Nikke, something’s seriously wrong with this evacuation point! Chapter 129 129: I Remember This Name

Ever since those data voids started appearing, the ga had completely gone off the rails. Although Charon still had to keep moving forward while killing every monster he encountered, many of the predetermined routes had already lost their purpose.

For example, maybe you were supposed to activate a switch to open a door–but now the switch had already been swallowed by the void. So how were you supposed to open it?

Simple. You used so other area that had already been consud to bypass the obstacle entirely and effectively "skip the level."

From that mont onward, this was no longer playing a ga.

It was navigating through an ever-growing mass of bugs in search of a path forward.

Later on, Rose pushed her processing capabilities to the limit. Every single step Charon took had to follow her calculations exactly. One wrong move, and he would fall straight into the data void.

And if that happened, extraction would most likely fail.

That was sothing Charon absolutely could not accept.

So throughout the following stages, neither Rose nor Charon spoke anymore. They completely lost any desire to "experience the ga" and instead focused entirely on clearing it, like a pair of emotionless strategy-guide speedrunners.

With one final sniper shot from Charon, the pixel knight guarding the end of the stage exploded into streams of data. Without stopping for even a second, he used the last of his recovered stamina to sprint toward the gate marked LEVEL 7, smashing straight through it.

He had no choice but to ram through it.

There was barely any ground left beneath his feet.

「Be happy, Charon. This should be the final stage ahead of us.」

Rose's voice carried a trace of exhaustion.

"Rose… how much ti have we used since entering this place?"

「Five hours and forty-three minutes.」

Her tone was no longer as relaxed as before.

They only had seventy-two hours total.

And they still had not even reached the end of the second layer.

As for the thing they were searching for–who knew what floor it was even located on?

If every layer was built from the data of an academy, then according to the records ntioning "thousands" of schools… did that an they would have to clear thousands of bizarre stages before reaching the end?

Seventy-two hours wasn't even close.

Even seven thousand two hundred hours might not be enough.

「Heaven always leaves a way out,」Rose said.「I refuse to believe this is an impossible mission.」

"I think so too," Charon sighed. "If it were impossible, there'd be no reason to release it in the first place. Which ans… there must be so thod to reach the end directly."

"But before that, let's clear this stage first."

Charon lifted his gaze forward.

LEVEL 7.

This should be the final stage.

Ahead stood a gigantic pixel-style castle beneath a sky covered in thunderclouds. Flashes of lightning illuminated the fortress, adding an eerie atmosphere to it.

And unlike before, there was not a single trace of data voids here.

Charon pushed open the massive gate made of skulls. Beyond it was a magnificent Gothic hall illuminated only by blue ghostly flas floating near the ceiling. The entire structure was composed of high-resolution pixels, yet sohow it looked surprisingly stylish.

At the far end of the empty hall stood a raised platform.

And upon it sat a throne made from piles of discarded consoles, controllers, and ga cartridges.

Sitting on the throne was a humanoid robot holding a gigantic pixel greatsword.

As if sensing soone's arrival, the robot finally moved, rising stiffly like a marionette controlled by invisible strings.

Charon imdiately fired a shot.

The robot's sword was blasted away.

"Dodged it, huh?"

Charon clicked his tongue. Without hesitation and without giving the enemy any setup ti, the sound of a bolt cycling rang out–

–and another bullet spun toward the robot.

This ti its shoulder exploded apart.

Only then did the robot seem to realize Charon's utterly dishonorable ambush.

After all, what kind of person attacks before the boss transformation animation finishes?

Charon would.

Transformation sequence? Screw that.

Honor was for fair fights.

And Charon had neither the ti nor the energy for a fair battle.

Thus, under Charon's relentless sniper fire, the boss–which probably should have had a dramatic cutscene and maybe even a second phase–was completely obliterated before any of that could happen.

Six bullets total.

Limbs. Head. Greatsword.

Everything destroyed.

All that remained was a loot box clearly belonging to a high-level boss.

Rose seed like she wanted to say sothing, but since the result was good, she ultimately held back.

"Hah. All style, no substance…"

Charon sneered while putting away his oversized rifle.

Kid, flashy performances and dramatic rival battles are for players and neses.

I'm not a player.

And you're not my nesis.

Though the biggest reason was simply that Charon could barely fight properly anymore. The pressure from the Error Block had drastically reduced his margin for error. The faster he ended fights, the better.

As expected, the boss chest from the Millennium Science School area dropped sothing incredible.

...

[Na: Unimplented Hero's Holy Sword]

[Type: Collectible]

[Quality: Red]

[Recycle Value: 13,000,000 Zero Coins]

[Description: Attack power: Infinite.

Cos with a full-screen instant-kill effect.

Durability never decreases.

The sword's data is so perfect that no server mory is capable of supporting its existence.]**

...

A red-tier drop...

A RED-TIER DROP!!

Charon nearly stopped breathing.

He couldn't rember how long it had been since he'd seen a top-tier red item worth this much.

In the Zero Zone, loot at this level almost never appeared, even after searching ten thousand high-value loot spots.

But today–

he killed a boss,

and just like that,

it dropped.

THIRTEEN MILLION!!!

Like a man protecting priceless treasure, Charon imdiately stuffed the pixel greatsword into his backpack. With this alone, the progress toward obtaining the universal dicine had advanced massively.

「…Is it really worth getting this excited over?」

"Of course it is, Rose!" Charon shouted excitedly. "It costs one hundred and fifty million to save Liliweiss! We've already gathered nearly one-tenth of it! How could I not be excited?!"

「Liliweiss…?」

Rose suddenly fell silent.

「I rember that na… I rember it…」

She murmured softly:

「Is she… soone important to you?」

"Yes, Rose."

Charon snapped back to reality, his gaze turning complicated.

"I hope you understand sothing."

"She's important to you too."

「I understand… I'll rember eventually…」

Rose's voice gradually grew quieter, as though she had fallen deep into thought.

Charon looked toward the next item inside the loot box.

...

[Na: Millennium Display Panel]

[Type: Quest Item]

[Quality: Purple]

[Description: A spare repair panel produced by the Millennium Engineering Departnt.

And as long as the Engineering Departnt hasn't added any explosive-related functions, their products are guaranteed quality.]**

...

The first item required for the main quest had finally been obtained.

Charon originally thought the item would require further processing, but unexpectedly, it flew directly into the system inventory before his eyes and rged together with the Shittim Chest.

In less than a second, the exterior of the Shittim Chest was completely repaired.

The bullet holes disappeared.

"Rose? How do you feel?"

「There's more data again… strange.」

She ignored Charon's question and muttered to herself instead.

「Oh right, I forgot to ntion this. Ever since earlier, there's been abnormal data behind the throne.」

「I suggest you go take a look.」