Mebius World Online – Mari’s VRMMO Diary, Embarking on a Laid-back Adventure as a Novice - Chapter 44

44. Mari-nee and the First Official Event (Stairway Lead to the Unexpected End)

The beginning was similar to the weak enemy rush, with a simultaneous attack by those skilled in long-range attacks. However, the main force of this attack was bows and arrows, with no magic being used. Graham took command, and his leadership was excellent. Despite being originally an “attack on points,” he controlled the timing of arrow releases and skill activations, making it function as a “surface attack.”

As a result, the Ogres, who were trying to approach the base while protecting Ogre Claus, were forced to retreat steadily under the shower of arrows. When the distance opened to 5 meters, then 10 meters, and almost reached 15 meters, the pressure of the arrows weakened, possibly due to skill cooldown.

Immediately, Ogre Pandora performed recovery, and Ogre Claus started to advance, just at that moment. Before that, several figures rushed forward.

They were the individuals who volunteered for the dangerous role of close combat, chosen by Mareus-san and Kanna-san. Naturally, Ogre Claus and its group intercepted them.

They faced the Ogre Claus group head-on, evading attacks from axes, swords, and spears. What made this possible was the high AGI of the volunteers and the cooking buff provided by Mareus-san, with Jerky collected and AGI+8.

Although I didn’t fully understand how beneficial AGI+8 was, they seemed to think it made a significant difference.

Now that their attention was on them, I approached the group of Ogres on the edge, riding Cougar, to fulfill my duty.

My DEX was lower than usual, but it wasn’t bothering me much. I aimed not for Ogre Pandora, but for the Ogre Claus wielding a spear.

As the Ogre thrust its spear towards a person with a thief job, I used ?String Manipulation?  to extend the “silver-shining threads.” Equipped now was not the “Large Spider’s Silk” but the “Magic Silver Thread,” which, due to its characteristic elasticity, turned into ultra-thin wires, cutting through Ogre Claus’s skin and penetrating halfway into the flesh.

I didn’t manage to sever it, but this was as expected.

And from here, this was the key to the battle.

Whether it would go according to Mareus-san’s plan.

“Nero!”

“Nya!”

I shouted, and Nero delivered a sparkling cat punch to the threads I extended, like playing a harp.

The true nature of the light was lightning.

It quickly spread through the thread and reached Ogre Kraus in the blink of an eye. With a sudden shake, as if responding to the sensation, it convulsed and fell to the ground with a loud crash.

Alright, it seems to have worked!

It wasn’t a long-range magic attack, but in a sense, it was a magical attack from within. Moreover, the paralysis from lightning had worked as intended.

I exchanged nods with the thief-job companion who had been drawing attention next to me. I threw a shining light stone, called ?Luminous Stone?, above my head like a flare and quickly evacuated the area.

Without a moment’s delay, high-powered magic attacks from the mage-job individuals rained down, hitting their mark.

With the absence of a role to negate long-range magic attacks, we were bombarded precisely. After the smoke cleared, only Ogre Pandora remained.

Then, from behind, another ?Luminous Stone? was thrown.

The count was one.

If one ?Luminous Stone? was thrown, continue; if two were thrown, retreat was decided.

I entrusted Ogre Pandora to someone else and immediately targeted Ogre Kraus with the next spear, neutralizing it together with Nero.

Twenty minutes since the counterattack began.

While there were instances where a few who volunteered for dangerous roles couldn’t evade Ogre Kraus’s attacks and had to fall back, overall, the situation progressed smoothly, and we managed to defeat the Ogre Claus surrounding our base.

Considering there were no casualties, I’d say the operation was a success.

However, something unexpected happened at this point.

It was only Ogre Pandora that, despite having no HP left, did not disappear but remained in place.

Trying to touch it yielded no response, making it seem like an object.

Amidst the confusion, I approached Ogre Pandora, but indeed, there was no reaction.

What could it be? Does it hold some significance in the next development?

While pondering, Nero, for some reason, was repeatedly scratching Ogre Pandora’s belly in front of me.

