A crossover anime/manga story, set in everyday Tokyo, but within a loop of a game.

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Several pale ghost hands emerged from the ground, but because the players were all moving at full speed, it was difficult for Kotoko Iwanaga to lock onto the target directly. Only one pale ghost hand successfully grabbed the target, but the target still managed to break free and escape.

"Tch, what a hassle."

All the women present realized that even if they were outnumbered, they might not necessarily lose in a head-on confrontation. However, it would be too difficult for just six people to form an impregnable defensive line that would prevent any player from the other world from breaking through.

"Chase after them and kill as many as you can."

The current Asuna Yuuki is no longer the indecisive Asuna Yuuki of the past, who always hesitated at crucial moments. She gripped the shimmering light in her hand, took a deep breath, and lowered her body slightly. Then, with a loud bang, the ground beneath her feet cracked due to the powerful reaction force, and she chased after it like a red comet.

Kotoko Iwanaga knew that she and her companions were not as fast as Asuna Yuuki and could not catch up with the fleeing players directly. However, since they had determined that the target was the location where Akihiko Kayaba was hiding, and combined with the players' route, she quickly calculated a suitable position to intercept them. She then led Megumi Kato and Kaguya Shinomiya and the other two girls toward the target location.

Meanwhile, Asagiri, who was leisurely basking in the sun at the entrance of the three-story shop, had already seen the dark particles rising in the sky and heard the noises from the battle.

This area is an old pedestrian shopping district. Within a 50-meter radius of this three-story shop, there are many low-rise buildings such as residential houses and small shops. The terrain is quite complex, and the view is somewhat obstructed, but it is still much better than most of the high-rise areas in Tokyo.

Asagiri's task is simple: to guard this place.

If they encounter a powerful enemy, Kotoko Iwanaga will manipulate black particles to form a distress signal, at which point he will use "castling" to arrive on the battlefield.

Even if there are players from another world who possess the ability to pass through walls and bypass defenses to reach the underground, Asagiri can use "Casting" to switch places with Shura, who is in the underground shelter. Together with Ashikaga Miwa guarding there, they can ensure Kayaba Akihiko's safety.

"Is it finally here?"

Seeing several figures appear in the distance, Asagiri calmly stood up, patted the hem of her long black trench coat, and smiled as she watched the panting players from another world rush towards her.

"Congratulations on becoming the first player team to see the final boss."

69

Chapter 69 Hermit Powder.

"Get away!!!"

Several players from another world who had finally managed to reach this place launched an attack without hesitation when they saw Asagiri blocking their path.

"fire star!"

Upon seeing the fiery meteor attack thrown by one of the otherworldly players, Asagiri simply raised her left hand, and a hole appeared on the surface of her black glove, directly absorbing all the flames.

The next second, he watched as the melee player wielding a heavy two-handed axe charged towards him, and moved his left hand over.

"flame."

"boom!"

As Chaowu finished speaking, a fiery meteor instantly appeared in his palm, piercing directly through the chest of the player wielding the long-handled axe, leaving a charred hole. At the same time, the rope dart in his right hand was also thrown out, deeply embedded in the opponent's skull.

"clang……"

Amidst the sound of chains sliding, the remaining three players from the other world stopped in their tracks. Asagiri calmly pulled out the rope dart and slowly put it back, without moving an inch from beginning to end, and fear crept into their eyes.

They realized that the black-clad player in front of them was... terrifyingly strong.

"What, are you not going to continue the attack?"

Asagiri looked at the three players standing there and spoke in a calm tone.

"I don't know which world you come from, but don't you even have the awareness to risk your lives? It's both laughable and pathetic..."

"Super speed!"

Just as Asagiri was speaking, a player wearing a white ghost mask suddenly appeared in front of him from nowhere, wielding a curved sword-like weapon, and slashed at his face.

Faced with such a sudden attack, Asagiri remained calm and composed, raising her left arm while her right hand thrust the rope dart toward her opponent's brow.

The assassin player wearing the white ghost mask didn't expect Asagiri's reaction to be so fast. Judging from the current situation, although his scimitar could cut Asagiri's arm, the rope dart in Asagiri's hand would also pierce his forehead at the same time.

"Super speed!"

