Chapter: 372
I posted various strategy guides on the community beyond the monitor in the past. It wasn’t really to help others, I just thought of it as proof that I had been playing the game hard.
So when Arthur asked me to tell him the strategy for the dungeon, I didn’t think much about it. I figured I could just share what I had previously written in the community with him.
But as I started writing on paper, I realized I couldn’t do that. Arthur wasn’t someone beyond the monitor; he was the one who had to go into the dungeon and fight monsters.
It was impossible for him to understand the user-centric approach.
So I erased everything I had written and started anew. I recalled when I first strategized the Soul Academy and remembered the time I built the foundation of dungeon strategies by overcoming various modes.
The book I created became an incredible item that would allow one to strategize any dungeon in this world, under the assumption that the reader fully mastered its contents.
Since it contained so much information, it was a tome that most people wouldn’t even dare to read, but I didn’t bother to modify it.
The person reading the book would be Arthur. If that guy had a basic intelligence stat over 100, there was no way he wouldn’t understand it easily.
His innate intelligence was twice as high as my intelligence that I worked hard on for a whole year! If my intelligence of 58 could manage it, how could he not?
So when I entrusted the dungeon strategy to Arthur today, I had expectations. Until he entered the dungeon, he was extremely confident.
I even thought I gave him too much time! But as I watched him proceed, I realized I had overestimated him.
First of all, he was clueless about finding the way. I had told him there were patterns at the dungeon’s forks and that he just had to recognize them, but he couldn’t find them and got lost several times. I suggested skipping unnecessary encounters with mobs, yet he insisted on engaging them all. During the boss fight, he was so busy moving around that he couldn’t even check the gimmicks properly.
Oh, the hardship I suffered trying to hold back my desire to give him advice! I thought my teeth would break!
Anyway, seeing him mimicking me awkwardly without embodying anything I had written in the book made me instinctively foresee the outcome of our bet.
And as I expected, Arthur failed to clear the dungeon in four hours.
“‘It took six hours.’”
“Uh? Am I seeing things? Why does it look like six hours have passed? The pitiful prince was so confident, there’s no way he could fail!”
Arthur bit his lip without responding to my sarcasm. Surely, he was reflecting on the mistakes he made, right? At the very least, he must have an idea of where he went wrong.
“Um, Lady Allen?”
Thinking it was good that he was aware of his mistakes, Joy defended Arthur.
“Please don’t say anything about the Third Prince; the delay in clearing had something to do with us too.”
I had plenty of reasons to rebut her words.
Considering our party’s specs, four hours was more than enough.
If he hadn’t taken the wrong path, there was no way time would have been an issue.
To be blunt, not managing the party members properly was also a failure in leadership.
But I didn’t feel like saying any of that out loud. What good would it do to point out the mistakes Arthur probably already suspected? Instead, I led the three of them to the next dungeon.
“Third Prince, just watch.”
“Pitiful Prince, pay attention. I’ll make you vividly realize how sloppy your command was.”
I figured it would be better to show Arthur what kind of ideal he should aim for.
*
When we stepped into the next dungeon, Arthur expected Lucy to showcase her unique dungeon strategies.
He imagined she would understand everything that existed within the dungeon, picking the best paths as if she were reading countless futures.
However, this time, Lucy didn’t employ that approach. She became a seasoned mercenary leading them instead.
“There are some sloppy ones ahead. No need for magic here. Just prepare the magic circle, you fool.”
“Isn’t this a trap set for such idiots? How boring.”
“Don’t mind the shoddy trash behind us, just run. Paying attention to those losers is a waste of time.”
“This sloppy guy is such a pervert that he can only see me, the cutie? I’ll distract him, so bombard him from the back. Sure, your magic is sloppy, but this pervert is even sloppier.”
Choosing a straightforward strategy rather than extravagant antics, they moved slower than usual, but that’s only when measured against Lucy Allen’s standards.
It was evident how awe-inspiring Lucy Allen was when I heard that she finished the dungeon in just an hour.
Thus, after strategizing two dungeons in a day and returning to the lodging, Arthur shut himself in his room, reflecting on the events of the day.
He thought he understood most of the theories in the book, but when it came to executing them in practice, he realized he had been arrogant.
It was only natural that there were so many mistakes when he failed to focus on properly directing others.
Despite the dungeon being relatively easy for our level, losing the bet was entirely his fault.
At least he was lucky that Lucy Allen personally showed him how to fix his problems.
Lucy could have used her prophetic approach if she wanted, yet she chose to advance through the dungeon the knight’s way. Her intent was clear to anyone—it was to guide Arthur on the path he should take.
Knowing this, Arthur followed Lucy, etching every single one of her actions in the dungeon into his mind. He realized that Lucy Allen was effortlessly executing all the strategies written in the book.
That wasn’t just proficiency; it was like the method of strategizing dungeons was embedded in her very soul.
Watching her, Arthur suddenly recognized just how much of a monstrous human Lucy Allen was, but on the flip side, he gained a crucial insight.
