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

Chapter 515: Defense Specialization and Minerals

Bofuri

Chapter 515 – Defense Specialization and Minerals

The next day. The three gathered again in the fourth layer area and flew to the destination of the next quest by flying machine. Since the real challenge begins only after crossing the gateway to the other world, it’s not too difficult to get there.

Upon safely reaching their destination, they landed with reduced output and summoned the door to enter.

Having experienced it once yesterday, they entered without fear, and before them spread a wide canyon.

“Looks like a rapid below.”

“We could probably descend along the cliff edge from here.”

Peering over the edge, they saw swift-flowing water making noise at the bottom of the cliff.

There’s no guarantee of survival if caught in the flowing water. If it’s designed to kill upon falling, even Maple with overwhelming defense would face the same fate.

“Can’t we use the flying machine?”

“It doesn’t seem impossible at first glance… but. It feels a bit odd that it’s designed to be so easy to descend using flying machines.”

“I agree. It may not be a trap per se, but I have a feeling there’s some sort of countermeasure waiting.”

Yesterday’s battle was undoubtedly designed with flying machines in mind. While they may not have countermeasures in every area, it’s unsettling to be led down the wrong path by making flying too easy.

“Should we follow the designated route?”

“Let’s try that. We have time and flexibility to reconsider our approach.”

“Then this way. Let’s be careful not to fall.”

The narrow path jutting out along the cliffside is only about forty centimeters wide. It’s difficult to fight satisfactorily here. Despite having flying machines, there are concerns about flying, so it’s considered a last resort.

After a while, the three come across a crack in the cliff, finding a path that seems to lead inside.

Though not much wider than the cliffside path, it’s a much more stable footing.

“This way.”

“Good, it seems to be easier to walk for now.”

“Do you think enemies will appear?”

“Most likely. Be ready with your defenses.”

“Got it!”

“Let’s secure some light here.”

With the narrow path and low ceiling, it’s difficult for Sally and Kasumi to utilize their mobility here.

It’s better to have Maple at the forefront, ready to defend against any sudden attacks.

Maple firmly holds her large shield and cautiously peeks around the corner to check ahead.

“Your experience in the fifth layer area is really coming in handy.”

“It would be quite a hassle if we were suddenly attacked!”

“Good vigilance.”

As they continue down the gentle slope, they notice a shimmering orange glow embedded in the wall ahead.

“I’ll check it out!”

“Yeah, please do.”

Maple, who can touch most things without worry, walks up to the source of the glow. It turns out to be a mineral with flickering light inside. The mineral seems firmly attached to the wall, so it doesn’t look like it would easily fall off.

As Maple prods it, light spills out from within, and a small flame pops out.

“Whoa!”

Startled, Maple pulls her hand back, but thankfully, she doesn’t seem to have taken any damage, which brings a sigh of relief.

“It seems to produce flames.”

“It was about getting materials, right? Maybe this is it?”

“We need boss materials. But this seems to be some kind of item related to attributes.”

“If we can take it back with us, let’s do it!”

“I think that’s a good idea. Iz-san would probably be delighted.”

The small object in front of them is just an indication of what it might be. As they continue deeper while searching for mining points, the three of them encounter a blinding orange glow that almost overwhelms the light from their own lanterns.

“Wow!”

There are numerous large ores, much bigger in size and quantity compared to before. They find the mining points they were looking for, and Maple eagerly takes out her pickaxe and walks toward them.

“Hmm?”

As Maple approaches the ores, she briefly feels a sense of unease and glances to the side.

Clatter, clunk. A hand-sized ore suddenly detaches from the wall, accompanied by an HP bar. Before Maple realizes it’s a monster, it falls to the ground, creating sparks upon impact.

“I-I’ll use [Loving Sacrifice]!”

The sparks ignite, causing all the surrounding ores to erupt in flames. It’s as if a fire dragon has engulfed the entire path they came through, burning everything in its wake.

