Chapter 51: Mysterious Candy Balls ②
–The next day.
The four of us, Team Secret Base, had gathered in the Private Dungeon.
“Ko-chan, you haven’t eaten your candy yet, right?”
“Yeah, I still have it.”
In the end, I’d kept the candy we found yesterday without eating it.
Given what happened with the ramune, we decided that since it was a special occasion, we should all enjoy it together.
“I wonder if I can sell my share…”
“Manamin, you’re planning to sell it…?”
“Well then, shall we head to the ‘Home’ right away?”
“Yeah!”
We headed towards the “Guest Room” in the “Home.”
☆★☆
On the low table in the “Guest Room,” the bamboo basket was still there, and inside it were four candy balls.
“Hey, Papa… I’m scared it might be poisoned…”
“Yeah, yeah, you want me to be the poison taster, right?”
Just as Manamin said, I, with my 【Poison Absorption】 skill, picked up a candy ball.
A transparent film was twisted at both ends, wrapping a sphere that looked like a marble.
When I pulled the film with both hands, the sphere spun around with a kurun.
“Mine’s red…”
All four candy balls had different colored marbled patterns.
The colors were red, light blue, yellow, and green.
“I’ll take yellow! I hope it’s lemon-flavored!”
Otama-chan took a candy from the bamboo basket.
“Hey, Tamama. Don’t just take one without asking.”
“Huh, Manamin, did you want yellow? Want to play rock-paper-scissors for it?”
“No, the effects might be different depending on the color, right? Give me the one that’ll sell for the most…”
“There’s no way to know that, is there? I’m gonna eat mine today. I’m sure it’s delicious. Why don’t you choose next time?”
“Gunununu…”
Oh, how rare, Manamin is actually losing an argument to Otama-chan.
Or so I thought.
“Shi-chan… Tamama was being mean to me… Pat my head…”
“Eh, eh? H-Hey, Manamin. You can trade with mine if you like… Okay?”
“O-Okay… Tamama was so mean…”
“H-Hey! Don’t make me out to be the bad guy!”
“Haha…”
What a noisy bunch.
“Alright, I’m going to try eating it now.”
“I’m sorry… Natsume-kun.”
“Well, I have 【Poison Absorption】, so I should be fine. Besides, I don’t think it’s an item with negative effects.”
“It’d be great if it’s another Elixir! If so, what should I do?”
“Well, let’s think about that when it happens. Here I go.”
I took the candy ball out of its film and popped it into my mouth.
I rolled it around on my tongue.
“Natsume-kun… how is it?”
“This is…”
Just as I expected…
“It’s incredibly delicious. Strawberry flavored.”
“Eh, nice!”
The transparent part of the candy had a faint sweetness.
The red part of the candy had a fresh, juicy sweetness and tartness, like real fruit.
“There’s no poison. On the contrary, I feel power welling up inside me. But it’s different from that ramune from before. It’s more like… it’s slowly seeping into my body…”
“Could it be…! Natsume-kun, show me your status!”
“Eh? Ah… Status Open.”
I displayed my status.
Name: Natsume Kouichi
Level: 36
Experience: 0/3997
HP: 330
MP: 146
Attack: 159 (Bonus +28)
Defense: 136 (Bonus +14)
Speed: 238 (Bonus +27)
Intelligence: 98 (Bonus +2)
Skills: 【Childlike Heart】, 【Item Drop Enhancement】, 【Water Resistance (Small)】, 【Sleep Skill Nullification】, 【Water Walking】, 【Slashing Enhancement (Small+)】, 【Butterfly Dance】, 【Alertness】, 【Poison Absorption】, 【Bond of Friendship】, 【Aerial Swordsmanship】, 【Godspeed】
Special Abilities: Monster Creature Encyclopedia, Mass Assault+, Monster Capture Net (Lv1), Bug Sumo: Stag Beetle, Cheering, Wormhole, Thread (Lv1)
“It’s a Level-Up Seed…!”
“Eh…?”
Now that she mentioned it, my level had gone up by one.
As of yesterday, I had just reached level 35 and still needed a lot more experience.
“Eh, Ko-chan, your level went up that much?”
“I can take an early retirement now…”
“Forget early retirement, you haven’t even started yet…”
It’d be a problem if Manamin didn’t get her General Explorer License.
“Hehe, just kidding.”
“…Really?”
She was probably serious, wasn’t she?
…Well, whatever. More importantly…
“A Level-Up Seed…?”
“Ah, about that…”
According to Shi-chan, you can very rarely find berries with mysterious powers in dungeons.
Eating them can raise your level or increase your stats…
She suggested that this candy might have the same effect as one of those seed-type items.
“I want to level up too! I’m gonna eat my candy now!”
Otama-chan popped the candy with the yellow pattern into her mouth.
“Ah…”
“Ah…”
“What is it? Shi-chan, Manamin?”
The moment Otama-chan put the candy in her mouth, both of them had spoken at the same time.
“N-No, it’s nothing…”
“You, Tamama, do you even know your current level and how much EXP you need to level up?”
“Eh? My current level is 29, and I don’t really remember how much EXP I need to level up. Ah, this is lemon-flavored! It’s so deli~cious!”