“Nero?”

As I tried to pick him up, bringing my face closer, at that moment, I felt a “sound” that shouldn’t be audible.

“No way…”

Directly pressing my ear against Ogre Pandora’s belly, amidst the surrounding noise, there was a faint yet rhythmic “sound.”

I thought the forgotten “something” had been found in an undesirable form.

“Mareus-san, Kanna-san! Hurry, gather those with the ?Dismantle? skill!”

The two asked what was happening, but there was no time for explanations, so I urged them to move.

During that time, I went around telling others not to touch Ogre Pandora under any circumstances.

Eventually, with the people brought by Mareus-san and Kanna-san, Ogre Pandora was dismantled by someone with the ?Dismantle? skill, and the result…

“This guy…”

“To be entangled like this, it’s brutal…”

Mareus-san and Kanna-san were surprised, and from the events so far, they understood the true identity.

What came out from dismantling Ogre Pandora was a person.

Probably someone who disappeared from the second town.

Fortunately, it seems they’re still alive, but they’re quite weakened.

“Kanna-san, could you use healing magic on them?”

“Leave it to me. But it’s still dangerous here, so it would be better to transport them to the town first.”

“Please. If you tell Sister Estelle at the church, she should be willing to help.”

I don’t know if this counts as helping, but if we can save them, we should do that first, and worry or be troubled later.

“Could it be that there’s a person inside all of Ogre Pandora?”

“That possibility is high. We need to dismantle them quickly, or the people inside will…”

My words were interrupted, however, by a voice that appeared above my head.

“Well, to think that it would be handled so brilliantly with such skill.”

The timing of this arrival doesn’t bode well.

I witnessed a figure wearing a black silk hat, entirely wrapped in black bandages resembling a mask.

Mephistopheles, clapping as if mocking us once again.

“I admire your skill in minimizing losses among your allies and effectively neutralizing the opposing forces. Defeating Claus to obtain the ‘key’ to Pandora’s ‘box’… As a scenario I envisioned, it’s the best!! However, it seems some viewed it as a bit inefficient.”

“What do you mean?”

“In battles, it’s common sense to crush the healer first. It’s the most efficient and wise choice. Like those over there.”

Mephistopheles snapped his fingers, and a screen appeared in the air. There, the group that ignored Ogre Claus and focused on defeating Ogre Pandora was displayed.

And when Ogre Pandora was defeated, unlike us, it didn’t linger in place but generated black particles and disappeared.

Nothing was left afterward.

Huh? Does that mean the person inside also disappeared with it?

In front of me, shaken by a terrifying truth, tragedies unfolded everywhere.

If it were possible, I wanted to rush over and stop it, but there was no way I could make it in time.

As I grit my teeth, I noticed something unusual.

After targeting Ogre Pandora, they were ignoring Ogre Claus.

“They must have noticed that Ogre Pandora was given far more ‘reward points’ than the others. This is the best for them. If the goal is to efficiently gain ‘rewards,’ this is indeed a reasonable way to fight. However, in the scenario I envisioned, this is the ‘worst.’ Please look, the voices of black resentment are dyeing the moon in their own color.”

As we looked up, the once radiant crescent moon, now so thin that it was barely visible, was completely covered in black.

Surrounding us was pitch-black darkness.

Within that darkness, the ominous red eyes of a black figure, enjoying itself to an eerie extent, announced,

“Ladies and gentlemen, you have performed ‘The Stairway to the Final End’ remarkably well. From here on, we will enter the final act. Due to your actions, the name of the final act must be changed. The final act is now called ‘The Stairway to the Ultimate End.’ And the destination of that stairway is…”

Intentionally creating an atmosphere to stoke our anxieties, someone swallowed audibly.

“The guillotine.”

After a seemingly elegant bow, the moon, now devoid of light, trembled.

From now on, it’s the end.

And if the event unfolds as planned, the opponent of this finale will surely be the ‘Calamity.’

And even before the ‘Calamity’ revealed its form, its name emerged.

That name was read as ‘Nemesis.’