Disclaimer: I do not own Danmachi or anything created by the author Fujino Omori; all rights go to him. I only own my original character Sleipnir.
Speech: "Papyrus of Status"
Thoughts: 'Isn't this a little too much for a single status sheet.'
Magic: "Firebolt."
Screaming/Demonic Voice: "Status Updates Woohoo."
Chapter 3 Familia Status
Dungeon
Because the dungeon party still had some time left, they spent the rest of the afternoon mapping out the second to the fourth floor for Sly. They did so at a steady pace, to regain some stamina. During, that period, Sly also noted his findings about the fifth floor.
When they finally left the dungeon, it was already evening. They went back to the guild and after waiting for 20 minutes in the queue they were able to exchange their magic stones.
The guild employee exchanging our magic stones was a werewolf with red hair going to her waist and cold yellow eyes. "My name is Rose Fannett. Have you split the different magic stones?"
Ouka took a moment to look at Asuka, who shook her head. "No, we haven't."
"Ahh. Then remember it for next time. Are you new adventurers in Orario?" They nodded. "I see. The first time it's free to use the magic stone sorter, but in the future, there will be a cost of 5 percent of all the magic stones you earn."
While the machine sorted their magic stones, Sly took another step forward. "Fannett-san, how exactly is the value of magic stones determined?"
Rose looks at him coldly, causing him to move the tip of his tail nervously. "There are two main factors. Firstly, the size of the magic stone and then the purity. For example, the magic stones of goblins are only the size of a fingertip and are very impure, so they only contain a little crystallized mana. Their value is around 25 valis. The impure magic stones lose their magic after a short time interval, but the purer ones from enhanced monsters can last for months, which significantly increases their value as they can release the same amount of magic energy continuously for longer."
"Thank you very much for the explanation. Could I also get the price for the other stones we've got?"
"Fine, we have another minute or two until the stones are sorted. Kobold stones go for 30 valis. Frog shooters 50 valis. War shadows 100 valis. The enhanced stone from the irregular is far more valuable, as it is a bigger and purified version of the normal stone. At least 10 times the normal value, so around a thousand." Sly made a new entry for his dungeon study and added a value section. And also asked about the monsters on the following floors.
Sly's Dungeon Study
Upper Floor: 5-6
Structure: Cavelike interior changes to a light green colour. Higher monster spawn rates and there are monsters with significantly more power in comparison to the encounters on previous floors from this floor onward. War Shadows who are often called newbie killers can appear on this floor.
Monsters:
Frogshooter: A frog monster that has one large eye. It attacks by shooting out its long tongue and pulling adventurers off balance. Dangerous when working with other monsters.
Weak points: Extended tongue, eye, legs
Value: 50 valis
War Shadow: A dark humanoid monster. They have a dark cloth hiding their torso, below the cloth they have a black ribcage surrounding their magic stone. They have long arms with three claws that are sharp like knives and prefer ambush tactics. They are a very fast monster that should only be fought with at least an E in agility. Avoid fighting multiple war shadows below a high D in agility.
Weak points: Fire
Value: 100 valis
Rose's features calmed a little during their discussion, and then the machine finished. "You have earned a total of 9'000 valis from the normal monster stones and 1'000 from the irregular. Then another 5'000 valis because the irregular war shadow was the target of an extermination quest, it caused a lot of trouble and harmed a lot of level 1 adventurers."
There she paused for a moment before looking at Sly. "Well done, but please do not recklessly charge into the unknown. Today you managed to defeat the irregular, but there will come a time when it is too much for you, so you must always have a backup plan to at least escape."
Ouka bowed to her. "We understand. We have ways to retreat when necessary."
She looks at them with a stern look. "Good, you must always have backup plans when things go bad. I have seen too many adventurers die young because they could not understand this simple lesson. Here is your valis. And just as a guideline, you will most likely earn between 10'000-15'000 valis every day on the top floors."
Sly bowed slightly. "Thank you for your help, Fannett-san."
The party then split up their rewards. Everyone gained 3'000 valis. Leaving the guild, they headed back towards the Hostess of Fertility.
Hostess of Fertility
At 7 PM Takemikazuchi's familia returned to the inn. Meeting up with Takemikazuchi, they took their seats and told him about their adventure.
