kscans

Chapter 235 - Doppelgänger

Hayato left Rose and Ruth in the dining hall and ran up to the second floor.

Judging by the location of the sound, it had come from the room of Gil, the Dark Knight. He knocked to see if anyone was inside.

"Gil-san? Did you resurrect?"

"Oh, Hayato-dono. I was defeated on the thirtieth floor. I'm coming out, just a moment."

Seconds later, Gil emerged from the room.

Gil's armor and shield were heavily damaged, their durability significantly reduced. Just seeing that, Hayato could surmise that a fierce battle had taken place.

"That must be a very strong opponent. For you to lose, Gil-san."

"Beating that would be difficult. We have Ivan-dono on our side. It would be tough, on the contrary."

"Eh?"

"I imagine Ivan-dono and Damian-dono will resurrect at the base soon as well. The Maid Chief-dono and Maris-dono should also have resurrected at their respective bases."

Hayato almost said, "That's impossible," out loud.

It was true that the members exploring the Necropolis couldn't use healing magic. But he had given them a large number of healing items, and in terms of combat power alone, Ivan was close to the strongest. He couldn't believe that such a party would be wiped out.

"Um, could you tell me what happened?"

"We're supposed to gather at the base first, but I'll tell you ahead of time, Hayato-dono. To put it simply, in the room before the stairs on the thirtieth floor, demon type monsters appear, but they are opponents with the same strength as our members."

"Opponents with the same strength?"

"Yes. It might be easier to understand if I say Doppelgänger. From their appearance to their equipment, everything is the same. Even their muscles. They are identical, but they're completely black and white dolls, so we don't end up fighting each other. But when they can even copy Ivan-dono's Excalibur, there's no way for me to block it. And enduring the Maid Chief-dono's combo attacks is tough."

"That... sounds tough."

In this game, a Doppelgänger was positioned as a demon that mimics its opponent's appearance.

Even among Doppelgängers, their strengths varied. Some would only copy appearance, while others would copy not just looks, but stats and skills as well. All were collectively called Doppelgängers.

The kind that copied everything, like this time, was a fairly special type of Doppelgänger.

If their strength and equipment were completely identical, then the one with superior fighting technique would win. In the first place, this opponent was an AI. It was unclear how accurately the AI could make decisions, but since Gil had been defeated and returned, it had to be seen as quite strong.

"Ivan-dono was fighting well, but it would be difficult. The opponents seem to be coordinating with a single will. We've been in a party together for a decent while, but it's undeniable that we're still a makeshift party, and if anything, we fight as individuals rather than coordinating. We might be able to win if we took our time, but we don't have that much time. Conquering it might be difficult."

"That makes sense."

Hayato had gathered the party members, but they weren't helping him indefinitely. They were helping him only while they had the time.

There was no need to wake the sleeping Mist in a hurry. The Necropolis conquest itself had no time limit, but the time this party could be formed was limited. The option of working hard until their coordination improved was not on the table.

So what should they do? Hayato was lost in thought.

In any case, it was also time for him to prepare for the cafe.

"Gil-san, I'm sorry. I have things to do this afternoon, so could we deal with this matter later?"

"Of course. We'll have a strategy meeting once everyone is here. We'll all think about how to conquer it first, then report to you, Hayato-dono."

"I'm sorry, thank you."

After bowing to Gil, Hayato returned to the dining hall to explain the situation to Rose. He told her it was fine to close the shop for the day. He then asked her to support everyone's meeting and to look after Ruth.

Rose consented and began to make various preparations.

"Well then, Ruth-kun, sorry for the commotion, but I think Damian-san will be back soon, so make yourself at home."

"Thank you very much."

After bidding farewell to the politely bowing Ruth, Hayato logged out from his room.

After finishing his work at the cafe, Hayato logged in again.

He had consulted with Esha, Ash, and the others about what had happened that morning during his work break, but no good ideas had come up.

Ash had suggested that they could go too, but it wasn't a matter of combat power, and Ash and the others were busy preparing for their movie, so he just accepted their sentiment.

