"Drain Bolt."
A beam of faintly pale light was shot from his palm. In front of the fourth-floor boss room, the last remaining mob, an axe-wielding Goblin Warrior, took the hit, wincing slightly. It was a reaction equivalent to cutting a finger with the edge of paper.
Naturally, the Goblin continued its advance, but a sharply flying arrow struck the back of its right hand. This drew a definite scream.
"Guys holding two-handed weapons are vulnerable when someone rushes them."
The Thief, Fuuri, having approached rapidly while her allies created a diversion, flashed her knife as she passed, and a large amount of blood spurted from the Goblin's slashed neck. With a final strike of one more spell and one more arrow, the Goblin became too confused by the pain and other effects to move properly. It quickly dissolved into particles of light.
After confirming the light had completely vanished, Ren let out a sigh.
"It's good that I can recover MP, but the power is still too low."
Drain Bolt was the new magic skill he had acquired. It was a single-target attack like Manabolt, but its power was significantly reduced in exchange for an Energy Drain effect, meaning it absorbed life force instead of just dealing damage. If landed properly, it would actually restore his MP, but he would have to hit an enemy ten or more times to take it down with this spell alone.
As he checked the recovered MP level, opening and closing his hands, Iris, who had removed her gloves, gently intertwined her right hand with his.
"We can only use it safely when there's only one enemy left."
"Yeah. Since Fuuri is so good at aiming for the neck and heart, we have plenty of margin when it's a single target."
"Hey, Ren? I don't feel like that's much of a compliment."
"It is a compliment. You take care of a lot of the troublesome parts, and I'm really grateful."
"Really? …Hehe, yay."
Immediately cheerful, Fuuri efficiently finished collecting the drops. It felt like flattery, but his thanks and compliments were sincere.
Fuuri approached with quiet footsteps and held out her left hand.
"Here, give me your right hand."
"I'm always relying on you, I really appreciate it."
Resting while holding hands with two cute girls. In fact, this happened after combat at least every other time. The purpose, of course, was to recover MP via Energy Drain. Using the recovered MP to cast "Heal" also dispelled some of Fuuri and Iris's fatigue. By doing this frequently, Ren's party maintained a high ability to sustain combat.
He felt that Drain Bolt had shortened the recovery time somewhat.
"How's the experience point situation?"
"Uh… right. 'Status.'"
Operating the status or storage (including casting magic) didn't necessarily require vocalization. While merely willing it was enough, speaking the command increased the precision, so they usually spoke. However, when both hands were occupied, like now, he had no choice but to use his mind to navigate the window after summoning it.
The three leaned in together to peer at the experience point column.
"It's high, as expected."
"Right. Even though my damage contribution is low, my experience increases."
"The normal experience is disproportionately shared between Iris-chan and me, so my experience also increases. It's a nice little bonus."
Transfer students like Ren gained a lot of experience by performing actions suited to their race or class. In Ren's case, that included Energy Drain. Absorbing life force with Drain Bolt contributed to his growth as a Succubus, and even draining while holding hands like this increased his experience at regular intervals.
"Ren-san, what does life force feel like?"
"Hmm… It's like eating soft-serve ice cream at the top of a mountain you worked hard to climb."
"A mountain… I've never climbed one."
"Oh, right. There are forests here, but no mountains."
They probably hadn't had time to create terrain that wasn't suitable for living.
"By the way, Ren. Does life force taste good?"
"I don't taste it with my tongue, but there's a definite feeling of satisfaction. It also feels like exhaustion is being relieved, like a massage."
"Hmph. I'm a little jealous."
Chatting in the dungeon. Although it seemed carefree, they hadn't completely let down their guard. They had enough information on this floor to know there were no wandering monsters.
"Well. Now that we're recovered, shall we quickly take down the boss?"
"Yeah."
"Yes!"
They defeated the fourth-floor boss without any major issues, and Ren's party acquired eight new World Fragments.
--------------------
"Next is the fifth floor. I believe you will be fine, but please be cautious, just in case."
The victory celebration for conquering the boss room was held at the Western restaurant they had visited before. The sight of everyone's ordered dishes and drinks spread out on the table looked just like a Japanese restaurant. Of course, the price was somewhat steep, but since they had a decent income from the inscription copies and Ren's level-up report, they managed. In fact, they even started talking about holding a party here every time they defeated a boss.
If they were truly going at a pace of one floor per week, it felt like they were coming a bit too often. Maria made the previous statement as they continued eating.
"The difficulty increases on floors ending in five and zero."
The fifth floors were like minor checkpoints, and the tenth floors were like major checkpoints. They were gateways to the next stage, and the difficulty of the floors immediately following them was noticeably higher.
Ren clearly remembered the fifth floor being harder than the previous ones. The fifth-floor boss was a Goblin Archer. Finally, the enemy would use a ranged weapon. It would be difficult to defeat them without taking any damage, as they had done so far.
"We'll have to go in prepared to heal minor injuries."
"Okay. I'll move around and create a diversion."
"If we take out the Archer first, we should be fine, right? I'll do my best."
Fortunately, their current party had no issues with coordination. They would be able to conquer it if they cooperated. When they spoke of their planned actions with smiles, Maria also smiled, saying, "You don't seem worried."
"If you don't mind, I was considering accompanying you."
"Oh, is that alright?"
