Status Magic
"Your introduction! It's your turn now!"
"Oh! Okay." Motoyasu nods at Naofumi quickly and introduces himself, saying, "My name is Motoyasu Kitamura. I'm twenty..."
He pauses abruptly and becomes thoughtful.
If I remember correctly, he is thinking how old is he again, am I right?
Regardless of that, let's return to the present.
"Twenty years old?" Naofumi tries to clear up everyone's doubts.
"No! I'm 21, I say!" Motoyasu replies, adding his verbal tick at the end of his statement.
"'I say?" Naofumi seems taken aback before changing the topic, saying, "Umm, what's your occupation?"
"I'm the Love Hunter!" Motoyasu says loudly and unashamedly.
All people in the throne room are looking at Motoyasu with varying expressions. To name the few: confusion, curiosity, and disinterest.
Me? I am trying my best to hold back my laughter. This Motoyasu has screws loose in his head, alright! The betrayal of Bitch and his harem has done a significant number on his mind.
"Ahem... Ren, Motoyasu, and Randy, correct?" Trash tries to control the talk.
Unfortunately, Motoyasu cuts Trash off with a roar, "Don't you forget Father's name!"
"Huh?!" Naofumi is taken aback by Motoyasu's outburst before realizing what Motoyasu has called him with. "'Father'?" He asks, confused.
A giggle... no! A chuckle ...leaves my lips. Their byplay is pretty hilarious.
Motoyasu did call Naofumi 'Father' in the Reprise, didn't he? It's due to his delusion to take Filo's hand in marriage. Unfortunately for Motoyasu, his infatuation for Filo is only one-sided. In fact, Filo thinks him creepy and annoying!
"Oh, my bad. You look just like the father of the girl I love, so it just came out like that unintentionally," Motoyasu explains to the confused Naofumi.
"Oh, uhh... Do I really look that old?"
"Not at all! You look quite young, just like him!"
"Just how old does that make the girl you like?!"
"Let's see ..." Motoyasu pauses and starts thinking, which lasts a short while. "She's not born yet!"
(Man, it's hard to hold my laugh!) I comment on the hilarious byplay in my head.
"You're quite the character, huh?" Naofumi says with a helpless expression.
"You think so, Father?"
"Is that what you're going to call me from now on? I'd really prefer it if you didn't!" Naofumi retorts with an expression that speaks his inability to choose between laughing or crying.
"Heroes, please keep your personal conversation to a minimum," The minister reprimands those two, trying to stop their chat to no avail.
"Back to what I was saying, then. Father's—"
"Umm, Kitamura, right? Please stop calling me 'Father.'"
"As you wish!" Motoyasu yields easily before turning in Trash's direction. He says, "I'd like the King to apologize for intentionally failing to state Naofumi's name."
"Intentionally?!" The others, except for me, react strongly at Motoyasu's bold accusation.
"That's right. Trash here is intent on trying to cause the downfall of the Shield Hero. He has all sorts of dirty tricks in mind—"
"Oh! I'm sorry! That was my mistake, Spear Hero! Please! Calm down!" Trash apologizes and seems desperate to stop Motoyasu's incriminating speech.
"Just who do you think you are, calling the king 'trash'?" Ren asks harshly, glaring at Motoyasu.
"I'm the Love Hunter!" Motoyasu responds proudly.
And just like that, Ren's gaze suddenly seems to grow very cold as he glares at the time-traveler, dimension-traveler, or is the correct term a 'timeline-traveler'? Well, whatever. I can figure out the proper word to describe Motoyasu's unique status later.
"Ahem! We got a bit off track there," Trash steers the discussion back to the main issue, "Heroes, please confirm your status and give yourselves an objective evaluation."
"Huh?"
At Trash's advice, Naofumi seems confused, Motoyasu tilts his head in bemusement, and Ren already has a focused gaze on the empty air in front of his face.
I know how it goes in the source materials, yet I want to try something new. Hence, I mentally command whatever behind the status screen, (Show me my Status!)
Luckily, the Legendary Weapon System accepts my mental command. A holographic screen pops up in my field of vision, and I discover that its appearance is similar to the one in the anime.
