Chapter 144 - Gilding, Jester, Crown
How much time did we need to swallow our mutual embarrassment?
Eventually, our eyes met, and Sora and I shared a single conclusion.
Essentially: "Let's just forget about it for now."
Abandoning any deep thought, we both put on deliberately feigned airs and sealed away the memories of the last few minutes. Then, as if to escape reality, we turned our attention to our long-neglected title settings, but...
""Seriously...?""
Though we were looking at our own respective windows, the dry voices we let out were for the same thing—the description for a special title called `Twin Flames` that was all sorts of confusing.
I mean, what is this? A title? What even is a title again...?
"Isn't this... I don't know, basically a kind of ultimate ability...?"
"A... title...?"
As I muttered in disbelief, Sora, with a dozen question marks floating over her head, echoed my confusion.
"A special title, huh... From the looks of it, you didn't know about this either, did you?"
"No, I didn't... I mean, I was never very knowledgeable about detailed systems like titles in the first place..."
Right, Sora's knowledge mostly comes from videos and such, so it was always a bit narrow and shallow. When it comes to detailed player builds, there's a mountain of information you'd never get from just scratching the surface.
Still, though. An effect this exceptional, and it's always active without having to be set?
..................Seriously???
"Somehow, everything written here just seems wrong..."
"Don't worry, it all looks wrong to my eyes, too."
Teleportation, revival, invincibility... there are way too many phrases that have no business being casually written in a skill description.
What's also weird is that, for some reason, Arcadia's trademark brain-installation feature isn't working for this. I had this insane unique title equipped to my avatar this whole time, and I seriously had no idea until now?
"......And then there's this."
Yes, that's right. There's another special title.
I'll never forget it. That moment I earned the rank of Ninth.
Looking back, I recall a message mixed in with all the other announcements, stating that I had acquired a special title.
A second title was listed in the special titles tab, which had appeared next to the regular title tab without me noticing. Its name was, in a word—
Special Title: `Acrobat` — During combat, reduce the cooldown time of all skills according to the total amount of self-inflicted damage. When the total self-inflicted damage in combat reaches 90% of max HP, gain the buff `Crown Crown`.
・`Crown Crown` — During combat, nullify HP loss from self-inflicted damage.
The accumulated self-inflicted damage and the buff are lost when any HP recovery is registered.
"...For starters, can't we really do something about the name 'Acrobat'...?"
The exquisitely uncool vibe feels like it's saying, "This suits you perfectly," and the more time passes, the more unwilling I am to accept it.
But more importantly, there's the effect itself.
...What is this broken nonsense?
"Sora-san, Sora-san."
"Yes?"
I materialized the window and showed the ridiculously insane effect description to Sora, who had turned to face me.
And the girl—
"..................Wow."
—gave me a textbook look of being utterly put off, and for some reason, shot me a deadpan stare.
"Well, that's what happens when you inflict damage on yourself so many times without a second thought, you know?"
"Seriously...? But the skill..."
My `Ignition` skill demands a price...
The name is lame, the effect is insane in multiple ways, and now Sora-san is glaring at me... This is just the worst.
But I won't be discouraged.
Hey, you, random monster passing by. I see you.
Mind helping me out for a sec?
"Here, have a [Parabellum Bullet]."
Still sitting on the rock, I casually tossed a [Parabellum Bullet], which dove into the mud—and the next moment,
"Hyau—?!"
SPLASH! With a spray of heavy mud, a creature about four meters long... a, what, what is that?
An alligator with an anglerfish head? ...Wait, is it an alligator? Do alligators have six legs?
Sora must have been incredibly surprised by my sudden action and the flashy appearance of that thing—a Drapple Elgator.
Letting out a yelp, she grabbed my sleeve. I soothed her with a "There, there, it's not scary," as I stood up alone and summoned the black blade of [Panga Fool] to my left hand.
"W-Wha—?! Wh-what...?!"
"Ah, it's fine, it's fine. It's just a weakling, no need to be on guard."
In terms of category, it's like a relative of the [Wall Lizard] we encountered on the tutorial map.
If you imagine a version that's about thirty times stronger than that, you'd be pretty much right.
Well, you know—we're also more than thirty times stronger than we were back then, aren't we?
"Time for some testing. Let's make this quick."
First, that takes care of the "in combat" condition.
Next up, one, two, three, four—a total of nine times. To anyone who didn't know what I was doing, it would look like complete madness. I spammed the self-damage trigger, gouging out a huge chunk of my own HP, and...
"...Huh? Did anything change?"
No special effects or animations?
"Haru?! It's coming!!"
Ah, okay, okay. Aaaand, here we go—!!
"Gotcha!!"
Fueled by rage at having a dagger thrown at it for just passing by, the massive creature charged, its bloodshot eyes glowing.
The Elgator lumbered forward and leaped straight for me. I used `Blink Switch` and, with a one-handed swing of my [An-ri Galta], mercilessly batted it away.
It didn't even make a sound, just a pathetic "guff" as air was forced out of its lungs, and the angler-gator went flying.
Paying it no mind, I focused again on my avatar's status.
Sora-san watched the whole scene with an indescribable expression.
...Hey, I couldn't help it.
When I first tried hunting Misty Snakes solo, I had no idea how to find them. Eventually, I got tired of it and just started wandering around, tossing my weapon into any spot where I sensed something.
And wouldn't you know it, these things took the bait every single time... I was spooked by their insane toughness at first, but after fighting them over and over, you get used to it.
This swamp, it seems, is their home, not the Misty Snakes'.
They both hide themselves—one by turning invisible, the other by burrowing in the mud—so maybe they get along? I don't know the details, but I heard the snakes coexist here, mixing in with the Elgators.
Anyway, that doesn't matter. The real question is about that title's buff...
"Um, Haru...?"
"Yeah?"
The pathetic gator had flown nearly ten meters and was now rolling through the swamp. With that as my backdrop, I turned around at the hesitant call—and for some reason, Sora-san's gaze was fixed above my head.
"That's the title's effect, right? I think... that might be it."
As she said "that," Sora pointed to the upper left of her own head.
Even if she told me that, I have no way of seeing my own head. Seeing my predicament, she took out a hand mirror from her inventory—how ladylike.
Sora's bag is also my bag, but I had no idea she had something like that in there... wait............
"..., ............"
I was speechless. In the hand mirror Sora held up for me, I saw a guy with an average face.
And above his head—a translucent, crown-shaped effect, tilted at an angle and looking as if it had been split clean in two, was floating there............
"............Hhhhhhhhhh—"
—IT'S SO DAMN LAME!!!!!
(In reality, I imagine it's a stylish, understated design, but what of the mental damage from being forced to wear a crown due to some pun-like wordplay?)