Defense specialization and the search for boots.

She will continue posting daily for a little longer.

The day to cease remains, for now, undetermined.

Several days after Maple and Sally explored the haunted manor.

Even as Sally had not yet thought of the absurd idea to attempt the sixth layer again, Maple was relaxing in the sixth layer's guild hall.

Sally is leveling up on the fifth floor. Yui and Mai said they’d be exploring different levels… what should I do?

Sally, too, found the sixth layer a harsh place for Yui and Mai.

Many foes nullify physical attacks. A strike that would be fatal means nothing when it lands.

"Ah, right. There was supposed to be an item among the things Sally mentioned wanting..."

Maple nods, her expression firm. She decides to search for the item today.

I promised Sally I’d give her the item she seemed to want, but I haven’t given her anything yet. Perfect timing!

Maple has received from Sally a decoration that increases HP, and Sally has helped gather materials.

Sally also collected the funds needed to establish the guild home.

Maple saw this as a good opportunity to repay her.

Ah, but Sally hasn’t properly looked into where to find it, has she?

Given how lackluster Sally’s research had been, Maple decided to first check the information board set up in the game’s plaza.

Alright. Then it’s settled—let’s go right away!

Maple dashed out of the guild home.

She walked down the wide street, both sides lined with abandoned buildings, until she reached the bulletin board.

W-wait, there are so many people…

Immediately after the new level’s release, a crowd gathered before the large bulletin board.

Maple slipped through the throng with her small frame, reaching a spot where she could see the board, and began checking the information.

—Hmm... There it is! This one!

Maple confirmed the acquisition conditions and location, then moved away.

Slipping through the crowd again, she reached a quieter spot and exhaled with a soft breath.

—This might mean the field is crowded too.

She thought this as she mounted Shiroppu and flew toward the location she had inspected.

—Ah, just as expected. It’s crowded.

From above, she surveyed the ground. Magical and skill effects shimmered in scattered bursts.

The target monster was a spirit-type, its entire body composed of glowing white bones.

It flickered in and out, evading attacks with practiced ease. Physical strikes had no effect.

— Hmm... this is hard for me.

Maple’s skills were mostly area-wide destruction or close-range assaults. There was no skill suited to this situation.

— Maybe it’ll show up somewhere else?

Maple decided to move away from here and search elsewhere.

Fortunately, the target monster glowed brightly enough to be spotted from above, making the search possible.

— If it’s not here, I’ll come back. Yeah. Then, Shiroppu? Let’s go.

Maple turned Shiroppu in a full circle and flew outward, farther and farther from the field, away from the Town.

— Not here… Hmm, let me search a little more.

Maple leaned slightly forward from Shiroppu’s shell, staring intently downward.

After flying for a while, they reached the mountains where the mist thickened.

"Can't see the ground down here... I'll check the summit area. If anything's there, it'll be there!"

Maple lowered Shiroppu's altitude and descended onto a slightly clearer patch of ground.

"Thank you, Shiroppu!"

She returned Shiroppu to her ring, then began climbing the mountain.

After a short distance, a spectral monster made of translucent red bone appeared before Maple, emerging from the mist.

"Maybe not the right one... but it should be fine."

It was certain this was not the intended target, as it was a different monster. Yet Maple paid it no mind. She decided to strike it down anyway.

"Alright, Provocation! Don't run away!"

As Maple cast Provocation, several more monsters of the same appearance emerged nearby.

"Got it! Lucky break!"

For Maple, who took the longest to locate the monsters, their approach from the other side was most welcome.

"【Poison Dragon (Hydra)】!"

The poison torrent, unusable in the haunted mansion.

The stream of poison erupted from the magic circle, swallowing the approaching monster whole.

"Wha—?! Surviving it!?!"

The monster proved resistant—its durability defied a single strike from the Poison Dragon.

Maple widened her eyes at the unexpected endurance.

From behind the monster, thick black smoke rose, coiling into the shape of a skull.

A grating voice emerged from a spirit lacking vocal cords.

"Wait—hold on… dangerous… 【Heavenly Throne】!"

Maple seized the throne that had appeared behind her, as if for emergency shelter.

The attack, visibly dangerous, was canceled as if by effect.

"Ugh... I can't attack while sitting on this. It's beautiful. I want to use it more... but still."

The reason combat dragged on was that many monsters on the sixth layer were immune to physical attacks.

"If only someone were here... Sally would be perfect... mmm."

Maple reconsidered her intent. She would give Sally the shoes she had wanted, as a gesture of encouragement.

Then, she returned to the task of pasting paper.

"Should buy more... ah, there were exorcism talismans at the shop. I should get some of those too?"

Maple muttered, flames crawling across the spirit's face.