The bath is a method of boiling water with a 'magic cauldron', and in order to boil water, a certain amount of magic power must be charged to the magic stone that is the energy source of the cauldron. It was decided that if we rested for a night, a certain amount would be recovered, so we all decided to bear the burden a little at a time.

　In my case, I could recover magic power indefinitely if I combined 'Assist Charge' and Ariadne's 'Energy Sync', but I didn't take that method this time because it would make Suzuna, who was a 'spirit medium', take up a lot of time.

''..........Rear-kun, I'm going to be allowed to go in from now on, but please tell Theresia-san to put her swimsuit on properly.''
'Well, well, I suppose Theresa can suddenly want to go in alone, too.
..........

　Theresia immediately shakes her head. Even though she expected it, she couldn't help but chuckle at the bluntness of it.

''I knew you'd want to be with Aricht.......I wonder what would happen if I talked to the people at the Four Seasons about this situation.
'Elitia, please don't tell me what to say... Theresa is just... well... what's the reason?'
'I think Theresa-san is always grateful to Arihito-san. And so am I.......so am I, Misaki.
"Yeah, yeah........Suzu-chan, I'm involved in this too, but I can't take a bath with my brother without wearing a swimsuit, as expected, it's a snail's eye sore!

　Misaki is holding her blushing cheeks as she seems to be really embarrassed, though she's browning it out. I don't think she's quite trustworthy, though, as long as she's wearing a bathing suit, she doesn't mind.

''Anyway, you'll be wearing a swimsuit. I'll do the same for you.
'No, no, Igarashi-san, that's not quite...'
You've been a great help to me, my brother, you've always been a great help to me...
"...I don't like baths. I'll go in, but I want to make it quick.

　Madoka and Melissa are also willing to go in with me if I can get a swimsuit. It's okay to say no once and for all, or rather, that should be the norm.

'You two, you don't have to push yourself. In some cases it would be quicker to go in as a group of several people, but I basically think I should go in alone at the end of the... well, wait, Teresa. I'm not saying I don't want to go in, you know...
It would be nice to have someone else join the arhites, since I'd be embarrassed every time we were together.
Ellie, are you a bit overprotective of your brother?　She sounds more like a sissy than Kyouka's sister.
''Well, it's not like I'm being overprotective or anything. It's just that there's one guy, so I thought it would be better to watch him so that he doesn't get too weird... a, it's not that I don't trust Arihito, it's just that I don't think the average man can be so calm. .....

　That said, I think it's not the same as everyone going in together on a rotating basis - everyone has a convincing look on their face at Elitia's argument.


I'm glad you're willing to put in the work, Igarashi-san, but it's okay outside of the bath.
'Eh ... well, well, that's true, but ...'

　I'm happy for Igarashi-san's feelings, but I wonder if there is a swimsuit that can cover up the large undulations that were so noticeable in the vertical sweater without any problems, even if it's just a vertical sweater.

　Swimsuits seem to be a scarce commodity, so I'll have to wait for them to come in, find and buy them, or make them. I can't collect them myself, so I have to go with the flow and get them - only, while moving forward with the search. Then it's going to be quite a long-winded story.　

I'm sure if you talk to Ryoko-san about it, she'll be able to tell you where the swimsuits are sold, though. Big brother, what do you think of swimsuit competitions?
'Well, no matter what you say we're going to have to put that on hold for now and go take a bath first.
'Eh, you could have told me that much. Suzu's curious about it too, right?
''........Arihito-san, do you like swimsuits like the one Ryoko-san was wearing?''
Well, well, like it or not, don't make me answer that question.

　With that kind of answer, it's like saying that a competitive swimsuit isn't bad - but as expected, they all had a look on their face that they had something to think about. It's not very easy to say, but if you can procure a swimsuit that suits each of you, it's the best thing to do.

　　　◆ ◆ ◆

　Igarashi-san returned to her room once, and the first thing Suzuna and the other members of her room did was to take a bath.

''Brother Arihito, thank you for your guidance!''
'Yeah, nice to meet you too. Can you show me the skills acquisition screen as soon as possible?

　Madoka shows me how to operate the license - as she does every time, there is a mixture of anticipation and nervousness in the moment when she shows me a person's skills.

