Stark was completely lost. After a while, Liora suddenly stood up and began turning her head at a trendous speed. She was likely looking for .
The effect of Manifestation had already worn off.
This ant I could be found without causing any suspicion. Using her high agility, Liora rushed to in the blink of an eye.
"G-God! Please don't abandon … please!"
Just a few monts ago, this cave had been a battlefield. But for Liora, even that seed like a trivial matter. There was no danger anymore, as I had already wiped everyone out.
Amidst the pile of dead n, with naked won frozen in shock in the background, Liora clung to , sobbing uncontrollably.
In this mont, she seed like an ordinary young girl of her age.
"Liora... there's no need to cry."
"...Mhm, mhm."
"Trust . I will never abandon you."
Because—
"I am your one and only god."
"God..."
Liora nodded repeatedly, over and over. It seed Stark's unique skills had been quite brutal. His power likely forced her to relive her trauma through visions, and she has a lot of them.
The skill didn't inflict hallucinations or ntal damage but showed mories and thoughts as if they were real.
It's a type of attack that's not easy to defend against. But it wasn't even originally ant to be an attack skill.
With this, the situation was resolved for now. However, similar incidents would likely continue in the future, since I couldn't kill the players.
But that doesn't matter to .
From this experience, the dirty players should have learned the foolishness of making Liora their enemy.
Even if they still try to target her, I'll just kill them again. Over and over, I'll kill my enemies, raising my level and taking their resources. That's just the way MMOs are.
"Now then, Liora, can I leave the cleanup to you?"
"Huh? God, are you going sowhere?"
"Yes. You see, I used Manifestation."
"!! I wanted to see it too..."
Due to its significant drawbacks, I hadn't even been able to test the skill yet. That's why I hadn't been given ti for character customization.
Normally, after using Manifestation for the first ti, one can create their physical body.
But I was in such a hurry that I had to skip that part. I ended up revealing my identity and even received death threats.
I've gotten used to death threats, and so of them have even been carried out.
During my active years, I was kidnapped a few tis in countries I visited for research. After all, I was rich. Though I spent my entire fortune on creating and destroying works, so now my savings are just average.
I've even bought a mountain and had massive construction done just to hang a single painting. That's why it's hard to save money when I'm working.
"Anyway, the drawbacks are intense, so I'll rest for a while. I'm counting on you, Liora. Samurai should be able to assist you to so extent, so feel free to rely on her."
"U-... okay."
It seems Liora is still not used to Samurai. However, Samurai carefully observes people. Given her training under , she might actually be better at social interactions than Liora.
"And don't use Rouro in the town. I won't be back for a while, but make sure to wait for ."
"O-Okay… I'll do better next ti!"
"It seems like the matchup wasn't great for you. Don't overdo it. Well then."
Liora seed reluctant to let go, but I logged out.
▼
"Ughhhhhh! This is incredibly painful!"
Returning to reality, I finally let out the scream I had been holding back.
Intense, inexplicable pain coursed through my entire body. It wasn't a pain in my muscles or organs but sothing more abstract, as if my soul itself was in agony. It was a new kind of pain—an unknown pain.
This must be what people have been talking about in rumors of Soul Pain within PHO.
"Is this so side effect of their strange technology?! It hurts so much!"
Full-dive VR is still a brand-new technology.
People had voiced concerns about potential physical side effects.
In my case, maybe my brain got scrambled by using Manifestation, which boosts physical abilities to an extre degree.
I clenched my teeth instinctively but quickly stopped myself.
Breaking my teeth after all the effort I put into dental care would be terrible. Instead, I grabbed my thigh to distract myself from the pain.
And my finger bones cracked.
"!! Ggh!"
While I continued to scream, I lost consciousness.
In the fading monts before I blacked out, I heard the sound of soone pounding furiously on my door.
"--Ar! --! AArjun--!!"
▼
When I woke up, I was in a hospital.
The mysterious pain still lingered in my body. I wanted to thrash around, but I restrained myself when I saw who was sitting beside my bed.
It was my neighbor.
This was the worst-case scenario.
I had likely caused my neighbor trouble. My screams must have echoed through the thin walls, and out of concern, they had called for help.
I hate to admit it, but those thin walls probably saved my life.
"Ah, Arjun bhai... are you alright?"
"Yes. Thank you for calling the ambulance."
"I-I'm glad…"
"I'm sorry for making you stay with . I'll handle things from here. Sorry for troubling you."
"N-No, I'm the one who's always troubling you, so this is the least I could do."
"That's true."
"w!?"
My neighbor stood up and bowed repeatedly.
On the table next to my bed, I noticed my smartphone had been placed there. They're surprisingly considerate, this neighbor of mine.
"Pardon . I need to make a call."
"H-Okay!"
I used my smartphone to call an acquaintance.
Just a bodyguard-type person. Since I injured my finger, the threat from that player who sent the death threat had escalated.
This was just a precaution.
After I finished the call, my neighbor pulled a knife out of their bag.
"Oh?"
Were they going to attack ?
Just as I had that thought, my neighbor also took out an apple. They smiled awkwardly and held it out to .
"W-Would you like so?"
"You're stuttering too much. …I'll have so, thank you."
"! I'll do my best!"
Perhaps because she usually rely on , she now wanted to repay the favor. Normally, I would refuse, but I wasn't in a position to turn them down.
It was a forced apple.
Not that I dislike apples or anything.
"Alright, I'll peel it for you. First ti using a knife!"
"Huh?"
Blood splattered all over the hospital room.
My finger was already broken, and now, with this Soul Pain, I had no way to stop them. The apple she ended up peeling… was in terrible shape. It had been reduced to the size of a ping-pong ball...
"Hehe," my neighbor chuckled.
"It's… a bunny."
"No, that's not a bunny. The title of your work is Poor Apple."
The taste was normal.
▼
I underwent thorough dical tests, just in case.
There didn't seem to be any problems. At least, not by modern dical standards. Though VRMMOs are starting to feel a bit scary, I'm not too worried about the future.
What matters is now.
I couldn't care less what happens to my future self. That's his responsibility.
The only problem was my broken finger.
Since I had surgery, it should be fully functional again.
The doctor seed pretty stressed, though. Given my reputation, my fingers carry a lot of responsibility worldwide.
But I don't really care what happens to them.
I spent a few days hospitalized.
Because of the death threat I received, the police set up security for . Apparently, the authorities can't track IP addresses within PHO, so even the police can't locate the culprit.
I did hire a competent person for security, so unless the threat cos from a professional killer, I should be safe. If I do get killed, so be it.
My neighbour visited every day, which was a bit concerning... I hope this doesn't lead to a scandal. Not that I care about public opinion.
It seems my neighbor also plays PHO.
They even ntioned what was being talked about on the forums.
Apparently, my identity had been exposed and was a hot topic. That's the worst. I already find people annoying, and now even more will start talking to .
After two weeks of such days, I finally returned ho.
During that ti, Liora's constant ssages nearly drove to a breakdown. I had to mute notifications, but even then, I made sure to reply at least once an hour.
I even set up scheduled replies while I slept.
For so reason, Liora noticed, but that's beside the point. Upon returning ho, I thanked my neighbor and imdiately logged back into Phantom Hero Online.
Ah, the familiar air of the other world.
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Imdiately, Liora, who had been swinging her scythe, froze. She quickly turned around and rushed toward .
"God! God, God—"
"Yes, yes, I'm back, Liora."
Liora hugged tightly.
She had beco much stronger during the two weeks I was absent. I had been keeping track through my smartphone.
Due to the side effects of Manifestation, my level had dropped by 5.
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