Chapter 102 - What Needs to Be Done
"Shou-kun, have you made plans for the long weekend?"
"Huh? Um, no particular plans, except maybe my dad or sister coming home? Though I have no idea when that would be."
"If you're free next Wednesday, I'd like you to meet my mother."
"..."
Right, that conversation happened.
Hmm, well, it's that mysterious situation of 'club activities as a part-time job'.
[Yata-sensei] explained the details thoroughly, but if you hear your precious only daughter is playing games with a male classmate? Anyone would be worried.
However,
"It's fine, but can I bring Miki ([Seth])? She'd definitely complain if she had to stay home alone."
"Yes, of course."
Alright. With this, it'll just be like, 'I came to visit as a friend through club activities,' right?
"[Mion]'s house is on the other side of the station, right? Is it far from the station?"
The station is the same, but the school district was different in junior high, so it must be on the opposite side, the south side.
If it's quite a distance, I should check the transportation methods.
"Is it far? I don't know myself, but walking is fine. I'll come pick you up."
"Oh, really? Okay, then I'll leave it to you. Sometime after noon?"
"I was wondering if you could make lunch... Is that not okay?"
"Ah... Understood. If you could tell me what you want to eat by the day before."
"Yes!"
I think we had promised, and Miki's food porn pictures had certainly made her envious.
Miki is quite picky, so at least there won't be any arguments about food there, which is a relief...
"Good work."
"Thanks."
"Hello."
She's usually a crisp, traditional Japanese beauty, but the contrast of her sitting in a gaming chair and putting on her [VR HMD] the moment she enters the club room is stark. I'm used to it now, though.
Oh right, I need to talk about lunch.
"Speaking of which, I heard from Nat..."
I briefly explained the rumors about the [First Imperial Prince Sigmund] and [Second Imperial Prince Burklest] who started the civil war in the [Grania Empire].
If the rumors were true, they were indeed on very bad terms, and there were ample reasons for conflict, I conveyed.
Also, Nat's brilliant (or perhaps misguided?) deduction that the large number of refugees might be due to players.
"I see. Anyway, let's count on [Seth]-chan to verify those rumors. More importantly, the speculation that NPCs are losing jobs because of players is quite interesting."
"Do you think so too, [Bell-san]?"
"In other games, maybe not, but in IRO, I think it's quite plausible."
Even if she says that, I'm living alone on an island, so I don't really know.
Watching [Seth]'s and [Bell-san]'s streams, I did think the NPCs had truly human-like AI.
"Are there actually such NPCs?"
"There was a time when players were competing fiercely for [Potion] ingredients, so I imagine fewer NPCs specialize in [Gathering] now."
[Bell-san] said that all the nearby places where [Coputi] (a common ingredient for [Heal Potion]) could be gathered were occupied by players. If you had competitors like that, you'd look for another job, wouldn't you...
"Shou-kun, it's almost time."
"Ah, yeah."
"You can go. I have to check comments from yesterday's live stream."
"Thanks."
They apparently defeated an [Area Boss], so it must have been exciting.
I should at least skim through it before Miki starts nagging me...
*
"Was there anything I should have done before renovating that place?"
"I don't think so, but there are a few things that are halfway done..."
"Ah, yeah, there are."
Just off the top of my head: 'make arrows', 'plant [Lexon] and other vegetables', 'search for other seaweed'.
Oh, and 'put a front door on the cave' that Nat mentioned today was added too.
"I want to see the basket trap for catching [Flower Trout]."
"That's right. I can make that from vines too, so I'll do it if I have time after I get back."
"Yes."
And so, I was making my way west through the [Ancient Ruins]' underground passage.
I didn't have to go all the way to the coast anymore, and the path was paved and straight, so it was fast.
"Woof!"
[Lupi] spotted the western exit and dashed forward.
For now, it seems like monsters won't come pouring in as long as that '[Unlock Code]' door remains closed.
"Is there anything special about the [Safe Zone] right outside here?"
"Ah, I was so focused on it being a [Safe Zone] that I didn't properly look..."
As I roughly appraised some conspicuous-looking grass...
[Coputi]
A perennial plant that blooms small yellow flowers.
[Alchemy]: A raw material for [Heal Potion]. [Cooking]: Delicious boiled with salt or stir-fried.
"Whoa, this is [Coputi]!"
"You did it!"
"Thanks to Mion. Thank you."
I really feel like it was after finding this that I encountered the Armor Bear.
Anyway, I gathered a moderate amount and tossed it into my backpack. Now "make [Heal Potion]" is added to my To-Do list.
But today's main task was checking the traps. I hope a [Greydeer] or something similar got caught in that spot...
"Oh! Yes!"
What was caught was the [Greydeer] I was aiming for.
Its horns are big, and it looks like an adult male. And it's huge. I think it's over 1m long.
"Woof!"
"Huh? Lupi, are you alright?"
"Woof."
[Lupi] answered, then slowly advanced towards the [Greydeer].
"Is Lupi-chan going to finish it off?"
"Yeah. It seems like she wants to do it herself, so..."
She already 'doesn't even give a thought' to [Bicobit] or anything like that, so I'm sure she'll be fine.
Just in case, I prepared myself to provide support with the Paralytic Knife on my hip.
Frightened by [Lupi] slowly approaching, the [Greydeer] let out a high-pitched cry and backed away, but...
"Oh!"
[Lupi] jumped in a single bound, bit into its throat, and firmly held onto it, pulling the [Greydeer] down.
But it seemed she couldn't quite overpower it physically yet, desperately trying to pin down the struggling [Greydeer].
"Lupi, I'll help you."
And so, I firmly held down the struggling [Greydeer]'s body for a while.
[The [Taming] skill level has increased!]
[Lupi has learned the Art: <[Mana Aid]>!]
[Lupi has learned the Art: <[Howling]>!]
[Lupi has learned the Art: <[Vitals Attack]>!]
"Huh?"
"Lupi-chan, that's amazing!"
"Woof!"
It's nice to pet Lupi's smug face, but I didn't expect her to acquire Arts so suddenly.
For now, I dismantled the [Greydeer], getting meat, horns, bones, hide, and sinews. Is this the first time for sinews? I should be able to make replacement bowstrings with them.
Anyway, leaving that aside,
[Wolf?: Lupi: Affection: Free Action]
Wolf?
Arts: <[Mana Aid]><[Howling]><[Vitals Attack]>
It's still 'Wolf?' and the flavor text is zero information. Is my [Appraisal] skill level too low, or is it that I simply lack the knowledge?
And regarding the Arts, <[Vitals Attack]> is fine, but...
[Mana Aid]
An Art that shares MP with its master. The amount of MP provided depends on affection.
[Howling]
An Art that summons and commands creatures of the same species with a howl. The number of creatures gathered varies by species.
[Mana Aid] is sort of understood. Does that mean [Lupi] can give me MP even if I'm about to run out?
[Howling], though... 'same species' means other 'Wolves?' like [Lupi] will come? If so, that feels too strong.
"It's too mysterious..."
"Want to try it out?"
"Hmm, no, I'll pass. Lupi can use her Arts as she likes."
"Woof!"