Chapter 41

The unfortunate misunderstanding due to the difference in common knowledge about equipment was somehow resolved. However, from the way Resilia and the others look at me, I have a feeling it hasn't been completely resolved, but I can't let that get to me.

Bringing her straight to the arena was probably not a good idea. I had just thought of something, so I asked Meiji to go outside and change her clothes and class, while I prepared in the meantime.

The arena in Freerea has several venues, and the one we rented is a relatively small one used for tournament preliminaries. However, even though it's small, it's still a divine relic. Besides the special function that "you don't die when your HP reaches 0," it has other unique features.

The well-known feature is the ability to summon illusions of registered monsters to fight, but what's important this time is the setting of special rules for duels. You can decide in quite a lot of detail whether to allow the use of inventories, how much HP must be reduced for a defeat, and so on. There's an interesting item in the "duel format" section.

(The format is a level-adjusted match, "Soul Duel." The rest can be set as appropriate.)

After setting it up, the arena ring began to glow, as if to say it was ready. And just then, Meiji returned.

"Um... Is this okay...?"

However, her tone of voice was different from usual and sounded somewhat lacking in confidence.

"Yeah, that's good. Let's start then."

"O, okay..."

She seemed to be in low spirits, acting like a borrowed cat, but there was a reason for this.

When she stepped into the ring, she wasn't wearing her usual distinctive armor and weapons but instead had on just regular clothes with almost no defensive power. It was undeniable that she lacked the presence of a female warrior.

"Did you change your class as well?"

"Yes, as promised, to 'Novice'..."

As I held the notebook and quill and asked her, she nodded timidly. Meiji, who seemed uneasy, now sounded like a regular town girl, and the polite language she wasn't used to now sounded natural.

By the way, "Novice" is the only class weaker than "Young Leo," which has a correction value of only two, and it has no growth correction or skills. In other words, it's the ultimate weakest class. By lowering her equipment and class to the weakest, there was, of course, a reason for this.

"Alright, your name is Meiji, and your class is 'Novice'..."

"Um!..."

As I wrote in the notebook, Meiji asked me anxiously.

"Um! So, what should I do? Do I have to take off my clothes...?"

"No, I'm done now."

"...Huh?"

"Here, this is your potential."

I pushed the page with her potential values written on it towards Meiji, and she said, "Huh?" with her mouth half-open, frozen in place.

---

To reveal the trick, it was actually very simple.

This "Soul Duel" is a duel conducted by the "soul" regardless of the "body." In other words, it's a rule designed for duels between characters with different levels, where the duel is fought based on the "person's inherent qualities" without considering the "current level of growth."

Characters participating in this duel are forcibly changed to level 25, regardless of their current level, and their ability values at that time are not influenced by previous growth or class changes but are based on their "current growth values." More precisely, they are the status values if they had grown from level 0 to level 25 at their current growth rate.

And she is in the ring with equipment and a class that have no growth correction.

In other words, her current status is determined solely by her "inherent qualities." Therefore...

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Meiji

LV 25

HP 200 MP 160

Strength 60 Vitality 60

Magic 120 Spirit 120

Agility 60 Focus 120

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The status in the "Soul Duel" reflects her inherent qualities so clearly that it's almost too obvious.

The ability values at level 25 are equivalent to thirty growth points. So, if we divide the ability values by thirty...

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Meiji

Strength 2 (Bad)

Vitality 2 (Bad)

Magic 4 (Amazing)

Spirit 4 (Amazing)

Agility 2 (Bad)

Focus 4 (Amazing)

Total 18

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This is how you can easily determine her potential.

"Is this... my potential...?"

However, Meiji herself was bewildered by the talent evaluation I gave her. She compared it repeatedly with the current ability evaluation I handed her at the same time, standing there in confusion.

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Meiji

LV 11

HP 160 MP 93

Strength 61 Vitality 54

Magic 67 Spirit 70

Agility 58 Focus 74

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Given those potential values and her current ability values, it's clear that she has mainly fought as a warrior. I can understand why she would be confused if suddenly told, "Your aptitude is for a mage."

