Chapter 28
Future Goals!
Capturing the Dungeon and earning money is fine and all, but
deciding on a concrete goal is important, too. I must act with a proper sense
of purpose.
For now, it's that. To contact Onee-san and people I'll meet in
the future, and also to easily check the Hunter Rankings, I want a
smartphone. As a civilized person, I'd like to at least have an information
terminal in this day and age. Naturally.
But to buy a smartphone and sign a communications contract, ridiculously
enough, I need an address. In other words, I have to rent a room first. It's
out of the question otherwise!
Aiming to graduate from having no fixed address will be my first step.
And since I've found out I can earn a decent amount through Dungeon
attacks, I have no intention of making a shabby apartment my residence. I want
to live somewhere nice.
You know, like a tower mansion. If I'm going to do it, I want to live in
a place that's easy to understand, a symbol of the nouveau riche. And I don't
want to rent it, I want to buy it. Boom, just like that. I don't know how much
it costs, though.
And a loan? Sounds like a pain, you know. I want to buy it in one go
with a bam. I'll stuff my bag full of wads of cash, slam it down on the
desk, and buy it in high spirits. The image of the cool me doing that is
floating in my mind right now. I just have to do it. If I'm going to do it, I
won't half-ass it.
「I, Nagakura
Aoi, will buy the number one tower mansion in Higashi-Nakano!」
From the rock bottom to the top. A concrete goal has been set. This
gives me motivation to labor.
Dashing through to the Fifth Floor, I immediately get fired up
for monster extermination. The ones here are Skeleton Warriors, so the
appearing monsters are almost the same as the Kagurazaka Dungeon. Over
there, everything from the First to the Fourth Floor was Skeleton
Warriors, so I think the ones on the Fifth Floor here are slightly
stronger versions.
However, I want money, but it's all for nothing if I die. I hate getting
injured, so even though I'm fully fired up, let's proceed cautiously at first.
With my back to the stairs going up, I walked a little, turned a corner, and
discovered a monster in the distance.
「Oho, this is
a pretty nice situation. Maybe I'll try out that new equipment.」
Distance-wise, this is a chance to try it out. I re-checked the
equipment that seemed capable of long-range attacks with my appraisal monocle.
■ Ring of the Strong Bow's Sacred Arrow: Attack Augmentation. A
ring that fires magical arrows.
Alright, let's try using this guy. Pointing the hand wearing the ring at
the monster, I muttered an incantation in my mind. An arrow of light appeared
and flew off at incredible speed.
But alas. My aim was apparently too loose, and the arrow of light
pierced the wall and vanished well before reaching the monster. It seems
there's no convenient aim-assist correction.
Due to the impact of smashing the wall with a bam, the Skeleton
Warrior noticed me. Clattering its bones, Skeleton Warrior-kun came
running. Furthermore, a fresh monster arrived from behind it too.
It'll be easier to hit if the distance is closer, right. For now, I'll
try a little more. I repeatedly produced arrows of light and continued my
attacks. But my aim is bad, and I only end up destroying the walls, floor, and
ceiling; they won't fly straight at all.
And perhaps as the price of using the arrows of light, my mental fatigue
is immense. I guess this is the spirit consumption that occurs when using
magic. I haven't even earned anything yet, so this is no good. I'll stop firing
uselessly.
「Isn't
hitting things from a distance insanely hard?」
I had never thought about it, but the people who attack with magic from
a distance are amazing. They sure can hit their targets.
The Skeleton Warrior's movements aren't particularly fast. It's
running towards me over a visually estimated distance of about fifty meters at
about the same speed a normal person would run. Even if its movements are slow,
its appearance makes up for it with power. The documents said it was an average
human-sized white human skeleton holding weapons like a sword and a shield.
However, that thing is about two sizes larger than I imagined, a Skeleton
Warrior that feels heavily built. Furthermore, its color isn't white, but
somewhat silver. Its sword and shield look splendid, too. As expected of an 『Ultra Hard
Mode』 Dungeon.
Up to the Fourth Floor right above was an easy win. Even on this Fifth
Floor, the performance of my skills and equipment will probably still pass
muster. Let's test that out.
The Skeleton Warrior that arrived up close swung its sword up
with great intensity. To counter that, the skill 『Rock-hard Armor』 which can
deploy a transparent shield with an angular feel. Let's observe its attack just
once. I readied my hammer, preparing so that I could block with it or jump back
to evade if push came to shove.
I leaned my body away from the sword's trajectory and watched how things
played out while even readying my hammer, but Mr. 『Rock-hard Armor』 perfectly
blocked the Skeleton Warrior's slash. From the fierce sound of the
clash, I could imagine it was an incredible attack. But my defense skill didn't
budge an inch. Furthermore, Skeleton Warrior-kun's sword was heavily
repelled, and the monster lost its balance, leaving itself full of openings.
