After gathering all the tokens we’d collected so far and counting them meticulously, we laid them out on the floor of the White Room. Our group had amassed 7,891 tokens, and with the addition of 3,117 tokens brought by Yuuki and Keiko, we had a total of 11,008 tokens at our disposal. The question now was what to spend them on at the Mia Vendor. Or should we ask the master of the White Room if it’s possible to add something new to the Mia Vendor?
“First, we should ask for everything we want,” suggested Yuuki, taking the lead as we divided the tasks and bombarded the PC with questions.
I inquired if it was possible to add items to the vendor that would increase my MP, reduce the MP consumption of familiars, or allow for the transfer of MP between individuals. The answer was a resounding “no” to all.
Apparently, items related to MP management were off limits, likely due to game balance concerns. Considering the game-like nature of our situation, anything that could potentially disrupt the balance, similar to the unique effects we experienced near the World Tree or Mia’s recent abilities, had to be an exception.
Then again, this was reality, so perhaps worrying about game balance wasn’t so critical. Hooray for easy mode! Hooray for a casual game! I thought, despite the fact that our current situation felt more like playing on very hard mode.
Complaining wouldn’t solve anything, though. If a direct approach wasn’t feasible, we would just have to look for a workaround. However, before we could explore other options, an idea struck me, prompting another question in the Q&A session. The response came quickly.
Q: Is the restriction on MP management items because it’s systemically impossible?
A: Yes.
Yuuki tilted his head, pondering for a moment before typing out a new question.
Q: Is it possible to add an item to the Mia Vendor that can store a spell about to be cast and then be activated by a keyword or similar trigger?
A: It would be possible for disposable items.
“It’s kind of like the Charge Spell I can use,” I mused. A Rank 6 spell, it allowed the caster to infuse gems with spells. Up to three simple, disposable items could be created this way. Although a variety of spells could be infused, they were typically spells that the caster couldn’t use on themselves, intended instead for use by others. While quite handy, the magic comes with the stringent limitation that only spells up to Rank 2 can be infused. If only it were possible to infuse Rank 3 spells, I could share Deflection or See Invisibility with others…
Q: Can the item be made usable by someone other than the person who infused the spell?
A: Yes.
Q: Can it contain spells that are normally only usable by the caster, allowing others to use them?
A: Yes.
Q: Is it possible to remove the rank limitation like the one present in Charge Spell?
A: It is possible. It will be listed as such.
Sure enough, at the end of the Mia Vendor’s item list, there was a new item.
“Charged Magic Stone, huh…”
It was a completely disposable item that would shatter to activate the stored spell upon the utterance of a keyword.
I saw that projectile spells such as offensive magic couldn’t be infused into these items; they were strictly for buff purposes. Moreover, the cost was steep—one thousand tokens per item. And, as with other products from the Mia Vendor, it was impossible to duplicate these items using an item duplication set.
“Still, these could be really useful,” I said.
“Indeed. They’re a must-buy,” Yuuki agreed.
“Wait, are we really going to spend that much? Kazu-san, isn’t that kind of a waste of tokens?” Tamaki worried.
“Tamaki, imagine being able to use Accel whenever we want, even as a single use. How about that?”
“Ah… that could be a big help. Maybe we could even stand a chance against the Four Heavenly Kings?”
“Well, even with Accel, the best we could hope for is to survive their attacks,” I reasoned. When I’d fought Azagralith in sync with Sha-Lau, even with Sha-Lau’s significant boost and the use of Accel, it was still a tough battle. The Four Heavenly Kings possessed a level of strength that was truly formidable.
“So, the most promising ones are Accel, like we said before, and of course, Deflection. There’s also Shape Change and True Sight, but…”
“I’m not sure whether we, as weapon bearers, could use our full abilities in another form. But True Sight could be invaluable against opponents using illusions,” Yuuki mused.
“For now, we can probably leave those out of consideration.” While Deflection was not a self-targeted spell, in a melee, it inevitably affected either the caster or a close ally. Its real value emerged when front-liners could utilize it, much like how Keiko managed to contend with stronger foes by fully exploiting such abilities.
