Chapter 202
The reason anglers are increasing is because money talks. Even those eccentric folks worked enthusiastically when a mountain of gold coins was piled before them.
As for why Amina contracted with a spirit—she played around with fan spirits under the guise of "interaction" and chose the little spirit that felt the best to partner with.
The multi-legged golems make a striking appearance, equipped with large shields and iron clubs. When spirits inhabit them, the golems gain willpower and begin to move.
"Everyone, protect me!!"
The multi-task idol build embodies the simple idea that if defensive power is lacking, you just need to increase it.
"Ooooooh!!"
Normally, little spirits aren’t particularly strong. But by using golems as their outer shells, they can compensate for combat ability. The sight of bulky golems moving oddly cutely comes off as comical, but let’s just call it part of their charm.
Amina stands on the carriage, holding a microphone.
Singing draws monsters from a wide area, though not enough to pull them from outside the town.
There’s no instrumental accompaniment, but Amina’s beautiful a cappella voice echoes around us.
As usual, we receive enhancements, but now the spirits inside the golems are also strengthened, which in turn powers up the golems themselves.
The strength of spirit users lies in the fact that spirits are both living beings and magical entities. They can possess weapons, imbuing them with their attributes and enhancing them.
They have physical forms, can eat and drink, enjoy live performances, and even roar with emotion. Their tricky nature made spirit users unpopular in FBO, but no one could ever call them weak.
The golems surround the carriage.
Motivated to protect Amina’s song, they face the approaching monsters, eyes gleaming—and then fire beams.
Yes, beams from their eyes.
To be precise, it’s a magical attack where mana is converted into rays. The attributes vary—wind, water, light—and the power is decent. While not enough to wipe out Class 4 monsters, these golems, assembled from the Mads’ parts, can still reduce the front-line monsters to ashes.
"I can’t fall behind either!"
Inspired by the sight, Lady Esmeralda’s motivation surges.
With distance between us and the monsters, long-range attacks naturally begin first. While the monsters focus on Amina, who draws their attention instead of generating hate, few can evade long-range attacks from outside their awareness.
"Let me show you my new skills!"
During her re-training, Lady Esmeralda made full use of skill scrolls from the Edelgard ducal family’s treasury. As expected of a historic ducal house, they possessed scrolls unavailable in skill shops.
Lady Esmeralda is still only Class 3, Level 1. Without a job, one might assume she’d be at a disadvantage in combat here, but this battle is perfect for raising skill proficiency. The numbers are high, and if we wait, more monsters appear, drawn by Amina. Best of all, no other adventurers interfere.
"Blizzard Wave!!"
The spell Lady Esmeralda unleashes isn’t fire-attribute but ice. While not overwhelmingly powerful, it creates a blizzard that drops the surrounding temperature below freezing for a few seconds.
On one side, monsters frost over, their breath turning white as they shudder. Their movements slow, their advance hindered.
"Next! Lightning Rain!!"
Without pause, a downpour of lightning follows. The dense bolts briefly turn the battlefield blindingly white. Every monster in range is struck, blackened ashes dancing amid the electricity.
Normally, chaining area spells would be impossible due to casting times. But with the skill build I proposed for Lady Esmeralda, it’s achievable.
"Phew, their numbers have dropped significantly. But I’ll need a moment to prepare for the next round."
"Understood. The golems will handle the other side. Nell, Ingrid, we’ll take this flank!"
"Leave it to me!"
"As you wish."
Lady Esmeralda reset her level, losing all her previous power. In exchange, the skill build I designed turns her into a "Frostbolt Thunder Mage"—a chuunibyou’s dream. It’s incomplete due to missing skills, but acquiring Blizzard Wave and Lightning Rain is huge.
Blizzard Wave is especially crucial for this build, which focuses on lowering enemy resistances and exploiting elemental weaknesses. Ice and thunder are opposing attributes, each dealing double damage to the other. Lady Esmeralda’s strategy is to freeze foes, temporarily making them ice-attribute, then finish them with thunder.
The build still has flaws and missing skills, but its firepower can wipe out higher-class monsters. The downsides are long skill cooldowns and low physical combat ability. Mages consume vast amounts of mana, so stat distribution skews 1:4 between stamina and magic—the inverse of Nell’s build.
Solo leveling is impractical, and once mana runs low, combat effectiveness plummets. While some close-combat training helps, she’s far from versatile. That’s why finding "Magic Stock" in the ducal treasury was a happy accident.
This skill lets her stockpile cast spells. Though limited by skill level and requiring extra mana for storage, the ability to pre-cast is powerful. For Lady Esmeralda’s freeze-then-thunder approach, it’s perfect. Stocking just two spells is enough to obliterate monsters.
The results speak for themselves. Thanks to Lady Esmeralda, one flank is thinned, leaving the golems and Claudia to handle the rest. Fighting in a passageway splits the battle, making it easier to focus on one side.
"Blow them away!!"
With one side secure, we concentrate on the front. Nell’s first strike sends a Helmet Boar flying, bowling over others behind it.
"Excuse me."
As the boars tumble, creating obstacles, Ingrid intercepts Grayhounds leaping over. A silver flash from her broom bisects one, while the follow-up strike from the sheath—her broom—strikes another’s flank, toppling it.
Her "Iaido Slash" requires a sheathed stance but hits hard. And with a bit of flair, she chains it into a second strike—proof of my FBO experiments recreating anime techniques.
Versatility breeds creativity. While some skills let me mimic moves, others were impossible. I’d have loved to shoot items from storage, but expecting attack power from an inventory skill was misguided.
Amid these musings, I slip past the distracted front line, targeting the Stone-throw Monkeys and Bullet Crows at the rear. These ranged attackers are priority targets—annoying in groups, and worse when they evolve into Catapult Kongs and Shot Cocks.
But wiping them out alone would take too long. So—
"Ready! Fall back!"
At Lady Esmeralda’s call, we retreat. The monsters advance, but their formation breaks. Helmet Boars charge ahead, followed by Grayhounds, while the monkeys and crows lag behind.
Golem beams strike the vanguard, halting them. Then—
"Blizzard Wave!!"
Another blizzard hits.
"Lightning Rain!!"
More area spells follow.
"Nothing beats magic for annihilation."
This overwhelming firepower is something my single-target build can’t match. Every party needs a mage.
"Lady Esmeralda! How’s your mana?"
"About 60% left!"
"Area spells pack a punch, but the cost is steep."
Even with a magic-focused stat spread, spamming spells drains mana fast. Blizzard Wave and Lightning Rain are high-tier skills with matching consumption. Sustained fire requires mana-recovery passives or items, and since she’s not a stationary turret, self-defense is a must.
In short, Lady Esmeralda’s path is set—grueling growth toward an ultimate form.
"Don’t worry! Clearing this many monsters boosted my proficiency greatly! Let’s drink potions and finish this!"
Her enthusiasm is great, but that post-bath milk pose—is it really fitting for a lady?