After hearing my story from the past, Philia and the others each wracked their brains for ideas, but we couldn't settle on anything today.
For now, the decision was left as homework.
"Still, we need to pick one soon, right?"
"Well, there's no strict deadline, but the sooner, the better. We never know when we might make a name for ourselves from here on out. It would be inconvenient not to have a party name when that happens."
With that said, our discussion about the party name drew to a close.
"Also, there's one more thing. I've already told Philia, but I haven't mentioned it to the two of you yet. I have a special skill."
"You have a special skill too, Erik?"
"Huh, really?"
I hadn't told Alan or Leticia-san that I possessed one.
Now that we were official comrades who would be adventuring together, I decided to lay it out for them here and now.
"My special skill is called [Fixed EXP]. All experience points tied to my level and skills are completely fixed."
"...What does that mean?"
"Could it mean, for example, that defeating a monster grants you exactly one EXP? A fixed amount, whether it's a weak monster or a strong one?"
"It's just as Leticia-san says. On top of that, the required EXP to level up is also fixed at one hundred."
When I said that, Alan still looked bewildered, but Leticia-san's eyes went wide with shock.
"That's an incredible special skill. But... is it really all right for you to share something so amazing with us?"
"I felt it was wrong for me, as the party leader, to keep secrets from my comrades. Besides, I figured you'd start finding things strange as we work together, so I thought it was best to tell you now."
Leticia-san fell into deep thought for a moment at my explanation.
"...I never once heard of a special skill like [Fixed EXP] while studying skills at the Academy. It must be exceptionally rare—or more likely, Erik-kun is the only person who possesses it, right?"
"I think that's probably the case. I asked Olivia-san as well, and she told me she'd never heard of such a special skill either."
"Which means, unlike my special skill, there are no predecessors for yours, so you have to figure out its powers all on your own?"
Alan caught onto that right away, realizing no one else possessed my skill.
"Yeah. Recently, I've finally come to understand its capabilities to an extent and can manage them fairly well, but even I don't know if I fully grasp everything yet."
"That sounds like quite a pain..."
"Even so, hearing what you know about it so far, it truly is an amazing skill."
Having finished explaining my special skill, I brought up our upcoming plans.
"Also, this is something I learned today, but the sheer number of monsters yesterday was just an anomaly. Apparently, there are usually far fewer."
"Well, I did think the encounter rate was awfully high..."
"In that case, we can't expect the same kind of gains as yesterday. Should we head down to the 11th floor?"
"I've been considering that too, and I wanted to hear everyone's thoughts. Whether we should hunt up to the 10th floor, or push for the 11th."
I looked toward Philia and the others as I asked.
"...It's a tough call."
"Yeah. Honestly, I'm torn."
"...How about we go in today, see how many monsters there are, and then decide? If there are fewer than expected, I think going to the 11th floor would be fine. I believe this party has more than enough strength for it."
While Philia and Alan hesitated, Leticia-san offered her take.
"I'm leaning toward Leticia-san's line of thinking as well. However, if we do go, I believe there's something we need to take care of first."
"Something we need to take care of?"
"Yes. Upgrading our gear. Primarily for the members other than Leticia-san, that is."
I glanced over my own gear, then Philia's and Alan's.
"My gear is fairly good for a beginner adventurer. As for armor, it's made from orc materials so it's still decent, but I've been feeling lately that my sword and shield need an upgrade."
"Speaking of which, my staff is just a secondhand one I bought on sale, too."
"I just got a brand-new shield, but my armor is a hand-me-down from my older brother..."
"I feel bad, like I'm the only one cheating."
Being a noble, Leticia-san was equipped with pristine leather gear and a fine staff, well above average for a beginner adventurer.
"No, none of us think you're cheating at all. In fact, as a noble, you could easily wear much better gear, but we know you've held back out of consideration for the gap between us."
"...Y-You noticed?"
Realizing I knew she had been holding back to match us, Leticia-san looked taken aback.
"Of course I noticed. As a lady of a count house, Leticia-san, it wouldn't be strange at all if you wore far more expensive equipment."
"Yeah. I noticed that too—that Leticia-san was toning down her gear for our sake."
"I caught on as well. After all, a noble would usually have much finer things."
As we all chimed in, Leticia-san's face turned bright red, and she buried her face in her hands, embarrassed that her secret had been laid bare.
"So, that's why I think we should reevaluate our gear before we venture down to the 11th floor."
"I agree with that."
"Same here. So that means we're sticking to hunting up to the 10th floor today?"
"That's the plan. Once Leticia-san calms down, let's head out."
A short while later, after Leticia-san had composed herself, we left the grounds of House Fortis.
From there, we headed outside the royal capital and made our way toward the dungeon.