Worthless Skill Escape (WN)

Chapter 102

TN: Please read my translations only on my website since I never give my permission to any site to host my translations. And if you like my translations, please support this site on Ko-fi and Patreon to read several chapters ahead!

Sponsored chapter by our Patreon.

Enjoy~

TL: ALT

Chapter 102 – Skill Puzzle

“Okay, let’s go with this.”

After completing all the preparations, I release the Escape from Reality time stop.

However, I don’t reset the time to the same level, but I start from 0.01x.

During the Escape from Reality, time will flow at the speed I specify for everyone but me.

The clock on my phone is also affected, so I can only get a sense of how long it took me to get ready.

Maybe it took a few hours.

The question then becomes, what kind of preparation did I do?

I think it would be easier to explain in a streamlined way, but some things should be taken care of first.

For example, Luck Enhancement is one of the last of the ability value enhancement skills.

Depending on the combination, if you can increase the skill’s stats, you may be able to meet special conditions and gain a bonus skill.

Although you do not know what you will get in advance, there is no doubt that it will be a powerful skill because of the strict requirements.

In addition, you already have all the other ability value enhancement skills.

Since there are a total of eight stats (HP, MP, Attack Power, Defense, Magic Power, Mental Strength, Agility, and Luck), there are seven possible combinations with Luck.

Once the Luck Enhancement was mastered, there was a good chance that multiple combinations could fulfill the special condition at the same time.

Not every combination would have a special condition, but two or three would still hit it.

I increased the Luck Enhancement to 5 as if I were playing a game of chance.

‘Confirmation of the fulfillment of the special condition. You have acquired the Hot Hand skill.’

Congratulations !!! ────────────

Special Condition Achieved: Raise both the Attack Power Enhancement and Luck Enhancement skills to level 5.

Reward: Hot Hand skill.

────────────────────

Skill──────────────────

Hot Hand 1

When a critical hit occurs (5-S.Lv) times in a row, all subsequent S.Lv attacks become critical hits. When the battle ends, the number of consecutive critical hits and the number of confirmed critical hits are reset.

────────────────────

‘Confirmation of the fulfillment of the special condition. You have acquired the skill Disable Probability Effects.’

Congratulations !!! ────────────

Special Condition Achieved: The Mental Strength Enhancement and Luck Enhancement skills have both reached level 5.

Reward: Skill Disable Probability Effects.

────────────────────

Skill──────────────────

Disable Probability Effects

Disables any effect that has a probability of having a negative effect on you. However, it cannot negate any negative effects that occur due to the effect of a skill you are using.

────────────────────

‘Confirmation of the fulfillment of the special condition. You have obtained the skill Danger Prediction.’

Congratulations !!! ────────────

Special Condition Achieved: Both Agility Enhancement and Luck Enhancement skills have reached level 5.

Reward: Danger Prediction skill

────────────────────

Skill──────────────────

Danger Prediction

The ability to foresee the signs of major dangers that may befall you in both combat and non-combat situations. From the signs of danger, it is possible to read the magnitude of the danger and the time distance from the danger.

────────────────────

These are the three special conditions that can be achieved in combination.

Three out of seven is a fair chance.

It’s very impressive to think that this is the last time the combination bonus is available, isn’t it?

So, are these three skills useful?

Each of them is powerful, but I’m unsure if they’re useful now or not.

The only one I can think of is Danger Prediction, which is probably a better alternative to Critical Moment.

It doesn’t help that I don’t know what I’m getting in advance.

The bonus skills you get from the final combination of ability bonus skills are Attack Power Increase at Maximum HP, MP Destruction Attack, Absolute Defense, Solid Barrier, Energy Drain, Magic Outburst, Astral Survival, Magic Cancel, Astral Defense, Magic Barrier, Quick Draw, Hot Hand, Disable Probability Effect, and Danger Prediction, for a total of 14.

There are a total of twenty-eight combinations of enhancement skills.

Half of these include special conditions.

In addition,

‘Confirmation of the fulfillment of the special condition. You have obtained the skill Ability Growth Rate Increase.’

Congratulations !!! ────────────

Special Condition Achieved: The HP Enhancement, MP Enhancement, Attack Power Enhancement, Defense Enhancement, Magic Power Enhancement, Mental Strength Enhancement, Agility Enhancement, and Luck Enhancement skills are all set to level 5.

