Chapter 201
The mimic is a monster that often appears as an imitating entity. Many gamers would likely remember its form disguised as treasure chests or jars.
In FBO, it appears as a type of living armor.
Nell, who had just swept through the battle between the wolves and the mimic armor with a flank attack, watches in shock as the mimic armor dissolves into black mist.
"Occasionally, people mistake them for humans and get too close, only to be attacked and suffer casualties. But if you know they're there, they're easier to deal with." "Their equipment is old, and their movements are clunky. If it's a low-tier mimic armor, they're pretty easy to spot."
After Claudia and I explain the dangers and countermeasures for mimic armor, Nell nods in understanding.
Mimic armor possess the unique skill "Imitation," allowing them to disguise themselves as full plate armor and wander in humanoid form. This skill is exclusive to their species and cannot be acquired by players.
Their stats are decently high, and they're classified as Level 4 with a high level. However, mimic armor have only this one skill.
"They don't use any skill attacks?" "Oh, they do. They imitate any active skills or attack skills we use."
Despite being their only skill, it's incredibly powerful. You'd expect some degradation from copying, but no—they replicate skills at full strength, making them a real pain.
"Huh?! They can copy my songs too?!" "Of course. Though I've never actually seen a mimic sing."
Well, due to equipment limitations, some skills are unusable, and others are pointless to imitate. Amina's songs and dance-based skills, for example, can obviously be copied.
"Don't worry, they can't copy passive skills, so their power will always be inferior to ours."
The downside is that they can't replicate skills that aren't visibly active, so their copied versions will always be weaker in both power and effect compared to our properly trained skills.
"I see." "So, Liberta. The mimic armor drops ancient equipment, right?" "Nah, in their current state, they don't. You need to trigger a specific gimmick first." "A gimmick?"
As I mentioned earlier, the ancient ruins of Madalda are crawling with multiple types of monsters.
Our target is undoubtedly the mimic armor, but even if you defeat them normally, they'll only drop magic stones or keys. You might think getting a key is a great deal, but those keys are useless outside this ruin.
"Right, remember the 'Ancient Ruins of Madalda Excavation Quest'? The excavation mechanic is the most important gimmick here."
The way to fix their lousy drops is through this excavation system. In FBO, after hearing rumors about Madalda from an NPC and gathering the right items, you can periodically perform excavation motions at designated spots.
Even without talking to the NPC, the excavation points are always there—but without the right tools, you won't find anything.
For now, since I can't do anything while riding in the carriage, I step down from the driver's seat.
"We'll use this tool!" "A bent L-shaped iron rod?"
I proudly pull out the excavation tool from my magic bag.
"Yes, dowsing!" "What kind of tool is that? I've never seen one before." "A detailed explanation would take too long, but with this, you can sense some kind of energy and locate where to dig." "……………" "Ah, you don't believe me?" "Honestly, that explanation makes it harder to believe."
Ingrid asks for clarification, but even if pressed, the best I can say is that this dowsing rod detects mysterious energies and reacts to them.
The girls give me dubious looks, but—
"Proof over theory! I'll show you how it works! Nell and Claudia, guard me! Ingrid, take the reins. Amina and Esmeralda, keep watch from the carriage!"
Since this really is the only way to find what we need in these ruins, I have no choice but to insist.
You can't dowse while riding in a carriage, so we proceed on foot while the carriage follows slowly behind.
The rod looks like a simple bent iron stick, but it's actually a magic tool sold in proper shops.
Price? A whopping 350 zeni—about 35,000 yen. At first glance, it seems like a rip-off, but it's enchanted with detection magic.
It may look shabby, but it's a legitimate store-bought item.
If it doesn't work, the girls' stares will sting, but I trust it. Holding the dowsing rod with both hands, I start walking slowly.
"What exactly are we looking for?" "Memory Stones—clusters of memories." "What are those?" "One theory says they're crystallized remnants of the emotions of the people who once lived here, seeped into the land and solidified by magic. Not quite undead like ghosts, but more like fragments of memory that leaked out and crystallized."
We move at a relaxed pace—about two-thirds of normal walking speed—so our progress is naturally slow. The party forms a protective formation around me: Nell in front, Ingrid and Claudia on either side, and Amina and Esmeralda at the rear.