　Skills Acquired ◆.
　Price Negotiation 1: Slightly reduce the price at the time of purchase and slightly increase the price at the time of sale.
　Appraisal Technique 1: Appraise unidentified tools. You can only appraise some of the tools.
　Item removal: select and remove tools from your inventory or from the warehouse.
　Hide: Disappear and hide, making you less of a target for enemies.

　Available Skills

　Inventory: Identify and control the goods in the warehouse.
　The Art of Arithmetic: when equipped with an arithmetic tool, perform calculations at high speed
　Paperwork 1: Transcribe information on paper and other documents
　Sales Technique 1: You will be able to make business negotiations easier.
　Bribery 1: Give your counterpart money or goods and have him or her accept your offer
　Carry a backpack, regardless of muscle strength.

　Remaining skill points: 2

Ah ... 'Inventory' is a skill I've always wanted. The people at the merchants' union told me to keep it because it would be required.
Being able to keep track of what's inside is pretty important.
'I'm glad ... that's what your brother said. I'll miss you if I can't be of service to you after you let me into the party.

　Madoka patted her chest in relief. 'I know that the position of 'merchant' is more of a 'supporter' orientation, but I'm sure that being at the party would be quite helpful.

''Well, let's take an 'inventory'.
'Ha, yes ... a little bit. When I was running a beginner's stall in the Eighth Ward, I saved up my money and bought a big backpack, but I couldn't carry it if I packed it all in, so I kept putting it away.

　It was said that Madoka used the warehouse key to store the goods in the warehouse, and then used her 'itemizing' skills to take them out and put them on the stalls. He had written the list of goods himself.

　That would make 'Paperwork 1' a useful skill as well, but when I asked her about that - I wondered about that area, and she shook her head.

'I think it's a useful skill, since I can write the paperwork myself in time, but I think I'd prefer something else.
''Well then, I'll use my backpack for the sake of it. But if we have the 'itemized' items, we don't have to carry our stuff around... no, not really?
''Putting out 'goods' uses magic power. When we set up the stall, we would spend about two hours putting out the goods after we had a meal that would speed up the recovery of our magic power. It didn't take us that long to close the stall, though, because we could use the key to the warehouse to transfer the items.

　It's a useful skill, but it uses magic power - the maximum value of magic power increases as your level increases, so it's easy to use the 'stocking stuffer', but the 'baggage-taking' is a useful skill for the time being.

The "stocktaking" and "cartage" skills are useful for the time being.
'Yes it's been a long time since I've taken a skill. I'm very happy.

　Many of Madoka's skills are excellent, but he seemed to want to use a backpack, so I thought 'carrying a load' was a good idea. The final deciding factor is still his feelings.

''........Congratulations.''
Thank you, Melissa.

　As Madoka got her skills, Melissa, who had been waiting her turn, came over to us. She took a seat next to me and operated the license and placed it on the table.

''Look....''


　Skills Acquired

　Knife-wielding: Increases the attack power of edged weapons.
　Splitting the helmet: Attack the enemy's head. This is more likely to cause part destruction.
　Cut off: Cut off horns, tails, and other parts of the body when you succeed.
　Dismantling Technique 1: Dismantle the target and cut it into parts.
　Create Magical Tools 1: Attach magical stones to equipment.
　Cat stroke: Cancels the target's action if you succeed.

　Skills you can acquire

　Skill Level 2
　Scaling: When attacking a target, the enemy's defense may be reduced. Required Skill: Cut off
　Hangman's Cut: Attack by hanging the target up. The attacker is prone to local destruction. Required skill: Demolition Technique 1
　Scratch and Claw: Perform up to 8 consecutive combat attacks to inflict "bleeding". Required skill: Scratch
　Tool Creation 2: Perform a "synthesis" process using two or more different types of magical stones. Required skill: Magical Tool Creation 1

　Skill Level 1.
　Connoisseur 1: Assess the quality of demon ingredients.
　Cooking 1: Cooking will add an additional effect.
　Scratch: Perform two consecutive combat attacks to inflict "bleeding".
　Ambush: Attack unnoticed by the enemy. Easily becomes a critical strike.
　Spinning and Landing: Jump down from a height without being injured.
　Grooming: Restores systemic anomalies to the body.

