Chapter 313: Leave it to Tias Sensei!

Author's Preface
Before I knew it, a whole year has passed since I started posting... The fact that I've been able to maintain the motivation to continue writing this clumsy work for so long is entirely thanks to all of you.
Thank you so much. Truly, the only appropriate response at this point is to update with gratitude 10,000 times a day... But I simply don't have enough brains or hands to do that.
Ahー, I wonder if I can just suddenly evolve into a Metagross one of these days!!

Anyway, please continue to support this clumsy work going forward!!

"Loli Sensei, I have a favor to ask..."

"...A girl is better."

Holy Chalice Flaaaash!

"Loli Sensei, I have an earnest consultation to make."

"Nn."

Following the wordless instruction of Sensei, who gestured to the seat next to her with her chin as if to say, "Well, take a seat then," I sat down at the counter. Ah, can I—no, can this young lady also get an apple parfait, please?

"...What is it?"

"Ah, right. Sensei, is there any possible way to accept a request that generated in a town I haven't visited yet?"

"...You can, you know?"

"Eh, seriously?"

"Nn. You can accept it."

Ah, meaning I'd have to literally run all the way to the location myself. I see... Mmm, things just don't go that conveniently, huh.
Perhaps sensing something as I aggressively dug through the mountain of parfait with my spoon, Loli Sensei puffed out her chest with a funsu, intensifying her Senior Breeze as she bestowed a piece of advice upon me.

"...When traveling from town to town, you usually go straight, but you can also take a side path, you know?"

"Ahー, come to think of it, I guess that was a thing..."

Although there are some minor branching paths, ShanFro's area progression generally follows a straight line. However, she's saying there are "Side Paths" that don't appear on the map.
While they apparently don't contain Area Bosses, they are populated with monsters strong enough that they won't simply let you pass through easily. I see, now that I think about it, that really was a thing... Actually, taking the side path through the Crystal Nest Cliff is straight-up impossible, isn't it? The trash mobs you'll encounter there are Those Scorpions. Are you telling me to fly over them?

"...Where do you want to go?"

"Ahー, actually, I need to hunt some Domineion Hornets to upgrade a weapon."

That's right, I am currently in an enhancement phase. The Grudge Poison looked incredibly strong on paper, but in reality, the abysmal durability of the swords themselves makes it practically useless. Ahー, but recently, I've been drawing up an enhancement plan for the Emperor Bee Twin Swords, which accomplished the monumental task of delivering the finishing blow to Psyger-100.

Well, it's also because the Aspiring Blades of the Hero (Duxram), which achieved a massive breakthrough, are just way too convenient. Against an opponent where even a glancing blow means instant death... like Lycaon, for example... a pure evasion-specialized build would definitely have its uses. But if that's the case... couldn't I just use the Legacy Weapon or Togetsu? That's what it ultimately boils down to.
I've been upgrading them little by little, but I decided it was time to bite the bullet and give them a massive overhaul.

"...Master. A map."

"Certainly. Please wait a moment."

The dandy old gentleman working as the bartender and Master of the cafe "Wandering Sword" is apparently the father of the identical-looking men who run the cafe "Serpent's Apple," which exists in almost every town to serve as a front for the Avengers.
After retreating to the back of the shop with an elegant bow completely devoid of any superficial politeness, the Master soon returned carrying a massive bundle of parchment—presumably detailing the entirety of this continent.
Spreading the continent map open with a barari, Sensei tapped the parchment with her tiny finger, tonton, before tracing a path and stopping at a specific point.

"Domineion Hornets live in the Heavenly Sanctuary..."

"Tias-sama. Forgive my intrusion, but given those conditions, I believe this location would be..."

A few seconds of silence. With a sususu, Sensei's finger shifted to the "Sea of Clouds in the High Heavens," the area right before the "Heavenly Sanctuary of High Aspirations."

"...Here."

"Ah, yes... So going through the Iron Ruins from Thirdrema really is the better route, huh..."

"Why?"

"Huh?"

Why, you ask? Because distance-wise, it's the fastest option... what other reason could there possibly be...

"From here."

Saying that, Sensei pointed at the Canyon of Ancient Souls, then traced her finger across the map and...

"To here."

And pointing at the Sea of Clouds in the High Heavens, she delivered her verdict with absolute nonchalance.

"Running straight through is faster."

"Eeh..."

No, well, it's true that every area is basically a vertically long map, and if you factor in the sheer complexity of the Divine Age Iron Ruins, it might actually be faster time-wise, but... Ahー, I see. She's a TAS. If there's even a 1% possibility of it working, it officially becomes a viable method in her eyes.

"...Side paths usually have monsters that make it their base or nest, but they aren't as hostile to humans as the monsters that act as guards blocking the main road."

