Chapter 48 – Amy’s Proposal

“—Dаmn it!!”

“Wh-whаt’s wrong all of а suddеn!?”

“Ah… n-no, sоrry. I just got hеаtеd uр sееing the citу destroуеd by mоnstеrs.”

“I-I sее.”

I gоt so hеatеd that I shoutеd оut right аftеr my Return bу Deаth.

I hastily told а liе, but it seems he beliеvеd me, which was a reliеf.

(Dаmn, I completelу lеt my guard dоwn)

I nevеr thоught thе Мonster-Repеllent Sprау wоuld be ineffесtivе at night.

Thаt wasn’t the оnly thing I was carеlеss about.

I hаd undеrestimаted the mоnsters, thinking my Truе Strength wаs еquivalent to B-Rank.

Рart оf it wаs duе to mу lack оf ехperiеncе bеing аttасked bу lаrgе numbers оf mоnsters, but even so, I had been too complacent.

The individual abilities weren’t particularly strong.

But when they swarmed in groups of hundreds or two hundred, I couldn’t keep up with the extermination and got crushed as if swept away by a wave.

Furthermore, the corpses from subjugating monsters were also a problem.

In Dungeons or Gates, monster corpses disappear.

But on Earth, the corpses don’t vanish.

These corpses were incredibly troublesome during combat.

In fact, the situation that had been barely maintaining equilibrium until then rapidly deteriorated into defeat when I got my feet caught on the corpses.

(There’s still so much I need to learn…)

There are battles that can’t be won just by fighting desperately.

I realized that vividly.

(It was a good lesson)

From now on, when fighting outside, I should make good use of the terrain.

For example, I should choose locations where I can restrict the enemy’s movement so they can’t attack in numbers I can’t handle at once.

Using Memory Playback to repeatedly recall the battle, I identified my shortcomings.

After reflecting on the major mistakes, I thought about the minor judgment errors during combat.

(Now that I think about it, I should have been able to defeat them with more minimal force and movement)

I couldn’t handle enemies I was fighting for the first time very well.

Because my shoulders were tense, my attacks became too wide, creating openings myself.

Looking back, I could only see points for reflection.

But there’s no improvement without reflection.

The more points for reflection there are, the stronger I can become than before.

While repeating mental combat simulations with Memory Playback, Asuto ran straight west.

Upon arriving in Hakone, he entered what looked like the sturdiest building and sat down in a place surrounded by walls on three sides.

○Name: Yuki Asuto (23)

Level: 45→47 Aptitude: Assassin

Rank: C SP: 0→10

Held G: 100198

○Physical Ability

Strength: 75 Stamina: 70 Magic Power: 19

Spirit: 19 Agility: 115 Perception: 80

○Skills

・Intermediate Dagger Arts Lv3 (6%→51%)

• Critical Strike Level 2 to 3 (64% to 13%)

・Evasion Lv5 (13%→55%)

・Leap Level 4 to Level 5 (94% to 9%)

・Memory Playback Lv3→Lv4 (70%→85%)

・Mortal Eye Lv2→Lv3 (78%→7%)

・Return Lv2 (0%→0.5%)

Unfortunately, my Level didn’t increase that much, but since most of the enemies that appeared were of equal or lower rank, it couldn’t be helped.

On the other hand, since I had been fighting off monsters beyond my full capacity until just before death, my Proficiency had increased significantly.

I should be able to fight better than before even against large numbers of monsters.

That said, anything can happen on the battlefield.

(I’m still not strong enough to handle all irregularities)

Asuto opened the Gold Shop and browsed through Skill Scrolls.

“Oh, you finally feel like using Gold?”

“Well, yeah.”

“Geez, you could have gotten stronger by buying good Items sooner, but I was getting irritated because you wouldn’t use your Gold.”

“I’m just stingy.”

“What a troublesome personality.”

“Leave me alone.”

Previously, when Asuto was a Bottom-Tier Hunter, he was in a situation where he could barely afford tomorrow’s living expenses.

Because of that, he had developed a habit of hoarding money instead of spending it immediately when he got a lump sum.

Asuto had previously defeated an Angel and obtained a large amount of Gold.

With this, he could Purchase powerful Skills.

However, until now, he couldn’t bring himself to make the Purchase.

This was due to his extreme frugality habit that had become ingrained, where he tried to cut back even on necessities.

That said, after being crushed by monsters earlier, this was no longer the time to be indecisive.

“My recommendations are Skill Scroll numbers 199605, 143844, and 853953. They’re all good Skills!”

“…(This guy)”

Is she picking a fight?

Asuto barely managed to suppress his face from contorting.

The Skill Scrolls Amy had proposed were:

Number 199605 was Snapshot. Price: one thousand Gold.

It’s Non-Attribute Magic that fires invisible fist-sized Mana at opponents.

Number 143844 was Haste. Price: ten thousand Gold.

It’s Support Magic that boosts Agility.

And number 853953. This was Beast Killer, priced at thirty thousand Gold.

It’s a Passive Support Skill that boosts damage against Beast-Type Monsters just by possessing it.

All of them seemed useful at first glance, but Asuto was an Assassin.

He couldn’t use Magic efficiently, so the first two were out of the question.

Beast Killer seemed like the only one he could use, but the damage boost Effect was said to be only around ten-plus percent, not enough to feel the Effect.

Of course, purchasing Killer-Type Skills to become even stronger in the future was viable, but not now.

(Damn, she’s recommending Trash Skills)

Asuto clenched his fists while somehow calming his feelings and opened his mouth.

Miss Amy, who had given Asuto genuine advice last time, was now recommending garbage at every opportunity—she was consistent.