Side Trip ⑤ — A Certain Player's First Day of the Summer Event!

I'm Midorigami Renji! And today, just like every other day, I'm playing "WF"!

Anyway, it's summer!

The time for the summer event has finally arrived!

Rene-chan's swimsuit is cute, while Pahal-chan's swimsuit is bold and sexy.

That said...

A man doesn't go back on his word! I ain't breaking my vow to save up for Tierra-chan's swimsuit!

For now, I'll pull the free gacha that's available once a day.

One of the nice things about "WF" is that you can use these free pulls toward the event-limited gacha.

Well, it's only a single pull, so it's pretty rare to get a Rare or higher from it...

It's been a month and a half since the service launched. I've pulled it every single day without missing once, but I've never gotten an R or higher from a free single pull.

That said, in "WF," even low-rarity characters can become monsters depending on how you use them. And when it comes to equipment, you can never have too much of it.

With one foot already in the realm of giving up, I mechanically start the pull.

Since I'm here anyway, let's pull the summer-event-limited gacha...

...Huh?

What's with this effect...!?

A gigantic wave comes rushing in from the right side, and the entire screen gets submerged...

『The scent of watermelon is... right there! ...Huh? It was Renji. ...Sorry.』

『The Rampaging Girl of the Lakeshore / Rene (SSR)』

Swimsuit Rene-chan—!!

No way!? This ain't some dream, is it!?

Ow! It hurts when I pinch my cheek! ...Which means this isn't a dream! It's real!

After suddenly jumping up and letting out some weird scream, I started pinching my own cheek, and Grandpa is giving me a suspicious look...

Gotta calm down.

Yeah, I'll take a screenshot and send it to Ryuto...

＜ Hoshiji Ryuto

◎ TEL ≡

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19:30 Read

.There you go. .You said you were saving up, but did you cheat on her?

19:33

19:35 Read

.What's with you? You were acting weird about this the other day. .When I see someone getting really invested in something, I get this weird shivery feeling, but. .When they pull away from me, it annoys me for some reason.

19:39

19:39 Read

.??? .Like, "I want you to love me until the very end"?

19:40

19:41 Read

.What the hell are you even talking about? Do you have a fever? .Sorry. Never mind. I don't really understand it myself.

19:42

19:42 Read

.?

19:43 Read

.Well, whatever. I didn't cheat. This was the free gacha. .Huh? Seriously?

19:43

.Are you seriously that lucky??

19:44

19:44 Read

.(￣∇￣)v Smug! .I got Faith again today, though?

19:45

19:46 Read

.Again!? Aren't you getting way too many copies? .I get high-rarity characters too, but there's this weird thing where only certain characters ever show up...

19:47

19:48 Read

.Piera-chan, Bestea-chan, Faith... those three, right? .There are others too, but those three are in a league of their own. I get duplicates of them like crazy.

19:49

19:50 Read

.Honestly, your Piera-chan is way too strong, Ryuto. I always rely on her when I use your support. .During my first 10-pull, no matter how many times I rerolled, all I got was Piera.

19:52

.I burned through all the pre-registration and launch-celebration gems, and all I got was Piera (and the Gravekeeper).

19:53

19:54 Read

.She's really loved by you, huh? I'm seriously jealous. .I have a theory that my copy of WF just has fewer characters implemented.

19:55

19:55 Read

.There's no way that's true lol. .Yeah, probably not.

19:56

And that's how my casual chat with Ryuto came to an end.

Alright, then.

In that case, let's get started.

Time to dive into the summer event!

---

『Then, here is a list detailing the types and quantities of materials that will be required. It appears that a civilization once flourished along the lakeshore long ago, and we have discovered several useful parts among its remains. With those, modifying Tetoma should be more than feasible.』

In order to cross the enormous lake, we'd have to modify Tetoma.

So apparently, the basic premise of this summer event was to collect parts along the lakeshore for that purpose.

Following Tetoma's explanation, the event details appeared on the screen.

Let's see...

