Songs in the Void

ICDS Universe, 1st Dungeon, 15th Floor Shop.

"Welcome back, Customer-Nim." Loretta said cheerfully after seeing Shin walk out of the Floor Master Room. "You succeeded aga---"

However, before she could continue, she saw Peika floating over Shin's shoulder.

"Customer-Nim, is that..?" Loretta asked.

"You can see Peika?" Shin asked in an amazed tone. "You're the second one who could see her today."

"Huh? Second? Did you meet another---" Loretta began to ask.

"Oh, she's a member of the Fairy Race." Peika said, cutting off Loretta. "And an elf at that. But she's hiding in a puppet like a coward."

The Fairy Race, the race of people in this universe with the greatest affinity to mana. This race consists of fairies, dwarves, hobgoblins, and the most representative race, the elves. And of all the races making up the Fairy Race, the elves have the greatest affinity with mana. On top of that, they are all born with Elemental Eyes, allowing them to see Elementals, even without having a contract with them.

"I see." Shin said after hearing Peika's exclamation. "Now that I've become an Elementalist, I can see that, too."

Hearing that, Loretta showed some apprehension on her puppet's expression. Seeing that, Shin tilted his head in confusion.

"What's wrong, Loretta?" Shin asked.

"Don't you find me scary now that you know what I am?" Loretta asked, looking like she would cry at any moment.

"Scary?" Shin asked, tilting his head to the other side. "Why would I think that? Whether you're a human, an elf, or a dragon, Loretta is Loretta."

Hearing that, Loretta relaxed visibly. Then, she smiled brightly.

"I was hoping you would say that." Loretta replied. "Now, back to my previous question. Someone else was able to see your Elemental, Customer-Nim?"

"Yeah, he's another Explorer from Earth." Shin replied with a nod. Then, he put on an expression as if he had just remembered something. "That's right, I was supposed to invite him into a party so that we could talk after the raid."

With that, Shin accessed his Dungeon Explorer interface. Then, he opened his friend list and sent Tatsuo a party invitation.

The friend list is a feature like you can find in most online games. It allows Explorers to register other Explorers in the same Dungeon as friends, even if they are from other worlds. Then, if they are on the same floor, they can create parties to climb together.

A moment later, after accepting Shin's request, Tatsuo appeared in front of him and Loretta. And when Loreta saw him, she blinked her eyes in confusion.

"Hey, Kang-San… Took you long enough." Tatsuo said with a smile. Then, he turned to Loretta as he continued. "And Loretta-Oneechan, I just saw you, but how are you?"

"Huh? You know Loretta?" Shin asked in a confused tone.

"Yes, I am the Shop Keeper for Tatsuo-Sama, as well." Loretta said with a smile. "then, she narrowed her eyes at Shin. "So, if I find you bullying him, you'll have to deal with me, Customer-Nim."

It should be noted that languages in the Dungeon are translated automatically to the listener's most proficient language. So, Tatsuo and Shin are hearing the honorifics Loretta uses in their native tongues.

Ignoring Loretta's threat, Shin looked at Tatsuo in confusion.

"And why do you call her Big Sister?' Shin asked.

In response, Tatsuo only shrugged before answering casually.

"It just kinda happened." Tatsuo replied while shrugging his shoulders. "And she's been really nice to me. Just like my adopted sister. But she's not in this world."

That statement was enough to make the Floor Shop fall silent. Shin, Loretta, and Peika all felt a measure of pity for Tatsuo after hearing that. However, Peika was slightly different, her pity was because of the fact that Tatsuo was alone in this world after leaving his own. Though she did not know his circumstances, her status as an Elemental that was as old as the Earth made her unaffected by the means used to create an identity for Tatsuo in this world.

Loretta was also powerful enough to be unaffected by the means used to grant Tatsuo an identity on Earth. But since she was not from Earth, she was completely unaware that Tatsuo had been transported to Earth from an entirely different universe.

While Shin, Loretta, and Peika were pitying him, Tatsuo knew exactly what they were thinking. In fact, even in the memories Tatsuo received upon entering this world, he did not have an adopted older sister. He was talking about Kasumi. But they did not need to know that.

