Kono Sekai ga Game da to, Ore dake ga Shitte Iru (WN) – Chapter 18

“What will I catch today~”

I was enjoying my fishing, humming a cheerful tune.

“…Soma-san. You seem quite happy.”

I thought I heard a voice with a hint of resentment from an acquaintance, but I dismissed it as my imagination.

The reason for my good mood was simple. I had managed to obtain an incredibly useful item early on, something that was systemically impossible to acquire in the early stages of the game. It was a torch, currently tucked away in my bag. That was the main reason for my current happiness.

Don’t underestimate it just because it’s a torch. The one I obtained wasn’t just any ordinary torch. This was the pinnacle of lighting items in ‘Nekoneko’, and its most famous torch. Known as ‘Torch Sisyo’, it was a level 250 super-torch with an HP auto-recovery ability, which countless heavy ‘Nekoneko’ users had benefited from.

The reason this mere torch earned the title of “master” was because it was perfect for increasing weapon proficiency.

Why did I head to that sealed cave in the first place? At my current level, I stood no chance against the enemies in the underground labyrinth. Furthermore, without the right items, I couldn’t even enter the sealed door. Despite all this, I went to the depths solely for the ‘Torch Sisyo’.

I believe I mentioned before how weapon proficiency is raised. Proficiency increases with each successful hit that deals damage, with a bonus awarded if there’s a level difference between you and your opponent. In short, the fastest way to increase weapon proficiency is to hit an opponent of a significantly higher level as many times as possible, dealing at least 1 damage.

The prevailing method for raising weapon proficiency was to continuously strike slow-moving, high-level monsters with a weak weapon. However, at one point, someone tried something different. They attempted to raise proficiency by attacking items instead of monsters.

Certain weapons, armor, and even breakable items like lamps and torches were assigned not only a level but also HP, representing their durability. If the sole condition for increasing weapon proficiency was to inflict damage on a target, then attacking an item with a level and HP should also raise proficiency. This was their theory, and it was indeed proven correct.

Raising proficiency with an item, rather than a monster, seemed like a brilliant idea at first glance. However, it was eventually discovered to be inefficient.

Firstly, items with a significantly higher level than your character were not common. The level of most weapons and armor was usually set only slightly below the character level at which they could be acquired, thus not significantly improving work efficiency. The only exception was a high-level item with HP found on a quest-related suspension bridge in Mount Gigal, which could be accessed from the early game. However, attacking it required defeating the surrounding mobs, ultimately demanding a high character level.

Secondly, even if you managed to acquire high-level equipment, repair costs became a new obstacle. An item’s HP was its durability, and while it rarely decreased unless subjected to extreme abuse, it was considerably lower compared to monsters. Yet, repairing it required a significant amount of Elements, proportional to its level. Attacking items specifically for weapon proficiency was nonsensical in many ways.

Due to these two factors, raising weapon proficiency through items was deemed inefficient. That is, until the day the ‘Torch Sisyo’ was discovered.

Naturally, any player who had progressed to the Hidden Dungeon knew about the torch before the sealed door, but few paid it any mind.

Then, one day, an anonymous player (let’s call him ‘Nameless-san’) paused in front of the torch and tilted his head in thought. In most dungeons, lighting fixtures were treated as background objects, essentially part of the terrain that players couldn’t interact with. However, here, a torch was used not as part of the terrain, but as an item.

But that alone could have many explanations – perhaps it was made with extra effort for the Hidden Dungeon, or they wanted a realistic light source. That wasn’t what puzzled him.

The real question was: “Why has this torch been burning continuously, no matter when I visit?”

Torches and lamps typically had HP to limit their usage time. As you used them, their HP would gradually decrease, and they would break once their HP reached zero. However, the torch in this Hidden Dungeon was different. It had been burning since the game began, yet it never seemed to break.

Puzzled by this, ‘Nameless-san’ conducted several experiments to unravel the mystery. He discovered that the torch possessed an exceptionally vast HP and an auto-recovery ability far beyond that of ordinary torches. Furthermore, perhaps to match the Hidden Dungeon, it boasted an astonishingly high level of 250.

This discovery sent ‘Nekoneko’ players into a frenzy. The Demon Lord, the final boss, was level 250, and the regular monsters just before him were around level 200. Most players finished the game around level 200. If they could train their weapon proficiency on an item with a 50-level difference, it was incredibly advantageous. Moreover, its high HP and auto-recovery ability meant no Elements were needed for repairs. This information spread like wildfire online, and the ‘Divine Torch’ in the underground labyrinth quickly became common knowledge in ‘Nekoneko’.

The entrance to the Hidden Dungeon rapidly transformed into a post-game weapon proficiency training spot. Many players flocked to the ‘Divine Torch’, attacking it with their preferred weapons. In the game, item parameters were easily viewable, eliminating the need to check for damage. As long as you could see that you had dealt at least 1 damage, you simply continued the action. It required no special controls and carried no risk, and its efficiency was unparalleled. It was bound to be popular. The ‘Divine Torch Pilgrimage’ quickly became a major phenomenon in ‘Nekoneko’.