『During quests in this event, the event-exclusive drop items 【Lakeside Junk】【Lakeside Trash】【Lakeside Antique】【Lakeside OOPArt】 can be obtained.

【Lakeside Junk】【Lakeside Trash】【Lakeside Antique】 can be exchanged for various items in the shop, and once you collect the required quantities, you can also receive special rewards.

【Lakeside OOPArt】 has an extremely low drop rate and can be used to exchange for special items.』

Ohhh, I see.

So basically, I keep running quests and collect 【Junk】【Trash】【Antique】.

And with 【OOPArt】, I should just treat it as a lucky bonus whenever one drops.

『Certain characters and equipment provide various special bonuses, including increased drop rates for the items listed above.

Kizuna Bond Increase Rate UP 100% UP SSR 『The Rampaging Girl of the Lakeshore / Rene』 『Alluring Elf / Pahal Wanu Waudu』 SR 『Summer Love Cat / Piska Chuma Bahn』 『Summer Gourmet / Padron Zalfedahl』 50% UP SSR 『Sniper of a Thousand Ri / Walt Wanu Waudu』 SR 『Hundred-Arrows Rain Song / Pahal Wanu Waudu』 R 『Rene』 『Tierra As』 『Piska Chuma Bahn』 『Padron Zalfedahl』 『Liz Thebe Lamoitiere』 『Nanashi Gonbe』 Skill Gauge UP (at Start) 100% UP SSR 『The Rampaging Girl of the Lakeshore / Rene』 『Alluring Elf / Pahal Wanu Waudu』 SR 『Summer Love Cat / Piska Chuma Bahn』 『Summer Gourmet / Padron Zalfedahl』 50% UP SSR 『Sniper of a Thousand Ri / Walt Wanu Waudu』 SR 『Hundred-Arrows Rain Song / Pahal Wanu Waudu』 R 『Rene』 『Tierra As』 『Piska Chuma Bahn』 『Padron Zalfedahl』 『Liz Thebe Lamoitiere』 『Nanashi Gonbe』 Attack Power UP 30% UP SSR 『The Rampaging Girl of the Lakeshore / Rene』 『Alluring Elf / Pahal Wanu Waudu』 SR 『Summer Love Cat / Piska Chuma Bahn』 『Summer Gourmet / Padron Zalfedahl』 Drop Rate UP 『Straw Hat Petas Tria』 (R / Accessory) Effect (Fully Unlocked) DEX +50 When equipped by someone with the passive skill "Summer Memories," DEX +60 additionally During the event "What Sleeps in the Lake of Chaos," 【Lakeside Junk】 drop rate +50% 『Safe-Swimming Floatie Balloon』 (SR / Armor) Effect (Fully Unlocked) HP +900, medium damage reduction against "Water" attribute When equipped by someone with the passive skill "Summer Memories," additional reduction to "Water" attribute damage During the event "What Sleeps in the Lake of Chaos," 【Lakeside Trash】 drop rate +50% 『Water-Control Gun Mizude-POW』 (SSR / Weapon) Effect (Fully Unlocked) STR +140, grants "Water" attribute to the user's attacks When equipped by someone with the passive skill "Summer Memories," STR +60 additionally, normal attacks trigger a "Water" attribute "follow-up attack" During the event "What Sleeps in the Lake of Chaos," 【Lakeside Trash】 drop rate +50% 『Treasure-Hunting Twin Blades Dowjin-Gumachine』 (**UR Unique Rare / Weapon) Effect (Fully Unlocked) STR -150 While the wielder is in battle, increases the rare item drop rate for the entire party by 15% During the event "What Sleeps in the Lake of Chaos," 【Lakeside OOPArt】 drop rate +50%

※ Weapons and armor of UR rarity are not obtainable from the gacha.

　They are special equipment available in limited quantities through event exchanges and as rewards for clearing high-difficulty quests.

』

Hell yeah, Tierra-chan has bonuses too!

Though, wait—UR!? I panicked for a second, but it's not "Ultimate." It's "Unique." Whew.

I don't want the highest rarity to keep getting updated and the game to turn into an endless inflation cycle. I'm glad these can be obtained by anyone who puts in the effort during the event.

