Debut Match
Stream's already off
Having cut the stream in a panic, I sat there with Undtung, carefully reading Mitsu's mood.
In the silence of the room, the only sound was Mitsu's muffled sobbing.
I turned a faintly accusatory look on Undtung.
[Why are you looking at me like that…]
A powerful instinct activates when a result favorable to you is about to occur.
That was the trait that had made me trust him enough to attempt the enhancement — and looking at it now, something felt off.
A result favorable to him had been the enhancement failing?
I checked Undtung's inner thoughts with Trust, and his mind laid itself bare.
[Now that the weapon's gone, I might actually stand a chance against her]
You selfish little bastard! So as long as YOU come out on top, everything's fine, is that it?!
Of course he hadn't done it on purpose — but from now on, whenever I relied on Undtung's instincts, I was going to factor in what "favorable" meant from his perspective.
Mitsu seemed to have composed herself at last. She stopped crying and addressed me.
"Princess, I am quite all right."
"Huh?"
"It was a treasured possession, yet it appears the weapon was far too unworthy to receive Your Grace's blessing."
Mitsu was trying to clear the awkward air. I thought the tension was starting to ease — until something far more chilling came out of her mouth.
"I have a private matter to discuss with Undtung. Kindly remain here a moment."
With that, Mitsu dragged Undtung off to the bathroom. He wore the face of a mouse that had just met a cat — like he might burst into tears at any second.
[Princess, please stop her!]
"……"
[SAVE ME!!!]
Kyaaaaaaagh!
Forgive me.
I turned a deaf ear to Undtung's inner screams and pretended not to hear the horrific noises coming from the bathroom.
About a minute later, the bathroom door opened and Mitsu stepped out. The soft smile on her face suggested her anger had completely burned itself out.
"You okay…?"
Some unidentifiable green blood stained Mitsu's hands. When I asked after her, she answered as if delighted.
"Princess. I am perfectly fine."
Yeah, I wasn't asking about you. I was asking about Undtung.
"The blood upon my hands is not my own."
That's exactly what makes it scarier.
"You didn't kill him, right…?"
"Creatures that once lived within the Tower do not perish so easily."
"Right… As long as that made you feel better, that's all that matters."
Sorry, Undtung — but your sacrifice restored peace to our home.
"Well then. Looks like I just got an opportunity to try out that restoration ability."
I looked at Mitsu's katana, which had turned translucent.
If sufficient materials are provided, it can be restored using Give It Back Right Now!
"I'd been saving this for stream content, so this works out perfectly."
A-rank Magic Stone 10/10
S-rank Magic Stone 0/1
Fortunately, I had plenty of A-rank magic stones. The problem was the S-rank one.
Ugh. If I'd known, I would have held at least one back.
Mitsu and I still hadn't finished our Tower entry cooldowns. Waiting it out was an option, but…
[I'm a failure…]
Looking at Mitsu sitting there all depressed like that, I just wanted to fix it for her as fast as possible.
The only one who could still enter the Tower was Undtung — and his rank was the issue.
Hard Mode Floor 1 was A-rank. Floor 2 would be the same grade, or something even stronger.
"Think Undtung can clear Hard Floor 2?"
"In this humble one's estimation, it is possible."
"Really? There's a rank gap, though."
"Does he not possess a dagger that has received Your Grace's blessing?"
Come to think of it — the guy was packing a +5 enhanced cheat weapon. That might actually be enough to pull it off.
"Kyaaaaagh…"
Undtung finally crawled out of the bathroom.
[I just want to lie down and slack off in peace…]
Undtung, give up on your dreams and get to work.
That was a dream that was never going to come true.
He looked miserable, but he was going to have to suffer a little more today.
The moment Undtung's body recovered, we set out for the Tower and stood before the entrance to Hard Mode Floor 2.
"So… you're telling me to clear this place alone?"
"You can do it. If it's you."
"No. No, no, no! How am I supposed to clear this?!"
Even my encouragement did nothing for him. Undtung clearly wanted no part of this.
"It exploded because of you, so you will be the one to gather the materials."
"I don't think that was actually my fault…"
At Mitsu's scolding, Undtung flinched and looked at me.
