Kokoru let out a laugh. “Hahaha. I’m just glad we wrapped this up, bawk. Draco looks safe too, bawk.”
“Yeah, true.”
“Chirp?”
Having come to his senses, my Draco was back to his cute pet dragon status, looking around in a daze.
“Draco, c’mere! Come on, boy!”
“Chirp! Ren!”
“Good boy. I like you better this way.”
“Agreed, bawk. If it keeps you from turning into that, I don’t mind a nibble on the head once in a while.”
“Let’s keep big Draco a secret from Akira and the others. That goes for Grow Up in general. It never happened, capisce? If they catch wind of it, they’ll want to see it. And if they see it, I’m done for.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice, bawk. Those girls would hate it.”
“Yeah. I’m glad we agree on this.”
At that moment, Kokoru’s mom called out, “Hey, you two. This isn’t over yet. That black crystal thing still needs to get crushed, bawk.” She pointed to the pendant.
“You’re right,” I agreed. “Okay, I’ve got this! This is gonna be real overkill, so watch! Dead End V!”
Craaaaash!
My blade glowed with purple light, tracing the shape of a V! In a flash, my two sorrowful strikes reached the dark crystal. The full-power—and frankly wasteful—Dead End V smashed the pendant to smithereens.
Woo, go me! That’s what you get for making me waste my stone!
“Graaaagh!”
A faint cry could be heard as the black sparkles fell through the air like rain and disappeared.
“I’m still not sure if there was any point in using my Peregrine Stone, but at least it’s over, I guess.”
That was the worst possible timing! I thought the situation was perfect for me to use the stone to finish things off. How could I have predicted that my AP loss would remove Draco’s Grow Up?!
There’s no use crying over spilled milk, sure—but I was ready to cry my eyes out. What a waste!
“I don’t think we’ll have to worry anymore, boys. Thank you for your help, bawk. I for one am shocked that I let that thing control me! I’m too used to being a housewife, bawk.”
“I’m so glad you’re back, Momma! It’s all thanks to Ren, bawk! Thank you!”
“Oh, no way. I’m kinda off my game here, heh. All I did was run out of AP.”
Maybe I was a godlike gamer just for... bringing a good target for Dark Lord Veld to possess? Grown-up Draco really was spectacular, but I would still refuse to use him until we could fix his potty mouth.
“We’re always relying on you, Ren. Besides, we haven’t even properly thanked you for raising our boy to be so strong, bawk. We have to do something for you, bawk.”
“Good idea, bawk!”
“Aww, I couldn’t possibly—pssh, never mind! I’d be happy to accept! If possible, there’s something I really, really want!”
I needed it! If it were anything else, I would be modest, just as a polite boy should. But I wanted it so badly that I couldn’t help but latch on.
“Is there now? Anything, just say the word, bawk.”
“It’s gotta be cash, bawk! Ren’s always throwing away money when he fights. He’ll take what he can get, bawk!”
“You’re not wrong, but that’s not what I’m after this time! Mommaru, can you teach me how to use that Tie Shan Kao you used before?! Is there like a skill book, or a secret manual, or what?!”
I loved how strong it was. It might have just been a result of Mommaru’s high stats, but it was still clearly a step above the striking arts I knew. If I could put that into my ultimates, that would add another drama cannon to the list!
Akira and the others might win with a different strategy, but this could be the final piece of the puzzle to defeating the Hadean Rose! Once I saw that, I couldn’t get my mind off of it. I wanted it, I wanted it, I needed it!
“Aah, bawk. I, um...”
“Please, please, please! I’m begging you!”
I immediately prostrated myself on the floor. I was willing to do anything to raise the firepower of my drama cannon.
“Oh, Ren, don’t do that. Yes, bawk, it is a technique I try to avoid showing off. But since Kokoru can’t use it, I was wondering what I should do with it, bawk.”
“Heh. I can’t attack enemies in the first place, bawk.”
That was because of his Cowardice trait. No matter what he did, this curse kept him from being able to deal damage to enemies. Even if Kokoru himself couldn’t fight, he could use monsters he hired to fight indirectly.
“Perhaps, bawk, I should let you have it. After all, you succeeded where I failed at making Kokoru a formidable fighter, bawk.”
“Yeah, bawk! I know Ren can put it to good use, bawk!”
“Wow, really?! Thank you so much!”
So there was some sort of skill book for this! I was glad I insisted on it. What a fantastic limited quest! In fact, I was glad I picked Kokoru for the competitive guild mission!
“Here is the secret manual for Tie Shan Kao, bawk. It’s all yours.”
Mommaru gave me a scroll that seemed to break down the motions.
Ren obtained the secret manual for Tie Shan Kao!
Ren can now use the striking art Tie Shan Kao (temp)!
YEEEAH! I learned it! Finally, my time has come! What’s the deal with this (temp) thing, though?
“But be careful, bawk. When you’re not used to it, you’ll easily get hurt. You just have to keep practicing, bawk.”
“I see.”
So basically, this is more like a provisional license than the real thing? Once I use it enough, the (temp) will come off and I’ll unlock its true power.
Let’s see how it looks now.
Tie Shan Kao (temp) (AP: 200)
Martial Artist Art (Strikes)
<Effect> A tackle that uses the back. Leaves the user with 1 HP after use. Extremely powerful. Only usable once per battle. As you haven’t quite made it yours yet, it puts great strain on the body.
“Leaves the user with 1 HP?! Huh, I guess that’s where getting used to it comes in.”
“Whoa. Using it almost kills you, huh, bawk?”
“Yes, until you get used to it, bawk. It’ll be difficult, but once you’ve trained enough, you can make it your own technique.”
Kokoru and Mommaru were supportive, but I didn’t even care!
“What an incredible effect! This is awesome! Fantastic!”
“Bawk? What’s up, Ren?”
“This means I won’t have to use big circles to sap my MP and use Turnover anymore! Without using Turnover, I can just use Tie Shan Kao to fix my HP! Now I can put damage arts in all three Skill Chain slots! My ultimates will be mightier than anyone has ever seen! Ahaha... Bwahahaha!”
“Ren? Does that drawback actually benefit you in some way, bawk?”
One of the most scrumptious parts of redefining the meta was when you could multiply two negatives to make a positive! This was the very manifestation of the true charms of playing bad classes! It really sucked that I would lose my HP reduction once the (temp) was gone, but I was going to wring it for every last drop of damage!
“Yes, ma’am! I gotta go try this out right away! Thanks again, for real!”
It was time for experimentation, but with the least possible number of uses so I could keep my (temp).
With that, I sprinted right out of Kokoru’s family’s mansion.