"Incredible. To think you would already have an adventure on your second day in Orario. Seeing as all of you returned without any major injuries, I will see this as a triumphant first day in the dungeon. I would also prefer to update your statuses now before we eat so that we can finish with a good meal."
"Of course, Takemikazuchi-sama. I would gladly update my status." Mikoto replied with a twinkle in her eyes.
"Very well. Then follow me upstairs into our rooms and we can begin with Ouka. As usual, you may all be present while I update your statuses.
Mia-san. I will take my familia upstairs to update their statuses. We will return for our meal once we are finished."
Inn Room - Sleipnir's POV
"You know the process, Ouka." He sat down on the bed and revealed the familia tattoo, made out of thousands of hieroglyphs stacked together, on his back to Take.
Once he stood behind Ouka, he took out a small needle and pricked his thumb. Then slowly, a drop of godly blood, also called ichor, assembled on his thumb. The ichor had an orange glow to it.
Take redrew his familia symbol, a sword stuck in the ground. The tattoo slowly glowed before the hidden hieroglyphs unfolded from the familia symbols and the space above the symbol distorted and countless hieroglyphs arranged themselves before the god's keen gaze.
'It's always fascinating to see the hieroglyphs fade into this plane. Take once told me that the process directly touches the path a person traveled through time and then imprints their actions onto their body and soul, thus expanding them.'
Take saw them change and along with the change saw glimpses of their battle and their effects on Ouka. They showed his mistakes and success in equal measure.
"Hmm, I see. You have taken the most damage in your encounter and had to hold your own against the enhanced war shadow on your own for quite some time. It seems your work has paid off. Ouka, you can now level up whenever we update your status. Even more important is the fact that you have finally unlocked your first magic slot."
Take reads with some surprise.
"Wow. I have a spell like the young lads. Please tell me its effect Take." Ouka asked with giddiness.
"Naturally, the spell is called fortify and can be used for magical shields. I don't see a chant for it, so it seems you will have to find one yourself."
"So it's defensive magic. Like my strength, its purpose is clearly to protect our familia. It suits me perfectly, but I will probably require Sly-kun's help to find a suitable chant. After all, it sounds like this magic is just an improved version of the exercise you and Sly had me go through."
Sly feeling proud of his plan's success elaborates. "Do you see now Ouka-san? Anyone can learn magic if they are determined enough to train their mana control. It was a good choice to have you go through the leaf exercise. It not only increased your magic stat but also leads to you developing the ability to direct your mana into any part of your body. Which now evolved into your first spell." Before Sly can get lost speaking about teaching magic, Take coughs.
"Anyway. You also have to decide on a development ability. Right now, you only have the option of choosing either Abnormal Resistance or Hopolite. You could unlock another development ability and improve your stats if you wait a little longer before you level up. Furthermore, I would advise you to improve your magic stat now that you have access to a spell. It should be far easier to train it with your new spell. But in the end, it is up to you. You may decide until I have looked at all the others."
Take translated hieroglyphs to the common tongue and then onto paper for Ouka and the familia to read.
Kashima Ouka Alias: ? Race: Dwarf
Level 1(+)
Strength: S 989 - S 999
Endurance: S 999 - S 999
Dexterity: B 832 - B 857
Agility: B 853 - B 883
Magic: I 250 - I 250
Development Abilities:
Magic:
1. (New) Fortify: Able to channel mana into the body while holding your position to increase defense.
Skills:
1. Dvergr Body: Dvergr Body raises Ouka's strength and endurance stat.
2. Martial Artist: Increases the effect of weapons the user has trained to use and increases the power of techniques. (Greataxe, Spear, Tower Shield)
Techniques:
Kokuu: An axe strike using every ounce of strength the body can produce. Uses far more stamina than a normal strike.
Kōtai o Sorasu: A deflecting retreat that is always guarded by the shield-bearer. When used correctly, the shield-bearer must retreat while deflecting any strike at him with his shield, without taking the brunt of the attack, by constantly changing the angle of defense.
"Well. Next up would be Mikoto-san. Please sit down and allow me to update your status."
