The Runaway Master Sora's Scenic Day: I Became a Legend Just by Not Fighting - Chapter 5

It had been two days since she returned from Zero Cage. Sora sat curled up on the bed in her small inn room in Central Rivier, hugging her knees. Though it was already nearly noon outside, the curtains were drawn tight, leaving the room dim. On the pillow beside her lay the dagger she had used that day. "...I'm never, ever doing that again." She murmured through tearful sobs. Trapped like that, chased by monsters—she thought she was going to die. Just remembering it made her shoulders tremble. The red marks on her palms from gripping the dagger too tightly were still clearly visible. (*Why did something like that happen to me?*) Sora squeezed her eyes shut. But what surfaced behind her eyelids was the burning gaze of that Volcano Beetle. The screeching *gishaaaa* sound was seared into her ears, impossible to shake. "Ugh..." She buried her face in the pillow. It was terrifying. Truly terrifying. But— Sora slowly lifted her head. Hesitantly, she reached for the dagger on the pillow. It was heavy. The tip of the blade glinted faintly in the dim room. (*It was a fluke. Definitely a fluke.*) She told herself. She had just closed her eyes and swung wildly. She happened to hit its weak point by chance. She just got lucky. That had to be it. After all, Sora was nothing but a cowardly beginner who had never fought a single battle in her life. "That... never happened." Sora shoved the dagger deep into her pouch. She would never use something like this again. She made that decision. That was when it happened. *Ping.* A message notification flashed at the edge of her vision. The sender was Luna. Tilting her head, Sora opened the message. 'Big Sis!! This is huge!! Look at NextFeed right now!!!!!' "...NextFeed?" Sora blinked. NextFeed was the social media platform for Cross World Online players. Sora had an account, but she barely ever used it. Luna occasionally posted screenshots of beautiful scenery, and that was about it. (*Did something happen?*) Sora opened her menu and launched NextFeed. —In that instant. An unbelievable screen spread out before Sora's eyes. *[Breaking News] Unprecedented Battle Log Leaked! Evasion 1247, Movement Speed 1083, "???" Attribute Damage—Cheat or the Dawn of a New Era?!* *Trending Now! Mysterious Player Accidentally Defeats 3 Mid-Level Monsters! Experts Call It "Unanalyzable"* *[Please Share] Do You Know the Owner of This Log? Information Wanted!* "...Huh?" Sora's mouth hung open. She scrolled through the screen. There it was—her entire battle log, posted for all to see. Evasion Skill: 1,247. Movement Speed: 1,083. And the "???" attribute attached to that one strike. All the numbers were circled in red. Words like "Abnormal Value," "Unanalyzable," and "Cheat Suspected" were packed tightly together. "W-why...?!" The color drained from Sora's face. This was the log from Zero Cage. No one else should have been there but her. How did this—? With trembling fingers, Sora opened the post details. The poster was anonymous. The comment section was already filled with tens of thousands of replies. *"This is a cheat. Report it."* *"No wait, evasion over 1000 is theoretically possible. Someone tested it."* *"The problem is the ??? attribute. This doesn't exist in the game database."* *"Maybe it's a hidden element from the devs?"* *"This player is the same person who posted that screenshot of the Lament Canyon before."* *"Rumor says they're a beginner, but that's definitely a lie. It's a hardcore player's alt account."* "N-no... I'm just..." Sora stared at the screen, trembling. Someone had leaked her battle log without permission. And now, players all over the world were looking at it. (*W-what do I do...?*) Her mind went completely blank. Just then, another message arrived. From Luna. 'Big Sis, where are you right now? ○○ (a major NextFeed influencer) is spreading a "Find This Player" campaign. You absolutely must not tell anyone where you are.' "F-find me...?" Sora curled up on the bed. (*Why... why is this happening...?*) She just wanted to see beautiful scenery. She never wanted to fight. So why did she have to be the center of the world's attention? Sora gripped the dagger inside her pouch tightly. She had sworn never to use that thing again. She would travel quietly, making sure no one ever found her. With that firm vow, Sora closed NextFeed. —But. By then, it was already too late. In Central Rivier's guild district, Society Square. In one corner stood a particularly large three-story building. It was the Ark Lodge, headquarters of the top exploration guild, "Wings of Dawn." On the second floor, in the leader's private strategy room. A large monitor covering an entire wall displayed a detailed map of the entire Firmament. On the long table in the center of the room lay thick stacks of documents and several information terminals. And standing before that table was a single man. Kyle—leader of the Wings of Dawn. He was in his late twenties. His short-cropped black hair and sharp, narrow eyes gave him a piercing gaze. His lean, taut physique was that of a veteran explorer forged through countless battles. Every time he moved, the air grew tense. "...What is this?" Kyle stared at the terminal screen and muttered. Displayed there was Sora's leaked battle log. Evasion Skill: 1,247. Movement Speed: 1,083. "???" Attribute. Expressionless, Kyle slowly traced the numbers. "...The theoretical maximum for evasion skill in the current environment caps at 1,000." He began his analysis dispassionately. "Beyond that point, the skill growth rate decays exponentially. To exceed 1,000, one would need to spend more than three times the server's estimated playtime—roughly fifteen thousand hours—solely on evasion actions." Kyle operated the terminal and ran a simulation. "...The total elapsed time from service launch to now is approximately four thousand three hundred hours. It's physically impossible." He let out a deep breath. "The movement speed of 1,083 is the same. The