Penniless

--- Akira ---

[Do you want to disband the party?]

[Yes] [No]

I agreed without much hesitation.

Surprisingly, Asuna's behavior caught me off guard. If you think about it, she's just a normal teenager.

Was it right for me to burden someone so young?

The answer is no.

From the beginning, this party had a time limit.

It was only meant to last until I believed I was strong enough to take on the Floor Bosses by myself.

Although that's still a bit of a far-fetched idea, I now have some degree of confidence.

[Status]

[Name: Haru]

[Level: 39(93%) ➔ 58(12%)]

[STR: 77 ➔ 107]

[AGI: 39 ➔ 66]

[Skills:

Spear(Lv. 35(17%)) ➔ (Lv. 263(22%)),

Threefold Piercer(Lv. 29(97%)) ➔ (Lv. 309(1%)),

Fighting Spirit(Lv. 52(11%)) ➔ (Lv. 332(19%)),

Burst Speed(Lv.32(22%)) ➔ (Lv. 278(23%)),

Battle Healing(Lv. 1(0%) ➔ (Lv. 39(40%))]

[Extra Skill:

Demonic Spear(Lv. 1(0%)) ➔ (Lv. 31(11%))]

[You have 2 ➔ 4 ➔ 2 Skill Slots left]

I decided to invest a bit more into my [AGI] stat, remembering how much trouble the 22nd Floor Boss caused because of my lack of speed.

Regarding my skills, chaining them together is still challenging, but I've made progress. Thanks to my [Spear] skill growth, I now have [Shorten Spear Cooldown Time I] and [Increased Critical Hit Chance I].

With [Battle Healing], I can recover HP during fights. If that fails, [Burst Speed] allows me to escape tough situations and use potions.

The most important development is unlocking a new Extra Skill called [Demonic Spear]. Despite its misleading name, this skill focuses on speed with four rapid moves rather than the sheer strength of [ThreeFold Piercer]. Its incredibly low cooldown helps me chain it with my other skills.

While I can't loop my skills endlessly like Asuna, the difference from where I started is incredible.

Now, all I need is to refine my weapon.

There was no deep reason behind my choice to put it off until now.

From an efficiency point of view, it would be a waste to collect materials for only a +1 or +2 upgrade when I could optimize my time by gathering enough for a much higher enhancement all at once.

Besides, I had to consider the blacksmith's passion for their craft.

Would a normal person agree to my crazy plan to enhance my weapon significantly in a short amount of time?

The answer is, with the right amount of Cor, maybe.

But many of them would simply try to rip me off, knowing this is not the kind of job many would accept, given my stringent time requirements.

I had to keep my current pace going, if I don't want to be stuck in here for 2 years.

If given a possibility, I'd like to complete my Trials as fast as possible, because I believe that is what Alexia would do as well.

For those reasons, I've decided to go to a certain blacksmith I know.

Her shop had only been open for a few weeks, but I trusted her skill.

This would be my best chance to achieve the upgrades I needed in the shortest amount of time.

Also, although I've bought armor before, I haven't really given much thought about the best kind of armor I'd need.

It's another thing I have to buy, especially since my armor is quickly worn out with each new Floor Boss I face. The bosses are always insane enough to destroy my armor, so I practically need new armor each time I cross one Floor.

But considering the possible cost of refining my Blood Nightshade from 0 to +25...

I probably won't have any Cor left for it.

It's alright, though. I can simply make up for it by hunting down all the monsters standing in my path. Even if it means fighting with subpar armor for a while, the upgraded weapon will be worth the investment.

--- Yui ---

As a mental health counseling program, my job is, or rather should be, to help out players whose mental health requires addressing.

In all Nerve Gears, there are functions which can detect a player's inner emotions.

Since the beginning of this game, I have witnessed nothing but fear, rage, regret, and despair.

My primary job was to address these emotions, yet I found myself unable to do so. It felt like I was being swallowed into a pit of the same dark emotions I was meant to alleviate.

However, there was one particular player who stood out. It was like finding a black sheep among a herd of only white ones.

My program could identify only negative or positive emotions: happiness or sadness, rage or calm...

Yet, this person was different. It was as if he felt nothing. When I tried to focus on him, all I could sense was a void.

How is it even possible to feel...nothing?

Negative emotions made me feel sad, while positive emotions gave me a small degree of happiness.

But this sense of nothingness... For some reason, I preferred it, although I wasn't clear why.

Was it because it made me feel like I was not just a prisoner, but rather a simple observer?

Of course, it wasn't that this person truly did not feel any emotions.

I could see moments where he expressed happiness or tension, but even those emotions were like a single grain of sand compared to the vast dunes of emotion that other players experienced.

As such, he was a weirdly pleasant man to be around.

One thing I particularly noticed was a certain moment while he was on the 22nd Floor. He was searching for something—or rather, someone.

Although he should not have been able to see or be aware of my presence, I was surprised when he looked directly towards the spot from which I was observing.

I dismissed it as a coincidence, but something in the back of my mind told me he was no ordinary player.

---

Author's Note:

Bro rizzed Yui up without even knowing it.

Lisbeth's shop is on floor 48th, so you could have guessed we're about Floor 50th range as of now.

We'll see maybe another Boss battle with Akira soloing it and then it'll be the last part of this Trial, taking maybe around 6-7 chapters to finish.

So in the end, I'll be able to really finish this Trial within 30 chapters :O