"Blackwatch?" Kotoko Iwanaga murmured.
She, Megumi Kato, and Asuna Yuuki exchanged glances; none of them had heard this name before.
Then Kotoko Iwanaga asked, "What kind of people are they?"
"Simply put, they are a mysterious military organization. However..."
Asagiri Utsunomiya paused, took the water cup Asuna Yuuki handed him and took a sip before continuing.
"Every member of Blackwatch is a battle-hardened, elite combatant with impeccable abilities in all aspects. However, they are completely different from the military in the conventional sense.
"To achieve their mission objectives, they completely disregard civilian or innocent casualties. Even if the target is unarmed, they won't hesitate to kill them, nor will they experience any pangs of conscience. They can be said to be utterly ruthless.
"Every member of Blackwatch is like a brainwashed fanatic; no matter what enemy or situation they face, they will not feel panic or fear.
"I tried it before leaving the dungeon. After Alice activated her exclusive ability, only four out of that team of thirteen died because their mental strength failed the check. This is enough to prove that due to their unwavering belief, the mental strength of Blackwatch operatives is far higher than that of ordinary people.
"I also heard the commander of the team report to headquarters and request support when he thought my attack on them was some kind of paranormal phenomenon. Based on this, it can be assumed that Blackwatch not only understands oddities but also possesses some means to eliminate them."
Hearing Asagiri Utsunomiya's description of Blackwatch, Kotoko Iwanaga, Megumi Kato, and Asuna Yuuki all looked solemn.
Megumi Kato murmured in a voice loud enough for others to hear, "Such an organization exists in the world where the dungeon is located... But fortunately, we don't have to consider how to deal with them for now..."
"No, you're wrong." Kotoko Iwanaga interrupted Megumi Kato's words of relief, and her expression turned serious as she said, "You've forgotten something."
"What?"
Kotoko Iwanaga spoke slowly, saying something that made Asuna Yuuki and Megumi Kato feel a shock in their hearts.
"As long as you can get the dead Player's phone... you can register to become a Player."
"You mean... if those Blackwatch people get the phones of dead Players, they can also enter various dungeons and get rewards, just like us?"
Hearing Asuna Yuuki's words, Kotoko Iwanaga nodded first, then added, "And based on Asagiri-san's description, their biggest advantage over the Players in our world is that they are an organization themselves. By collecting enough phones and transferring enough Player permissions, they can completely allow a dozen, or even a hundred people, to enter a dungeon together. The Players who enter the same dungeon with them... will become targets for interrogation to gather information."
"This..."
Asuna Yuuki and Megumi Kato could both realize how terrifying what Kotoko Iwanaga said was.
Although they were now somewhat accustomed to combat, they were still just first-year high school girls who only recently became Players. Their combat awareness and skills cannot be compared to the elites of Blackwatch.
And the members of this team...
Their strength was already at the peak of Player group in their world at this stage, and it's even possible that their captain, Asagiri Utsunomiya, was the strongest Player since the Survival Game started.
Even so, Asagiri Utsunomiya could only kill five Blackwatch operatives while ensuring his own safety, having set up an ambush beforehand and launched a sneak attack.
Sensing the heavy atmosphere, Asagiri Utsunomiya, although very tired, still smiled and said, "There's no need to worry so much. Have you forgotten? When entering the dungeon, no weapons or equipment are allowed. Although the Blackwatch operatives are well-trained, without firearms, if they fight against us who possess supernatural power and enhanced physical abilities, then they are the challengers.
"Furthermore, at this stage, the Survival Game is highly unlikely to arrange dungeons where Players must face the Blackwatch people. Such dungeons are likely to appear only after the overall strength of Players reaches a certain level.
"And since we speculate that the Survival Game difficulty will increase by one level every month, meaning after all surviving Players have cleared at least one dungeon other than the novice dungeon, I think it will take at least two or three months before dungeons with hostile Blackwatch people are likely to appear."
Hearing this, Asuna Yuuki mused, "Then is the ultimate enemy arranged for us in this Game... Blackwatch?"
"Perhaps, but..." Asagiri Utsunomiya stopped abruptly here. Seeing his hesitant appearance, Asuna Yuuki couldn't help but ask curiously.
"Why do you look like you have something to say but are holding back? That's not like the you I know."
"There's a possibility that if I say it, I'm afraid you won't be able to handle it."
"What possibility?"
Asagiri Utsunomiya slowly said, "Since we, as Players, go to other worlds each time we enter a dungeon, then..."
He paused for a moment, creating a suspense, then continued: "If the Blackwatch operatives become Players and choose to enter a dungeon, is it possible that they could come to our world?"
