CH 206

Day 57 – Dungeon, 50F



Covered in slimy liquid, the schoolgirls stood up with empty eyes, so I used Temperature Magic and prepared a bath for them, a giant hot water ball. Taking turns, the girls wash off the slime with the warm water of this quasi-shower, but since they are wearing armor, the scene has 0 lewdness? Yup, there is nothing interesting about watching that? Well, it can’t be helped that there is a Big Bang of unlimited fantasies in boys’ heads.



Do they look so down because they are tired, because they lost, because they failed, or because they are all slimy? They should’ve targeted each core in an all-out attack right away, but they instead went for half-measures, sticking to attacking with the bows, since they were so impressed with them earlier, putting themselves into an overwhelmingly disadvantageous position, and getting cornered as a result. If they went for a blitz, they could’ve overwhelmed and defeated it. The variety of attacks available to them increased, but it gave way to hesitation, and trying a safe approach resulted in losing the initiative. This is the commander’s error, and it is also the pres’ error, who decided against using the whip, thinking that they have leeway here, and attempted to win through numbers and strategy, trying to pass the test. That’s why she is super sad, down, and depressed. And her eyes are wet with tears? If possible, can I have that with Flat Gaze, please?



But somehow, it seems they have incredibly bad compatibility with dungeon masters.



Suppose they let their guard down with the phoenix, even if Slime-san and the Sand Giant are out of the question, they have difficulty dealing with unique monsters. It’s all because the librarian specialized them for anti-human warfare, that they lost their edge for the fights that demand adaptability. Their caution backfires, forcing them into a prolonged fight while still at a disadvantage.



The mood seems heavy? Kind of?



「I’m sorry, looks like this plan was a mistake. Standing in place and shooting at it with bows was an error. I’m sorry.」



「「「Eeh~, it’s alright~. We agreed to this as well. We also thought that this was a good plan. 」」」



「After all, we had a blast with bows earlier~, but if it doesn’t work, then we are just standing for nothing. This is a point of reflection.」



「But we also can get the first strike with them, so it’s too good to give up? It might depend on the opponent, but it was overwhelming for anything aside from the rafflesia?」



「Yeah. I also thought that bows are the best, not using them is such a waste.」



（Blah blah blah, and so on）



A review meeting has begun. Needless to say, but the boys contribute nothing.



Even without any review, if they immediately went for an all-out attack from all directions they could’ve won, but even so, the affinity was not in their favor. Were they to fail to take it down in one swoop, a tough fight would’ve been unavoidable.



If the Great Sage switched from using direct magic attacks to indirect magic attacks, they also wouldn’t have gotten cornered. Even if direct magic attacks are absorbed, once soil or a fire is created it is not magic anymore. If it has to be supported and maintained, it is magic, but if it is simply a flying boulder, then there is nothing to resist. Moreover, the dungeon master was level 50, with the level 99’s magic they should’ve been able to overpower it.



Even so, she held back, obstinately so, despite having the biggest MP pool among all of the classmates, she doesn’t use any magic unless it’s sure to succeed.



The reason why she is conserving on MP so much must be in her desire to have『Resurrect』ready. While injuries and poison can be managed one way or another, only 『Resurrect』can bring one back to life from instant death or fatal injuries. And if enough time passes, revival becomes impossible. That’s why she is holding back for the sake of the worst-case scenario. For the sake of the worst happening to the classmates… or Armored Pres-san and me, who have the highest chance of dying on the spot.



Such a grand spell as『Resurrect』likely can’t be used by anyone aside from the Great Sage, and it consumes an outrageous amount of MP. Enough to prevent her from using any offensive magic at all if she wants to have it ready.



After all, that is the only way to save one from the clutches of death.



I don’t get the principle, but mana batteries seem to be unable to cover for that. Although I handed her more than enough, she is still holding back. Are there some Holy Magic-related restrictions? Well, if it was possible to somehow resolve this, she would’ve already placed an order. Since she isn’t saying anything, there must be no solution at the moment.



That’s why despite her low stats for physical combat, and all of the equipment boosting her magic capabilities, she keeps fighting in melee… Well, there is probably a bit of her preferences involved as well. I mean, she is bludgeoning things to death with a refreshing smile. Naturally, it doesn’t even have to be mentioned, they were shaking, I have the image saved, so there is no mistake about it.



「Well now, through the power of a refreshing shower, slimy and slippery schoolgirls became wet and dripping, so let’s go back? I guess? I mean, I burned that thing, but the stench is still in the air? No one wants that to stick to their equipment, right? Since you are not slimy anymore and just drenched, let’s go back? For real.」



「「「We will, but can you not call girls drenching, wet, or dripping?!」」」



Preparations for the retreat had begun. Since we are still waiting for the magic stone to appear, it only amounts to getting our equipment in order and resting.



