04 – A Busy Night

(Do I have to share these strengthening methods with these guys?)

I carefully pondered. Since I'd unlocked [Sharing], helping other heroes unlock more strengthening methods gives me bonuses. If I helped these three, I got 30% of their additional bonuses from the unlocked strengthening methods.

For example, if I helped Naofumi unlock Status Enchantment, I got 10% of the total value of his power-up from this method.

It was tempting, but...

The maid stopped and turned around. We also stopped and waited for her explanation.

"Heroes, you may choose your room," she said.

"I'll take this one," I stated and went to the nearest door.

"Then, I will take this one." Naofumi pointed at the room beside mine.

"This will be mine." Itsuki pointed at the room in front of mine.

"Then, the last one is mine. Thank you for guiding us here, beautiful." Motoyasu didn't forget to flirt with the maid.

The maid spoke, "The dinner is being prepared. We will call you when it's ready."

"I'm going to skip dinner."

"Eh?" The maid was surprised by my decisive reply.

The other three heroes silently stared at me, surprised as well.

"Are you not hungry, Ren?"

"I am." I nodded at Motoyasu, acknowledging his point. "But, I'm more tired than hungry. I prefer to sleep quickly. All right, I'm off."

Without waiting for their responses, I turned around and entered my room. Then, I locked the door and inspected the whole room, after which I went to close the glass doors that connected the room and the balcony. After closing the curtains, I went to the bed.

"Hhhhhhh…" I released a loud, frustrated sigh.

Even though I often read Isekai novels and fanfiction, and imagined getting sent to another world with a cheat, I never expected it to happen. If not for [Zen], I might have a breakdown due to stress.

(But, this isn't bad. It's not like I have a life in my original world.)

After careful consideration, I resolved to start anew and thrive in this world. I would become so powerful that others would fear, respect, and revere me. I would also collect alluring girls and build a harem!

I would become a winner in life!

I had an advantage over the other so-called heroes. I also had Satou's unique skill from Death March. If I couldn't realize my ambitions, I should just hang myself.

"Ren! Are you awake?" Suddenly, I heard Motoyasu's voice from outside.

I stayed silent and waited for Motoyasu to leave.

"It looks like he's already sleeping. So, what do we do now?" It sounded like Motoyasu wasn't alone.

"Let's head to the dining room without him, then." This was Naofumi's voice.

"Agreed. Let's go there." This one was Itsuki.

[Learned: Eavesdropping - Level 1]

[Eavesdropping - Level 1 [+] | Can listen to a conversation in the 10m range without a problem.]

I got a new skill. However, I dismissed it.

(Now, what am I going to do?)

I pondered. I absentmindedly stared at [HUD]; my attention was lingering on the hotkey. Or to be precise, my attention was lingering on [Meteor Shower x3].

(Dropping some big-ass rocks to get a head start doesn't seem bad. I can hide my level afterward. All right, I'm gonna do this. First, I have to use [Full Map Scan] to clear up the unexplored map.)

I spent one of the three free uses of [Full Map Scan], clearing up the fog in [Map].

[Learned: Full Map Scan – Level 1]

[Full Map Scan - Level 1 [+] | Cost: 1,000 MP | Clear up the unexplored area; the higher the level, the lower the cost.]

I dismissed the notification and looked into [Map].

(Well, shit. Only the territory of Melromarc got fully cleared up. Looks like I have to visit other nations to clear up the world's map! Oh, well. Anyway, I need to find my target…)

I searched for an area with a congregation of high-level monsters. After I found my target, I used one of the three free uses of [Meteor Shower].

[Learned: Meteor Shower – Level 1].

[Meteor Shower – Level 1 [+] | Cost: 10,000 MP | Drop meteors to destroy the targeted area and everything in it. The higher the level, the wider the area of effect; the bigger the size of meteors; the lower the cost.]

I waited for something to happen. Then, my room shook as if an earthquake struck. At the same time, many notifications and level-up spam appeared in [Log].

After a few moments, the earthquake and the notification finally stopped.

[You've increased your level! Level 70 → 71

Max HP +10 (+10): 1530 → 1550

Max MP +5 (+10): 1145 → 1160

Max SP +5: 395 → 400

Max EP +5: 395 → 400

Attack +3: 221 → 224

Defense +1: 75 → 76

Magic Attack +2: 238 → 240

Magic Defense +1: 76 → 77

Speed +3: 220 → 223

Strength +1: 74 → 75

Constitution +1: 74 → 75

Dexterity +1: 76 → 77

Agility +1: 76 → 77

Intelligence +1: 75 → 76

Skill Points +1: 691 → 701]

[Your [Job: Novice Swordsman] has reached the max level. You can upgrade or change your job.]

I dismissed the notification. My happiness bubbled under the unnatural calmness of [Zen] that made my expression stuck in plain indifference. Even though it was a pity that I had used two free [Meteor Shower], the result soothed my heartache.

I opened [Status] and then upgraded [Novice Swordsman – Level 5/5] to [Intermediate Swordsman – Level 1/10]. I retained the bonuses from the max level [Novice Swordsman]. What's more, the new [Job] upgraded my [Swordsmanship] to level 2 and gave me Attack +2 and Speed +1 bonus per level.

(It looks like each time I upgrade [Swordsman] Job, [Swordsmanship] will grow a level. If I appoint Skill Points to max its level, it's a waste of resources. All right, I'm going to wait for unlocking the highest [Swordsman] Job before appointing my Skill Points on [Swordsmanship].)

I decided. After that, I generously spent my Skill Points to raise the level of my skills, except for [Swordsmanship].

[Eavesdropping - Level 10 | Can listen to a conversation in 100m range without a problem.]

[Full Map Scan - Level 10 | Cost: 500 MP | Clear up the unexplored area.]

[Meteor Shower – Level 10 | Cost: 5,000 MP | Drop meteors to destroy the targeted area and everything in it. Maximize the area of effect and the size of meteors.]

My Skill Points decreased from 701 to 674.

Then, I opened [Storage].

(Huh? Where are my loots?!)

I closed [Storage] and checked [Log]. I did not find [Automatic Loot] notification.

According to [Help] and my memory of Death March, there should be a notification when [Automatic Loot] was activated.

I checked [Map] and found some yellow dots indicating some monsters had survived the falling meteors.

(You know what? Fuck this! I'm gonna drop more meteors!)

Although it was a pity, I could not get there to end the survivors myself.

And so, another earthquake happened, and then, I finally got the notification of [Automatic Loot].

After that, I opened [Storage] and inspected the looted items. Because of [Item Drops] of the Legendary Weapons, I did not only get the remains of monsters, but I also got several sets of armor, weapons, items, crafting materials, and even coins used as the currency of this land.

(Nice!)

I was pleased by my spoils. I inspected the item's information, one by one. I did not forget to copy the looted swords before converting them into energy, after which I used the energy to master some sword variations with useful bonuses.

I also broke down the monster's remains using a function of [Storage]; kept the edible materials aside; made the Legendary Sword absorb a small part of materials to unlock new variations; converted the useless junk into energy to master some sword's variations and raise their rarity; sacrificed materials with slightly better quality for Status Enchantment and Item Enchantment; used the soul fragments for Spirit Enchantment; put aside the high-quality materials to be sold off or used in crafting later.

It took me a while to finish everything; at this moment, my stats had risen by two-thirds of my stats without the effect of the strengthening methods—my current Combat Stats were equal to those belonging to someone at the high end of Level 90.

After that, I swapped my current outfit with the best set of armor in [Storage] via its equipment change function.