「Gotcha!」
Erasing the shield, I closed in and delivered a blow to its chest with a
thud. My reliable hammer crisp-and-cleanly smashed its thick silver
bones. I didn't know where a skeleton's vitals were, but perhaps it couldn't
withstand the destruction around its chest area; it instantly turned into
particles of light and vanished.
「Alright,
easy win!」
The large-built Skeleton Warrior-kun has an amazing presence and
attack intensity, but its movements are slow and easy to deal with. Its attack
power probably isn't as much as it looks, either. At least for me. As long as I
don't get surrounded, there doesn't even seem to be a need to activate 『Rock-hard
Armor』. It seems I
still have plenty of leeway on this floor. I'm going to earn heavily today,
too.
Having a concrete goal increases my motivation. I hunted Skeleton
Warrior-kuns like crazy for over six hours, taking breaks in between.
When I checked my status, my level had gone up, and moreover, I ended up
noticing that the experience points I get from defeating monsters on this Fifth
Floor are only about 3. I should probably proceed to the next floor. In
fact, it might be fine to aim for the floor after next, the Seventh Floor,
in one go. I'll just try it a bit and go back if it seems too tough.
\
■ Memories of the Star Soul
Name: Nagakura Aoi Scarlet
Level: 8 (Experience required for level up: 1,169)
Class: —
Vitality: 13 (+640)
Spirit: 13 (+720)
Attack: 13 (+800)
Defense: 13 (+640)
Magic: 13 (+680)
Resistance: 13 (+600)
Destiny Power: 529 Skill:
·
『Ultra Hard Mode』 (Imposes trials. Increases Dungeon
difficulty, increases reward acquisition rate according to difficulty, growth
rate changes proportional to difficulty)
·
『Solo Dungeon』 (Allows entry into an exclusive Dungeon)
·
『Martial Soul Resonance』 (Equipment binds with the user and
grows according to level)
·
『Poison Attack』 (Inflicts poison damage upon
attacking)
·
『Star Thread Spinning』 (Visualizes details of the Star
Soul Crest)
·
『Status Ailment Resistance』 (Grants resistance against status
ailments)
·
『Rock-hard Armor』 (Summons a Rock-harding shield)
·
『Twinkling Hammer』 (A twinkling hammer performs an
additional attack)
Class Skill: —
Blessing:
·
Blessing of Benzaiten (Increases Charm,
Artistic Ability, and Financial Fortune. Proof of being acknowledged by Benzaiten
for solo subjugating the Five-Headed Dragon)
·
Blessing of the Yakubyogami (Returns calamities
and imparts bad causes and bad results. Proof of being acknowledged by the Yakubyogami
for solo subjugating the Smallpox Evil God)
I learned a new skill again. The new skill 『Twinkling Hammer』 was a
strong skill where a twinkling phantom hammer performs an additional attack
when I attack. Right now, thanks to my reliable hammer, I didn't particularly
need an attack power boost, but looking ahead to the future, I feel grateful
for the addition of a strong skill.
「Phew, guess
that's about it for today.」
Physically I can still keep going, but I'm running out of concentration.
It would be the worst if I got injured due to a careless mistake, so let's call
it a day here.
Ah, I just suddenly remembered, but maybe I should have used that Book
of Awakening after all. I actually have pretty good luck when it comes to
skills, you know. Maybe I should have just done it~! Ahh!
======================================
・Nagakura Aoi Scarlet, Current Equipment
■ Blood-Severing Soul Smasher: Vitality Augmentation, Attack
Augmentation, Magic Augmentation, Skill Power Augmentation. A hammer that
smashes the soul and steals vitality.
■ Blood-Wind Demon Fire Boots: Vitality Augmentation, Defense
Augmentation, Resistance Augmentation. Long boots that shatter the soul and
steal spirit when stepping on the target.
■ Star-Reading Pilgrim Clothes: Spirit Augmentation, Defense
Augmentation, Magic Augmentation, Resistance Augmentation. A uniform that
receives the guidance of the stars. ■ Ring of Seoritsuhime: Spirit
Augmentation, Attack Augmentation. A ring of the War God that improves combat
techniques.
■ Necklace of the Dark Clock: Spirit Augmentation. A bolo tie that
augments poison attacks.
■ Bracelet of the Sun: Vitality Augmentation. An armlet that shines
light. ■ Unicorn Ring: Vitality Augmentation. A ring that grants the power to
shatter evil souls.
■ Ring of the Strong Bow's Sacred Arrow: Attack Augmentation. A ring that fires magical arrows.