Can a Mob Highschooler be a Normie: Chapter 93

 

Mob Kousei No Ore Demo Boukensha Ni Nareba Riajuu Ni Naremasuka: Chapter #93

Translators: Nyx and Ririi Rain

 

 

 

Episode 93: Hyacinth

　

 

 

"We've made good progress so far, haven't we?"

 

　Anna said as she sat down on a chair in the classroom with a thud.

 

　It was completely dark outside from the classroom window.

 

　It was eight o'clock at night. Having accomplished our goal of reaching the E-rank floor and collecting all the Carbuncle Garnets along the way, we decided to call it a day and head back to the surface.

 

"But it was harder than expected. The changes in the environment and the effects of the field were very tough."

 

　Although we did not have a hard time against the enemies on the way because we were on the low floors, what stood in our way were the sudden changes in the environment and the field effects that seemed to be harassing us.

 

　A desert under a blazing sun, a snowy mountain in a blizzard, a dense forest in heavy rain, a limestone cave with freezing air, a volcano with flowing lava, and a graveyard at night.......

 

　Measures were taken with various magic items, such as a Salamander cloak for the heat, Eskimo bear fur for the cold, and a rune amulet borrowed from Anna to ward off storms for the wind and rain, but... with the temperature differences and day and night changing so drastically with each floor, my stamina was being sapped away at a frightening rate.

 

　Of course, I had used magic to recover my physical stamina as I advanced, but my autonomic nervous system was going haywire, or rather, my psyche was being drained.

 

　I found that on each floor, a heaviness that could not be removed by magic gradually built up.

 

　The field effects spurred this, and while I had no problem with enemy buffs because the enemies were still small fry, I was overwhelmed by things like skill seals, the inability to summon certain attributes... things that restricted our abilities and cards were a real pain.

 

　Especially concerning skill sealing, we could not use [Clairvoyance] or [Trap Disarming], so I was forced to explore the dungeon blindly for the first time since the two-star promotion exam.

 

　Proceeding while being wary of unknown traps was quite mentally draining, and it made me realize just how much I had relied on Eliza to conquer the dungeon.

 

“Speaking of things that were harder than expected, the Carbuncles were particularly difficult to find. I didn't think it would take this long to find them......."

 

"That's true..."

 

　We sighed deeply at the same time.

 

　The dungeon raid began early in the morning and lasted for over 15 hours, but the biggest reason it took so long was the search for Carbuncles on each floor.

 

　After reaching the E-rank floor, I joined the search, but even though it had already been nearly 10 hours since the start of the expedition, they had only collected four Garnets by the time I joined.

 

　On the way, Oribe realized that if I used my Kimaris' powers, I could find the location of the hidden treasure... in other words, where Carbuncle was. If she hadn't realized this, we might not have been able to collect all the Garnets by the end of the day.

 

"But if it's like this, there is little merit in having Senpai go ahead of us. After all, it will take a long time to find Carbuncle without Senpai."

 

“Hmm. Or I could leave Kimaris in the hands of the Garnet collector."

 

　At my suggestion, Anna folded her arms with a troubled look for a few seconds...

 

"...... No, I don't think that's a good idea. Even if we're on the same team, lending and borrowing cards can cause trouble."

 

　...... Indeed. The biggest factor in the breakup of Tanaka-san's team, the man with the hook nose, was also the loss of borrowed cards.

 

　The misfortune that befell Tanaka-san was not a trivial concern for me, as he had many things in common with me, such as the Hamelin's Flute. ...... Even if the lender is me, it would be safer not to rent or borrow any cards.

 

　Cards should only be rented if you can afford to lose them, or if you can cut ties with them.

 

“If you absolutely need a fellow member's card, you should buy it. We can buy it up as a team and make it a shared property for the whole team. ...If you're okay with paying in installments by increasing the share of the reward, that would be more helpful to us as well."

 

"Ahh..."

 

　Anna looked at me inquiringly, and now I was the one with the troubled look on my face.

 

“Actually, I got an offer regarding Kimaris... with good conditions. But I'm putting it on hold for now because I have some other thoughts."

