Bushido Online: Pacchi Festival: A LitRPG Saga

by Nikita Thorn

  Ippei clapped him on his shoulder. “Hey, don’t worry. We’ll be fine. The challenge is meant for a completely inexperienced crowd, so it’ll be forgiving, and they’ll make sure to signpost mechanics properly.”

  Seiki was about to ask his friend’s opinion on how long the alleged sky phases and ground phases were going to be, when a voice shouted from the group.

  “Hey, raid leader. We riding?”

  “What, we can ride?” cried someone else.

  The prompt was followed by shrill whistles as everyone decided to summon their mounts at the same time now that it was apparently allowed.

  “Might as well,” Ippei said with a stifled sigh, before shouting back. “Okay, we’re riding. Let’s get into a row now so we can get out the gate as quickly as possible.”

  As Kentaro took to organizing the group into loose double rows, the samurai whistled to his unnamed war horse and Seiki followed suit. A moment later, both mounts trotted toward them from behind the Banquet Tower. Fubuki looked pleased to have been summoned into a garden.

  “After this, we’ll need to get serious about Riding.” Ippei was apparently already planning ahead. “The West Defenders will probably want to rerun Hitsu straightaway, and if we get an invitation we should be as prepared as possible.”

  Seiki stopped to look at his friend. “Do you mind very much not having a Mythical Grade horse?” He added solemnly, as his friend’s eyes widened. “Matsukaze, Wind in the Pines. That’s what they wanted to give you.”

  The samurai was speechless for a moment. His gaze dropped toward his black horse. When he looked up again, a mischievous spark had lit up in his eyes, and the horse was now labeled: Matsukaze.

  “Next time they ask, tell them I’ve already got one.” Ippei grinned. “Let’s go.”

  They mounted up and took their spots in the rows of excited riders. Kentaro had decided to spread out his friends among the rest of the Honor Warriors to make them harder to spot, and the group was now in a loose double row, ready to ride out as soon as the gate opened.

  The man next to Seiki was a cheery-looking ryoushi, Eijiro of the Honor Warriors [Level 17]. Out of idle curiosity, Seiki had inspected his weapon and found it to be a slim brown Night Heron Bow that increased the range of the ryoushi Eagle Sight perk, which he seemed to be using to his advantage.

  The flight of the White Dragon became more restricted as it prepared to land, and it was now twisting and turning right above the shophouses across the street from the Banquet Tower, its silver radiance flashing brightly on the dark roof tiles.

  “Looks like he’s gonna touch down around Hima Street,” Eijiro remarked, squinting to gauge the distance of their target.

  Seiki recognized the location. It was several blocks away from where they were, lined with useless general shops, and ran parallel to Trade Street for a while before eventually turning north toward the Palace.

  Seiki nodded as he unconsciously turned the Potion of Divine Luck in his hand, his thumb locating the base of the black cloth-wrapped cork lid, ready to pop it off. The bottle was modest, and only its constant ice-cold touch that had not warmed in his clutch hinted at its extraordinary properties. They had not told the Honor Warriors about how they planned to activate the instance, except that the clan should keep their own firework rockets for the actual encounter and not waste them on attracting the White Dragon.

  Eijiro was still making casual remarks regarding the situation. “The street is way too small for all of us, so I have no idea how everyone’s gonna fit.”

  Ippei had theorized that the world would be broken up into different instances, but Seiki had no time to relay the theory. The White Dragon abruptly changed its path and shot upward into the night sky, twisted once in midair, before dropping straight back down toward the city.

  The sharp noise of tiles cracking under its claws, from the dragon’s landing on a roof a few streets away, broke the silence of the night.

  The White Dragon has landed!

  The front gate swung open.

  Seiki flipped the lid off the potion and guzzled it. Unlike most other potions he had imbibed, the liquid fizzed like soda and sent a tingle through his body.

  You have been blessed by Divine Luck. Your next three chance-based actions will increase your chance of success to maximum.

