, as you can see it’s extremely hard.] (Celeste)[I know. When I was taking the license test I had to fight one of these monsters.] (Ryouta)
What the test was is for people to continue venturing to the sixth floor and below, and those who could not pa.s.s it may not proceed, this was the policy made by the Shikuro’s a.s.sociation.
Without it, hunting monsters and getting their drops, you won’t be able to sell it in Shikuro, it is an essential item for adventurers who wants to go around and make earnings, which substantially limits the access of more goods.
So in order to get that license I had to undergo a test, and during the test I had to fight this Steel Slime.
Also when I said that I [knew of it], for a moment I could see Celeste slightly lost her energy to live.
……..Did she want to explain it, I guess I made a wrong move.
[So it’s just hard desu? Are there other special abilities desu?] (Emily)
[Not that I can remember, it’s just the pain in the a.s.s kind of tough.] (Celeste)
[I understand desu. Yoda-san, leave this to me desu.] (Emily)
[Ah, okay.] (Ryouta)
As I nodded in approval, Emily carried her hammer and flew away.
Trying to get the preemptive strike, she spun her hammer on top of her head round and round, and before landing on the ground she used the momentum to her advantage and swung her hammer down.
It’s a one on one match against Emily and the Steel Slime. While we were standing as spectators and watch.
[Amazing, I can’t believe she’s competing with that Steel Slime with just physical attack.] (Celeste)
[Well it’s basic that she would do that after increasing her level.] (Ryouta)
[That’s true and all, but it would not normally work on a Steel Slime. It’s body has a weakness somewhere, and you would have to find it and aim at it.] (Celeste)
[Heeh. So the method of defeating was different compared to mine.] (Ryouta)
[How did Ryouta-san defeat it?] (Celeste)
[Together with Freeze and Flame bullet, I made the metal fatigue and crushed it the moment it cracked.] (Ryouta)
[Metal fatiguing?] (TLN: Here, Celeste used hiragana to say it as she doesn’t know the term 金属疲労)
Celeste then tilted her head to the side.
It seems like even the knowledgeable Celeste did not know what it means.
While we were chatting, it seems that the battle was about to settle.
Emily stopped her feet and hit the Steel Slime.
A Strength that could shake the dungeon continued. As she held her hammer high and flew, the Slime tried to jump, but it pounded further.
She lifted up her hamer, the Slime moved accordingly, and she strike with her hammer.
This went on for awhile.
It was like making mochi.
[Ne~Ne~, Isn’t Kon-kon’s body starting to crack.] (Alice)
Kon-kon, oh she meant the Steel Slime.
She just named it abruptly, is it going to be a buddy of hers like the ones on her shoulders?
As I was thinking about it, the Steel Slime was defeated.
[Yoda-san! I did it desu!] (Emily)
As if accomplishing a task, Emily returned with a smile on her face.
Even forgetting to pick up the dropped Melon on the ground, the girl’s face had a sense of accomplishment and a gracious smile, she came back to where we were.
In the middle of Shikuro’s city, I entered a splendid building which imitated a vegetable, and descended straight to the bas.e.m.e.nt.
[It’s very wide desu.] (Emily)
[So this is where you can fight monsters.] (Celeste)
[Does Boney-chan and Jumpy-san want to join in and have fun too?] (Alice)
The moment we step foot at this place, my friends were watching the place with interest.
By the way, Eve also came along.
While we were on our way back on the second floor I defeated some more Drowsy Slimes and she said [Bunny, is happy that she could die] whilst rubbing a carrot on her cheeks.
I went straight to the counter, and talked to a man who was similar in age.
[I came here to get a license.] (Ryouta)
[……For 11th floor and below?] (Lazy “Examiner” Man)
[No, for 6th and below. My friends have not gotten theirs yet.] (Ryouta)
[….So for three?] (Lazy “Examiner” man)
[No, for two.] (Ryouta)
Without any expression, the man came out of the counter, and started preparing.
I then went back to where my friends were at.
[I’ve talked to him.] (Ryouta)
[Yes desu. But why though desu? If Yoda-san himself has the license then wouldn’t be no problem desu?] (Emily)
[Though that’s true, but I guess it would still be useful to have it just in case?] (Ryouta)
Thinking about it, I guess this is because I’m a modern person who intuitively thinks about driver’s license the moment I hear the word [license].
There isn’t any problem if everyone has a license, so long we have a license we all can drive a car, but we can deal with it when multiple people have it. This was what I came up with while comparing.