Meanwhile, the speedrunners who had already cleared the Hidden Dungeon and surpassed level 250 were reportedly grinding their teeth in frustration at this revelation. For the record, that source is me.

Eventually, the entrance to this underground labyrinth came to be known as the ‘Torch Sisyo’s Underground Dojo’. While its prime training period was limited to just before tackling the Hidden Dungeon after clearing the main story, it gained popularity comparable to Ramur Town’s ‘Marimite Dojo’. I myself even re-defeated the Demon Lord at a low level (183) specifically to diligently raise my weapon proficiency there.

As you’ve probably guessed, the reason I was endlessly attacking the torch while trapped underground wasn’t just to “cut” it, but to replicate the mechanics of the ‘Torch Sisyo’s Underground Dojo’ and learn a new skill for my escape.

I briefly considered telling Ena (Female) about the torch. However, the idea of raising weapon proficiency at such an incredible rate just by attacking a torch struck me as suspicious from a common-sense perspective. Plus, it felt… wrong, or perhaps cheap. So, I deliberately let Ena (Female) misunderstand my actions, making her believe I was simply intent on attacking the torch, while in reality, I was continuously raising my weapon proficiency.

After all, the level difference between me and the ‘Torch Sisyo’ is currently close to 240. I could feel my proficiency skyrocketing with each strike, to the point where I almost lost track of when to stop, overcome with excitement.

However, thanks to this, I was able to learn the sword skill ‘Tenha Mukyu Hisho Ken’, which is normally acquired around the end of the game or shortly after. Furthermore, since version 1.09, weapon proficiency now directly affects skill attack power, granting me an attack power far beyond anything I had before. With the ‘Torch Sisyo’ in my bag, I can train my proficiency anywhere, anytime, and I truly look forward to what comes next.

But then again. For now, rather than weapons…

“Soma-san!”

My thoughts were abruptly interrupted by Ena (Female)’s loud voice. I saw her, with teary eyes, looking up at me and glaring. Seeing her, I finally remembered. Right, I was fishing.

“I still don’t know if you are a good person or a bad person, Soma-san… But, there’s one thing I’ve realized.”

Of course, it wasn’t just ordinary fishing. The fishing line was a rope I bought in town, and the fishing spot was the Demonic Seal Plateau. And what I was trying to catch was—

“Soma-san, you’re a mean person!!”

Ena (Female) was yelling at me from down in the hole.

After escaping the hole, I had no choice but to go to town and buy a rope to rescue Ena (Female). I intended to lower it into the hole and pull her up. However… every time I lowered the rope and brought it near her, she would jump up and down, exclaiming, “A little more! Just a little more!” Her reaction was so amusing that I couldn’t resist teasing her. It was a truly villainous act, and I deserved to be called mean.

“Ah, it seems the rope’s not quite long enough,” I quipped, dangling the rope just out of her reach. Ena (Female), like a cat chasing a dangling toy, stretched her hands in all directions. Noticing me grinning at her antics, she yelled from below, “And your personality, your character, and your nature are all bad too!” Hmm, I thought she said she realized only one thing.

Finally, realizing it was wrong to play around any longer, I pulled her up. The rescued Ena (Female), thanks to my game-enhanced brute strength, shouted one last time, “I-I suppose I should thank you for rescuing me. Thank you very much. B-but, I still don’t trust you, Soma-san!” and then fled back to town at full speed. I could only hope we would never meet again.

“Phew, I’m really tired today.” My second day in the game world had been far more demanding than I anticipated. I had originally planned to revisit the town and check out the facilities I hadn’t managed to visit yet, but I decided to postpone that for tomorrow. I quietly returned to my inn room.

When I apologized to the innkeeper, with whom I had become familiar, for breaking my shovel and offered to pay for damages, he grinned, his gruff face contorting into a smile. “Don’t worry about it. As long as you keep frequenting this inn, that little breakage will be more than covered,” he chuckled heartily. He was a good guy, despite his appearance. I vowed to myself to buy a new shovel in town tomorrow.

“Dinner will be ready in about 30 minutes, so come on down then!” Encouraged by his words, I returned to my room.

After confirming that the ‘Torch Sisyo’ was usable and that the Fire of Sh showed no signs of breaking, I went back downstairs. Upon entering the dining hall, besides the innkeeper and the previous night’s guests, a familiar figure was clearly waiting for me. As soon as they saw me, they rushed over with a wide smile.

“I’ll be staying here from today, my name is Ena Trail! I look forward to working with you!”

Ignoring her triumphant smirk, I turned back to the innkeeper. “Excuse me. I don’t think I can patronize this establishment after all.”

“Why not?!”

And so, today’s lesson:

—You can’t escape from Ena (Female)!!