Chapter 1034 - Sharing Hands
"Alright, I'll start then. I'll be the lead batter."
And just like that, things moved smoothly.
As soon as we moved to the training grounds so we could perform demonstrations if needed, Tora-kichi raised his hand without hesitation.
No holding back. It was time to reveal our hands.
"Since the Four Pillar War before last, I've been leaving the explanation to the gallery's imagination because it's a pain... But basically, this Anima has some really amazing new abilities. And there are two of them."
Immediately, the tiger general began to talk with a hint of a boastful air about the ring glowing on his finger. It was Tiger☆Lucky, which had reached the 5th Rank as of the last Four Pillar War.
I had the chance to punch it directly once, and things had certainly become quite strange back then...
"To put it simply, it's a ridiculous buff that lets you choose between solo specialization for self-enhancement or party specialization for ally support. The downside is that once you activate it, you can't cancel it until you die..."
... Why was this tiger looking at me specifically and grinning? He'd get mad if I teased him for being like an elementary school boy showing off his toys.
What is it? Just spit it out already. I conveyed that with a half-glance, but it didn't seem to reach the feline-like man who was thoroughly enjoying himself. After a long pause for dramatic effect...
"As for the effects, they're both completely unrestrained!"
Trakky continued his smug face.
In fact, he was so boastful it was almost refreshing as he began to detail the power hidden within his Anima.
... And so, here we go.
I grasped the details.
First, the ridiculous choice-based buff number one. The solo specialization effect was...
[Ultra]
Activation through a vow; the effect lasts until the next death. Cannot be cancelled at will.
- While acting alone, the avatar's durability increases tenfold.
- HP and MP recovery effects are disabled, and automatic recovery also stops.
- Durability increase is nullified when fighting alongside allies.
- Applies the special effect [Koga Jinatsu] to nearby allies, which increases all MP consumption.
... I had no idea what this was even saying.
And next, the second ridiculous choice-based buff. The party-specialized support effect was...
[Trust]
Activation through a vow; the effect lasts until the next death. Cannot be cancelled at will.
- Applies the special effect [Oko Funrei] to the entire party except the user. Limited to when the user is the leader. Adds a consecutive strike judgment to party members' attack actions. In any damage calculation for a successful attack, an additional attack with half the original power is added simultaneously as a Guaranteed Hit.
- The user loses all attack power. Specifically, they lose the attack power to cause harmful effects to enemies. They do not lose their physical strength and can still perform defensive actions, but they cannot generate damage through them.
- While acting alone, all Status values are halved. HP and MP recovery effects are disabled, and automatic recovery also stops.
... I really had no idea what this was saying either.
So, after hearing all the explanations, I only had one thing to say.
Each of us, though to varying degrees, couldn't help but go "Whoa." To the tiger with the spiky hair, who was flashing a smug face at all of us, including me, the only feedback I could give was this:
"It's strangely annoying that both of them have 'Tiger' in their names..."
"Why? They're cool as hell!"
I had carried out the minimum required teasing, so I ignored Tora-kichi's retort... but really, his smug face was well-deserved given how broken these abilities were.
He could simply choose between tenfold durability for himself or a fifty-percent increase in party fire power.
The former nullified its benefits and debuffed those around him when fighting together, resulting in a total negative. The latter caused huge negatives like the loss of attack power when alone... those restrictions were certainly large, but it was debatable whether they actually balanced out such insane effects.
"Ten... fold?"
"Consecutive strike judgments for everyone else... for everyone except yourself..."
Ashe and Helena-san both had serious reactions, which was good evidence. It had truly become a broken piece of growing equipment that even the top players in the virtual world acknowledged.
It made sense why my punches... or rather, my tiger-punches... hadn't worked.
"The enhancement abilities look like a joke."
"I don't want to hear that from someone whose every component is a joke."
Sora-san was also going "Whoa" more than anyone else, and Nia-chan, who didn't quite get it yet, was blinking in admiration as she slowly processed the info.
He had likely gathered all the reactions he wanted from everyone. The smug Master Tiger let out a loud, satisfied snort, and then...
"Alright, next. It's your turn, Joke-specialist."
"Who's a joke-specialist?"
It was my turn.
Well, of course. Among the people gathered here... or rather, in the entire virtual world... I was proud to have a number of hands that stood out.
If that tiger hadn't jumped in to take the first slot, I would have just started pouring out a massive amount of text in an explanation.
One by one, carefully.
... Now then, let's begin. While receiving several gazes that contained interest, expectation, anxiety, and resignation, I'll start with this.
"Honestly, you're really showing off, aren't you? It must be something grand."
Tora-kichi gave me a grin with a different meaning than the boastful one from before, focusing on my left hip, which had likely been drawing attention since I arrived.
It had become quite famous, so people other than me were likely familiar with the braid decoration on the hilt. Then, showing the guard and the sword sheathed in the scabbard...
"Oh, it definitely is."
Regarding Samidare-zuki, which was housed in a gnarled scabbard with a texture like matte steel or ebony that no one would recognize.
"Without a doubt, it is one of the greatest things in this virtual world."
It was time for some serious boasting.
[Kurikara]: Scabbard
- While the sword is sheathed, weapon durability is restored and the power of the next draw attack increases over time. Additionally, when equipped, it applies the constant special effect [Yomorogi] to the entire party.
[Yomorogi]
A special effect shared with the entire party to which the owner belongs. The camp blessings of all members are integrated, allowing each individual to benefit from the North, South, East, and West camp blessings without restriction.
Tiger Tiger Master spent so much time boasting that this ended up being about half.