"Anyway, you said you were gonna talk to me about being able to see your Elemental, right?" Tatsuo said, breaking the three out of their dazes. "So, I'm guessing that isn't normal, right?"

"Huh? Ah! Yeah." Shin said after coming to his senses. "Usually, only Elementalists can see Elementals…"

Like that, Tatsuo got a crash course in Elementals and Elementalists from Shin and Peika. Meanwhile, Loretta simply listened in silence. However, she was wondering why Peika was so gentle when explaining to Tatsuo. Yet, when she spoke about her, she seemed almost… disdainful.

"So, you're saying that I must have Elemental Eyes, right?" Tatsuo asked after the long, two-pronged explanation came to an end. "Because I'm sure I'm not an Elementalist."

"Yeah, pretty much." Shin replied while nodding his head and scratching it simultaneously. "but that's strange in itself."

"Custom--- No, Shin-Nim is right." Loretta added, speaking for the first time since the explanation started. "Humans are not known to be born with Elemental Eyes. Usually only certain beings, mostly those with an innate affinity for mana, have them from birth. Others usually only gain them after obtaining certain kinds of [Evil Eyes]."

"[Evil Eyes]?" Tatsuo asked with an eyebrow raised in an interested tone.

Not only Tatsuo, but Shin also seemed to be interested in this new information, as well. Unfortunately, both young men were destined to be disappointed.

"I'd like to tell you, but both of you are still too early for such information." Loretta replied while shaking her head. "If I tell you too early, it could stunt your growth instead."

Expecting Tatsuo to look at her with puppy-dog eyes and use his "Onee-Chan Divine Technique", Loretta tensed her muscles to quickly turn around. But Tatsuo's actions to the contrary surprised her greatly.

"Well, we can't have that, can we?" Tatsuo asked with a wide smile on his face. "Either way, even if those [Evil Eyes] sound powerful, I don't need them to be the best."

Looking at Loretta's expression, which was filled with shock after he acted differently than she expected, Tatsuo chuckled for a moment. Then, he turned his gaze towards Shin, who was looking at him with a competitive glint burning in his eyes.

"And I get the feeling you're gonna end up with a pair of those [Evil Eyes] in the future, Kang-San." Tatsuo said with a grin. "And for your sake, I hope you get them. Otherwise, competing with you probably won't be fun anymore."

By now, Tatsuo's confidence was overflowing, despite the fact that he was beaten in the contribution race only a short ten minutes ago. However, no one felt that it was out of place. In fact, it even felt quite natural.

Plus, Tatsuo already knew that Shin would end up with the [Evil Eyes of Petrification] thanks to his prior knowledge from the novel. So, he was only giving him a little spoiler without going into any details.

"Anyway, I have another raid to do." Tatsuo said as he turned back towards the Floor Master room. "So, I'll catch you guys later. I'll see you on the 20th Floor, Kang-San."

"Yeah, see you then, Soramoto-Ssi." Shin replied with a nod. He then continued after Tatsuo left the party and returned to his own instance of the Dungeon. "But I doubt you'll catch up to me again after that. I won't be rushing up and back down to fight bosses 5 Levels below me anymore."

Hearing that, Loreta's eyes lit up.

"Good." Loretta said with a nod. "Remember, the fruit of adventure is always sweet, Shin-Nim. And there is always something special about being the first."

Those words led to a fundamental change in the way Shin approached Dungeon Exploration. However, he still needed to raid the Dark Ratman solo after his conversation with Loretta.

Meanwhile, Tatsuo had a few more raids before he could get the rest of the [Thunder Crystals] he needed to completely conquer the Dark Rat man.

Like that, another week passed. While Shin had moved up to the 20th Floor after soloing the Dark Ratman and succeeded in soloing the Lizard Knight in his first attempt, Tatsuo was still raiding the Dark Ratman. Although he had gotten all the necessary [Thunder Crystals], which raised his Magic Stat by 5 when he maxed out his lightning affinity, a few days ago.

And the reason for that was simple, Thanks to his maxed out Lightning Affinity, he wanted to do an experiment with [Blacksmithing] and [Enchanting]. However, he would need a few items dropped by the Dark Ratman to do the experiment he had in mind.

