bookbashuk Page 144
Page 144
"This is the first time I've ever heard of such a bizarre phenomenon."
Kotoko Iwanaga looked thoughtful and asked again after a few seconds.
"What about the fifth basement level?"
"I do not know."
"Didn't you just say..."
"I did pass through the fourth underground level and reach the fifth underground level, but I died the moment I reached that level and didn't see anything clearly."
"what?"
Seeing Kotoko Iwanaga's puzzled expression, Rikka Sakuragawa slowly began to explain.
"The so-called clone I control is not really a clone. It's more like a body I condensed from black mist. When the clone acts, my original body has no consciousness. I just attach my consciousness to the clone created by the black mist. To be honest, it's more like a puppet with attached consciousness. I don't know what's on the fifth underground level, but I'm sure there's an extremely powerful and eerie thing there."
"It seems that not going to the fifth basement level was the right choice."
Asagiri said this with a smile, then walked up to Rikka Sakuragawa, looked directly into her face, and spoke in a rare serious tone.
"However, you'd better be more careful in the future. Since you've attached your consciousness to the puppet formed from the black mist, if you enter a powerful and eerie area, your consciousness might not be able to escape even after the puppet is destroyed. So please use it with caution."
"you……"
Sakuragawa Rikka was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then a complex look appeared in her eyes.
"Are you concerned about me?"
"Huh? How come you can be love-struck? This is really unexpected."
Asagiri shook her head and walked towards the gate of the Giant Mountain Mental Hospital with Yuuki Asuna and the others, simply raising her hand and waving.
"Goodbye."
Watching the four members of the team disappear in an instant after they walked out of the Giant Mountain Mental Hospital, Rikka Sakuragawa murmured to herself.
“Utsunomiya Asagiri… what a strange person he is…”
……
[Congratulations to "player" Utsunomiya Asagiri, you have cleared this dungeon!]
[In this instance, your special bonus actions are: finding the truth behind the riot at Mount Giant Mental Hospital, defeating one of the hidden bosses of Mount Giant Mental Hospital, "The Mysterious Commander in Black," defeating the boss "Chris Walker" on the third basement level, defeating twenty-seven "Blackwatch members," and learning about the strange phenomena existing on the fourth basement level of Mount Giant Mental Hospital.]
[This dungeon clear rating is: S]
Back in her home in the real world, Asagiri looked up at the level completion information on the eye icon app on her phone after checking it. She then asked Asuna Yuuki, Megumi Kato, and Kotoko Iwanaga, "What do you mean?"
"I only got an S-rank completion rating this time, what about you guys?"
“S-”.
"I'm also S-."
After confirming that Asuna Yuuki, Megumi Kato, and Kotoko Iwanaga had all only received an S-rank completion rating, Asagiri said thoughtfully.
"Eliminating Blackwatch members is indeed a bonus, but even so, we still couldn't get the highest S+ rating... It seems that in the system's assessment, the fifth basement level is the most worthwhile secret to explore within the Giant Mountain Mental Hospital. Without going there, it's impossible to get the highest rating."
"What a pity..."
Asuna Yuuki sighed softly, then looked at Asagiri sitting there, lost in thought.
"If Ms. Sakuragawa Rikka hadn't told us about the strange phenomena on the fourth basement level, our completion rating might have dropped a level. Why don't you invite her to join our team? If you extended an invitation, she would probably agree, right?"
"Do you think she'll agree? No way."
Asagiri shook her head and said with a smile.
“Sakuragawa Rikka’s abilities and qualifications do meet our team’s standards for recruiting new members, but the problem is that her goals for entering dungeons are different from ours. She should also have the privileges of a high-level player, able to select the corresponding dungeon from several keywords to sign up for, but her main goal for entering dungeons is not to obtain a high-level completion rating, but to find a way to solve her physical condition and turn back into a human. Therefore, she will only choose to enter dungeons of the bizarre type, and we cannot enter bizarre dungeons every time, and besides…”
At this point, Asagiri paused slightly, then looked at Iwanaga Kotoko sitting there, and said meaningfully.
"Whether she is friend or foe is still unclear."
"Huh? Why are you looking at me?"
Kotoko Iwanaga was taken aback for a moment, then immediately realized that what Asagiri meant was that if she thought Sakuragawa Rikka was an enemy that had to be eliminated, then Sakuragawa Rikka was an enemy; if she didn't mean that, then there was no need to consider eliminating Sakuragawa Rikka.
Realizing that Asagiri was asking for her opinion, Kotoko Iwanaga couldn't help but smile, revealing a sweet and joyful expression. She stood up, ran to Asagiri's side, and threw herself into his arms, looking both shy and delighted.
"My boyfriend, who always makes decisions on his own, actually considered my opinion~ Wow, this proves how deep your love for me is. Now that we've just left the instance, let's hurry to the bedroom and express this deep love to each other..."
Upon hearing this, Asuna Yuuki couldn't help but roll her eyes and said irritably.
"You're doing it again? You're just like me."
Just as Kotoko Iwanaga and Asuna Yuuki started bickering as usual, Asagiri discovered several unread emails in his inbox. He didn't recognize the email addresses that sent them, and the content of the emails was very brief.
The first message read: "Reply if it comes out."
The second message came about two hours later: "Have you come out yet?"
The third message came less than ten minutes earlier: "?"
Upon seeing the email's contents, Asagiri had already guessed who sent it. She then wrote a reply with only one word.
"Ah."