If the geeks managed to complete the giant ballista then they would’ve had a destructive power even with only ranged weapons, but somehow, it became a halberd, which was a great addition too.



A halberd. Also called a glaive, axe-spear, poleaxe, a combination of an axe on a long handle and a spear with a claw. Slash with the blade, stab with the spear, smash with the axe, grab with the hook, and bash. Adaptable for any combat situation, but unwieldy due to its size and weight. And due to its versatility, skilfully utilizing each part to the fullest is a challenging task, not many can accomplish, thus limiting the number of people that can handle it, but with the classmates’ high PoW and DeX they should be able to use it. And if mastered, it is a terrifyingly effective weapon. It should be valid in collective warfare too. It would require quick, precise, and adaptable judgment, but since our commander is talented it will be fine, even though she is still depressed.



And I want that large ballista too. But the only ones who would be able to move it around without setting it up are the Idiots. Crap, they definitely will try to charge at the enemy and hit them with a ballista. Or do the opposite, instead of hitting with it, they might try to throw it. If we can make it operate on magic stones and make it self-reloading and capable of repeating fire it can be truly weaponized. And if it’s possible to enchant it to produce great destructive power even in small size, it can be turned portable. I’ll have to start from the drafting board, but the Geeks should know the blueprints for a large ballista. Although the result of their work is a halberd, their blueprints are perfect.



Reliable slashing attacks can be gotten with weapon enhancement, but increasing their number would require relying on skills. In the end, we still hit the level 100 wall. And there is no more certain power-up than raising the level.



But no one was able to reach level 100 this time. Since there are people with levels over 100, if conditions were met it should be possible to break through, but why does it not raise? I’m pretty sure there is more than enough exp points by now? What could it be?



Finally, the dungeon master turned into a magic stone. And the item that dropped was 『Rafflesia Flower – Create, Control, Command Rafflesias』. I was choking on tears, how much I wanted to tame that one, but it seems I had no reason for it, and the Geeks are staring really hard. They look as if they are gazing at something stuffed with hopes and dreams, but there is nothing but ero and lust? Actually, is there anything inside your heads besides tentacles? No, if poked out of curiosity, something far more dangerous might pop out of there! We shouldn’t ask them, their brains are a legit DANGER ZONE!



「「「It has been decided that the item should go to Haruka-kun, under the condition of exchange, sale, barter, present, or any other form of transfer being prohibited~. Yaay~, clap clap clap? Got it?」」」



It has been decided? Am I supposed to go back to the cave and start a rafflesia garden after retirement? Can the stench problem be solved with Control? And why does everyone keep pushing it on me when tentacles are involved? Was I selected as 『The man who looks good with tentacles』? Was it the Number 1 Readers Choice? Well, before the question of looking good with tentacles or not even comes, there isn’t any other man with tentacles around, so getting the number 1 spot is inevitable. But what’s up with being number 1 if I’m Only 1? I mean, there are no other options?



For starters, it seems that 『Rafflesia Flower』is not smelly, so let’s make it a potted plant. Yellowish and covered in thorns it isn’t very flower-like, but more of an alien plant, I wonder if it can still be soothing? But it’ll end up as a rafflesia if it grows? What do we do if we get attached to it? In the near future, I might get kicked out of the inn over the stench issue?



「Let’s go home?」



「「「Agreed!」」」



Well, the girls must want to return as soon as possible and take a proper bath. They ended up quite sticky after being covered in goo all over. But if we had several weapons of the『Chain Whip of Savage Lightning』-class, it wouldn’t have been that hard to sweep away the tentacles. Let’s make strengthening the geek guardian’s halberd the top priority. But it’s still not enough, I’d like every party to have at least one such weapon. I mean, in most cases, brute force ends up being the solution? Simple, safe, reliable tactic. It will also serve as insurance in case things go wrong.



Suppose among the current 7 parties the committee and the Geeks are fine, I have a holy sword, and also Dimension Slash, so it’s enough. Or rather, as long as Armored Pres-san and Slime-san are with me I’m so safe that I might as well not need any weapons at all. If we have 4 more such weapons the sense of safety will be completely different for everyone. Well, if we could arm everyone there’d be no complaints, but can we get 27 such weapons? Won’t we have to rummage through every dungeon in the world? I sense if we make the Geeks do some more of their weird crafting they will eventually make another amazing weapon, but that pisses me off in its own way. Well, maybe I’ll think of something while working, like equipment with goo resistance?