Perhaps Ivan's group had come up with a good idea. Hayato left his room.

In the dining hall, everyone was sitting at the table, talking about various things. Ivan noticed Hayato.

"Oh, you're here."

"Sorry everyone. For not being here at such an important time."

"You're a production class, Hayato, so it's fine. Besides, we've mostly decided on a course of action, so we should be able to conquer it next time. Though it'll take some preparation."

"Is that so? What's the plan, by the way?"

"We're planning to take you to the thirtieth floor, Hayato. We'll have you defeat the Doppelgänger by yourself."

"...There's no way I can win with production skills, right? I'm confident I wouldn't lose at making potions, though."

Hayato was surprised by the completely unexpected strategy. In the first place, Hayato couldn't fight. What was the point of taking him, a non-combatant?

If the opponent was a Doppelgänger that copied appearance, equipment, and so on, then Hayato was indeed the optimal choice.

Hayato had absolutely no combat skills, his STR was at its minimum value, and consequently, his HP was also at its minimum. If that were copied, the opponent would also be in its weakest state.

However, Hayato was not good at strenuous exercise to begin with. The fear from when he injured his leg prevented him from making sudden movements.

During the fight with Diite, he had the will to save Esha and the others, so he managed to move recklessly, but if asked if he could move like that again, the answer was no.

"Hayato, listen. I learned something from fighting today."

According to Ivan, the opponent couldn't copy the contents of the Item Bag. If they switched equipment, the opponent would also switch, but they didn't use items.

Ivan had fought until he was the last one standing and succeeded in defeating his own Doppelgänger. It could be said that was because he had a resurrection item, a "Phoenix Feather." He had caught the opponent off guard right after resurrecting.

However, even though Ivan resurrected, the opponent did not. The Phoenix Feather was used automatically, so the opponent didn't have one.

After that, Ivan was defeated by the remaining opponents and resurrected at the base, but he shared that information with everyone.

And the answer they arrived at.

"You want me to use a self-destruct item against the Doppelgänger by myself."

"Right. Then, you resurrect with a Phoenix Feather. It's a perfect plan, right?"

"I have a lot I want to say, but does it really have to be me? You can win one on one, can't you, Ivan? Wouldn't it be fine to just bring a large number of Phoenix Feathers?"

"If we had that many Phoenix Feathers, I'd do it, but do we have that many?"

"...True, I can't prepare very many. Actually, I don't even know how to get them."

He could probably get them by defeating a phoenix, but Hayato didn't know where such a phoenix was. It was possible to buy them at auction, but they were quite expensive.

"I have a few myself, but I usually only carry one. It's something I need when I'm soloing dungeons, so I can't just use it whenever. But if you use it, Hayato, it will definitely be over in one go. In that case, providing a feather isn't a bad deal."

"That might be true, but... in the first place, does it really have to be me who self-destructs? It's not that I don't want to, but my leg is actually bad. If something goes wrong, I won't be able to handle it."

"Is that so? I didn't know that, but no matter how you look at it, you're the most suitable, Hayato. You don't have any combat skills like physical enhancement, right? Your defense isn't increased by the benefits of skills, so your self-destruct will definitely defeat the opponent. With anyone else, there's a possibility it wouldn't be a one-hit kill. And there's no guarantee we could finish them off after resurrecting."

Self-destruct attacks deal damage equal to one's own HP, but that is mitigated by defense power.

Some skills have the effect of increasing HP, MP, and attack or defense power. They are essential skills for combat classes, so the only ones who wouldn't have them are pure production classes or players with special skill compositions.

Considering that, Hayato was indeed the right person for the job. He had no base defense power, and his equipment had no defense power. It was a situation where a self-destruct would definitely be a one-hit kill.

"When you put it like that, I guess I am the most suitable... It can't be helped. Everyone has helped me with so much, so I guess this is something I should do. I don't know if it will go well, but let's give it a try."

And so, the plan to defeat the Doppelgänger with Hayato's self-destruct and resurrection combo was decided.