1.
In truth, I had enchanted quite a few things in front of Dolores.
I’d even enhanced something to +20 before.
And yet, I thought it was only natural for her to be afraid of enchanting...
Say someone right in front of you succeeded at enhancing something despite terrible odds.
The thought that would come to mind would be...
‘Did the odds change or something?’
Rather than...
‘That bastard’s lucky.’
It would be closer to the latter.
Just because you saw someone succeed a few times, it was hard to believe they would definitely succeed again.
No matter how much she trusted me, Mama had once been a Sun Dwarves royal VIP sucker—no, customer. It was only inevitable that it would give her PTSD.
What if luck doesn’t come through again...? What if my beloved equipment breaks...? And so on.
The proposition that enchanting was a matter of skill didn’t apply here.
So it seemed Dolores had decided to use Yeomhwa’s equipment as a sacrifice first...
"Hehe."
She had more of a little-devil streak than she looked.
I got up and headed for Yeomhwa.
She seemed to have bolted back to her room the moment she saw Dolores... She was probably here, right?
Knock, knock.
The instant I knocked on the door...
"I didn’t do anything!"
"...?"
"She was just so cute, I only hugged her a little! We said we’d watch videos together!"
I froze with my hand on the doorknob.
"Nngh, I don’t knooow either... It’s your fault, Dolores!! For hiding a baby like—"
"Um, it’s Lionel."
"...Huh?"
Rustle.
I heard the bedding on the bed shift.
"Really...?"
"Yes."
"..."
Creak.
The door opened...
Whoosh.
"Get in, quick!"
Yeomhwa slipped me inside and pulled me in.
Click.
After locking the door, Yeomhwa put a finger to her lips in a shushing gesture and whispered quietly.
"What’s going on?"
"It’s about something else."
I should explain.
"You remember when I enhanced that Ether Circle to +20 for you last time, right?"
"Yeah. Do I have to pay you back?"
"No... It’s just that I was talking with Dolores about enchanting earlier. She suggested enchanting the new equipment..."
"Enchanting that...? It’s a divine artifact..."
Yeomhwa tilted her head.
"Yes. So we thought, why not start by doing yours first?"
"What...?"
"That’s why I came here."
Hey, Fiancée.
Hand over Fiancée.
Float.
Yeomhwa took out Fiancée: Rose Bloom Finale.
A red rose floated between us.
"You mean you’re going to enchant this..."
"Yes."
Hand it over.
Yeomhwa was also a top-tier customer of the Dwarf Company’s Enchant Room, so she surely had PTSD too...
But she wouldn’t be able to evade my persuasion.
"Can you make sure it doesn’t break, Lionel...? I love this thing so much..."
Yeomhwa carefully supported the rose floating in the air with her hands.
"Just trust me."
I answered confidently.
"..."
Then Yeomhwa stared at me.
The corners of her lips slowly began to rise.
"...This sounds fun."
"?"
Yeomhwa’s eyes sparkled as she looked down at the rose.
"This sounds fun!!"
If I’d been mistaken about something, it was this.
Yeomhwa had always enchanted things for the dopamine rush in the first place.
"Enchanting that won’t break? That sounds insanely fun!"
On top of that, she trusted me completely.
Thump.
"Hey, hey..."
She trusted my skill...!
I felt my heart race.
Of course, it was because someone believed in my rhythm-game skills.
2.
Dolores sat in her office, staring into empty space.
Either way... Lionel had ended up enchanting Yeomhwa’s secondary weapon first.
If someone were to ask why she kept refusing to enchant things, whether she didn’t trust Lionel...
"Not at all."
Without exaggeration, Dolores trusted Lionel more than she trusted herself.
If she had to choose which of the two was more trustworthy, she would choose Lionel without hesitation.
Even though Lionel had confidently said he would do it...
"Why do I start stammering first...?"
It was embarrassing.
When enchanting failed, the equipment broke. Even good equipment was no exception.
She had seen several times that what Lionel did was different, yet when it was finally her turn, fear seized her first.
She was the one who was unreliable.
