Preparations for clearing the 15th floor proceeded smoothly.
The members of Party 3 were issued auxiliary weapons, and their existing equipment was reinforced. Outwardly, the members of Party 3, like us, spent long hours in the training center honing their skills.
"Shouldn't we do something?" Iolca asked, running alongside me on the track. It seemed her stamina had improved enough to talk while running. "At this rate, they'll catch up. I don't know. You handle it."
"I am handling it. If you want to switch parties, I won't stop you."
"I don't want to go with people like that. They give me the creeps."
"Then wait. Until the opportunity comes. Have you practiced Telekinesis enough?"
"Of course. What do you take me for?"
Iolca's eyes glowed blue. A sandbag placed in the corner of the training ground lifted into the air.
Non-verbal and mobile casting. Her status window now listed Low-Grade Telekinesis as a skill. It was tremendous progress compared to when she first arrived. Though she was still the same when it came to Fire magic.
I surveyed the training ground.
The members of Party 1 were running with me. Party 2 was conducting formation training on the left side. Party 3 was on the right, engaging in sparring that bordered on abuse. In a corner, several 1-stars who didn't belong anywhere swung their swords awkwardly.
Over twenty people were active. The training ground, which once felt vast, now seemed cramped. Free summons were also conducted periodically, and the Waiting Room's population was now saturated. It was about time to build the Phase 3 facilities.
'Doesn't seem like the Master intends to, though.'
Upon clearing the 10th floor, several previously unavailable facilities were unlocked. Yet, not a single one had been built.
I sighed and continued running.
Led by Nokin, the members of Party 3, sensing the Master's favor, began showing their true colors. For now, it was petty harassment like bullying Chloe for extra meat servings or hogging the lobby sofa, but if they succeeded in clearing the 15th floor, it would escalate significantly.
A few days later.
[Party 3, gather in the square!]
Isel's voice echoed throughout the Waiting Room.
"Heh heh, finally." Nokin, who was beating on a wooden dummy in the training ground, muttered. Undisguised glee spread across his face.
"Let's go. What's the big deal?" Winard cracked his knuckles. His expression overflowed with confidence.
'The lower floors must have been manageable.'
Since mission selection is random, exceptionally low difficulty levels can sometimes occur. They didn't seem to know that boss stages appeared every 5 floors. Understandable, since I never told them.
Ping!
The sound of something slicing through the air came from somewhere.
I turned my head. An arrow was flying towards my left shoulder area.
I happened to be training. Shield and sword were hanging loosely.
"Oppa, watch out..."
Dropping my sword, I snatched the arrow out of the air with my bare hand.
My skin grazed, drawing a little blood. Simultaneously, a refreshing sensation spread through my mind. The familiar feeling gained when a skill levels up.
[Ding!]
[Han(★★)'s 'Projectile Defense' has increased to Lv. 2!]
"Watch out for what?"
"...Nothing."
I flung the arrow from my right hand and returned my sword to its sheath.
"Training ends here for today. Can't miss a good spectacle."
"Come to think of it, Party 3 seems to be heading out," Aaron remarked.
"Are you coming along too?"
"If you're going, Boss."
"Me too, me too." Jena and Aaron put away their weapons.
Iolca was currently engrossed in telekinesis training at the Magic Hall. I decided not to disturb her.
Quite a few people had gathered in the square. Even auxiliary personnel like Chloe and Enoch were included. I'd seen a similar sight before. When the Dire Wolves deployed.
Edith, already there, muttered,
"Nobody was here when we went to the 10th floor."
"That's a good thing."
I sat down on a suitable bench. Jena and Aaron sat beside me.
[Catch!]
Isel, pulling a cart from the warehouse, tossed potions to the members of Party 3.
Nokin caught a glass bottle sloshing with red liquid. More potions flew through the air. Three potions in total.
[Equipping 'Low-Grade Health Potion' on Nokin(★★★)!]
[Equipping 'Low-Grade Health Potion' on Winard(★★★)...]
"We worked hard to dig those up," Jena pouted.
The raw materials for those potions were gathered by us in the Daily Dungeons. I wasn't even involved in the potion-making process. Amkena managed to make only three after blowing up the attempts over ten times. An expected outcome without a professional alchemist.
"Giving away stuff we got for ourselves... The Master is too much."
"We can just gather more materials."
"True."
[Open, Space-Time Rift!]
Clunk.
The gate at the front of the square opened.
The two thoroughly intimidated 1-stars went inside first. Then the 3-stars began to enter. Two went in, and the leader, Nokin, was last.
Before entering, Nokin looked at me and said,
"You, you bastard, you insolent bastard! Just wait 'til I get back. I'll tell the Master and you'll get scolded. Just you wait, hahaha!"
Finishing his words, Nokin rushed inside as if fleeing.
The door closed.
"..."
"Popular, aren't you?" Edith nudged my side with her elbow and chuckled.
'If you can make it back, that is.'
I laughed too.
As Nokin said, we'd see how things turned out.
"What happens if those people succeed?" Aaron asked, having been sitting quietly.
Outwardly calm, but his eyes were wavering.
"You mean if they clear the 15th floor?"
"Yes."
