“Oh... I’m sorry. I was wondering if...I could open this one?” I asked. This was a treasure chest in a hidden room I’d never seen or heard of before! Considering how hidden it was, it was most likely a treasure chest that wouldn’t respawn.
Frey must have seen the excitement in my eyes because she chuckled and said, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you like this either. You were the one who showed us to Arcadia and this dungeon. Opening a treasure chest is the least you deserve in return.”
“You’re acting like a normal person for once, Sharon.”
“Thank you, Frey! And I am a normal person, Kent!” With a harrumph, I stepped past Frey and reached for the wooden lid of the chest. The anticipation was almost unbearable. “Without further ado...!”
“I wonder what’s inside,” Tarte purred.
“Yummy food...?” L’lyeh suggested, sounding hopeful.
“That might be too meowch to ask for...”
Grinning at Tarte and L’lyeh’s exchange, I slowly lifted the lid. Light shone from within the chest, indicating the presence of a rare item. It wasn’t going to be anything legendary, but it was looking likely that we’d get our hands on some sort of equipment.
I peered into the open chest and found a trove of potions—Shooting Star Potions, Moon Potions, and Moon Mana Potions—a piece of equipment called Belt of Courage, and a black sphere the size of a baseball. What is that sphere? As soon as I picked it up and read its description, I remembered what it was. It was an item from an old event and it was called a Pandemonium—a gag item that summoned monsters when used. The number and level of the monsters it summoned were determined by the level of the user, so players would crack them open to see who could pull the strongest one.
“Belt of Courage boosts your Defense, so it might be a good one for you, Kent. It has a more masculine design too,” I said.
“Me?!” Kent eyed the belt like he was itching to try it on.
Items weren’t gender locked or anything, so anyone could use it. A frontline fighter or someone lacking in Defense would be the best choice. “Frey or Lina, you could also use it, but it’s heavier than it looks, so I’m concerned it might weigh you down.” I handed the belt to Lina.
“Yeah, that’s pretty heavy,” Lina agreed, shaking her head.
“A Defense boost... I personally prefer items that boost my Attack,” Frey said. “And if it’s heavy for Lina, I don’t think it’ll be a good fit for Luna or Mio.”
“Makes sense.” I nodded. “Then let’s have Kent wear it for now.”
“You’re sure?!” Kent beamed and equipped the belt, bolstering his Defense. Because the belt was categorized as an accessory, it was a pretty rare piece of equipment.
“What’s that ball?” Frey asked.
“It’s like a joke item. It summons monsters when you break it,” I explained.
“That doesn’t sound very funny...” Frey countered gravely.
“Touché.” I’d slipped back into the mindset of a gamer behind a screen. Back in Reas, other players would have joined in and taken out any monster that appeared. It wouldn’t be so simple here. “What should we do with it? We can crack it ourselves, but our levels are pretty high, so we might pull a strong monster. I don’t recommend it.”
“If Sharon’s hesitant, we should never break that thing,” Frey sighed and fell into thought.
Then, Mio stepped up, hands twined before her chest. “Um... Can I hold on to it? As a Priestess, I can’t ignore an item like that!”
I couldn’t answer her right away. I was familiar with the character of the others in Frey’s party, but I hadn’t known Mio long enough to be confident that she wouldn’t misuse the sphere.
“That’s fine by me,” Frey told me. “Mio is the kind of person who’d stop and listen to even a stranger’s confession.”
Wow. She’s like an actual priestess.
Looking a little embarrassed by Frey’s compliment, Mio made a suggestion. “What if the Belt of Courage went to Sharon’s party and the Pandemonium to us?”
“What...?” I furrowed my brow. That made no sense.
“I-I’m sorry,” Mio stammered, seeing the confusion on my face. “Right. We don’t know how much the belt and sphere are worth. I understand there’s great value in this sphere, which makes it an unfair split for you.”
“Oh...” I’d been thinking the opposite, worrying that the split was unfair for them. “The belt’s much more valuable, so don’t worry about that! Even if you took all the potions in the chest along with the Pandemonium, we’d still have the better deal.”
“Really...?” Mio looked surprised that the belt was so valuable—or, more likely, that the Pandemonium wasn’t worth much at all.
My assessment of it was based on playing the game, though, so a Pandemonium might be more valuable in this world, making this a fairer split. “Well...the value of a Pandemonium depends on who holds it. My appraisal could be off the mark. I have no objection to splitting the loot that way, Mio.” The rest of my party voiced their agreement, and the others in Frey’s party seemed happy with the deal as well.
“So Kent takes the belt, and we’ll take the Pandemonium and the potions,” Luna confirmed.
“I didn’t think I’d be getting an accessory... Thanks, everyone!” Kent said.
“You need all the Defense you can get on the front line. You’re going to make good use of it,” Cocoa assured him.
Kent cracked a grin and pumped his fist. “You bet!”
We continued through the cave for a while until we came to the halfway point—the spawn point of the boss. Until someone defeated it, the Serpent in the Dark coiled here.
“Wow. I still can’t see it, but I can sense it...” Lina said, her knees shaking a little.
Even the air seemed colder here. After a few deep breaths, I reapplied buffs to everyone. Once I did, Lina forced her quaking legs into action and scouted ahead, maintaining her composure.
“Let’s go over Serpent in the Dark,” Kent said.
“Got it.”
“The serpent is dark and long, about three meters wide,” Kent explained for everyone’s benefit. “Its scales are hard and resistant to both blade and magic, so we need to aim for its face, right?”
“Yep,” I said, taking over the explanation. “When it sticks its tongue out once, it’s going to sweep with its tail, so we need to jump. When it sticks its tongue out twice in a row, it’s going to fling its scales at us—that’s a fast and powerful attack. Instead of trying to dodge it, we’re going to let it bounce off a defensive Skill I’ll put on us. As soon as the scales hit, I’ll reapply the buff. Don’t be afraid to let them hit you.”
“Got it. I trust you, Sharon,” Kent said.
“Me too, Meowster.”
“Your abilities are unparalleled,” Frey added.
Everyone here—including Frey and her party—was putting their faith in me. As a supporter, I couldn’t ask for anything more. “Don’t hold back! I’m going to support you like there’s no tomorrow!” I promised.
“I expect nothing less!” Frey said.
Then, Lina returned from her solo scouting. “It’s there! And it’s huge!”
We all shared a solemn look. Before we engaged the serpent, I reapplied buffs to everyone. Mio was going to use her Skills for support as well. It was going to be a tough battle but not one we would lose.
“Okay. Let’s do this...!” I said.
“All right! I’m going to land a hit first!” Kent said and kicked off the ground. Leaping high into the air, he landed an attack on the Serpent in the Dark and started drawing all of the serpent’s aggression to himself with Taunt.
Hissing hideously, the monster swung its massive tail. Kent wasn’t daunted by that, though.