episode_0048

Looking back, the game from the Azerna Chronicles Part 14 wasn’t just about Leo alone.

Leo is a playable character, and considering that he never leaves the party or can be removed from it, he was clearly designed to make it easier for players to immerse themselves in the game. However, that doesn’t mean other characters couldn’t be utilized.

If there were other characters in the same party, they could have been designated as the main character, allowing for different character appearances on the field. There were field-specific mechanics like stealing the initiative by attacking monsters first, or applying a stun by cautiously approaching from behind, which made this aspect important in its own way.

So, in most strategies, rather than using a protagonist with a sword, a character with ranged attacks was selected as the representative to start battles by hitting monsters from afar.

One of the most commonly used characters was Mia Crowfield, who fired ice arrows as her basic attack.

And not a single party member, whether it be a princess, a queen, or even a guest character like Jennifer, said, “I won’t go in because it’s dirty here,” or “I don’t want to go to a smelly place.” Not even in situations where they had to pass through ventilation ducts. There wasn’t a single character who refused. As someone who could barely reach the chin of the ‘superhuman’ even after enhancing my physical abilities, it was a death sentence for me.

Moreover, the ‘chin of the superhuman’ was just my guess, so I couldn’t be sure what it was actually like.

Within those 10 minutes, I seriously considered turning back the time… but in the end, I decided not to.

It was a foolish decision to think, “The smell is so unbearable, I’ll give up on my own.”

About 10 minutes had passed since entering the sewer, and I was already regretting it.

The two people following behind me were naturally individuals with superhuman physical abilities, so they could endure the smell and everything else without any problem. But as someone who could barely reach the chin of that ‘superhuman,’ it was a living hell for me.

Moreover, the ‘chin of the superhuman’ was just my guess, so I couldn’t be sure what it was actually like.

I considered going back in time within those 10 minutes, but… in the end, I decided not to.

It’s a feeling of starting the first round on the highest difficulty, getting stuck in the boss battle due to a wrong strategy, experiencing the party’s annihilation three times, and staring at the message “Would you like to reset to a lower difficulty?” on the screen.

It’s probably a message inserted by the developers, hoping that players won’t give up. But from the player’s perspective, it’s a blow to their pride. It’s not like anyone is watching from the side, or I’m broadcasting the game, but it’s strange how pressing that button feels like losing.

Ultimately, to use a strategy guide, multiple playthroughs are necessary, and even if I can’t earn difficulty-related medals right now, I’ll eventually have to.

In the end, I pressed ‘No’ on that choice and faced the challenge once again, with the mindset of not turning back time this time.

Fortunately, the two people behind me seemed too preoccupied to strike up a conversation. If they opened their mouths to speak, the foul gas would surely waft into their mouths. I couldn’t smell it with my mouth, but there was that peculiarly uncomfortable and unpleasant feeling.

“This way.”

I spoke cautiously, making sure my words didn’t break off. There was no response from behind, but my voice continued to echo.

By this point, even if I wanted to go out alone, it was ambiguous. I had already passed through a sufficiently complex path to get here. It wasn’t as confusing as a maze, but it was still a place where a newcomer could easily get lost.

Yes, a ‘newcomer.’

But I am not one.

There were some differences from what I remembered. The map, made with textures that lowered the resolution, didn’t give off such a repulsive feeling. It did express darkness, but it wasn’t so dark that you couldn’t see anything without light, like a horror game.

No, rather, it was quite bright, as if someone had just turned on a fluorescent light. It wasn’t a horror game, and there was no point in adding annoying gimmicks to try to get a good response.

The mini-map revealed each block, so as soon as you stepped into a block, the appearance of the next area would show up on the mini-map, and the clock wasn’t bad either, so there was hardly any need to get lost in the game. It was just annoying when you occasionally forgot a gimmick and had to go back.

In that sense, the sewer we were walking through now was quite different from a game in many ways. Especially in terms of atmosphere.

It wasn’t so dark that you couldn’t see ahead. It was unclear what kind of maintenance was being done, but there were lamps powered by magic stones installed here and there, although they were faint.

But the paths between the lamps were very dark. In places where water flowed, there was really… a dirty liquid flowing, and no matter how you looked at it, it seemed like black things that looked like cockroaches were crawling on the floor.

But still, the structure itself was the place I knew.

Beyond the places blocked by iron gates in the middle, I didn’t know. But it didn’t matter. You couldn’t go there in the game anyway.

I had walked around several times to conquer the game.

Ah, of course, it doesn’t mean I remember everything like some kind of navigation. After all, it was an event from ten years ago.