Less than five seconds after sending the message, Asagiri received a reply from Kaguya Shinomiya, which was also just a single word.
"it is good."
The current time is 5:30 AM in the real world.
Judging from Kaguya Shinomiya's behavior... disgusting.
She probably didn't sleep all night.
"Since no one is tired, let's discuss the custom reward content."
Upon hearing Asagiri's words, Kato Megumi was the first to reply.
"I've already decided. This time, I don't want physical fitness. Instead, I want a set of protective gear, a ranged weapon, and a skill."
Upon hearing this, Kotoko Iwanaga immediately offered a reminder.
"Hui, our clearance rating this time is only S-. If we choose multiple rewards, the value of each reward will decrease. If you choose these three, you may end up with equipment and weapons of blue quality, and the skills will not be very useful."
"Right."
Kato Megumi nodded obediently, and after thinking for a while, she spoke.
"Then I'll take bow-type weapons and skills; I'll skip the armor for now."
"Yeah, our clearance rating this time is only S-...we really need to think carefully..."
Asuna Yuuki pondered carefully, muttering to herself.
“I have a set of Light Armor of Radiance, it’s a set, and I have enough sword skills now… Hmm… then I’ll choose to enhance my physical attributes. My class doesn’t need too much mental strength, as long as my mental resistance is up to par.”
After saying that, Asuna Yuuki looked at Asagiri curiously.
"So, what reward do you want to choose this time?"
"Two skills."
Asagiri had already thought of the answer to this question and replied without hesitation.
"With a physical enhancement skill and an offensive skill, my current combat power is a bit too much for the dungeon's intensity. When facing the Blackwatch Commander, because his physical attributes are equal to mine, or even slightly better, I can only summon the Human Shura most of the time. Once I use another Persona, I can't keep up with the intensity of the battle."
"When my own combat strength is insufficient to hold my own against the enemy, I cannot fully utilize the versatility of the Persona. To avoid this, I now need to improve my own combat strength and cannot rely too much on pure physical strength. While numerical superiority is good, mechanics are also essential."
92
Chapter 92: The first piece of red epic equipment.
"Well, that makes sense."
Seeing Kotoko Iwanaga nodding repeatedly in agreement, Asuna Yuuki said irritably.
"Give me a break. You think everything Asagiri says makes sense."
"Shouldn't it be?"
Kotoko Iwanaga spoke with righteous indignation and great momentum.
"As the boyfriend of the great princess of the monsters, he is of course always right!"
Asagiri asked curiously upon hearing this.
"What if I disagree with you?"
Kotoko Iwanaga stood up, hands on her hips, and said.
"Hmph, then there's only one way: let's have a good, satisfying battle, and whoever wins gets to decide!"
Asuna Yuuki frowned slightly, looking on with some doubt.
"Why do I feel like... the battle you're talking about isn't a proper battle?"
"No need for feeling."
Kotoko Iwanaga waved her hand and said matter-of-factly.
"It's definitely not a proper battle. What's the point of a proper battle?"
"You're both terrible at the game and love to play."
Asagiri made that joke first, then asked.
"So, what type of reward do you want to customize?"
"Um……"
Kotoko Iwanaga raised her hand and stroked her fair chin, thinking seriously for a while before replying with a smile.
"I'll choose armor. The negative effects of my unique talent have disappeared, and I can now equip armor. As the most vulnerable member of the team, I need to find a way to increase my defense so that I won't distract you and can assist you in battle."
After the four of them decided on the rewards they wanted to customize, Kato Megumi took out her phone, opened the app with the eye icon, and entered the type and quantity of the reward she wanted.
[It has been confirmed that you have selected the following reward type: Weapon (Range), Skill]
[Obtained: Blood-Soaked Nightingale Bow (Bow type weapon, purple quality), Sniper]
【The Weeping Nightingale Bow: A bow and arrow made entirely of ebony, jet black, imbued with strange magical power that can harm spirits. Each time it hits the same target, the bow's power increases. No arrows are needed when using this bow; an quiver will automatically replenish them.】
[Sniping (Passive Skill): Greatly increases accuracy and power when using ranged weapons]
"A purple weapon, not bad."
Asagiri sat down next to Kato Megumi, took her phone, looked at the reward details displayed on it, and smiled.
"The power increases with each hit on the same target. It should be very effective against bosses with incredible defense..."
Halfway through her speech, Asagiri looked up and saw Kato Megumi resting her chin on her hands, staring intently at her with calm eyes. Her lovely face was so close that they could feel each other's breath.
"You really are very handsome."
Hearing Kato Megumi's calm praise, Asagiri smiled and asked in return.
"What, are you cosplaying as a mirror? Every time I look in the mirror, it says the same things as you."
"Hmm...is that called narcissism?"
Kato Megumi tilted her head, then stood up, patted her clothes, and said softly.
"You must all be hungry, right? I'll go cook some food."
"Hey, I'll join too..."
"no, I'm fine."
Seeing that Asuna Yuuki also wanted to stand up, Megumi Kato waved her hand and gave a gentle smile.
"You must be exhausted from the dungeon, so take a rest. I didn't use up much physical or mental energy, so I'll take over."
As Kato Megumi walked into the kitchen, Yuuki Asuna's eyes flickered, and she spoke up.
"Then I'll do the second one. I need to help her after the draw; I can't let her cook alone."
Kotoko Iwanaga eagerly raised her hand, her face beaming with excitement.
"I want to make it too! I want to make it too~ Asagiri has never tasted my cooking before~"
"can you cook?"