I hate being in pain, so I think I'll make a full defense build

Itai no wa Iya nanode Bōgyo-Ryoku ni Kyokufuri Shitai to Omoimasu 494

Defense Specialization and Gathering Magic Power

Days passed as they kept exploring. The monsters on the 10^th Floor may be powerful, but they were by no means impossible. After all, Kaede and the others had acquired various skills up until that point. They were able to clear the quests smoothly, without any major setbacks. Eventually, they’d cleared up the majority of the basic quests in the deeper areas.

Of course, there were also hidden events, but they weren’t directly related to the Demon King questline, so they were seconded for now.

The two girls packed their bags, leaving the classroom to head home again today.

“What do you think, Kaede? Do you think you can play today?”

“Yep! That’s why I studied beforehand!”

“Ooh, nice…”

“How about you, Risa?”

“Well, I don’t think anyone will try to stop me from playing at this point…”

“Then we have nothing to worry about!”

“Okay, then. I’ll meet you in-game after we get back. I feel like it’s about time for a powerful boss to show up.”

“Let’s keep our spirits up!”

The two quickly arrived home, quickly changed their clothes, and jumped into New World Online.

When Maple arrived at the guild home, Sally was already waiting for her.

“Sorry for the wait.”

“I’ve just arrived.”

Maple ran towards Sally and noticed something at the 10^th Floor’s guild home.

“Oh, it’s all connected now.”

“Looks like it. Thanks to everyone. I’ll thank them later.”

A magic circle that connected each town. Thanks to the fact that they had split up to advance the exploration, they were able to freely travel between all the towns.

With this, they could finally say that the groundwork for exploring the 10^th Floor had been completed.

“Well, today I’m going to take on a quest that will hopefully involve a formidable boss.”

“We don’t have all the information yet.”

Judging from the name of the quest they had accepted, it was probably a big boss. But last time they logged in, they didn’t have enough time, so it was postponed until today. Therefore, they didn’t know the details.

“Since we can explore from any town, we have more freedom. Still, overall, we lack information.”

“If the order had been decided, it would be easier to use as a reference, but when it comes to the tenth floor…”

“I see…”

“Would you like to ask for help? I feel like doing my best today!”

“I definitely want to win this, so that isn’t necessarily a bad idea. Is there anyone Maple can contact who could come today?”

Maple was reliable in terms of sending messages to everyone. Maple’s friendships, which had become unusually strong, were naturally filled with powerful people. Maple immediately sent a message and waited for a reply.

“…Here they come!”

“Okay, now I feel confident we can win even if a big boss does show up.”

As the two waited for a while, the magic circle lit up and two players arrived at the guild home.

“Maple!”

“Is the strategy going well?”

“Mai, Yui! Thank you for your help!”

“If you are fighting a boss, leave it to us!”

Maple reached out to Mai and Yui. It’d been a long time since they first met and scouted the twins. As of the present, the two had surpassed the framework of [Maple Tree] and had grown into completely dependable main attackers, with offensive power that could be said to be at the top of all players.

“Is your exploration going well?”

“Right now, we’re exploring the 3^rd Floor with Kanade and Iz…!”

“There are some conditions, but if you fulfill them, it seems like you’ll be able to use a flying machine just like in the 3^rd Floor!”

One of the conditions being that the machine could only be used at the 10^th Floors. Nevertheless, as long as they had a boot-shaped flying machine that could soar freely in the sky, they’d be able to fly around in all directions and fight with a high degree of mobility.

“Do you know how to get one of those machines?”

“I think we can show you how to get it as soon as possible!”

“That’s helpful! Just having one of those shoes is game-changing! I’d like to have it no matter the cost.”

As expected, unexplored places were full of appeals. No matter how much time they had, it was never enough.

“I’m doing well here, too! I also acquired skill through exploration!”

“What kind of skills do you have?”

“Creating a poisonous version of myself!”

““??””

“Before exploding it to spread poison!”

““???”””

“She’s not wrong, though…”

In their heads, an image of Maple splitting herself, before imploding was vividly conjured. They had to wonder if she was referring to a poorly-made, fictitious alien of some kind.

“I think it’d be faster if you were to see it by yourself. So, pleas help us defeat the boss.”

“O-of course!”

“We’ll help…!”

The twins were still appalled, but they quickly regained their composure and the four of them went to accept the quest.

“Oh, but I wonder if the two of you can accept the quest?”

The one that Maple was about to receive this time only appeared after clearing some prerequisites. Suffice to say, Mai and Yui hadn’t cleared them.

“It’s alright. Even if I can’t, I will follow and assist you. We can also participate in the Demon King subjugation.”

“Really!?”

“It’s true. So, don’t worry and proceed with your quest.”

Although Sally hadn’t explained anything yet, Maple’s anxiety had been alleviated. Now the four of them could head out to defeat the boss without any worries.

“Then let’s go get the quest!”

Maple went with those three to accept the quest. She headed for the same building where she’d received quests so far. She was so used to the way there, she went straight for her destination without hesitation. As usual, she called out to the knight captain—the man—who was in the room.

“Thank you for coming. Thanks to you guys, we were able to successfully exterminate the threat. You’re really helping us out. That’s why I have a favor to ask of you.”

Then, they were told that the Demon King’s minions—arguably the most powerful yet—were on a rampage. Their quest was simple—

—to vanquish them.

“They are formidable. We also have investigated and prepared items as countermeasures. There aren’t many, but I want you to take them with you and use them when needed.”

“Thank you!”

Maple received some items from the man. There were three black balls about the size and weight of baseballs in both of her hands.

“I’ll have another ready in a while. If you’ve used them up, just ask.”

In other words, if they ran out, they could simply replenish it. Sally added that the maximum number would be three.

“We have to use it sparingly…!”

“Let’s check the effect later!”

“It should be something that is effective against bosses.”

“I believe in your strength. I’ll suppress the rest of the monsters. I won’t let them interfere with your battle.”

“Of course!”

The condition for completing the quest was slaying the boss. The unfamiliar words, [Demon King’s Magic Power I], were written on the reward. In any case, Maple and the others accepted the quest and left the building, heading towards the field while discussing it.

“It seems that the [Demon King’s Magic Power] is the key item that will lead to the boss of the 10^th Floor.”

“I see.”

“With this, it’s easy to understand which quest we need to undertake, which is helpful.”

“Will it be possible to obtain items in other areas through the final quest…?”

“I can’t say for sure yet. It seems that most people start from this town, and there’s not much information about other areas.”

They could see why anyone would start exploring from this town, as it was close to the exit of the dungeon, which had no other conditions and extended to all ten floors.

“I’m looking forward to that… I think riding Tsukimi and Yukimi will be the fastest this time.”

Like Maple, Mai and Yui couldn’t ride dragons because their status was too extreme. Therefore, they had no other choice but to borrow the power of their Tamed Monsters.

“Tsukimi!”

“Yukimi!”

They made their way through the field on the backs of Tsukimi and Yukimi. Mai and Yui were surrounding themselves with the sledgehammers held by [Helping Hand], causing the monsters that approached them to instantly die and disappear one by one.

“With this, it looks like we’ll reach the destination in no time.”

“Great!”

“The monsters are being defeated one by one.”

“It’s my forte!”

There was nothing wrong with those words. Even sturdy monsters couldn’t withstand the blow. The nimble ones could try to dodge the sledgehammers, but could they avoid all of them?

The monsters on the field, who basically existed to raise their level, were no longer enough to slow them down for even a second.

Maple and the others had no intention of stopping in such a place. Their goal was to reach the boss, and that was that. Thus, the four of them ran to the quest destination indicated on the map.