ch241-ch260 · 252-ch252

Chapter 252: A Guide to Conquering Floor 40

'And now we will attempt Floor 40. Everyone, ready?'

Among the several 'Blue Ocean' Floor 40 videos out there, we're watching the one titled 'A Guide to Conquering Floor 40'.

It's a fairly recent upload, and it's the second most-viewed of their Floor 40 videos.

The most-viewed one is the video of 'Sword Saint-chan' one-shotting the boss, the Manticore, with 【Dimension Slash】—heavy overseas traffic, and the single most-viewed 'Blue Ocean' video of the year.

'Okay. Everyone—we're heading in~'

The 'Queen of the Sky', a.k.a. Uehara Asuka, waves at the camera.

'......'

'Sword Saint-chan', a.k.a. Hoshino Chiharu, says nothing, just flashes a V sign.

'Shouldn't we have put that device together beforehand? It ties up my hands...... Chiharu, carry my hammer in for me.'

The one fussing around, setting up machine-like contraptions, is 'the all-rounder job', Furuta Yukiya.

'I'm all set over here. Ao?'

Already waiting in front of the 'Gate to Floor 40' is 'the ideal adventurer', Kaito.

'Of course I'm ready. Then we're entering Floor 40. From here on, this will be footage from the camera on my head. Asuka, put that away too......'

A face peeks into the edge of the screen, just for a flash.

'Japan's Number One Adventurer', Kinoshita Ao.

Those five are the adventurer party 'Blue Ocean'.

・So cute

・Beautiful

・Kawaii

・Kawaii is justice

・There's one guy who wasn't ready lol

・He dies later, you know

・↑Then how'd they recover the camera lol

・That split-second profile is TOO handsome

・WOoooo, show us the true power of 【Samurai】!

The comments stream past at a furious pace.

Whenever the two ladies show up, the feed just fills up with "kawaii" and "beautiful" and such.

And, well, unavoidable as it is, there are tasteless comments and anti comments too.

Why am I watching this video? Because Soushi and Aikawa have broken through Floor 30, and we all agreed it's time to gather intel and prepare for the next goal.

Break through Floor 40 by early October.

That's our new goal.

Once Shiraishi-san's upper-rank job is done, we'll spend all of September on leveling Soushi and the others.

Kasumi-san and I will hit 40 first, but we decided to wait for Soushi and Aikawa's levels and challenge Floor 40 as a four.

Since a recon run can be done by watching videos like this, the plan is to build the strategy airtight, then everyone goes in together.

'Then, same as always—Kaito, Chiharu, Asuka, Yukiya, and me, in that order. Once we're in, follow the plan quickly. Chiharu, don't burn through your MP no matter what happens. Here we go!'

'Ohhh!'

'Right!...... Stay close now, okay?'

With Ao-san's call, we set off—and Kaito-san, entering first, glances back for just a moment.

・The fact that he checks means something happened last time, huh?

・The handsomest, lol

・Kyawa-wa

・Mesmerizing

The comment section is ecstatic over the pretty boy's cute moment.

Ao-san enters last, and the screen cuts to Floor 40.

The 'Gate to Floor 39' they came through sits in a spot wedged between sheer cliffs—you could call it a valley floor.

The boss, the Manticore, and its golem entourage spawn here.

The Manticore is a monster with a lion's body, a serpent's tail, bat-like wings—and an old man's face.

Body length maybe five meters?

It flies around up there and fires off ice magic.

Basically it never comes down, so the only option is anti-air attacks—but in this video, 'Sword Saint-chan', whose 【Flying Slash】 reaches about twenty meters, doesn't fight the Manticore at all.

Since this is a "guide," they're fighting with a strategy meant to serve as a model for other parties.

That said, whether anyone can copy a Level 48 party is its own question......

'Yukiya, hurry!'

'Working on it!'

Furuta Yukiya, hurried along by the Queen.

He seems to be setting the earlier contraptions into the ground.

Wire anchors.

Machines that plant one end in the ground—and he needs a lot of anchors pounded in.

The plan is for Furuta Yukiya to shoot the other end up with his bow, and if he misses, he has to reel it back in and try again.

That's why he's set up several, so he can fire as many shots as it takes.

The arrows are designed not to come out once they hit, so after that it's just pulling.

In the air you can't brace yourself, so apparently yanking the wire and throwing off its flight balance brings it down easily.

・Hurry uuuup

・Help him out lol

・Six shots total, then?

・Where'd 'Sword Saint-chan' go?

・Ten seconds left

'Blue Ocean' hasn't moved from where they entered.

Looks like they're fighting using the 'Gate to Floor 39' as a shield.

'Sword Saint-chan's job this time is clearing the golems that approach—but with no golems even spawned yet, she's already pushed forward alone.

The fact that Ao-san says nothing means it's part of the plan—or so plenty of the comments say.

'One minute—here it comes!'

The moment Ao-san shouts, 'Sword Saint-chan' up front moves.

She lops off the golems' limbs one after another.

She doesn't finish them.

The big difference between Floor 40 and every boss area before it: the entourage golems other than the boss repop about fifteen minutes after being taken down.

A boss that never comes down to the ground, and ground entourage that spawn without end.

That's the great wall keeping Japan's adventurers stalled at Floor 40.

And as the countermeasure for that endless repop, 'Sword Saint-chan' isn't finishing them off.

If she cut them down, they'd come back whole and healthy—but left like this, they can't do anything.

・Huh? Did a metal golem just show up?

・So iron CAN be cut

・Already impossible to copy, lol

・Where's the Manticore?

The Manticore is probably still up on the cliff.

The Floor 40 boss comes whenever it feels like it.

Five minutes later, or an hour later......

Which makes it my natural enemy.