Well, what are you doing today?

　The next morning.
　Sylvia, who looked as if she could hear the exciting sound at any moment, asked me with an expectant look on her face. Eco is fidgety as well.

'Are you still going to measure DPS?'

　Yesterday, it was a search for maximum damage for one second only. Today you'd think you should have more challenge time, whether it's 10 seconds or 30 seconds. DPS can easily be measured by attacking a specific target for 30 seconds and dividing the total damage by 30.

　However, calculating DPS in this way is not very useful. Because that calculation can be done entirely on the table. And I already know all the highest DPS in each of those skills.

I've already figured out the skills that are going to give me the most consistent firepower if I attack with them, right?
Hmm. Probably a series of infantry archery shots.
Yes. Yes, the continuous fire of the infantry is the most stable. I call this "continuous firepower" relentless firepower.

　The tactic with the shortest preparation time and the shortest cool time, and the one that can produce consistent firepower over a long period of time, is the continuous firing of the Infantry Bow technique. Succession Firepower is a term coined from the addition of succession ability and firepower. I didn't call it that by myself, but it was called that in Mevion.

''But if you only had a momentary chance to hit an attack, which skill would give you the most firepower?
'That's the one I discovered yesterday. Zero-distance dragon archery.
Yeah. It will.

　If you were to attack in two patterns, infantry only and Ryoma only, for 30 seconds, and measured the DPS of each, the result would be an overwhelming victory for the infantry. Ryoma had too much time to prepare. However, when it comes to a single attack, Ryoma's is far more powerful.

''It's enough to know that much. You don't need to bother measuring your DPS yourself.

　Just yesterday's training, "Seeking maximum damage for one second", is enough to give me a full understanding of the features and advantages and disadvantages of the skill. My plan was well and truly hooked.

　Not only Silvia but also Eco must be able to understand it well. It's so much more than just realizing that the counterattack effect of 《Silver General Shield Art》 produces firepower, explaining to her what the DPS of the 【Shield Art】 skill is at this point in time would be called preaching to the Buddha.


''Then what are we going to do today?''
Relax.
Hm?　Relaxed?
Relax.
Relax ......
"Rilacs?

　It seems like nothing, but it's the ultimate in importance.

'This is not the only thing I can try to do. I hope that between today and the title fight, you'll learn it somehow.
...... No, I'm proud of you. You only have to look at Lord Second's daily life to see that. Relaxed, I see.

　Sylvia seemed to be on to something. Eco, on the other hand, said, "Ho? He opened his mouth and tilted his head.

He opened his mouth and tilted his head, "In a title fight, it's not uncommon for us to stare at each other for ten and twenty minutes. If you stay tense for that long, you'll be exhausted, and you won't be able to maintain your concentration. You can't keep your concentration. You need to relax and concentrate. That's the ideal situation. That's what you need to aim for.

　That's easier said than done.

There are a few ways to do it. There are two ways for me.
There are two of them?
Yeah. One thing you gotta do is immerse yourself in it. Get so deep that you won't come back down here. Dive till you get scared.
That's going to be hard to do, what a .......
It's not something you think you're doing, and you find yourself doing it a lot of the time.
'You don't think about anything else, you just get lost in it?
Yeah. Strictly speaking, it's so much easier to not think about the "extra" stuff.
...... Um, okay. So what's the other pattern?
'Thinking about something else.'
Buhaha!

　Sylvia spewed out her drink like a mist. Nice reaction.

'You're saying the opposite of what you said earlier!
Don't think about it.
I don't know what's going on here!
'I don't just think extra thoughts. I think a lot of extra thoughts. Pretty dumb stuff.
No, no, no, no!
It's a strange thing, though, because it calms you down. And you'll be able to make cooler decisions. If your mind is disturbed, do it.
...... Uh-huh?　Not unreasonable, or ......?
In my experience, it's good to think of something as erotic as possible.
I take it back!

　Yeah, but it's true.