"In other words... just slip past them and run straight through."

"It's not that difficult."

Well, sure, if I had prior information... Eh? An Elder Crystal Scorpion physically blocking the path? That's literally that land-battleship thing! Request denied, Sensei.
No matter how much a Human struggles, an RTA is our absolute limit... Ah, come to think of it, where did Lutia—the very reason I even ended up coming here—go?

"...Even though this is the fastest way... Lutia is on vacation."

"Vacation?"

"Yes. A boat trip for a few days."

Heehー, she's certainly enjoying a rather elegant time... Though, timing-wise, it feels like she would have had to start preparing literally the moment our fight ended to make it in time. Wait, a boat trip for a few days... nnー?

"...No, let's not think about it."

Depending on the circumstances, this information carries the inherent risk of becoming a massive bombshell. Well, the job change condition for Avenger is already a bombshell in itself, but based on my analysis of the Boss's explanation, it probably involves something like "Demonstrating your strength against a Bounty Hunter while maintaining a Karma value below a certain threshold."
However, carelessly revealing this condition could seriously impact the activities of the Dress-Up Squad... Since Survival is an acquaintance, I really don't want my actions to be the trigger that ruins his way of having fun.

"Oh right, Sensei! I found some cute clothes! How about trying them on as casual wear?"

Yaaaay, say cheese. Fufufu, you could say my Girl Power is skyrocketing infinitely in this very moment...!

I'm wearing a salmon head, though.

............

.........

......

The Divine Age Iron Ruins evoke a very strange sense of nostalgia. By now, both that crayfish bastard and the eel would equally run away from me on sight, so I no longer have any business at that leveling spot. Which means all I have to do is take the shortest route at the fastest speed. Simple, straightforward, and wonderful.

"However..."

Unlike the sea of trees area which is simply packed with trees, or the extinct volcano area which is basically a straight path, this area was originally an artificial structure, making the map feel much closer to a maze or a dungeon.
In short, moving in a perfectly straight line is impossible. On top of that, parts of it have collapsed, and there are those floating platforms scattered around... Can't be helped. I'll just proceed straight ahead without trying any weird shortcuts.

"It's honestly super annoying how 'Curse'-type mob-repellant effects don't work on Divine Age monsters... Ugh, so tedious."

Smashing a drone—which didn't even show the slightest hint of fear toward me—into pieces with Duxram, I turned a corner and... Ah, a dead end. I'll head back the other way.

"Yo, ho."

Oh my, there's a group of players at the bottom of a fissure that's turned into a natural atrium. Well, if you just want to proceed to the next town, you only need to run straight through the highest level of this area, but apparently the lower levels are much tastier in terms of items and materials. Thanks to them drawing aggro down there, I'm easily soloing my way across the top... Ah, the tank missed a step. My deepest condolences.
Whoops, don't try to attack me while I'm on a mid-air foothold! High-kick shootdown!

"As expected, the level bracket here is too low to get me excited..."

In my case, it directly affects my Vorpal Soul parameter, so it's actually a pretty pressing issue. I mean, I could just go to that godly spot where I can simultaneously farm materials, ores, and Vorpal Souls, but honestly, making that trip over and over again is a pain in its own right.

As I thought, treating this like a Time Attack and competing for speed would be much better for my motivation. Or maybe I should try that dangerous side-path route... No, charging through the Crystal Nest Cliff with the assumption of death is something I'm used to, but if survival is the requirement, the difficulty spikes exponentially. Yeah, definitely impossible.

Author's Afterword
The Tank of a certain innocent newbie party: "ShanFro is amazing... the graphics are incredible... Hm?"
A mysterious Salmon Head peering down from above: "............"
The Tank of a certain innocent newbie party: "Hyeh." (Failed SAN Check).
A Mythos Entity peering down from above: "My deepest condolences."

By the way, Those Scorpions located on the side path of the Crystal Nest Cliff generally don't move, so you technically can just walk right past them or even step on them. However, putting that aside, a massive swarm of scorpions will inevitably spawn, and the moment you attack a juvenile scorpion, the adults will activate. So either way, it's a hellish painting of absurd difficulty.
However, it seems Loli Sensei travels back and forth through there normally. No matter how much of a trash mob they are, they simply cannot overcome the violence of the system.

• Domineion Hornet
  A monster with a name that sounds similar to the Crystal Scorpions, but they aren't actually that strong. They possess an incredibly terrifying ecology where they attack other monsters in swarms, capture them, beat them half to death, feed them, and repeatedly force them into their own community as natural "Tamers"... However, since there's an even more terrifying anglerfish living in the deep sea, they don't really seem all that scary in comparison.