“Here, your notes for this week.”
“Thanks.”
Xeno shoveled a heaping bowl of rice into his mouth and accepted a stack of documents from Pico. The documents contained a list of improvements Xeno had made over the past week, based on his wife’s observations through the Monitors.
While exploring the Dungeon, Xeno often received direct guidance from Tsutomu, and whenever he came home, he would receive feedback from his wife who kept an eye on him through the Monitors. Xeno himself also constantly looked for areas for improvement on his own, of course, but it was helpful to receive comments from a third-person’s point of view.
“To be honest, I don’t think Tsutomu’s notes really differ from mine all that much.”
“Really?”
“I guess it’s the way we say things that sets us apart. Like, if Tsutomu’s an Angel, then I’m a Fiend, you know?”
“Are you seriously calling him an Angel? More like an Evil God to me.”
“Wow. Rude.”
Xeno chuckled as Pico proceeded to clear away the tableware. Pico’s analogy was quite on point, however; when Tsutomu would tell Xeno to rely more on his shield, Pico would tell him to contribute as much as possible before each inevitable death.
Xeno’s weakness had been made clear on the seventieth layer – his low tolerance to pain.
He had graduated from the academy in the Royal Capital at the top of his class, and his skill with the sword was so good that he had been scouted by the Knight Order as a promising talent. Despite that, he had declined that invitation without a second thought and instead came to the Dungeon City — where, ironically, his proud character made it challenging for him to make progress as a Tank-type Explorer.
One day, while drowning his sorrows in a bar, he was reunited with Pico, an acquaintance from his academy days, who inspired him to swallow his city boy pride and take on anything he could to achieve his goals. By Pico’s recommendation, he even started writing for the Dungeon Maniacs, which led to him gradually gaining influence in the scene as one of the more famous Tanks.
Xeno’s ability was high enough for him to be recruited by Ealdred Crow, so he technically could be considered one of the best Tanks in the world. He had experienced death in the Dungeon dozens of times, and his natural physical strength was more than sufficient. Moreover, his skill control was more masterful than most thanks to his many years of hard work.
Still, the amount of effort he was able to physically exert was on the level of an ordinary person — a far cry from the insane dedication of Garm and Daryl. Even Ealdred Crow’s Bittman, a Tank with a style similar to Xeno’s, was far ahead of him due to being a seasoned veteran. And perhaps most importantly, he knew he would not be as willing as Garm and Darl to go along with a suicide strategy if Tsutomu were to suggest one.
He did not possess the outstanding combat intuition of the local idol Amy, nor did he specialize in a specific fighting style like Hannah. All the others were all unique, too — Diniel, an Elf who had lived for a hundred years; Amira, a Dragonewt Deity with the ability to transform; Korinna, whose predictive ability gave her the figurative eyes of a Grim Reaper; and Leleia, a gifted swordfighter blessed by the Spirits.
Among them, Xeno felt as if he was just an average individual. That was why his wife had pushed him through a grueling training program every single day.
“Okay, now that you’re fed… You know what you’re doing next, right?”
“Hahaha… I’d rather get some much-needed sleep, but I don’t exactly have that choice, do I?”
“Oh, you’re not getting any sleep tonight!”
“As much as that sounded like your usual double entendres… look here. You just gave me goosebumps!”
“Don’t worry, I know your limits better than anyone. You’ll get to stop ONLY when my schedule tells you to stop!”
But Xeno had something that all the other members of the Absolute Helix Clan did not. A beloved partner — someone who understood him on an intimate level.
They had once clashed with each other, their relationship becoming temporarily strained following Xeno’s last-minute refusal to join Ealdred Crow. However, having overcome that, they now were closer to each other than ever before.
Pico had been watching over Xeno for many years, from way back when they were still at the academy, so she was sure she would be the first to notice when and if he was about to snap. Her unwavering support and faith in the boastful Xeno had become an irreplaceable part of the latter’s life.
At this point, Xeno himself recognized Daryl’s ability, which he had initially looked down upon, and was sober enough to reflect on his failure to consume Potions during the Mount Golem battle. The mental fortitude of steel he had formed with Pico’s support was no less than that of his fellow Absolute Helix Clan members.
“All right, I’m off, then.”
“Heh, you know what? I’ll walk you there. C’mon,” Pico offered, taking Xeno’s hand with a smile.
Xeno, despite technically being sent down the Dungeon to be beaten up by monsters, did not let his smile waver.
―▽▽―
Tsutomu, having seen Garm’s group and the Scarlet Devil Squad engaging in a mock battle the other day, decided to propose a joint training session with Golden Tune as well. He drafted up a plan and made the request to Golden Tune and the Guild, and they quickly agreed.
In the Guild’s public training ground, a considerable number of people had gathered, including members from both Absolute Helix and Golden Tune.
“Give me another round!”
“Good job, man. I like enthusiastic guys like you!”
The Attackers and Tanks conducted joint mock battles to focus on improving their anti-personnel combat abilities. Among them, Xeno was engaging in consecutive matches with Leon, the clan leader of Golden Tune, while both of them were covered in dirt.
Taking on Leon, the Golden Wolfman with the highest AGI, was good practice for anticipating the Winter General’s quick draw slash. Garm had learned to defend himself better after several battles, but Xeno did not seem to be doing so well.
