NOVEL NEXT Chapter 28
2-20. Sakura-san’s Gift and the Results of the 4th Day
“Meeko, Meeko. It’s morning.”
In the morning, Meiko was awakened by Lulu.
It was a unique Kisumian way of waking someone up.
Lulu lifted the upper body of the sleeping Meiko and slipped her own body behind her.
Then, she wrapped her hands around Meiko’s stomach and gently rocked her back and forth. It’s something moms mainly do to little kids.
“Wha!? Nya, nyaa!?”
The effect was intense, and Meiko woke up in a state of confusion.
Rubbing her eyes, she looked like a child being woken up by her older sister.
Once she woke up and looked around, not only was Lulu there, but Sasara was already up, and breakfast was almost ready.
“Ah, sorry. I overslept.”
“I heard from Shara that Meeko was synthesizing last night. So it’s fine.”
“That’s right. We decided to let you sleep in a bit in the morning. More importantly, good morning, Meiko-san.”
“Good morning, Sasara, Lulu.”
“Good morning!”
Thankful for their consideration, the fourth day began.
“Anyway, Lulu. Let go. I’m feeling a bit nauseous from all the rocking.”
Being rocked awake was a bit too much for Meiko.
The enemies now appeared four at a time, making things even tougher than before.
After finishing their morning preparations, the three of them did some warm-up exercises in the safety zone of the garden and got pumped up.
“Lulu, Water Slash 1, 2, defeat 4!”
“Nya!”
“Sasara, defeat 1, 2!”
“Understood!”
Simplified commands were thrown around.
Until now, they had managed with improvised coordination, but with the number of enemies increasing and each person having more to do, commands became crucial.
They finished giving orders in about five seconds while the grimoire was preparing the magic.
The dungeon, with its torii gate shaped like a tunnel, only allowed enemies to come from the front or back.
So, they numbered them 1, 2, 3, 4 from the front and assigned each person their target.
Even if they got flanked, they could dash to one side, defeat the enemy, and only have to deal with the other side, making it easier and not requiring commands.
In this case.
Lulu would use Water Art to startle the first Ichimatsu doll, then slash the second Rabbit with a mallet, and even if she didn’t defeat it, she would handle the fourth Tanuki.
Sasara would defeat the first Ichimatsu doll that Lulu startled, then move on to the second Rabbit with a mallet.
Meiko would knock the mallet away from the second Rabbit while Lulu was using Water Art, then face the third Rabbit with a mallet. At this point, Lulu would have already slashed the second Rabbit, so Meiko could handle it if there was an opening. Her main target was the third Rabbit with a mallet.
“Finish it!”
Sasara defeated the Rabbit with a mallet, and the battle ended.
“Did you get hit?”
In response to Meiko’s question, the two said they hadn’t been hit.
“This time went really well.”
“If we can get Lulu to handle the Tanuki, it’ll be more stable.”
“Nya. Tanuki are weak in close combat, so we can take them out quickly. Since the two of you handle the other enemies, I can focus on defeating them.”
They exchanged opinions like this.
This battle went very well, but since the commands were improvised by the amateur Meiko, it wasn’t a perfectly executed strategy. They still got hit sometimes.
However, it was effective, and compared to the previous day, the time spent on battles had decreased.
Of course, a big factor was that each of their combat skills had improved.
Rather than their sword skills improving, they had gotten used to battles where they were outnumbered by enemies.
Everyone had started to grasp the battlefield situation from the corner of their vision while focusing on their enemies.
Meiko was the best at understanding the battlefield situation.
Carrying two grimoires, Meiko had a better foundation for this than the other two. Through repeated battles, her ability to see the battlefield in three dimensions was blossoming.
Another factor was the enhancement of their weapons and armor.
Sasara could now swiftly defeat the frontmost enemy with her dual-wielding saber and dagger.
Lulu’s passing slashes now dealt significant damage, and this time, she defeated the second Rabbit with a mallet without waiting for Sasara, while Meiko handled it with one hand.
Meiko’s water and fire bullets had also become more powerful, greatly contributing to the battles.
Also, getting hit wasn’t as big a deal anymore.
Of course, getting hit in the face by an Ichimatsu doll or an Rabbit with a mallet was still dangerous, but getting hit in armored areas two or three times no longer significantly hindered their combat.
Overall, the three had become significantly stronger.
As a result, the time spent per battle decreased, and fatigue was reduced.
Meiko and the others steadily climbed the mountain.
Sometimes they entered caves, sometimes crossed small bridges over streams.
Since it didn’t feel as tough as yesterday, the beautiful scenery made for great photos.
By the way, based on her experience from the last dungeon trip, Meiko had bought a mobile battery.
Lulu, having had a smartphone for a long time, already carried one.
Sasara didn’t have one, but since all three had the same smartphone, they shared the mobile battery.
“I’ll buy a mobile battery too,” Sasara said.
It seemed she was already considering entering the dungeon again.