 

"Oh... it's a prize from the race, and Senpai has become quite famous. I guess it will be a premium item, huh..."

 

　Anna hung her head in disappointment.

 

"I'm sorry, but it's difficult to pay more than the market price if the team is going to buy it outright. However, if our team buys it, Senpai will also have the advantage of retaining the right to use it."

 

"I know."

 

　If I sell it to Tono-san, I can trade it at a higher (premium) price, which is more than the market price, of course.

 

　If I sell to this team, it will be paid in installments and valued at the market price, but in a sense, the advantage is that it will remain in my possession.

 

　I can't use it for rank up or name it, but I can use it if I need it, which is pretty significant. As long as the installment payment is still not completed, I will be given priority to use it for purposes other than the Garnet collection.

 

　And best of all, if I can get the installments paid in Garnets, I can increase my access to the Garnets in a natural way......

 

　I felt like the stock price of Kimaris has unexpectedly soared here.

 

　I'm getting more and more distressed about trading Kimaris.

 

"But it's still a little surprising that Senpai would suggest lending out a card......."

 

"Really?"

 

“Yes, Senpai likes to name cards, and I thought you had a pretty strong feeling about that. After all, Kimaris is a first-rate card, not even a second-rate..."

 

"Ah..."

 

　I see, it's like that huh...

 

“It's true that once I've decided to use the card myself, I'll never lend it to anyone even if I haven't named it yet... I don't use all the cards I get, and if I don't feel comfortable using it or haven't decided whether or not I'm going to use it for real, I may lend it or give it away."

 

　For example, the Nightmare I used during the Students Tournament, or the Fenja and Menja I lent out to Ichijo-san.

 

　There were some cards that I used once because they were excellent in terms of ability, but I let go of them because I didn't feel right using them for a long period of time.

 

　As a master, it was more considerate to let go of such cards in the hope that they would find their way to owners who would take good care of them, rather than keeping them in my possession for a long time without proper use.

 

　In this sense, Kimaris did not give me a strong enough feeling that I wanted to use it at once like Athena and the others, but neither was it so incompatible with me that I would immediately let it go. It felt more like a trial period or part-time job, so to speak.

 

　I guess we'll have to wait and see if Kimaris can become a full-time personnel at our place.

 

"We're back."

 

"We bought dinner."

 

　At that moment, Teacher and Oribe, who had gone to the Dungeon Mart on the rooftop to buy dinner, came back.

 

"Oh~, thank you."

 

"Saknyu. How much was it?"

 

“It's fine, just this much.”

 

"Nn, Anna and I will go shopping next time, then."

 

"Got it."

 

　I returned my wallet and decided to accept the treat gratefully this time.

 

“.................. So, we've decided that starting tomorrow, the whole gang will move together."

 

　The two nodded in agreement as they sipped their cups of yakisoba while Anna told them about what had been decided while they were away.

 

"Understood. Well, there is no longer any advantage to split up."

 

"On the contrary, if we work together, it will be more efficient to conquer the floors where clairvoyant magic cannot be used. In that sense, my suggestion was useless. Sorry."

 

"Well, that's hindsight, so don't worry about it."

 

"Forgive me hyacinth."

 

“Ah, that's not something to apologize for, don't you think? Though I regret not following through...... Oh, well, you really don't have to be sorry. At that time, even Senpai, the owner, didn't realize that Kimaris could be useful in this way."

 

I- it hurts me to be pointed out like that. I bow my head slightly.

 

“Forgive me hyacinth¹."

 

"Is that popular?　I don't know that though."

 

　Oh, Anna doesn't know this? That's unusual considering she knows a lot about manga. Maybe she's not that interested in slice-of-life stories?

 

"Um, whatever. Let's go back to the topic. What we haven't thought much about is about Carbuncle."

 

"Hmm, that's true. When I dived into other secret dungeons, it was not this hard."

 

　True, when I went into a secret dungeon with Teacher to earn experience points, it wasn't this hard to find a Carbuncle.

 

　Well, that's partly because it was an underground-type dungeon.

