VRMMO: My first Contractee is Yandere

Liora struggles with certain types of enemies:

- Enemies with overwhelming firepower that Liora's regeneration can't keep up with.

- Enemies that are faster than Liora.

- Enemies that inflict status ailments.

- Small enemies that Liora's scythe can't hit.

- Enemies that completely nullify attacks.

- Enemies that are more skilled than Liora.

I have a feeling Gimira, the second field boss, falls into that last category. With its overwhelming skill, there's a risk Liora's attacks might not land at all. It's an opponent I must defeat to move on to the third area.

"If I'm with Jack-Jack and the others, it should be safe. The rewards from a frozen field boss are tempting… I suppose I'll join."

The clan situation depends on the members. In *PHO*, you need at least three NPCs to form a clan. I could establish it with Liora, Jack-Jack, and one more NPC, but…

I decided to log in to the game to sort out the details. They're playing now, so it's more convenient to discuss in the game, considering the time acceleration.

▽

As I reassured the clingy Liora, I began chatting in the game. It seems they want to meet in person.

It's quite a hassle, but I can leave the conversation to Liora. Since I don't have the [Manifestation] skill, I can use it as an excuse for not being able to have detailed conversations.

The meeting place was the adventurers' guild in Elfland.

While I was asleep, Liora and the others had returned to Elfland. Honestly, it should have been safe with the four NPCs, including Samurai. Especially with Liora, who has evolved into [Shadow of Death].

As a result, we were the second to arrive at the meeting spot.

"Thanks for coming, Liora, Zephyr."The one greeting us warmly was Ribbit, Jack-Jack's owner. As always, his enormous figure didn't quite fit in the guild's training ground.

She appears and then quickly disappears.

In this world, there's actually a size bonus. The bigger you are, the more your attack power and durability are amplified. On the other hand, agility and luck stats are lower. It seems like a reasonable trade-off.

It wouldn't make sense for Liora and a dragon to have the same attack power but yield the same results. So Ribbit's size is a strength.

But there are disadvantages. In tight spaces, he might not be able to [Manifest] at all.

"Liora, ask where the others are."

"The god asks, 'Where are the others?'"

In response, Jack-Jack, who's sipping tea, answers. He's sitting on the dusty floor of the training ground, having a tea party with fine tea utensils. The elderly figure slowly looks up at Liora and breaks into a smile.

"Thank you for coming, Liora. The others… are right here."

Following Jack-Jack's gaze, we also looked in that direction. There stood two NPCs. One of them was a familiar face to me.

It's Hilda, who is contracted with a player named Tanaka. Liora seems to have forgotten, but she was the leader of the party that had been fighting Helmut before us. The handsome—yet beautiful—person who grabbed Liora's shoulder.

It might be gender discrimination, but I can forgive it because it was a beautiful woman.

"I know Hilda, but who is the other person?"

As I tilted my head, Jack-Jack kindly introduced her. She was a small dwarf girl, shorter than Liora, but not childish; her impressive chest was well-developed. She carried a huge shield on her back, along with a one-handed sword.

"This is Meme. She's the one who matched Liora in battle during that dream."

"My name's Meme. Nice to meet ya, Liora!"

I remember the name Meme. She ranked fourth in that event. Her contractor was—

"...Zero-Tape. Nice to meet you, Zephyr and Liora… I usually play solo, so, well, I'm not very good at socializing. Please forgive any rudeness…"

A small dragon, about the size of a pigeon or crow, muttered while looking away. It wasn't a sign of annoyance; rather, it seemed like he couldn't meet others' eyes due to shyness.

According to the forums, Zero-Tape is a fairly well-known solo player. He even has the achievement of soloing Helmut. He used a rare item that reduces poison resistance and chipped away at Helmut with a poison-inflicting sword. While it's the same method we used to achieve victory, it's a rather rare approach.

The current trend is to take advantage of the fact that you can now flee without losing anything. In other words, players continuously run away and retry until Helmut ends up with a nonsensical weapon.

