Jujutsushi Wa Yuusha Ni Narenai-Chapter 269.1 - To The Lowest Floor 1
BGM: Sunshine Coastline
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It’s been about a month since the day Momokawa betrayed us and ran away.
We were still using the School Tower as our base.
「Haah… Finally gathered all the necessary materials.」
「Yeah, it ended up taking quite a lot of time.」
「It's because Momokawa ran off with Yamata no Orochi's core.」
I scanned around at the numerous large cores that were stuffed into the treasure chest while having such a conversation with Class Rep and Sakura.
We had successfully defeated Yamata no Orochi and unlocked the teleportation magic circle to proceed to the next area. However, because Momokawa took the core with him, we couldn't activate the magic circle due to the lack of the necessary core.
While it was possible to activate the teleportation without the core of the designated boss monster, Yamata no Orochi, the amount of magical power required in this location was simply too great. As a result, using other cores as substitutes demanded both a significant quantity and high quality.
Even so, the mere fact that substitution was possible was a blessing in disguise. If it weren’t, we’d be left with nothing to do but wait for another boss monster to appear, whenever that might be. In the worst case, a new boss might never show up at all.
The day after it was discovered that Momokawa had run off with the core, we immediately headed to Yamata no Orochi’s nest to investigate.
Takanashi-san worked hard to analyse the teleportation magic circle and figured out that it could be activated with other cores as substitutes, then roughly calculated the amount needed.
After that, the only way for us to move forward was to steadily gather cores bit by bit.
「If Ryuuichi were here, things would’ve been a lot easier.」
「Honestly, that idiot is never around when we need him most.」
「Everything is Momokawa's————」
I thought that gathering the cores would be a breeze, but it ended up taking far more time and effort than I had imagined.
After all, we no longer had all 18 of us together like we did before the Yamata no Orochi battle.
First of all, the absence of Ryuuichi, one of our ace-level fighters, left a huge gap. Just that alone made it much harder to reliably and quickly take down powerful monsters like the Death Stalker, which definitely had boss-level cores.
Taking down boss-level monsters of that calibre could be done reliably with just one ace-level fighter and a few supporting members.
But with Ryuuichi gone, and the other ace-level fighter, Futaba-san, also in no condition to fight right now, that was no longer an option.
As a result, the only party capable of reliably defeating boss-level monsters was mine. Just that alone reduced the efficiency of gathering boss-level cores to a third of what it originally was. It was only natural that it would take time.
Furthermore, while they might not have matched the ace-level fighters in raw combat ability, the absence of Momokawa and Randou-san also had a significant impact.
I had to admit that Momokawa was better than anyone in terms of leading everyone. With his leadership, any party composition would feel stable, and he could even manage the entire class. As frustrating as it was to admit, neither Class Rep nor I could lead people the way Momokawa could.
As a Shaman, Momokawa was lacking in direct combat strength, but for that precise reason, he could focus entirely on command. Now, classmates like Shimokawa and others had started taking on leadership roles in their parties, but they were originally vanguard fighters, and they tended to focus on the battle in front of them; giving accurate instructions to teammates while fighting was difficult. On the other hand, if they took a step back to focus on commanding the party, it'd create a gap in combat strength. Choosing not to fight despite being capable of doing so could also lead to frustration among party members.
In that regard, Momokawa, who fit naturally into a rear-line position as a shaman, was also well-suited to take command. Right now, the only one in a similar position would be Himeno-san, the『Healer』. But expecting her to possess command skills on par with Momokawa would be far too unreasonable.
In addition, another issue arose, and more urgent than the drop in command ability. The familiars that he had called 『Rem』 had also withdrawn from each party, leading to a significant decline not only in combat strength but also in overall safety.
With cores or monster materials, Rem could be revived as many times as needed, making them capable of suicidal attacks or defence. When it came down to it, they wouldn’t hesitate to shield someone, and could even be trusted to cover a retreat. Even in regular battles, they took the brunt of enemy attacks, essentially serving as tanks.
Most of the truly life-threatening tasks could be left to the Rem. But now that they’re all gone, it meant we, living and breathing humans, would have to take on those dangerous tasks ourselves.
Thus, neither the others nor I recklessly took on monsters like we used to. After all, in a pinch, we no longer had that dependable presence who would hold the enemy back for us.
And then there was the loss of Randou-san, who left the class to follow Momokawa; her absence left a significant gap as well.
In preparation for the Yamata no Orochi operation, she was often dispatched for digging trenches and bunkers, so she rarely participated in monster hunts… Nevertheless, as a geomancer, she was an extremely capable rear-line asset.
Her earth-attribute offensive magic boasted instantaneous, gunfire-like power, while her defensive spells could swiftly raise a wall covering a large area, offering not only protection for allies but also effectively cutting off the enemy’s path.
To begin with, we were short on spellcaster classes, so with Randou-san, the geomancer, absent, the lack of rear-line support became even more serious.
Moreover, when we discovered a boss-class monster’s nest, ideally we would have followed the Yamata no Orochi strategy, setting up a frontline base, reshaping the terrain, and creating a favourable battlefield before engaging in battle. But with Randou-san, the key to all that, no longer around, such large-scale construction was practically impossible to realise.
There were quite a few enemies we couldn’t touch simply because they were holed up in their nests. With our current party composition, the risk of challenging a boss in its nest was far too great to take.
Naturally, it did not mean that everyone in the class was so weak that they couldn’t be relied on.
After the battle against Yamata no Orochi, everyone had grown a lot compared to when we first came here. They could even put up a decent fight against boss-class monsters, as long as they were a proper party with the right composition, that’s it.
Nevertheless, when thinking about the worst-case scenario, I absolutely couldn’t let anyone push themselves too far. That’s why, whenever we went up against a boss-class monster, I always made sure I was part of the party. I couldn’t afford to lose even a single person.
Efficiency-wise, it would be quicker for each party to take down boss-class monsters as soon as they find them. But if we prioritise safety above all else, the only choice was for them to wait until I could get there. There were plenty of times when that meant the boss we worked so hard to find ended up getting away.
It was frustratingly inefficient, but nothing was worth more than everyone’s safety. Even so, the slow progress, the helplessness, and the stress kept building up.
What would Momokawa have done if he were in my position? Would he have allowed all the parties to take on boss-class monsters, accepting a certain level of risk? Or would he have come up with some clever method of gathering cores more easily, something I’d never even think of?
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