Chapter 40

For example, if we define one person's life as a book, we could say that this world is filled with books. Each book may interact with others, and some may share a single story.

If that is the case, then naturally, the opposite must also exist. It is only natural that while one person's story progresses, another person's different story unfolds in the background.

That is why a grand story that began with just one snake diverges, each spinning its own tale, and these tales, while connected at their starting and ending points, unfold as entirely different stories, drawing in those around them.

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This is a fact known only to the truly solo players, excluding the administrators. The monsters of the new continent share a certain commonality.

Among the diverse monsters distributed throughout the new continent, with the exception of the abnormally large monsters in the Sigmonia Front Valley, the monsters that live in the western region tend to grow larger.

And a certain man's story, different from that of the player who marked the wolf, was experiencing a sudden turn of events in the "Bongoroso Hot Beach" at the southwestern end of the new continent...

"Stop... please... They are very delicate... and kind-hearted. If you don't unnecessarily destroy their territory, they won't do anything...!!"

"Why not just kill them all from the start? Then you won't have to worry about it, right?"

The Bongoroso Hot Beach is the territory of certain monsters, so the presence of "humans" and "snakes" there is fundamentally alien.

"Human, I don't understand why you're protecting those apes? Are you planning to farm and eat them?"

"Family... I don't mean to call them that, but... I think of them as... friends. So, I won't... leave this place."

The man's appearance was pitiful. His emaciated body, tattered shirt, and pants full of holes, which could hardly be called intentional damage fashion, clearly showed that he had not met any other players or human NPCs for several weeks and had not even repaired his equipment.

His hands were bare, not even holding a wooden stick, truly unarmed. In contrast, the "snake" led a massive, two-headed serpent as long as a five-car train, and in its hand was a whip made from thorns, barely processed.

"Are you planning to win against me and Anphi with such a pitiful appearance?"

"Try it... and see...!"

Silence for a few seconds, then the thorny whip, wielded without hesitation, slashed through the air, aiming for the man's left cheek.

"Ugh!"

It hit. But the "snake" frowned at the sensation transmitted through the whip.

"Ugh... Hmm... I was skeptical, but this is quite... impressive..."

"Strange, you... are hard?"

The thorny whip is not made of metal, but a blow with kinetic energy should not be shrugged off so easily, even considering the thorns.

"It seems I've drawn a hidden job... I'm quite... durable now."

The man stood alone, facing the "snake" and the massive two-headed serpent, with the Roaming Kongs, the monsters of the Bongoroso Hot Beach, behind him. Needless to say, if asked which is stronger, the adult Roaming Kongs or the man, the Roaming Kongs would win. However, unlike certain scorpion species, the Roaming Kongs, with their gentle nature and strong stress response to hostility, do not enjoy conflict.

That is why the man stood alone before the "snake." Just a game, yet more than a game. The man, who had been running towards a cliff in the uncharted darkness, as if fleeing from reality, found healing in the Roaming Kongs, who offered him bananas when he was on the brink of death from hunger.

"Wild Combat... Great Ape."

The conditions to trigger this job are two. One is to avoid encountering any players or NPCs for a certain period. The other is to increase the hidden parameter "wild value" for a specific monster species to a certain level.

The hidden job "Wild Combat Warrior" reveals its true power when unarmed.

"Human? Ape? This is... interesting...?"

"This is my final warning. Please... step back."

The man, enveloped in an aura shaped like a gorilla, spoke with a heart that resonated, but the "snake" smiled mockingly.

"Don't make me laugh...?"

"Then... there's no choice but to fight."

"How long will you last against Anphi?"

Now, the man's solitary battle begins...

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Time has passed, to the present.

"Shiyou? Who gave you permission to talk back?"

Smack!!

"Ow...!? Ugh, an advance reward...!!"

"I found it interesting that you could withstand Anphi, so I made you a servant... Was I wrong?"

"Uhoh!"

"Hey, you stupid ape! I said I don't want bananas! Stop it! Anphi, Anphi! If you want to eat so much, go ahead and eat!"

"Um, Miss... Isn't it too early to go meet other 'snakes'?"

Smack!!

"Once he starts moving... I have to act or I'll die. There's no chance of winning against anyone other than the 'Eight of the Beginning'... Understand?"

"Thank you for the extra serving...!"

"...Why has it come to this?"

Not suspicion, but a question mark floated in the "snake's" mind as it muttered.

Why did it come to this? The character who stands proudly at number one, Shiyou (to be introduced later), has changed her personality about five times to reach her current setting.