Chapter 73

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---

After school, we stopped by the library. Since it was the middle of Golden Week, there weren't many library users after school. At a glance, there were only a few third-year students preparing for exams besides us.

In such a quiet library, what were we doing...?

"Hey, Yūji? Is this really going to be useful?"

I looked at the animal encyclopedia in my hand and spoke to Yūji, who was sitting next to me, in a low voice.

"Hmm? Well, I think it's better to know than not to know."

"But this... is about bones?"

"Knowing the skeletal structure helps you understand the range of motion. Since most monsters take the form of living beings, except for special cases, they shouldn't be much different. The movements of the monsters we've encountered so far were basically the same as those of regular animals."

As he said, I recalled. Except for special monsters like slimes, the movements of the monsters seemed to be similar to those of regular animals.

There might be a level difference, but being able to predict the attacks of monsters on the first encounter might be related to watching wildlife documentaries on TV. Having an idea of the animals' attack methods might have helped me dodge the monsters' attacks even on the first encounter.

I don't know what the skeletal structure of monsters is like, but it might not be a bad thing to know.

"Also, the same applies to humanoid monsters like orcs and goblins. Their movements are basically the same as humans, right?"

"Same?"

"Yeah, maybe because they walk on two legs. There might be slight differences depending on the species, but the basic movements are the same as humans."

...Indeed.

Now that he mentioned it, the basic movements did seem the same. If I forgot about the monsters' appearances and compared their movements... many commonalities emerged. Our battle patterns against humanoid monsters were also the same as when we fought humans.

"Of course, this is about the monsters we've encountered so far. If a monster uses a combat support skill, it might make special movements."

"Monsters using skills..."

"There are precedents, so we can't rule it out."

The precedent was the ogre. Indeed, if a monster uses an evasion skill, it can move without being limited by its body's movements, like a sudden horizontal shift during a full-speed charge.

"You two are being too loud."

Shizuka, who was looking at a human anatomy book, scolded us in a low voice. When I looked around, a male student sitting nearby was giving us an annoyed look. Yūji and I hurriedly bowed our heads, and the male student narrowed his eyes slightly and returned to his book.

It seems our voices had gotten louder while we were talking.

"We'll talk about the details after we leave the library..."

"Yeah..."

Yūji and I sighed softly and returned our gaze to the encyclopedia.

---

An hour later, we put away the encyclopedia and left the library. We bought drinks from a vending machine near the empty cafeteria and sat on a nearby bench to reflect on our mistake and complain.

"Ah, we messed up."

"We were trying to keep our voices low..."

Yūji and I sighed again.

Shizuka pointed out our mistake.

"At first, but as your conversation progressed, your voices got louder. With fewer users, your voices echoed even more."

"..."

I scratched my head awkwardly. Well, it's done now. I'll be more careful in the future.

I took a sip of the coffee I bought and brought up the concern we had interrupted earlier.

"By the way, Yūji. Do you think future monsters will use skills?"

"Probably. The ogre used a summoning skill, after all."

"True. Unless the ogre's summoning skill was an exception as a boss, there's a high possibility that monsters will use skills."

"Indeed..."

Yūji and Shizuka looked a bit serious.

Considering the trend so far, we need to be cautious about the skills of monsters in the middle floors and beyond. The dungeon's difficulty increases gradually, and since the ogre at the entrance to the middle floors used a skill, it's highly likely that monsters in the middle floors and beyond will use skills.

...Depending on the skill, it might not be as easy to win as before.

"The monsters in the lower floors basically only used their physical abilities and species-specific abilities in battle."

"Considering that, it's not a bad idea to gain plenty of experience by fighting the monsters in the lower floors before encountering skill-using monsters in the middle floors."

"Right. Reflecting on yesterday's boss battle, it was clear that our coordination was lacking. It's better to try various things and gain experience by fighting the monsters in the lower floors."

Even if it was a spur-of-the-moment decision, the response we took yesterday was not good. But the fact that we chose that action in a pinch means that fighting individually is more ingrained in us than fighting as a team. We need to improve this urgently.

"Indeed, for now, we should focus on improving our coordination and individual combat skills."

"Coordination... It will take time to master."

"But considering the future, it's a necessary skill. Even if it takes time, we need to learn it. If we encounter special ability-using monsters or large monsters and can't coordinate, it could be fatal."

For example, monsters with high regeneration abilities that can only be defeated by simultaneously destroying their cores, or large monsters that tower over us. It would be difficult to defeat such special monsters individually. The longer the battle, the higher the chance of taking fatal damage.

"Daisuke is right. It's safer to avoid going to the middle floors until we master proper coordination."

Yūji agreed with my opinion and nodded in understanding. He doesn't seem to want to rush to the middle floors for now. After all, day trips don't give us much time.

With that, I brought up something that had been on my mind.

"By the way, did Light grow at all?"

"No. I practiced a bit after getting home, but it didn't grow much."

"Me neither. It's just a bit brighter, like a nightlight."