"We'll have to lift the deployment ban. Otherwise, we could end up dead."
The possibility of Party 3 clearing the 15th floor wasn't 0%.
While Pick Me Up's difficulty is generally high, there's a very low chance of getting an easy mission. Parties sent out expecting death sometimes cleared missions.
If that happened, with less than a 1% chance, our strike would have been pointless. Amkena would become convinced of their own judgment, and the need to keep us around would disappear.
"If they come back, listen carefully to the Master. Don't rebel."
Of course, by then, I'd likely be Synthesized.
I was prepared.
I sat on the bench and waited for the results.
The people who had gathered in the square returned to where they came from. Looks of anxiety flickered on their faces. They seemed to hope the others wouldn't return.
About 5 minutes after Party 3 entered the 15th floor.
Almost everyone had left the square. We couldn't see how the mission was progressing. All we knew was that a crisis hadn't struck yet. Messages indicating status ailments...
"Hm?"
Messages popped up consecutively accompanied by sound effects.
[Mission Failed!]
[Result - Annihilation]
[Nokin(★★★) has returned to the Goddess's embrace. His fighting spirit will be remembered forever.]
[Winard(★★★) has returned to the Goddess's embrace. His fighting spirit will be remembered forever.]
[Jelan(★★★) has returned to the Goddess's embrace. His fighting spirit will be remembered forever.]
[Roberil(★) has returned to the Goddess's embrace. His fighting spirit will be remembered forever.]
[Jian(★) has returned to the Goddess's embrace. His fighting spirit will be remembered forever.]
[Party 3 has been annihilated.]
[You Lose!]
Less than 10 minutes after entering.
'Was it a special mission?'
Five simultaneous deaths. No bleeding or near-death status effects typical before death.
Thud!
A temporary tremor shook the entire Waiting Room. Jena swayed in her seat.
"Wh-What was that? Why suddenly..."
Crackle!
With a sound like something shorting out, stark blue electricity surged along the walls of the square.
Isel appeared, face pale, and said,
[The Master threw their phone.]
"Is that so."
[Master, would you like to log out?]
[Yes(Select) / No]
[Goodbye then!]
Amkena disconnected immediately after the annihilation message.
Isel appeared, clinging to my clothes.
[This looks really bad, what do we do!]
"Lots of people watching, let go for now."
I peeled Isel off my pant leg and addressed the onlookers.
"The spectacle is over. Let's head back."
"What about Party 3?"
"Annihilated."
Far from clearing, they were wiped out almost immediately after starting.
They likely wouldn't have gained any hints about clearing the 15th floor.
A pointless death.
Edith muttered in a dejected voice,
"They weren't even inside for long."
"Guess that just shows the limit of their abilities."
Anyway, the business here was concluded. No need to remain in the square. I returned to the lodgings.
After that, Amkena didn't log in for a long time.
Every evening, Isel would come to my room sniffling, asking what to do.
Crying changes nothing. Do what you can in any situation. That was the first principle I established for survival here.
Daily life didn't change.
Wake up in the morning, eat, then train. Train after lunch. Train again until evening. A long time had passed without going into actual combat. To avoid losing my edge, sparring was conducted with real weapons.
A week passed.
The 1-stars, aside from the core members, started slacking off. The fear of Synthesis had vanished. The number of people active in the training ground decreased significantly. Few, apart from a handful, bothered going to the Daily Dungeons anymore, which they used to do voluntarily.
And more time passed.
10 days by Waiting Room time. More than 3 days had passed without login in real time. Then one day.
Suddenly, the lights in the sky turned on.
[Welcome to Pick Me Up!]
The familiar login message appeared.
'...They're here.'
I had been waiting.
[Loading complete.]
[T O U C H !(Select)]
It was deep dawn.
Only I remained in the training center.
Flash! Flash!
Consecutive flashes erupted from the brightly lit sky.
[Click!]
[Screenshot taken. This image will be saved to the gallery.]
[Master, would you like to log out?]
[Yes(Select) / No]
[Goodbye then!]
Amkena, having logged in after a long time, simply took a screenshot and logged out.
Less than a minute passed from login to logout.
I sheathed my sword. Leaving the tattered wooden dummy behind, I left the training center. Walking quickly, I said,
"Isel!"
[Mnya.] Isel appeared, rubbing her eyes. Instead of her usual black dress, she wore pajamas with a white cat print and a furry cap on her head.
[Why'd you call? I was sleeping...]
Well, look at that.
"The Master logged in."
[Yeah, the Master... What did you say?!]
Eyes snapping open, Isel looked around.
[Where, where are they? Where!]
"Just left."
[They came back after so long, why didn't they do anything? Don't tell me they're really quitting...]
"They didn't do nothing. They took a screenshot."
[A screenshot? Why?]
"Why else?"
To keep it as a souvenir photo?
Unlikely. I closed the door.
Isel was staring at me, eyes full of questions.
"What's your hobby, Isel?"
[I told you before, web surfing. Why ask something like that?]
"So you can access the internet."
[Well, yeah, obviously. Huh?] Isel tilted her head.
I said,
"I need you to help me with something."
There could only be one reason for taking a screenshot at this juncture.
They went to ask on the strategy forum.