novelnext Chapter 213 : Object Combination
Chapter 213 : Object Combination
As soon as I opened the first chest, an Object appeared amid a small flash of light.D-rank - Low-grade Assassin's Knife
Hit Rate Correction when thrown at an enemy within 7 meters.
Deals minor damage to the target.
Can be used a total of 6 times.
“A dud, huh.”
Just from the name alone, it was obvious that it was a low-rank item.
It even looked shabby.
There were six daggers bundled together, each only about the length of my middle finger.
...I hadn't expected much to begin with.
Perhaps for the sake of game balance, the odds of obtaining a good Object early on were absurdly low.
‘Still, I have one more chest left.’
Defeating a semi-named monster, which was stronger than an ordinary monster, granted two Object chests.
The golem Sia had just helped me defeat was a semi-named monster.
Thanks to that, I was able to start the game with two chests.
Instead of opening the remaining chest, I first took out the dagger I had just obtained.
‘The problem is how to store these.’
Collecting Objects by hunting monsters wasn't actually very popular.
The reason was simple.
The magic of the top-ranking students was far more powerful than the Objects people painstakingly obtained by hunting monsters.
If you only possessed a single Object, it was nothing more than a support item.
‘Besides, there's an even bigger problem.’
There was no place to store the Objects.
There were countless different kinds, and some of them were bulky or heavy.
‘That's why the game only allowed you to carry a maximum of five Objects.’
The more Objects you carried, the more your stamina and mobility decreased because of the weight.
Furthermore, since you could only carry five, unless you assembled a ‘specific combination,’ it was difficult to unleash power greater than the magic used by the Schulers.
As a result, the top-ranking students ignored them.
...However.
‘My situation is very different.’
I reached into the air.
An obsidian card appeared in my hand.
The moment I focused my gaze, a tiny rift resembling a black hole opened before me.
A Subspace.
I placed the daggers inside before closing it again.
When I reopened the Subspace, the daggers were floating peacefully within it.
‘...Because I can store them like this.’
The Inventory.
An ability that only I could use in this Mock War.
From the perspective of someone who had cleared
‘Each individual Object isn't anything special. But...’
Combinations.
There were hundreds of different types of Objects.
Used individually, none of them were particularly impressive.
But when combined in certain ways, their performance changed completely.
‘If you assembled the right combinations... they became practically impossible to stop.’
In other words...
A mistake by the developers.
Combinations that performed at such ridiculous levels they had clearly exceeded what the developers had intended.
‘...To make that happen, I need to collect as many as possible.’
Since Objects became stronger the more combinations you could make, the greater the variety you possessed, the stronger you became.
This Mock War battlefield was the perfect stage for someone like me who possessed a Subspace.
...At least, in theory.
Right now, I was close to being the weakest participant here.
‘If I get dragged into battles now, it'll just waste time. I'll gather a decent number of Objects first, then start fighting.’
Once I completed the ‘specific combination,’ I'd be able to wield power comparable to the top-ranking students.
‘Anyway, now that I've confirmed Objects can be stored inside the Subspace... let's open the remaining chest.’
I picked up the other chest and opened it.
Inside was a miniature cannon about the size of my forearm.
B-rank - Magic Mini Cannon
Deals extremely minor damage to multiple targets.
Targets struck are unable to act for a certain period of time.
Can be used once every 30 seconds.
“Hmm...”
This wasn't bad at all.
Not top-tier, but certainly useful.
Just getting an Object that wasn't completely worthless was already a win.
‘For now, let's store it.’
I opened the Subspace and placed the cannon inside.
Then I looked around.
I now had a rough grasp of my location.
Under normal circumstances, I was unlikely to encounter any powerful opponents in the forest this early.
This mock battle was divided into attackers and defenders.
The defenders protected the watchtowers, while the attackers destroyed enemy forces and watchtowers.
If our attacking force heavily pressured the enemy watchtowers, the opposing team would naturally have no choice but to concentrate their forces there.
So did our defenders simply stand around beside our own watchtowers doing nothing?
...There was no way Jennings would tolerate such a waste of manpower.
Only the leader and the minimum required personnel remained at the watchtowers.
The rest of the defenders wandered through the nearby forest collecting Objects.
The Objects they gathered were then supplied to either the attacking force or the defense leader.
‘Which means I'll run into defenders every now and then too.’
This forest was both a monster hunting ground and a contested zone between the two teams.
It wasn't uncommon to encounter members of the opposing team while hunting monsters.
Conflict was inevitable.
...For everyone except me.
Not only did I know the optimal routes, I also possessed the Danger Detection skill.
Boom—! KABOOM—!
Explosions echoed in the distance.
‘...Looks like they've already started over there.’
They were probably fighting around the watchtowers.
‘Well... they'll handle that themselves. I've got my own job to do.’
I reached into empty space.
‘Shuck.’
As I focused on the obsidian card, darkness swallowed only my legs.
If Shuck's darkness completely enveloped my body, my mobility would increase dramatically.
‘...But I can't do that here.’
Too many people could be watching.
I'd have to limit myself to using only part of the ability.
Even borrowing only Shuck's power for my legs made me faster than the other Schulers.
Of course...
