Defense-focused and skill content.

"What skill did Sally choose?"

Having finished selecting their medal skills, the two sat on a bench in the second Town.

"Hmm... I hesitated quite a bit, but I went with [Chasing Blade]."

"[Chasing Blade]?"

Maple had not even glanced at the content of attack-based skills, so she did not know what it was.

"Um... it's a skill that triggers an additional attack with one-third the power of the original strike, when a weapon attack succeeds... something like that."

"Um...?"

"It doubles the number of strikes. Since I use dual blades, [Double Slash] becomes an eight-hit flurry."

"Wow!"

"Well, there's [Clumsy Talent] too, so dual-wielding reduces damage per strike, and I can't fully utilize it yet."

Sally favored attack methods with high strike count or speed.

Maple favored increasing durability.

"What skill did you pick, Maple?"

I'm not sure I can actually use this skill properly.

Huh?

Sally didn't understand what Maple had just said.

What reason would there be to choose a skill one doesn't even understand?

Then let's go to the desert. I want to try it somewhere no one will see.

Y-yeah. I understand.

Sally had no idea what skill Maple had chosen.

Alright. Shiroppu, come out.

Maple summoned Shiroppu.

Shiroppu! Gigantification!

Responding to Maple's voice, Shiroppu's body was enveloped in light and grew larger.

Three meters tall.

About five and a half meters in length.

This was the skill Shiroppu acquired after leveling up on the sixth day of the event.

Gigantification

HP doubles.

Gigantification doubles HP, but the target becomes larger, taking more damage—thus, Shiroppu, slow in movement, cannot currently use it effectively.

"Please work… please work…"

Maple closes her eyes, hands pressed together in prayer.

After a moment, she snaps them open and shouts.

"Psychokinesis!"

Her voice echoes. Shiroppu’s body floats upward, gently.

The massive frame feels no weight, hovers ten meters high, then halts.

"Wha…?"

"Got it! Got it! It worked!"

Maple bounces with joy.

Sally, who remained calm even in the direst moments of the griffin battle, stares, stunned.

She sees what happened, but the mystery of it all has frozen her thoughts.

Maple chose the skill on instinct.

It was something Sally could not do.

That was precisely why the inexplicable arose.

The second skill Maple chose did not appear to be one Maple would select at first glance.

[Precognition (Psychokinesis)]

It allows one to levitate monsters.

The success rate varies based on a resistance probability set for each monster.

Once failed, the skill cannot be used again on the same monster for one hour.

It does not affect anything other than monsters.

The MP cost changes depending on the resistance probability.

Sally, having seen the skill's description, was confused.

From the explanation, she could not understand why Maple would choose this skill.

To Sally, it seemed like a method to restrain enemy monsters, but it did not guarantee restraint, and the cost appeared high.

"Why did you choose that skill?"

I thought I could fly through the sky with Shiroppu!

Ah, yes.

There was no deep reason.

Maple had chosen the skill simply because she found it enjoyable. Because she wished to do it.

And, as previously stated, Maple’s instincts sometimes triggered phenomena of terrifying intensity.

Hey, Maple… Shiroppu? How much longer are we flying?

Huh? …Wait. That’s true.

Maple checks her MP. It has not decreased at all.

……Could it be?

What? Did you figure something out?

Shiroppu isn’t an ordinary monster, right? Thanks to the Bond Bridge, we’re bound together.

Yeah! That’s right.

Maple still wears the ring, of course.

The Bond Bridge, right? If a monster is bound by bonds… what’s the resistance probability? …How many percent?

What Sally means is whether Shiroppu, bound to Maple through the Bond Bridge, will resist.

If the resistance probability is 0%, how much MP would it consume?

This skill lacked explanation on that point, so Sally skipped it.

Sally had no need to toss a medal and place a bet.

"So, we’ll be able to fly together for a long time, right?"

"More or less."

"Then details don’t matter. Shiroppu! Come back here!"

Maple calls Shiroppu back.

"Put me on your back!"

Shiroppu grips Maple’s head firmly, swings once, and hurls her upward.

"Yoh!"

Maple lands with a clatter onto the shell. The shell has widened—rideable now.

Maple ascends seven meters, scanning the surroundings.

"Maple! The pillbug swarm’s coming!"

Maple hears Sally shouting from directly below.

She sees dust rising where the pillbugs move.

“Sally! Stay back!”

Sally, sensing what Maple is about to do, flees with [Hyper Acceleration].

She has no idea what she’s about to witness.

“[Acid Rain]!”

Maple thrusts the crescent moon skyward.

From the expanding magic array, violet water spheres—about fifteen centimeters in diameter—land at random, five meters from Maple.

“Rain, fall! Fall!”

Each drop strikes a pillbug, halting its motion.

Once their movements slow, they are easily eradicated.

Two figures watch from afar.

One is Sally.

The other is a man with a bow.

““Uwah……””

Those who witnessed Maple’s strange behavior tended to run out of words.

A short time later.

The numbers on the monitor, frozen in the moment of skill selection, reached zero. They leaned back into their chairs, resting their full weight against the backs.

This is the operators’ chamber.

Fatigue darkened every face.

They looked ready to fall asleep at any moment.

“Ugh… everyone’s done selecting skills.”

“Nah… the second event wore me out… really glad there were no bugs.”

“Hah… right! What about him? What did Maple choose?”

“If it’s Maple, it’s probably something like Fortress. Right? Yeah, right? Say it’s Fortress…”

“Yeah… she picked Fortress. No problem. Defense’s already absurd, so even if it increases from here… wait… Psycho… Kinetic… System?”

“Bad feeling.”

“Same here.”

“Find Maple! Show her on the monitor!”

Maple appears on the monitor immediately.

Maple is

flying through the sky atop a massive flying turtle, raining poison down.

“…awful.”

“Didn’t I say to check the skill!? I said it!”

“Y-yes, we did! But we thought Maple wouldn’t take that skill, so the adjustment was fine…”

One of those who checked the skill speaks in haste.

“…That’s called complacency!!”

“Maple will do anything! That’s the norm!”

“Uwaaaaaah! Uwaaaaaah!”

Overcome by the shock of the image and worn down by exhaustion, several collapse unconscious.

By the time the monitor’s image fades, resigned, all have lost their will entirely.

Complacency is bad, that’s for sure.