Overloaded With Attributes Chapter 66
Water Magic, or a Water Show?
After a late lunch, Kazura-san and I headed back to the dungeon. The goal, of course, was to unlock the next item on the Blue Slime list. I didn't check the exact numbers at the time, so this is just a guess.
Reaching 100 magic stones from Blue Slimes seemed to unlock the 'Lesser Panacea.' The price jumped, though, to 100 stones. That's 20,000 yen, and I still can't tell if that's a rip-off or a bargain.
But the potion wasn't the point. We'd only killed about 200 blue slimes, so unlocking the first item wasn't surprising.
The real surprise was the next entry: 'Blue Slime: 633 / 1000'
The numbers didn't add up. Today's haul shouldn't have been that high. Then I checked the 10,000-stone item from the White Slime list: 'Slime: 1856 / 10000'
The number had jumped by the exact amount of stones we got from the Blue Slimes. This probably means the 10,000-stone goal isn't 'White Slime only,' but 'Slime Type only.' Which makes sense. Only a madman would try to farm 10,000 White Slimes.
This also explains the mystery from the first day—how my magic stone count was higher than my kill count. I brushed it off then, but it's obvious now: the drop is probably 'Slime Level x Kill Count'. White Slimes are mostly Level 0, but maybe 10% are Level 1. They look identical and the strength difference is negligible, so no one would notice.
This 'level' also seems to affect experience gain. It took me about 100 slimes to get from 0 to 1. But 1 to 2 took forever.
I'm guessing the XP gain plummets (maybe to zero) if the enemy isn't at or above your own level. My source? The four girls today. They caught up to my Level 3 in the blink of an eye.
Anyway, back to the Blue Slimes. Kazura-san, who's already in on some of my secrets, didn't ask questions. She was just thrilled, wondering, "What item will we get next!?" and started smashing slimes.
A blood-pumping, heart-pounding battle scene? As if. Anyone who has a "life-or-death struggle" with a slime has no business being an Explorer. We lazily hunted for a few hours, hit 1000 stones with time to spare, and went home happy.
The unlocked item... was another Skill Scroll. So maybe the shop tiers are:
100 Stones: The monster's unique drop item.
1000 Stones: A Skill Scroll related to that monster.
...Which makes me wonder, what's the 10,000-stone item going to be?
"So, this time we got... 'Elementary Water Magic'!" Last time we tested a scroll, Shouko-san was with us. It'd be cruel to leave her out, so I brought it up after dinner while we were relaxing.
"Is that so... wait, magic?!"
"So magic does exist," Kazura muttered. "I mean, monsters use weird powers, and dungeon-made magic swords shoot fire, so I figured magic must be real."
Apparently, there are no "magic users" among the current Explorers. At least, not in Japan.
"Still, for a human to be able to use magic... So? What does 'Water Magic' do?"
"Beats me."
"Why are you suddenly so dismissive?!"
I wasn't trying to be cold. I just have no idea. I couldn't use magic in the other world, so I have no way to explain it. (Of course, I couldn't use attack skills like "Bash" either.) But attack skills are easy to understand. You just... hit... and it does stuff. Magic? I don't get it at all. I'm terrible at science.
"I heard 'Magic is imagination—it can do nothing, but it can do everything.' That's what they say. But this is 'elementary,' so it probably just makes water."
"Is that philosophy?" Kazura said. "You seem like the type who likes Schrödinger's cat. I'm just picturing water shooting from your hand... Isn't that less 'magic' and more of a 'water show'?"
"Water magic making water seems like a perfectly correct outcome. Is there a problem? It seems useful for camping. Or flushing the toilet when the water's out."
Since I had no idea, all three of us decided to learn the skill.
"Kazura, do not try to use magic in the living room."
"...But the bath is fine, right?"
"Of course not."
...Despite saying that, Shouko-san secretly tried it in the bath later. Unlike the skill, nothing happened. She was a little disappointed.
Author's Note: Shouko will be able to use magic too, once she's in the dungeon! (Kazura and Yuugiri, who have mana aptitude, can use it outside.)
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