Surviving These Unfair Scenarios [LITRPG - DIMENSION HOPPING]

The pressure from the [Silver Tongue] skill did not stop, and Kazue, Emir, Gregor, the Empress in Adam's body, and Chloe had all fallen to their knees on the ground as the strange Nikolai had ordered. Drake, however, had resisted and was still slightly bent, as if he were enduring a massive increase in gravity around him. He gritted his teeth, his muscles trembling with the effort.

"How is this possible?"

Drake managed to say, his voice strained.

"You're supposed to be dead..."

However, he didn't wait for a response, and he laughed softly, still struggling not to kneel.

"Of course. You're not really Nikolai. You're just some illusion or mental skill from the other team."

Nikolai sighed, a tired expression on his face.

"I don't know what you mean by 'I'm dead'."

He said, looking around.

"The last time I checked in the mirror, I was still myself, and it has never lied to me before, so I don't see how I can be someone else."

He then looked at the rest of the group.

"But it's clear this is not the time to be talking, huh? …"

He looked at the two team members who had not been affected by his skill: Sebastian, who had his hands behind his back and was looking at him with a tranquil expression, and Katya, who was still standing with the white mask covering her face.

"Two Rank A users?"

Nikolai muttered to himself, his voice laced with nervousness.

"This isn't good. Li said he didn't feel any powerful presence here; that's why I insisted on coming alone, damn it."

It was clear he had not expected his skill to fail in that way.

The skill [Silver Tongue] worked on users who had a potential rank lower than his, had a lesser effect on those who had the same rank, and had no effect on those who had a higher rank. Therefore, Nikolai assumed that Katya and Sebastian were Rank A potential users, since his own rank was B, just like Drake's. This was not true; the real reason they had been able to resist his attack, despite Katya being Rank C and Sebastian being Rank B, was because of the goddess's mask fused to the girl and the new race of the old man, which was already beginning to show its effects. But this was something Nikolai didn't know.

Drake, noticing his nervousness, began to talk again.

"We don't have any information about your team… This collab was a complete surprise. If you really are who you say you are, then you won't be attacked, and we can talk."

Nikolai's cold sweat was at least a little relieved by Drake's words. He was about to say that he agreed to that for now when, before anyone could react, the blade of Katya's living scythe, now a swirling mass of black and crimson energy, was already at his neck.

"Eh?"

It was the only thing he could muster before he was decapitated cleanly in a single, devastating movement. His head, with a look of utter shock and bewilderment, fell to the ground. The effect of the [Silver Tongue] skill ended immediately, and everyone regained control of their bodies, a collective gasp of air escaping their lungs as the immense pressure vanished.

The mask hid Katya's face, but the raw, unfiltered fury in her stance was palpable.

"I don't care who you are!"

She screamed, her voice a low, chilling growl that was filled with pure rage.

"But I will not forgive anyone who forces Kazue to kneel like that!"

Drake's face was a mask of horror as he saw what had happened. He was about to yell at Katya, but a system screen appeared in front of them.

Following this, Nikolai's lifeless body got up with a jump and took some distance. His severed head flew quickly through the air as if something had launched it, and to everyone's surprise, it reattached itself to his neck with a sickening click.

"Nope, nope, nope."

Nikolai said, his voice now a single, panicked whisper. He began to run away, his eyes wide with a mix of shock and pure fear as he looked at the masked Katya and her dripping scythe.

"It's best to retreat until the others arrive."

Drake, however, immediately took action, his horror turning into a fierce determination.

"Don't let him escape!"

He shouted, and he and Katya both launched themselves toward the fugitive. Incredibly, Nikolai was incredibly fast and agile, even more so than Drake, who was using his [Heavenly Wind Step] skill, a technique of instant movement. Nikolai was like a shadow, weaving through the ruins with a speed that defied logic. He dodged the blond's lunges by a hair's breadth, using the rubble and broken walls of the ruined town to his advantage. He would duck behind a fallen pillar one moment, only to appear on top of a crumbling wall the next.

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"I'm flattered, but getting all touchy-feely with another guy isn't really my thing."

Nikolai said, mocking him. Drake lunged again in a flash, but the long-haired guy effortlessly dodged him, both moving beyond what a normal human eye could see, leaving him to crash into a pile of rubble. After a final, impossible dodge, Nikolai jumped and remained in the air for a moment, just long enough for Katya to jump as well and end up in front of him with her scythe extended

"Oh, come on..."

He said, moments before Katya struck him in the face with the blunt side of her weapon. The impact was so strong that it launched him to the ground, a moment that Drake took advantage of to finally grab him with both arms and prevent him from escaping.

Nikolai, with a bleeding nose but not a single sound of pain or complaint, joked.

"You know? Being hugged like this by a guy who looks like my team leader feels so weird."

This confused Drake for a brief moment.

"What?"

And, without wanting to, he loosened his grip slightly, a moment that Nikolai took advantage of to land an uppercut elbow straight to Drake's jaw and free himself. Taking a few steps away and standing up again.

"Okay, it's clear I can't be cheap on resources here. I'm out."