And today, Tatsuo had finally gotten all the items that he needed to start his experiment.

ICDS Universe, Earth, Japan, Tokyo.

*Sigh* I'm gonna feel like I wasted the last few days if this doesn't work." Tatsuo thought to himself as he looked at the materials he would be using for his experiment.

Lying on the floor in front of Tatsuo were two of the weapons dropped by the Dark Ratman, the [Dark Ratman's Claw], eight [Thunder Crystals], and four mana crystals.

Taking a deep breath to get himself in the right state of mind, Tatsuo picked up one of the [Dark Ratman's Claws] then, he threw it into the portable furnace he bought from Loretta.

"Alright, let's get started." Tatsuo said with a solemn expression on his face.

The process of melting the [Dark Ratman's Claw] continued without issue. And once it was completely melted, Tatsuo then picked up a [Thunder Crystal] and dropped it into the mass of molten metal, watching it dissolve. Then, he picked up a rod with a higher melting point and mixed the combination of materials.

A moment later, Tatsuo picked up another [Thunder Crystal] and repeated the process. Then, another. However, when he added the third, something different happened. As soon as the [Thunder Crystal] was properly mixed into the rest of the materials, the molten metal began discharging small sparks of lightning.

"I think that's all it can handle." Tatsuo muttered as he ejected the metal infused with black lightning into a mold to harden. "Hopefully, once I get an ingot of this stuff, I'll be able to metal work properly with it."

Once the metal was in the mold, Tatsuo repeated the process with the second [Dark Ratman's Claw]. And once it was also placed in a mold, Tatsuo picked up a pair of tongs and took the first ingot out of the mold. Then, he heated it enough so that it could be hammered into shape.

A few hours passed after he started hammering on the two pieces of metal. By the time he was done, a pair of black, bladed knuckle dusters with dark purple edges could be seen on his anvil. On top of that, a pair of mana stone was sitting on the edge of the anvil, as well.

Tatsuo then took those two mana stones and ground them down into powder. Then, he applied them to both bladed knuckle dusters. After that, he pulled one of the largest mana stones he still had left out of his [Inventory]. And with the knuckle dusters in his left hand and the mana stone in his right, he concentrated on completing the [Enchanting] process.

"Alright, last part." Tatsuo mumbled with his eyes closed. "I need them to be fast and sharp like lightning."

A moment later, Tatsuo's bedroom was inundated with light. A moment after that, the light dimmed and a handful of mana stone dust fell from Tatsuo's right hand. At the same time, the [System] description for the bladed knuckle dusters in his hand popped up in his closed eyes.

{[Thunderclap Daggers – C-]

A pair of bladed knuckle dusters created by a talented blacksmith and enchanter with exceptional sharpness.

-+20% extra damage from slashing and stabbing attacks.

-Increases [Dexterity] by a significant amount.

-All attacks imbued with [Energy] add additional Lightning damage.

Restrictions

-One who defeated the Dark Ratman alone.}

Seeing the description of his new weapons, Tatsuo could not help but smile brightly. Then, like he had done when he created the [Keen-Edged Knuckle Dusters], Tatsuo equipped the [Thunderclap Daggers] and started going through his weapon forms without flowing any [Energy] into the weapons.

"Hell yeah, these feel great in my hands." Tatsuo said with a smile after putting on his display of skill. "Alright, I'll start climbing the Dungeon seriously again starting tomorrow. For now…"

Tatsuo then looked around his bedroom at all the materials and byproducts scattered all over the place. Then, he let out a forlorn sigh.

"I need to clean up this mess." Tatsuo said while shaking his head. "I guess I should get registered as an Ability User sometime soon, too."

With that, Tatsuo sucked all his blacksmithing tools into his [Inventory]. Then, he started cleaning up any traces from his crafting session. And once he was done, he decided he would go to sleep and get a good night's rest for the climb that would start tomorrow.

"*Yawn* Only one more Floor Master before I'm *Yawn~~~~* Silver-Class." Tatsuo mumbled sleepily as he fell into the world of dreams.