[You have exited the dungeon "Bofuri: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense."]
Arthur didn't stay in that dungeon for long in the end. After all, once the event concluded, Maple was already tired from a full day of activities and was preparing to log off. He didn't know anyone else in that world, so he simply chose to leave, although he was still a little reluctant to part from that little sister figure.
This time, unlike with Saeko, he couldn't take Maple out of that world. She was still far too young, and her world wasn't going through any kind of zombie apocalypse or catastrophe. She had her own life there: classmates, friends, and family… because of that, he decided not to bring her along even if it were possible. In any case, if he managed to clear this dungeon, he could always come back someday to see her again and take part in her adventures.
But no matter what, everything depended on the clearance reward. If he was lucky, they might meet again anytime. If he wasn't, then let the legend of a Final Boss named Blank remain in her world.
[Now issuing your SSS-rank clearance reward.]
[Based on your comprehensive dungeon evaluation, you have received a guaranteed 100,000 Reincarnation Points.]
[You can recycle and exchange all collected skills with the system. Recycle all?]
This was a decent side income. Arthur had collected quite a large number of skills this time.
However, the recycling price was a bit low. Still, I guess it was better than nothing.
"System, can I exchange skills without using them?"
"This action is feasible. An additional 30% exchange point fee is required. The system can convert the skill into a Skill Card, allowing any Reincarnator to learn the skill through the card."
Perfect.
Arthur had only thought of it on a whim. After all, most people acquired skills in this game for their own use. Even if they had extra Reincarnation Points to exchange for skills, they wouldn't have the luxury of thinking about converting them without using them first.
Moreover, more than ninety percent of the skills he had collected were of little use to him. It would be far more cost-effective to exchange some useful ones, and if they could be used by others, or even traded for other items, that would be an even greater profit.
"Then exchange [Giant Killer] and [Overlimite] for me directly. Also, convert these few rare skills into Skill Cards."
It was a pity that the title "Limit Breaker" wasn't a skill, so it couldn't be exchanged.
Arthur picked out a few skills that had a more direct impact on Reincarnators and chose to exchange them. Just acquiring these fewer than ten skills had cost him nearly 50,000 Reincarnation Points. Excluding the two special skills, the price of each remaining skill exceeded two thousand points due to the additional 30% premium.
"Hmm?"
Arthur's gaze suddenly fell on a certain skill. It had actually been very conspicuous from the beginning, yet he had overlooked it. After all, this was a skill he had brought with him from the very start of the game — in theory, it shouldn't count as something he had acquired within the dungeon. But now, the skill [My Style Swordmanship]was also listed in the exchange column.
Could it be…?
"System, can [My Style Swordmanship] be exchanged?"
"…Exchange confirmed. It can be exchanged."
Could this be a bug?
"Then exchange it immediately!"
"You have spent 10,000 Reincarnation Points to exchange for the special skill 'My Own Swordplay'."
"Detection: You already possess Grandmaster-level My Style Swordmanship. The skill will merge with the main body… Fusion complete."
"Your 'My Style Swordmanship from Busujima · Grandmaster (Accomplished)' has evolved into an SS-rank skill: 'My Own Swordplay from Busujima · Grandmaster (Peak)'."
It actually succeeded!
Arthur excitedly felt the changes within his body. The insights that he hadn't fully digested during the battle instantly melted in his mind, thoroughly integrating into every inch of his being. The power of a peak-level Grandmaster was terrifying. Originally, advancing to the peak stage would have cost at least 100,000 Reincarnation Points, yet he had cleverly achieved it with just 10,000.
"Awesome!"
After recycling all the remaining skills, Arthur only gained a little over 10,000 Reincarnation Points. It was truly exploitative. In summary, he had only gained around 50,000 Reincarnation Points from this dungeon, which really couldn't compare to the first one. However, in terms of combat power growth and other overall gains, it actually surpassed the first. This was the diversity of rewards that dungeons with different worldviews could bring.