[It will come in handy.] (Celeste)
[What’s that suppose to mean?] (Ryouta)
I asked back, and Celeste’s eyes were br.i.m.m.i.n.g brightly.
It was different when she couldn’t explain about the Steel Slime, now it was a look of confidence.
[It’s to show how powerful our Family is. For example, how many people has Drop A stats, or how many of us has a license. This kind of things do happen. If you’re strong and have a license, it will be useful when the time comes.] (Celeste)
[Now that you mention, when I first heard of Neptune it was something along the lines of [There are 5 people who have Vegetation Drop of A].] (Ryouta)
[Precisely because of this. We all——] (Celeste)
Celeste then looked at the man who was preparing from quite a distance away.
[Because Ryouta-san has not announced this yet, so it’s better if we do this quickly.] (Celeste)
As Celeste finished explaining, the three of us nodded.
Afterwards the preparation was complete, and the man returned.
[…..Who’s gonna do it?] (Lazy “Examiner” Man)
[Emily……Eh?] (Ryouta)
Not too far from us, an item that was the perfect range to turn into a rogue monster was there.
It was a potato.
[Steel—-Wasn’t it Melons previously.] (Ryouta)
[….It’s random, with the exception of the seventh floor.] (Examiner)
[Why is the seventh floor an exception?] (Alice)
Alice then asked a rather normal but not really question.
[Normally, you can’t defeat the seventh floor’s monster with just a single person.] (Ryouta)
[If I use the Tear of Slime now, the difficulty will be too low, so it would be meaningless.] (Examiner)
[Is that so.] (Alice)
[…….In order to pa.s.s, you need to defeat it with 5 Child.] (Examiner)
[It’s quite difficult. What should we do?] (Ryouta)
I looked at both Emily and Celeste.
Potato, it’s a monster from Teruru’s sixth floor.
They are also called the Parent-Child Slime, there’s a special way in defeating it.
[I’ll do it.] (Celeste)
[Can you?] (Ryouta)
Celeste nodded, she has quite the confident in herself.
[I understand.] (Ryouta)
[Good luck nodesu!] (Emily)
[Ike~ Ike~ Go~ Go~] (Alice)
Celeste nodded, and went off.
While waiting at the perfect range, the potato soon hatched into a rogue monster.
[If it’s 5 of them I’m sre Celeste-san can do it nodes.] (Emily)
[That’s true, using her Bicorn Horn to first defeat the 5 bodies, then finishing it off with her Inferno.] (Ryouta)
Emily and I both nodded.
Because the both of us knew the capability of Celeste, we watched it in relieved.
Below Celeste feet, a magic circle appeared, and her long and beautiful hair fluttered around as she used her magic.
[Inferno!] (Celeste)
[ [Eeh?] ] (Ryouta & Emily)
Both Emily and my voice matched.
That was different compared to what we’d imagined, the first magic she used was Inferno.
Around 10 of the Child Slime was burned to crisped.
[Why did you use Inferno first?] (Ryouta)
[The Parent will be even stronger than usual desu.] (Emily)
There are two characteristics about the Parent-Child Slime.
Depending on how many child(hands and feet) you defeat, and defeat the parent(main body) the drop will increase.
And also if you defeat more child(hands and feet), the parent(main body) will get stronger.
Annihilating all the child, the strongest parent in theory was created.
Celeste wasn’t hesitant, and continued using her magic.
It was a different magic circle this time.
[This is……the power that Ryouta-san had nurtured for me, a new power.] (Celeste)
Celeste muttered, and continued holding out her hands.
[Rip it apart, !!!] (Celeste)A laser like thing was narrowed further from the supple of her fingertip and continued shrinking as a light was launched.
And that hit the body of the Parent Slime.
The laser then went through the body and continued further.
The Slime—–that was deemed to be extremely powerful was sliced in half, and Pon, a sound was heard and it disappeared.
[She did it desu—–Aah.] (Emily)
Celeste was wobbling, and I went and hugged her.
[What’s happening.] (Celeste)
[You used too much magic, a new magic what’s more.] (Ryouta)
As I said this to Celeste, sweat was floating from her forehead, and her face changed into the color of a paper.
[For heaven’s sake…..You’re still the same even when I first met you.] (Ryouta)
[No, I’ve changed. And a drastic one at that.] (Celeste)
Celeste then looked straight at me in the eyes.
A gentle, yet intense and pa.s.sionate eyes.
[Thank you, for everything that you’ve done for me.] (Celeste)
This was the first time it hit me right in the heart(kokoro) when I heard the word [Thanks].
It was the most thrilling thing.