 

　Since the monsters appear in fixed locations in underground dungeons, they are the easiest dungeons to find Carbuncles. If you search thoroughly, you are assured of finding them again.

 

"... I was thinking, this dungeon is obviously bigger than usual, right?"

 

"I knew it.　I thought so too."

 

“Yea, the higher the rank, the wider the floor becomes......."

 

　Everyone's eyes fell on Teacher.

 

“Un, let’s see. Certainly, the dungeon is quite large compared to other C-rank dungeons. It is probably one of the largest among the C-rank dungeons."

 

“Ah, it really is, huh....."

 

　We drooped with dismay at the confirmation of a professional adventurer.

 

　In addition to the 3 obstacles of random environment, field effects, and roguelike dungeon, the size of the field is another modest obstacle.......

 

"What did you find particularly difficult when Senpai explored the dungeon ahead?"

 

　I answered Oribe's question as I thought back over the day,

 

"I think, the toughest part of the day was the skill sealing floor... It was a pain to not be able to use [Clairvoyance], but more than anything else, it was scary not being able to use [Trap Disarming]. Like the teleporter traps.”

 

　The traps in the dungeon also become more and more vicious as you go up in rank. I have a guardian goddess, Eliza, so I am not usually afraid of traps, but in some ways, dungeon traps are more frightening than the monsters themselves.

 

　Especially from the C-rank, there are teleporter traps.

 

　This trap is not as bad as ‘in a stone wall²' from a certain game, but it is a trap that sends you to someplace in the dungeon completely at random.

 

　If that is all, you may think it is not much of a threat if you have a transference(teleportation)-type magic item, but the trouble with this trap is that it will separate you from the card you are summoning at the time.

 

　Since each floor in the dungeon was basically independent of the next - it was already proven that you could not reach the next floor by digging your way underground - if the master and the summoned card were separated by even a floor, the card would go into a sleep state.

 

　In this state, the master can neither invoke nor return the card, and the summoned monster cannot maintain its materialization. In other words, the card becomes like a ghost, conscious but unable to be seen or touched.

 

　This state was referred to as the 'Stray state' in the adventurer world, and it is necessary to go and retrieve the card to release it from this state.

 

　If a card in a Stray state moves carelessly, it becomes extremely difficult to reunite with the stray card, so basically, the card should stay where it is and the master should go to the stray card to pick it up.

 

　This prevented the master from staying on a safe floor and only dispatching cards to attack the dungeon.

 

　By the way, this was the same reason why it is not possible to stay inside a cross-space type card and only give instructions. Since the inside of a cross-space type is also isolated from the outside, the card outside can become a stray. Therefore, to prevent this, the cross-space type card would be set so that if the master and their card exist separately inside and outside, the space is not blocked and anyone can come and go as they please with visible access.

 

　If I were to fall into a teleporter trap, I would be in a lot of trouble. I would get separated from Eliza as I have her summoned all the time when exploring a dungeon.

 

　The teleporter trap also had the effect of erasing the location information of the transference-type magic item, so even if I manage to make it to a safe zone, I won't be able to immediately reunite with my card.

 

　Since every transference-type magic item can jump to the first floor, it would mean starting over again from there.

 

　Some of the top professional adventurers, however, are said to be strong enough to take advantage of the teleporter traps when they find them on the lower floors to improve the efficiency of their strategies.

 

"Indeed, we must be careful of the teleporter traps. If you are caught in a teleporter trap and it is at the D or higher rank floor, don't hesitate to use the emergency evacuation card. Please value your life.”

 

　Anna said this with a serious face, and we nodded in understanding.

 

　Well, this group should be able to survive on their own for E-rank floors and lower ranks.

 

“And as for the enemies, they were not much of an obstacle because they were F-rank, but if they were D or C-rank enemies, it would be pretty bad. Those guys usually have a lot of skills."

 

“...It seems like the biggest hurdle will be the skill seals. According to the information... there's one within the D-rank floors, three on the C-rank floors... One on the main route, and two on the sub-route."

 

　Three in the C-rank floors, of all places... I frowned.

