For the sake of consistency, going forward, the following will be applied to how damage of spells is calculated.
This falls under "Skill Power", under the damage formula.
E: 70% D: 75% C: 80% C+: 90% B: 110% B+: 120% A: 130% A+: 150%
S: 170% S+: 200% SS: 250% SS+: 275% SSS: 300% 4S: 350% 4S+: 400%
Spell Adjustment
[Blood Needles]
Skill Power: S -> S+
Limit: 25 (-)
Range: Long
Cost: 25 EP per Needle
Special Effect: Each hit dealt absorbs 1% of Max EP.
As always, Giliath demands your power stones!
*****
January 2nd, S1200. Tuesday.
3PM.
Three figures soon emerged from one of the side exits of Mainz Tunnel. If one continued all the way through, they would reach the other end, which allowed one to reach the town of Mainz. Lots of raw Septium was mined each year here. It was Crossbell City's largest mine, providing the city large amounts of revenue per year. Many monsters lurked deeper inside the many tunnels inside the mine too.
And even further northwest was wild territory, ruled by several groups of wild dogs, amongst other creatures. This place was often sought out by Jaeger groups to train war hounds. But this particular area was home to a rather special being, the Holy Beast of one of the Sept-Terrions. Naoto's teacher, Roselia, immediately wandered off to this area in hopes to encounter him. Unlike Roselia, who was a vampire, this Holy Beast was a proud wolf, and led these packs of dogs as their leader. Lloyd and the SSS would see this happen in several instances during Zero and Azure, after recruiting the Holy Beast. He went by the name, Zeit.
Of the three figures who emerged from the left side exit of Mainz Tunnel, the violet-haired boy did have interest in heading into those caves in the northwest. Unfortunately, the Gamer System that was granted to him after he crossed into Zemuria had other plans. His focus shifted to clearing an Instance Dungeon, and now, a Party Quest. It was unfortunate, but Naoto likely won't encounter Zeit during his visit here. He only had two hours remaining until he had to return to the city.
He still had his meeting with Heiyue to attend. He was very much looking forward to it. It is very possible he might gain an unexpected ally. If there was one group within Crossbell City to get acquainted with, it is Heiyue. Diving into the local mafia was a much riskier business. Before long, they too would get drowned by the SSS, only to eventually get replaced by the Red Constellation. Heiyue, on the other hand, has much deeper roots. Over here in Crossbell City, it is just a branch office. Their main branch was situated in Calvard. They had a big grasp of Calvard's underground, but that was all Naoto knew.
Another unfortunate thing, but Naoto was brought into Zemuria before Daybreak I was released. He hadn't a clue that Daybreak I would contain a sequel, and the games would continue beyond that. Because of that lack of information, Naoto decided that connecting with Heiyue was likely the best way to go, if he wanted to get information quickly. He could set up meetings with the President of Calvard, but that would take a lot more time. Those exchanges likely won't happen until four years later, when the Western Zemurian Trade Conference begins. Naoto has big plans for this Conference, and is planning to take an active role in it alongside Kloe.
Thinking that, the three figures were once again, greeted by the warm rays of the sun. They were no longer in the Mainz Tunnel. The path leading to this point was available for exploring, but most folks didn't wander over here. It was fraught with danger, and there was an active Spirit Vein resting underneath the Moon Temple in the far distance. Many weird Monsters often show up because of that, resembling that of ghosts, fiends, devils, angels, you name it. That was when monsters from other planes leaked into this world, causing the Three Higher Elements to become active. They weren't what you'd normally come across in the overworld.
Naoto didn't plan to go all the way to the Moon Temple this time. He didn't have a need to. In fact, they had arrived at where they needed to be, this small alcove of jagged rock, which connected to the Moon Temple!
"Here we are. Just around our next corner we should start to see those nasty worms. I will advise you two to be careful. The worms aren't the only dangerous monster lurking around here. There are pretty large eagle-like monsters that can swoop down and strike at a moment's notice.", Lechter said, remaining in front of Tio and I as we reached this alcove.
"Yes. We should remain vigilant. Will you become the Party Leader, Naoto?", Tio said, donning a serious look. She kept her orbal staff close to her. I did receive a token to upgrade her orbal staff from the Instance Dungeon rewards. As much as I wanted to use it, I'll save that for later. We should be fine to defeat those Abyss Worms as-is. With a sound mind, I nodded my head.
"Yeah. Let's do that right now. I don't know what will happen once I become the Party Leader, so be on the lookout. You can stay in our vanguard, Lechter.", I said. I too was ready to enter combat. We didn't see any Abyss Worms in our immediate surroundings, but if we take some steps further and go around the next corner as Lechter said, no doubt we will find some.
