“Please call me Dark Shadow from now.”
Yamikage blurted out as soon as we returned back to the second city from the Forest of Eternal Darkness.
“What.”
I subconsciously replied before I knew it. What did she just say?
We ended up partying together after Shouko suggested we do so.
Maybe it’s because of it that we’re all in high spirits right now.
This has got to be something to rouse us up too. No one is actually that cringy.
“As you wish, Ms. Dark Shadow.”
I stared blankly at Shouko, who responded to Yamikage with a straight face.
I don’t think she understood my Are you serious? expression though.
“Gotcha, Dark Shadow. As you wish, Dark Shadow.”
“…”
“What’s wrong, Dark Shadow? Why are you so quiet, Dark Shadow? No response, Dark Shadow? Am I rubbing you the wrong way, Dark Shadow?”
My rapid fire seems to be getting to her.
“‘T-‘Twas a jest! Please address me normally.”
“That right? Then I’ll call you Yammy from now on.”
“In that case, I shall too, Ms. Yammy.”
“Wherefrom does the nickname come?!”
It’s because your personality is so not what someone would imagine your pretty girl character to have, is what I would’ve wanted to say.
There’s a chasm between the all-black ninja costume and your beautiful flowing locks of silver hair.
But, I think it’s pretty cool.
She’s not some regular ol’ ninja with nothing but physical attacks. Yammy’s more like a ninja from an anime or something.
I dig that. It’s quirky.
“Oh, that’s right. We’re in a party now, but don’t expect us to be fighting enough to cover your hourly minus of 3,000 Energy. Not to mention, I use a gutting weapon and Shouko uses a fan.”
“Fret not. I have already reduced the level of my Drain.”
“Hey, don’t go throwing away your ident.i.ty either.”
“I am devoted to my Drain skill. However, as I serve Lady Kizuna, I must be remain useful.”
“What d’you say?”
What’s up with addressing me as “Lady” all of a sudden?
I’m finally understanding what she meant by “communication disorder”—she just blurts out whatever is in her head.
I don’t know if I can exactly empathize with her, but I don’t think it’d get in the way of our party.
“Oh, and another thing. We were technically fighting together already, but should we get into an actual party together?”
“I, Hakoniwa Shouko, wish to travel together, but only if it is fine with you, Kizuna. It is what I had wished for before, and it is what I wish for now. We three Spirits may fare better together than being with other races.”
“And for saving my life, I shall be thy shadow, Misses Kizuna and Hakoniwa.”
They’re both saying essentially the same thing, but the way they speak is a little annoying to decipher.
And, they’re both really j.a.panese-y.
“Say… I know I can be a little slow, so correct me if I’m wrong, but do you two know each other or somethin’? Is it just me or does it seem like you’ve brought us together?”
I got two other Spirits to join my party in literally a day.
They’re both roleplaying such distinctive personalities with unique skills to boot.
To think that we’ll be together from now on kinda makes me anxious.
And, of course, anxious in the good way.
“It is as you say, Kizuna, that we are brought together by fate. One could even say we were fated to be together.”
Really? Fate? That’s almost a little embarra.s.sing…
Well, I’m not exactly complaining that we have a party exclusively of Spirits. It even makes me feel like we’re better than others.
“True as it may be that our population is small, but endangered species we are not.”
“Huh.”
“I have been endlessly training mine Drain every day thus far. And so, I have been to many hunting grounds and seen countless of our own kind.”
“Is that so? I cannot say that I have seen many other Spirits. I could even say that we are rare.”
Not everyone has read up on Spirits online, so it wouldn’t be weird that those people make up a portion of the Spirit playerbase.
Some might even have chosen to play as a Spirit because they’re weak. And I’m sure some chose Spirit because they’re half-translucent and they think it’s cool.
And naturally, there’s definitely people who are outspoken about how strong Spirits can be.
But I guess you can kinda get the sense on how the situation really is. Yamikage says she sees a fellow Spirit from time to time while Shouko has rarely seen any of us on the frontlines.
As for me, I don’t think I’ve seen a single Spirit while I was fishing by the sh.o.r.es of the first city.
“Well, I’m glad to have found Spirit buddies I can hang out with, but what are we gonna do from now on?”
“What do you mean ‘from now on’?”
“Hmm, what I meant was like are we gonna hit the sack or whatever. But I don’t mind hearing about what ideas you guys have for the grand scheme of things either.”
It’s already pretty late in the day.
The night view of the town is one filled with people carrying their lanterns. Generally, most lights are out by midnight though.
“I am fine with whatever we may choose to do. As the proverb goes: early to sleep and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise. And as for the latter, I am personally aiming to return to my former strength.”
“I am accustomed to acting in the dead of night and thus staying awake until five in the morn is of no hardship for me. Furthermore, I hold no ambitions of mine own and herefore I shall defer to you, Kizuna.”
Well, that puts me in a bit of a pickle.
And why am I in charge anyway?
I mean, I’ve been a guildmaster in other MMOs before, but not for a big one or anything.
Well, it’s not like I have a goal anyway, so let’s just focus on helping Shouko reach hers.
“By the way, how strong were you, Shouko?”
“I had about 50,000 Energy.”
“Egads!”
“Y’know, she was fighting on the frontlines, right?”
“I had not. In that case, Miss Hakoniwa is our senior and mentor.”
“O-Oh, please, I haven’t the skills to be a mentor.”
You are the most skilled one of us though.
When we were back at the cave, you’d dodge and parry the boss’ attacks and avoided all damage. That’s the power of experience.
Plus, you even detected Yamikage who was cloaked in the shadows.
If you’re not gonna give credit to yourself, then I will.
Ms. Shouko, you are legit skilled.
Whatever. I’ll keep it to myself.
Though it’s probably a different story for the numbers and statistics in her status, Shouko is definitely the most skilled player among us.
“In that case, since Shouko knows where we should grind, why don’t we let her pick where to go together?”
“Yes, I’m fine with that. Thank you for going along with me.”
“I have no qualms as well. Rather, I look forward to absorbing more souls.”
“Alright, then it’s a plan.”
Anyhow, the three of us managed to form a Spirit party.
And this is totally an unnecessary tidbit, but that night, I cooked my secret stash of the best herring I had for our dinner.
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