  From the back of the garden, Ippei shouted, “Go,”, and Kentaro, at the head of the rows, started off into a full gallop. Fubuki almost needed no signal to start running with the rest of the group as they followed him out the gate.

  Trade Street in front of them looked strangely empty without the Festival stalls, but as soon as they crossed the threshold of the front gate, they found themselves instantly swallowed by a stampede of riders joining in from every direction, all shouting and pointing to where the White Dragon had landed.

  Despite the chaos, Seiki found the thundering stream of riders a heartening sight. It was unlikely anyone could spot him and his friends in the midst of hundreds of other players.

  “This is good,” Ippei was shouting from somewhere behind him.

  Different groups of players took different routes, but they were all heading in the same general direction, galloping down Shinshioka’s empty streets toward the source of the white light.

  After a slight bend in the road, Seiki finally saw the first glimpse of the White Dragon, perched on top of a two-storied shophouse.

  People gasped and pointed, but their excitement was short-lived. What immediately followed were the frightened neighs of hundreds of horses all at once. Fubuki suddenly shifted in a very familiar way, a tell-tale sign she had been spooked, and Seiki leapt off and dismissed her to avoid being thrown, landing a second later in the middle of a bewildered crowd.

  Lesser beasts are unable to withstand the mystical aura of the White Dragon. Mounts will refuse to move and will not answer summons within 100 feet of the White Dragon.

  Conflicting yells about what was happening rang out, and somewhere ahead, multiple firework rockets hissed, whistled and exploded. The crowd, now on foot, with most having lost sight of other group members in the stampeding sea of chaos, continued to rush toward the dragon.

  Somewhere behind Seiki, Ippei let out an incredulous laugh. “All right, a proper mass dismount to start it off like a real War boss.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

  “This might be best for us,” said Ippei.

  Running north together with the rest of the crowd, Seiki and his friends were regrouping as discreetly as possible while dodging the last of the spooked riderless horses bolting in the opposite direction.

  The majority of the people had recovered from the surprise dismount, but in most cases, any pre-concocted plan to attract the White Dragon had been thrown out of the window, with group members now scattered in the midst of the chaos. Seiki had a feeling it was designed to add an extra bit of challenge to the activity.

  Ahead of them, the mystical beast gleamed like liquid mercury. Perched on a shop roof, it looked too big for its surroundings, yet too light for its size, appearing like an otherworldly entity overlaid on top of the familiar Shinshioka. Under its claws, the black roof tiles scraped off like dry paint flakes while the dragon leapt back and forth to take swipes at the crowd. The attacks hit no particular player, but launched non-lethal bursts of air to push people backward and dropped a small bout of silvery rain in the same area, which dealt minor damage to everyone who had not run out of range.

  Exploding fireworks were quickly filling the sky with smoke, turning the great serpent into a mysterious source of moving light behind a veil of fumes, giving Seiki the feeling of being in the middle of a strangely beautiful disaster movie rather than a festive celebration.

  “Why did they allow us to ride anyway if we can’t get close to the dragon?” cried Mairin.

  “To teach us the mechanic,” said Ippei. “They want us to be able to ride in close but not engage while mounted. Which means...” The samurai sl
owed his pace. “Which means the dragon’s gonna move!”

  Even before the samurai could finish his speculation, the White Dragon lifted its head skyward. A second later, it shot straight up into the air before flying off to the east, the glow from its body lighting up the low roofs like a flashing spotlight as it flew past the crowded streets.

  “Take the next right!” Ippei shouted.

  The group broke from the main crowd into a small alley. The zigzagging route would take them through a few residential blocks before opening onto one of the main streets in East City.

  Yamura glanced back to check if the rest of the group managed to follow them around the turn.

  “It’s okay. Leave them,” said Ippei. “We just need to instance it and it’ll phase everyone.”

  Seiki spotted a glimpse of the White Dragon again, far ahead of them, a white tail disappearing behind a building. He was about to point it out to his friends when the sharp twang of a bow whistled from behind him.