"You have cleared the dungeon with an SSS-rank evaluation, earning one SSS-rank Super God Card Pool draw with a guaranteed S-rank item!"
Here it comes again, the abominable card pool.
"Draw!"
"Ding! You have drawn an S-rank item: Rebirth Cross."
Rebirth Cross: Wear it or place it in your personal warehouse. It automatically activates upon death within a dungeon, reviving you in a weakened state after 24 hours.
A very good life-saving item. Unfortunately, it was another guaranteed survival-type reward… and in Arthur's plans, he refused to take risks that might truly endanger his life. After all, he like adventure and like excitement, but excessive excitement wasn't fun.
[You have cleared the instance with an SSS-rank evaluation, triggering a probability-based reward: 1 Random Solo Instance Challenge Ticket! (No failure penalty)]
Another probability-triggered reward? The benefits of an SSS-rank clear are quite numerous, aren't they? Compared to the previous Plot Privilege Card, the effect of this Challenge Ticket was much more straightforward. It allowed him to challenge an instance alone. Although it was random, there was no failure penalty, so there was nothing to fear.
The most crucial point was… for other Reincarnators, entering without any information would be like walking in blind. But for Arthur, who had all the information stored in his mind, it didn't matter at all. No matter what instance it was… he'd clear it for everyone to see.
"Perhaps I can consider trying it out once I return."
Arthur had a hunch that this random instance might not have a floor limit. In other words, the challenge instance he randomly received could potentially appear on much later floors. It would be interesting if he encountered instances like Campione or Little Garden.
[Dear Reincarnator, Blank.]
[Because you have achieved the first perfect SSS-rank clear of the Reincarnation Instance "Bofuri: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense.", you have triggered a special lottery for a perfect first clear.]
[You have a 50% chance to win a special reward, and a 50% chance to try again.]
Here it comes.
[Ding! Congratulations! You have fortunately won—Exclusive World Authority (Limited to the world of "Bofuri: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense.") in the exclusive lottery!]
It's done. Arthur even suspected that all his lottery luck had been transferred to this single draw. But it didn't matter. It was still an entire world, after all. It wouldn't be bad to take Saeko there to play the game sometime… and he could continue teasing Flame Emperor-chan while he was at it with Maple too.
...
....
.
Inside the headquarters of the Skendor Bureau of Countermeasures, a heavy silence filled the conference hall.
"So… that's what Blank is supposed to look like?"
Displayed on the screen was the image of a young man, likely in his early twenties. Dark hair framed a sharp, well-proportioned face, and his calm blue eyes carried an unsettling composure that made him seem far more dangerous than his age suggested. This was the most detailed visual profile they had managed to extract so far, compiled after Blank cleared another dungeon, specifically the BOFURI instance, which had been completed over a week ago and was now officially closed to the public. The information came from multiple Reincarnators who had participated in the same dungeon run as Blank.
"Have you found anyone in Luminar whose face matches his?"
The one who asked was White Blade, seated among the others.
The bureau director shook his head slightly.
"Not yet… but we believe we're close to uncovering Blank's real identity."
After the private call between White Blade and Blank, the two had added each other through the Reincarnator communication channel. At the end of that exchange, Blank had sent her a message.
"By Luminar's light, we rise unbroken."
It was an old national saying, one every citizen of Luminar knew by heart.
If Luminar needed a reason to worry about Blank's safety, Blank had given them one with that message.
White Blade or Selena, as she was known outside her title, kept her gaze on the screen.
Her long white hair fell all the way to her waist, shimmering under the conference lights, while her pale blue eyes... clear yet unfathomably deep, remained lost in thought.
"We've compiled a candidate list," one analyst reported. "Facial similarity ranging between seventy to eighty percent."
The list was extensive.
Dozens of names.
All with detailed personal files as Backgrounds, affiliations and combat records.
As the screen scrolled through the candidates, one particular name appeared briefly among them—
A name that, for now, drew no special attention from anyone in the room.
Arthur.