And wait, a 15% increase to rare item drops!? Isn't that insane!?

Tierra-chan's weapon is a pair of twin swords, too, so it's a perfect fit!

It's hilarious that two L-shaped metal rods called a "dowsing machine" have somehow become "twin swords," but that's "Chaos" for you. I'm starting to get used to it.

『Furthermore, during the second half of the event, several 【Challenge Battles】 will be available, each fought under 【special conditions】. Clearing them will grant rewards, and depending on your results, you can also obtain 【special titles】.』

Ohhh! Challenge Battles! Now that's what I'm talking about!

I'm curious about these 【special conditions】, though. Maybe there are rarity restrictions or something?

By the way, these 【Titles】 are basically a single “string” that you can set in your player profile.

You can obtain them by progressing through the main story or events. Apparently, some can also be unlocked by fulfilling special conditions. From what I hear, some people, especially the攻略 team, are going crazy trying to figure out those conditions.

My current 【Title】 is 【No Boys Allowed】.

Apparently, the condition was to keep clearing quests consecutively using only female characters.

There’s also 【Role Player】.

That one apparently unlocks by clearing a ton of main-story quests while including story-joining characters in your party.

And apparently, I have some rare ones too, like 【Play of Salvation】, 【Overture to the Finale】, 【Dawn's Night Serenade】, and 【Waltz of Nostalgia】.

For some reason, they're all related to “songs,” but I don't know the exact conditions. Even after you unlock one, the game doesn't tell you what the condition was.

『—That concludes the precautions from this unit. Renji, have a wonderful summer.』

And now, summer is finally beginning!

『I'm Tatta! The big brother!』

『And I'm Saho! The little sister!』

Right at the start, the twin siblings show up, and it looks like they're going to make us “swimsuits.”

Feels a little forced, but that's how summer events are supposed to work!

『But, you know, we only have enough materials for—』

『Six swimsuits! That's all!』

What!? Then prioritize the girls and exclude me and the other guys!

Ladies first!

Or so I thought...

『I'm not very good at swimming.』

Why!?

You can still wear a swimsuit even if you can't swim!

If there's some special circumstance, then sure, we can't force him, but I can definitely smell the management's intentions here.

Tanaka! What's the meaning of this!?

『Hehe, actually, I have a summer outfit too. A special outfit that's both beautiful and cute. There isn't only one way to enjoy summer. I'll show you another way, so look forward to it.』

Sorry, I take it back! Thank you, Tanaka!

Seriously, I respect you!

Could this mean there'll be a second gacha banner in the second half of the event...?

Wait, come to think of it, they did mention something about “standing illustrations” during the official livestream.

So it's just a standing illustration, with no actual implementation?

What a shame...

But!

I'll take it as setup for next year! I'm looking forward to it, Tanaka!

『Suggestion. Tierra should simply remove her underwear.』

『What the hell are you saying, you perverted AI? I'll sink you into the lake.』

Wha!?

The moment everyone leaves to make the swimsuits, Tetoma starts sexually harassing her!?

What the hell are you saying!?

If Tierra isn't going to do it, I'll be the one to sink you...!

The conversation continues for a while, until Nanashi returns from scouting and joins them.

『Tierra-dono, Tetoma-dono. I have returned.』

『Oh, Nanashi-kun. Welcome back. Would you like some dinner? A bath? Or perhaps...?』

Hey, Nanashi, switch places with me!

Can we replay that voice line later!? I wanna listen to it on loop!

『Nanashi-kun, those twins are “Spirits”... and not just any Spirits. They're ancient “Conceptual Spirits” that have lived for an extraordinarily long time.』

『Is that truly so!? I had heard that “Spirits” possessing unique and powerful abilities give off such an unusual presence that they can be identified at a glance.』

So basically, Tatta and Saho are shotas with the souls of old men and lolis with the souls of old women...?

