Chapter 61
The Status Check
Chapter
I had Madoka and Tsubaki defeat a Skeleton-kun one
more time, and I think we got a good enough feel that we can definitely do
this. Yeah, if we get used to it, we can manage even in 『Ultra Hard Mode』.
With that, we decided to discuss our future plans. Following Stray
Bandit and Rock-Bottom Fallen Idol, it seems Tsubaki's Class
is Sheltered Grudge Shrine Maiden.
They're all Classes with terrible names, but I feel like we make
a pretty well-matched party.
I excel at close combat, Madoka's shotgun is probably good for
close to mid-range, and Tsubaki is suited for long-range combat. We can
cover every distance, and dealing with numbers looks like it will be much
easier than when I was alone.
We're pretty good with just the three of us, but if we add more
companions by expanding each of our favored ranges, I think it'll be even
better. Other than that, maybe we'd want a versatile support member. We talked
about things like that.
「You both
have attack power, so if we're going to level up anyway, wanna try going to a
deeper floor? We can earn money too.」
「If it looks
fine from your perspective, Aoi, I'm okay with it. But if the monsters
are too fast, it might be hard for me to land my shots.」
Long-range attacks depend on accuracy, huh. Even for me, my throwing axe
doesn't hit at all against single monsters.
「True. I've
been down to the Twentieth Floor, but I don't think their speed changes
that much. Not so sure about their defense, though. Anyway, let's just give it
a try.」
「...Madoka-onee,
Aoi-anehan.」
Just as we were about to move toward the transfer circle, Tsubaki
stopped us. She was looking at a black card—her ID card.
「Oh, did you
level up by any chance?」
Tsubaki was Level 12, so is she 13? I'm 17, so the gap has
shrunk to 4 levels.
「...No. My
skill... was enhanced. Look.」
「Enhanced?
Seriously?」
■ Memories of the Star Soul
Name: Kujo Tsubaki
Level: 12
Class: Sheltered Grudge Shrine Maiden
Vitality: 28
Spirit: 152
Attack: 22
Defense: 19
Magic: 165
Resistance: 104
Skill: 『Talisman』 / 『Curse from
the Inner Chambers』 / 『Great Source
of Magic Power I』 / 『Curse
Reversal』
Class Skill: 『Puppet Ritual』 / 『Barrier of Modesty』
Blessing: —
Peeking over to see what was up, her skill 『Source of Magic Power I』 had changed
to 『Great Source
of Magic Power I』. Just from
casually defeating that Ashigaru-type Skeleton-kun, and without even
leveling up. So things like that can happen, huh.
「What about
you, Madoka-onee? Was your skill enhanced?」
「Me too? No
way.」
This time, we all peeked at Madoka's ID card.
■ Memories of the Star Soul
Name: Kujo Madoka
Level: 10
Class: Rock-Bottom Fallen Idol
Vitality: 81
Spirit: 66
Attack: 49
Defense: 48
Magic: 87
Resistance: 92
Skill: 『Grand Link I』 / 『Passive
Effect Enhancement』 / 『Sixth Sense』
Class Skill: 『Spotlight of Afterimages』 / 『Stage Makeup Touch-up』
Blessing: —
「Ooh,
something's changed! That means it's enhanced, right?」
「...It's
true. 『Skill Link I』 has become 『Grand Link I』. To think
something like this could happen.」
「Could it be
that the number of skills you can link and the conditions have changed too?」
Normally, you'd think so. Since it sounds like an enhancement.
「Wait. Umm,
based on what I can feel for now... ah, it seems I can link up to three skills
in total. This is amazing. Shouldn't we think a bit about which additional
skills to link? Can we look at your status too, Aoi?」
「You betcha.」
The two of them were half bewildered and half overjoyed by the sudden
skill enhancement. I didn't get it either, but an enhancement is a good thing,
right. Anyway, I took out my ID card and showed it to them.
