Chapter 63

When Rea fled from the room, Seiki put on his armor.

There are limits to practicing inside the house.

If he continues to imitate the videos, the house might end up in ruins.

It's better to perform the movement checks in the dungeon.

Seiki, now wearing his armor, hurried to the first floor of the dungeon.

When you start something new and discard your previous movements, your skill level drops drastically.

This was true for the jobs he used to do as well.

New computers and software feel very difficult to use. In fact, when he first started using them, his work efficiency and the quality of his typesetting dropped.

But once he got used to the new tools, his efficiency and quality improved dramatically.

In other words, no matter how excellent the new software or technique is, your ability will significantly drop until you get used to it.

This applies to any field and any task or action.

That's why Seiki decided to return to the basics and check his movements on the first floor of the dungeon.

It wasn't because he wanted to see Gegege again after a long time.

"......Hehehe"

While searching for Gegege, Seiki relaxed his lips.

Well, where is little Gegege?

At the end of the corridor.

Gegege's carapace shimmered.

"Whoa!"

Seiki let out a battle cry and sprinted down the corridor.

He stopped just before Gegege.

He adjusted his posture and took the same stance as in the video.

"......Is something different?"

While dodging Gegege's approaching antennae, Seiki overlapped his movements with those in the video.

"......Is this it? Hmm, this way?"

He focused on his feet, hands, and core.

He lightly supported the dagger in his hand and moved fluidly.

He raised it, then lowered it.

A counterattack.

Gegege's two antennae flew through the air.

"Still too soft!"

The flow was interrupted halfway.

He intensified his visualization, overlapped, traced, and cut.

The dagger smoothly severed Gegege's carapace.

"Oh, that feels good."

There was no resistance at all.

It was an attack that fully utilized the dagger's abilities.

"But it's still too soft. It's completely no good."

It took him 30 seconds to defeat Gegege.

Previously, he could have done it in one second.

Clearly, the change in form had a serious impact.

His defeat speed had dropped significantly.

"I've got the knack, but I just need to practice until my body gets used to it."

From there, Seiki continued his search.

He attacked Gegege one after another.

He attacked, imitated the movements in the video, and absorbed them.

His concentration was broken by the fatigue and discomfort throughout his body.

His body felt heavy. His breathing was hot.

The T-shirt and pants he was wearing underneath were drenched in sweat.

His throat was dry, and he started to cough.

Seiki had been continuously imitating and absorbing the movements of various schools he had seen in the videos.

He had to adapt the movements for the dagger, which took more time than expected.

Just a little more.

He was confident he was getting close.

His movements were much better than before.

Seiki sat down in the corridor and took out his board.

Seiki Seiki (27) Gender: Male

Skill Points: 6 → 7

Evaluation: Hidden Imitation Swordsman → Hidden Imitation Sword King

Blessing: Defeat God <Mejed>

- Vitality

Stamina 3

Natural Recovery 2

- Strength

Strength 4

- Agility

Explosive Power 4

Dexterity 4

- Technique

Armor Proficiency

One-Handed Sword 3 → 4

Throwing 2

Light Armor 3

Kicking 1

Stealth 3

Imitation 2 → 3

- Intuition

Detection 2

Weakness Analysis 1

- Special

Accelerated Growth MAX

Taming 1

Blessing MAX

"Wow...!"

The results of his practice were clearly reflected in his skills.

"But, I see."

Seiki began to see a vague pattern in the natural skill increases.

There are two conditions for a skill to increase naturally:

1. Gain experience points.

2. Improve proficiency.

The required values for 1 and 2 probably differ depending on the skill.

But from his experience of skill-ups, he could infer that these two conditions are likely involved.

He could now see the method to naturally increase his skills.

Conversely, he could also see the method to prevent skill increases.

"I guess I shouldn't use Stealth after all."

Seiki solidified his resolve to seal Stealth.

When he left the dungeon, the sky was turning white.

"......"

That's strange.

He entered the dungeon at night...

Looking at his watch, it was 4:00 AM.

In Hokkaido, during the summer, the sunrise is quite early due to its northern latitude.

Compared to Tokyo, it's 30 minutes earlier.

Compared to Ishigaki Island, it's 2 hours earlier.

This means that the time when one starts to feel hopeless during an all-nighter comes earlier in the summer.

Seiki had several times felt burned out while seeing the sky turn white during his work.

(The work isn't finished, but it's already morning...)

In any case, it was morning.

"When did it become morning!?"

He had no memory of it.

To Seiki, it felt like he had just played with Gegege a little.

On the other side of the fallow land, moistened by the morning dew, a beautiful sunrise appeared from the top of a small hill.

"......I'll go to sleep."

Even if he slept, he would have to wake up in 1-2 hours.