Mikoto sat down and went through the same ritual as Ouka.
"Mikoto, I am happy to see that you progressed as well. Just like Ouka, you had to overcome yourself during the battle and even with your wound, you still fought valiantly against the frog monsters." He looks at her proudly.
"You are also ready for a level-up. You have three choices for your development ability. The first is, once again, Abnormal Resistance, followed by Hunter and lastly, Swordman. If I am not wrong, the last ability is a rare choice, as it increases the effectiveness of any swordlike weapon and improves your learning speed. Aside from your development abilities, you also got a new skill. Or rather two subskills that carry the same name."
Mikoto smiles. "After Ouka's magic, my skill should be offensive. Perhaps enhancing my counters and evasion? Am I correct Take?"
"It is called Yatanokurogarasu. Unfortunately, it is not offensive but rather a support skill. A very useful one at that. It cancels stealth and detects all presences in a range dependent on your level. One variation allows you to locate allies and the other enemies."
Sly looks at Mikotos' face with his tail quickly swaying in amusement. "Mikoto-san, now you can't complain anymore that I always use stealth as my favourite tactic. After all, your abilities suit the role of a ninja far better than mine. You can now even evade all encounters." Mikoto looks annoyed and would have retorted if not for Take, who looked sternly at Sly.
"Sleipnir-kun. You know I only thought you how to use ninjutsu and stealth, because you needed it hide from pursuers in the east. I am still not happy with you learning such tactics and only fighting honorably when necessity demands it."
"I understand Takemikazuchi-sama. I just find it amusing that the honorable Mikoto-sama has got another ability to improve upon a field she views with distaste. It is, after all, one of the points any good warrior must learn to avoid dangerous encounters. I would love to have Yatanokurogarasu as my skill." Sly replies with slightly dropped ears.
"I understand but it is just as useful for Mikoto-san. The two of you can now synergise and possibly avoid monsters completely when you meet another irregular." Take waits until Sly nodded in understanding.
Yamato Mikoto Alias: ? Race: Human
Level 1(+)
Strength: A 867 - A 894
Endurance: A 824 - A 849
Dexterity: S 999 - S 999
Agility: S 953 - S 963
Magic: B 737 - B 747
Development Abilities:
Magic:
1. Futsunomitama: A type of gravity magic that crushes a given area. Upon use, a dark purple sword of light falls down on the opponent, and at the same time, multiple centric circles appear below them. As the sword touches the circles, it creates a huge dome-shaped force field with a radius dependent on the magic stat.
I pray to you, my god, who destroys all things. Lead me to the highest heavens. Descend from heaven and rule over the earth. War God's Strike - FUTSUNOMITAMA
Skills:
1. Enhanced Stealth: Trained in infiltration and remaining undetected.
2. (New) Yatanokurogarasu: Enables Mikoto to search for enemies within a set effect range, including hidden enemies. The skill only works on monsters that Mikoto has encountered before and will consider any clones of a monster to be an entirely separate monster. Active trigger.
3. (New) Yatanoshirogarasu: Yatanoshirogarasu enables Mikoto to search for other Familia members within a set effect range. However, she is only able to search for members of the same Familia as her. Active trigger.
4. Martial Artist: Increases the effect of weapons the user has trained to use and increases the power of techniques. (Katana, Kunai)
Techniques:
Mikazuchi: A technique created by Takemikazuchi from a foreign technique known as Frankensteiner. It consists of jumping into the air and holding the opponent with the legs and then throwing them against the ground.
"Mikoto-san, you now have to decide whether to level up. I will update the others in the meantime."
Ouka intervenes before Take can continue. "Take I still have a question. There is a new alias section on our status sheet. Why do we now need an alias?"
"That's something I was uncertain about until I asked advisor Flott-san. Perhaps you still remember that some of Ameterasu's stronger adventurers had special names. Shunshin no Shisui, the only first-class adventurer of the far east for example."
Ouka thinks back. "Yeah. There was that one adventurer that was said to be the fastest in the east and I know for a fact that his family name is not Shunshin."