 

"Teacher, from a professional perspective, are there any other effects that are scary?"

 

“Hmm, any effect in the C-rank floor would be tough, but the effects of 'summoning subordinates', 'immortality', 'presence concealment', and 'two-card summon limit'... I think these are the ones people dislike the most."

 

　Just imagining that every monster on a floor has a summoning ability makes me sick, and the summoning limit of two cards means that it's impossible to conquer it solo.

 

"There's a lot...."

 

Of course, there is more than one in the D-rank or floor or further, Anna said, and everyone sighed at the same time.

 

"Ahh, stop it, stop it!　No more gloomy talk!　And it's not all bad in the C-rank floors...right?"

 

"That's true. Items drop from C-rank floor onwards."

 

　Until the D-rank floors, the monsters in the dungeon only drop cards or magic stones, but from the C-rank floor onwards, they also occasionally drop magic items.

 

　For example, a wyvern will drop a Flying Dragon's Wing Membrane, a salamander will drop a Salamander Cloak, and... Kisshoten will drop Amrita.

 

　You'll be able to obtain items derived from the monster's lore or skills.

 

　Of course, the drop rate of rare items such as Amrita was reasonably low, but common magic items such as high potions and magic cards were said to drop at a decent rate.

 

　This was why there was an insurmountable income gap between professionals and amateurs and one of the reasons why semi-professionals were willing to take risks to become professionals.

 

　To be honest, the income from dropped cards isn't that great.

 

　Certainly, the Guild will buy cards at 50% to 80% of the market price from the C-rank card, and the reward for breaking through the dungeon is more than three times that of the D-rank dungeon... so at first glance, the earnings from the C-rank dungeon seem tasty.

 

　However, the drop rate of C-rank cards was only 0.1%. In fact, the probability is that only one card will drop after 1,000 monsters have been defeated.

 

　No matter how high the purchase price of C-rank cards may be, it is not a number that can be used as a pillar of income.

 

　In fact... considering the field effects and the easiness of defeating monsters, it was said that defeating five or more D-rank monsters is better in terms of 'hunting efficiency per hour' than defeating a single C-rank monster.

 

　As for the magic stones dropped by monsters, the stronger the monster, the bigger the stone, but their selling price doesn't necessarily increase with rank."

 

　In other words, if you only consider the cards and the magic stones dropped, the C-rank dungeon was not a very tasty place to earn money.

 

　---- However, the story changed when magic item drops were involved.

 

　The probability that a monster will drop a magic item depended on the monster, but it was not low by any means, at about 10%.

 

　The items that the monsters drop do not contain jackpots that exceed their rank like disappointment boxes, but they also do not yield big misses, either. A minimum level of quality was guaranteed.

 

　In other words, unlike before, the more monsters you fight, the more profit you get.

 

　This was a great change from the D-rank floors, where there was basically no benefit to fighting monsters unless you were after cards or experience points.

 

　Since the discovery of [Spiritual recurrence], items that were once worth little now have a value, and I could only look forward to it.

 

 

 

***

 Notes:

1  Decided to put the note here so you can be confused first, hehe. This is a gag/joke from Nichijou. People say it may be a nonsense joke cause the ‘hyacinth’ has no relation whatsoever in the conversation. But some people found out that purple has the meaning of ‘please forgive me’. So “forgive me hyacinth” can also be seen as saying “really, REALLY sorry” still in a joking tone ^↩

2  From the game ‘Wizardry’. The spell 'Marol' allows you to teleport to a specified relative coordinate. If you input the coordinates incorrectly and materialize inside a wall, you will be ‘in a stone wall’. When you defeat an enemy, a treasure chest sometimes appears. Most treasure chests are trapped. One such trap is a teleporter that randomly teleports your party to a new location. If you accidentally trigger this and end up inside a wall, you'll be 'in a stone wall'. And 'in a stone wall' will result in Lost! (Lost: Your character is completely gone and cannot be revived. You can only delete the character from your saved data.) In Wizardry, unless you cheat, you only have one save file. No matter how much you love a character, if they're Lost, they're GONE FOREVER. ^↩

 

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