  It might have been luck that they were the first players down this particular alley, and the audio cue was distinctive enough against the surrounding background noises of running feet and shouts.

  There was no time to strategize. Seiki turned toward the estimated direction of the shooter and swung his Hikari in an Upslash, holding back nothing in the attempt. The arrow whished past him, the wind effect only managing to push it off its mark by a few inches. Ippei let out a grunt as it skidded off his arm guard, tearing a large chunk out of the leather piece in the process.

  The samurai staggered, his eyes widening as he saw his health drop to a third. They had earlier speculated on the level of the enemies they were dealing with, but this was beyond their expectations.

  “We only need to get one hit in for the reward, right?” Seiki shouted as loudly as he could, according to the script they had rehearsed. Having witnessed the amount of damage, he had no need to feign the urgency in his voice.

  “Yeah, we should split up!” cried Mairin.

  “They’re after me. You guys go ahead and try to get a hit in. I’ll draw them off.” Seiki broke away in a different direction, taking the next alley to his left as he calculated his new route toward East City.

  Considering Okugata’s last threat was on his friends, they were betting on the assumption that the attackers would choose to go after Ippei and Mairin first, leaving Seiki enough time to approach the White Dragon. After all, no one else knew about the Divine Luck Potion.

  The route Seiki had taken was a slight detour, as it took him a bit north before turning toward East City again. Off the main route, the alley was eerily quiet. None of the NPC citizens of Shinshioka had yet spawned in this version of the world. The usual shops were shuttered, some even barred up, as if in anticipation of the collateral damage, and there was no sign of the Shinshioka Patrols whose presence Seiki would greatly welcome at the moment.

  Straining his ears, Seiki picked up nothing from the surroundings. There were no footsteps in pursuit, and no apparent movements from the top of the roofs. The only noises were coming from the excited crowds somewhere ahead of him, a cacophony of yells and firework explosions, presumably as the players started engaging the White Dragon once again after it had landed at a new location.

  The next right bend in the road finally brought the action into view. Beyond the mouth of the alley, the White Dragon had settled on top of one of East City’s many sake breweries.

  Grabbing one of the Pokamono Rockets from his inventory, Seiki continued to run. Divine Luck was humming in his consciousness, slightly dizzying, although he was not sure if it was truly the effect of the potion or simply adrenaline.

  His heart filled with hope as he drew closer to the chaotic mass of people. Their ruse had worked. His target was now in full view, a magnificent mass of silver on top of the darkened shophouse.

  The White Dragon [Level Unknown]. HP 8495741/8500000. Attention 0%.

  Around it, players were squealing as they shot fireworks at the beast, sending red, green, gold sparks bursting against the dragon’s silver. Seiki’s Red Pokamono Rocket suddenly clicked in his hands. A quick glance at its description now showed additional information: In range!

  Seiki aimed his shot. Right then, a freezing cold shot across his right wrist, violent enough to yank him forward off his balance. The next thing he knew, he was on the ground, the rocket flying out of his grip and landing with a clack several feet away. A girl nearby let out a yelp as she changed course so as not to trip over him.

  In the midst of the forest of legs and running feet, Seiki found three quarters of his health missing. On the ground in front of him was a very basic Wooden Dagger, which had been used to Disarm him. There was no point trying to figure out who the attacker was or where they were, as Seiki knew a next attack would follow in a few seconds. Throwing the Protection Shield on himself, he scrambled to his feet and grabbed the bamboo tube from the ground.

  The rocket once again clicked reassuringly in his grip to confirm he was in range. Seiki took another aim.

  The environment was too loud to strain his ears for clues. Yet, as he yanked the bamboo handle downward, another angry whish sounded from behind him.

  It was too late for his assassin. The bamboo parts snapped into place, and the rocket gave a violent kick as red sparks shot forward. Seiki anticipated the fatal piercing cold on his body when the arrow found its mark.

  It never came. Instead, a metallic clank rang out as someone warded off the attack. Seiki glanced back, and his eyes widened at the sight of the player.

