Coming out of the Fairy Square, it was the same old stone-paved passage greeting us. But different from the same old was the point that it was much cleaner. Rather than new, it gave the feeling of not yet deteriorated.
The stone walls didnât display a single crack, even moss hadnât grown. Even the light panels illuminating the passage from the ceiling, seemed to glow somewhat brighter.
The path draws a loose curve, so the Boss Room at the end isnât visible, all in all the perspective is quite narrow. But as long as the ceiling or floor doesnât suddenly open up, or we donât get suddenly warped in the middle of the passage, thereâs likely no risk of surprise attacks.
âHirano-kun, I have some idea, but the Skeleton, what kind of Monster is it?â
âTheyâre uh, you know, just bones. Well, Itouâs the one who started calling âem Skeletons though.[1]â
Seems like itâs none other than that stereotypical Skeleton. The pure white collections of bone rattling along as they attack, they appear frequently in RPGs and fantasy genre movies⌠but thinking back, itâs my first time encountering a non-living Monster. Somehow or other, all the oneâs Iâve seen could be called extensions of creatures found on Earth.
âYeah, youâll get it when you see it. And theyâre just small fry so relaxâ
Iâm not too reassured with Hirano-kunâs frivolous smile and wild laughs, but from the fact that theyâre stuck on the Boss, Mob Monsters wouldnât be any problem.
âAh that room, thereâs a Skeleton, lookâ
Nishiyama-san who was walking alongside Hirano-kun reported a discovery.
Looking there, from an entrance to a room along the passage wall, a white figure gaited along. The distance is about 30 meters~100ft.
âWoah, it really is a Skeletonâ
That is, it was so perfect a skeleton, there isnât any other description. As if the educational model in a biology lab started moving, it was a walking human skeleton.
It doesnât have clothes, but itâs armed.
Lightly grasped in its bony hand, was a wooden club. At around 50 cm, the club was of rough make, but not too thin or too thick. That reminds me, the clubs equipped on most Goma looked similar. Thereâs a chance they beat these Skeletons and plundered the item.
âDoesnât look like itâs noticed usâ
âYeah, they wonât notice till ya get closerâ
âSo shooting my Magic to beat them is easy as pie seeâ
I see, itâs like a badly made Monster AI.
âItâs the first for Momokawa and Futaba-san, so Iâll show you the ropesâ
How generous. No matter how strong Futaba-sanâs gotten, itâs better to avoid challenging on first encounter. If we can observe its movements, she can fight easier too.
Reason for refusal is nowhere to be found, so at your convenience, I replied in agreement.
âWhat about me?â
âIf yâinsist, have the first one. Iâll get the two behind.â
The Skeletons entering the passage from the room, number three. Thereâs no particular sign theyâre cooperating, itâs more like a wandering zombie, theyâre aimlessly roaming around. One was facing here, and the other two, towards the direction of the Boss Room.
âOK. Iâll be going ahead then, since Iâm a Wind Mage.â
With a light intro, Nishiyama-san pushed out her wand. Her wand tip pointed, practically announcing that it was about to shoot Magic.
Thinking of, itâs my first time seeing Attack Magic. Iâve heard all about it from Futaba-san, but getting to see first hand, the staple in fantasy known as Attack Magic, itâs kind of exciting.
She quickly muttered something in a mystery language, and right after, the green ball on the tip of the want let out faint light.
With that, leaving behind sharp winds, a whirlwind of glittering green ran through the passage. The emerald wind I saw for a split-second, drew an arc with a form similar to a curved blade.
Then, the blade of wind danced true to its aim, scoring a direct hit on the wandering Skeleton. With a dry clang, as if they took on a powerful slash, the Skeletonâs ribs went flying.
Must have been a quite a blow. The Skeletonâs spine bent back so much it seemed to almost snap, and as if the force was too unbearable, it fell backwards. Falling with a shatter, its movement completely stops.\nWith the splendid one-shot killing of a Skeleton, I regain an appreciation of the convenient thing known as Attack Magic. Also, a bit of envy. Shit, if only I could do attacks like thatâŚ
âAâight, be a back in a bit. Get a good look at my abilities as a Swordsmanâ
Completely unaware of my ugly jealousy, Hirano-kun donned a confident smile and named his vocation. In his hands lay a double-edged longsword with a steel blade. A precious partner he scored from a Treasure Chest being its origins.
âWoah, fastâ
I had no other comment seeing the sword-wielding Hirano-kun bolting off. Leaving behind only the rubbery sounds of his shoe soles clashing with the stone paving, Hirano-kunâs fairly large figure shot out like an arrow.
