NOVEL NEXT WORLD The Strongest Solo Gamer with Terrible Social Skills Reincarnates as a Hated NPC in a VRMMO Chapter 126
126: The Status of Hybrid Demons
Prompted by Touka, I transferred to the “Grassland Area” on the 11th floor. The lush green carpet stretched out before me. The wind-blown flowers swayed gently. The vast blue sky was beautiful, and modern people tired of the city’s noise would probably find solace in this open scenery.
“Transfer complete…”
I muttered, looking around. Touka and the others transferred to a nearby location a little later. …As expected, they successfully transferred to the 11th floor. Is this a cheat? What kind of principle is this?
“See? It was a breeze, right?”
“…Ah, yeah…”
“You’re worrying too much, Shouma-kun! As people with demonic blood, we’re not bound by the usual explorer’s rules, are we?”
“Even transfer is automatic if you’re in someone’s party. In other words, as a party, we’re treated like ‘demons’ under someone’s control.”
Kusanagi Taichi explained with a self-deprecating smile. From his tone, I think he’s also a hybrid demon. Treated like demons, huh. Not “familiars” or anything, but it’s possible that the roots go deeper.
“What’s next?”
“…First, we’ll aim for the 15th floor. We need to find the Hachinosu tree, the material for Golden Ant Honey.”
“Hachinosu?”
“It’s distinctive, so you’ll know it when you see it.”
As I spoke, I started walking away from the scene.
“Hey, hey! Where do you think you’re going!?”
“I’ll explain while we walk, okay?”
“Is it okay if we decide on the destination as we go?”
“…Fine, just shut up and follow me.”
The two of them exchanged a glance, then followed behind me. I thought we’d have a few more questions, but I was impressed by their willingness to listen. If they’re going to follow me like this, we might arrive at our destination sooner than expected.
Unlike the labyrinthine 1-9 floors, the 11-19 floors were relatively easy to navigate, with clear locations for the transfer stones.
Even if the distance was far, we could reach our goal if we just kept walking.
The problem was the monsters that would appear, though—
I glanced back at the two of them.
Just in case, I checked my status.
――――――――――
[Anne Links] LV.27
[Evil Sorceress/★★☆]
Total [302]
――――――――――
Strength [38]
Vitality [40]
Technique [46]
Agility [62]
Intelligence [98]
Luck [18]
――――――――――
[Personal Skills]
○ Seduction (Succubus) ★★★
○ Minor Devil ★★★
○ Mood Maker ★★☆
[Passive Skills]
○ Demon Hybrid ★☆☆
○ Emergency Evasion ★★☆
○ Disguise ★★★
[Command Skills]
○ Subjugation [1] ★☆☆
○ Barrier [3] ★★★
○ Healing [6] ★★☆
○ Ice Storm [2] ★☆☆
○ Dark Javelin [9] ★★★
○ Search [05] ★☆☆
――――――――――
…Wait, what’s this unknown skill that showed up?
Because it’s written as “Evil Sorceress,” I wonder if this name, [Anne Links], is actually her original name from the East Cloud. Is she currently hiding her effects with the skill 【Disguise】? Well, there’s no need to hide it from me anymore.
Let’s take a closer look at the items.
First, what stands out is the high level of her skills, which is unattainable through casual demonic hybridization. She must have received rigorous training as a member of an organization.
…If she were to get serious, she would be far stronger than the top students in the first year. It’s a good thing we didn’t become enemies.
Next, let’s look at her Personal Skills.
○ Succubus Tribe (Succubus) ★★★
[Obtain the characteristics of the Succubus tribe. ★ The level will be MAX at the time of skill acquisition.]
○ Little Devil ★★★
[Inflict a 20% chance of charm on enemies of the opposite s*x. ★ For each level, reduce all enemy stats by 10%.]
○ Mood Maker ★★☆
[Increase the likability of allies. ★ For each level, add a 20% effect.]
The skill 【Succubus Tribe】 is obtained through demonic hybridization. Although it’s written that she obtains characteristics, the specifics are not mentioned. It’s likely that she can acquire skills unique to her tribe. Maybe it also affects her status values?
【Little Devil】 is a conditional charm-type debuff skill. If the opponent is male, the effect is remarkable. As for 【Mood Maker】, I wonder how it works in this world? It’s an effect that applies to the entire surroundings, but do we really need to increase likability?
○ Demonic Hybridization ★☆☆
[Count as a demon. ★ For each level, increase basic stats by 30. ★★★ to transform into a demon.]
○ Emergency Evasion ★★☆
[Automatically take evasive action when in danger. ★ For each level, activate once.]
○ Disguise ★★★
[Can disguise status information. ON/OFF possible. ★ For each level, increase hidden level.]