  Zengoro of the Rogami Clan [Level 30] was standing several feet behind him, his back turned, the bare toothed Rogami Dagger in his hands, his sight set on something further on the opposite roofs. “Who is it?” Zengoro yelled. “Kei? Riki? Sinking low, eh?”

  The rest of his sentence was drowned out by sounds of explosions as Seiki’s Red Pokamono fireworks burst against the White Dragon’s side.

  Potion of Divine Luck activated (Charge 1/3). Attention of the White Dragon: 100%.

  Congratulations! Your group has attracted the attention of the majestic beast!

  With too many things going on at once, Seiki squinted to maintain his vision of the Rogami leader as the blinding light radiating from the White Dragon suddenly intensified.

  Zengoro turned to look at him, a smirk on the corner of his lips, claiming credit for his assistance while challenging Seiki to ask the obvious questions.

  That was all Seiki had time to see. The world faded into nothing but white light. The sound of exploding fireworks blurred together into a long rumble that eventually rose into a hiss, before disappearing into complete silence.

  Even when he knew he had not turned to look, Seiki found himself staring down the whiskered snout of the White Dragon. At such a close range, the beast was pure molten silver; its eyes of deep onyx were filled with a kind of all-knowing majesty that sent a strange tremble through his body. Seiki was sure there were other things in the world around him, but his peripheral vision had stopped sending him signals, making him feel like the dragon was the only entity that existed in the universe.

  The White Dragon spoke in his mind, a soundless voice of thunder:

  You have managed to capture my attention, young warrior. You and your companions may now choose to attempt a special challenge, in which you will be required to demonstrate the finest qualities of a Shinshioka patriot through a test of wisdom, unity and courage. Do you wish to accept this challenge?

  “Yes, please.” Seiki had no idea why his throat was so dry.

  The white light around the dragon intensified to a blinding brilliance that forced Seiki to shield his eyes. When he opened them again, he found that he was no longer in East City, but back in front of the Banquet Tower gate, standing on the side of the paved Trade Street.

  Feeling as if he had woken from a brief nap, Seiki blinked and looked around to gain his bearings. Despite the hushed silence in the atmosphere,
he was not alone. Around him were his friends and the rest of the Honor Warriors group members, all as disoriented as Seiki was by the sudden transition.

  “What’s up with this phasing?” Yamura was shaking his head to clear the dizzying effect.

  Someone else groaned. “Some idiot thought it was a good idea to fire into the crowd, so one minute I was trying to dodge that, and the next thing the dragon was right in my grill. I thought I died and that was the event respawn.”

  “All right,” said another hopeful voice from behind him. “So we did it? This is our own instance?”

  Seiki looked around. It seemed Ippei had been correct in his assumption that triggering their own instance would automatically phase every group member together and they were now conveniently gathered in front of the Banquet Tower.

  “Okay, good job, Seiki,” said Yamura. “We did it.”

  Ippei looked pleased as he stretched his arms. “All going as planned. And good timing. Saved me a walk all the way back here from the City Morgue.”

  “And sitting out death nausea,” added Mairin with a grin. “So, we fooled them. It worked!”

  From the remarks, it was clear the enemy had reacted just as they had expected, by going after his friends first, and Seiki secretly marveled at their inhuman efficiency in managing to kill both Ippei and Mairin before finally locating him in the middle of a busy crowd in such a short period of time. This would point toward the existence of more than one attacker, perhaps as someone else had apparently thought so.

  Seiki grimaced. “They did get to me at the very end,” he began.

  Mairin picked up on the uneasiness in his tone. “But then…?”

  “Zengoro showed up.”

  The kitsune’s eyes widened. “He’s one of them?”

  Seiki shook his head. “No, he… assisted.” It was exactly as the Rogami leader had promised.

  His friends exchanged looks, but quickly came to a silent agreement that it was not the best idea to start discussing the Rogami leader, and so Ippei turned his attention to the raid members and raised his voice. “Okay, let’s do this. Everyone here?”