"I understand it in my head. You, no, Lord Lex, wouldn't lie to me..."

Meiji spoke to herself in a trembling voice.

"But! But, my initial class was Fighter! I've also tried Thief and Soldier, but deep down, I always thought I was a warrior... And suddenly being told I have a talent for magic...!"

She hugged herself with both hands and crouched down. I approached her.

Words of comfort or encouragement wouldn't mean much if she couldn't accept them herself.

So, I said only one thing.

"Then, why don't you try it out?"

"Huh?"

Looking up at me like a lost child, I smiled at her.

"Did you forget? The arena is originally for that kind of thing."

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"Haa!"

I watched Meiji fight on the ring from the audience seats. She was fighting not me but an illusion of a monster.

This is another function of the "arena." You can't gain experience points or items, but you can enjoy battles with monsters without the risk of death or worrying about HP and MP.

Incidentally, this was a new feature implemented with the second DLC in the game, and to fight some of the cool additional monsters, you needed to purchase the paid DLC, which I didn't do.

"Roar!"

The monster attacking Meiji is an "Orc." An "Orc" is a monster between beginner and intermediate levels, and with her current abilities, she shouldn't be struggling, but she is in the "Soul Duel" state.

Her strength and other stats are slightly lower, and the sword and shield she is using are "practice equipment" borrowed from the arena, which has performance no better than iron equipment. This is why she hasn't been able to finish the fight yet.

"Come on!"

However, even if her abilities and equipment have changed, her experience as a warrior remains. She skillfully dodged the Orc's attacks and eventually whittled down its HP without taking any damage.

"Got it!"

She turned to me with a slightly smug look, and I gave her a thumbs up. She seemed to be regaining her confidence, wiping her nose with her sleeve and smiling.

But the real test is just beginning. She quickly returned to a serious expression, gently placed the sword and shield she had been using outside the ring, and picked up the staff next to them.

As soon as she held the staff, an illusion of an "Orc" appeared on the opposite side of the ring. Seeing it, she took a step back, looking momentarily frightened.

"Meiji!"

I called out, and she, startled, immediately aimed the staff at the Orc.

The "practice staff" she held, like the sword and shield, had only the lowest performance. However, it had a special ability that allowed anyone holding it to cast the most basic spell, "Fire."

Probably, she had never used magic in her life. Unlike when she held the sword, her face was tense.

Still, she stretched out her arm as much as she could towards the approaching Orc and shouted.

"---Fire!"

At that moment, a huge flame erupted from the tip of the staff, enveloping the Orc that was about to attack Meiji. The Orc writhed in agony, unable to escape the flames.

"Huh..."

The result was the most unbelievable to the person who cast the spell.

But considering her status, it was a natural outcome. Her magic value was twice her strength. With similar equipment, this kind of difference was to be expected.

"Roar..."

While she was bewildered, the Orc, struggling to escape the flames, staggered towards Meiji. However, it was clearly on the verge of death.

"Fire!"

Meiji's hand wavered, and her aim was off, but it was enough for the nearly dead Orc. A flame of no less power than the first one burned the Orc to ashes.

"Ah..."

Before it could even let out a final scream, the illusion of the Orc disappeared.

She had taken so long to defeat the Orc with a sword, but with just two spells. Even though the difference in instantaneous firepower between magic and a sword is significant, the difference was clear.

Even without knowing the detailed specifications, Meiji knew that the "Soul Duel" brought out her true abilities and that the "Novice" class provided no corrections. Therefore, this victory was an irreplaceable "proof."

The staff slipped from Meiji's hand with a clatter.

"I really... I really have a talent for magic..."

Tears rolled down her cheeks as she looked up at the sky. Whether these were tears of joy at discovering her unexpected talent or tears of regret for the wasted days, I couldn't tell.

But...

"---Lord Lex. I'll become a mage."

Wiping away her tears, she turned to me with a very, very bright face.

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This is strange...

I shouldn't be using so much text for a story about measuring a mob character's stats!

Right!

This is a dream...!! (AA abbreviation)