The fact that I could only earn pathetic amounts of Experience Points without Hinata-san was a serious problem.
However, it was a problem that would be solved as long as she was with me. In that sense, one could argue it wasn't a problem at all.
But I was also dealing with another issue that needed addressing immediately.
And that was... the fact that I had dumped so many Skill Points into Seeker and Asceticism that my other combat Skills hadn't grown at all!
We were likely heading to Floor 8 and beyond next, but as things stood, I felt uneasy about our prospects.
The monsters appearing from Floor 8 were higher level and stronger than those on the previous floors. Furthermore, there were more of them.
I was, of course, referring to the number of Goblins that appeared in the Monster Rooms.
Floor 8 had 64, Floor 9 had 81, and Floor 10 had a whopping 100.
To emerge victorious against those Goblins, I had to admit that my current Skill composition was lacking. If I was already struggling against 49 Goblins, I wouldn't be able to progress much further.
So, what should I do?
I had no choice but to obtain new Skills. No, they didn't even have to be new. I might find a way forward just by raising the Skill Level of the low-level combat Skills I already possessed.
I already had a particular Skill in mind for that purpose.
I might need to take the points I had planned to put into Awakened One next and dump them into that Skill instead.
But even so...
I wasn't entirely certain if that was the right move.
I needed to confirm it, but the information wasn't listed on the Modern Dungeon Strategy Wiki.
However, even for information not on the wiki, I knew someone who might have the answers.
Calling her was a bit intimidating, but I had to ask.
And so, I tried to make the call.
I first tried on the night of April 27th, after returning home from the day's exploration with Hinata-san. However, she didn't pick up. I tried several more times after waiting a while.
I tried again the next morning.
Still no answer.
Finally, on the night of April 28th, after returning from my solo run, I tried again. Actually, I tried several times.
I ate dinner, took a bath, and then called repeatedly at intervals.
『...What is it?』
She finally picked up.
"Sorry for the late hour, Mito-san! Do you have a moment!?"
The person on the other end was Mito-san.
I had saved Mito-san's number because she had called me once before. That was back when she scolded me for leaving Magic Stones behind in a Monster Room.
『...State your business.』
It seemed her schedule was clear enough. I got straight to the point.
"Actually, I have something I want to ask you about Skills..."
『Skills? Did the seal on Lust Murder break? If so, that's a pity—it means you would have to be put down.』
For some reason, Mito-san's voice sounded quite cheerful. Good grief, even for a joke, that's in poor taste.
"No, it's not broken."
『I see...』
Mito-san muttered in a profoundly disappointed tone. That... wasn't a joke?
Suppressing a shiver, I explained the situation.
"It's about the Skill called Sword Aura. You know how you can fire off a large slash if you channel extra HP into it? For some reason, I can only channel up to 10 HP. I was hoping you could tell me why..."
That was the core of it. To grind the Monster Rooms on Floor 8 and beyond, I thought I could manage if I channeled more HP into Sword Aura to fire off a Great Flying Blade.
In reality, my Attack Power was already more than sufficient thanks to Goblin Genocider and Mighty Blade, and my Stats were high enough to fight up to Floor 10. This remained true even when Seeker was active and my Stats returned to their Initial Values. If I had Hinata-san strengthen me with Bless, and then added the buffs from Indomitable Spirit, Goblin Genocider, and Fighting Spirit on top of that, I would be at a level where I could handle the Goblins on Floor 8 and up.
What I really needed was a method to annihilate a large number of monsters all at once.
Raising the levels of Berserk or Blood Vengeance to boost my Stats, or raising the level of Danger Sense to improve my evasion, were options for taking them down one by one... but that would ruin my grinding efficiency.
So, as they say, might makes right. I was trying to solve the problem through the simple expansion of raw violence.
There was the option of obtaining Blue Sky Beyond the Clouds and giving up on Mighty Blade... but while that might work for a single Goblin, Skill Level 1 probably wouldn't be enough to kill ten Goblins in one hit. If that were the case, it would take too long to raise the level.
Though, even at Skill Level 1, if Asceticism was active, the Damage Multiplier would be 2x, which combined with Increased Damage with Bladed Weapons and Goblin Genocider would bring it to 16x.
Anyway, Mito-san's answer was—
『Wait a moment. Why are you going out of your way to ask me such a trivial thing? You could just ask Obito-sama. I'm sure he would tell you.』
She spoke in a voice that sounded somewhat weary.
Ignoring the non-answer, I responded to her suggestion.
"I couldn't! It would be far too irreverent to trouble the Headshot Yakuza with something so minor!!"
