195: The Healer's Light, Part Two

The Healer's Light, Part Two

"What?" Neve asked. Erin disappeared and Neve resummoned her. 

"Starlight City is being overrun," Charlotte reiterated. "It's all very dramatic, as you might imagine. Monsters in the streets, knights heading off to fight them knowing they might die, that sort of thing." 

Neve couldn't say she was too surprised about any of this, and judging by her tone Charlotte had probably somewhat expected this as well, but still, she was slightly stunned at just how quickly this sudden event had unfolded. 

"So, uh... What are you guys going to do?" 

"Well, there's no defined plan at the moment. Some people have decided to abandon the city altogether, as you might imagine. Not the most logical of choices given how the city is surrounded by monsters anyway, but, yes. Others are gathering allies to fight back against this invasion. The Hidden Blade Guild... Well, they're actively trying to work alongside the monsters to take down any brave souls. And that's all just what I've seen in the past hour." 

[Shit,] Neve thought, feeling a little frustrated. 

Honestly, a month ago, she wouldn't have cared about this news at all. But, now that she had something she wanted to do, an idea that was gathering up power in her mind almost like the star she'd charged in the Survival trial, she was frustrated. 

"But, I'm sure you noticed the sudden influx of new donations, right? A lot of others... they're placing even more faith in you than before." 

[Huh?] 

Neve, admittedly, had been too busy thinking about how much more of a pain these new enemies were going to be to really look at her total WST number. 

Looking at it now, her eyes widened with shock. 

WST: 71000

[What?] 

"... I'll take that prolonged silence as an indication you hadn't noticed. Yes, people are banking on you even more now, Neve. So," Charlotte said as an explosion sounded off somewhere in the background. She maintained her casual tone, however, so Neve figured it must not have been an urgent matter. "What's this last Floor looking like?" 

"Uh... About that..." Neve grimaced. "This will be the hardest Floor yet." 

"To the surprise of no one, I hope, since it is the last one and all," Charlotte responded. "Do you have any, ehm, estimate on when you might be done?" 

Hearing that, Neve took a moment to close her eyes and think. 

If it was up to her, Neve would probably say she'd try to be done in a week. Maybe two. 

However, it wasn't. 

[Tamira said if I took any days off, she'd straight-up lock me out of the camp. So, that means she doesn't want me gathering any strength. She wants me to tackle this Floor with the power I currently have. So....] 

"Probably a day or two," Neve replied. "I wish I could take longer, honestly, but I'm being forced to clear it quickly." 

"Hm... I suppose some people would be thankful to hear that, but, I can't help but be concerned for you. But, I'll let the citizens of this fine city know that you're in the final stretch. Maybe you'll get even more donations. Who knows?" 

"That would be nice. I'll do my best," Neve promised. "Stay safe out there, alright?" 

Those words escaped Neve's mouth automatically. Only after they left did Neve realize how she sounded just now. 

"Worried about me, are you?" Charlotte asked. Neve could almost see her smirking. "I'll try to lay low. It would be a shame if I got taken out before you and I got to meet in person,  ma douce. I've been looking forward to it, you know?" Charlotte giggled. "Good luck." 

Neve hung up the phone as quickly as she could. 

[... Embarrassing.] 

She couldn't deny that, upon hearing Charlotte mention the idea of them meeting up, a bit of curiosity did sprout in her chest. 

Erin, thankfully, brought her back to the moment at hand. 

"So, what are we to do? If this is to be the easiest fight we will be partaking in during our visit to this world, I would say that there is some preparation we will need to be doing." 

"We can't," Neve informed her summon. "The System made it clear." 

Erin put forth a conflicted expression.

Neve was in the same place, mentally. 

[Obviously, we can win through our stats alone. Brute forcing our way through fights. But, there's a very real chance we'll end up facing something that we just don't have the skills to beat.] 

Neve paced from one side of the arena to another. 

[So, what could...?] 

An idea came to her mind. 

[WAIT!] 

"Hold on, hold on, hold on!" Neve repeated as she ran over to the fallen corpses. 