Lionel was already so far ahead, while she was still caught up in old thoughts. Maybe she was hopeless.
All she knew how to do was get bright—
"Ahem..."
Then...
"Ahahahah!"
"Let’s gooooo!!"
Through the window, she saw two people crossing the garden.
They were heading toward the workshop, tightly holding hands.
There was even a rose floating over their shoulders.
Those two certainly were excited.
...At times like this, she thought it was fortunate Yeomhwa was around.
Because when Lionel wanted to do something, Yeomhwa could immediately take his hand and follow him...
Dolores could only hope that one day, she too would be able to do that.
Ring, ring...
Only then did she hear the sound of an incoming communication by her ear.
"Hi, Dolores."
"...Yeah."
Dolores answered the call she had been putting off.
"I’m listening."
The caller was Isabella.
"...I said I’m listening."
"HiI’mIsabellaandIhopeyou’vebeenwelllatelyandIsawthevideoyouweresoawesomeandIwonderedwhomadeyourweaponsothat’swhyIcalledhaveyoueatenyet?"
"Mm-hm..."
A smile hung on Dolores’s lips.
She felt that Isabella had improved more than expected.
Of course, one of her eyebrows twitched slightly at the fact that Isabella’s business ultimately involved looking for Lionel...
Kyaah!
Laughter sounded from outside the window.
Seeing how well Yeomhwa and Lionel got along like that... Perhaps Isabella could become a good friend too?
Their mental ages were similar as—
Well, anyway, it was clear that she was after Lionel.
"Do you want to meet him? That craftsman?"
"Yeah."
She would need to get Lionel’s consent and permission for the details, but...
"Should we make it two?"
"Yeah! I can take three too."
"Pfft."
Three smacks on the butt... That meant it wasn’t mere curiosity this time.
She would never come over to get spanked for mere curiosity.
Isabella’s resolve seemed certain.
3.
I’d never shown anyone enchanting before, except Dolores.
"Can I watch? Can I watch!?"
"Of course!"
Seeing how excited she was got me excited too.
Yeomhwa and I hurried to the workshop.
"Whoa, you hit it with that?"
"Yes."
Yeomhwa sat across from my enchanting table and marveled at Dawn Bringer.
"...Just a moment."
First, it was time for my solemn pre-enchantment setup.
For reference, this was how I set up for rhythm games in my previous life.
I didn’t just put on a hard song and start warming up right away.
First, I draped a blanket over my knees, placed coffee within reach, pulled up my chair, adjusted my position...
Checked that my ping stayed below 9 ms... Checked the keyboard on its palm rest...
Anyway, it was the same here.
I spread a cloth over the table and opened the container of powder.
Then I placed the rose on top.
"I’ll begin."
"Ooh."
The instant I picked up Dawn Bringer...
[Yuna’s Enchantment Timer is starting~]
[I’ll be timing three hours from now!]
Yuna’s prison—no, timer—appeared before my eyes.
I was a little nervous because I had an audience...
"Whew..."
Let’s go.
Whoosh.
Clang clang clang clang!
Clang clang!!
"Ooh!"
"Wow?!"
"Mmhng?!"
Yeomhwa seemed to be the kind of woman who properly brought out a man’s spirit.
Whenever there was a brief pause in the hammering... she tempted a man with various praise and exclamations, like saying I did well, that was good, and soft moans...
No. No, that’s not right.
What was I thinking during this solemn enchanting time?
I barely held down the corners of my lips from rising and swung the hammer.
Clang! Clang!
And before I knew it, I had reached +5.
Honestly, up to +5 was just a warm-up.
"Whew..."
It wasn’t particularly difficult, but I rolled my neck anyway.
"That’s amazing..."
Knead... knead...
The moment I set down the hammer, Yeomhwa pressed up behind me and started massaging my forearms.
"You’re already at +5, Lionel...?"
"It’s nothing."
"Wow..."
Yeomhwa whispered sweetly by my ear.
Hehehe...
And at +5, there was something else to choose.
A potential ability.
Excited to give Yeomhwa the options, I checked the potential abilities.