Next, let’s look at her Passive Skills, which are quite unique. 【Demonic Hybridization】 has both basic stat increases and exceptional performance, but it’s counted as a demon, and there are unsettling words like “demonization.” This skill might be the reason why the East Cloud group was able to transfer to the 11th floor. The 【Emergency Evasion】 below is as it’s written. As for 【Disguise】, there’s nothing special to say. The hidden level refers to the numerical value that can resist appraisal-type skills. If it’s ★3, it can nullify appraisal-type skills of the same level. It’s quite stealthy, but it has no effect on the Extra Skill 【Tian Di Eye】 possessed by the Heavenly Tree Institute.
There are many Command Skills, so I’ll skip them. I’ve experienced “Subjugation” and “Barrier,” and the rest are attack and recovery skills. The skill composition is well-balanced and excellent, isn’t it?
Now, let’s take a look at Kusanagi Taichi’s side.
――――――――――
[Durado Sparrow] LV.28
[Evil Knight/★★☆]
Total 【355】
――――――――――
Strength 【105】
Vitality 【98】
Technique 【50】
Agility 【52】
Intelligence 【32】
Luck 【18】
――――――――――
[Personal Skills]
○ Headless Knight (Dullahan) ★★★
○ Hard Worker ★★☆
○ Seriousness ★☆☆
[Passive Skills]
○ Demonic Hybridization ★★☆
○ Special Armor ★★☆
○Deception★★☆
[Command Skill]
○Ghost Slayer[9]★★★
○Armor Summoning[3]★★★
○Demon Fire[2]★☆☆
○Madness[1]★☆☆
○Mapping+[03]★☆☆
○Tracking[05]★☆☆
――――――――――
As usual, this one’s name is different too. It’s a knight with both attacker and tank attributes, stronger than Touka. Notable is the high value of its physical strength. With a 3-digit value at LV.28, it’s quite rare. The high basic status value of the demon hybrid is surprising.
○Headless Knight (Dullahan)★★★
[Acquire the Headless Knight (Dullahan) trait. Level maxes out at skill acquisition.]
○Hard Worker★★☆
[+30 Hate value during combat. ★Increases by 20 per level.]
○Serious★☆☆
[Less likely to be affected by charm. ★Increases by 30% per level.]
……Ah, I see.
So, this one is a Headless Knight (Dullahan).
Although it has a head attached, upon closer inspection, it’s clear that the cut surface is covered with a Choker. Infiltration work is quite difficult, isn’t it?
There’s nothing much to see, so let’s move on.
○Demon Hybrid★★☆
[Counts as a demon. ★Increases basic status by 30 per level. ★★★Transforms into a demon.]
○Special Armor★★☆
[+30% basic defense. ★1 Nullifies poison. ★2 Nullifies paralysis. ★3 Nullifies petrification.]
○Deception★★☆
[Can disguise status information. ★Increases hidden level per level.]
Since the Demon Hybrid and Deception traits overlap with Touka’s, let’s set them aside for now――the Special Armor is strong. The defense boost is a bonus. It can nullify multiple status abnormalities. This guy is quite capable. It can shine as a 20th-floor character.
Let’s extract the Command Skills that caught my attention. There are many, so let’s take a look.
○Ghost Slayer[9]★★★
[Single-target attack technique with ghost-type effectiveness. ★Increases damage value by 10% and usage count by 2 per level.]
○Armor Summoning[3]★★★
[Summons the Headless Knight (Dullahan)’s armor, increasing defense value by 100. Lasts until destroyed. ★Increases defense value by 50 and usage count by 1 per level.]
○Demon Fire[2]★☆☆
[Fire magic. Damage increases or decreases based on the caster’s intelligence. Ghost-type effectiveness. ★Increases usage count by 4 per level.]
○Madness[1]★☆☆
[Grants the self-inflicted status abnormality “Berserk”. ★Increases Berserk level per level.]
At a glance, it seems like there are many ghost-type effectiveness skills. Although there aren’t many ghost-type monsters, they’re often troublesome when they appear. Having these skills will be a blessing. As a mid-game tank, Armor Summoning is quite capable. If used well, it can eliminate the need for armor costs. However, when exploring the latter half of the game, a defense value of 250 at ★3 is unreliable. Ultimately, it’ll become a dead skill. The Madness skill is difficult to use. The Berserk status abnormality is a state where the player’s instructions are ignored, and the affected person attacks anyone nearby without distinguishing between friend or foe. At that time, attack power increases by 50%, and defense decreases by 50%. Honestly, it’s hard to find a use for it. If I were to use Kusanagi as a tank, I’d consider this skill unnecessary.