[The one who blew it up was the Princess, though…]
I had no idea why he was looking at me. He couldn't possibly be blaming me, right?
His blasphemous thoughts were on full display, but I decided to let it slide.
"A lowly servant dares to shift the blame onto the Princess?"
Mitsu, of course, had no intention of letting it slide.
"……"
And so Undtung got an earful for a while.
[Someday I'm going to crush that one for sure.]
Leaving Undtung's delusional ambitions behind me, I turned on the stream.
Hard Mode Floor 2 Challenge!
Apparently my weight class had grown — viewers found their way to the stream without me even having to post in the gallery.
"Yeeey~ Hello, everyone. Today we're going to clear Hard Mode Floor 2."
"Today is Undtung's solo debut match!"
"Undtung, any last words before you go in?"
This might be the last time anyone saw him, after all.
"Uh… well…"
While Undtung was still hesitating, a donation came in.
You losing?
A spark lit up in Undtung's eyes. Whether his Opportunist trait had kicked in or not, the usual Undtung was gone — replaced by a look of pure confidence.
[This is my chance. A chance to look good in front of everyone!]
"I win."
The sealed Tower doors opened, and Undtung walked inside. Just like with Mitsu, I switched the feed to the drone, and the Tower's interior came into view.
The monster standing before Undtung was wrapped in iron plate and swinging a brutally oversized mace.
KRAAANG!
One clean hit and his body would probably explode on the spot. The force was that bad.
Whoosh—
The silver lining was that Undtung was faster than the knight's attacks. Without the Speed on the Average Work Opportunity I'd crafted for him, he probably would have been moving at about the same pace as the Ironclad Knight.
I tried out the stream's betting system. It wasn't real-money gambling, of course — just a system where you wagered the points you earned from watching the stream…
"You can also pay for enhancement costs with points, by the way."
The moment I mentioned that points could be used for my enhancements instead of cash, the chat exploded exactly the way I'd expected.
The odds flow made Undtung the heavy favorite. The reason was simple: he hadn't taken a single hit yet, weaving around the Ironclad Knight's attacks and landing every strike of his own.
That didn't mean he had a complete advantage, though.
"Kyaek!"
Even a graze from that mace dealt meaningful damage to Undtung's body.
The stalemate dragged on — until it broke in a single instant.
The winner was Undtung. Using the Opportunity I'd made for him, he punched through the Ironclad Knight's armor and landed a critical wound. If that dagger hadn't been an Average Work, Undtung might actually have died in there.
I'd told him beforehand to retrieve the drone, so I switched the feed back to myself.
"As expected, Undtung takes the win~ Any underdog bettors feeling the pain?"
What a relief. Honestly, I'd thought Undtung was going to lose too.
"I told you I'd win, didn't I?!"
"Do not grow arrogant."
Undtung had been strutting over with his chest puffed out — until Mitsu's single barb deflated him all over again.
"Here it is, ma'am…"
Undtung pressed the Tower clear rewards into my hands.
◈ S-rank Magic Stone ×1
◈ Ironclad Knight's Armor Fragment
It might have looked like scraps, but considering Floor 30's clear reward was ten S-rank magic stones, this was an absurdly generous haul. Or maybe Floor 30 just had terrible value.
"Great. Time to restore it."
I pulled out Mitsu's Katana (Formerly) and activated Give It Back Right Now!
FLASH—
White light poured out as the magic stones dissolved. When the brilliance faded, Mitsu's katana had been restored to its original form.
"Princess… this one is overwhelmed with gratitude."
Mitsu's face lit up with pure emotion at the return of her weapon.
You are the first to clear Hard Mode Floor 2!
A massive amount of Enhancement EXP has been granted.
The first-clear reward dumped an enormous amount of EXP into me, and I leveled up on the spot.
A portion of the (EX) Legendary Blacksmith ability has been unlocked.
Exclusive Weapon
Convert an artifact into an exclusive weapon usable only by a Familiar. Requires a one-month cooldown after use.
"Exclusive Weapon…?"
That is so cool!
I could finally craft exclusive weapons tailored specifically for my Familiars.