Chapter 154: There Are Differences Between Players
"W we…"
Just as the two researchers trembled and were about to answer, another set of hurried footsteps sounded from around the corner.
Asagiri did not hesitate. He yanked the two researchers to his side in one clean motion. Yuuki Asuna tightened her grip on the Exorcist Longsword, ready to strike. If enemies appeared, she would immediately release her sword skill, Stinger.
The footsteps drew closer, then stopped at the corner.
An ordinary looking middle aged man cautiously leaned out and peeked.
"Hm? You are…"
After spotting Asagiri's group, he pulled his head back, then led five more Players out from behind the corner.
Six in total. Only one was a woman, the other five were men. One of the men even carried an automatic rifle that clearly belonged to a mobile unit member.
Yuuki Asuna, Kato Megumi, and Iwanaga Kotoko all noticed the same detail at once.
Their clothes were messy and dirty, but not stained with blood. It was the kind of grime you got from running for your life, crawling through dust, and never stopping long enough to breathe.
They were nothing like Asagiri's team, or Kaguya Shinomiya's, or the other squads that had joined the discussion last night.
These six had probably only just arrived. They had not even had time to wash their faces, let alone rest.
Twenty four hours of nonstop fleeing had left their eyes bloodshot. Combined with their hollow stares, they looked like vengeful ghosts clinging to life through sheer obsession.
Then two of the male Players noticed Asagiri's dark gray mask.
Their expressions changed instantly.
"It's you?"
"Yo, two old brothers. What a coincidence."
Kato Megumi and Iwanaga Kotoko both looked confused, but Yuuki Asuna, who had seen these two before, almost burst out laughing.
Just hearing Asagiri's cheerful greeting, you would think they were old friends meeting on the street.
In reality, their relationship was… complicated.
If you put it nicely, they had once "worked together" to clear a Dungeon.
If you put it bluntly, they were the two middle aged Players who had paid Asagiri protection money back in that zombie Dungeon.
Out of all the Players, across all the Dungeons, they had somehow run into him again.
That was truly a jackpot.
"You know this guy?" another Player asked, frowning.
The two middle aged men exchanged a glance. Years of workplace survival gave them a perfect, wordless agreement.
The next second, both of them turned to Asagiri and forced out the kind of standard smile a corporate slave used when facing their boss.
"T that… uh… you're here too. We won't disturb you clearing the Dungeon. We'll be taking our leave!"
Before the other four could even react, the two men spun around and fled, disappearing down the corridor as if their lives depended on it.
Which, in a sense, they did.
The remaining four Players stared after them, stunned.
What was that?
Those two had been wild teammates picked up during the escape, a temporary alliance of convenience. Even then, they should not have bolted without a single explanation.
And more importantly, the researchers were right here.
If they got the location of the experimental data from them, clearing the Dungeon would be within reach.
So why run now?
What these four did not understand was exactly why the two men ran.
Because the researchers knew where the experimental data was, the situation had turned into a competition, and competition against that masked man was suicide.
Are you kidding?
That guy had been collecting protection money back in the first stage. They had not even seen him fight personally, but they did not need to.
Their side looked like refugees, filthy and exhausted. His side looked like they had stepped out of a manga panel, calm, clean, composed.
The difference in pressure alone was enough to crush the spine.
Compete with someone like that for the experimental data? They would die.
Cooperation? Their strength was not even in the same category. There was no "cooperation" here.
There were only two futures.
Either they got killed on the spot, or they got used as cannon fodder to scout ahead.
Both ended the same way.
So the moment they recognized Asagiri, the two middle aged men abandoned the idea of obtaining the experimental data entirely.
Rewards could come later.
You only had one life.
That was the caution of men who had already been burned by reality.
But the other four Players, even though they could vaguely sense that the masked man and his companions were terrifyingly strong, did not want to leave.
They had suffered too much to get here. They had come for the highest clear rating and the best rewards.
"You're a Player too, right?"