Reward: Skill Ability Growth Rate Increase

────────────────────

Skill──────────────────

Ability Growth Rate Increase 1

Increases the growth rate of skill values during leveling by (S.Lv x 10)%.

────────────────────

…I also received this skill…

“I don’t need it! But, it’s a great skill!”

Needless to say, I shouted alone in the subspace.

For an ordinary explorer, it’s a ridiculously broken skill.

If I were an ordinary explorer, I would definitely give this skill the highest priority in my quest, and I would also use the Book of Essentials to break through the upper limits of the skill.

It’s no wonder since this skill is included in the eight types of ability-value enhancement skills.

But for me, who can’t level up, it’s a skill that means nothing…

In addition to Luck Enhancement, there are several other skills that I’ve acquired and leveled up.

First.

I increased my Body Strengthening Magic from 1 to 5.

That is,

“Enhance Power, Enhance Agility!”

These two auxiliary magic skills are used.

The first one is the magic that the Hobbit Sumo Wrestler used to improve himself.

Skill──────────────────

Enhance Power

Increases the attack power of the target. The increase depends on the user’s magic power and the S.Lv of the skill.

[Current Effect] Attack Power +99.9%, for 600 seconds.

────────────────────

Skill──────────────────

Enhance Agility

Increases the agility of the target. The increase is based on the magic power and S.Lv of the skill.

[Current Effect] Agility +99.9%, for 600 seconds

────────────────────

The effect seems to be cumulative.

I guess it means that the increase of this magic is within the range of not doubling the original ability value, and the effect duration is limited to 10 minutes.

If the increase were capped, the effect would be too much with my current magic power.

Unfortunately, this is reasonable.

Next,

“Demonization!”

Magic overflows from the depths of my soul.

My skin turns purple and my veins bulge.

I can’t see it now, but my hair must stand on end and my eyes must be red.

Now all my ability values except HP have tripled, with the penalty that my maximum HP has been halved.

However, the Demonization skill level remains at 1.

Even if the skill level is increased, it only increases the duration of the effect.

Even at skill level 1, there are 15 seconds, which is enough for the current situation.

“Demon God Incarnation!”

Something tremendous and huge is upon my soul.

If this were an evil mythology TRPG, there would be a sanity check.

Golden light streams from my eyes and my golden hair rushes to the sky (even though I can’t see it myself).

An overwhelming sense of omnipotence rises from deep within me.

I am invincible!

I am no longer afraid of anything!

My mentality is surrounded by an organic aura that would make even Kudave run away barefoot.

I had suddenly become a first-rate flag architect, and indeed, the effects of Demon God Incarnation were all the more remarkable.

Demon God Incarnation also multiplies all ability stats by 10.

The downside is that my maximum HP is reduced to one-fifth.

It has been confirmed that this effect overlaps with Demonization.

Demonization and Demon God Incarnation increase all ability values by 30 times and reduce the maximum HP to one-tenth.

The skill level of Demon God Incarnation was still 1 because there was no benefit to increasing the skill level.

The Demon God Incarnation, Demonization, Enhance Power, and Enhance Agility skills.

These alone increased Attack Power and Agility by 30 times +99.9%, almost 60 times.

But that’s not all.

“Haaaaah!

I use the Magic Power Generation skill.

This is a skill that consumes MP to increase attack power by (S.Lv x 10) %.

This is the same skill used by the Hobbit Sumo Wrestler.

It was obtainable with the Book of Secrets, Rapid Scroll, obtained in the Kururi Castle Dungeon.

Of course, the skill level was increased to 5.

The calculation is that instead of consuming MP, the attack power is multiplied by 1.5 times.

1.5 times 60 times 90 times.

The Hobbit Sumo Wrestler also had a self-buff in Sumo, but it’s unavailable now.

I can’t do Shiko on Kudave.

With my current Attack Power, even Kudave would fall if I did Shiko.

There may be other skills that can buff the attacker’s Attack Power, but as far as I know, this is the only one that can be used without limiting the type of weapon.

With the pre-buff in place, I turned my attention to the numbers in the corner of my eye.

x0.01

This display,

x0.1

And then.

Super-slow motion accelerates to slow motion.

