Tamer 10
BGM: Wuthering Waves 2.8A MSQ Part 11[Please Help with subscribe]
Chapter 10: The First Step
TL : Cnine
ED/PF :
Part 1
Three days have gone by since I managed that 9x EXP boost, and it’s now been exactly a week since I started out as an explorer.
Exploring the 2nd floor with the Gobgobslisli club and Gobgob Legs was smooth sailing, and we were levelling up at a pace that’d be unthinkable under normal circumstances.
After I cast Monster Enhancement on the four goblins acting as my transport and the one handling the magic stones, they actually started running a bit faster than me, which really boosted our EXP efficiency and gathering rate.
Naturally, nobody’s realised yet that I’m secretly grinding with a 9x EXP bonus.
Still, there’s one thing that’s been nagging at me—
Lately, the receptionist lady keeps talking to me way more than she used to,
and the timing lines up perfectly with when I started getting EXP multipliers. I’ve got no clue how, but maybe she’s picked up on how stupidly fast I’ve been getting stronger. I really hope it’s just me being paranoid, though…
※Author: It is indeed just paranoia.
Either way, I couldn’t let anyone find out about this secret.
The strongest explorer in the world, George Kennedy, said in his autobiography that getting attention only brings pointless trouble.
Man, yesterday and today were seriously weird. She suddenly showed up in super revealing clothes and started talking to me like we were old friends.
There’s no way that should happen, not after how she treated me the first time we met. She’s definitely trying to use a honey-trap on me.
And if they’re using someone that gorgeous for it, then I dunno if I could trust the whole Dungeon Association anymore.
Guess I’ll hold off on updating my explorer card until I’m crazy strong.
Updating it now would only reveal my level.
「Status」
===
Status
Name：Sakura Kikyo
Occupation： Monster Tamer
Lv：36 ↑13
HP：110 ↑46
MP：199 ↑95
SP：15
Skill
Monster Taming9 Monster Recovery7 Monster Enhancement7 Monster Fusion：Ｎｅｗ
Tamed Monster
GoblinLv36 SlimeLｖ36 GoblinLv36 SlimeLv36
GoblinLv35 GoblinLv35 GoblinLv35 GoblinLv35
GoblinLv35
EXP to next level: 2908
===
The new Monster Fusion skill? Yeah, it just smooshes monsters together and adds their EXP.
Two fresh level-3 goblins turn into a level-4 goblin with 100 EXP. Totally pointless for me, a straight-up trash skill.
And apparently, monsters use the same EXP table as humans. Figures.
「Anyway… Check out these stats.」
Mid-rank explorers were around level 20–49, and I’m already level 36, right in the middle of the pack.
Getting to mid-rank in just a week? Yeah, that’s supposed to be impossible, even for vanguards. Grinding 2nd floor goblins won’t get you anywhere, and even hitting the 3rd floor wouldn’t boost your level this much either.
And I couldn’t even power-level with someone else because the system kicks you out if the level gap is over ten.
So honestly, levelling this fast might actually make me the first person in the world to do it legitimately.
Which means I absolutely cannot let anyone find out how I’m doing it, or how fast I’m growing.
Still, even with me being paranoid, logically speaking it shouldn’t be found out. The receptionist lady probably suspects something, but she definitely doesn’t have proof.
On top of that, hardly anyone ever shows up at the Aomori Dungeon.
Most mid-rank explorers head straight for the capital, and high-rankers definitely wouldn’t waste their time in a low-earning dungeon like this. In fact, even newbies avoid it these days.
Since the Aomori Dungeon is notorious for low magic-stone prices, the only one who could possibly notice anything is the receptionist lady.
As long as I’m extra wary of her, I should be in the clear.
※Author: My condolences to the receptionist lady.
「Well then, I’d like to say I’m taking on the 3rd floor from today, but—」
Sometimes you’ve got to go back to square one. And once I did, something clicked again.
My crazy levelling speed comes from using my own custom weapons.
I started with the GobSli club, upgraded it to the Gobgobslim club, then the Gobgobslisli club, and after fitting it with Gobgob Legs, the power shot up even more.
And the real trick was using monsters as part of the build.
So basically…
「“Time to evolve the Gobgobslisli club into the Gobgobgobgobslislislisli club.」
To make the weapon, I pair up two goblins, stack another pair on top, then coat the whole goblin tower in four slimes.
That gives me a fused weapon made from four goblins and four slimes, and with me included, the EXP gain shoots up to nine times.
If I add the Gobgob Legs, it becomes thirteen times.
「Alright, step one: finish the Gobgobgobgobslislislisli club.」
…Yeah, nah, that name was a total nightmare. That’s why, from now on, I’m calling it the Quad Gob-Slime Rod. Perfect name: four goblins, four slimes. Done.
I mean, I’m already using four goblins and four slimes for this thing.
※Author: “Quadruple” means four-fold or four-layered.
「Wait, hold up.」
Back to basics, me.
Who said the Gobgob Leg was maxed out?
If I get three more goblins to lift the two goblins acting as my foot supports—like a human pyramid or a cavalry-game stack—that’d make five goblins per leg. More goblins = more EXP. Simple maths.
And if I can really pull that off… oh boy.
「Nineteen times EXP… huh? That’s nuts.」
Alright, no messing around.
I have to do this. Like, absolutely.
◇◇◇
So by late morning, I’d already wrangled eight more goblins and two more slimes, levelled the lot of them, and finally built my masterpieces: the Quadra Gob-Sli club and the Quintuple Gob Legs.
※Author: “Quintuple” means fivefold or five-layered.
A quick test confirmed it: nineteen times EXP. One goblin gave me 114 points, spot on.
Since I spent most of the morning monster-hunting, I wrapped up at around a hundred goblin kills before lunch.
If I had to name a downside, it was the fact that I’m permanently surrounded by goblins now. As for the upside, for some weird reason, the smell doesn’t cling to my clothes, so a nose plug keeps me alive.
「Status」
Status
Name：Sakura Kikyo
Occupation： Monster Tamer
Lv：37 ↑1
HP：114 ↑4
MP：204 ↑5
SP：6
Skill
Monster Taming19 Monster Recovery7 Monster Enhancement7 Monster Fusion1
Tamed Monster
GoblinLv37 SlimeLｖ37 GoblinLv37 SlimeLv37
GoblinLv36 GoblinLv36 GoblinLv36 GoblinLv36
GoblinLv36 GoblinLv20 GoblinLv20 GoblinLv20
GoblinLv20 GoblinLv20 GoblinLv20 GoblinLv20
GoblinLv20 SlimeLv20 SlimeLv20
EXP to next level: 1194
This is just straight-up strong, no joke.
「A monster tamer definitely isn’t just some rear guard support job…」
Since my monsters get the exact same EXP I do, the more I stack, the stronger my whole squad gets. Efficiency aside, just in terms of raw power, they already hit hard.
I don’t know what the higher floors are like—those are only explored by high-rank explorers—so maybe there is a point where this swarm strategy stops working… but for now, it slaps.
「In the end, it’s all about levels. Levels solve everything. Right, let’s keep grinding this afternoon as well.」
So I dragged my goblins and slimes with me, plonked myself down on the stairs between the 1st and 2nd floors—the safe zone—and started eating an onigiri.