“You idiot! What if you only needed 1 EXP to level up? That would’ve been a waste of candy, wouldn’t it!”
“Eh? I just leveled up recently too, so I’m probably fine. You know, my level has been going up pretty fast lately.”
That’s probably because she’s gaining experience thanks to the effect of 【Bond of Friendship】.
“Ahh, that was delicious. Now, let’s check my status!”
Saying that, Otama-chan opened her status.
Name: Omogawa Tamaki
Level: 29
Experience: 539/2349
HP: 227
MP: 107
Attack: 150
Defense: 100
Speed: 123
Intelligence: 58
Skills: 【Swordsmanship】, 【Body Enhancement】, 【Charm】, 【Water User】, 【Rental】
“Looks like your level didn’t go up…”
“Wh-Whyyyy?!”
Come to think of it, this is the first time I’ve seen Otama-chan’s stats.
Before she learned 【Water User】, she really was the type to rely solely on brute force…
“Eeeh?! It was delicious, and I even felt power welling up inside me!”
It’s hard to believe that only Otama-chan’s candy would have no effect.
It probably has a different effect…
Then, Shi-chan said.
“T-Tama-chan! Look at your skills!”
“Eh? Skills? They look the same as always…”
“Look at 【Body Enhancement】!”
“That’s a skill I’ve had for a while… Ah.”
Then, Otama-chan covered her open mouth with one hand.
“The (Small) is gone…!”
“Seriously…?”
“Yessss!! I’m so happy!!”
According to Otama-chan, her 【Body Enhancement (Small)】 had become 【Body Enhancement】.
【Body Enhancement】 is an all-purpose skill useful for both offense and defense.
The fact that it evolved would likely be more beneficial for Otama-chan than a level up.
“So Skill-Up Seeds actually exist…”
“Hey, Tamama. I knew I should’ve picked yellow. Give it. I’ll get you to share it even if I have to French kiss you for it!”
“N-No way! Besides, it’s already gone! I ate it!”
“First, the French kiss. We’ll talk after that.”
“The candy’s effect has already kicked in, so it’s pointless!”
Otama-chan quickly hid behind me.
Perhaps due to 【Body Enhancement】, her movements were incredibly agile.
“M-Manamin… Look, we still have our shares. Right?”
“Too late, huh… Gununu…”
“Manamin, do you want light blue or green? I’m fine with either.”
“So the effect is up to luck, huh…”
And so, Manamin chose the green candy, and Shi-chan chose the light blue one.
They both checked their statuses before taking out their candies.
“Huh? Manamin, weren’t you going to sell yours?”
“Watching Tamama changed my mind. I’m gonna eat mine too.”
“Yup, let’s eat together. Time to dig in.”
“Please work… Here goes!”
The two of them popped the candies into their mouths at the same time.
“Mine is mint-flavored. It’s delicious… My head feels so clear.”
“Mine’s melon-flavored… Tasty… Please have a good effect…”
After a short while.
“I’ve finished eating it, so I’ll check my status.”
“Please… I don’t want Tamama to be the only one who gets something good…”
“Honestly, Manamin…”
“Status Open!”
Manamin and Shi-chan stared intently at their statuses.
“Ah… My Intelligence went up by 4… It’s an Intelligence-Up Seed.”
“Aah… My HP went up by 5… It’s a Vitality-Up Seed, isn’t it… Aah…”
“The effects are pretty significant…”
If these are permanent effects, they might even be more useful than a Level-Up Seed…
Well, for me, the first-time capture bonuses for bugs might be like seeds anyway.
“That’s amazing, Manamin. Normal seed items don’t raise your stats this much.”
“I know the max is usually 3… But after seeing Tamama’s…”
“Ehehe… I guess I got the lucky prize this time.”
“It really has to be a French kiss then… Tamama! Hold still!”
“N-No way! Hey!!”
Otama-chan fled towards the entryway.
She really is fast.
Manamin, perhaps having given up, plopped down right where she stood.
“H-Hey, Manamin…”
“Damn it… Guess it can’t be helped…”
Manamin sluggishly got to her feet.
“I’m going to search the Home. I’ll see if I can find anything, like manjuu or senbei.”
She opened the fusuma leading to the “Bedroom.”
“…Honestly, Manamin is hopeless, isn’t she?”
“Tama-chan’s seed was probably an incredibly rare item, maybe even a world first. So, it’s understandable she’d be frustrated, huh? She’s probably thinking, ‘If only we’d played rock-paper-scissors back then,’ too.”
From beyond the “Bedroom” fusuma, sounds like rattling and a slam! could be heard.
“Next time there’s a yellow candy, we’re definitely doing rock-paper-scissors for it.”
–After a while.
“…I couldn’t find anything.”
Manamin returned, her face etched with disappointment.
“That’s too bad, Manamin.”
“Next time I find candy, I’m saving it until everyone’s together, you hear?!”
“Ugh… It really can’t be helped…”
Manamin said, her expression still gloomy.
“…I need a change of pace. You two, watch my transformation! Besides Pretear, there’s a special one I’ve been wanting to try out.”