[The first potential ability of [Fiancée: Rose Bloom Finale] has been unlocked.]
─────────────────
【Potential Abilities】
[+5 ─ Branch Selection]
[Fallen Blossoms] Missed bullets are left behind as petals.
[Lingering Blossoms] The bullet marks of shots that hit are engraved.
─────────────────
"...Hm?"
Fallen Blossoms and Lingering Blossoms.
Maybe because it was only +5, but they were both a little ambiguous to pick from.
But thinking about it simply...
"Yeomhwa."
"What is it, baby?"
"...When you use Full Barrage, do more bullets hit, or miss?"
Normally, if more shots missed, I would choose Fallen Blossoms. If more hit, Lingering Blossoms.
Wouldn’t that work?
The one she could use more often would be more important.
Flinch.
Perhaps it was a sensitive question, because Yeomhwa trembled.
"...Full Barrage isn’t really a skill where you worry about accuracy, you know?"
"Right."
Since it consumed every bullet and sprayed them all out, after all.
"There might be a few more misses...?"
"Really? Ah, then what about when you aren’t using Full Barrage?"
Knead, knead.
Yeomhwa resumed kneading my forearm.
"I don’t usually... aim... like, one by one..."
"Ah, I understand."
Let’s not ask any more.
So Yeomhwa was the type to fire with the mindset of just needing one shot to land.
Then naturally...
‘Fallen Blossoms.’
I chose Fallen Blossoms.
"I’ll start again right away."
"Okay!"
When Yeomhwa took her hands away, I immediately gripped Dawn Bringer again.
Clang clang clang!
"..."
Clang clang clang clang!
"...Good!"
Having someone praise me while I hammered made life worth living.
Ah, if only Yuna praised me like Yeomhwa did—
[?]
[?????????]
Ah, I’m kidding.
After swinging the hammer a few more times...
─────────────────
【Potential Abilities】
[+10 ─ Unbloomed Flower]
[The petals of Fallen Blossoms absorb mana and become land mines. They explode if a target steps on them.]
─────────────────
Oh, it created land mines.
Missed bullets became petals on the ground and even turned into mines?
This was nice. She didn’t even have to use it separately.
I was itching to see Yeomhwa’s reaction, but to avoid spoiling it, I decided to keep my mouth shut and enchant a little longer.
Up to +15, honestly... it wasn’t all that difficult.
Maybe it was because someone beside me kept telling me I was doing well.
Clang clang clang clang!!
As the frequency of my hand movements increased, I no longer had the leisure to check Yeomhwa’s reactions.
Perhaps knowing that, Yeomhwa would quietly approach during every break and encourage me.
"You did well..."
Smooch.
She kissed my cheek and lightly patted my shoulder, then withdrew her hand before I picked up the hammer again.
Clang! Clang!!
Then, the moment I brought the hammer down for the last time...
─────────────────
[14→15][Success!]
─────────────────
【Enhancement Successful】
─────────────────
[Fiancée: Rose Bloom Finale][★★★★☆]
[+14 → +15]
─────────────────
I successfully reached +15 with an all-perfect run.
─────────────────
【Potential Abilities】
[+15 ─ Clamor] [Cooldown: 13 minutes]
[At the user’s command, the petals of Fallen Blossoms can be fired one at a time like bullets.]
─────────────────
"...Oh."
"What’s wrong? Is there a problem?"
No, there wasn’t a problem, but...
The effect felt a little underwhelming.
In theory, Full Barrage fired thirty-six shots, following the number of petals.
If it missed... assuming more than half missed, that meant nineteen shots would miss.
And whether firing just one of those shots would actually help...
There was a good solution for times like this.
"I’m going straight to +20."
"Huh? Okay, good luck...! What should I do?"
Yeomhwa asked, bouncing up and down beside me.
"If I succeed..."
What kind of praise from Yeomhwa awaited me, I wonder?
I left the rest unsaid...
And raised my hammer again.
Clang!
From here on, it was a battle of pure concentration.
The circles kept changing position, and trills came out without pause.