Videos show poor Helmut wielding an abacus, swinging around thread, or awkwardly holding a deck of cards. Helmut's cool gimmick of fighting with his preferred weapon is being ruined. That's the current trend—making him use weak or hard-to-use weapons and then ganging up on him with a party.

Everyone gathered and formed a circle. I didn't want Liora sitting on the ground, so I created a mat with [Darkness creation]. Everyone sat on it… well, it's fine.

After serving everyone tea, Jack-Jack cleared his throat.

"Let's start the meeting about the clan—[Independent Alliance]. I'll act as the moderator for now. If you have any questions, feel free to ask."

And so, the explanation of the solo player gathering—the [Independent Alliance]—began.

MMOs, by their very nature, are not a game genre designed for solo play.

In this genre, players recruit comrades and combine their forces to clear content. In other words, it's a team-based game.

Amidst this, those who insist on playing solo are typically loners.

And I too am a loners.

Loners aren't to be trifled with since they are strong powerhouses in the game, rising their danger levels to whole new range.

It's rare to find a player who plays solo with a purpose. That's because individual skill in an MMO only amounts to so much.

Well, in this game, since you can acquire a wide variety of skills solo, it's easier to play alone.

Now, four players have gathered here.

All of them were top tier powerhouses who had played alone from the start.

Alongside them, four NPCs, all of whom seem to have a strong solo mindset—just like a group of loners.

"Uh, well… I heard that Tanaka is often seen in parties though."

The one speaking hesitantly was a small green dragon, Zerotape. He seemed flustered by the presence of Tanaka, who had manifested as a beautiful girl.

I predicted him to be a teenager or early adult but the way he speaks and behaves.

Still, his point is valid. Since even I saw tanaka playing in a party to defeat Helmut.

This "Independent Alliance" is essentially a gathering of those who prefer to play solo but still want to enjoy the clan system.

Non-loners are excluded.

Thus, it becomes a group of loners.

Tanaka tilted her head, looking somewhat annoyed.

"I'm a loner too. But probably not in the way you're all thinking."

"Huh? Wh-what do you mean… uh, sorry if I'm being rude…"

"I only form temporary parties. I don't have a fixed group. That's my style."

"I-I see!"

That could also be a form of solo play.

In particular, most of "PHO" consists of fixed parties. NPCs generally avoid forming groups with strangers.

Unlike other MMOs, there's no instant-party system here.

In some ways, joining various parties flexibly could be considered solo play.

The green dragon tightly shuts his eyes.

"S-so basically, are you saying we should form a fixed group?"

"Not really. It's just less hassle to form parties with different people. But clans are a different story. That's why I want to ally with some strong players."

The green dragon nodded enthusiastically.

"If I had to form a fixed group… well, I'd refuse. I don't want to be disliked, and maintaining relationships long-term is impossible for me… it's a losing battle."

"Exactly. Rather than spending effort maintaining relationships in an MMO, I'd rather improve my gameplay. That's why I'm attracted to this clan. If everyone's just here for the collective benefits without pretending to be friends… then I'm all for it."

From their conversation, it seems that Zerotape is "a solo player by result," while Tanaka is "solo for practical reasons."

They seem to dislike the hassle of maintaining a team and prefer acting like mercenaries.

Honestly, I can relate to their conversation.

If they understand the benefits of solo play, I feel like I can maintain a good distance from them.

I had Liora speak on my behalf.

"The gods have spoken. I'm fine with it. As long as we can maintain the form of four solo players who happen to be working together, rather than a fixed party."

"I'm in too, if that's the case…"

"I agree as well. If there's a good quest, invite me. I'll invite you too. But let's avoid unnecessary interference otherwise."

"… I'm supposed to be the facilitator, but it seems we've reached an agreement."

Thus, we formed the "Independent Alliance" of solo players.

And that night...

We launched an assault on Gimora.

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Please don't unlock 59th chap some bug has made a chapter to repeat itself