But still, I had memories of really important places. It was written in the notes I had organized as much as I could remember when I came over here.

“Do you know where you’re going before you go?”

“Yes, of course.”

I replied confidently to Alice’s slightly anxious voice.

At least I know where this is. If you go deeper, there will probably be real monsters swarming.

But those monsters won’t come all the way here. It’s still the very beginning of the game. Those monsters becoming a problem will take a little more time.

And, well…

Actually, it won’t be a big problem even if they come.

In the game, they are treated as strong monsters because of their “level,” but in reality, there’s no such thing. Since Azerna Online is a game where you freely roam vast fields and enjoy adventures, the areas you can go to and the monsters that appear are determined according to the progress of the game. The level of the monsters is not to prevent you from going to that area, but merely a device to face the protagonists who have become stronger by the time they reach that area.

Since it’s a turn-based game, the creatures here will die just by being hit by my bullets.

“This is it.”

Finally, I turned sharply and entered a small room-like space.

I don’t really know why there’s a space like this in the sewer. In the game, since the sewer area was a dungeon for adventures, it’s just a game so you can just move on, but there’s no need for such a space in a real sewer.

…Well, it’s just like a warehouse. Since the sewer is long and wide, there might be spaces for people to rest here and there.

For that matter, the room wasn’t locked, and there were only a few scattered pieces of garbage and one closed box inside.

Moreover, the shape of the box looked almost identical to the boxes containing items that appeared in the game.

With no light and an empty room, the sight of the box standing alone in the middle seemed a bit eerie.

“…A box?”

From behind, I could hear Alice muttering, but I didn’t bother to respond and went straight to the box.

On top of the box, dust had accumulated thickly. It seemed like you could even draw a picture on it with your hand.

I took out black leather gloves from my pocket and put them on.

Then, I slowly bent down and opened the box.

The dusty box opened easily, almost as if it were a toy box. There was no special locking mechanism.

And this was no different from a game.

“….”

I confirmed that my thoughts and memories were correct, but seeing it like this made me feel a little strange.

When had this box been here? Who had brought it here, and why had only this box been left in the empty room?

I bent down and took out the item from the box.

“Huh?”

“What is that…?”

Marmauros.

The item I was holding in my hand was Marmauros.

Compared to the Marmauros that appeared in the game, it wasn’t particularly expensive or rare.

However, compared to the “game,” in this “reality,” this Marmauros was truly a top-tier one. In the later stages of the game, when all sorts of crazy situations unfolded in the Empire, there were many opportunities to obtain rare Marmauros, and perhaps it would be the same in reality… But at least at this point, it wasn’t an item that could be easily purchased even if you had the money.

The perfectly carved blue Marmauros felt so cold that you could feel the chill even through the gloves. It was not like holding it with bare hands, but more like holding a can of drink just taken out of the fridge.

This Marmauros, much more powerful than the fire-resistant Marmauros I received from Jennifer, was used in the story to assist in boosting the attack power when attached to Mia Crowfield’s staff after the middle of the story.

In the game, the damage of ice-based magic would have increased to a certain extent, but in reality, it would be much more threatening.

“Why is that item here?”

As Charlotte approached me, she asked. Marmauros was also used to be directly inserted into magical weapons. If I had secretly taken this and made a weapon, no one would have known that I was carrying a weapon.

… If the person who found this was not me, but someone we didn’t know, it could have been a bit dangerous. Is it more dangerous than a firearm? If you ask me that, well, I have nothing to say.

Regardless, this was a valuable item. Charlotte’s question was not just about why this item was here.

Rather, it was probably a question about whether I knew why this item was here.

I glanced at Charlotte and Alice. Their faces illuminated by the light of the magic stone lamp were full of questions.

Until now, I could have simply packaged it as “because of my skills,” but coming here was a completely different action.

To come here, you must have already known that this item was here from the beginning.

Moreover, the room was covered in thick dust. Someone must have come in advance and told me the fact, so this room seemed to have been left unattended for too long.

So, it was not strange at all for Charlotte to ask like this.

‘How do you know the fact and how did you come here?’

That was the essence of the question Charlotte wanted to ask.

“I’ll tell you about that next time.”

I said that and put Marmauros in my coat pocket.

By doing this, I honestly lost the reason for wearing a coat, but… well, I couldn’t just carry it in my hand.

As I said that and turned towards the door,

Thud.

Someone’s body blocked my way.

There was no need to look closely; the person in front of me was Alice.

“Speak,” she said, looking at me with determination in her eyes.

“How did you know about the existence of such an item and come looking for it here? If you don’t tell me, I won’t let you go.”

“….”

Hmm.

What should I do?