Every gate is numbered.
And the 999th gate, the final gate, was said to be the last by the Dragon.
It took much ti and many lives, but the Dragon Knight Twalre never gave up.
Finally, the Dragon Knight closed the final gate himself.
"I did it…! I saved humanity!"
The Dragon Knight was overjoyed at the fact that he had saved humanity.
No more gates would appear.
And the Dragon Knight would no longer need to face death to solve the gates.
Lying down, his exhausted body on the ground, the Dragon Knight gazed at the sky and muttered.
"…But how am I supposed to live now?"
Result of the 5th Match
1st place: Cerberus 17pt (Remaining matches: 4) 1st place: Behemoth 17pt (Remaining matches: 3) 3rd place: Leviathan 15pt (Remaining matches: 4) 4th place: Gryphon 6pt (Remaining matches: 3)
"Good job, everyone!"
Gryphon's club owner, Navie, purposefully spoke in a bright voice.
Looking back at the match… it wasn't good.
For two consecutive sets, their divers were breached.
The final third set was essentially a breach as well. Na-rim did manage to defeat Laura in the end, but... was that really a victory?
They had started with a 2:6 disadvantage, and when 5 of their team mbers were incapacitated, it could only be called a disaster.
Still, Navie knew that allowing the atmosphere to beco even more stagnant was bad. After all, she had been a pro gar too.
"Aurora is really strong... I knew she was good, but she was like a wild beast."
"Yeah, yeah. It wasn’t that we were bad, it’s just that they were good!"
"Right, Na-rim?"
Yuki casually sought Na-rim’s agreent.
Na-rim… for once, didn’t respond with her usual cheerful tone.
"Thank you all, really."
Na-rim bowed her head deeply.
"Thanks to everyone, we were able to have a good match. I’m always thankful and rely on all of you."
"Na-rim...?"
This wasn’t like her. Why was she being like this all of a sudden?
Normally, she’d be the one raising the tension, but now she was speaking in such a soft and gentle tone. Yuki beca a little nervous. Was Na-rim thinking sothing strange?
It felt like a negative signal, and as Yuki started sweating nervously, Na-rim smiled.
"If it's okay with you, how about we all do a collaboration next ti?"
"Collaboration?"
"Yeah. A sandbox ga like Fanworld would be fun, or how about Dungeon Seeker? Even though the promotional period is over."
"Dungeon Seeker...? Is that the one you and Aurora were doing?"
"That's right. I don't think Laura will continue anymore."
Na-rim spoke.
"So I want to do the rest of the story with my team mbers."
"……?"
Why was she suddenly being so affectionate?
Yuki had always seen Na-rim as... sowhat of a lone wolf.
She didn’t seem like the type to want to get close to others.
She interacted with others in a very businesslike manner. It always felt superficial.
She wasn’t the type to approach others first, and she certainly wasn’t the kind to open up about her true feelings.
"Uh, sure...! Let’s play together! I’ve actually been wanting to try Dungeon Seeker, but... I’ve been a bit sorry since the timing never worked out."
Fearing that Na-rim might be feeling down, Yuki said that.
That’s when everyone, starting with Yuki, agreed to the collaboration idea.
Na-rim smiled.
"Thank you all."
Now, Na-rim thought she understood a bit more about why she had been so bothered by Aurora.
Na-rim hated losing.
She didn’t like giving up, and because of that, she wasn’t good at compromising.
She thought her strictness was her strength, but many people couldn’t keep up with her pace.
So, it was more comfortable for her to do things alone.
Strategies like Double Diver, which required working with others, were impossible for Na-rim.
‘Now that I think about it, Laura never hesitated to rely on others.’
Na-rim had thought she and Laura were similar, but now she realized it was a huge misconception.
Laura liked to win, and to win, she would do whatever it took, including relying on others.
She’d heard that Laura made others clean for her, and she’d seen her let Sora do her hair. She’d even casually used the Double Diver strategy.
-"You should rely on others more."
It was just like what Laura had said.
In the end, Na-rim managed to defeat Laura.
Although she hadn’t checked the kill log, so she wasn’t sure if Laura had actually died from the burn damage or not.
But at the very least, she had pushed Laura back.
Then again… five people died, so maybe it was more accurate to say that Laura’s side had pushed Gryphon back.
