Chapter 48: Tia’s Amplification

[Mission Clear!]

[+840 Gold]

[Pet Bonus!] [+210 Gold]

[Pet Bonus!] [+190 Steel Shards]

[+5 Normal Cards]

• Interest

Thunk!

As we entered the castle, the dungeon cleared.

“Hah!”

I exhaled as I returned to the stage.

Since all three dungeons ended with boss fights, a slight fatigue settled in.

“Hoo! Charging ahead nonstop! Planning to grind through today’s event too, huh!”

“Since today’s the last day of the event, you’ve got to push through no matter what. At this pace, it’s going to be close, right?”

Rose and Gobori flopped onto the sofa.

I grabbed a beer and sat down on the sofa as well.

Tia hesitated but eventually sat nearby, looking a little shy.

Was she feeling a bit embarrassed?

Unlike when she was in battle, she looked fresh and youthful.

[★★ White Paladin Order Recruit] Lv. 43
[Wish’s Prayer]
[Broken Recruit]
[Skills]
[★ Light Heal]

I took a sip and checked Tia’s info.

She was level 43.

Her leveling speed was incredibly fast.

Gobori had said the Paladin class was an “entrenched class,” so I was curious what kind of hero she would become.

“Right. Now that I think about it—”

“What is it? Got another question, hyung?”

Gobori answered me immediately.

He was always the best at giving answers.

“The event you mentioned. The old user said it would take a whole week to reach, but our user is already almost there. Did the old user misunderstand? It feels like something simpler.”

I asked while taking a sip of beer.

My first user—well, the ‘glasses-wearing user’ next to the first user—had said it would take about a week to clear the event.

But now, the event was right at our doorstep.

I was a bit puzzled.

“Well, normally a free-to-play party would take about a week, yeah. If it was an ordinary party, they probably wouldn’t have even beaten the newbie killer. Most get stuck there. New users, you know.”

“Is beating the Overlord that hard? Our party took him down in one go.”

“Heh. That’s because you fought well, hyung! You think beating the Overlord is easy? Without a full 5-star party, it’s nearly impossible! Seriously!”

Gobori’s eyes widened as he replied.

“Right. Our party was just an exceptional case. We ran on auto-battle the whole time, cleared achievements, never failed a fight. And remember? Our gear rarely breaks these days. That’s all thanks to Uncle Dulv fixing everything. With his great success, the durability increased.”

“Oh, so that was Dulv’s doing?”

“Yeah. It’s just that everyone did their part well. The user was just lucky! Just one word from me.”

Rose rolled around on the sofa and said,

“Lucky, huh.”

From a user’s perspective, watching through the screen, it might look like luck, but all of this was possible because I communicated with them.

Gobori’s vast knowledge in dungeons.

Dulv’s excellent repair skills, easing gear worries.

Rose’s sharp evasion skills, playing her part well.

All combined, that became our party’s “luck.”

A user controlling from the screen alone could never have accomplished this.

“Yeah, we were lucky. The user was lucky to meet us.”

I smiled warmly and nodded.

“Haha! We’re the lucky ones to have met a user like this!”

“Exactly! How great is it that we understand each other? Hey, listen! We’re praising you!”

Gobori and Rose chuckled.

So why wait?

We decided to head straight into the dungeon.

As for the event, it was best to experience it firsthand.

[Lv. 56: Castle’s Underground Prison]

Thunk!

The dungeon began in a palace adorned with splendid drapes.

Inside, a countess sat on a chair. Following the noble lady and Alexander, we approached her.

“Glad you’re safe. You were attacked by harpies?”

The countess spoke with a cold tone.

Switching my gaze between the screen and the dungeon,

Thunk!

“Huh?”

Suddenly, we fell into a dark underground area.

Oops.

I had accidentally hit skip.

My mouth hung open at the sudden shift.

“Oh! Skipping the cutscene!”