"Roger, roger!", Lechter said. Contrary to his easy-going attitude, his eyes also turned serious. He kept his hand on his hilt, ready to strike. He wandered away from Tio and I, keeping the vanguard position in check.
I took a moment and willed the Gamer System as effortlessly as Tio had quickly adapted to. Unlike Tio, I had this Gamer System for an entire thirteen years, soon to be fourteen. I knew where everything was stored, so it only took a brief moment to adjust the Party Settings. We heard a notification follow suit.
[Ding! Gamer Naoto has been set as the Party Leader. Now adjusting nearby Combat Parameters...]
All of a sudden, just like what had happened at the entrance of Mainz Tunnel to the southeast, the surrounding atmosphere became pixelated with colorful cubes. This stretched outward very quickly, projecting ahead of us. Sure enough, this change did not sweep behind us, which meant that we needed to press onward. The Monsters behind are not being influenced by this change. Thankfully it didn't last long before we heard a second notification follow suit. Seeing this one in particular drew my interest, as I hadn't seen this change before. It was just like setting Tio as the Party Member, which triggered that beginning-level Instance Dungeon.
[Ding! The adjustment of nearby Combat Parameters has finished. Due to the ongoing Party Quest, the Abyss Worms have been adjusted to the average of Gamer Naoto's Party. This will be dependent on the count of Gamer Naoto's Party. Current Party Limit: 3/6.]
"So it works like that, huh? It didn't immediately match it to my present Level.", I mused. I think I like it better this way. The Abyss Worms won't be as scary as they would be, if they were Level 111. This means Tio could potentially damage them!
"This is just like what happened back at the entrance to Mainz Tunnel...", Tio mused, recalling the same scenario. That time, it triggered the Instance Dungeon. This time, it adjusted the nearby Monsters because of the Party Quest!
"Stay on your guard. I'm going to get ready.", I said to the two. They nodded their heads. I then looked down at my own hand. At the same time, I reviewed my own status.
Tio is no longer considered eligible to be part of Harem Seeker's effect. That caused my stats to decrease, back to the baseline of 20%. It wasn't boosted by that 40% anymore. My EP did recover all the way back up too since we took a bit of time to rest while we reviewed the notifications. We used that EP Charging Station.
With that in mind, it has been a hot minute since I reviewed my own Status Window. I wanted to see if anything major has changed. Just like how Tio's blue screen appeared before her, a blue screen soon appeared before me, giving me my latest information.
[STATUS WINDOW]
Name: Naoto von Auslese
Age: 13
Level: 111/250 (39,808/1,146,900)
Job: NobleTitle: Harem Seeker
Combat Orbment: Enigma II
Equipped Weapon: Radiant Starlight
Equipped Armor: Guardian Plate
Equipped Boots: Guardian Shoes
Equipped Accessory 1: Sherryl's Adoration
Equipped Accessory 2: N/A
HP: 60,600 (+20%) EP: 4600/4600 (+20%) (+Elie's Blessing)
STR: 4550 (+20%) ATS: 3000 (+20%)
DEF: 3200 (+20%) ADF: 2200 (+20%)
SPD: 412 (-) DEX: 285 (+20%)
INT: 1400 (-)
Master Quartz: N/A
Slot 1: N/A (Locked) (Fire)
Slot 2: N/A (Locked)
Slot 3: N/A (Locked) (water)
Slot 4: N/A (Locked)
Slot 5: N/A (Locked)
Slot 6: N/A (Locked) (Space)
MQ Inventory:
-Magius (Water), Woden (Time), Oberon (Wind), Pixie (Wind) (New)
Quartz Inventory:
[Generation IV]: Mind II, Haze, Scent
[Generation V]: N/A
[Generation VI]: N/A
[Generation VII]: 15 SR Quartz, 15 UR Quartz, 5 Lost Quartz
[Sepith Drops]
Earth: 156 Water: 71 Wind: 38 Fire: 45 Time: 166 Space: 199 Mirage: 175
[Equipment Drops]
Weapons: 21 Pieces Armor: 18 Pieces Accessory: 16 Pieces
(Available to use in Blazing Forge)
[Other Items]
×3 Generation IV Quartz Tier 1 Upgrade Token
×1 Generation IV Quartz Tier 2 Upgrade Token
×4 Shining Pom Bait
×1 Orbal Staff Upgrade
x4 Master Quartz Level Up Token
[Blazing Forge...]
[Party Settings...]
[Quest Menu...]
[Passives...]
[Blessings...]
[Favorability Meters...]
[Spells/Crafts/Arts...]
[Familiars...]
[Elie's Blessing] +1000 EP x1 Pixie (Wind) Master Quartz
****
How do you readers prefer this style of a Status Window?
I'll probably add an appendix in Vol 0 containing the in-depth view, but I tried to condense it, so let me know!