The three finally reached the mountaintop.
As expected, a giant cherry tree stood at the summit, and Meiko and the others took photos.
Then, like the day before yesterday, they joined their hands and began to pray.
“May Meeko and Shara be friends forever!”
With her hands together in front of the cherry tree, Lulu innocently made her wish.
“Oh! Then, may I be friends with Lulu and Sasara forever too!”
“Fufufu. In that case, may I be friends with Meiko-san and Lulu-san forever too.”
The other two joined in and made their wishes.
Then, a treasure chest appeared.
This is it.
Among the three, there was one who had been looking forward to this.
Immediately, that one opened the lid, and inside was a single piece of parchment.
They looked at the writing on the surface but couldn’t read it at all.
Since they had obtained a new item, they decided to hold an appraisal session here.
This would likely be the last appraisal in this dungeon.
After all, it was clear that they were approaching the final stages.
From the summit of the second mountain, a staircase led straight down to the base. It was located exactly opposite the starting point of the dungeon.
The staircase descended just above the sea of clouds and turned into a flat path, leading to a wide area about the size of a school sports field.
It was surrounded by a fence like the tamagaki of a shrine, and inside were eight large rocks with shimenawa ropes tied around them.
It was obvious that something would happen there.
Therefore, Meiko predicted that this would be the last equipment check.
Meiko used an Appraisal Orb 50/50 to start appraising the parchment.
――――
Recipe: Bond Ring
Only those with the skill [Recipe Comprehension] can understand this.
By reading this, you can learn how to craft the accessory [Bond Ring].
The recipe does not disappear after being read.
――――
“Wow.”
For now, they decided to report later and moved on to other equipment.
Below are the details of each person along with their status.
――――――
Hitsujiya Meiko
15 years old
Job: Apprentice Grimoire User
Level: 13
Karma: +1640
Magic Power: 78/104
Skill:
[Synthesis Enhancement]
Job Skill:
[Grimoire Release]
[Grimoire Equipment Slot +1]
[Grimoire Equip: Small Magic Attack]
[Grimoire Operation Correction: Small]
[Grimoire Creation: Beginner]
[Grimoire User’s Knowledge]
Title:
[The One Who Congratulated Earth-san] [First-Floor Solo Clearer] [Challenger of the True Infinite Torii Dungeon: Asura Level]
★★Equipment★★
※ Attack/Defense values are previous → current
・Water Grimoire 125/125 Physical Attack 35 Magic Attack 82
・Fire Grimoire 73/125 Physical Attack 24 Magic Attack 56
・Saber 55/125 Attack 38→53
・Mini Scissors 100/100 Attack 6
・Sakura Hunting Robe 77/125 Defense 36→53
・Sakura Glossy Hakama 77/125 Defense 36→53
・Sakura Long Tabi 77/125 Defense 13→20
・Sakura Thick-Soled Zori 70/125 Defense 14→20
・Fingerless Gloves 125/125 Defense 30
・Sakura Choker 60/125 Defense 13→17
・Tanuki Ears 25/125 Defense ?→4
[Buff Effect Up: Very Small] Magic Power -1
――――――
――――――
Sasagara Sasara
15 years old
Job: Apprentice Knight
Karma: +1792
Level: 12
Magic Power: 14/30
Skill:
[Armor Performance Up – Small]
Job Skill:
[Knight Techniques]
[Sword Principles]
[Strength Up – Small]
[Auto Recovery – Tiny]
[Knight’s Physique]
Title:
[The One Who Congratulated Earth-san]
★★Equipment★★
・Saber 125/125 Attack 77→95
・Dagger 30/125 Attack ?→28
・Mallet Sword 100/100 Attack 14
・Sakura Kimono 80/125 Defense 46→55
・Sakura Hakama 77/125 Defense 36→53
・Sakura Long Tabi 77/125 Defense 13→20
・Laced Boots 125/125 Defense 22→48
・Rabbit Ears Band 125/125 Defense 12
[Very Small Agility Up] Magic Power -1
・Rabbit Tail 25/125 Defense 4
[Butt Protection] Magic Power -1
・Bracelet 55/125 Defense 16→32
・Gauntlets 55/125 Defense 21→45
・Fingerless Gloves 125/125 Defense 12→30
・Sakura Choker 77/125 Defense 12→20
――――――
――――――
Nagare Lulu
15 years old
Job: Apprentice NINJA
Karma: +1935
Level: 12
Magic Power: 18/45
Skills
[Apprentice NINPO]
Job Skill:
[NINJA Techniques]
[NINJA Principles]
[Agility Up – Small]
[Stand Out]
[NINJA Physique]
Title:
[The One Who Congratulated Earth-san]
★★Equipment★★
・Ninja Sword 103/125 Attack 33→69
・Small Scythe 81/125 Attack 31→46
・Dagger 50/125 Attack ?→36
・Sakura Kunoichi Kimono 80/125 Defense 46→55
・Sakura Kunoichi Spats 77/125 Defense 36→53
・Sakura Long Tabi 77/125 Defense 13→20
・Sakura Zori 70/125 Defense 14→20
・Rabbit Ears Band 125/125 Defense 12
[Very Small Agility Up] Magic Power -1
・Rabbit Tail 125/125 Defense 12
[Butt Protection] Magic Power -1
・Gauntlets 55/125 Defense 21→45
・Leg Guards 55/125 Defense 21→45
・Fingerless Gloves 125/125 Defense 12→30
・Sakura Choker 77/125 Defense 12→20
・Hairpin 15/125 Defense 3
――――――
As usual, Sasara was in charge of the final entries, and Meiko read them out.
