Chapter 253

With the lingering doubt deep in his heart finally cleared, Tatsuro turned around with a refreshed feeling.

Then, in his peripheral vision, he saw the entire vast sea transform into a return point.

"Tatsuro, it looks like you got the answer you wanted!"

"Yeah, perfectly!"

"Woof!"

Seeing Tatsuro's bright expression, Ai immediately understood and responded with a thumbs-up and a wink.

Overwhelmed with joy, Tatsuro hugged Ai tightly.

Back on Earth, such strength would have been painful, but thanks to their stats, it felt just right now.

Ai wrapped her arms around Tatsuro's waist, and they savored each other's warmth for a moment before pulling apart.

"So, what did you ask?"

"How to use the system in our world."

"---Does that mean… in your world, Tatsuro-san, the system doesn't work!?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Seems like it. But apparently, if you carry a Return Stone, it supplies energy and makes it usable… What's up, Leah?"

Tatsuro looked puzzled as Leah, who seemed the least involved, leaned forward eagerly.

"Well, I'm just relieved to hear that. If the system were constantly active in your world, it would've been a huge problem!"

""A huge problem?""

At the sudden ominous words, Tatsuro and Ai tilted their heads in unison.

"Yes. To put it bluntly- Leah, Tatsuro-san, and Ai-san…"

"Leah-chan, Tatsuro, and I?"

"Right now, due to the titles we gained from the boss battle, we've been switched to a different kind of existence, neither dwarf nor human."

""Huh?""

What is this girl talking about? Not only Tatsuro and Ai but also Cardina and the others, listening silently, had question marks floating above their heads.

Leah, expecting this reaction, ignored it and continued.

"The [Endeniente] title that Tatsuro-san and Ai-san have heals all physical damage. But it's not just the obvious damage you can see."

"Damage that's not visible? Like a mild illness or something?"

"Of course, that's included, but it also covers damage at the cellular level, like aging."

"----Wait a sec. So, as long as the system is active, Ai and I… we don't age?"

"Yes. It's a kind of immortality, in a way. But even that didn't shock me as much as when I first learned about it."

"First time… maybe that time?"

"Yeah, now that you mention it, she did act strange suddenly."

Tatsuro and Ai recalled when Leah, while checking their statuses, suddenly claimed to feel ill and lay down.

Come to think of it, they were talking about their titles, and Leah was looking at them with her [All-Seeing Eye].

"But, well, setting aging aside for now, from the way you said it, it sounds like there'd be an even bigger problem if the system stayed active, right?"

"Yes. We say it heals physical damage in one word, but it's less about healing and more about forcibly converting the body to its defined peak state—the state where the person functions most efficiently. Completely ignoring our will."

"Hm? If it keeps us in our best condition, isn't that fine?"

"For men, that might not cause any issues."

"For men—wait, could it be!?"

In Tatsuro's mind, he started thinking of things women have that men don't.

If the body is maintained in the state most suited for physical activity, it led him to the conclusion that a vital function for women might be halted.

"It looks like Tatsuro-san figured it out. You're probably right, but let me say it clearly. As long as the [Endeniente] title is active, Ai-san won't have her period."

"No period… Now that you mention it, I haven't had one lately, have I? Huh? That means--babies!"

"Yes. It means you can't have children in that state."

"No way… --Wait, but, right. If we don't activate the system after returning, it won't apply during that time, so it's not a problem?"

"Exactly. Phew--- I've been agonizing over how to bring this up, but I'm so glad we found a solution…"

Seeing Leah's genuinely relieved, softened expression, Tatsuro and Ai were touched that she had been so concerned for them.

They felt anew how glad they were to have saved her back then.

"Looks like we caused you some unnecessary worry. Sorry about that. And thank you, Leah."

"Thanks, Leah-chan!"

"No, you two are my benefactors who opened up my future, so I'm happy to help even a little. Oh, but if you two have a child in the future, make absolutely sure not to activate the system during pregnancy!"

"Yeah. If we did that, our child would be forcibly---"

Tatsuro stopped himself, not wanting to imagine further.

Ai seemed to feel the same, vowing to never forget that one thing.

They could accidentally cause their own child to vanish.

"But immortality, huh… What's that like?"

"Being ageless in our world would be pretty creepy, right?"

"Then why not hide it with Curse Magic? Since no one in your world has the system, it'd be a free pass."

"Since there's no system, magic resistance would be zero, too."

"If we were bad guys, we could probably get away with anything…"

It wasn't hard to imagine they could cover up almost anything.

Tatsuro thought they might cheat a little, but resolved to avoid harming others.

While Tatsuro was lost in such thoughts, Ai was thinking of something else.

"In that case, when we return, we could live as normal students, then become working adults. Then, using Curse Magic to disguise ourselves, we could live it up in this world afterward."

"And when we get tired of that, we could live out our days leisurely in our world and pass away. That sounds pretty good."

They didn't have to come to this world right after finishing school. They had parents and connections back home.

The fun of this world could wait until after their lives in their world ended, perhaps due to old age.

Living an ordinary life until then could be a valuable experience.

"We could come here during vacations, too."

"Just touring this world without any worries sounds fun!"