The key element was perspective. The one commanding the dungeon strategy needed to hold everything in the surroundings within their mind, not just what was right in front of them. Only then could they give orders flawlessly.
Freely executing such tactical maneuvers meant reaching a level where one could move naturally without even trying to recall the strategies.
…
From today alone, it was clear that Lucy Allen’s nature was benevolent. If she were truly a malicious person, she wouldn’t have shown such consideration.
Was that entity who manipulated the sailors on the ship distorting Lucy Allen’s true heart? Was it preventing her from expressing her true feelings? Why?
I had no idea what this reason could be. The way the person spoke didn’t suggest they had any hostility toward Lucy Allen, which made it even more perplexing.
Arthur found himself staring at the book containing the dungeon strategies Lucy had given him, searching for answers that wouldn’t present themselves.
How long had it been? The sound of knocking on the door snapped Arthur out of his thoughts. He blankly stared at the pen’s tip, which was now dried, before turning his head.
“Third Prince, do you have a moment?”
“Joy? What is it? No, come in first.”
After entering, Joy glanced at the book Arthur had spread out, lowering her head.
“I’m sorry for bothering you at this late hour.”
“Don’t sweat the small stuff. What’s the matter, Joy? You seemed all chaotic despite saying you were tired.”
“Oh, um, that is…”
“Hm?”
“Lady Allen told me to deliver something to you, Third Prince.”
Arthur blinked as he looked at the bunny-eared headband Joy was holding out.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a headband.”
“I know that. What I meant was… Could this be the punishment Lucy Allen mentioned?”
“Yes. She said you have to wear it until our journey ends.”
“What the hell.”
Arthur blurted an expletive without thinking, but that didn’t make the headband disappear from before his eyes.
He stared at the headband silently for a while before taking a long sigh and putting it on.
Then Joy hurriedly pulled out a fan to cover her mouth, but the fan only obstructed her view; it couldn’t stop her laugh.
“Just laugh out loud.”
“Uh… Pfft. No way! How could I dare to… Pff. Pht!”
Arthur’s face turned red as he tried to say something to Joy, but then he spotted Frey peeking through the open door.
“So you have that kind of preference, Third Prince. That’s not unusual.”
“It’s not like that! Frey! This is!”
“It’s fine. It suits you well.”
With a blank expression, Frey said that and walked down the corridor as if nothing had happened. Surprised by her unexpected reaction, Arthur rushed past Joy, following Frey.
“Wait! Give me a chance to explain! Please! Let me defend my honor!”
*
After delivering Arthur’s punishment to Joy, I tossed away my disguise and stepped out into the night with Karia and my escort, Karl.
The evening in the archipelago was incredibly chaotic. People lost their senses chugging down drinks to forget their woes, screaming nonsensically. In some corners, I could hear the sounds of fights. In others, the sounds of someone hurling.
This place reminded me of the scenes I had seen back at college before I set foot in this world.
Some older adventurers shook their heads at the disgraceful behaviors but didn’t bother to intervene. They probably knew offering advice to troublemakers would just make them exhausted.
The person I wanted to meet was one of those watching the fighting men with disdain.
“Heyshan. Were you waiting long?”
As Karia pulled out a chair and greeted her, the woman named Heyshan shrugged her shoulders.
“No, I just got here myself.”
“Well, that’s fortunate. Here’s my employer. This is the person who wanted to meet you. I guess you already know her name without needing to be told.”
Heyshan’s expression turned to one of shock upon seeing me. She might not have received any prior information, but I could guess why she was reacting that way. She probably understood the infamous reputation of Lucy Allen.
Since this kind of thing wasn’t new to me, I sat down on the chair Karl pulled out for me, crossing my arms instead of offering explanations.
“I’m Lucy Allen.”
“The fact that you know me yet can’t keep a straight face is so unrefined for a commoner… How foolish and rude.”
“Ah! I-I’m sorry. I’m Heyshan. I’m an adventurer who achieved rank A a few months ago.”
Once she collected herself, Heyshan presented a surprisingly refined greeting for a commoner adventurer.
If someone didn’t know the situation, they might have raised their eyebrows in admiration of her manners, but I wasn’t one of them. If that were the case, I wouldn’t have been able to befriend the second queen, who was then a lady of the duke’s family.
“I did hear that a noble wanted to meet me, but I never imagined it would be the well-known Lady Allen. I’m so surprised that I can’t find words.”
Seeing her awkward smile, I returned a smile to reassure her. However, my stiff grin seemed to have the opposite effect. The smile formed by the Mesugaki Skill could be a bit menacing.
“Um, may I ask why Lady Allen wants to meet such an inconsequential adventurer?”
“Your friend is looking for you.”
“Even a sloppy commoner like myself seems to still attract someone’s attention? Since some old geezer wants to meet you?”
“…Old geezer?”
As Heyshan tilted her head in confusion, Karia let out a sigh.
“Master, let me explain. Just stay quiet for a bit.”
Sure, I thought that would be better.
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