　Remaining skill points: 4

(The skills for fighting, dismantling demons, and putting magical stones on equipment... at level 4, you can take skill level 2. And is it a unique skill of "Warcat"?)

What do you think?
'All of the combat and your specialized skills as a 'demolisher' are interesting. Sounds like you've been pretty selective in taking them.
''They told me that I should expect to not be able to re-shake my skill points, so I chose what I wanted to use and what I needed to use. I want to get better at handling knives.

　At this point in time, there are enough skills to bring out the performance of the 'Meat Slicing Knife (Butcher's Knife)', but there are some combat skills that seem even more powerful.

　However, until now, I've been asking Melissa to put magic stones on my equipment, so I'm not sure if I should ask her to take 'Magic Tool Creation 2' first, or if I should ask the shop in the future.

''........Hmm?　This cooking skill is....
'I helped cook meals at home, so I can do some of the original work.

　One of the challenges of labyrinth exploration is eating when exploring a long maze. Inevitably, portable food and the like is tasteless and doesn't have the same added benefits as when you eat in a store.

''I like cooking, so I'd like to take 'Cooking 1'.
''Then I guess it would be better to have a 'connoisseur' as well. I think whether or not the meat of a demon is edible is also a 'quality' thing.
It's important as a 'demolitionist' to be able to understand the quality of the material.

　I wonder if that was Rykerton-san's teaching - Melissa seemed to be thinking about something, but when she looked at me again, she gave a small nod.


''I'd like to. But I'd like to save 'Magic Tool Creation 2' if I can. Because my father wanted me to take it.
'Yeah, okay. Let's keep the combat skills basically low key. I might get them when I have extra skill points, though.

　Melissa operates the license and gets 'Magic Tool Creation 2', 'Connoisseur 1', and 'Cooking 1' - but she hesitates a bit.

　The one she was looking at was 'Grooming'. She was curious about that skill, which was probably unique to 'Warcat', or rather, she seemed to want to take it if she could.

''Well I don't like to bathe myself. If I had this skill, I could groom Zion. Like a 'trimmer'.
Well, that's the thing I'm struggling with, isn't it?
'It'll be fine when we next level up. Me and Madoka don't always work together, so it's going to be a little while longer. With Alihit's party, we could be level 5 someday.

　That being said, I think again - even those who have been in the role of 'supporters' still have a desire for new skills.

　They check the skills and choose which ones to take. Because it is difficult to raise the level of the skill, the joy of that moment is greater than ever, and even I, who am not the one who is acquiring it, am excited just by watching it.

'Melissa, and Madoka, let's make sure our levels are not too far apart. Even if they don't have the skills for combat, there are plenty of ways to make up for it.
My brother....
"...and I want to 'groom' Madoka. Because I think it could be used on humans too.
I'm not that fluffy.........well, I'm not that fluffy.......well, I'm just a little bit hairy, but.......

　That's why I'm a little convinced that he prefers to wear a turban - although when I say frizzy hair, it looks like his hair is just a little bouncy.

'It's not all about strategy and choosing skills just for the sake of the party,' I might get down on my knees and ask you to take some skills at some point, though. Will you laugh and forgive me then?

...me too. I'm good at getting down.

　Being a "warcat" and carrying the power of a cat in her body, Melissa is probably quite flexible. Imagine a cat pouncing on its prey from a prone position, and it's a reliable one.

　I'll have her equipped with 'Fobidoun Scythe' and aim for a critical strike from 'ambush' as a combatant - 'Sometimes you can take out an enemy in one hit' is not ten percent, but when combined with Misaki's morale release, it could be a must-have combo! .

　The next level should also get 3 skill points, so I want to get the ambush and grooming. In order to do that, it would be better to have them accompany me instead of the waiting group, after all - what a luxury to worry about, since Melissa has things she can do even if she waits.

''Well it's about time for everyone to get out of the bath, so next time you two should come in alone.
Yes. Thank you, brother.
Thank you.

　They thanked me and went back to their room to get a change of clothes. I also decided to go check on Louisa-san, who was sleeping, and Theresa, who was following her around.