"Um...Megumi..."
Asuna looked at Megumi, standing there, saying with slight hesitation.
"Aren't you scared at all?"
"Scared? Oh, I see what you mean."
Megumi raised her hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, her expression calm and indifferent, and said softly.
"Indeed, your appearances are quite strange, and the way you address each other doesn't sound like real names. But considering the three of you are Players, that's quite normal, isn't it?"
"You know about Players?"
"Yes."
Megumi nodded, replying directly without concealment.
"Because I'm a Player too."
Hearing this, Asuna exchanged a glance with Kotoko. They both had the same thought in their minds.
This Megumi's reaction... wasn't it a little too calm?
She just directly revealed that she was a Player?
Is this how a normal person should react?
"Oh... I'm sorry, you might think I'm a strange person hearing me suddenly say something like that."
Megumi seemed to sense the confusion of Kotoko and Asuna, and explained in a flat tone.
"However, from my perspective, if I pretended to be an uninformed ordinary person, you would definitely be suspicious. Although it was unconscious, I did activate my talent's effect on you. I just saw the process of your battle with that monster, and I know very well that if you wanted to kill me, I definitely couldn't escape. Since that's the case, it's better to just tell the truth. After all, I truly have no hostility towards you."
"This..."
Asuna looked towards Asagiri and asked cautiously.
"Leader, what should we do?"
"Kill her."
"Kill her!? We can't do that, can we?"
Not only Asuna, but even Kotoko, who wasn't very concerned about human lives, expressed opposition. However, her reason for opposing was colder and more rational.
"There's no need to kill her, is there? She didn't see our faces anyway, and she doesn't know our real names or identities. If only these traces are left at the scene, Toyogasaki's school authorities will be very confused, but that's all. But if she dies here, the school authorities will definitely call the police. We don't need to create such trouble for ourselves."
"Just kidding."
Asagiri shrugged and replied with a light chuckle.
"I'm not some morally bankrupt devil. Why would I just kill someone over something this small?"
Asuna sighed in relief, gently patting her chest.
"That's good. Then let's hurry and go."
"Not so fast."
Asagiri looked at Megumi standing there and said with a smile.
"In my opinion, Megumi is quite a capable person. Why don't we recruit her into our team? From now on, we can clear dungeons together and enjoy the rewards. Wouldn't that be great?"
......
Fifteen minutes later, outside Toyogasaki Academy, in a quiet, deserted alleyway.
"So... you want to team up with me?"
Looking at Megumi's slightly confused expression, showing a bit of naive cuteness and simplicity, Asagiri, who was still wearing his mask and hadn't revealed his true face, said solemnly.
"No, it's hard to say right now. Just think of this as an interview. But first, we need to confirm if you have the intention of joining our company."
Hearing this, Asuna couldn't help but softly complain.
"Aren't we a strategy group...? How did we become a company...?"
"Anyway, that's roughly the meaning."
"An interview... Oh, I understand."
Megumi first nodded obediently, then, after thinking for a moment, gave a positive reply.
"Yes, I'm just by myself right now anyway. Judging from what I just saw, the three of you as Players are far stronger than me. If I team up with you, I'll have more confidence in clearing those dangerous dungeons. So, I have the intention of joining your team... oh no, joining your company."
Asuna sighed slightly upon hearing this, looking a bit helpless.
"You don't need to go along with this guy and echo his weird remarks..."
"It's fine."
After Megumi replied with this, she took out her phone, tapped the screen a few times, and then actively handed the phone to Asagiri.
"I heard them all call you Leader, so you must be the company boss, right? This is my resume."
What she called a resume was actually Megumi's information as a Player.
----------------------------------------------------------------
[Player Name: Megumi Kato]
[Physical Fitness Level: Normal (Regular Person Level)]
[Exclusive Talent: Weak Presence]
[Profession: Not Yet Unlocked]
[Player Level: Formal]
[Skills: None]
[Items: None]
[Equipment: None]
[Weak Presence: When this talent is activated, it will significantly reduce one's presence. Acting while maintaining this talent's effect will continuously consume stamina and mental energy. If remaining stationary, the talent's effect will be enhanced, and it will not consume any stamina or mental energy.]
-------------------------------------------
"The effect of this talent... It's quite impressive."
Asuna couldn't help but exclaim this upon seeing Megumi's exclusive talent, then asked curiously.
"But why don't you have any items, equipment, or skills? Did you only clear one dungeon?"
Megumi shook her head: "No, counting the novice dungeon, I've cleared two dungeons. The reason I met you at the school just now is that I entered a dungeon inside that school building on Saturday afternoon. I met you right after clearing it and coming out."
"Then how come...?"
"When I cleared the novice dungeon, I got an A+ rating, but the only reward was unlocking my exclusive talent. The second dungeon was in a third-floor old mansion haunted by a Banshee, and the Player's objective was to survive until the dungeon time limit ended."
Megumi said in a flat tone.
"In the second dungeon, I just found an empty room, sat on the sofa, and activated my talent. In the end, I just idled away for ten hours and completed the clear. As a result, I only received a C-level clear rating, and the only reward was a slight increase in physical fitness. There were no other rewards."
"A C-level rating... Is it because you didn't do anything that you didn't get a high-level clear rating...?"
Kotoko muttered this to herself, then looked towards Megumi and asked.
"But, since you got an A+ rating in the novice dungeon, you should have received a special hint when you entered the second dungeon, right?"
"Yes, I did. It said there was a piece of equipment in the basement of that mansion."
"Then..."
"I ignored it."
Megumi spoke at a moderate pace with a calm tone.
"I don't have the ability to fight. Besides, there were other Players who entered the same dungeon as me. I felt that in a situation without safety guarantees, going to the basement to look for a piece of equipment whose type wasn't even known, even with the talent to reduce my presence, was simply too risky. So, I ignored that special hint."
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Hey everyone, so sorry I couldn't upload yesterday! To make up for it, I'm dropping four chapters today! Thanks for your patience!
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