âItâs called Quick Step. The effect is as you seeâ
I see, so thatâs the speed boosting Battle Art, Quick Step. Movement boosting moves, if it was an RPG, thereâs a big chance theyâre useless. I mean, no player wants to waste a turn just to raise evasion rate and maybe increasing the chances for a critical. [3]
However, in real life, boosting movement, in other words, being able to run crazy fast, gives a tremendous advantage in combat. At the very least, if it was an average person, even if Hirano-kun came at them from straight ahead, theyâd have no way to cope with his current speed. Itâs not so fast that my eyes canât follow, but it kinda doesnât feel like a human running with that kind of speed. Even world class athletes Iâve seen on TV arenât as fast. I wonder what the km/h is.
âNatsukawa-san was even faster you knowâ
Leaks Futaba-san as if talking to herself. Perhaps even with the same technique in name, thereâs differences per vocation. Well, itâs most likely something to do with individual differences though.
Natsukawa Minami was our Shiramine Academyâs Track and Field Ace. If itâs the sprint, thereâs no one with more talent than her.
âUoOOOOOOOOââ
Before I noticed, Hirano-kun had closed the thirty meters and had the Skeletons at swords reach. With a roar, he unleashed a full power overhead swing.
On their side, the Skeletons had noticed their friend has been defeated and were slowly turning to it. The existence of the quickly approaching enemy did not have time to enter their mental faculties.
ââBreakGreat Gash!â[4]
For an instant, the sword seemed to slightly shine. The instant phantom glow passed, and a shrill noise echoed. A hit.
One Skeleton was cut from skull to pelvis. A moment passed, and the clump of bone was separated left and right, it rattled, and powerlessly crumbled.
A splendid strike. But one more enemy remained.
That Skeleton finally showed a proper response. Aiming for the opening created when Hirano-kun swung his sword, it greatly raised its club.
âHeh, saw it miles away!â
True to those composure-filled words, as if perfectly foreseeing the Skeletonâs monotonous attack, Hirano-kun bent down, dodging the clubâs swing.
âWell duh, no problem for Foresightâ
What a show off, that guy, says Nishiyama-san somewhat coldly.
âNo but, seeing it and then even evading is pretty amazingâ
âMomokawa-kun, please donât say those words to him. You do, and heâll definitely get a big headâ
Nishiyama-sanâs wryly smiling face looks, what is it, just like, like a girlfriend who gets just about everything about her idiot of a boyfriend, it gives that kind of composed impression.
ââBooyah! Got âem good!â
Oops, as I was raising suspicions towards their interpersonal relation, Hirano-kun had cut down his 2nd Skeleton.
Slipping through the enemyâs attack with Foresight, right after, he rode Quick Stepâs speed to circle behind. Speed so overwhelming, as if it was saying, Ya gettinâ sleepy champ? as the Skeleton couldnât react at all.
Then it was a simple task of driving your favourite technique into that defenceless spine.
With that, Hirano-kun finished off the Skeleton safe and sound.
âGood work out thereâ
âYeah, this stuff, itâs pretty much just warm up!â\nHa ha ha, he laughed as Hirano-kun returned in great humour. For us from the peanut gallery, seeing the Swordsmanâs brilliant show of technique, well, itâs satisfactory I guess. Even the way he put the sword back in its scabbard on his belt gave quite an elegant impression.
âAnd, how was that?â
âAh, yup, I more or less get Skeletons now. Also, you two look like youâre making good use of your vocations, pretty strong I sayâ
âYou flatter me dude. I mean, I havenât even got any new Skills yetâ
Which would mean, that Break, Quick Step and Foresight he showed us, should be all the abilities he has.
As for me, yeah, leaving out the lucky Armor Bear subjugation, I did attain that new Vile Mud Doll.
Of course, this must have some factor of individuality too⌠but yeah, maybe experience fighting Skeletons wonât really amount to much.
Nevertheless, they could become convenient ragdolls, or I guess bone-dolls to throw attacks at. At the least, theyâll be useful in testing out and getting used to various powers.
âEven though Nishiyama learned new Magic really fast manâ
âJust say how you were scared at first and we only used my Aer Sagitta to beat themâ
âHaa, I wasnât scared aâight! And right now, Skeletons are easy as hell!â
âYipes, them bones man, theyâre bad mann, tell me you didnât forget those tearsâ
âNever said it! Also, forget that, bygones are bygones dammit!â
Theyâre fighting but they sure get along, I thought as I was watching over, but then Gahah, Hirano-kun noticed my gaze and took a critical blow. Were my eyes that lukewarm?
âA-anyway, once we beat the Boss, Iâll be getting a new Skill for sureâ
âYup, for sureâ
No Iâm not lazily replying, Iâm pretty serious here.
Leaving the special case of Futaba-sanâs class change to Berserker aside, the Class Rep group, according to the story, seemed to attain new Skills pretty normally through fighting. That means, the Boss, if we can take down a Monster even this Swordsman and Mage pair couldnât, weâll be getting new powers for sure.