Take smiles and continues. "You are correct the most prodigious Shisui came here with Amaterasu and received his first alias after reaching level 2. He was called the Eyes before getting his current alias at level 4. As for you. Every adventurer that reaches the realm of high class adventurers is given their first alias at the quarterly donatus by us gods. The donatus is in 1 month and I will have to enter a debate with the other gods to prevent you from getting any pernicious aliases."
Take turns to Chigusa, who unsurely plays with the hem of her clothes. "Please sit down Chigusa-chan." After a moment of hesitation, Chigusa overcomes her embarrassment and takes a towel to hide her front.
"It seems our good fortunes have ended for now. Chigusa-chan, unfortunately, you have not reached your level up. On the other hand, you managed to jump quite a bit with your stats. It really is impressive how much more extallia an adventurer can earn in the dungeon. On the other hand I have not updated your status during our journey so it's not too surprising. Here is your status Chigusa-chan. Continue along your path, and you will break through to level two soon." Take replies while looking at Chigusa with a comforting smile.
Hitachi Chigusa Alias: ? Race: Human
Level 1
Strength: A 840 - A 864
Endurance: D 501 - D 526
Dexterity: S 909 - S 921
Agility: B 763 - B 778
Magic: C 624 - C 636
Development Abilities:
Magic:
1. Jian Yajirushi: A spell following the idea of pars like the mythical Jian bird that can only fly in pairs. Changes arrows into Jian arrows that can hone in on their target and separate with a mental command from the caster, thereby losing their honing ability.
Twin birds hear my call, enchant my pull, guide my path - JIAN YAJIRUSHI
Skills:
1. Martial Artist: Increases the effect of weapons the user has trained to use and increases the power of techniques. (Warbow, Longbow, Shortbow)
Techniques:
Piasu Isshi: A charged bow attack able to pierce through armour.
Ribaundo Isshi: A special technique to fire an arrow that can rebound from one surface while continuing at the same velocity.
"Well then. Sleipnir-kun, as you commented on nearly all others. Let's see how you like to be the center of attention. Please show me your back."
Following the comment, Sly's tail twitched anxiously for a bit with everyone looking at him, before he took his place and waited patiently for Take to begin.
Take then took the needle and piqued his finger. When he tried to reach Sly's back, the tail grabbed onto his hand. "Yes, you are a good tail. Now Sleipnir-kun, could you please stop your tail so we can continue?"
"Oh, of course. You know my tail sometimes has a mind of its own. It is far too curious for its own good," Sly then looked at his tail. "Bad tail, you will not be brushed today." Which then leads to Sly being hit in the back of the head by his tail. Scowling, he grabbed it and freed his back.
- Sleipnir Alias: ? Race: Renard (?)
Level 1
Strength: B 791 - A 826
Endurance: A 868 - A 888
Dexterity: S 903 - S 927
Agility: S 920 - S 943
Magic: S 990 - SS 1001
Development Abilities:
Magic:
1. Illusio: Illusion-type magic that can affect multiple senses depending on mind usage and chant length. Constantly drains the mind when in use. Strong, perceptive abilities may notice inconsistencies and break through the illusion.
Hiding trickster, oh cunning fox spirit, refracting prism, super aligning sounds, unfeeling tinge, indistinguishable fragrance, bland savour, by the father of the eight-legged horse, I command thee to affect the judgement of reality - ILLUSIO
Skills:
1. Kogitsune Magica: Naturally born to wield magic. Increases the effects of the user's magic and reduces mana usage. Allows for easier selective chanting of spells to manipulate their results.
2. Foxfire: Foxfire is a natural ability of spirit foxes and may be learnt by any related races with enough practice. It gives natural pyrokinesis and gives access to the "Foxfire" spell to create a magical fire blue fire. The Mana cost is dependent on the heat and size of the flame.
3. Enhanced Senses: Renards have an improved sense of smell, much better hearing and slight night vision.
4. Martial Artist: Increases the effect of weapons the user has trained to use and increases the power of techniques. (Naginata, Spear, Kunai)
Techniques:
Piasu: A melee attack able to pierce through armour.
"Well, as always, your growth rate is very high. You haven't reached the level-up requirement yet, but all your parameters reached A and one even reached SS. That bit must remain a familia secret. It could cause a lot of problems if some of the more ruthless gods took an interest in you Sleipnir-kun." Sly and the others took this warning seriously. Although they would never tell anything about their statuses outside the familia. For Take to repeat his warning was telling enough.
