Chapter 537 - Four Days Prior
“—And so, Sora. I need to borrow your partner for a little while.”
It all began on the fourth day of our trip. The day after the news of Hayagake-san’s second conquest of the [Spiral Crimson Tower] arrived, just past noon.
With it being so recent, the topic of ‘unconquered dungeons’ came up again, and during a peaceful after-lunch chat, Asche was explaining various details about them.
...However, her monologue concluded with a sudden request to rent me.
Naturally, Sora-san and I were left dumbfounded. The only one unconcerned was Nia-chan, who was sleeping peacefully right beside us.
What a happy-looking sleeping face she has.
“Um, well...”
“I’m not sure I understand the ‘and so’ part, but...”
There was no preamble, and any semblance of context had been kicked to the curb. I’m sorry to say this while you’re tilting your head as if to ask, “Did I say something strange?” but the legitimate reaction here belongs to us, the confused ones.
“Well, the flow of the conversation—was completely severed, but I get what you’re trying to say. You were inspired and now you want to challenge the remaining two unconquered dungeons, right?”
“Yes. The sparring one.”
“The [Shadow-Infested Arena], huh... If it’s that one, then I’m totally on board.”
As for the other one with the ridiculous nickname, I’d have to pass for personal reasons, but I am interested in fighting a boss that’s so ridiculously strong and unbalanced.
If she’s inviting me, my answer can only be yes—however.
“Um... I have no problem lending you Haru, but...”
“So you have no problem.”
“Wh-what’s that supposed to mean? It’s not the kind of problem where it would be bad if I did have a problem with it, so please don’t make that weird face...!”
In response to my casual interjection, Sora glanced at me and her expression changed a multitude of times—not quite a hundred faces, but maybe six. I’m not sure what she read into my reaction, but she went from surprised to intrigued to fidgety and so on, finally settling on a pout, which was incredibly cute. I’m glad she’s been showing more of her age-appropriate reactions lately.
—And in response to my warm gaze, she narrowed her eyes in dissatisfaction.
“...Well, if Haru wants me to stop hiding my possessiveness, then I have no intention of being a ‘good girl’ either. Which do you prefe—”
“Alright, let’s hear the rest of what you were saying after ‘I have no problem with it.’”
Seeing that the tide was turning against me, I quickly redirected the conversation, only to get a sharp pinch on the back of my hand. The force behind the punishment was not cute at all; it just plain hurt.
“Mmph... Um, yes. I don’t mind—but, um, would it be wrong for me to come along too? I-I’m not trying to get in the way or anything, I’m just genuinely...!”
I see, she’s curious and wants to try challenging it herself.
From a pure gameplay perspective, I honestly want to take Sora with me. Well, not just take her, but go with her as my partner.
So, unless Asche intended this as some sort of, you know, date or something, I’d prefer for the three of us to challenge it together—
“I have no problem with you coming with us. But you can’t challenge it with us.”
It seems there was a fundamental reason for her request to rent me.
“The maximum number of challengers for the [Shadow-Infested Arena] is two. The three of us can’t enter together.”
Asche’s concise explanation made Sora and I say “Ah...” in unison.
“And there’s another reason I singled out Haru, separate from ‘wanting to be with him.’ This has to do with some dungeon mechanics I haven’t mentioned yet...”
And so began another direct lecture from the [Sword Queen] herself. Her explanation, concise and beautifully summarized, took only a few minutes to...
“I see.”
“I understand...”
...bring us to a new level of understanding.
I see, I really see now—This is indeed a case that is perfectly suited for me. And at the same time, it’s a gimmick that Sora should not be involved in.
According to her, the boss enemy in the other of the two remaining unconquered dungeons, the [Shadow-Infested Arena], called Repu-ra Noubadi, appears in a ridiculously powerful, hard-counter form tailored to each individual challenger.
So, what happens when there are two challengers? Instead of two separate ‘shadows’ appearing, a single fusion appears.
In other words, a fusion of two meta-bosses, each capable of overwhelming their respective challenger... and not only that, but due to some synergistic effect, its overall specs are further boosted, creating a true monster that breaks the game’s balance.
Due to this nature, to put it simply, if you include a ‘versatile’ player in the mix, you end up with a perfect, flawless enemy that is truly untouchable from any angle.
It might be a different story if it were someone with only a slight specialization or a few tricks up their sleeve. But our dear Sora is a monstrously versatile and beautiful magic swordswoman who has been praised by every ranker she has met, starting with Asche.
Now, imagine a ridiculously overpowered form capable of thoroughly dominating her... mixed with a ‘shadow’ corresponding to, say, me or Asche.
The thought is nothing short of terrifying.
I’m one thing, but an Asche-Sora-style ‘shadow’ sounds like something you couldn’t beat even with a full raid party—and this is where the important part of aiming for a clear comes in.
While challenging as a pair results in Repu-ra Noubadi having specs far beyond what it has in a solo challenge, there is a significant merit that only occurs with the fusion.
That is, the manifestation of a weakness that models the challengers.
No one knows the detailed settings or backstory of how or why this happens. But it is a fact that the ‘shadow,’ which reads everything about the challengers to build a counter, simultaneously develops a bug-like weakness—an error—when two are mixed.
So, the reason Asche singled me out was—
“There is no other player whose weakness is so clearly defined, yet who acts as if it doesn’t exist. Assuming a certain level of skill, I can’t think of anyone else.”
“Even so, I’m only a little more fragile than average these days...”
And that was it.
It’s unclear what would actually happen... but if I were to challenge the [Shadow-Infested Arena] with someone, the ‘shadow’ we would face would likely reflect the ‘weakness’ I carry.
A simple ‘weakness’ of dying if a powerful enemy’s attack so much as grazes me.
One might think, “Then can’t you just challenge it with any glass cannon?” but of course, it’s not that simple.
While it’s true that challenging it with a partner will give Repu-ra Noubadi a weakness, that enemy is, by its very nature, a hard counter that will exploit that very weakness.
In short, unless you are ‘someone who is incredibly easy to kill but absolutely never dies,’ this strategy is unusable. Furthermore, even for the [Sword Queen], a victory is not guaranteed if she has to face a natural enemy whose base specs are more than double her own, all by herself.
Unless it’s someone who can stand and fight alongside her, the whole thing just doesn’t work.
—Also, and I say this with the utmost respect, Asche had one more ‘reason.’
“If I have someone who can create a clear opening and keep up with me, we have a chance of winning... No. More than that, with Haru, who defeated me head-on,”
She said it with a face that held not a single shred of doubt.
“We can definitely defeat it. Let’s go take down the second unconquered dungeon, together.”
To the princess who so boldly declared victory, I could not give a weak reply.
Even if the player can set the weakness to some extent, the fundamental nature and specs of the boss are so broken compared to the challengers that trying to win with cheap tricks is basically impossible.