“Kya! You know your stuff! Good skip! Let’s hurry and run! Go go!”

Gobori and Rose cheered.

Just moments ago, we were talking to the countess, and now this — I had no idea what was going on.

“You skipped the cutscene? Then why are we in a prison?”

“Heh, it was nothing special! Hey! Monsters incoming! Get ready!”

Gobori pointed down the corridor.

“There! Catch the intruders!”

“Attack!”

“Get them!”

But the ‘monsters’ running down the hall were human soldiers.

The castle’s guards charged straight at us.

“Aren’t those the castle guards? We’re supposed to fight them?”

“What? Goblins and orcs are obvious enemies, but you think people like you are different? You f***ing racist!”

Rose hit my helmet and shouted.

“Well, yeah.”

I nodded quickly, understanding.

It was funny to pity humans after killing orcs and goblins so easily.

I accepted it and took down the guards.

[Lv. 56 Prison Guard defeated.]
[Lv. 56 Prison Guard defeated.]

Clang! Smash!

“Ugh!”

“Ah!”

We knocked down the armored guards.

Fighting them felt easier than other monsters.

That made sense since half my life was spent battling humans.

Clang!

Tia pulled the hammer lodged in a guard.

The hammer ripped through the smashed helmet, dripping red veins of blood as it came free.

[Rescue Alexander!]

“So here’s the deal: Because they failed to protect the noble lady, Alexander was imprisoned. But it turns out the countess sent the harpies! She’s originally a witch from the empire, who poisoned the count and tried to kill the noble lady but failed. That’s the story, yep.”

Gobori explained as we ran through the prison.

Our mission was to rescue Alexander.

“That was skipped? It’s a really important part!”

“Eh. You wouldn’t say that if you watched it. It’s all the countess’s monologue. Bow to the user who skipped! Bow twice!”

Rose said, sticking close to my shoulder.

Well, the plot was a bit awkward, but it sounded plausible.

Political intrigue among nobles was nothing new.

“Ugh…! Graaah!”

When we took down the second batch of guards, a giant appeared.

Heavily armored in thick plate, the giant radiated a red aura.

“Damage reflection entity?”

“Yep! Champion Monster! Be careful!”

Gobori answered my question.

“EJOH!”

“Yes!”

“Protect the rear!”

“Understood!”

Tia stood back-to-back with Gobori to block the giant.

She jumped off the wall and landed behind the giant.

“Graaah! Graaah!”

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The massive flail shot upward from below.

Feeling the deadly aura, I waited for my damage window.

“But why is this guy like this? Is he cursed or something?”

“He’s under a magic effect!”

“A magic effect! Easy to understand!”

I dodged the flail while answering Gobori.

“Ugh…! I… I!!!”

Soon, the giant’s red aura faded.

I slid between his legs without hesitation.

Clang!

Then jabbed the back of his knee through the plate gaps.

“Gah!”

The giant kneeled and fell.

Though the dense chains blocked a full strike, red blood seeped through the white plates.

“Gobori!”

I shouted as I dodged sideways toward Gobori.

“Finisher! Gohbori Bomb Rapid Fire!”

[★★★ Mentally Sound Explosive Maniac: Rapid Fire Skill!]

Boom boom bang!

“Argh!”

An explosion bloomed over the giant’s head.

Still, the giant didn’t fall.

His huge size was matched by his toughness.

“Hah!”

Crack!

Tia rushed in and struck the giant’s head upward.

Her blow dented the helmet, exposing a small gap.

“Hup!”

[Lv. 56 Champion Sergeant defeated.]

Clang!

We instantly cut through the opening and defeated him.

The giant’s severed head rolled on the floor.

[Mission Clear!]

[+850 Gold]

[Pet Bonus!] [+230 Gold]
[Pet Bonus!] [+200 Steel Shards]

[+1 Normal Card]

[Champion Monster Defeated] [+1 Normal Card]

A clean clear.

Thunk!