"Same here. I practiced a lot, but it only got a bit brighter. It's going to take a while to make it usable."

Hmm, as expected.

I also practiced Light quite a bit, but it only got a bit brighter. It's going to take a while to make it properly usable. I couldn't help but sigh.

"Well, shall we head home?"

I finished my coffee, got up from the bench, and called out to the two of them. We had been doing research, so it was a good time to go. The sun was also starting to set.

"Sure... let's go home."

"Right."

The two of them also got up from the bench. Then, Yūji, as if remembering something, brought up a topic to Shizuka and me.

"By the way, if you have time during Golden Week, it might be good to watch some animal videos online. It could give you some reference for the movements of monsters."

"Animal documentaries?"

"Something like that. Videos showing animals fighting or hunting scenes would be good. If you watch the movements while keeping in mind the skeletal structures we saw in the encyclopedia today, you'll notice the differences more clearly than if you just watch them casually."

"Got it. I have some time during Golden Week, so I'll look for some."

"Me too."

On the way home, we might stop by a video rental store. Still, animal documentaries... I've never rented that genre before.

---

I returned home with a bag from the video rental store before the sun set completely. I had stopped by the rental store to borrow the animal documentary DVDs Yūji mentioned. It took some time to find them since it's not a genre I usually watch.

"I'm home."

"Welcome back!"

The door to the living room opened, and Mika appeared. It's rare for her to greet me like this.

"Rare, greeting me like this..."

"I was waiting for you to come home, big brother!"

"...Waiting?"

I was puzzled and tilted my head, and Mika's eyes showed a hint of irritation.

"Why did you invite Sae this morning?"

"Invite... Oh, the shopping thing."

"Right! I was so excited to go shopping with just you..."

It seems she was upset about the morning incident.

"Well, when I heard she had no plans during Golden Week, I just... did it."

"Muuu..."

Mika's cheeks puffed up in displeasure. She didn't seem to understand, but maybe she could accept it?

"Don't be mad, I'll make it up to you when we go shopping."

"Huh!"

As I apologized and lightly patted Mika's head, she made a strange sound. I patted her head without thinking, but maybe that was a bad move? I reflected on my actions while heading to my room.

After changing, I went down to the living room with the rented DVDs. Mika was sitting on the sofa, and my mother was preparing dinner in the kitchen. My father wasn't home, so he must be working late.

Mika, who was sitting on the sofa, had a dazed expression and was letting out an eerie laugh. I was a bit taken aback by her eerie demeanor and asked about the shopping plans.

"By the way, Mika, how did the shopping plans go? You and Sae decided, right?"

"..."

"Mika?"

"...! Ah, b, big brother!"

I tapped her shoulder lightly to get her attention, and she finally responded.

"Phew. So, how did the shopping plans go?"

"Ah, s, shopping plans! Yes! Sae and I talked and decided!"

"Okay. So?"

"Um..."

According to Mika, they decided to go shopping on the 3rd. They planned to visit department stores and shopping districts and then go to karaoke.

A pretty standard plan.

"Sae and I decided to check out what's popular at school."

"Really? What's popular?"

"Right now... cosmetics, I guess?"

"Cosmetics?"

"Yeah. Everyone seems to be putting in a lot of effort for their high school debut. Things like sunscreen and lip balm that can be used at school without breaking the rules."

Looking at Mika more closely, I could see that she was wearing light makeup.

"The ones we're using now are from the drugstore, same as Sae. So, we decided to go to a cosmetics store to get something more suitable."

"Ah, I see."

"Nothing wrong with drugstore products, but it might be good to get something more tailored to us from a specialty store."

Cosmetics... Mika has grown up so much since becoming a high school student.

Indeed, it might be better to get advice from a specialist for cosmetics... I've never used them, so I'm not sure.

"There's a popular cosmetics store for high school students in the shopping district. Sae and I plan to go there."

"Popular among high school students... girls, right?"

"Yeah."

I couldn't help but grimace. Seriously... I don't want to go to a place like that.

As if sensing my discomfort, Mika offered a solution.

"Ah, don't worry, big brother. I heard there's a café near the store, so you can wait there while we're inside."

"Ah, got it."

I sighed in relief at Mika's words.

I was thinking of standing outside the store, but that might make me look suspicious. If there's a café, I can pass the time with a coffee.

While we were discussing our weekend plans, my mother called out from the kitchen.

"You two, it's time for dinner. Come to the table."

"Okay."

Mika responded to my mother and moved to the table with a light step. She didn't seem upset anymore, so her mood must have improved. I also stood up from the sofa and moved to the table.

My father was working late again. It seems many people were taking paid leave during Golden Week, so the remaining staff couldn't finish the work on time.

After dinner, we watched the rented DVDs in the living room, but the content was met with a lot of complaints from my mother and Mika. They made it clear that I should watch such DVDs on my PC in my room in the future.

---

Studying monsters by referencing the ecology of regular animals and making observations.

Shows like N**t**ry and W**ld K**ngd**m are great for learning about animals, right?