HBWnovel Chapter 428: part 1
Chapter 428: part 1
Day 99 – Morning, Inn, In front of the DungeonThe Dungeon’s entrance, a cave mouth that had suddenly appeared in a hill that had risen up from the plains, a gateway to another world called a dungeon, and also a gaping maw that devours intruders.
There, before that boundary between ordinary life and battle, unfolded a tragedy, yes, the outfit change!
The sensual chaos of curvaceous forms encased in tight spats, paired with beautiful faces lightly touched-up with make-up. Yeah, the armor had become even harder to put on. In pursuit of both airtight sealing and mobility, to block liquid or vapor-type physical toxins, breathability and wearability had been sacrificed. While the helmet and chestplate were made easier to remove, the sections covering the limbs had become more complex, making putting on the greaves especially tough.
Bent forward, shaking their rears with wild force, trying to squeeze their smooth curves in tight spats into the new armor. The shameless chaos of the scene practically screamed for a summoned Mosaic-san, who, upon arrival, would undoubtedly be in high demand and be put to immediate action. Yeah, lately the visuals are getting way too spicy. Even extreme resistances wouldn’t be enough to withstand this kind of ocular assault!
「There’s no way to access breathability aside from actually trying it on, so make sure to take frequent breaks, okay? I made the chestplate easier to remove, so during rest breaks, take it off and get some ventilation. I couldn’t loosen the parts around the arms or the lower body, so they’re easier to remove but hard to put back on. I’ll try redesigning the attachment system later, so bear with it for now and test it out, alright? Well, it’s gonna be stuffy?」
「「「We’re okay. Thank you!」」」
Because of the ventilation issue, they left the inn in light armor, and then suited up in full armor at the Dungeon’s entrance. Thus the scene unfolding at the mouth of the Dungeon was nothing short of epic. The sheer dread of what lies inside the dungeon was already apparent. We hadn’t even gone in yet though?
So far, my job has been escorting lightly armored girls and guarding their defenseless outfit changes. From here, the girls would go in on their own down to the 80th floor. We’d catch up with them there and regroup. In the meantime, we are going to rush off to crush another dungeon. I’m probably not even in a state to fight in front of people right now. Honestly, I wanted to sneak off to the forest alone, but I’d like to clear at least an 80 floor Dungeon before heading to the Theocracy. Ideally, if we could wipe out all dungeons with more than 75 floors, it would make the life of the border army, the Royal Guard, and the First Division much easier, but…
We need to strengthen ourselves, but we also have to focus on destroying dungeons, and lately, being stuck as an instructor, I’m not getting any money, so I’m broke! The cash I wrung out this morning with the bargain sale and food expenses already flew off like a gust of wind, spent and vanished after a bit of bulk purchasing. I’ve burned through it all with the stress and mess of even getting to the Dungeon.
「Okay, be careful. Don’t push yourselves too hard. Also, did you bring your handkerchiefs and halberds? Always prioritize safety, while maintaining a flexible combat formation that keeps safety in mind is the express route to a safe, accident-free path, even though entering a dungeon is basically stepping off that path, but hey, life is a one-way journey down the track of truth, right? You get that?」
「「「We don’t get that at all!」」」「I didn’t understand a word of that, but I kind of get what you mean, so I think we’re good. See you later.」「「「We’re off!」」」
Now that Pres and the others are in a dungeon, we’d better get moving too. A quick dash to the nearby dungeon, my body’s surging with energy and strength as we accelerate forward. And now I’ve fallen seven times, currently on my seventh tumble, rolling and bouncing along with Slime-san. Pretty fast, huh? And, arrived at the dungeon. Even just running, my legs kept tangling and tripping me. Clearly, it’s because they’re too long. That must be it.
「Alright, here we go, okay? I want to ease in with some light adjustment, so leave some monsters for me, alright? My body’s really fine, rather, it’s the control that’s the problem now, okay?」
(Nod-Nod, Nod Nod, Jiggle-Jiggle)
Yep, the usual reply. Whether they are okay with it or not, it’s always the same. Which means I can’t let my guard down. Let’s give it my all!
I spread my awareness from the tips of my toes to the split ends at the top of my hair, grasp it all with『Holding』, controlling every aspect, synchronizing the movement in my mind with actual motion, imprinting it into both brain and body. Making that state feel normal, turning it into a natural state, that’s the first step. Looks like I’ll need to take care of those split ends too. There’s a lot of them!
I deliberately didn’t use 『Magic Wrap』 and dive in with a powerless, defenseless body. Matching my movements to the forms of dance and Taikyoku, I swing my staff and my body, not through body movements, but by consciously the body itself with my mind.
「I could probably handle monsters up to Lv 30 with just my stats alone right now? Well, if I get hit once I’m dead, but that’s nothing new? And I’m adjusting anyway?」
I wasn’t using Magic Wrap, so I”m getting side-eyed hard. If I’m not using『Magic Wrap』, which boosts my stats and covers myself in magic, and skill effects like a suit of armor, I’d have only as much strength as my stats would suggest. But with my current stats, even if I don’t have precise control, I should be able to handle the early floors just fine. Overconfidence and complacency are dangerous, but I’m practically a specialist in both, at this point, it wouldn’t be wrong to say I’ve mastered them. If my status screen had a special traits section, it would absolutely list 『Overconfidence & Complacency』.
But this reminds me of the days in the forest, when I was neither careless nor overconfident and acted with prudency and caution, lacking in power and being all alone. Back then, when I fought and survived without relying on any power. That’s right, I’m going back to my roots. Yeah, that’s it!
「HYAHAAAA~!」
(JiggleJiggleJiggleJiggle~!)
Restraining my body, I moved slowly in a slow motion world of accelerated thought as I traced the forms and delivered sweeping strikes. Without Magic Wrap, the slow-motion effect wasn’t very strong, but low-level monsters are slow and sluggish, even without any slow motion.
Taking a careful step forward, testing my balance I swing my staff and turn my body. I’m still fumbling, at times going into a full spin, but my strength and speed have increased, which makes each hit more powerful, but also harder to control.
Still, no complaining allowed. The girls had been dealing with this every day as their stats skyrocketed from rapid level-ups. I never leveled, so I just envied them from the sidelines, but they never whined. They just kept getting stronger while their stats kept changing daily, as they continuously kept leveling up. After all, on average, they went through several levels ups every day, so there hasn’t been a single day when they could’ve fought in the same condition as yesterday.
They should be admired for that. Overdoing it, stubborn to a fault, but they pushed through with sheer determination. In less than 100 days since they started fighting, they passed Lv 110, and they’re still aiming higher. That kind of effort deserves respect. They are doing their best.
Well, by that logic, I’d have to respect the Geeks and the Idiots too, but the Geeks rely entirely on their stats and skill effects. They match their attacks precisely to their stat values and skill effects. In other words, they’ve never actually struggled. Those guys never trusted their own strength, not even once. They believe only in numbers, skills, and gear. That’s why they’re strong. But that also means they’ve never had to suffer. So nope, no respect.
As for the Idiots, they probably don’t even look at their stats. Skills are hardly different from toys to them. They are just savage barbarians that move on raw instincts alone, wielding reckless force through natural intuition that comes from their innate combat sense. Not just unworthy of respect, they should be returned to the forest where they came from.