The downside was that it quickly left me out of breath.
‘I can't use it for long, but it's enough to follow the shortest route I planned.’
As I continued moving, another explosion rang out.
Boom! Bang!
Something collided violently before shattering.
It wasn't far away.
Suppressing my footsteps, I quietly approached.
BANG!
A deafening explosion made my ears ring.
I immediately hid behind a tree.
Then I cautiously peeked out.
“Nice! That last attack landed!”
“We already broke its shield, so let's finish it quickly!”
A Lizardman wielding a wave-shaped sword and a shattered shield.
Standing opposite it were two students carrying a magic tome and a staff.
‘...Perfect. They're already hunting.’
Everything was going exactly as expected.
The first thing I checked was their armbands.
Red.
They were on my team, so they wouldn't attack me.
Even so, I remained hidden behind the tree, concealing my presence.
Kreeeeng—!
The Lizardman roared.
Its body was covered in wounds, and its armor had been almost completely destroyed.
My eyes focused on its forehead.
That green gemstone embedded right in the center...
That was the monster's core.
Every monster in this forest possessed one.
The condition of the gemstone directly represented its HP.
‘Judging by the cracks... one hit should finish it.’
Eventually, the Lizardman collapsed onto one knee, panting as it hovered on the brink of death.
...But neither of the students delivered the finishing blow.
The monster was still alive, yet the two of them had already begun stretching their shoulders as though the battle were over.
“You take it.”
“No, you can have it.”
“You don't have to hold back. You can take it first!”
“No, really. It's fine.”
With cheerful smiles, they held out their hands and tried pushing the Object onto each other.
I could more or less guess why.
They didn't want to carry around Objects that only added extra weight.
Since they were part of the supply team, any Objects they obtained would simply be delivered to the attackers or the defense leader anyway.
Apparently, they found it too troublesome to carry them around even temporarily.
...From my perspective, it was a wonderful situation.
I opened the Subspace and took out the dagger.
D-rank - Assassin's Knife
Hit Rate Correction when thrown at an enemy within 7 meters.
Deals minor damage to the target.
‘Seven meters, huh.’
Step.
Step...
Still hidden behind the tree, I walked toward them.
The moment I came into view, the two blinked at me.
“...Who was that? Oh, it's just Villed.”
“What's he doing here?”
Neither of them was particularly wary of me.
Now was the perfect opportunity.
“If neither of you wants it, then I'll take it.”
I threw the dagger.
Whoosh—!
The dagger flew between the two students before embedding itself into the Lizardman's forehead.
Crack!
The gemstone shattered into countless fragments.
“...Huh?”
“A knife?!”
Kuuuuuurrrr—!
The Lizardman let out a dying scream.
Its body collapsed before scattering into black ash.
All that remained on the ground was a single wooden chest.
There was no need for me to retrieve it personally.
As I reached out toward the chest, I heard a tiny giggle.
“Heehee~”
The chest rattled before floating into the air.
It flew directly into my hand.
The translucent fairy that had been laughing gradually faded away.
This was something that was possible in the game as well.
As long as you possessed the loot rights, you could receive the chest even from a short distance away.
According to the setting, fairies delivered the chest to whoever had earned the loot rights.
It was unbelievably convenient.
The two students froze for a moment before asking,
“...Villed, are you part of the supply team?”
“No.”
“Then what are you?”
I let out a hollow laugh before holding up the chest.
“What else? This belongs to me now.”
“...Whaaat?!”
Only then did their stunned expressions instantly twist with shock.
Their faces flushed bright red with anger.
I wasn't part of the supply team.
Nor was I one of the attackers.
Yet I had stolen the spoils from the monster they had worked so hard to defeat.
Naturally, they exploded with rage.
“Next time, don't let someone steal it.”
After saying that, I stored the chest inside my Subspace.
Then I immediately prepared to leave.
The two clearly had plenty they wanted to say, but I had no time to waste here.
Just as I was about to dash through the forest using the enhanced speed granted by Shuck—
“Stop right there! You despicable Dedencman!”
Bang! Bang!
A fierce gale roared from behind me.
They had cast magic.
The trees around me exploded apart.
Thanks to Shuck's ability, I managed to dodge.
‘They're casting magic at a teammate?’
They must have been furious.
Which was understandable.
I'd stolen the spoils from the monster they had worked so hard to kill.
But what could they expect?
They should've finished it before I did.
“Wait! Wait! Don't attack a teammate! Four-Eyes will chew you out!”
“Damn it! Of all people, we end up with a lunatic like him on our team...!”
Fortunately, the other student stopped him.
I didn't waste the opportunity and slipped through the forest.
...Only after I had put enough distance between us did I finally stop.
‘This should be far enough to rest for a bit.’
Catching my breath, I hid among the bushes.
Then I took out the chest I had stored inside the Subspace.
‘...Let's see what I got.’
As I opened it, a light brighter than the one from the previous chest flashed for an instant.
Inside was...
A-rank - Clockwork Stuffed Doll
This small rabbit doll moves exactly as you command.
It is destroyed after taking a small amount of damage.
Cooldown after destruction: 2 minutes.
‘A doll?’
It was an adorable stuffed rabbit.