I slowly lowered myself into the lukewarm bath, planning to relax completely while watching some anime on the bathroom TV. But, of course, things didn’t work out that way. I’m only given ten minutes to use the bathroom.
So I hurriedly covered myself in soap, blasted everything off with a hot shower, and rushed out of the bath.
“You’re late, Daishi-san. Now, sit down. We’re starting the strategy meeting.”
I’d gotten dressed again in record time and hurried into the living room, vigorously rubbing my hair dry with a towel as I joined everyone else. Yet despite that, I turned to be still a little late because Mina-chan immediately scolded me.
Come on. Ten minutes was impossible!
I hadn’t even had time to dry my hair properly.
Incidentally, my clothes had been neatly folded and placed in the washroom, looking practically brand-new. Every trace of sweat, age, and even fart-related odors had been completely eliminated, replaced by the pleasant scent of floral fabric softener.
True to her word, Mina-chan had somehow finished the job while I was taking my ridiculously short bath. I had no idea what method she’d used, but judging by the results, I had absolutely no complaints.
“Well then, shall we review our current combat capabilities? First, Daishi Ajiri.”
“…Hm?”
I had just put my lips to the bottle of water sitting on the table when Shion-san suddenly directed the conversation toward me.
Come on, give me a little time to relax after getting out of the bath!
“Could you explain your stats and skills to us again?”
“Huh?”
Now?
I mean, hadn’t I already explained them here and there?
Then again, most of those explanations had probably been more for the viewers’ benefit. I hadn’t really sat down and gone over everything with the others directly. I’d picked up quite a few new skills since then too. My stats had also reached the point where even I barely understood what the numbers meant anymore.
So, for my own sake, it probably wouldn’t hurt to take stock of everything and get my head organized.
“We already know that Daishi-san is a “monster” who’s surpassed even monsters. However, we’d like to share information about your abilities so we can figure out our strategy and everything.”
There she went again, somehow managing to hurt my feelings with her choice of words.
A monster who’s surpassed even monsters?
That was just a metaphor, right?
…Right?
Wait. Did they actually think I was a real monster?
“Well, it’ll definitely make it easier to come up with a strategy if everyone knows what each of us can do! Got it! Just give me a second.”
Yeah, whatever. That could wait.
For now—
Status, open!
| Name: Daishi Ajiri Class: Burial Priest Level: 25 HP: 3333 / 3333 MP: 2929 / 2929 Strength: 2456 Endurance: 2890 Agility: 8001 Intelligence: 3044 Burial Power: 9999 Surplus Burial Points: 5555 Skills: 【Burial Samsara (Lv1)】 【Burial Healing (MAX)】 【Burial Fist (MAX)】 【Retribution (MAX)】 【Requiem (MAX)】 【Return (MAX)】 【Cremation (MAX)】 【Clairvoyance (MAX)】 Unique Skill: 【Hell Gate】 【Infinite Itembox】 Title: 【Enlightened One】 |
Looking over my status carefully again, I had to admit…
My stats really were completely ridiculous.
Oh, right. I’d completely forgotten that I could allocate my surplus Burial Points. I’ll think about how to distribute them properly once our meeting is over. Although… if possible, I want to do that event together with the viewers.
Unfortunately, streaming was strictly prohibited in this hotel and all Guild-related facilities, so I’d have to wait until we were somewhere I could stream again before allocating the points.
“Could you write everything down on this sheet of paper? We can’t see your status screen, after all.”
“Sure thing.”
I copied all my stats onto the large sheet of paper Mina-chan had handed me.
Seeing everything written out like this somehow made my sheer abnormality stand out even more.
“T-that really is monstrous…”
“Y-yeah. It’s so far beyond the norm that it’s almost laughable…”
“Are these numbers actually real? You’re not making any of this up, are you, Daishi-san?”
“Brrrrr…..”
Everyone stared at my revealed stats and skills in stunned silence.
Wait… Ryunosuke can read?!
It was shaking its head, too.
“It’s all real! Do you want me to write down the effects of all the skills, too?”
“Y-yes… Please do.”
Shion-san was actually speaking politely to me now.
Could it be that seeing my stats laid out like this had finally earned me a little respect?
If so, then all this writing had definitely been worth it!
Come on, everyone. Show a little more respect for your elders!
I am technically the oldest one here, after all!
“All right, I’ll write it all down. Oh, and since we don’t want to waste time, why don’t you guys write down your own stats, too? We can compare everything side by side and come up with a strategy!”
