The battle with the “Flame Sea” ended, and a night had passed.
I spoke to Fiss, who was eating Mana Fruit for breakfast.
“We’re going to start training from today, but there’s a problem.”
“A problem?”
“What to do about water and food.”
We still have a lot of Mana Fruit in stock, but I can’t just keep feeding her fruit forever.
“If that’s the case, there’s no need to worry. I have the 〖Unyielding Body〗, so I don’t need water or food for a short period.”
“That’s the trait you mentioned yesterday. But food is still important, right? Especially if you want to get stronger, you need to take in a lot of 〖Mana〗 and nutrients.”
Well, I don’t know how long it takes for 〖Mana〗 and nutrients to take effect.
But since we’ll be fighting many times from now on, it’s better to eat properly so we don’t have to worry.
“That… might be true. But there’s no human food in the mine…”
“I’m not sure about water, but what about Gargoyles for food?”
“Come to think of it, I sometimes see Gargoyle meat being sold. Is it meat under that stone skin? …But what about fire?”
“There’s no problem with that either. I have this, the 〖Replicant Form〗.”
What I mimicked was a single whip.
It was a dazzling red color, and it emitted such high heat that it caused heat haze.
“That, could it be?”
“That’s right. It’s a weapon made from the tail of the ‘Flame Sea’.”
I made it last night after Fiss went to sleep.
“So that’s why the corpse was gone when I woke up…”
“Well, yeah. I turned the whole body into a weapon and stored it with my 〖Skill〗.”
To be precise, only the parts that could be used as weapons.
The parts that couldn’t be used were dissolved with 〖Decomposition Liquid〗 and eaten.
Even as a corpse, the Red Lizard was as hot as magma, and normal people couldn’t eat it, but as usual, I could handle it with my 〖Toughness〗.
“If you have that weapon, the problem is solved.”
“That’s right. Next, let’s think about the weapon Fiss will use. What kind of weapon do you want?”
“I won’t be picky. I’ll do my best to master the weapon you give me.”
“No, no, if you’re going to be considerate, don’t hold back. It’s faster to get stronger if you use a weapon you’re good at, and the period for training Fiss will be shorter, right?”
“That’s true. …But I’ve never used a weapon before.”
“Huh…? I thought you were 〖Level 8〗?”
I had asked about Fiss’s 〖Level〗 yesterday while exploring the ant nest.
It seems that it’s common sense among the miners in this world to increase their stamina by raising their 〖Level〗.
“I just used a pickaxe to hit and defeat them normally. I’m sorry I’m not helpful.”
“That’s not true, I know you’re used to handling a pickaxe. Okay, let’s try a weapon with a distant center of gravity.”
I proposed that and took out a halberd for two people.
When I made the Queen Ant’s weapon, I had some legs left over, so I kept them as spares.
“What is that…? I feel an incredible amount of 〖Mana〗.”
“It’s part of a Demon Beast I fought a little while ago. I’m going to turn this into a weapon now. 〖Escalating Warfare〗.”
First, I broke off the tip to make it easier for the girl to handle, making it a reasonable length.
Then, I transformed it, and what was created was a hammer with pointed ends, like a pickaxe.
“This is a good start. Now, try swinging it.”
After trying out various weapons and confirming their compatibility, this was the final weapon that was completed.
“Hyaaa!”
A crushing sound echoed a moment after the sound of wind being pushed out.
In front of Fiss, who had swung her weapon, was a rock wall with a cut mark about a meter long.
“Hmm, this axe is easy to swing.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
Fiss said, shouldering her weapon.
It was a double-edged axe.
A large, dull-colored blade was attached to the end of a long handle, and a special leather with high friction was used as a grip on the handle.
“The armor is easy to move in too.”
The high-pitched sound that was made every time Fiss stomped her feet.
She was now wearing metal armor that covered her all the way to her toes.
The material of the armor was mainly minerals obtained from this mine. But that doesn’t mean it’s too heavy.
I tried and tested the structure of the armor itself, the distribution of materials, and the combination, and ensured not only durability but also weight, comfort, breathability, and ease of movement.
The size adjustment was perfect too.
“Next is actual combat.”
“Yeah. Please support me if something happens.”
“Leave it to me.”
Fiss got on top of me, so I moved the Forest Shackles and started running.
We were heading southwest, in the direction of the Twilight Zone.
It seems that there are a lot of Gargoyles there, so it’s the best place to get food.
“(And there are 〖Feral Beasts〗 there too.)”
In the Twilight Zone, there is also a Gargoyle 〖Feral Beast〗, “Hanji”.
Defeating this guy is also one of the purposes of coming to the Twilight Zone.
…While making plans for the future, I found three small Gargoyles walking on the mountain path.
Judging from their size, all three of them were 〖Lesser Beasts〗.
“Can you do it?”
“I’m fine, 〖Physical Keen〗.”
When we stopped in front of them, Fiss jumped off of me.
The Gargoyles seemed a little intimidated by me behind them, but when they realized that there was no sign of 〖Mana〗—because I was hiding with 〖Stealth〗—they created and floated stone pebbles, taking a battle stance.
“I’m going.”
Fiss ran up the slope, which was just wide enough for cars to pass each other.
The tips of the pebbles were aimed at her, and they were released all at once.
“(Honestly, the strongest weapon is a bow and arrow.)”
That was the ideal theory I thought in my mind.
If I had been using a bow and explosive arrows, I would have been able to annihilate the Gargoyles before they could concentrate their fire.
However, to do that, you need bow skills. And that’s not something you can acquire overnight.
I can handle it because I have 〖Skills〗 like 〖Sniping〗, but it seems that acquiring 〖Skills〗 usually requires years of training.
In any case, we don’t have enough time.
“(Now, how will she get through this?)”
I focused on Fiss, who was being targeted by many pebbles.
She has armor, so she should be fine, but if it looks bad, I’ll have to help her.
“〖Physical Boost〗.”
But, contrary to my worries, Fiss jumped sideways and easily dodged them.
She ran along the rock wall of the mountain to close the distance, and just as the Gargoyles were floating their next stone pebbles, she jumped diagonally forward.
She leaped out in front of the Gargoyles in one go.
“Taah!”
A cute shout. In contrast, a powerful blow.
She not only bisected the Gargoyle in the middle, but also defeated the one next to it.
The last Gargoyle took a back step and released a pebble, but Fiss guarded against it with the handle and both blades of her axe.
She quickly closed the distance and split it in half with a swing of her axe.
With the blue blood spurting out in the background, the white-haired girl turned around.
“How was it?”
“…Le, 〖Level 8〗 is strong…”
I answered, slightly taken aback by the unexpected rampage.