âNishiyama-san, what other Magic can you do?â
âEh, the other ones arenât much though. Like letting out strong wind around me, or like making slightly high jumps using windââ
The former has the name Aer DressWind Garment, and looks to be a sort of Defence Magic. Releasing strong gusts for a meter centering around the caster, itâll either blow away an enemy closing in, or at least, hold it back temporarily. Light long-range attacks like arrows or stones would also be repelled or bend off trajectory.
With some concentration, she can apparently hold it for a minute or so, and I think with more practice, it could become a solid defence⌠but it seems like Nishiyama-san herself hasnât used Aer Dress much, so her mastery of it hasnât risen.
The latter is Aer FollowWind Floater, a movement boosting, no, itâs Support Magic I guess. Creating an updraft around the caster, her jumps get a slight boost. However, rather than upping jump height, say if you fall from a high place you can get a smooth landing, it seems more useful in things like cushioning a fall.
I donât know if you can remain calm enough to cast Magic during a free fall though. And as such, this one hasnât been used too much either, the current Nishiyama-san wouldnât be able to handle such a situation either. [5]
âBut that one, her new Magic, is pretty damn strongâ
âI mean, sure Aer BlastTempest Edge has a good bit of power⌠but the chant is so long, if itâs moving fast like that Boss, itâll never hit. Not to mention, one shot and Iâm spent[6]â
Finally, perhaps thanks to hunting all those Skeletons with Aer Sagitta, she attained the new Attack Magic, the Aer Blast.
The Invocation time for the aria, is around 10 seconds. In the world of ruthless battle, every 0.1 second counts. One can experience the tumultuous anxiety of a 10 second lag simply by playing a high speed action RPG and trying to fight with a skill with around 10 seconds of cooldown.
To add, one shot of it gets you as tired as with three shots of Aer Sagitta⌠in other words, mana exhaustion.
A one-shot all-or-nothing High Magic. Using this practically in battle, would be quite a gamble.
âJust think though, one shot of this, and that muttâs done forâ
âIt wonât hit, thatâs the problem stupidâ
Well sheâs not wrong. In a game, you could Save & Load as many times as you want until you get that hit, but reality clearly doesnât work that way. If she uses Aer Blast against the Boss Red Dog and misses, then taking the exhausted Nishiyama-san and escaping from the Boss Room becomes even more risky. Itâs not the kind of thing we can leisurely challenge multiple times.
âThen like, we can stop it movinâ so it hits andââ
\nâYup, if you can tie the legs, leave everything else to meâ
Futaba-san returns a strong reply. Or rather, she nonchalantly left out Red Fever there. Well, itâs not an immediate effect Curse, so itâs pretty much a waste of mana anyway, so thatâs fine.
âMomokawa-kun and Futaba-sanâs vocations, what are they?â
Off we go, but before that, we need to let them know our vocations. On their side, their vocation and abilities have already been laid bare.
But we canât go being too frank and reveal everything here.
âIâm a Shaman, and Futaba-san is a Warriorâ
Iâll keep quiet about the class change for the time being. Being a Berserker doesnât necessarily mean Futaba-san has gone insane, and thereâs no outward change either. Itâs probably a special exception to the rule, but letting their hopes rise because of that would be problematic.
âLetâs do thisâ
Detailed explanations come later. Letâs first beat the Skeletons and give them a demonstration.
âEntwine its escape, with weaving hairâ Blackhair Bindâ
I step into the room and take the initiative. From the shadows near the pillar where the Skeleton is wandering, suddenly, a bundle of weed-like Blackhair gushes out. Wriggling in a gross manner like tentacles, the hair tightly latches onto the bone ankle.
âNow!â
I call out, and with that Futaba-san swings up her axe andâ I thought, but sheâs just standing beside me, and doesnât seem like sheâll run ahead anytime soon.
âErr, Futaba-san, whatâs wrong?â
Her suddenly becoming unwilling, doesnât seem to be the case. Futaba-san is on alert, and glaring straight at the Skeleton.
She wasnât replying, and lets go of her weapon that is the axe. She takes her now free right hand, and thrusts it into the Goma pouch hung at her waist.
ââ Ei!â
Along with that lovely voice calling out, I hear a powerful hum cutting the wind. The next moment, a dry shattering sound echoes loudly.
ââŚÂ Eh?â
When I noticed, the Skeletonâs head was gone. Wait what, Futaba-san, when did you suddenly become able to use Attack Magâ
âYah!â
Next, the 2nd oneâs cranium shatters. It burst away so cleanly, one could argue there was a bomb implanted in there beforehand.
âIâm done, Momokawa-kunâ
We present the hero.
Indeed, since I was standing right beside her, I came to understand how Futaba-san finished off those Skeletons. Itâs nothing complicated, she was just throwing stones.
Iâd given her a bag of throwable stones thinking theyâd at least be used as faints, but they suddenly became one-shot kill projectiles. The Berserkerâs strength has me in awe yet again.
âWoah, Futaba-san, that was frigginâ coolâŚâ