Hearing this, Asuna Yuuki and Megumi Kato couldn't help but fall silent, while Kotoko Iwanaga's expression was as usual. She picked up her teacup, took a shallow sip, and then spoke lightly.
"In that case, we just have one more reason to get stronger."
"Yes, indeed." Asagiri Utsunomiya nodded slightly, looked towards Asuna Yuuki, and asked, "What was your rewards this time?"
Asuna Yuuki just remembered this and quickly replied, "My rating this time was A+. It should be because I spent too much time in the dungeon, so the score decreased. However, I killed so many Ordinary Infected and some Special Infected and gained considerable enhancement through my exclusive talent, so overall it's definitely a profit. As for the reward... just take a look."
Asagiri Utsunomiya took the phone Asuna Yuuki handed him and saw the rewards she received after clearing the dungeon displayed in the app: one piece of equipment and one passive skill.
[Equipment Name: Crimson Cloak
[Equipment Quality: Extraordinary (Blue)
[Equipment Information: When wearing this piece of equipment, your true appearance will be hidden to a certain extent, and the speed of your stamina recovery will be slightly increased.]
[Skill Name: Swordsman's Resolve
[Skill Information: A passive skill. When attacking with sword-type weapons, stamina consumption is halved (stamina consumption for active skills is also halved).]
"A passive skill and a piece of equipment... They both suit you quite well."
Hearing Asagiri Utsunomiya's comment, Asuna Yuuki nodded first, then asked curiously, "What about you? As an Advanced Player, you can customize the quantity and type of rewards, and your rating this time was the highest level, S+. What kind of rewards are you planning to customize?"
"Hmm..." Asagiri Utsunomiya spoke while thinking. "Physical enhancement and skills, I guess. After all, items and pieces of equipment can be acquired in dungeons, and they will definitely be replaced as strength increases. Compared to external items, at this stage, I still prefer pure numerical enhancement. Our team is currently very short on Tanks. The Main Tank position can be filled by Hitoshura, and I'll be a sub-Tank. After all, Asuna's ability is more inclined towards being a physical Main DPS."
Hearing these words, Kotoko Iwanaga's eyes couldn't help but flicker.
Asuna?
Since when did Asagiri Utsunomiya's address for Asuna Yuuki change from Yuuki to Asuna?
Could it be that these two... secretly did something during the time she and Megumi Kato left the dungeon early?
While Kotoko Iwanaga was pondering, Asagiri Utsunomiya had already taken out his phone and confirmed the type and quantity of rewards to customize in the app.
[Confirmed. Your customized rewards are: a Skill and Physical Ability Enhancement.
[Rewards:
[1. Significant Physical Ability Enhancement
[2 Skill: Ice Spear]
[Skill Name: Ice Spear
[Skill Information: Consumes a certain amount of mental energy to create a sharp ice spear and shoot it at the target, causing physical damage with frost attribute.]
After gaining the Physical Ability Enhancement from this dungeon clearance reward, Asagiri Utsunomiya's Overall Physical Ability displayed in the app changed from originally 'professional athlete level (not including Hitoshura's passive enhancement effect)' to 'approaching human limits'. If Hitoshura's passive effect bonus is also calculated, his current physical ability has already surpassed human limits.
"Finally cleared another dungeon~" Asuna Yuuki stretched out a long yawn, rubbing her eyes sleepily. "No, I'm almost dead tired. I really need to sleep for a while."
Hearing this, Kotoko Iwanaga immediately extended her hands towards Asagiri Utsunomiya and showed a sweet and innocent smile as she said, "You're also very tired now, hurry and go rest with me~ As a special reward, you can sleep on my chest~"
Asagiri Utsunomiya glanced at Kotoko Iwanaga's meager chest, shook his head, and replied with a sincere expression, "Never mind, your chest is too hard, almost an unshakeable object. I'm afraid I'll hurt my head if I rest on it."
Kotoko Iwanaga was furious, waving her fists, complaining like a Chihuahua whose tail had been stepped on.
"Hey, hey, hey, aren't your words too much? Aren't you afraid of hurting my pure, fragile, delicate, sensitive maiden's innocent heart?"
"Oh, please. Your heart is yellower than a mango, and you're still talking about being pure, fragile, delicate, and sensitive?"
Seeing Kotoko Iwanaga's face turn red with anger, Asagiri Utsunomiya stopped teasing her, stood up, and said, "Let's go."
Kotoko Iwanaga heard this and couldn't help but look puzzled as she asked, "Go... where?"
Asagiri Utsunomiya replied in a flat tone: "Where else? Of course, to school."