Ch.6965 – The Shackles of Artificial Intelligence

[▶Chat Window – ON]

-??

-huff huff

-Host host hoooost are you okay??

-Are you gonna keep going like this?

-That minus 15% penalty hurts too much. We barely cleared the first run

-Can’t we just lower it to 888 or 777? It’ll still be a record for a priest anyway

I feel like I’m missing something about this game.

I turned on the chat window to see if the collective wisdom might help.

“I want to save Adella.”

-Adella is confirmed to die in Part 1 no matter what…

-With Adella’s stats, she can’t win one-on-one against the possessed Jin Chronicle anyway

-Can’t we level her up somehow?

-Absolutely not. Before World of Arsheria got its firewall, Chinese players datamined the story through Part 1, including all boss stats. The difference is more than tenfold in every stat.

-In LoL terms, it’s like a level 1 fighting a level 10

“What’s different about the second run?”

This clearly isn’t the same world.

If I can uncover the world’s secrets, maybe I can save Adella.

-The stacking penalty that cuts all your stats at the start is the biggest issue

-Yeah, it stacks up to 5 times and only resets when you reach a checkpoint

-5 stacks is brutal lol. So that’s -75%?

-Yep, good at math

-Even with 1/1/1 buffs, it’s nearly impossible to clear with 5 stacks

“No, not that. You said before that boss patterns change.”

-Dunno about that?

-Maybe they just show different patterns because your DPS is lower and fights last longer?

-No, some mobs have different patterns from the very start

-Honestly we don’t know because we always reset. With the stat penalties, it’s too frustrating to bother

I guess most viewers haven’t even tried Nightmare difficulty.

I’ll have to find out myself.

“Remnant Academy looks like there’s just one building in the center of the capital, but there are actually several buildings outside. There’s an observatory to the south, barracks to the east, and material storage and admissions headquarters to the west.”

Daniel explains the plan without missing a single detail, just like before.

The Gestalt branch manager stood with arms crossed, listening intently to his plan without moving a muscle.

Meanwhile, Adella and I sat side by side on her bed.

I noticed a crescent-shaped comb on the table and decided to untangle her messy hair.

To avoid startling her, I first showed her the comb, then slowly started combing from the ends of her hair, working my way up.

Swish- swish-

“Hey NoName? What are you doing with my hair meow?”

“Why? Don’t you like it?”

When I stopped combing, Adella’s ears drooped.

“It’s not that I don’t like it… I actually do, but isn’t this a bit sudden for someone I just met…? Do elves always do this with people they’ve just met?”

“Yes.”

“What an interesting culture! I don’t mind it though.”

[NyangsterCall donated 5,000 won!]

-Wait, this works? Me too!!! I’m coming to comb Adella’s hair too!!!

Viewers suddenly start leaving in droves.

The chat window goes wild again.

-OMG look at that neckline lmaooooo

-why did I spend eight hours a day grinding nightmare mode and never once think about combing Adella’s dry hair until it’s silky smooth and shiny I’ve wasted half my life I want to die

-ㄴYou’re insane lolololol

-ㄴWhat a demon hahaha

-Adella’s ears are cheating!

-Dad, why is there no soup today? Son, I’m sorry, but our butterfly net is needed elsewhere.

-Adella is so dead tonight lolololol Show her your full-power headpats, oniichan

[▶Chat Window – OFF]

“What are you all saying?”

“Hmm?”

“Nothing. Want me to comb behind your ears too?”

“Ah, there! Mmm… purrrr…”

I threw the mentally harmful chat window back into the abyss.

I hate having someone comb my hair, but conversely, running my fingers through someone else’s hair gave me considerable psychological comfort.

Adella seemed a bit ticklish, squirming whenever the comb touched a new area.

She was clearly trying her best to hold still.

This brings back memories.

Hiasen and I used to sit on either side of Niobe, combing her hair together.

She had a lively personality like Adella, and it was rare for her not to come back with dust and grass stuck in her hair.

The difference was that unlike Adella, Niobe was the embodiment of purity.

A girl built like white sand carefully gathered and piled on the beach.

A girl like the sea breeze that blows away life’s hardships just by approaching.

She was my eternal friend who shared my childhood in my previous life with Hiasen.

The combing stopped momentarily.

I miss Niobe so much…

Even if she has nothing to do with who I am now, even if I try to push these feelings aside as just memories from a past life, the emotion won’t easily disappear.

I want to go back to when she was alive, even if it means being cursed by the Demon King again.

“Purr… NoName? Why did you suddenly stop meow? If you don’t comb it all the way through, it’ll get tangled in the middle.”

If you stop combing halfway, the hair gets tangled and you have to start over from the beginning.

When you button your uniform wrong, you have to undo all the buttons and start over.

Both follow the same logic.

“I’ll start over from the beginning, Adella.”

* * *

[YOU DIED]

[All stats will be readjusted]

[Current Penalty(3): -45%]

[NoName(NoName)]

[World of Arsheria – Priest Nightmare 10/10/10]

[Broadcast Time – 5:01:47]

[Viewers – 5930]

“Haa… haa… huff.”

The same butterfly-patterned ceiling, the inn bed in the Abyss.

The second run ended with the same result as the first.

The only differences were that the boss clear time was reduced from three hours to one, and Adella had a happier smile when she chose to end her life at the end.

Adella was still too weak.

The third run started with a -30% penalty.

Even after memorizing all the routes and optimizing experience gain, we were caught while escaping the academy due to stamina shortage.

Adella was still too weak.

-It’s really impossible now

-RIP

-So close yet so far

-Having to hit 3 times instead of 2 makes you super vulnerable to consecutive waves

-When 50 enemies chase you at once, there’s literally no answer

-But still, maxing out buff options with penalties and clearing in under an hour? Insane lol

-Just joined and wow, your mechanical skills are pro level?

-Even pros can’t handle massive fights like that

-ㄴYou guys are misunderstanding, the host is playing priest

-Do we really need to fight this desperately?

-Adella is dead… let’s let her go

Unless Adella becomes stronger than Jin Chronicle, I can’t save her.

But the experience gained from hunting guards is limited.

The more experience I give to her, the weaker I become.

And after the 6th run, I’d have to deal with a massive -75% penalty.

At that point, my struggling becomes meaningless.

It would be Adella who needs to protect me.

My head is a mess.

I failed in the third run, and I can’t walk the same path in the fourth.

But I can’t think of another way.

Is she truly destined to die by the system’s design?

I went to Adella’s room again.

“Barging in without knocking is rude, you know. By the way, Forest Keeper, what’s your name meow?”

“NoName.”

“Oooh. That’s a name that rolls right off the tongue.”

“…?”

Adella said casually.

Her dialogue changed. But there weren’t any major branching paths to get here?

“Why?”

“What meow?”

“My name, doesn’t it sound strange?”

“Not really? It actually feels familiar. Living on the islands, you hear all kinds of ridiculous names, so Forest Keeper is actually decent.”

Gulp gulp-

Adella downed the rest of her beer.

“Adella.”

“What?”

“Adella.”

“Why do you keep calling me? You’re making me shy. If you have something to say, just say it!”

I wasn’t imagining things.

Now there was no sense of awkwardness in her behavior at all.

Could her body somehow remember our connection from previous runs?

I have one more reason not to abandon Adella.

[NyangsterCall donated 10,000 won!]

-NoName, Adella won’t let me pet her. How did you get her permission? 😭😭😭😭😭