Well, to each his own. This is just my way of doing things, and I'm sure there's a way of doing things that suits you as well. You should start looking for it today.
'Hmm, yes. I'll find my way out.
"Eco-friendly?
'Rei-kai!'

　It's refreshingly energetic. Maybe we don't need it for the seemingly chore-free Eco.


''Then I'll tell you what we're training for today and tomorrow. The two of you take off all of your equipment and go around the Limptofert dungeon with only your wooden bow and shield. By the way, you can only use archery and shield techniques. Transformation is not allowed.
............ wow.

　Sylvia made a ghastly face.
　Eco, too, let out a frustrated "hoge!" and her energy from earlier becomes hectic as if it were a lie. The cat's ears are also looking down, mindlessly.

There will be many tense moments. It's all about how you can relax.

　It's a bit of a rough treatment, but if they don't do this, they won't be ready for the winter title fight in three weeks.

　It's not like their lives are in danger because of their status. But you have to be prepared to be "surrounded by demons and beaten to a pulp" for the slightest mistake. Even though you won't die, it's quite painful. How long can you keep your composure in such a tense situation and keep performing? I feel a little sorry for them, but I hope they manage to get through this.

'If you make it back unscathed even once, I'll reward you.
"Look out, Mister Second!　Limpophart, etc., is our garden!
Let's do it, let's do it, let's do it!

　I flashed a little candy out of pity and this is what I got. I saw that the shopping trip the other day was a lot of fun. Well, I had a hell of a good time, too.

"Good luck!
What about the Second Lord?
I'm going to go around Isolois and rank all my shield techniques.
...... Oh, yeah?

　Why the honorific?





Squeak, squeak, squeak.

　Evening.
　When I returned from gaining experience, Sylvia was crying deliberately. Beside her, Eco is rubbing her back, saying, "I understand. It's a contrast.

What's wrong with that thing?
They seem to be in despair because it's too difficult to return unscathed.

　Yeah. Yukari's explanation makes a lot of sense.

"How many shots did you take?
I don't remember what happens after 10: ......

　Sylvia stops lying and crying and looks at me with a resentful expression on her face.

''Weapons are weak, no armor, and it hurts plainly ...... not much.
'I thought Limptofert was a garden?'
'The low attack power of the wooden bow wasn't at a level that could be covered by standing around. The victory was so different, it was confusing. It was like a whole different dungeon.
Of course. Have you got a plan in place?
I was desperate because I couldn't stand up.
You want a clue?
............ Mm.

　He nodded after being quite troubled. Eco also shook his head once in a persistent manner.
　For what it's worth, he must be frustrated.

　I broke the silence, smiling to myself, "I know, I know," I said.

I know." "Take as much time as you need to do this.



　　* * *



　Somehow, subconsciously, I've been thinking this way.

　The more time I spent on it, the harder it would be to stay focused and the more likely I would make mistakes.
　The more time I spent, the harder it would be to maintain my concentration and the more likely I would make mistakes, and the fewer attempts I would make, the further away I would be from an "unscathed return".

　It was the other way around.

　We spent a lot of time and effort, and proceeded carefully and intently.

　If you make a mistake, you'll waste a lot of time. ...... You shouldn't think about that as an afterthought.
　You should never make a mistake and proceed without making a mistake.

'Eco!　Get back!
Riley!

　If more than one demon appeared, we would lure them out one by one and make sure that we killed them together.

　Like slowly unraveling a tangled web, we never rush, never throw tantrums, never think about having fun, but steadily and endlessly do the small things one by one.

　It takes many times longer than it used to. But what about it? I'm going to return home unscathed. You just have to focus on that one thing.


Ah, ......!

　Three demons notice us. I took one, two, or even half a step too far forward.

''Guh!''

　Two against three. I can't handle it well. I only take one hit from the attack.


　d*mn...... d*mn, d*mn, d*mn, d*mn!

　I'm spoiled!　How could I have gone forward there without thinking!

