“Umm... Should we go after Kanade?”
“C’mon, bro! It’s all a misunderstanding!”
“Aaaah! The new Brave Pekkle came, and he’s got monsters with him! I’m getting run over!”
“Hurry up and apologize to the man! Wha? Gaaaaaah!”
“Judgment upon any who call me a man!”
“C’mon! We haven’t said anything wrong!”
“I’m just jealous you get to talk to Kizzy so much, so not apologizing. L’Arc, drop dead.”
“Why are you dragging me into this?!”
“Aww, poor L’Arc.”
“Therese, don’t act like this ain’t your business.”
“Thank you for bringing all the EXP!”
“Hey... I’m sure she’ll be back after she MPKs the ringleader.”
“Aha ha ha! Our sis landed herself quite the role, huh? Reminds me of Yammy.”
“That doesn’t make me happy, I daresay!”
The wave battle dragged on without an ounce of tension.
“Anyway, let’s keep at it our way. Just remember that the way sis taught us to fight might come in handy down the line.”
“Indeed. Your Cooperation Skill with Yamikage is very powerful. We can’t fall behind. I’d love to achieve Cooperation in battle with you too, Kizuna.”
It would definitely be fun if I had some skills that could combo with Shouko’s. Unfortunately, I just didn’t. Maybe I should pick up some simple magic.
“If it’s just about chaining attacks and not actual Cooperation Skills, landing a big hit after Double Needle works nicely.”
“Yes, but I would prefer something that feels like a proper combination.”
Hmm... Yeah, I get it. It would be nice if we had one. We’ll have to do some trial and error.
“Well, let’s put that aside for now. Sis is getting farther and farther away, so I’ll have some Pekkles fill in for her while we head to the nearest tower.”
“Right.”
“Time to go on the offensive! Circle Drain, I daresay!”
Yamikage unleashed her signature spell on the monsters that had spawned around her. It was a solid hit, going off the sound, but not enough to finish them off.
So even a super boosted Drain isn’t enough to take them down.
“Don’t forget about me! Here’s the new skill I learned! Haaaah!”
As she let out a war cry, Tsumugi was suddenly wrapped in some kind of shimmering energy membrane—and then, tufts of hair sprouted all across her arms and legs.
“Let’s go! Crimson Heaven Wheel!”
“Hsssshhh!”
The Dimension Naga and Dimension Garuda softened up by Yamikage were cleared out by Tsumugi’s skill.
“Keep ’em coming.”
“So, Tsumugi, is that the Demihuman’s Beastification skill?”
“Yup. My proficiency’s low for now, so all I’m getting is an attack buff.”
“Does it make you more beast-like when you level it up?”
“Dunno about that. It didn’t show any of the animations when I was making my avatar, so I dunno what’s gonna happen.”
Huh, so that’s how it works.
Apparently, different races could modify a few things in the initialization process that didn’t come into play until late into the game. Spirits didn’t have any of that.
“I need to attack and fill up a gauge before I can use it—it’s kinda a pain, not being able to blast them right at the start.”
You powered yourself up by charging a gauge in combat—whether that felt like a bother or like a flashy finisher probably depended on the user.
As I slashed an approaching Dimension Naga with my ice knife, the Auto-Steal kicked in, snatching a Dimension Naga Scale.
I’ll turn that over to Romina later.
“So anyway, this skill... I can charge it for some reason. I don’t know what that’s about.”
“Sounds like it might factor into a Cooperation Skill? Most charge skills seem to do that, though I don’t know what it combos with.”
“Yeah, maybe. Let’s test it out later, Yammy. And let’s keep an eye out to see if anyone else’s using it in the event.”
Events like these were the perfect place to spot strong players and unfamiliar skills. Just like other people were watching us with great interest, we could observe how the other players fought too.
We followed our own path, yeah, but there was still plenty to learn.
Just like how my sister taught us so much.
“Thanks for the carry, crossplay sis!”
“Appreciate you holding them for so long!”
“More mobs incoming!”
“Bro, you just earned yourself a fan for life.”
“Could you people knock it off already?!”
And that same sister...was off on a journey of MPK.
She gave enough warning, and if they knew she was coming, they just had to fire off massive AoEs into the swarm. She was pretty much a walking EXP pack to anyone confident in their skills.
I could only pray sis managed to wipe them out in the end.
“H-Hey, Island Lord Party! Help!”
Just then, I heard a desperate cry for help.
At first, I thought it was one of sis’s victims, but no—a half-decimated party was being swarmed by countless Dimension Garuda and Dimension Djinn, and they were begging for backup.
“Okay, let’s move—and fast!”
I quickly switched to my fishing rod and let out a few quick casts with Hate & Lure to turn all the monsters’ attention toward us.
“Let’s go, pen!”
“Come on, pen!”
Chris and Brave Pekkle moved like clockwork, Chris charging while cloaked in water and Brave Pekkle summoning a Lizardman to soften up the mobs I’d peeled off the weakened party.
“Now it is my turn... Kizuna and the Pekkles have done their part, so I’ll show off my new technique. Watch closely!”
As if refusing to be outdone, Shouko pulled out her rod just like me.
Really...? For Shouko, wouldn’t it make more sense to use a fan skill? I thought. But considering the distance, perhaps she judged it was the better option. I held my tongue and watched.
I figured she’d use Hate & Lure...but then...
Her lure zipped around the Dimension Garuda and Dimension Djinn, coiling round and round in tight loops... Then, as the last loops closed around their necks, she gave the rod a sharp jerk, hooking the line onto a nearby rocky outcrop.
“Critical Wire.”
With a snap, the line was pulled taut. The critical effect burst from their necks, and the monsters dropped dead. Precisely because they were all so humanoid...the way their heads popped off so cleanly was kind of terrifying.
“Ooh! Lady Shouko! That was incredible, I daresay!”
“That was like the work of a professional! I try to go for the necks too, but you’re so quick and smooth with it!”
“I’m not stopping here! Haah! Bind Rope! Into...Wild Dance First Formation: Rapid Strike!”