“Since our tokens are limited, let’s prioritize Accel and Deflection,” I concluded, and Yuuki nodded in agreement.
✦ ✦ ✦
Now, we felt that disposable items alone wouldn’t be sufficient. Ideally, we would have liked to find other items or abilities that could further enhance our capabilities. So, we all gathered around the PC once more for another Q&A session.
“It seems we need new spells,” someone suggested, probably thinking along the lines of added magic to the Mia Vendor, similar to Read Languages or Many Tongues. Until now, all the spells listed in the Mia Vendor had been Rank 3 or below. However, if we could add spells of Rank 8 or 9, we might gain access to magic that could significantly benefit us in combat. After several inquiries, it became clear that existing spells—or ones like them—were off-limits. But then, an idea came to me.
“What about the incredible speed magic that Sha-Lau uses?”
My suggestion was approved by the master of the White Room. Called Shape Lightning, this Rank 9 universal spell was added to the Mia Vendor at the hefty cost of two thousand tokens. Despite its high price, its value was undeniable.
“If anyone’s going to learn this, it should be Arisu,” I suggested.
“Uh… yes, as the frontline mage with magic skills developed up to Rank 9, I’m the only one,” Arisu confirmed. But with her healing magic at Rank 9, she had access to a variety of useful spells. Choosing one to discard for Shape Lightning would be a difficult decision.
“Normally, one would consider dropping a spell targeting the undead…”
“But there’s a good chance we’ll be facing undead adversaries soon.”
Indeed, of the four Rank 9 spells available, two were specifically designed to be used against undead, which we really didn’t want to give up at that point. And the top-tier healing spell, Resurrection, which could cure limb loss and status ailments in one go, was indispensable.
That left us with only one option: to discard Evolution. According to the Q&A, it temporarily induced evolution in living beings. Wait, what kind of spell is that? Sounds like something out of a fantasy, too incredible to be true.
Are they being showered in Getter Rays, perhaps? The night before, as test subjects, Yuuki and Keiko had experienced some extraordinary transformations for about an hour: growing an extra pair of arms, sprouting wings from their backs to fly. The effects had worn off after an hour, and the outcomes were apparently random. It was an incredibly fascinating spell, and Yuuki looked eager to experience it again…
“We can’t afford to keep a spell for playing around when there are more serious matters at hand… Although I wish we could have more fun with it. It’s really too bad,” Yuuki lamented. “Um, maybe just cast it on me here in the White Room and let me have my fun next door.”
“Will do,” Arisu replied.
Minutes later, in a grassy space next door, there was Yuuki, gracefully soaring through the air. A winged ninja flying jubilantly in the sky was, in a way, a profoundly sacrilegious sight.
“Hey, hey, Arisu, cast it on me too!” Tamaki requested eagerly.
“Okay, but I’m not responsible for what happens,” Arisu warned.
After Arisu cast the spell, Tamaki began to shimmer, and silver fur sprouted all over her at an alarming rate, covering even her face. Her nails sharpened into claws, and her front teeth quickly became fangs. Was this… a werewolf transformation?
“Whaaa?! What’s this?!” she yelled.
“Oh dear, she seems to have regressed to an animal. Quite cute, Tamaki-chan,” Arisu said.
“Huh, why me? No, Kazu-san, don’t look!”
Tamaki, now fully a werewolf, howled and dashed across the grasslands. Bye, Tamaki. See you in an hour…
“I wonder if we can dispel Evolution,” Arisu mused.
“Let’s try. Arisu, cast it on Shiki-san,” I suggested.
“Am I your guinea pig now?” Shiki protested. “… Well, okay.”
Shiki’s arms doubled to four, nearly ripping her clothes, particularly around the chest area. But as soon as Arisu cast Dispel, Shiki’s arms reverted to normal.
“I wonder, Kazu-kun, would you enjoy seeing us with cat ears?”
“Unfortunately, that’s not really my thing…”