Left with no other option, the assassin player had to abandon the attack and use the teleportation skill again, appearing a dozen meters away from Chaowu.

"The Spear of Frost".

However, before he could even regain his footing, the Frost Spear formed from the morning mist was already thrown at him. He had no chance to catch his breath and could only use the skill called "Divine Speed" again, appearing in another location once more.

"I see, so that's what your ability is."

Seeing the masked assassin complete three teleportations in just two seconds, Asagiri said calmly.

"Your ability is to teleport to where you are in sight, so as long as you pay attention to your line of sight before you use your ability, you can predict where you will appear next."

Upon hearing Asagiri's words, the masked assassin couldn't help but show a look of shock in his eyes.

The battle has barely begun, and my abilities have already been seen through by the opponent?

This means that the player in black had already begun analyzing his abilities the moment he appeared, and the Frost Spear was there to verify this hypothesis. He had already completed the information gathering and made an accurate judgment by the third time he used his ability.

What kind of monster is this?

"Then, let the battle begin..."

Asagiri took a step forward, intending to attack the four otherworldly players in front of her, but suddenly stopped, turned her gaze to the left, narrowed her eyes slightly, and a golden light shone in her black eyes.

"Boom, boom, boom..."

Asagiri began to listen intently, her superhuman physical abilities naturally including her extraordinary dynamic vision and hearing.

The dust particles rising from the ground moved erratically under the sunlight, as if blocked by something transparent. All he could hear was the faint, yet tense, beating of his heart.

"Is it there..."

Asagiri raised her left hand, simultaneously conjuring a Frost Spear and a Holy Light Cross, and hurled them directly at the seemingly empty area.

"boom!!!"

Amidst the rising dust, a dozen or so players emerged, including members of Blackwatch whom Asagiri and Yuuki Asuna had previously met at the train station.

"They actually found out...?"

The leader of the Blackwatch player gritted his teeth, completely unprepared for the fact that his squad had been discovered.

【Hermit Powder (Disposable Item, Purple Quality): A powder that grants the recipient absolute invisibility. The invisibility will be automatically canceled upon any offensive action or when the recipient is affected by any type of attack.】

Although it can only be used once, the Hermit Powder is enough to put more than a dozen players into an absolutely invisible state. Despite the limitations of not being able to attack or be affected by the effects, it is fully worthy of the purple-quality rating given by the system.

The Blackwatch players' original plan was to wait until those otherworldly players, unaware of how terrifying "Shadow" was and unaware of their own mortality, attacked. Then, they would use the effects of the Hermit Powder to sneak in. If they could seize Kayaba Akihiko's laptop and successfully reach the extraction point to bring back his research data to headquarters, that would be ideal. Even if they couldn't do that, they would at least kill Kayaba Akihiko and prevent "Shadow" from obtaining that kind of research technology.

The idea was good, and the plan was very thorough, but there was one oversight.

They hadn't expected that, although the Hermit Powder's effects weren't mental, and Asagiri couldn't see them while they were invisible, she "sensed" their presence through her monstrous hearing and dynamic vision, even when facing attacks from other players and shouldn't have been distracted.

This is ridiculously powerful!

"Seventeen people..."

Asagiri looked at the squad of thirteen Blackwatch players, as well as the other four otherworldly players who had just tried to kill her, and realized the seriousness of the situation.

Even at his full strength, it would be a stretch for him to take on seventeen opponents single-handedly, since these seventeen players from another world were all quite powerful. Moreover, he couldn't use his best guerrilla tactics because he had to defend this place, and he also couldn't summon his Persona in order to allow Shura to stay by Ashikaga Miwa and Kayaba Akihiko's side.

only……

Asagiri is not fighting alone.

"Someone else is coming..."

The Blackwatch players and the four otherworldly players saw a deep red afterimage appear beside Asagiri and immediately moved away. Asuna Yuuki, who had stopped, flicked the blood off the shimmering light of her rapier and then spoke softly to Asagiri.

"You're not hurt, are you?"

"rest assured."

Asagiri waved her hand and replied with a smile.

"The enemy is nothing but a grain of sand, not even half as good as me."

"You've really gone too far with your arrogance."