That was the simple truth.
『...So it's fine to trouble me?』
I felt a surge of... pressure.
If I gave the wrong answer, my life might be forfeit.
"A-Ah, no, I-I just thought the b-beautiful and kind Mito-san m-might be willing to teach me..."
『............』
"...M-Mito-san?"
『...That was transparently obvious flattery, but very well.』
Yes! I did it... I felt like I'd just had a narrow escape from the jaws of death!
『Now then, as for the answer to your question.』
"Yes."
『Your Sword Aura Skill is Level 1, correct?』
"!! Y-Yes! That's correct!"
『Then that is the reason. For Sword Aura—and similarly for Magic Sword—you can only channel HP or MP up to a value of ten times the Skill Level.』
"...!! So that was it!!"
That confirmed it.
Since the amount of HP I could channel was exactly 10, I figured there was a catch. I had suspected it might be related to the Skill Level, but it was exactly as I'd guessed.
Was I a genius after all?
However, Mito-san's answer also raised a new question.
"Um, Mito-san... Can you also channel up to 10 MP into Magic Sword if the Skill Level is 1?"
『Yes, that's right.』
"Then why is it that no matter what I do, I can't channel more than 1 MP into Magic Sword to fire a slash?"
With Sword Aura, perhaps because Pleasure Killer or Lust Murder was active when I fought Kanzaki and his group—or maybe I was just desperate—I had succeeded in channeling HP to fire a giant slash. I had managed to grasp the knack for it from that one experience.
However, I couldn't use Magic Sword back then, and I hadn't had an opportunity to learn the trick.
Perhaps because of that, I still hadn't succeeded in firing a Great Flying Blade with Magic Sword.
Yet Mito-san said Magic Sword should be able to channel excessive MP just like Sword Aura.
So why couldn't I do it?
Mito-san's answer was concise.
『Oh, that's because you're stupid.』
"............"
............?
Did I hear that wrong?
"Sorry, the connection seems bad. I couldn't quite hear you. Could you repeat that?"
『Because you are a moron.』
I didn't... hear it wrong!?
"Eh?...Wait, is that a joke?"
『It is not a joke... ah, my apologies. I misspoke slightly.』
Oh, thank goodness. It was just a slip of the tongue. Right. I mean, it's not like I'm—
『To be precise, it's because your Intelligence Stat is low. When I saw your Status before, your Intelligence was 6. Have you put any Status Points into it since then?』
"No, I haven't put a single point into Intelligence!"
『I thought as much. Just like Sword Aura, firing a slash with excessive HP or MP requires certain Stat thresholds. For Sword Aura, you need a decent amount of Strength and Dexterity; for Magic Sword, you need a decent amount of Intelligence and Dexterity. In your case, your Intelligence is too low to meet the requirement.』
"I-I see!! By the way, would the requirement be met if I buffed my Intelligence with Skills or Magic?"
『Practice would be necessary, but you could do it even if you strengthen it with Skills or Magic. However, to channel 10 MP, you need an Intelligence of about 50. To channel 20 MP, you would need 100. The same goes for the Strength value in the case of Sword Aura, and the required value for Dexterity is the same as well.』
"Whoa, so that's how it works!!"
The mystery was solved!
In other words, as long as my Intelligence was boosted by Hinata-san's Bless or Indomitable Spirit, I should be able to fire a Great Flying Blade even with Magic Sword, provided I practiced.
...If I can manage that way, I guess I'll hold off on putting points into Intelligence. If I distribute points too evenly, I'll end up with a Status that has no real strengths.
『So, is that all for your questions?』
"Ah, sorry! One last thing, if I may?"
『What is it? Make it quick. I have to go take a bath with Obito-sama and wash his back—no, I must wash every inch of his body thoroughly.』
"Eh!?"
...For real?
So Mito-san and the Headshot Yakuza really were in that kind of... but just as the thought crossed my mind.
I heard his voice faintly from the other end of the line.
『...Don't talk nonsense, Mito.』
『Fufufu.』
The Headshot Yakuza!! He was right there!!
So it really was just Mito-san's joke. Still, I can't believe she can crack jokes like that with him... was it really a joke, though?
Anyway.
『Well? If you have a question, ask it,』 she said.
So I asked my final question.
As expected, Mito-san knew the answer to this one, too. While showing a rare look of genuine surprise, she gave me the information I needed.
And finally...
"Mito-san, thank you very much for your help! You've been a lifesaver!"
『I see.』
"Ah, also, could you tell the Headshot Yakuza I said good nig—"
Click.
"—ht?"
She hung up on me mid-sentence.