"Aside from that, it seems that you might be unlocking a bloodline. There is some hidden information on your race, but I can't see any details. It is hidden within an illegible mess of hieroglyphs." Take exclaims with surprise.
"A bloodline. Interesting. Perhaps it has something to do with my very high magic stat. But that's strange?" Sly finished while glancing at his tail, which went unnoticed by all but Take.
'The mana of a renard is concentrated in his tail and naturally releases wasted mana, which is why my tail is magic resistant. But why does it feel like mine releases more after surpassing the normal limit of 999 magic.'
While Sly is lost theorizing about the characteristics of his tail, Take continues. "Now, to the last status update for today. Asuka-san, please take a seat."
Hayashi Asuka Alias: ? Race: Half-Elf
Level 1
Strength: B 720 - B 750
Endurance: E 410 - E 433
Dexterity: B 775 - B 792
Agility: C 623 - C 653
Magic: I 10 - I 10
Development Abilities:
Magic:
Skills:
1. Solum Superesse: The user can carry far more than others see. Every pack can preserve food for longer and hold more, while also reducing the weight up to a certain limit.
2. Martial Artist: Increases the effect of weapons the user has trained to use and increases the power of techniques. (Longbow, Shortsword)
Techniques:
Piasu Isshi: A charged bow attack able to pierce through armour.
"You also improved quite a bit, although it's still a pity that you refused Sleipnir-kun's offer to join his magic training."
"Takemikazuchi-sama you know I couldn't accept his offer. It would have been against all the things my mother once taught me. I will increase my magic once I can brew real potions with magic crystals." Asuka replied in a small voice, while her shoulders trembled slightly.
"Now that we finished all your updates, I still need to hear from both Ouka and Mikoto-san if you wish to level up right now or if you wish to wait. Before I hear your decisions, I will remind you, why it is important to improve as much as possible before each level. It is because the levels are not linear in their development. No, instead they build upon each level. The first level is the base upon which your strength is built.
Every stat you earn on each level is added to your base, upon which you will improve with your next level. Thus, the higher your stats are before each level up, the higher the qualitative effect of the same stat on the higher levels will be." Take told the two of them while giving them his most serious look.
"Ouka, if you would allow me to go first," Mikoto asked Ouka, whereupon he nodded to her to go on.
"Good. In this case. Takemikazuchi-sama, I want to get my level up now. The swordsman development ability is all I can ask for. Aside from it being the perfect development ability for me, I also have very high stats and almost all parameters are A rank.
I think my stats, while not at their limit, are already very high for my level and will be hard to raise further. Last, I think it would be better if I level up now. As it will allow us to challenge stronger monsters and let the others increase their stats faster.
That would be all my reasons. I hope you aren't angry with my selfish desire to be the first to level up Ouka." Mikoto finished listing her reasons before bowing before Ouka with an uncertain look in her eyes.
"I see no problem with your argument. Although I am the oldest familia member, I do not need to be the strongest to be the captain and look out for our familia. Besides, I would weaken my later levels significantly if leveled up right now. I need to train my new spell until I am satisfied with it. Besides, my defensive magic could be the difference between our survival or deaths. So, I will wait for now. Take. Once my magic is up to snuff, then I will level up." Ouka explained his decision to Take, who finalized it.
"Very well. Then I shall complete Mikoto-san's level up. I will assign you the swordsman development ability and tomorrow you will need to announce your level up at the guild."
Yamato Mikoto Alias: ? Race: Human
Level 2
Strength: A 894 - I 0
Endurance: A 849 - I 0
Dexterity: S 999 - I 0
Agility: S 963 - I 0
Magic: B 747 - I 0
Development Abilities:
I Swordsman: Improves the penetrative power and slashing power of any sword-based weapon the user utilizes. Also significantly improves the learning speed of the user with any bladed weapon.
They all nodded at the decision and looked with curiosity, as Mikoto once again shined in a golden hue before Take stood back up while exclaiming.
"If I am not mistaken, now would be the time to celebrate our first level two adventurer, Mikoto-san."