“Nyah! Why’d you have to hit so hard, Dini!?”
“You know, I think I’m good enough for the Winter General now.”
“Good job, Diniel! You have avenged me!”
Amy had won seven consecutive battles — one against Garm — during this session, but Diniel had stopped her winning streak, leaving her infuriated. On the other hand, Hannah, who had just lost to Amy, was overjoyed.
As for the Healers, Tsutomu oversaw their strategy reviewing session, making it more like a school lecture than actual combat practice. The Healers also had the additional role of casting <<Barrier>> on those engaging in mock battles, so they did not get to focus much on anti-personnel combat themselves. Still, they would eventually have some time to get practice in toward the end of the day.
“Hmph, you’re pathetic. Can’t even handle a fight against a girl. Are you so afraid of losing or what?”
“Why would I fight you? Maybe try asking again once you can properly support and heal your allies.”
“I’ll beat you the hell up! Come at me!”
Tsutomu, who had avoided doing any anti-personnel combat exercises so far, was being taunted by Eunice — who was so ready that she was already in a fighting stance. All the other healers had already done some anti-personnel training, but watching them made Tsutomu realize that he stood no chance against them, so he was quite blatantly avoiding confrontation.
Moreover, the other Healers had more dangerous weapons with them — Eunice was wearing brass knuckles, and Korinna had a morning star. Tsutomu had learned staff combat techniques during his training at the Guild, but he knew he would have to rely on magic in a remotely serious fight — and he was quite afraid of what others might think if he were to cast <<Air Blades>> at Eunice.
“Come one, come on, you coward!”
[Man, I’m feeling VERY tempted to shoot her right now.]
Tsutomu sighed in exasperation at Eunice, then he looked around and eventually locked eyes with her friend Milway. The younger Vulpeer sighed and then walked over to them.
“Eunice! Stop bothering him already!”
“Lemme go, Milway! I gotta punch him at least once!”
“Bye.”
And so Eunice was carried away, squealing and protesting all the while.
―▽▽―
Over the next month, Tsutomu’s team practiced their coordination in the Dungeon while also incorporating mock battles with other Clans to further improve anti-personnel combat skills. The Clans they trained with included Golden Tune, Scarlet Devil Squad, Ealdred Crow, Silver Beast, and most of the other major Clans in town.
The joint training with Scarlet Devil Squad had supposedly been arranged by Weiss, who had been acquainted with Garm since the early days of God’s Dungeon’s emergence. Scarlet Devil Squad had recently managed to get past the seventieth layer but had depleted their funds due to excessive Potion usage, so they were trying to grind in the Dungeon for a while to financially recover.
“Good day to you,” greeted Cecilia, Scarlet Devil Squad’s Healer, who carried the Black Staff with her.
“…Ah, yes,” Tsutomu returned the greeting after a momentary shock. “Good day to you as well.”
Tsutomu briefly turned to Alma and saw that she was wielding a Red Staff, a relatively common loot from treasure chests on the Volcano layers. Then he turned back to Cecilia and proceeded to discuss strategies with her, while also giving her some general information. Tsutomu’s advice was especially helpful when it concerned the Black Staff, the properties of which could be only partially identified with appraisal skills, meaning he was the only one who currently knew about them.
And of course, the reason Tsutomu went out of his way to teach Cecilia his Healer techniques was that his Clan was receiving compensation for it — and that compensation being Weiss instructing Leleia.
“…You are taking too many attacks head-on, and too fixated on specific forms. You should focus more on the Spirit-imbued sword fighting.”
“I see. Can I ask you for another round, then?”
“Byah!”
Leleia, with the Salamander perched on her shoulder, listened to Weiss’ comments and proceeded to undergo another round of mock battles. Weiss, on top of being famous for being the first solo conquerer of Dungeons, was also well-known for his proficiency with various weapons, so getting lessons from him was quite valuable.
As for Ealdred Crow, it seemed that their top two teams were not going to participate. The first group was already expected to snag a win on layer eighty soon, so only the third and fourth teams were here for the training.
Among those two teams were some members who had climbed up the ranks after breaking away from Amira’s old Clan. They were on similar levels to Amira, and were all promising individuals within their level range. At the time, they had been treated as small fry by Amira; their desire to get back at Amira had driven them to work so hard and get this far.
However, after landing their spots in some of Ealdred Crow’s top teams, their desire for revenge had significantly diminished. They were quite content with their current work environment, and Ealdred Crow was riding high these days. While the Clan had been rather low-profile among the major ones, now that the three-role team composition was more widespread, their strategy diversity made them much more famous and often brought up in the news.
And so, for now, they were proud to be a part of Ealdred Crow — and some of them were working to support their families. As such, they would not openly confront Amira — though that did not mean they did not feel anything at all whenever they saw her.
In particular, three young men in their early twenties were glaring at Amira with a hint of resentment in their eyes.
“Ah-kay, then… I’mma go beat her up!”
“Hey, Nix, don’t make this a big deal. Won’t be funny if you ruin the rep you’ve built after coming this far.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll play by the rules, at least. That’s the one thing I won’t break!”
Nix, the one who had been the most furious with Amira, waved his hand to reassure his comrades as he confidently approached Amira. He did not hate her enough to try and trample her right in Absolute Helix like Leleia was doing, but it was still true that he had beef with her.
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