upper limit is 850. Why does a value exceeding that exist?" And then— Kyle's eyes were riveted to the final entry. The "???" attribute. An unidentified attribute value recorded in the damage log. It didn't correspond to any attribute in the game's entire database—Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, Light, Dark, Null—none of them matched. "...Impossible." Kyle set down the terminal. He was a rationalist. He believed that every phenomenon had a theoretical explanation. Trusting in that, he had conquered countless unexplored areas. But—this. "This... cannot be explained by theory." Kyle himself was bewildered by the words that came out of his own mouth. Cannot be explained by theory. That meant it was incomprehensible. An incomprehensible existence was unpredictable. And an unpredictable existence was—dangerous. Kyle looked up at the map on the wall. It depicted the entire Firmament, including the Starfall's End. Data on every high-difficulty area he had conquered so far was meticulously annotated. —All of it was now on the verge of being fundamentally overturned by this unidentified player. "...Investigate." Kyle gave the order quietly. An adjutant guild member waiting in the corner of the room immediately began operating a terminal. "Prioritize identifying the player with these stats. Cross-reference with existing databases. Scour all past battle logs, all screenshot posts, all social media statements." "Understood." Kyle dropped his gaze back to the terminal screen. Evasion Skill: 1,247. That number was seared into his eyes. "...What are you?" He muttered to no one in particular. Meanwhile, around that same time. In a tavern in a remote wasteland, far from Central Rivier. A man sat alone at the counter, downing drinks. Zen—a carefree bounty hunter. His unkempt silver hair was tied back loosely, and he wore a worn-out leather coat. He looked to be in his mid-twenties. At first glance, he seemed like nothing more than a slovenly drunk. But— On the terminal at his hand was displayed that leaked battle log. Zen's mouth curled into a grin. "...Well, this is interesting." He took a big gulp from his mug. "Evasion 1247, Movement Speed 1083, ??? attribute... What the hell is this? A bug? Nah, it's too perfect for a bug." Zen operated the terminal, digging deeper into the log's details. The leak source was anonymous. But the number of people who could extract this kind of data was limited. "...A Carthesia Eraser, or maybe..." He cut himself off. Well, whatever. It didn't matter. What mattered was—the owner of these stats. "Finding this one is gonna be a blast." Zen put away his terminal and stood up. He was a bounty hunter. He took any job that paid. But this time, it wasn't about the money. —This was entertainment. "Alright... then." Leaving the tavern, Zen began searching for information on his terminal. The area where this player was last confirmed, places they frequented, their past trail... His information-gathering skills were on par with top-tier explorers. A few minutes later, Zen arrived at a hypothesis. "...Starfall's End, huh." This player wandered through danger zones in search of scenic views. If that was the case, their next destination was—the edge of the world. Zen grinned. "It's settled. First, I'm gonna find you." He started walking towards the wasteland. Half out of curiosity, half out of—well, a little bit of goodwill. He couldn't just leave such an anomalous existence to the mercy of malicious people. And the person in question— Sora was sneaking through the back alleys of Central Rivier. Her hood pulled low, she crept close to the walls, trying to avoid attention as much as possible. "I absolutely can't let anyone find out..." She whispered quietly, as if telling herself. According to what Luna had told her earlier, Sora was now a hot topic not just on NextFeed, but on the in-game bulletin boards as well. Moreover, several guilds had already started moving to "find and scout this player." —That was the absolute last thing she wanted. Sora crossed the street stealthily, making sure no one saw her. But. (*...Where should I go for my next scenic view?*) She thought quietly in a corner of her mind. Inside her pocket was a folded map. Unable to sleep the night before, she had ended up looking at it. Starfall's End—the extremely difficult-to-reach area at the northernmost tip of the Firmament. Beyond a series of continuous trap zones lay a breathtaking view where a star-filled sky cascaded down to the earth. No one had ever reached it. A view no one had ever seen was there. "...Maybe I want to go, just a little." Sora clutched the map. The whole world was searching for Sora. But what Sora was searching for was just one thing. Beautiful scenery that no one had ever seen. That night. Sora quietly slipped out of the inn and headed for Central Rivier's north gate. Beyond the gate stretched a vast plain. Further ahead lay—the Freezel Wasteland. And then, Starfall's End. Sora looked up at the night sky. Countless stars twinkled silently. "...The stars are beautiful." A small smile appeared on Sora's lips. She wanted to run away from scary things. She didn't want to fight. She didn't want to stand out. —But. The desire to see beautiful scenery was the one thing she couldn't run away from. Sora took a step forward. With the warm lights of the town at her back, towards the northern land. Only the quiet moonlight watched over her small, retreating figure. —And in Central Rivier, after Sora had left. "They still haven't found her?!" "That player's trail has gone completely cold." "The north gate guard said they saw someone leave alone late at night..." "North?! Don't tell me they headed for the Freezel Wasteland?!" "That place is a frozen hellzone where you won't last an hour without proper gear!" "...No, if that's the case, i

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Episode 5

Name: The Runaway Master Sora's Scenic Day: I Became a Legend Just by Not Fighting
Author: Novelia

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