“P-Phew, that was close.”

“Are you okay!?”

“Yeah! How about you guys?”

“We’re fine. Let’s go now.”

Amidst the crackling of flames, they confirm their safety with raised voices. After the flames subside, Sally and Kasumi make their way to where Maple is.

“That was surprising… What happened?”

“Um, there was a monster that looked like a small ore, and it seemed to ignite.”

“It seems to chain react. The boss might use something like this too.”

“There’s a possibility. If it’s the same mechanism, as long as Maple is there, it shouldn’t be a problem, but…”

A strong feeling of area-of-effect attack. If they were to be engulfed like before, Kasumi’s [Mind’s Eye] and Sally’s skills wouldn’t be of much help.

“For now, let’s keep [Loving Sacrifice] as it is. It ignited right in front of us this time, but we can’t rule out the possibility of flames suddenly spewing out from further ahead.”

“Got it! We’ll stay close by.”

“Yeah, we can’t afford to burn out before reaching the boss.”

“Then let’s do some mining here. It seems safe as long as Maple is around even if there’s a misfire.”

“Leave it to me! First, from here…”

As Maple strikes the pickaxe for harvesting, a low, ominous sound and some sort of effect occur at the base of the tool, indicating something is amiss.

It seems Maple’s stats are insufficient for safely mining this hazardous material. Triggered by the much larger sparks than before, the area is engulfed in flames. Despite being a combat-focused vanguard trio with insufficient stats, Maple manages to protect them all, clearing the issue forcibly and successfully obtaining a satisfactory amount of ore.

“That went well!”

“Yeah. Well… it went… well. Yeah.”

“The process may not have gone as planned, but it is what it is.”

They pack the ores into their inventory and head deeper into the area. Despite encountering flames several times along the way, there’s no need to worry.

The next thing the trio encounters is a mineral emitting a blue glow.

“…Is it water, perhaps?”

“It seems watery.”

“It’s probably water.”

Unanimously agreeing that this mineral will release water, Maple and the others contemplate what might happen.

“If it’s just harmless water blades or something, that’s fine, but… I hope it doesn’t knock us back into strong currents or try to drown us with water.”

“For now, we can use items to deal with drowning. Luckily, we have plenty left over from the eighth floor.”

“As for knockbacks… I’ll handle it somehow. It would be a waste to place a throne, and I want to confirm whether there will be knockbacks or not.”

With that, Sally secures herself to the ground with a thread and extends it to Maple.

“Kasumi, please check.”

“Got it.”

As Kasumi, who can move freely, steps into the area filled with the blue glow of the mineral, as expected, small stones roll out, and in an instant, the entire corridor is filled with water.

“There doesn’t seem to be any knockback.”

There’s no sensation of Maple being pulled relentlessly from the thread. The water just floods the surroundings without any flow.

“How is it, Maple?”

While there might be attempts to drown, they seem much weaker compared to the flames earlier.

Although there’s no damage, Kasumi checks if there’s any impact on Maple, who automatically shields all attacks.

“Oh! Ah, that might be it!”

“Did you understand something?”

“My HP, MP, and VIT are halved! The effect lasts for a while!”

“All stats down by 50%? That’s… Well, Maple, you’re gonna be alright, right?”

“Yeah, I still have about 10,000 VIT! The others were already at zero anyway…”

“Then there’s no problem, right? We shouldn’t encounter attacks you can’t withstand.”

“Yeah, that’s right. We should also be careful not to hit each other. Thanks, Maple. We’ll watch out.”

“After fire, now water. Attributes still exist, but… Well, let’s see.”

“For now, let’s keep moving forward. We don’t know when this water will recede.”

“That’s true! Our pace hasn’t slowed down, so we should be fine!”

“Alright then, Maple, you lead the way. I’ll sort out the plan.”

“Okay!”

Having navigated through the water gimmick without issue, the trio proceeded deeper into the dungeon.