Overview:
Name: Cocoa
Level: 163
Job: Lyrical Sorcerer (Enthralls all who hear with their dreamlike singing. Laces songs with mana to cleave through any enemy.)
Titles:
Blessing of the Snow Flutter: Hastens mana recovery.
Skills:
Boost Mana Recovery: Hastens the user’s natural mana recovery.
Increase Magic Attack (Level 10): Raises the user’s Magic Attack.
Mana Detection (Level 5): Searches for life within a hundred-meter radius.
Trampling Warsong (Level 5): Lowers the target’s Defense.
Moment of Bliss (Level 5): Increases EXP gain.
Absorb Mana (Level 4): Attacks also steal the target’s mana.
Water Arrow (Level 10): Attacks the target with arrows of water.
Water Ball (Level 10): Attacks the target with a ball of water.
Arrow of Water, Wash the Woe Before Us (Level 10): Launches powerful arrows of water.
Arrow of Light, Carve Us a Path (Level 10): Launches powerful arrows of light.
One, ten, a hundred, a thousand—infinite strands bind those wings and bring judgment down upon the beast (Level 10): Binds the target and launches a powerful attack.
Eyes of Heaven, Pierce My Enemy (Level 10): Launches swords of water.
Smiling colder than frost, the ice queen unveils her frozen domain (Level 10): Launches an array of icicles.
Winter’s Blessing, Turn Rain of Sorrow into Trusty Blades (Level 10): Launches raining blades of ice.
Equipment:
Head: Mystical Snowwoods Cap (+3% Magical Attack / +1% Defense)
Body: Mystical Snowwoods Robe (+3% Defense / Hastens HP recovery)
Right Hand: Staff of the Forest Spirit (+5% Magical Attack)
Left Hand: Elf’s Handbook (+2% Magical Attack)
Accessory: Adventure Bracelet (Enables the Menu)
Accessory: Roaring Pendant (+3% Fire attacks)
Feet: Mystical Snowwoods Boots (+1% Defense / All-terrain)
Seeing that the Flame Bird had burst into light, Tarte ran over to pick up the dropped item. Tarte’s only attack—throwing bombs—wouldn’t do too much damage against Fire monsters, so she’d been our item grabber in this dungeon. She held up an item called Fire Feather, a useful material for blacksmithing.
“All right. So far, so good,” Kent said, sheathing his sword.
As soon as he did, we heard bellowing roars—three Flame Bears were charging at us. Flame Bears were three-meter-tall bears with flames burning along their backs. Holding them off would be an ordeal for Kent, who’d feel intense heat just from being near those monsters.
We should take a break after this battle. As that thought crossed my mind, L’lyeh’s Dark magic and Cocoa’s Ice magic flew past me and struck the trio of bears—defeating two of them and leaving the third frozen solid. Maybe Tarte’s Potion Throw could take it out now. “Tarte, attack!”
“Yes, Meowster?! Purrtion Throw!”
The Molotov struck the frozen Flame Bear and shattered it into a burst of light. Even though it was a Fire attack, smashing the frozen monster must have dealt massive damage. That’s my apprentice! My perfectly adorable apprentice! This hadn’t been a tactic available in the game, but freezing and smashing an enemy could be a very efficient way to take them out now that they were real. Maybe I could explore more strategies that weren’t in the game but are possible now. “Let’s take a quick break!” I suggested to the group after making sure that all three Flame Bears had been defeated.
We found a shady spot by some rocks and sat down.
Kent blew out a breath. “I’m drenched in sweat... Unless it all evaporated?”
Like Kent, my skin was completely dry even though I’d been sweating nonstop. “This heat is no joke. First things first, we need to hydrate. Make sure you drink your water. Oh, and I bought us some Tropicallos.” I took the regional fruit from my Bag. I’d prepeeled them so we could eat them quickly. Captivated cheers rose from the rest of the party.
“Looks delicious. Can I have some?” Unsurprisingly, L’lyeh asked for one first.
“Of course. Have as many as you want,” I said.
Immediately, the Goddess of Darkness reached for a Tropicallo and took a big bite. “Delicious. Very juicy. Quenches my thirst.”
L’lyeh’s five-star review prompted Kent, Cocoa, and Tarte to reach for Tropicallos of their own. I followed their lead, of course. The explosion of flavorful juice—like a mix of peach and mango—felt like a blessing from the heavens that soothed my parched throat. “Eating these here makes them taste even better.”
“You said it. Having juicy fruit in this heat is on another level of refreshing. Not that I’d come here just to eat fruit...” Kent laughed and gulped down some water.
L’lyeh finished her Tropicallo and began rummaging through her Bag. “I brought something too.” She handed us each a sort of panini that held cabbage and what looked like kebab meat, the smell of its savory sauce whetting my appetite. Now that I wasn’t parched, I wouldn’t have any trouble devouring this panini. I bit into it and tasted the umami of the meat and sauce spreading through my mouth, recharging my strength. The heat had tired me more than I’d realized. On the other hand, who wouldn’t feel drained in this heat? We should take breaks a little more frequently. It didn’t take me long to finish the panini while I was reconsidering our break schedule.
“Oh, that was delicious. Thank you, Lulu,” I said.
“You’re welcome.”
“It’s ameowzing how you always find tasty treats.”
“I eat everything I see,” L’lyeh boasted with her chest fully puffed out.
“Such determination...!” Tarte said.
L’lyeh’s approach to finding good food was to try everything in sight at least once and then go back for the ones she liked. Anything L’lyeh recommended to us had already been tasted and approved by the Goddess of Darkness herself.
“Now that we’ve rested, should we get going?” Kent asked.
“Yes. Going forward, we could stop and hydrate after each battle, even. We can also drink water while we walk,” I suggested.
“That would be better,” Kent agreed. “Let’s all have a drink of water every time we finish a battle.”
Hydrate, don’t die-drate. With a new plan in mind, we set out walking again, keeping a watchful eye on our surroundings and on one another’s backs. When one of us wanted a drink of water, we made sure to announce it to the group so the others could keep watch for us. That’s what I’d call teamwork.
“Huh? There’s someone there...this far into the dungeon,” Kent said, looking at me for an explanation. We had progressed decently far through the second level by this point.
“Oh, that’s an Heir of Flames. It’s a monster,” I said.
“That cute little girl is a meownster?!”
“Yep. This one looks like a little girl, but an Heir of Flames can look like a girl or a boy. Both of them have hair that looks like flames,” I explained. The Heir of Flames before us had orange-tipped red hair and golden skin. Its black eyes were pointed toward us, but there was no light in them. Back in Reas, Heirs of Flames had been decently popular for their adorable appearance.
“Heir of Flames? Is it related to Ifrit?” Kent asked.
“You’re spot-on,” I answered. “The Heirs of Flames are monsters that failed to become Ifrit. The Ifrit we’re going to face is an evolution of an Heir of Flames.”
“So those are Ifrit rejects?” Kent asked.
“That’s right,” I confirmed, reminded of how their tragic backstory had contributed to their popularity among some players. “It has powerful Fire Skills, Kent. Be careful.”
“Copy.”