Actually, I find some differences. There is nothing significant, however. I start inspecting my status screen that displays as follows:
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Name - Randy Quartz
Title - The Hero of Legendary Bow
Class - Legendary Hero
Level - 1
EXP - 0/20
HP - 150 (Recovery: 10%/Minute)
MP - 50 (Recovery: 10%/Minute)
SP - 50 (Recovery: 10%/Minute)
- Battle Stats:
Attack - 15 (+1)
Defense - 10 (+1)
M. Attack - 13 (+1)
M. Defense - 10
Speed - 17 (+2)
- Hidden Stats:
Strength - Average
Stamina - Average
Dexterity - Average
Mind - Average
- Magic Affinity & Resistance:
Fire Affinity - Mastered | Resistance - Poor
Water Affinity - Mastered | Resistance - Poor
Wind Affinity - Mastered | Resistance - Poor
Earth Affinity - Mastered | Resistance - Poor
Lightning Affinity - Mastered | Resistance - Poor
Ice Affinity - Mastered | Resistance - Poor
Light Affinity - Mastered | Resistance - Poor
Dark Affinity - Mastered | Resistance - Poor
- Skill:
Omnipotence - Lv.N/A
Instant Mastery - Lv.N/A
Omnipotence Activation - Lv.N/A
Acting - Lv.10 (MAX)
- Magic: N/A
- Equipment:
Otherworld Clothes
Legendary Bow (Form: Small Bow)
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I start tinkering with my status screen, hoping to get more explanations. Luckily, I meet some success. Then, I inspect the detail of my skills, one by one.
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[Omnipotence - Lv.N/A]: It is a skill that allows the user to realize his/her desire in reality. Whether the desire is creation or destruction, the user can realize it. No MP or SP cost.
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[Instant Mastery - Lv.N/A]: It is a skill that allows the user to instantly master skills and spells.
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[Omnipotence Activation - Lv.N/A]: It is a skill that turns on or off Omnipotence. This skill is a derivative of the skill: Omnipotence.
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[Acting - Lv.10 (MAX)]: It is a passive skill that corrects the user to give convincing acting. At the maximum level, the user's acting skill will be perceived as the most natural thing.
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[Otherworld Clothes - Common Rarity]: It is a set of casual clothes worn by residents of the otherworld.
Stat Bonus: +1 Defense
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[Small Bow - 0/10 - Common Rarity - Unmastered]
Stat Bonus: +1 Attack, +1 Magic Attack, +2 Speed
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"What is this?"
"Do these things not exist in your world, heroes? You are experiencing 'status magic.' Everyone in this world can see and use it."
"Really?"
The short chat of Naofumi and the shifty minister interrupts my inspection on my status screen. I look up from my status screen to see everyone else.
It's when I realize that I have missed Ren's hilarious shocked expression, in Motoyasu's words, when Motoyasu mentions the floating button to access the status screen.
(I really want to see Ren's shocked face,) I silently lament, feeling a bit regretful. Then, I shift my gaze to my status screen.
"And what are we supposed to do? These numbers seem awfully low."
"Yes, well, you will need to go on a journey to further polish your abilities and to strengthen the legendary weapons you possess."
"Strengthen them? You mean these things aren't strong right from the get-go?"
"That is correct. According to the legends, the summoned heroes must cultivate their legendary weapons by themselves. That is how they will grow strong."
I spare half of my focus for eavesdropping the exchange between Naofumi and the minister, while the other half on the status screen.
"Even if they are legendary weapons, mine is only a shield. Wouldn't it probably be best if I used a sword or something?"
"It seems that's not an option. You can't use other weapons while possessing a legendary weapon, I say." Motoyasu suddenly responds to Naofumi's fretting.
I still keep my ears open.
"Really?!"
"Yes. You'll just have to rely on your companions, Fa—Naofumi."
"Are we going to form a party? The four of us?"
"That's not allowed, either."
"Huh?"
"Legendary Weapons hinder each other and prevent the heroes from gaining experience when they are near. We can still share the materials for strengthening them, though!"
"Wait for a—"
"Haah?!" Motoyasu rudely interrupts the minister.
"You seem unusually knowledgeable about all of this, Motoyasu." I hear Ren's inquiry.
"That's because I come from the future, I say!" He pauses, and I feel his gaze lingering on me briefly. He then continues, saying, "At the very least, I think so."
"Whatever..." Ren sounds dismissive before continuing, saying, "So you were saying?"
I look up from my status screen and see Ren staring at the minister.
"Well, what the Spear Hero said is accurate, more or less. The weapons will interfere with your growth if you form a party with each other."
"I see." Ren nods in acceptance.
I suddenly receive a notification that explains about the interference of Legendary Weapons against each other. It is similar to the alert in the anime.
"I guess it's true. So you think we should try and form our own parties?" Naofumi asks.
"I will attempt to secure travel companions for you all. Regardless, the evening draws near. Heroes, you should rest for the night and prepare for departure on the morrow. In the meantime, I will find companions for you," Trash replies.
"Thank you very much."
"Thanks."
"Thanks..."
Naofumi, Ren, and I show our gratitude towards Trash in that order. To be honest, my gratitude was pretty insincere.
However, Motoyasu has something else in his mind. He shouts, "The Shield Hero deserves to be treated the same as the other—"
"I know! I'll find someone! I promise I'll find people willing to be his companions!" Trash snaps at Motoyasu to shut him up.
After that, the meeting comes to the end, and a pretty female attendant leads us to the prepared guest room. As we walk to our destination, I disregard Motoyasu's confused gaze on me. My mind is somewhere else...