“Y-Yeah… I suppose…”
“I really, really don’t want to write mine down…”
“I’m an S-ranker, you know!”
“Kuuuun…”
Yes! I’d come up with a surprisingly sensible proposal for once!
We didn’t have time to waste!
Come on, everyone—get those hands moving!
But for some reason, nobody besides me seemed particularly enthusiastic about the idea.
Why was that?
Well, whatever!
We’d lay out everyone’s abilities on the table, put our heads together, and devise a strategy to overcome whatever challenges lay ahead!
◆◆◆
“All right. I think we’ve got a pretty good handle on our current combat strength and how we’re going to fight from here on out.”
“W-well, I’m a healer, so I’m going to be pretty valuable, right?”
“I-I’m fairly versatile for an explorer too, so… I should be useful as the party’s all-purpose problem solver, right?”
“SHAAAAAA!!”
After having everyone go over their stats and abilities again, everything suddenly became much clearer in my head.
It had been a productive meeting. We’d given ourselves a lot more options when it came to how we would approach the battles ahead.
In short, the discussion had resulted in the following:
* From now on, the five of us would operate as a proper party, maintaining formation and coordinating our attacks.
* Shion-san, Ryunosuke-kun, and I would serve as the front line, taking the role of tanks and direct combatants.
* Mina-chan and Satsuki-chan would remain in the rear, handling support and healing.
* Since I possessed a large number of unusual skills, I needed to think carefully before using them.
* As the oldest “and strongest” member of the party, I am absolutely responsible for protecting everyone, no matter what happened.
* I am not allowed to put unnecessary things in my Itembox. (Underwear, for example.)
* I am not allowed to use 【Clairvoyance】 to pry into the girls’ pasts.
…and so on.
“One last thing. And this is important. I’m mainly saying this to the old man, but Mina and Satsuki, you’d better take this to heart as well.”
“Oh, that.”
“Yeah, I know!”
“Huh? What? What are you talking about?”
What was this about?
Was there something else important we needed to discuss besides everything we’d just gone over?
“Never use your skills on the surface. Using skills anywhere outside a dungeon is considered a serious criminal offense.”
“…Huh? Seriously?”
“That’s right. Though, considering we’re already being treated like a bunch of potential criminals, I guess it’s a little late to worry about it now.”
“If you use a skill under the current circumstances, they’ll probably send in the military.”
Good thing they told me. I’d actually been thinking about using 【Return】 right then and there to designate this place as a new return point.
Well, it made sense. If people could freely use powers this dangerous anywhere they wanted, society would probably collapse overnight.
It was only natural that there’d be laws against it.
Brrrrrrr… Brrrrrrr…
Suddenly, the intercom built into the room began ringing.
“Yes, hello?”
“Ajiri-dono? Your transportation is ready. We’ll be departing for Guild Headquarters now, so please make your way down.”
“Understood. I’ll be right there.”
It seemed the time had flown by. When I glanced at the clock, it was already 8:00 a.m.
Right on the dot, without even a second of deviation, the doorbell to the suite rang and the black-clad staff member arrived to escort us.
I immediately answered, ending the audio and video connection.
“It’s finally time…”
I thought I heard Satsuki audibly swallow.
The tension in the room was steadily rising.
“Daishi-san, just like we discussed, make sure you listen carefully to what Yuda-san has to say first. I highly doubt they’ll attack us the moment we arrive.”
Mina-chan reminded me of one of the most important points from our strategy meeting.
Yeah. The fact that Guild Headquarters had gone to the trouble of arranging this kind of formal escort made me pretty sure they had something they wanted from us—most likely a negotiation, or perhaps a request. So there was no way they’d simply slaughter us the moment we stepped inside Headquarters.
Talking things out had to come first.
“If I determine that the situation has clearly turned against us, I’ll give you a signal. When that happens…”
“Full release of our skills, right?”
“Exactly. We’ll tear the place apart and retreat with everything we’ve got.”
I understood what Shion-san was getting at. The agreement not to use our skills only applied as long as negotiations went smoothly. If things turned into a matter of life and death, we wouldn’t hesitate to resort to force.
Hopefully, it wouldn’t come to that.
“SHAAAAAAAAAA! (LET’S GOOOOOO!!)”
Ryunosuke-kun was fired up and ready for battle. For some reason, its roar sounded suspiciously like something straight out of a super-robot anime.
But that was probably just my imagination.
“All right! Let’s go, everyone!”
And so, the stage was finally set to shift to the enemy’s very own stronghold, the Guild Headquarters.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeneijiworks.com
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