Back on the stage, I asked everyone,

“Anyone feeling unwell?”

“Nope!”

“Do you always ask this? No!”

“Phew. I’m fine, senior.”

Gobori, Rose, and Tia replied.

I nodded slightly and set out again immediately.

[Lv. 58: Ominous Underground Prison 2nd Floor]
[Lv. 60: Ominous Underground Prison 3rd Floor]

The dungeon extended down to the third basement floor.

Inside, Alexander was imprisoned.

“The countess Podarge… poisoned the count and tried to kill the noble lady too? What about the noble lady? She learned of this and went to the east tower? We have no time to hesitate. If we don’t hurry, the noble lady could be in danger! Listen, prisoners! We swore loyalty to the countess and tried to carry on the previous count’s will! But look at our situation! Bound by absurd accusations and imprisoned! Our loyalty is not to the countess, but to the noble lady! Those who want to help me, rise up! Fight with me!”

“Count me in!”

“For the Blondie Lady!”

“Yeah!”

With the prisoners joining us, the escape began.

Moving with the captives, we marched toward the tower where the noble lady was held.

“Leave this to us! We’ll catch up soon. Please save the noble lady! The Blondie Lady!”

Alexander stood against the soldiers.

He held back the countess’s forces with the prisoners.

Our mission was to rescue the noble lady trapped in the tower.

“Oh, this part’s good! Kind of thrilling.”

“Heh. It’s a cliché that always works. This kind of story can’t fail.”

Together with Gobori, we headed for the castle tower.

[Mission Clear!]

[+850 Gold]

[Pet Bonus!] [+240 Gold]
[Pet Bonus!] [+210 Steel Shards]

[+1 Normal Card]

With cheers ringing out, the dungeon cleared.

Thunk!!

Back on the stage, I savored the lingering excitement.

Just following Alexander felt like a real war.

[★★ White Paladin Order Recruit] Lv. 52

By now, Tia had reached level 52.

She actually hit level 50 earlier but postponed it to keep pushing forward.

“Wow! Already 3-star? Congrats!”

“Congratulations, Tia!”

“When you hit 3 stars, will you get a legendary member switch? Please!”

Many heroes congratulated her.

“No, leveling up doesn’t always mean amplification. I’m happy just like this. Thank you, user.”

Tia smiled, looking into the air.

But with a total of 90,000 gold accumulated, there was no reason to hesitate on amplification.

Why be stingy when amplifying my hero?

[★★ White Paladin Order Recruit] [Amplify!]

Thunk! Kuu gu gu…

I tapped the screen to begin amplification.

“Oh! Amplifying!”

“Kya! Our user really knows what we want!”

“Congratulations! Hahaha!”

The stage shook with vibration as the heroes got excited.

“Me? Amplify? Are you sure?”

Tia’s eyes welled with tears in disbelief.

The heroes watched with a mix of envy and emotion.

[★★ White Paladin Order Recruit] Lv. 52

[You can amplify as follows!]

[1] [★★★ Frontline Guardian Knight]
[Skill Enhancement: Light Heal Fast Heal. Recovers target’s health.]
[Skill Addition: Holy Protection] [Reduces damage taken by selected target.]

[2] [★★★ White Holy Knights Sergeant]
[Ability Boost: Attack +20%, Defense +50%]

[3] [★★★ Zealous Inquisitor]
[Trait Boost: Attack +50%]
[Trait Addition: Enforcer of Warm Sunlight]
[All healing skills become attack skills against enemies.]

[4] [★★★ Devoted Zealot]
[Trait Boost: Wish’s Prayer → Prayer of Tenacity. Skill can be used after death at 50% effect. Only affects allies.]

Four names appeared on the screen.

“Tia!”

“Yes?”

“Tell me what kind of hero you want to become! If you choose, the user will listen!”

I shouted at Tia.

“How…?”

Tia looked excitedly into the air.

Every amplification gave me a thrill.