ShangriLa Frontier ~ Shitty Games Hunter Challenges Godly Game ~

Normally Sanraku would have felt very offended by all of that slander and rumors being thrown his way by Pencilgton without a second thought, but because at the current moment he had his hands full fighting the Slaughter Demon, he had no time to actually care about the things that Pencilgton was doing behind his back. Instead, he focused entirely on the offense alongside his Conquest Doll NPC and Vorpal Bunny NPC. And while it was true that Pencilgton thought it might actually be a good idea to go and help Sanraku out, at the current moment he seemed to be doing just fine, so she decided to do some PR action for a little while longer. It was actually all a part of strategy to make Sanraku stand out even more than he already was, in order to attract even more attention to him.

The purpose of this battle is really simple, to not even say simplistic: by means of his actions Sanraku needs to become a flagship of the Thirdrema’s camp in this great conflict. Or to put it differently, he was to become a “Treasured Sword” of the giant named Thirdrema, something that you would gaze upon and instantly connect one with the other. By doing that, he would create a situation where people would start flocking into their camp of their own volition, led by the urge and longing to belong to the same camp as that super powerful player. It’s actually the very same psychological effect as wearing the same kind of a shirt or uniform that your favorite sports team wears, as it creates a sense of connection and camaraderie between seemingly random people.

「Actually, at the current moment the Grand Duke of this city, Thirdrema, is openly hostile towards the current King, the pinnacle of this entire Old World!」

「Wait, seriously!?」

「Now, when it comes to conflicts like that, there are always two sides to the same coin. We can perceive the current King as the pinnacle of all evil, but the same can be said for those who openly supports the current King, as they would never consider themselves as evil, no matter what…… But the truth always stays the same and it cannot be changed: it was the current king who exiled his own father and sister into the dangerous unknown of the New Continent and wanted to them to be assassinated there, pretending it was just an accident!」

Strictly speaking, it was not a lie. Pencilgton just took the truth and decided to inflate parts of it just like you would do with a balloon. And the fact that she was inflating it to the point of it almost bursting? No one need to know about that. It’s all for the sake of the greater good, and doing something like this makes it easier for the general, less informed public to be able to understand the situation.

And if it is indeed like so, then the means of collecting information would naturally be narrowed down to bulletin boards and SNS related to ShangriLa Frontier. (because those who know how to get information independently in ShanFro should already know the situation and every bits and pieces about them).

In that case, they would see the information on the current royal government side guided by the hands of the RPA information unit that Pencilgton managed to put together especially for that purpose alone……. In fact, unlike Thirdrema, which operates with a clean policy as much as possible, the current royal government is Player Killers friendly with rewards and amnesty serving as bait. The fact is that they are putting emphasis on gathering as many of the former Player Killers under their banner as possible. The rise of a coup d’etat that created a rogue mixed unit, a father who fights for his daughter, and those who go over there for profit…… faced with something like this, you have no other choice but to try to appeal to those of a completely opposite karma.

There is one player amidst all of the gathered here who talked to her as if he is bashful or shy. Pencilgton possessed the natural ability to sort of tell the gender of the ones she was speaking with solely through their gestures and speech mannerism. Some people tended to be a really hard nut to crack at times, but at the very least the female avatar she talked to seemed to match the content and gender.

「Ah, umm! I was wondering, but this avatar…… Could it be that you are Towa Amane?」

「Ah, someone finally noticed? I know that I might not look exactly like in the real life, but for you to notice…… That’s actually quite amazing!」

「Huh? Ahh, ahh, no, I mean, yes, but…… Hahaha…… I’m sorry for jumping the gun like that all of a sudden.」

It’s not like Pencilgton lied here or anything like that, but she also did not explicitly confirmed the suspicion of the female player. After all, Towa Amane is a person who carries the dreams and aspirations of all young girls of the world, someone whose reign was only ended because of Sanraku and Katsu who blown up her castle. So it would be a poetic justice if they were to do the same for her right now, right? But it all depends on the victory conditions of the incoming war, so maybe nothing as flashy would be needed here. But if it required some stealth work, how could they possibly……?

「Umm, can even beginners participate in that event you were talking about?」

「But of course! It seems that if you are a production worker, you will buy items at a higher price than usual, and even if you are a combat-type, you will be able to play a role, even if it would not be something flashy or grand……!!」

With a big smile on her face, the RPA comrades quietly exchange words behind the scenes, with an attitude of saying:”Great! Now that I heard that, I’ll go tell the others about it as well!”

「Ahh, just look at it! Comrades from all over the place swarming together in here! I can already see it……」

「Comrade, it would also be great if you would not spread the info that Tsuchinoko-san and his company are the ones behind this event. After all, you see, he already attracts enough attention as he is, so let’s just not put even more onto his plate, shall we……?」

「Ahh, now I see, now I get it. Now, I wonder if the Grand Duke of Thirdrema is going to assume the overall command and divert his forces in here……」

Yes, good, keep thinking that way. Everything is going according to plan…… For a split of a second out there the Iron Wall that was Pencilgton’s immovable expression changed to that of a nasty smile of self-satisfaction, but she quickly managed to regain her composure and assume her usual expression. Then she shifted her focus entirely to Sanraku once more, as whatever happens next was entirely up to him and his actions alone.

(Please, I beg of you, Advertising Machine Sanraku-kun…… Now that your big name managed to attract some of the big shots out there, it’s time for you to go on a rampage and show them what you are actually made of!)

And then there was a word or two directed towards those of the RPA players who never even participated in the battle so far or were yet to do so:

「Are you absolutely sure that you will be able to take the best possible shot here?」