"Such a thing exists?" "The items themselves don't last long. If you don't use them within two days of excavation, they vanish. It's no surprise you haven't heard of them."
As Esmeralda murmurs in interest, we keep walking. The road is badly damaged, making it hard to traverse, but it's still better than a mountain path. After about ten minutes of searching, the dowsing rod suddenly swings horizontally, locking into position.
"Here." "???? There's nothing here."
It's just an ordinary stretch of road, flanked by collapsed houses—nothing special at all.
"Just watch."
The reaction means this is definitely the spot. I put the dowsing rod away and pull out—
"What's that?" "An excavation tool." "That doesn't look like an excavation tool. It's just a wooden staff, isn't it?" "No doubt about it—it's a wooden staff."
To be blunt, it looks just like the staff Amina used when we were hunting mochi.
A wooden staff crafted by Made-in-Ganji.
When we went to get the Marsh Dragon gear, he was initially reluctant to take the job, but after I handed over extra materials and asked him to make a set for Esmeralda too, he finished it in no time.
Excavation, as the name suggests, involves digging.
To dig through this stone-paved road, you'd normally need a pickaxe. A shovel might work, but it'd take forever.
"This staff is enchanted with a hole-digging skill. And this one has a levitation skill. Using these two, we can get the job done in no time."
In FBO, efficiency is key. If you're repeating an action often, minimizing the time spent is crucial.
A normal excavation would take ages, but—
"First, I lightly tap the stone pavement with this levitation staff."
Levitation might sound like a gimmick skill, but if your stats are high enough, lifting a single stone slab is easy.
"Oh, it's floating!" "How impressive!"
From atop the carriage, they must have a clear view—a large section of the pavement rises and shifts aside.
"I'll move the lifted stones over here, then use the hole-digging staff to strike the spot where the dowsing rod reacted. And voilà—an instant hole!"
The exposed ground is packed tight, making it hard to dig with a shovel.
But no worries—with this hole-digging staff, you can excavate in seconds.
"And what we find is this rainbow-colored Memory Stone." "How pretty." "A crystal formed from the memories embedded in this land. Proof that many people once lived here."
A tiny stone, no larger than a fingertip. If not for its shimmering colors, you'd easily overlook it. Yet, it's essential for collecting ancient weapons.
"Sometimes you find two or three at once. We just repeat this process."
In the game, the ground would automatically repair itself, but this is reality—no such miracles here. I use the levitation staff to dump the dug-up soil back in, then replace the stone slabs to restore the site.
"That's one down. Next problem—" "...Dealing with these monsters, I presume?"
While we worked, the surroundings grew noisy.
Human intruders in Madalda—a place that had been a battleground for monsters. The creatures, hypersensitive to outsiders, began gathering to eliminate the threat.
"There are so many." "Whoa, the sky's full too."
The monsters haven't attacked the two on the carriage yet, but their aggressive stances make it clear they could strike at any moment.
"The only spawn points in this town are for mimic armor. Other monsters take time to respawn after being defeated. The ones here now have been accumulating for a while." "What do we do?" "We fight. We came prepared. Claudia, guard the horses. Esmeralda, keep watch and rain area magic where I point. The frontline monsters are ours."
At Ingrid's question, I grip the spear on my back in response.
"There are a lot, but it's no problem."
Claudia and Esmeralda are still leveling, and their skills are underdeveloped, so they'll support. But Nell, Amina, and Ingrid are maxed-out Level 4 veterans.
Stat-wise, we're overqualified.
"Watch for ranged attacks from the apes and birds! And if you see a really big one, it's an elite!"
Being surrounded on the road is a bit troublesome.
"Amina! Summon spirits and anglers!" "I've been waiting! C'mon, everyone, let's go!"
But we've done raids like this countless times. And in this kind of situation, one member of our party shines brighter than anyone else.
The idol who mastered spirit and summoning magic is about to show her true worth.
At Amina's call, six magic circles unfold around the carriage, summoning three anglers and three small spirits.
"Fu-chan! Mi-chan! Pi-chan!"
The summoned wind, water, and light spirits cling to Amina, who hugs them back.
"Alright! Let's begin!"
From here on out, it might just be a one-sided slaughter.