Needless to say, the overlapping speed became faster too.
[Marvelous!]
Careful not to put too much force into my hands, I struck in short, controlled motions.
Bang!
+16.
I poured out some more of the insufficient powder... and Yeomhwa stopped making sounds now too.
Whenever I raised my head, she only clenched her fist for me.
I gave her a grin once, then looked back at the rose.
Clang clang clang clang!
Past +17, then +18.
Sweat began to gather in my palms, so I set the hammer down for a moment.
I wiped my hands and gripped it again.
I reached +19.
"Whew..."
Clang clang clang!
I thought there wouldn’t be any problems this time either.
It was difficult... but still within the range where an all-perfect run was possible.
But then...
"Urk?!"
Some running sweat got into my eye.
It stung like hell. Damn it.
I quickly continued while winking one eye shut, but...
"Damn..."
I missed two.
─────────────────
[Calculating destruction probability......]
─────────────────
[Base destruction probability for +19 → +20] [15%]
─────────────────
[0 Excellent] [0 Normal] [0 Bad] [2 Terrible]
[Marvelous adjustment] [15% → 14%]
─────────────────
[Advanced Enchant Powder adjustment]
[14% → 9%]
─────────────────
Ah... Fuck.
The snowball effect from not wiping off my sweat...
Sure, 9% was a low probability, but if I got hit by it, that was 100%.
Just as my heart dropped...
─────────────────
[19→20][Success!]
─────────────────
【Enhancement Successful】
─────────────────
[Fiancée: Rose Bloom Finale][★★★★☆]
[+19 → +20]
─────────────────
"Wow..."
A pale green aura surged from the equipment...
Then settled down.
Fuck.
Luck was on my side this time.
I’m the fucking luckiest boy.
"Fuck."
"...You’re wild, baby."
"It succeeded..."
"What!?"
I put down the hammer and held up one finger.
Naturally, my thumb.
"Success."
Then the potential abilities appeared.
What would +20 be like?
─────────────────
【Potential Abilities】
[+5 ─ Fallen Blossoms]
[Missed bullets are left behind as petals.]
[+10 ─ Unbloomed Flower]
[The petals of Fallen Blossoms absorb mana and become land mines. They explode if a target steps on them.]
[+15 ─ Clamor] [Cooldown: 13 minutes]
[At the user’s command, the petals of Fallen Blossoms can be fired one at a time like bullets.]
─────────────────
And... finally.
─────────────────
[+20 ─ Bloom Finale] [Cooldown: 3 minutes]
[At the user’s command, all Fallen Blossoms petals fire at once. Each petal automatically targets and fills the gaps left between the shots of Full Barrage, eliminating blind spots in the bullet barrage.]
─────────────────
"..."
I studied the description... about five times.
Let’s run a simulation.
So, Yeomhwa fires Full Barrage.
Then the opponent tries to dodge, right? By slipping between the bullets.
What if she used Bloom Finale then...?
Wouldn’t the petals left behind automatically fill the spaces Full Barrage failed to cover?
The blind spots among the bullets the opponent was dodging.
The bullets that had missed all that time personally delivered the finishing blow at the end...
"Finale."
Bloom Finale...
I could say this with certainty.
It was a potential ability that perfectly suited its name.
Then...
─────────────────
『Hiding is your freedom. If you can dodge, that is.』
- ??? -
─────────────────
The Origin Script of the secondary weapon—whose speaker I couldn’t identify—appeared before my eyes.
Then...
Fade...
─────────────────
『Hiding is your freedom. If you can dodge, that is.』
- Yeomhwa, from The Great Battle -
─────────────────
The question marks faded, and the owner of the script changed to Yeomhwa.
"Wow, that’s insane."
I’d been wondering who said it...
Yeomhwa had said this?
"How is it? How is it?"
Yeomhwa urged me on.
I looked at Yeomhwa, who had her hands balled up in front of her with an expectant expression...
‘...Isn’t she going to pounce on me?’
Thinking that,
"Um... Yeomhwa?"
I carefully opened my mouth.
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