A man around thirty stepped forward, gaze dropping to the two trembling researchers behind Asagiri. His voice was low and firm.
"We found them first."
"Hm." Asagiri nodded once, then asked calmly, "So?"
The man's brow twitched. He tried to keep his tone steady.
"So by first come, first served…"
"What rule?" Asagiri cut him off without patience. His voice was flat. "Don't make me laugh."
He did not waste time on pleasantries.
"Your smartest choice is to stop talking, turn around, and leave."
His eyes, hidden behind the mask, felt cold anyway.
"With your strength, you're only fit to be cannon fodder. You can help by dispersing the research base's defenses, then bet your clear on us."
He paused, each word falling like a judgment.
"Do not hinder us. That's the greatest contribution you can make."
"You…"
The leader's face twisted ugly. Behind him, the Player holding the automatic rifle began to raise his weapon, preparing to aim at Asagiri's group.
His arm rose only a few centimeters.
The muzzle had not even lifted.
A deep red blur swept across his vision.
Clatter.
Yuuki Asuna severed his right arm in a single strike. The rifle fell with it.
Without a heartbeat of hesitation, she thrust the Exorcist Longsword forward and pierced his throat.
The remaining three Players froze, minds lagging behind what their eyes had just seen.
Their attention was still locked on Asagiri.
And that was the problem.
As Yuuki Asuna moved, Iwanaga Kotoko had already stepped out from behind Asagiri. Her dark purple eyes met theirs, and her skill activated.
Curse Gaze.
None of them had spiritual power stronger than hers.
The moment her gaze landed, dizziness slammed into them like a wave. Their vision spun, their bodies swayed, and their thoughts scattered.
In that instant, Asagiri's Rope Dart flew.
The tip struck the female Player cleanly at the glabella.
His movement was almost perfectly synchronized with the weapon. In a flash, he reeled it back, ripped it free, then plunged it into another Player's chest before they could even scream.
Only then did the last Player barely recover from the dizziness.
His pupils shrank with horror.
A large dark green broadshield appeared in his right hand. He snapped it up, hiding behind it, and began chanting.
"Fireball…"
"Bang!!!"
He never got the chance to finish.
Asagiri's side kick slammed into the shield.
The man, nearly 1.8 meters tall and built solid, flew backward with the shield like he had been hit by a speeding truck. His back smashed into the wall. A sharp cracking sound rang out from inside his body.
Blood spilled from his mouth and nose.
He slid down, lifeless.
The shield vanished automatically the moment he died.
Behind them, the two researchers stared, eyes wide, pupils trembling.
Is this human?
A single side kick, delivered into a heavy shield, sent an adult man flying into a wall hard enough to shatter bones and rupture organs.
Instant death.
And that person in the crimson cloak… their speed was terrifying. The researchers had not even seen the movements clearly, yet people were already dead.
What kind of supernatural monsters crawled out of what kind of nightmare?
Seeing that no one was watching them now, the two researchers tried to turn and run.
They took one step.
"Please don't think about running."
Kato Megumi was already there.
She stood casually behind them, gently flipping a dark purple dagger between her fingers. Her voice was soft, almost polite.
But the content turned their faces white.
"If you insist on running, I'll have no choice but to cut off your limbs. I don't like doing that sort of thing, so please cooperate."
The two researchers shook like sieves, nodding so hard they looked ready to snap their own necks.
"W we understand! We'll cooperate! Please don't kill us!"
Asagiri glanced back.
"Violet, collect the phones from those four. We'll do the lottery later."
Then he stepped closer to the researchers again, the same gentle smile in his voice.
"Same question as before. Where is the experimental data stored?"
"T this, this is for you!"
Before Asagiri even finished speaking, one of the researchers fumbled in his pocket, pulled out a small booklet, and offered it with both hands like an offering at an altar. He forced a flattering smile that looked more like a grimace.
"On on this… it's a guide map of the research base interior."
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