Chapter-11 · EP-173

Episode 173: Information Exchange (Part 2) – Disclosure of Potion Information

Finally, the time had come for me to explain the potion rank-up method.

"Understood. Actually, I discovered a way to rank up potions."

"Potion rank-up?"

Susa-san's eyes widened at my words.

"That's right."

"Wait a minute! You mean you didn't find a monster that drops Rank 3 potions?"

"I don't know about that."

"I see… so that's how it was… That's why no matter how much I searched the dungeon, those monsters never appeared…"

He seemed to be looking back on his own search, coming to a realization. Of course. There shouldn't be any monsters that drop Rank 3 potions in this academy's dungeon. No matter how much he searched, he wouldn't find them.

"No, it was definitely right of me to negotiate with you. Potion rank-up. That idea never even crossed my mind. But can something like that really be done?"

"Yes. The method is simple. Just cast Healing Magic on a potion immediately after it drops. Then, it seems the rank increases by the amount equal to your Healing Magic skill level."

I explained as concisely as possible.

Hearing my explanation, Susa-san sat there with his mouth open, frozen.

"That's all."

My explanation was finished. But Susa-san was still frozen.

"…Ah, w-wait. Let me confirm in order."

"Yes."

"Does it have to be immediately after the drop?"

"Yes. Casting Healing Magic on a potion you already have in your possession did nothing. I don't know how long after the drop the rank-up effect lasts."

Susa-san put his hand to his forehead, thinking.

"Who else knows this information?"

"Only me."

"…How did you discover it? You don't have any skills, do you?"

Uh-oh! I'd forgotten about that. Officially, I had no skills. It would be strange for me, with no skills, to talk about using Healing Magic.

Hesitating over how much to reveal, I spoke.

"Can you keep a secret?"

"Yes."

"The truth is, I can use Healing Magic."

"…"

A moment of silence. Then,

"…I see. So that's how it is."

Susa-san looked convinced.

"A Healing Magic Skill Orb dropped from a slime, didn't it? And that's how you became able to use it."

…That's not quite right, but he seemed to have accepted it, so it was fine.

Saying more might cause me to slip up. I'd let him imagine what he wanted.

"You got a Skill Orb drop, something said to happen only once in a hundred million. I've heard about how you've been defeating slimes like crazy. They say your score on the first floor (the number of slimes defeated) is over 1,000. The person at the academy store said it was unprecedented. So you luckily obtained a Healing Magic skill, and then used it to discover potion rank-up as well."

That's not how it happened, but since he was convinced while I kept Skill Camouflage a secret, it was all good.

To fit the scenario Susa-san described, I should probably change my Healing Magic skill display from 'Hide' to 'Display' on my status for now.

"But rank-up… This is incredible information… And with such a simple method…"

Susa-san muttered to himself, thinking again.

Then he asked a question.

"No, wait a minute. Slimes drop Rank 1 potions. You said the rank increases by your skill level, right? If so, wouldn't it become Rank 2? I'm asking about how to get Rank 3 potions."

"Ah, about that…"

Before I could answer, Susa-san arrived at the answer himself.

"Could it be… your Healing Magic skill level is 2?"

"Yes."

Susa-san, who had been surprised many times already, showed an even more astonished expression. His facial expressions were starting to become entertaining.

"Could it be… that Yuno Hayasaka's Healing Magic skill level of 2 is because you taught her how to raise her skill level?"

"How did you figure that out?"

"Yes. I understand now. That you are the singularity."

What did he mean by "singularity"? It didn't sound like he was making fun of me.

"By the way, I'd also like you to keep this a secret, but the method to raise the Healing Magic skill level to 2 is to damage a slime just enough not to kill it, then cast Healing Magic on it, and repeat that about 100 times."

"Wait. That's too much information at once."

"I'll wait."

I decided to stay quiet until Susa-san was ready, and waited for the conversation to resume.

"What you just told me is also incredible. It's probably information of immense value. You shouldn't be telling it to people so easily."

"Well, I trust you, Susa-san."

He didn't seem like the type to spread it around indiscriminately.

Susa-san put his hand to his forehead, closed his eyes, and made a difficult face.

"Alright. I'll pretend I didn't hear about the Healing Magic level-up method. And of course, since you want to keep your ability to use Healing Magic a secret, I'll keep quiet about that too. All I asked for was information on high-rank potions, after all…"

As expected, he caught on quickly.

Susa-san organized my information and continued.

"So, in other words, if you cast Healing Magic at skill level 2 on a Rank 1 potion dropped by a slime, you get a Rank 3 potion. Is that correct?"

"Exactly."

"…Let me ask you something. If you had skill level 3, would it produce a Rank 4? Or if you cast it on a Rank 2 potion with skill level 2, would that also produce a Rank 4?"

"My skill level is 2, so I don't know about skill level 3. But when I cast Healing Magic on a Rank 2 potion, I got a Rank 4."

Susa-san's facial expressions exploded again. His eyes widened, his face contorted.

It must have been that surprising a new fact.

"Rank 4 potions shouldn't be on the market. Do you have one yourself?"

"Ah, I sold that one to the young lady… Hikaru Kujo from Class A. She should have it."

"I see. But where did the Rank 2 potion drop? Poison Slimes are on the 11th floor, and they're not in this dungeon… No, I've got it. The Huge Slime?"

"Yes."

The most famous monster that drops Rank 2 potions outside the academy dungeon is the Poison Slime on the 11th floor. It's easy to forget that the first-floor boss, the Huge Slime, also drops them. Probably because the waiting time for the first-floor boss room is so long that few people farm it, so defeating Poison Slimes is more efficient.

"So even at your level, you could obtain a Rank 4 if you wanted to. …Wait a minute? If what you're saying is true, what would happen if someone with Healing Magic at skill level 3 cast it on a Rank 3 potion?"

"I've never seen it, so I don't know, but in theory, wouldn't it produce a Rank 6?"

"…The possibility of creating a Rank 6 potion…"