■ Memories of the Star Soul
Name: Nagakura Aoi Scarlet
Level: 17
Class: Stray Bandit
Vitality: 62
Spirit: 62
Attack: 62
Defense: 62
Magic: 62
Resistance: 62
Skill: 『Ultra Hard Mode』 / 『Solo Dungeon』 / 『Martial Soul Resonance』 / 『Poison Attack』 / 『Star Thread
Spinning』 / 『Status
Ailment Resistance』 / 『Rock-hard
Armor』 / 『Twinkling
Hammer』 / 『Life Force
Absorption』 / 『Telekinesis』 / 『Healthy Body』
Class Skill: 『Restraint Destruction』 / 『Intimidation』
Blessing: Blessing of Benzaiten / Blessing of the Yakubyogami
/ Blessing of Seoritsuhime
Looking at my status, Madoka closed in on me with a deadpan
expression. What, what is it?
「This is
absurd, Aoi. Leveling up over the past week is one thing. But gaining
another blessing, what does that mean? Hey, what does that mean? Not having any
blessings is the norm, you know?! What did you do to make this happen!」
「Eh, well,
even if you ask me that. Isn't it because I worked hard?」
「You don't
get a blessing just by working hard!」
Perhaps an excited Madoka is a rare sight, as Tsubaki was
also looking troubled and flustered. I'm troubled too, though.
「Umm, Aoi-anehan...
when you say you worked hard, what did you do?」
「What do you
mean, I just beat the crap out of monsters here. Maybe around 10,000? I wasn't
counting, but I think I defeated about that many.」
The magic stones I exchanged for cash over these 7 days should have been
around 2,000. But the number of monsters I defeated doesn't stop at 2,000.
Because I also encountered an abnormal situation where monsters that don't drop
magic stones spawned infinitely.
As a result, it turned out to be because there was a monster with that
kind of ability, but until I resolved it, I fought non-stop for about 16 hours.
I just kept beating them down out of sheer stubbornness.
What's more, ridiculously enough, I experienced similar but different
cases like that twice, so combat experience piled up massively whether I liked
it or not.
However, for me who was seeking combat experience, I also think it was a
perfectly good opportunity. At that time, I paid attention to my every move and
didn't let my guard down even for a moment. There shouldn't have been a single
monster I defeated sloppily, and I was completely focused. It was kind of fun,
too.
Especially since I started using the 『Telekinesis』 skill, my handling of the heavy
hammer has gotten remarkably better, which is something I'm proud of.
And before I knew it, my blessings had increased. I immersed myself in
solo combat over a short period and defeated countless monsters. It's probably
like a reward for that. Probably.
「...Sorry. It
seems I didn't understand you at all yet, Aoi.」
「What are you
saying. We just met. Let's understand each other from here on out! Right, Tsubaki?」
「R-Right.」
Managing to recover our composure, we returned to discussing which
skills to link. As for me, the fact that my level only went up by 2 even after
defeating that many monsters is what bothers me more. It's seriously hard to
level up.
「By the way, Aoi,
which skill do you think is best?」
First, based on Madoka's senses, we excluded the skills that
couldn't be linked and chose from the rest.
「Anything is
fine, but I think my 『Martial Soul Resonance』 is a valid choice. The equipment you use will get
stronger as you fight, after all.」
「That skill
is pretty absurd too. What about you, Tsubaki?」
「I'd be happy
with 『Martial Soul
Resonance』 too. As for
the other one... considering the whole party, I think 『Great Source of Magic Power I』 would be
good.」
「You're
right. Then, I'll try linking them right away.」
『Great Source of Magic Power I』, which boosts all forms of natural recovery power, is
something I'm grateful for too. Exactly how much recovery we can expect should
become clear quickly as we continue to actually use it. Enhancing everyone's
sustained combat ability while simultaneously increasing the frequency at which
Madoka can fire her shotgun is especially good. If our defeating speed
goes up, our earning speed will go up proportionately.
If her skill gets enhanced again eventually, we could additionally link Madoka's
『Passive
Effect Enhancement』 or 『Sixth Sense』, and
depending on the enemies we fight, linking my 『Status Ailment Resistance』 would be
good too. By then, we might have learned new skills, or our companions might
have increased.
Thinking about it again, Madoka's linking ability is amazing. It
seems Skill Link has various detailed conditions for the link target, distance,
and number of people. There's a high possibility that those are being eased by
the skill's enhancement.
The enhancement is a good omen, and as expected, doesn't she have tons
of potential? It's seriously amazing.
After this, I want to try fighting strong monsters together. Times like that are exactly when you see true guts. But if it's Madoka and Tsubaki, I believe they'll stand up to any formidable enemy!
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