"Yes. I am aware of the issues with the inscriptions and fragments, so I would only act as help in a pinch."
The women at the brothel had gained experience and become more attentive, and some could handle the accounting, so the brothel wasn't struggling. The fact that Takuma and his crew were doing the chores gave them even more free time.
"I believe I can easily participate at a pace of two explorations a week."
"Of course, you're more than welcome! Right, Ren?"
"Yeah. Just having you there makes a huge difference in peace of mind."
Even though they aimed for cautious combat, there was always the danger of accidental annihilation. Maria's presence would be a safety net for such times.
"I want to adventure with Maria-san too!"
"Thank you. Then, please let me join. I will avoid direct combat as much as possible, but please use me for carrying luggage and replenishing MP."
"…MP."
"You can hold my hand the whole time if you like."
"That's too embarrassing."
Outside of combat, the ability to use Energy Drain without burdening Fuuri and Iris was appreciated. With three people having Storage, they could bring a large number of arrows, increasing Iris's combat effectiveness.
Maria then changed the subject.
"To be honest, I have another goal besides assisting you."
"A goal?"
"I would like you to prioritize supplying certain items to the brothel. We are running low on some stock."
It was true that spoils from shallow floors were often cheap, but conversely, some items were hard to acquire on deeper floors. Items brought back by beginners had a certain demand. For instance, the metal weapons Goblins used could be melted down and reused. Herbs occasionally found in drops or treasure chests could be used as ingredients for cosmetics and perfumes. Bringing the raw materials to an artisan was cheaper than buying finished products, and there was no worry about them being out of stock.
"Of course, we will pay you the market price or slightly more. …How does that sound?"
"That's completely fine. But, is it to save money? Are you having trouble paying Takuma and the others…"
"No. The demand for cosmetics and medicine has increased in recent years, and we haven't been able to resolve the shortage."
The younger generation was buying more, and the demand from the boys had also increased, so the amount collected naturally was insufficient. While high-level players sometimes went out to acquire supplies, travel and combat inevitably took time. It wasn't as easy as acquiring items in bulk in a game.
"So, I would like to expand our acquisition channels, even by a little."
"That's a big problem. I'm happy to help if that's the case! If Maria-san helps us, we can fight more times in a day!"
And so, Mariabel joined the dungeon exploration party.
"Can you take the very back, Maria-san?"
"Yes. I will guard the rear and try to hold Ren-san's hand as much as possible."
"Mhm. …Maybe I should try to become a back-liner too."
"If Fuuri becomes a back-liner, we won't have a front-liner. Are you suggesting Iris fights up close?"
"Um, well. I can use my knife, and it would save arrows, but… I'm not very confident compared to my bow."
"I-I know. I'll stick close to Ren when we get back."
MP efficiency significantly improved when Ren maintained constant skin-to-skin contact outside of combat. It was even easier when he utilized Drain Bolt at key moments. However, holding hands made walking a little awkward. It was even more so because Iris tried to hold his other hand. He considered letting her hold his tail since he no longer wore the robe, but even a gentle grasp was too distracting, so he reluctantly gave up on that idea.
"Hey, Maria-san. Can you show us how strong you are when you level up?"
"I don't mind. Then, please leave one Goblin to me in the next battle."
The target—a Spear Goblin, the previous floor's boss—was struck by Maria's kick, which showcased her shapely legs, and dissolved with a sickening sound of breaking bones. He doubted the result would be much different if the opponent were human. He felt a sense of relief mixed with a slight shiver.
"Enemies on this floor are quite easy, as expected. You will all be able to do this easily once you gain more experience."
"The 'Blessing' is amazing, even after all this time."
Fortunately, Maria had no further need to fight, but the increased MP replenishment efficiency and Storage capacity made exploration much more efficient. They managed to reach the area before the fifth-floor boss in a single run, making the next boss conquest easier. Of course, they had to deal with the respawning mobs and traps again, but that also meant more spoils. Their income also increased.
Their next exploration proceeded smoothly, and they easily defeated the Goblin party, which included a Goblin Archer. Ren's Magic Arrow was very useful in group fights where they didn't have to worry about MP remaining. The difference in the number of attacks was crucial.
"Ten fragments. My level went up again. Maybe I'm on a roll."
"My level also went up this exploration. I guess I'll focus on MP efficiency again."
Acquiring Drain Bolt made a new skill available: Drain Magic. It was a constantly active skill that added a "trace drain effect" to normal attack magic like Manabolt and Magic Arrow. Ren happily acquired it. When he tested it on the next exploration, the recovered MP was indeed minimal, just "better than nothing," but it might have a significant effect in the long run… maybe.
"What should I do? I want to focus on aiming for weak points more, but I should probably improve my trap-related skills soon."
"The traps are getting more vicious too."
"Exactly. I wish there was magic to find traps."
"There's nothing like that available so far."
"It's impossible for me too. Spirits don't reside in iron, and dead wood has no life force…"
Perhaps a professional Mage like the Sage could use such a spell.
"If we had that, we'd want 'magic to disarm traps' next."
"That's probably true."
They used the Western restaurant again for their fifth-floor celebration. Since everything was delicious, they wouldn't get tired of going there. Highly satisfied with the food that was common in Japan but a luxury here, they returned home. Before bed, Fuuri came into Ren's room for a late-night visit.
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