　Godd*mn, that's frustrating. It's my fault. I shouldn't have gone easy on him.

"...... I'm sorry, let's just go round the block again.
Yeah. Good luck.

　We'll have to start all over again. All that hard work, all that hard work, from scratch.

Hmm. Okay.

　I suddenly realize. Earlier, I had been thinking, "Let's just focus on getting back intact," etc.

　I wasn't immersed in it. I had forgotten to relax. I was thinking, "Let's just focus. It's a chore.

............!

　Ha.
　The Second Lord was right.

　And for some reason, I can't help but feel that everything is "connected" to each other.
　Yesterday, the day before, and today. All of our training is geared towards the title fight.

　No way. .......

'Eco. Let's experiment a bit as we progress.
A crime scene?

　If you're surrounded, you can't deal with it. The weapons are weak, so you can't expect DPS. In other words. There's no better way to earn a shot of damage than with a skill that can be expected to provide instantaneous firepower.

　I had been using the flying wheel archery as usual. That would not be enough to kill them, but it was the only skill with the most firepower from a long range attack.

　But what about the zero-range 《Long Horse Archery》?

　Since approaching a demon increases the possibility of getting attacked, I would like to attack it from a remote position if possible. However, it's a different story if you can finish them off in one hit.

　The Limptophart dungeon is not very large. When you see a demon, unless you hide behind a rock, it is so small that it will come close to you the moment it sees you. Hence, the time you have to deal with them is also limited.

　For example, let's say we were noticed by two demons. If you can kill one of them with a zero-range dragon horse, Eco will be able to parry the remaining one and then the two of you can deal with it alone. It would increase efficiency and safety.

　I get it. Proceeding cautiously without making a mistake is not to be cowardly, is it?


'See, Eco?　Ryoma would have a shot!
'Oh!　Amazing!

　That's what I thought!　The Dragon Horse Archery has a "penetration effect". Most of the monsters in Limpophato are stone turtles and other strong-shelled creatures, but since it can penetrate their defenses, it may be a good match for them!

Ouch!
Ouch!

　We were teary-eyed from the sober pain of the stone turtle's concentrated attack, but still the joy of seeing the light was outweighed by the joy of seeing the light.

　Watch it, Limptoffert. Now it's time to get going.



　　* * * *.



Squeak, squeak, squeak.
Go to ...... and see what's up.

　When I got home in the evening, I found Sylvia sitting triangularly on the couch, crying lies, just like yesterday.

She said she made it all the way to the boss unscathed, but that the boss's rock turtle wasn't worth talking about.

　When Yukari finished explaining, she shook her head in a 'oh dear' manner and went back to her chores.

　I see. But to be able to reach the boss in two days is more than I expected.

　When I approached her to call out to her, Sylvia twitched with her face down.

''At first I thought I could take it down with Eco's Pari and my grinding ......

　I didn't need to ask him about it to start talking about something.

'But if you're just parrying, your target is going to be me attacking you. A rock turtle with no regard for ecology will just run straight into you and that's the end of it.

　Achaa: .......

'Well, that's no use. What would you do next time with a rock turtle?
'Mmm ...... The only thing I can think of is for Eco to repeat the silver general shield technique parry and take it out with a counterattack effect. If the rock turtle has a habit of aiming for the one that does the most damage, then I'll probably just damage it too while adjusting it so that it doesn't outweigh Eco's counterattack damage.


　...... Yeah. Well, that's fine. I think I've pretty much figured out what I'm trying to teach you.

"Sylvia, Eco. You've worked hard. I will reward you.

Oh, really?
No?

　The air that had been so thickly packed with people suddenly flared up.
　I nodded, and they said, "Yes! Yes! I'm very excited.

'We're shopping tomorrow. Yukari will be there, right?
Are you sure?
'Yeah, we need to take a break once in a while. Besides, ...... would be the last rest for you two.
Hm?　What did you just say, Mister Second?
No, no.

　The winter title game is only three weeks away.