But it was better than not sleeping at all.

Seiki hurried back home.

Rea, who had already noticed the sunlight and woken up, gave him a white look (??).

Seiki quickly changed his clothes and slipped into bed.

Naturally, Seiki, who was exhausted from the all-night battle, couldn't wake up immediately.

When Hioren appeared in front of the house, Seiki, who was in a deep sleep, was awakened by Rea's hot bullet.

* * *

Rubbing his sleepy eyes, Seiki visited Shizune's shop.

He didn't expect the item he ordered to have arrived so soon, but without it, he couldn't progress in the dungeon.

"......"

When he entered the shop, Shizune ignored him.

This woman is becoming even more unmotivated.

"Hey"

"Oh, Hioren, welcome."

"I'm here too, you know?"

"......Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't notice you because you blend in with the air so much! Hehehe"

Perhaps she was still holding a grudge over Seiki and Hioren surpassing her to clear the Lutz floor.

Her provocation stabbed Seiki's heart.

"......I see, I see. So you're going to treat me like this. How disappointing!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I was thinking of helping you clear the Lutz floor, but if you're going to treat me like this, I won't help at all."

"Ahhahaha! Wait! Just wait, let's start over!"

If she was going to cry, she shouldn't have provoked him in the first place.

Seiki sighed and approached the counter.

"Is the item I ordered yesterday here yet?"

"Hmm? Oh, I remember, it's here. Is this it?"

Shizune took a small bottle from under the counter.

It was the item from the Sapporo equipment shop with the label "Eliminates smell and sound! *Strictly no misuse*".

Seiki didn't want to use such a drug.

If something went wrong, his already low presence might disappear completely.

But it seemed that he couldn't clear the 11th floor without it.

"What are you going to use this for? Planning to cut off your presence?"

"Do you think I would do that?"

Seiki didn't want to eliminate his presence.

He wanted to increase it.

Madly so...!

This was a crucial point not to be mistaken.

"But you don't need this, do you?"

"Why not?"

"Do you want to know?"

The thought that "You're so air-like, you don't need this drug" was evident in Shizune's thin smile.

"Stop it."

Seiki didn't like being kicked when he was down.

He twisted his lips and shook his head.

"So, what are you going to use it for?"

"Chacha from the 11th floor. I'm going to try using this to clear it."

"Oh, I see."

"Hey, do you understand?"

"Of course, the opponent is Chacha, right?"

Hioren explained to Shizune, who still didn't understand the need for the drug.

"Bears have a keen sense of smell and are sensitive to sound. Chacha, being a humanoid, can also have these abilities. Even adventurers with stealth abilities can't eliminate smell and sound. With a drug that eliminates sound and smell, you can avoid combat with such types of Chacha."

Chacha gathered as Seiki and Hioren moved towards the center, likely because they detected their smell and sound.

Seiki hypothesized that Chacha might be attacking to prevent them from getting close to the boss.

"Hey, everything's fine, right? I'm doing a good job as a shopkeeper, right? So, will you help me? Right?"

Seiki silently rejected Shizune's tearful pleas for help and headed to the 11th floor.

He felt a little sorry for her, so he might help her.

However, it seemed to Seiki that Shizune was more focused on provoking Hioren by doing this.

"I'm asking Seiki, not Hioren. You're still unreliable."

By doing this, Shizune was trying to incite Hioren.

Seiki couldn't understand Shizune's intentions.

But in any case, everything would depend on clearing the 11th floor.

When he descended to the 11th floor, Seiki first sprinkled the contents of the bottle he had bought on himself and Hioren.

"......Is the smell gone?"

Hioren was sniffling beside him.

Seiki brought his arm close to his nose, but he couldn't smell himself.

He had to believe it was gone.

But as he walked, he immediately understood the effect of the drug.

"......Wow, the sound is gone."

His footsteps were almost silent.

Even when he kicked the ground, it sounded weak, like being in a soundproof room.

If he walked quietly, even a Chacha with high hearing wouldn't notice.

"Alright, let's go."

After confirming the drug's effect and checking his armor, Seiki held two daggers.

Rea said "Okay" without any tension, and Hioren nodded silently, gripping her staff tightly.

...Alright.

Seiki made up his mind and walked towards the center of the floor.

He moved carefully, trying not to make any noise.

...This won't increase my Stealth skill, right?

Seiki shuddered at the thought.

He quickly checked his skill board, but Stealth remained at 3.

"......"

That was close.

Seiki sighed in relief and put away the skill board.

If Stealth had increased here, it would have been a different story altogether.

Seiki and Hioren moved silently to avoid wasting the drug's effect.

They reached the line where they had retreated the other day, but Chacha still hadn't appeared.

Chacha was nearby.

Seiki's detection had