obtained with a low probability from ‘Orc King’s Cave’.
A rare costume that couldn’t be found in the auction house because it was a bound item.
I’m envious.
I didn’t get it.
Although the appreciation felt long, in reality, it was very brief.
Meanwhile, she had approached close to me.
I felt somewhat angry for some reason.
This sister is pretty, but she was a kill stealer.
She snatched away the ‘Fames Scorpion’ I had my eye on with a ranged attack.
Of course, I hadn’t attacked first, but.
Swordsman is a melee attack class, so it can’t be helped, right?
I need to get close first to draw aggro, then use my sword.
It’s basic manners not to attack a monster that a Swordsman is approaching.
But I timidly turned my head and avoided her gaze.
People are scary.
Making connections is even scarier.
The kill stealer who approached right in front of me as I timidly turned my head tried to meet my eyes by bowing her head.
“Hello?”
“…”
I didn’t answer.
Pretending to ignore her without quickly leaving this place was my maximum resistance.
I don’t want to talk to a kill stealer.
I responded with my whole body.
If you understand, please go away.
“Um, ah, can I speak casually? Um, hi? How old are you? Would it be rude to speak informally?”
You’re already speaking informally; why are you asking now?
“The fact that you’re hunting in the Fames Desert area means you’ve finished farming ‘Orc King’s Cave’, right? There aren’t many people who’ve entered this area yet. If you’ve completed accessory farming too, you must be one of the few advance parties, that’s really amazing!”
She praised me with sparkling eyes.
What’s your purpose? Why are you praising me?
You won’t get even 1 copper for praising me, so I wish you’d leave quickly.
“A-ahem. You look like an advance party Swordsman too, do you have a fixed party? If not, would you like to party with big sis? We have a fixed tank in our team, but he’s sometimes busy with work. Ah, of course it’s not just a substitute! Your customization is so cute and just my type, I’m not suggesting it out of personal interest to party with you or anything!”
The red-haired sister waved her hands as she made excuses.
I can see right through you.
You probably want to give me that role as a substitute because you can’t clear dungeons when your tank is absent.
But I won’t fall for that trick.
I’m a solo player, and I’m going to monopolize items and earn a lot of money alone.
If I run dungeons in a 4-person party, my earnings will be reduced to a quarter.
Pitter-patter.
I felt no need to listen any further.
I tried to quickly leave the place.
“Ah, wait!”
Even though I didn’t say anything, my intention to refuse should have been sufficiently conveyed, so why is she calling me?
I glanced slightly.
The red-haired sister was making a wistful gesture towards me with a somewhat disappointed expression.
“Um, won’t you at least tell me your nickname?”
“…”
I don’t have a nickname to give to a kill stealer!
I wanted to shout, but I suppressed the urge.
A faint emotion spreading in my chest.
As expected, people’s appearances are deceptive.
That pretty sister must have gained many people’s favor through her looks.
I too had inevitably developed a slight liking for her appearance.
I expressed that emotion with a sigh.
“…Drizzle Rain.”
The red-haired sister’s eyes suddenly widened, and she hurriedly covered her mouth.
Why is she acting like that?
“Wh-what’s with that voice… Drizzle Rain? That’s a pretty nickname! Can I call you Rain? Can I add you as a friend?”
Beep.
An interface popped up in front of me.
[Yin-Yang Master ‘Chris’ has sent you a friend request]
The system of ‘Astria Online’ where you can send friend requests if you know the other person’s nickname.
“Eek.”
I don’t want friends.
If they send messages while I’m soloing, it’ll be annoying.
Since returning, I’ve become seriously shy.
I’ve come to feel extreme aversion to making connections.
Of course, I haven’t made any connections on Earth since returning, either.
Users are people too.
Even though it’s a game, I had no intention whatsoever of making companions.
Beep.
I closed my eyes tightly and pressed reject.
A hint of sadness appeared on the red-haired sister’s expression.
Seeing her expression like that, something seemed to prick my heart.