But before he could activate another skill, a set of translucent red chains began to wrap around him, and they dug into the ground before disappearing. Nikolai did not know what had happened until a system notification appeared in front of him.

He turned to see where it had come from and saw the rest of the group approaching, especially Kazue, who was now riding her great white tiger, Kurayami. She had a huge, square shield on top of her, with a golden dragon head ornament in the center. The shield was roaring, and it was clear that the skill that had sealed his abilities had emerged from it.

As everyone arrived, with Adam's body now being carried by Gregor. Nikolai simply sighed and raised his hands, smiling nervously.

"Okay, I give up."

He said with a nervous smile. Drake was still rubbing his jaw from the blow, and Katya, who was beside him, lightly smacked him on the head for letting him go so carelessly.

"Sorry…"

Drake said, a little embarrassed to have made such a basic mistake. Meanwhile, Kazue was very happy with the outcome.

"Oof… It's a good thing I forgot to give Adam back his shield after the last scenario."

She said from on top of Kurayami. As they all surrounded Nikolai, they began to wonder what to do. The guy, meanwhile, stared at Kazue's shield, noticing something strange about it, as if he recognized it from somewhere.

"Hey, Kazue-wanabee, is that a 'Dragon's Pride Aegis'?"

Kazue was offended by the way he was calling her, but still racked her memory to answer.

"I think so. How did you know?"

Her words made Drake, Li, and Sebastian fall silent. Nikolai asked in surprise.

"Huh… By any chance, were you in the 'Steam and Steel' scenario?"

Everyone looked at each other in confusion, but only Kazue, Drake, Li, and Sebastian understood the implication of those words, as they were the ones who had been in that scenario with the Nikolai of their own timeline.

"Yes, that's where we got that shield and some other things. How did you know about that scenario?"

Kazue asked, her voice full of confusion. Nikolai sighed, a thoughtful expression on his face.

"It's a coincidence that's so extraordinary it shouldn't even be possible… Two teams being in the same scenario is one thing, but for both to have been in the same scenario at different times so close to each other, it's unheard of... But you guys don't seem to be lying to me."

He said, shaking his head. Something was very strange here… Drake approached him after a little while.

"Do you know 'Stratos Technology'?"

Drake asked.

"Kinda… A little. never been there, though."

Nikolai replied vaguely, making Li approach him instead.

"Hey, do you know who the heads of that company were?"

But instead of answering, Nikolai looked at Li and frowned.

"You guys are copying it all wrong."

He said, his voice laced with a playful contempt. No one understood what he meant, but Nikolai didn't seem to care. He looked at Li, a smirk on his face.

"The real Li didn't have a robotic eye, so the skill you're using to disguise yourselves is clearly not working well."

Li lost his patience and, with a furious cry, launched a punch at Nikolai's face, a blow that the boy did not even bother to dodge. He simply let the hit land and stumbled back a few steps, a small trickle of blood coming from his lip. He laughed a little as he reoriented himself and made another provocative joke.

"Well, that was rude. At least buy me dinner first."

He knew the condition he was in, but for some reason, he didn't care about pissing off his captors… It was just the way he was.

However, before Li could hit him again, Falk flew from Sebastian's shoulder and placed himself in front of the boy. He modulated his voice to sound exactly like his son Thaddeus's and asked Nikolai.

"Does the head of 'Stratos Technology' have this voice?"

Nikolai listened to the question and said.

"You guys are trying too hard. That is a clear bad copy of the voice of..."

He stopped before finishing his sentence, examining the mechanical bird intently.

"Wait... old man Isaac?"

But just at that moment, a massive tornado, a vortex of wind and dust, rushed over everyone's heads, right where Nikolai was. It was so strong that Emir, Chloe, and Li were sent rolling backward from the force of the wind, their bodies tumbling over the rubble. Kazue, however, clung tightly to her great white tiger, who dug his massive claws into the ground to stay firm. Gregor, using his superhuman strength, managed to hold on to the possessed Adam and the hair of Kurayami to avoid being dragged away.

Drake, with his muscles straining, stood his ground, covering his face with his arm to shield himself from the debris, while Katya and Sebastian were also able to maintain their positions without much difficulty.

The tornado disappeared as quickly as it had arrived, and in its wake, the air was still and silent. Beside Nikolai, who was still staring blankly at Falk in his palms, two more people appeared as if from nowhere. One of them was a blond boy with a lean and athletic build and a pair of big glasses. He had a sword in his right hand, and his eyes, a piercing shade of green, were fixed on the group.

The other was... Kazue, another Kazue. She was exactly the same as the girl in the group, with the same bright brown hair and small frame, but this one had a completely serious and unfriendly expression, a stark contrast to the cheerful girl on top of Kurayami.

"It is uncharacteristic of you to let yourself be captured like that."

The new Kazue said in a dry, emotionless voice. She then looked at the rest of the group, her eyes a cold, unforgiving shade of amber. All the other members of 'No Name' watched what was happening, their minds reeling in shock, especially their Kazue, who looked at her doppelgänger in utter disbelief, her mouth agape in a silent scream.