She searched through them. Not because she hoped to find any useful items, as Tamira had made it clear the deal they made before was off, but because she hoped to find a pricy item. 

As she looted them, she looked at the clock on her HUD. 

[5:12 pm,] Neve noted. [Tamira said I couldn't take days off. She didn't say I couldn't use {Reconstruction} at all, though. So, I should be able to use this Technique one more time before I have to keep going!] 

Naturally, that meant she had to make her one use of it count. 

[I just need something expensive, come on! I'm only going to get one shot at this!] 

Alas, none of the items she encountered could really be classified as such. 

[15k for their spears, 10k for their horns, 5k for their bows???? This is the last Floor! What do you mean these are the kinds of values I'm getting?] 

She quickly set the bodies aside, pacing around the room once again. 

[Fine. I'll have to use something that I already have for this to work... It doesn't matter what it is. If I can make this work, then this Floor could become so much easier!] 

"So... You have an idea?" Erin asked. 

"Y-Yeah, give me a second, I'm thinking." 

Erin gave her a slightly amused smile as Neve paced even faster, looking through her Inventory. 

Nothing she had really fit the bill. 

Except for one item. 

She froze as soon as she landed on it. 

[... Right. I haven't used this.] 

Tears of the Goddess

{Legendary}

{Potion}

{Effect: Once ingested, the player will be resurrected upon dying.} 

{Val: 100000 WST}

Neve exhaled deeply.  2

[I almost felt physical pain spending so many tokens to buy this thing. I... I could use this...] 

Neve considered it. 

There did, of course, exist the possibility that Neve somehow made a mistake in one of the future fights and met her end. Maybe one of those homing missiles could hit her before she has a chance to shield herself. Or, maybe she could run out of mana and end up getting stabbed by a spear, while Erin is distracted. 

There were many ways in which her run through this last Floor could go wrong. 

But, this was clearly the best candidate for a sacrifice. 

The potential reward was just too good to turn it down. 

[Charlotte just said she's going to try to get people to donate even more to me. I might end up with enough tokens to buy another one of these. It's fine.] 

"Eh, eh, eh. Not so fast," Tamira whispered. "Once you sacrifice something, that thing is lost forever, Neve. So, no," she said, "if you sacrifice this, that's it. You won't be able to use it even if you buy another one. Is it worth it?" She asked. "Whatever your plan is... Whatever that vague idea you got that's suddenly got you so motivated. Is it really worth the potential danger?" 

If Neve was left to consider this herself, maybe her answer would have been different. Maybe, she would have decided to prioritize safety. But, no. 

Ironically, hearing Tamira herself ask this was what prompted Neve to answer: 

[Yes. It is. If this works, then what I have in mind will be that much easier. I have to do this.] 

Before she could convince herself not to do this, she began the process. 

First, she selected the {Tear of the Goddess} as the item she intended to sacrifice. 

Then, she selected the item she wanted to enhance. 

The item she felt was the key. Not just to this Floor, but also the key to what came after. 

Her new plan. 

The new reason she found to move her legs forward, through whatever hellish trials this Floor had in store for her. 

Bloodstained Rags

{Unique}

{Clothing}

{Class Req: None}

{Lia's clothes. Reduced to nothing but rags, this outfit is so worn out that it is impossible to tell what she'd been wearing originally.}

{Effect: Wearer is 15% more persuasive} 

{Val: 15000 WST}

Neve inhaled sharply. 

[Please, please, please, be a massive buff... Come on!] 

Finally, she began the process. 

And, what came out of it was: 

{Armor Enhanced!} 

Bloodstained Rags

{Effect: Wearer is 100% more persuasive}

{New Effect Gained!} 

{Effect: Wearer can inflict Charm on targets through loving gestures.}

{Charm (on allies): Increase all attributes. Attribute increase and duration is based on the gesture that is done.} 

{Charm (on enemies): The opponent will briefly obey the user's commands. Duration is based on the gesture that is done.}

Neve's eyes gleamed. 

This was exactly what she'd wanted. 

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