“W-h-a-t i-s t-h-i-s!”

Kudave’s line is also heard at one-tenth the speed.

Apparently, he noticed me buffing on his own head.

If he were human, he would be breaking out in a cold sweat.

But that’s the way it is with Kudave.

Even at 0.1x speed, he accelerates toward the void without a hint of hesitation.

The void has slipped through my perception again because I have released the time stop.

The Splefnir “fibers” came at me and Kudave from all sides, like a meteor shower.

Kudave barely dodged the fibers.

It’s a wild aerial maneuver that doesn’t care about me above his head, but I can handle it if I’m a tenth as fast as he is.

I’m 60 times more agile.

I’m still activating the Critical Moment.

I don’t know when I will roll out of the ring.

On the other hand, there is no reaction to the Danger Prediction I just acquired.

Let’s go back to x0.01 to see why.

After about a dozen seconds (subjective time), I had my answer.

“I see!”

Every single “fiber” is enough of an attack to kill me, so Critical Moment reacts.

But since Kudave dodges them all, Danger Prediction doesn’t react.

It’s a deadly attack, but it means there’s no future for it to hit me.

Thanks to these subtle differences like Danger Prediction and Critical Moments, I can concentrate on the attack with peace of mind.

If the Danger Prediction doesn’t react, it means it won’t hit me, even if it has the power to kill me instantly.

I am confident that I can leave the maneuvering and dodge to Kudave.

x0.1

The number of white “fibers” luring me and Kudave continues to increase.

The ratio of white chocolate to black chocolate increases and my vision is filled with white.

Kudave was not intimidated by the sight but bared his fangs wildly.

“Yu–to! Let’s–go!”

Kudave roared at a tenth of the speed.

White fibers filled the room.

Even Kudave could not repel them.

He tried to scorch them with his Megiddo Breath, but Kudave’s flying speed was too fast, and he ended up running into his own breath.

“Guaaahhh…!”

Kudave burns himself with his own breath.

But in doing so, he will not be caught by the white fibers.

A Danger Prediction reaction.

I lie down on Kudave’s head.

The residue of the Megiddo Breath passes over my head.

The Critical Moment reaction lets me know it’s also an instant kill.

“Ah-there! Aim-for-that!”

Kudave points at the “hole” with the tip of his wing.

The void is so dense that my eyes can’t focus.

But Kudave points with his head.

I pull out the Kusanagi Sword from my Item Box.

This is the core of the attack.

There is absolutely no margin for error.

I reduce the time speed to x0.01.

The skill set is decided.

I chose this as the center,

Skill──────────────────

Weapon Throw 6

Throwing a weapon at a target causes massive damage. The damage is proportional to the S.Lv times the weapon’s attack power.

Whether it hits or not, the thrown weapon shatters.

────────────────────

I knew it.

I also used the Book of Essentials for Weapon Throw.

This raised the upper limit of the skill level to 6.

I also invested over 200,000 SP to raise the skill level to 6.

To be honest, I felt it was a waste, but considering the damage multiplier, it was probably the best choice.

There are a few skills that can be synergized with Weapon Throw.

“Throwing, Knife Throwing, Kunai Throwing, Sword Throwing…”

Throwing 5, Knife Throwing 5, and the Ninjutsu sub-skill, Kunai Throwing.

The Kusanagi sword has a short blade for a sword, so Knife Throwing and Kunai Throwing also fall under the scope of these skills.

I also took the Sword Throwing skill that became available in the Book of Secrets, Scroll of Rupture, and raised its skill level to 5.

“Bull’s Eye, Lock On, and Sniper…”

I also added the hit correction skill.

The target this time was a void, so there was no danger of dodging the attack.

Therefore, there is no need to worry about the hit rate.

The reason for adding these three skills is to increase the number of skills that can be synergized and to make sure that the rules are checked.

It’s not like they’re getting in the way.

I didn’t increase the skill level because of the other skills.

There are other skills that can be added.

“Self-Destructive Attack, All-Out Strike, Dismissive, Double-Edged Blade…”

In order to increase the power of my attacks, I increased the level of Self-Destructive Attack, which I obtained by defeating several Karakuri-type enemies, and the bonus for defeating several Oni-type enemies, which was All-Out Strike, to 5.