Ignoring the inexplicable emotion stabbing at my chest, I quickly left that place.
Let’s run away.
To a place where that red-haired sister can’t be seen.
* * *
Boom!
Chris took down a ‘Fames Scorpion’ in front of her and glanced at the opposite side.
A battle was taking place there.
Battle? No, it was too beautiful a sight to be called a battle.
It was like looking at a splendid painting.
A Fames Scorpion raised its poisonous stinger and charged towards the girl.
At that moment, the girl’s eyes shone, and the sword in her hand moved in a beautiful arc.
Clang!
Thwack thwack thwack!
The scorpion’s poisonous stinger was blocked by the girl’s graceful swordplay.
Simultaneously, the girl’s sharp thrust activated, penetrating the Fames Scorpion’s steel-like exoskeleton.
Twirl.
Slash!
The girl’s body spun once, and the Swordsman’s ‘Moonlight Slash’ skill that activated swept through the Fames Scorpions approaching from around.
“Kiieek!”
The level 16 Swordsman skill ‘Moonlight Slash’.
It was an enhanced version of the Swordsman’s basic skill ‘Slash.’
Maybe because the girl used it, but to Chris, it seemed like a very beautiful skill.
Chris unconsciously let out an exclamation.
“Oh.”
Chris had seen many Swordsmen fight.
But the girl’s swordplay was on a different level from other Swordsmen’s crude skills.
How much must she have raised her skill rank?
The girl’s delicate blocking skill seemed to grasp the direction of force from the monsters perfectly.
Such field monster attacks probably couldn’t inflict even a bit of damage.
The ‘Thrust’ skill that easily penetrated the Fames Scorpion’s hard exoskeleton and the ‘Moonlight Slash’ skill that cut like lightning.
Even the agile-named monsters of elite dungeons would absolutely not be able to avoid it.
The girl not only had outstanding looks but had also reached mastery as a Swordsman.
Chris forgot about hunting and watched the beautiful girl’s battle scene with hands clasped.
Glance.
The girl’s gaze suddenly turned towards where Chris was.
Pitter-patter!
The girl hurriedly turned her body and started to run away.
“Ah!”
Chris let out an exclamation of regret.
It seems I approached too closely.
I should have watched from a bit further away, as I had before.
Boom boom!
After dealing with one more passing Fames Scorpion, Chris carefully followed the girl who had quickly become smaller in her view.
Even while tracking the girl’s back, Chris didn’t forget her duty of leveling up.
Pitter-patter!
The girl’s white hair fluttered gently even while running away.
The girl’s silver-tinged white hair swayed like a silver wolf’s tail, enticing Chris.
Not only did Chris like the girl’s cute appearance customization, but there was another reason why Chris was chasing the girl’s back like this now.
“She’s a total nightingale, a nightingale.”
The girl’s baby angel-like delicate voice that she could hear for just a moment.
Chris couldn’t help but fall for that completely.
In ‘Astria Online,’ you can change your appearance with customization, but you can’t change your gender or voice.
That means that the girl must have a very pretty, delicate voice in reality, too.
Judging from the youthful voice, she must be a minor?
If so, the small build made sense too. It probably wasn’t reduced through customization.
‘Astria Online’ is an adult game. How is a minor playing it?
In Chris’s heart, the desire to meet that girl in reality kept growing.
“Drizzle Rain.”
Rain.
Chris rolled that pretty name once in her mouth.
“I won’t let you go.”
I’ll become close to you no matter what.
Crunch crunch.
Chris carefully stepped on the sand as she approached Rain.
Pitter-patter!
Rain, who sensed her approach with uncanny intuition, worked her short legs hard and ran away.
Tiptoe tiptoe.
Pitter-patter!
An unexpected chase broke out in the middle of the Fames Desert.
Meanwhile, the scorpions of the Fames Desert area kept dying at the hands of the users, Chris and Rain, who were engaged in an invisible chase.
The plight of the Fames Scorpions continued until Chris and Rain arrived at ‘Philia Village’, the first town in the Fames Desert area.