NOVEL NEXT WORLD The Strongest Solo Gamer with Terrible Social Skills Reincarnates as a Hated NPC in a VRMMO Chapter 128
128 15th Level② Kusanagi
――SIDE: Kusanagi Taichi――
I’m aware that I’m doing something strange. Normal people who know my true identity are exploring ABYSS with me. I understand that it’s a huge risk, even if I’m not the brightest.
Sielle was a friend who was protected by the self-preservation faction at the same time as us. We shared meals, talked, and laughed together… an irreplaceable family.
But then… I never thought that just because our blood was a bit thicker, they would attack us. Looking at Sielle, who had lost her sense of reason, I remembered the words spoken by a normal person at the research institute.
We’re bombs.
Time bombs that could explode at any moment…
So, ordinary humans fear us, lock us up, and try to dissect us? I don’t want to understand their heartless feelings, but somehow, I can sense them.
We can’t coexist with humans.
But this woman is…!
“Gyaahhh!? Something’s stuck to my back!!”
“Hahahah! Oh, it’s… a caterpillar…! Shōma-kun, you’ve got a giant caterpillar on your back!!”
“Eh!? Someone take it off!!”
“Ahahahah… my stomach hurts…!”
“…”
With a giant caterpillar on her back, crying and screaming, it’s Shuri. And the one pointing and laughing at her is Anne Links, my fellow idol. Anne has been messing around like this since we entered the forest, showing her true self without any reserve.
True self, huh…?
In front of ordinary humans, we’re usually…
…yeah?
“Hey, you’re laughing like you’re having fun, but there’s a centipede on your shoulder too.”
“Huh?”
“Look, there it is… a centipede…”
“No, no, no, no, no!!”
“Boo!”
Anne, who had a centipede on her shoulder, threw it at my face while crying and screaming.
Ow, what the hell is this stupid woman doing?!
But before I could even think…
“What’s going on…?”
“The forest is…”
“It’s getting noisy… what is this…?”
After the birds and insects started making a racket, a giant centipede emerged from the thicket. Its massive body was about 8 meters long, with hundreds of squirming legs. When Anne saw it, she turned pale and retreated to Shuri’s back. That woman used her companion as a shield…!
“Get away from me!”
“No way, no way, no way, no way!! That’s impossible!!”
“You’re the one who started this story, aren’t you…!!”
“No, no, no!! Do something!!”
Crying and wailing, Anne.
She’s still the same, that selfish woman…?
I took out my trusty Baldish from my dimensional storage and charged towards the giant centipede.
It’s big, but it’s just a 15th-level demon.
LV.28, no match for me!!
“Taahhh!!”
“Wait…!”
Shuri was trying to say something, but I didn’t have time to listen! I unleashed a full-powered attack on the giant centipede’s surface, but my attack was deflected.
“What the…!?”
I hit a wind barrier.
My attack didn’t reach the giant centipede’s body.
Attribute skill!?
What a ridiculous bug!
My surprise was short-lived.
The wind balloon-like sphere in front of me burst, and the compressed air blew my body away like a storm. I was sent flying, my back arching like a shrimp in mid-air. The centipede was closing in on me.
“Yo, armor summon!! ——Guaaah!!”
“Durald!!?”
“—Chi!!”
In an instant, I equipped the “Headless Knight (Dullahan) armor”. I hastily fortified my defense, but immediately after, the centipede’s charge sent my body shaking violently in all directions. The creaking armor and my flying body were trampled by the centipede, and I tumbled repeatedly.
My screaming throat reached its limit, and my open mouth was filled with a mix of sand and blood. The branches on the ground pierced my skin, making my vision spin, and my sense of balance was lost. Just then, the centipede suddenly stopped its movement.
“Kahh…”
I spat out the sand in my mouth and crawled out from under the centipede’s body.
The centipede remained motionless, as if its nerves had been frozen. I approached its head, wondering, and found the slender sword stuck in its forehead, finally understanding the situation.
“……Did you do it……?”
I pointed at the person in front of me, who had thrown the sword, and muttered in realization.
“Do you know the legend of Fujiwara no Hidesato’s centipede extermination? The giant centipede that lived on Mount Mikasa was defeated by his demon-slaying arrow, which pierced its forehead.”
“……”
Shiru recovered the slender sword stuck in the centipede and began to explain to me.
“The arrow was coated with saliva… do you understand? In Onmyodo, saliva is said to possess the power to ward off evil. The origin of the phrase ‘eyebrow saliva’ comes from this. And when I actually tried it… well, as you can see. The pitiful dragon god clan, pursued by the centipede, was defeated by an ordinary student—just like that!”
Suddenly, Anne pushed Shiru’s back. Her face clearly showed discontent.
“……Then why did you make me suck on the sword’s tip!? You could’ve done it yourself, Shouma-kun!”
“……No, it was dirty and—”
“Ahhh!!”
Anne puffed up, and Shiru desperately tried to calm her down. The two of them seemed to have no distinction between human and demonic blood.
……Really, these people are strange……
I thought that again.