Still, Na-rim thought that with the help of Gryphon's mbers, they had at least achieved a sort of satisfying closure.
[It’s not really a perfect victory, though. I feel like my performance could have been better.]
And then ca the victorious team’s interview.
Unlike Na-rim, who felt she had closed the match with a sense of closure, Laura didn’t seem satisfied with her performance.
[You played incredibly well, but you’re disappointed? That’s very aristocratic of you.]
[Yes, apparently the Duchess is one who demands perfection in everything. There won’t be any more incidents like this in the next match.]
Even though Laura had beco a hero of Leviathan, achieving the Dragon Slayer feat and five consecutive kills, she still said things like that. It was hard to tell if she was being genuine or playing a role.
[In any case, Aurora’s interview was great. Do you have anything to promote or say before you go?]
[Hmm. I actually have quite a bit to promote. First, Anna just released her paid ASMR. Sora also released an MV recently, so it’s worth checking out.]
Laura then promoted Anna’s ASMR and Sora’s MV, despite having no direct connection to them. She was promoting her teammates, even though they were in different teams. It was a show of loyalty.
[And recently, Luis participated in the Badario Festival. So, related rchandise has co out. I’m not sure if Shina released any rchandise, though.]
Even though these had nothing to do with Laura herself, she promoted Luis’s and Anna’s things because they were in the sa company.
[Lastly, as for my personal promotion, in about two weeks, there will be a new costu reveal. Sora, myself, and our 6th-gen classmates will be revealing new outfits, so I’d love for you all to check it out.]
[Oh, a new costu! What kind of outfit is it?]
[Of course, it’s a secret. Ah, and one more thing. In about 30 minutes, my MV will be uploaded on my channel, so please co check it out.]
And with that, the Fantasia League concluded its schedule.
In the Discord room where everyone left, Na-rim stayed behind in the voice channel, just staring blankly.
-Na-rim, why did you beco a VTuber?
Soone had asked that. It was probably one of the younger mbers.
There wasn’t really a special reason.
After high school, she didn’t have anything specific she wanted to study or beco.
So she drifted through college life, and then she started to wonder: "Can I really live like this?"
She began working various part-ti jobs, thinking that if she tried different things, she might find sothing she liked.
By chance, through a friend’s introduction, she tried becoming a VTuber.
Now that she thought about it, she used to play gas back in high school. Being a VTuber seed like a job that might suit her.
But as ti passed, she didn’t really feel like VTubing was her calling.
And yet, there was no reason or timing to quit, so she just kept going.
[There’s sothing eternal that doesn’t change.]
[You showed that.]
[You’re the unchanging silhouette.]
Before she knew it, 30 minutes had passed, and Laura’s song began playing through the speakers.
Na-rim finally accepted it.
"I was born to be Laura’s fan..."
Listening to the song, Na-rim felt certain.
Through today’s match, Na-rim had grown as a person.
And the reason for that growth was undoubtedly Laura. In fact, Laura had co to this world like a divine spirit to guide Na-rim!
Na-rim finally realized why she couldn’t find what she liked before or what she didn’t want to be.
It was all to et Aurora.
This entire journey had been a buildup to becoming Aurora’s fan! Wow, what a twist! What a plot twist!
'Now that I understand my own heart... it’s ti to do what I have to do.'
Na-rim downloaded Laura’s silhouette MV, saved it to her hard drive and cloud, and sent a ssage to Sora on Discord.
Son Na-rim
[I hope Laura will be happy.]
[It doesn’t matter whether the other person is a man or woman, but if I can be invited as a guest, I’d love that.]
Ayano Kouji Sora
[Huh?]
[What are you talking about all of a sudden..?]
Son Na-rim
[I thought you’d understand, Sora.]
[It’s about the recording we did at the karaoke room last ti.]
[I’d appreciate it if you could share it with !]
Ayano Kouji Sora
[Ah, the karaoke recording?]
[Hold on]
[Karaoke_SonNaRim.zip]
[Just in case, I’ve edited the part with only your part!]
Son Na-rim
[Why?]
Ayano Kouji Sora
[Huh?]
Son Na-rim
[Give the original file.]
[This way I won’t be able to hear Laura’s song.]
Ayano Kouji Sora
[????]
[Why Laura’s song though?]
Son Na-rim
[I'm calling you now.]
Na-rim had beco close to Sora.
Probably.
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