kscans

Chapter 70 - A Meeting for Two

It was just after I parted ways with Kagura-san—not Sis. I had made my way to the world of sand, a place I once declared I would “never return to.”

My stats, my skills, and the [Prologue: Wedge Fragment Singing of Eternity (An=Re Galta)] I had just received—thinking back, even though only a few days had passed, I had achieved remarkable growth, if I do say so myself.

By the way, I had completely forgotten about it, but there was that pile of materials I had dumped on Kagura-san before, asking her to “make something interesting.” Those ended up being shelved, with the sentiment of, “You got a monster weapon like that, you really need some half-assed gear now?”

Turning them into armor was also a no-go, as there was a lack of materials suitable for light armor. The best option was something like a cloak woven from Glowbird feathers.

When she showed me a rough sketch of said cloak, all I could see was a future where it would get in the way of my ridiculously acrobatic movements, so that idea was scrapped.

And besides, there was the matter of my new friend, [Prologue: Wedge Fragment Singing of Eternity (An=Re Galta)]'s weight... The moment I tossed that one item into my inventory, the capacity gauge shot up. So, yeah...

Due to these unavoidable circumstances, my dearly departed materials were reborn as chump change and found their way into my wallet. May they rest in peace. Right, then.

――――――――――――――――――
◇Status◇
Name: Haru
Lv: 81
STR (Strength): 50 ⇒ 100
AGI (Agility): 430 ⇒ 500 (+10)
DEX (Dexterity): 200 (+10)
VIT (Vitality): 5
MID (Mind): 5
LUC (Luck): 10 ⇒ 50

◇Skills◇
・All-Weapon Aptitude
《Blink Switch》
《Piercing Dart》

・《Quit Counter》
・《Floating Leaf》

・Embodied Protection
・Heavy Attack Manipulator
・Combo Accelerate
・Idaten
・Flying Swallow Dash
・Fateless Jumper
・Rhino's Heart
・Guardian's Cradle
――――――――――――――――――

"...Yeah, this looks about right... I guess I'll have to cap my AGI here for now."

I finished deliberating my stat allocation and muttered to myself as I gazed at my Agility, which had reached the nice round number of 500. To be honest, it was already excessive. If, for example, Sora were to boost it further with her [Scareless], I would completely exceed the speed I can handle.

Actually, I'm already exceeding it even in normal situations. As it stands, controlling my avatar at top gear relies entirely on unconscious movements beyond my own comprehension and one hundred percent pure instinct.

It’ll be a while yet, but I plan to graduate from this runaway express train state when the stat reset function becomes available.

If only I could get a thought acceleration skill. Apparently, the condition for acquiring it is a certain amount of combat time with a light warrior build that has an AGI stat above a certain threshold. But I heard the first time it was ever confirmed was just a year ago.

In other words, it's something that even a seasoned veteran who fought for two years since the service started could only just obtain. So, the chances of a newcomer like me getting it anytime soon are slim.

I'm already quite attached to my current style, but I have no intention of clinging to it while wishing for something I don't have. If I drag my feet, Sora might just leave me behind.

"—Haru-san!"

"Whoa, there she is."

Just as I swiped away the windows I had open, my waiting partner came running toward me, kicking up sand. It was none other than my dear companion, whom I'd kept waiting for three days.

Her attire was unchanged—a simple battle cloth with minimal leather armor. Kicking up sand with the same eel-skin gloves and boots as mine, Sora waved with an unconcealed, friendly aura as she arrived at our meeting spot in the [Great Flowing Sand Cavern].

"It's been a while... or maybe not that long, huh?"

I’d been burning with impatience, so that was the first thing that came out, but in real-time, it had only been three days. I raised a hand in return and scratched my cheek to play it off, but—

"No, it has been a while! Is your business all taken care of?"

To my delight, it seemed she had also been looking forward to our promise today. A dazzlingly beautiful smile seeped into my mentally-weakened state, a soul-soothing balm after being battered by the big city.

"Yeah. It's a bit much getting used to everything, but for the most part, I'm settled."

"I see. ...Then, it's finally time!"

"Yep. You ready to go?"

Her expression, shining with a fervor that went beyond mere liveliness, made the answer obvious—

Our first meeting in three days. What we were about to do was something we had promised each other when I told her I'd be taking a short break.

In short, we had promised to reconquer the [Great Flowing Sand Cavern].

"Of course! I'm going to show you a side of me that's a whole new level from before!"

"Ah, yeah, looking forward to it...?"

While I was a little taken aback by her higher-than-expected energy, Sora was excitedly clenching her right hand, the one bearing her [Cradle of Sword-Craft].

Speaking of breaking away from the past, I'd already witnessed it firsthand during the [Angalta, God-Wedge Sword-King] battle—but then I remembered the countless new skills that had been added to her status screen afterward.

We parted ways right after making today's promise, so I had no idea what new tricks Sora had up her sleeve. Now, seeing her like this... man, I’m starting to get the shakes.

"Come on, Haru-san, let's go!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming—whoa...!?"

Leaving my trembling heart behind, I was pulled along by the cheerful Sora's hand and broke into a run.

While inwardly gushing over the smile of this girl—this heroine—who had somehow become far more of a 'protagonist' than I was, I dashed off once again into an adventure brimming with excitement.