Asuna Yuuki smiled slightly helplessly and replied. Then she saw that another thirteen players from another world had arrived at the scene. The next five to arrive at the battlefield were Kotoko Iwanaga, Megumi Kato, Kaguya Shinomiya, Ai Hayasaka, and Chika Fujiwara.

"Seven people against thirty...?"

Faced with such a huge difference in numbers, Asagiri's eyes revealed an excited look of eager anticipation.

"The advantage is mine."

For a moment, the arena became silent and oppressive. The players from other worlds looked at each other, first glancing at the Black Watch Team standing not far away, and then turning their gazes to Asagiri and the others standing there. Some of them had sweat dripping down their foreheads.

A layer of dark clouds gradually gathered in the sky, and a blinding flash of lightning shone through them.

Amidst the sudden flash of lightning, Asagiri and the others launched their attack.

"Shoot him, sharpshooter!"

Kaguya Shinomiya's blade swiftly extended, stabbing towards the position where the masked assassin stood.

"Super speed!"

Faced with the "divine spear" attack, the masked assassin subconsciously used his exclusive talent. However, when he appeared in another position, he ran into a huge pale ghost hand.

Kotoko Iwanaga slowly clenched her left hand, manipulating the pale ghost hand to crush the masked assassin's body. Her dark purple eyes showed no pity or hesitation, and her voice was chillingly calm.

"One."

Seeing Asagiri charge alone towards the dozen or so Blackwatch players, Fujiwara Chika first took a deep breath, then opened her fair palm, and a die appeared in her palm and began to spin on its own.

"Dengdengdeng..."

The moment the die stops spinning, the face-up side displays a "six".

"Six o'clock, gravity zone!"

When Fujiwara Chika shouted those words, Asagiri and the dozen or so Black Watch members in that area felt an inexplicable heaviness, as if lead weights had been forcibly placed on their limbs, shoulders, and heads.

The next second, Fujiwara Chika lightly tapped the dice in her hand with her index finger, then raised her left hand towards Asagiri and quickly spoke.

"Reverse!"

When Fujiwara Chika uttered this ambiguous word, the weight that had been pressing down on Asagiri suddenly disappeared, and his body even became lighter and smoother, as if he had been blessed.

"very good."

With herself empowered and her enemies suffering from a gravity debuff, Asagiri began her massacre.

With a swift motion, the rope dart in his hand pierced the neck of a Blackwatch player with terrifying force. He then used the chain connected to the rope dart to wrap around the neck of another enemy, tightening the chain with his hands and severing the opponent's head.

"Restrict him! Restrict him!"

Hearing the commander's slightly flustered order, the two Blackwatch players gritted their teeth and launched an attack under immense pressure.

"The fourth way to bind, this rope!"

"Roots entwine!"

Ropes formed from spiritual energy bound Asagiri's body, while thick plant roots emerging from the ground directly bound his ankles.

Seeing Asagiri unable to move, the nearest Blackwatch player immediately drew a dagger emitting a dark green mist and rushed over, intending to stab him in the chest. However, the next second...

"boom."

First came the crisp sound of the spiritual ropes and plant roots snapping. Then, the black-clad Watcher's body flew backward for more than ten meters, crashing heavily to the ground. His chest was completely caved in, and he had lost all breath.

"Just kidding."

Having easily broken free of her restraints, Asagiri glanced at the surrounding Blackwatch players and said in a calm tone.

"Ready to die?"

70

Chapter 70: The BOSS enters the second phase.

Seeing that Asagiri had easily broken free of her restraints, the commander leading the player squad realized once again the terror of "Shadow" and immediately issued an order.

"Long range attack!"

Blackwatch players possess a quality that ordinary players lack: obedience. Upon hearing the commander's order, they did not hesitate at all, nor did they even consider that their ranged attacks might affect their teammates. They directly targeted Asagiri, who was standing there, and unleashed all their ranged attacks.

Lightning, fire, ice, arrows, crossbow bolts, and even a sharp spear attacked from all directions, completely blocking Asagiri's escape route.

"Castling."

Asagiri remained calm and simply used his signature position-swapping skill. Kotoko Iwanaga, who had swapped positions with him, faced the unavoidable onslaught and, with a thought, immediately activated the "Phantom Robe" effect.

"boom!!!"