『Nanashi-kun. You shouldn't easily trust anything related to Spirits.』

『What do you mean...? Spirits are beings who devote their entire existence to the mission ordained by the world. I am not a follower of the Spirit Faith, but I hold great respect for their way of life.』

『“Spirits” aren't sacrificing themselves for their missions. It's the opposite. The mission itself is trapped within the shape of a human. To put it more simply, a “Spirit” is a mission that walks around in physical form.』

『A mission that walks around... you say?』

『They are fundamentally different from humans. Completely different creatures that merely happen to share the same shape... Trying to seek mutual understanding is pointless.』

Hmm...?

The theory people had been speculating that Tierra and the Spirits might be connected somehow...

Maybe it's not a particularly positive connection after all.

『Question. Are Renji and the others not in danger while accompanied by the twin Spirits?』

『That's true... There shouldn't be any “danger” like the kind Tetoma is worried about. Those twins probably govern concepts such as “clothing,” “sewing,” and “dyeing,” so I can't imagine Renji-kun and the others getting injured.』

『Judging from the way you phrased that, there is another kind of “danger”?』

『Well, I'm not sure whether we can really call it danger...』

WHOA!?

Tierra's standing illustration changed...!?

Glasses + pointer + book!

That's a female teacher!

The devs really know what they're doing!

So this is the new standing illustration!

But it's a little different from the “summer outfit” she mentioned earlier.

It's not like she's going to hold summer lessons or something...

Could there be another one!?

...Wait, the book she's holding is a recipe book.

Tierra really does have her airheaded moments.

『Ahem. Tetoma, Nanashi-kun. What do you think about the concept of “clothing”?』

Tierra-sensei's lesson!

I've gotta pay close attention to this one!

『We swim because it's fun. We dress up because it's fun. Therefore, “summer swimsuits” exist from beginning to end for the purpose of “having fun.”』

『And Spirits are concepts themselves. Naturally, the “clothing” created by a Conceptual Spirit of “clothing” is different from ordinary “clothing.” It becomes “clothing” that has taken the concept itself to its absolute limit.』

Ah, I see where this is going.

So that's why those swimsuit characters were going completely wild...

『A swimsuit that has perfected the concept of “enjoying summer swimsuits”... I wonder what would happen if someone actually wore such a thing?』

---

『Blue skies! White clouds! The blazing sun!』

『It's summer! It's the sea! It's swimming timeeeee!!』

『Meow. Summer is the season of competition. Summer cats never let their prey escape, nya. I'll make them fall head over heels for me, nya.』

『It's summerrrr! I'm gonna enjoy it with everything I've got! ...For now, I just have to do this “reverse pickup,” right!?』

...And that's how it went.

Just as expected, everyone completely went wild.

Piska-chan and Pahal-chan were charging full speed ahead in some seriously weird directions...

After that, Rene went and blasted a giant hole in the lake, then carved out a crater while smashing the watermelon. They were really doing whatever the hell they wanted.

Come to think of it, it's almost watermelon-smashing season in real life too. Every year, I smash watermelons with Ryuto and Sorane-chan... and, as a genuine afterthought, I invite that Tansawa guy too. It just doesn't feel like summer without it.

...But this is the summer event right now.

Piska-chan kept trying to make moves whenever she got the chance, only to spectacularly strike out every single time. Sorry, but it was hilarious.

And then there was Liz-chan, who refused to abandon her celebrity-beach style no matter what; Padron, who even did food commentary during the barbecue; Nanashi, who was permanently stuck at maximum hype; and Pahal-chan, who went full idiot mode.

They all had me laughing.

This kind of fun really feels like a proper summer event. It's the best!

It's a shame Tierra-chan isn't participating, though...

Apparently, she's sticking to the role of backstage support. There was a side scenario where we got to see her perspective while she talked with Walt, but that's about it.

She did say to look forward to the night, though, so I'll just wait for that!

In between all that, I kept farming quests and collecting parts.

We beat event-exclusive enemies like the hermit crab 【Junk Paguro】, which uses all kinds of collected parts as its shell; the bizarre crab 【Scrap Crab】, whose entire body is made of metal for some reason; and the turtle 【Antique Turtle】, which has an antique attached to its shell.