The fingerless gloves and Sasara’s boots had reached their limit because they had obtained a lot of Tsuchinoko skin and cat bat wings, which had high affinity with leather products.
Clothing items also had high affinity with Tanuki and rabbit fur, Ichimatsu kimonos, and obi belts. Tanuki fur gave the most experience points. Since they had a lot of materials, they were able to evenly enhance them.
On the other hand, for weapons and armor made of metal, the only high-affinity material was the fragments of Ichimatsu doll katana, so there was variation in the enhancements. The cat bat fangs were somewhat high, which was a saving grace.
After finishing the work, Lulu looked at the numbers and said.
“Everything is double, double… da, double the rate when enhancing once ne?”
It seemed Lulu struggled with the word “rate,” but Meiko was struck by her words.
“W-wow, you’re right!”
Looking closely, it was indeed true.
Until now, Meiko had only thought, “Oh, we’ve gotten stronger,” when looking at the numbers in the notebook, but the defense values were calculated using a very simple method.
For example, the clothes they were wearing had an initial defense of 15, and each point of Synthesis Enhancement increased it by 0.5. It’s unclear whether the decimal points were rounded down or couldn’t be appraised.
Once the rate was known, there was no need to use Appraisal Orbs to find out the numbers.
This time, they used two orbs, leaving only three. If they had realized this last night, they could have appraised only the new items, using just one orb.
“Well, it’s fine.”
“Yeah, what’s done is done. Thanks for noticing, Lulu.”
“Nya!”
It was a shame, but they had to let it go as a good lesson.
“Still, we’ve gotten much stronger.”
“Yeah.”
“It’s thanks to Meeko!”
“Absolutely. Without Synthesis Enhancement, we would have been in pain many times. No, we probably would have died.”
“Well, yeah! Nfufu!”
Praised by the two, Meiko smiled.
She hadn’t felt it much in the first dungeon, but in this dungeon, she realized how amazing [Synthesis Enhancement] was.
Meiko now thought it was really great that she had obtained [Synthesis Enhancement] first.
Equipment truly shines with [Synthesis Enhancement].
If you’re willing to put in the effort, you can make your equipment several times stronger.
Meiko thought this skill was a huge jackpot as an initial skill.
However, for weapons and armor, there seemed to be other ways to increase enhancement values besides Synthesis Enhancement.
It seemed that in this dungeon, the equipment leveled up slightly as the wearer defeated enemies.
They noticed this during this exploration.
But compared to [Synthesis Enhancement], the efficiency was so low that they hadn’t noticed until now.
Afterward, Meiko shared the recipe information with the other two.
“Ma! It’s a friendship ring ne? I want it!”
“W-we want it too!”
The two said with sparkling eyes.
“But since we don’t have [Recipe Comprehension], we’ll have to find someone who has it or change jobs to learn it… Well, either way, we can’t make it now.”
“After we leave the dungeon, we’ll look for a way!”
“That’s right.”
“I have an idea. There’s a professor at the dungeon garrison who might be able to introduce us to someone from the Self-Defense Forces.”
As far as Meiko knew, the Self-Defense Forces were progressing through dungeons at an incredible speed.
They couldn’t focus solely on the Lolita Dungeon, so they were spread across G-rank and F-rank dungeons nationwide, but their individual combat abilities were probably the best in the world.
According to the cat fairy, they had even discovered a fairy shop in the Lolita Labyrinth.
Of course, this was simply because they had started early, so their combat abilities might be surpassed by other countries eventually.
Naturally, their database of discovered jobs and skills was extensive.
So Meiko thought the professor could easily find out who in the Self-Defense Forces had what skills.
As they had done on the first mountain, they thanked the giant cherry tree for the gift and took a break at the summit.
They had a slightly late lunch and rested after eating.
During that time, Meiko used [Synthesis Enhancement] to update the numbers they had just checked.
After a short break, it was 3 PM.
What lay ahead was surely the goal.
And there was probably a boss in that area the size of a school sports field.
It would be dangerous, but Meiko thought they could do it with these two.
“Let’s do our best, Sasara, Lulu.”
“Of course!”
“Nya! We won’t lose no matter what!”
With their magic fully recovered, the three bid farewell to the giant cherry tree and set off toward the presumed goal.