As they started to see a vague outline of their future, Tatsuro suddenly remembered something.

"By the way, you said you're no longer a dwarf, right, Leah? Is that okay?"

"Yes. I've just become a slightly golem-like dwarf. I can still have children, and my lifespan has extended quite a bit, I suppose."

"Slightly golem-like…?"

Since she didn't seem bothered, Tatsuro decided to let it go.

"But if you ever run into trouble, let me know. Looks like we can come back here even after returning, so I'm sure we can help somehow."

"Then I'll hold you to that."

Now healthy and robust, Leah had grown into a splendid, beautiful young girl.

Tatsuro smiled back at her heartwarming smile, thinking that anyone who knew the scrawny Leah from before wouldn't recognize her now.

"Well then, our long dungeon life is finally over. We must've been holed up for about 140 days, so we've earned quite a bit of time."

"By our standards, that's about four months and twenty days. So, over seventy percent of our otherworld life was spent in the dungeon."

"But thanks to that, we earned a ton of SP. And titles-- oh, right. We got some unfamiliar titles, too. Should we check those out?"

"Oh yeah, we did get something. I forgot because of that weird thing that happened."

So, they decided to look into the new titles they received: [Creator – Destruction], [High-Difficulty Labyrinth Conqueror], [Dragon Slayer +1], and [Transgressor]. Plus, the skill [Magic Domain Transcendence].

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Title: Creator - Destruction

Rarity: 23

Effect: Interruption of one's own world.

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"At first glance, it seems the only difference from Prelude is the rarity."

While everyone shared this thought, Leah alone peered deeper into the skill with her [All-Seeing Eye].

"Let's see… Hmm. It seems that while the previous one couldn't ignore physical laws, this one allows free manipulation of gravity."

"Unlocked by learning gravity magic, huh?"

"Exactly."

Since they were tired, they decided to test it later and moved on to the next item.

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Title: High-Difficulty Labyrinth Conqueror

Rarity: 18

Effect: Slight increase to all stats in dungeons of Level 10 or below.

Reduced stamina consumption and sleep time in said dungeons.

Grants night vision and enhanced sense of direction in said dungeons.

Increases rare drop rates in said dungeons.

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"It's a title that only works in dungeons."

"Makes grinding easier, I guess. But this reduced sleep time—does it mean less sleep feels like more?"

"Yes. Sleeping three hours a day would feel like seven hours of rest."

"Subtly convenient. And the rare drop rate increase… I wish we'd gotten this sooner…"

"True, but that's impossible."

"Yeah."

Since you can't get it without clearing, Athena's words were spot-on.

Tatsuro knew this, so he quickly shifted gears and moved on with the group.

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Title: Dragon Slayer +1

Rarity: 9

Effect: Slight stat increase per piece of dragon-material equipment.

Can use [Dragon's Aura Lv.1] by consuming [Dragon Power].

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"Basically, it's a slightly better version of [Dragon Slayer]."

"Sure, but what's this [Dragon's Aura Lv.1]?"

"Let's see… It's a skill that lets other races emit the kind of intimidating presence a dragon naturally gives off. It seems… very weak monsters or beasts won't come near."

"A pretty lackluster skill…"

With four actual dragons in their party, it was frankly unnecessary, and its scope was too narrow.

Everyone felt the same as Nana's blunt comment.

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Title: Transgressor

Rarity: 16

Effect: Slightly increases all stats of party members other than the holder.

Effects stack if multiple holders are present.

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"So it boosts the whole party."

"Tough luck for solo players!"

"Since the effects stack, a party with many holders would see a significant overall boost…"

Since only Tatsuro had it for now, they didn't fully feel its effects.

But if two or three more people had it, the entire party would likely notice the enhancement

And finally, they looked at the skill Tatsuro gained when his class evolved from [Elemental Master] to the grandiose [Great Sage].

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Skill: Magic Domain Transcendence

Rarity: 23

Type: Active Skill

Effect: Once a day for thirty minutes, temporarily raises the level of all elemental magic by [3].

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"--Huh?"

"This is… a terrifying skill. From what I can see, it seems to ignore upper limits…"

"So, if Tatsuro used it now, his Light and Darkness Magic would jump to Level 17?"

"--Yeah. Even the lowest would hit 13, so this is beyond powerful."

"And with Dad's current stats, he could probably handle the sudden skill boost without issue."

For an average person, raising skill levels without matching stats would be meaningless.

But Tatsuro's stats were boosted by various titles, and as his class advanced, the stat gains per level increased.

Considering this, Tatsuro wouldn't be held back by his stats, unable to fully utilize high-level skills.

With that in mind, Tatsuro had an idea he wanted to try.

"Could I use these boosted skills to recreate Cardina and the others' bodies?"

"That's… I'm not sure. If I observe directly, I might be able to tell if it's possible and whether the results would fade when the skill level drops."

"Then let's try it!"

"Peewee!"

"Neigh!"

"Let's do it!"

If it worked, Cardina and the others could jump from Level 14 bodies to Level 17.

That would make them even more helpful, so all four eagerly agreed.

Since they wanted it, Tatsuro decided to give it a try right away.