The three of them basically drop items with 【Junk】, 【Scrap】, and 【Antique】 in their names, but apparently, there's also a very small chance of getting 【Lakeside OOPArt】.

The event-exclusive UR weapon 【Treasure-Hunting Twin Swords Dowjin-Gmachine】.

To 【Fully Unlock】 it, you need to collect four copies and 【Alchemy】 them together.

You can exchange two 【Lakeside OOPArts】 for one copy, with a maximum of four exchanges.

On the first day of the event, I've only gotten one OOPArt so far.

There are tons of other rare items I want to exchange for too, so I'm gonna have to work hard.

And so, after playing the event for a while, the event story finally reached the night of Day One.

After finishing dinner, Tierra-chan calls me over.

Is this a confession!?

...Wait.

I doubt they'd put something that important in an event story, so probably not.

『It's a beautiful night.』

『This is called a “yukata.” It's cool and perfect for summer.』

She's wearing a yukata!?

This is the best!

She looks so elegant and beautiful!

Wait, is this just a standing illustration too?

There's no skin in the shop either, and it doesn't look like it'll be implemented in the second half of the summer event.

Seriously!?

『Mmm. When a girl wears an outfit that's different from her usual one, you're supposed to say something about it, you know...? Or does it not suit me?』

“Mmm.”

What a cute little word to use!

Oh, there's a choice.

【I don't think I can express it properly】

→【Praise her with everything I've got】

【Let's show everyone else as soon as possible】

Obviously, 【Praise her with everything I've got】!

A girl is wearing a brand-new outfit, for crying out loud!

And 【Let's show everyone else as soon as possible】 doesn't even make any sense!

『...Hehe. Is that so? Thank you. Clothes like this are at their most beautiful right after you put them on.』

『What does that... mean?』

Seriously!?

He's dense as hell!

There's only one possible meaning to that!

And wow, Tierra-chan actually seems to have feelings for him too!

『You're so dense... Well, it doesn't matter. This is something like a lingering attachment.』

『My... The feelings of someone who has already died, residing within me. I thought I'd perform a memorial for them.』

『Everything about them is fabricated. Fake. Feelings that can never have any meaning fulfilled. Wouldn't it be more accurate to describe such emotions as dead?』

What is this...?

It feels like they're having a conversation that isn't meant to be understood.

If she's carrying something like that, I'd like to help, but...

If it's something she doesn't want to talk about, I don't think I should force her to.

『I'm sorry for calling you here. ...Now, let's go back to everyone. I have a promise to keep with Rene, after all. The kind of entertainment that's unique to a summer night is pretty amazing. Please look forward to it.』

When you say “summer night,” you mean that, right?

If my guess is correct, then it's summer + night + yukata + that thing...

That's an unbeatable combination!

『Mama, pretty. I want to wear one too.』

『How many times do I have to tell you, I'm not Mama...? I'm sorry, but there's only one of these. And even if you wore it, the size...』

『No. Not that. I want to wear it together. Matching.』

『Rene... You're right. Let's wear matching ones together someday.』

『Yeah. Promise.』

The relationship between these two is kind of emotional, huh?

It's the sort of thing that warms your heart just watching them.

Tiera-Rene? Rene-Tiera?

No, it doesn't really feel like a romantic pairing.

“Duo” feels closer, maybe?

Though both “pairing” and “duo” can end up being written similarly in Japanese fandom terminology, so it gets pretty confusing.

Well, I'm sure someone with better naming sense will eventually come up with a nice term for Tierra and Rene's duo.

Probably.

『Oh, right, Rene. Speaking of promises. Let's keep the promise we made during the day.』

『The special surprise, right?』

『Yes. A kind of entertainment that's unique to a summer night. Let's set off some fireworks.』

Hell yeah! Fireworks!

There's definitely going to be an illustration for this!

I've got my screenshot button ready!

Let's immediately move on to the next scenario...

『This scenario has not been unlocked. It will be unlocked on July 14 at 18:00.』

WHAAAAAAAAAT!?