The Dismissive and the Double-Edged Blade, obtained from the Book of Secrets: Scroll of Rupture and Rapid Scroll, respectively, have also been increased to 5.

The Dismissive makes you vulnerable to enemy counterattacks after an attack, but it does not matter if the attacker is in the void.

The recoil damage from the Self-Destruct Attack and the Double-Edged Blade can be covered by Self-Damage Reduction, Survive, and Revive.

It is also possible that the target is a void, so no recoil damage occurs.

Skills that trigger automatically should also have Attack Power Up at Maximum HP, a combination bonus for skills that increase stats.

There is more.

“Stun Attack, Heavy Strike, Hit Stop, MP Destruction Attack…”

It’s a type of skill that adds an extra effect to the attack.

Stun Attack, Heavy Strike, and Hit Stop all played an active role in the battle against Clovis.

The MP Destruction Attack is a combination bonus for skills that increase ability stats.

“Knockout and Plunder”

The familiar Knockout and Plunder.

Knockout, which leaves only 1 HP, is a skill that normally lowers attack power.

But this time, the target is a void. It is not a matter of knocking them out or not.

Also, Plunder would have no effect on the void. The void has no status.

But I put these two skills on it because I want to add depth to the rules.

“Yu-to! Prepare-yourself!”

Kudave’s voice.

Until a moment ago, my vision was filled with the fibers of Splefnir.

But now my vision was filled with emptiness.

I was filled with something that was ‘there’ and ‘not there’ at the same time, ‘not there’ and ‘there’ at the same time, and ‘there’ and ‘not there’ at the same time, and my vision wobbled like a drunk.

It was like being forced to chug a bottle of tequila by an older colleague at work.

I can’t trust my senses.

I have to trust Kudave.

Finally, there’s one last thing I can’t forget.

This is it,

Skill──────────────────

Skill Burst.

In exchange for losing this skill, the effect of the skill will be multiplied by 100 once.

The lost skill can never be acquired again.” was erased by the Philosopher’s Stone Fragment.

────────────────────

This one

As you can see, the Philosopher’s Stone Fragment has removed the disadvantage.

If you’re looking for power, you can’t miss the 100x effect of Skill Burst.

In addition, this Skill Burst is set as a trump card with Trump Card 4.

Although I could not set the Trump Card to 5 due to SP, it still increases the effect of Skill Burst by (S.Lv x 25)%–100%.

This doubles the effect of Skill Burst.

This means that the skill’s effect will be “200 times” more effective.

This doubled Skill Burst applies to all skills that can be reacquired even if lost.

The skills available are Magic Power Generation 5, Weapon Throw 6, Sword Throwing 5, Knife Throwing 5, Throwing 5, Bull’s Eye 2, Sniper 2, Dismissive 5, Double-Edged Blade 5, Stun Attack 3, Heavy Strike 3, and Hit Stop 3.

The effects of Trump Card and Skill Burst increase the power of each of these skills by a factor of 200.

Of course, the targeted skills are lost.

However, with Philosopher’s Stone Fragment, Skill Burst’s “lost skills can never be regained” penalty has been removed.

The SP I put into that skill will be wasted, but conversely, it can be regained as long as I have enough SP saved.

However, skills gained with special condition bonuses are not subject to Skill Burst.

It’s a compromise in terms of damage, but I don’t want to lose skills that I don’t know if I can get outside of special conditions.

You can probably tell by now.

The power of that single strike is 200 times 200 times 200 times…

I can’t calculate it exactly because each skill has a different effect, but it should be so powerful that it’s ridiculous to calculate it any further.

x0.1

x0.01

x0.1

Adjusting the speed of time, I wait for the moment.

“Yu–to! Here-we-go!”

“I’ll do my best…!”

The Kusanagi Sword shoots out of my hand.

It was beyond the phenomenon of throwing.

The emerald-green divine weapon sliced through space at what should have been one-tenth the speed in an instant.

Even with my 60 times greater agility, I could not even see the trajectory of the sword.

All I could see was the emerald straight line it left behind.

The emerald slash line was etched into space itself.

The emerald slash line stained the empty emerald, like cutting cloth with a pair of scissors.

Just as the mythical hero cut through the reeds of the forest fire.

The Kusanagi Sword cuts through the void and transforms it into a part of this world.