Level Is Everything

"So Luna, can you do close combat battle with the monsters?"

"Um, no."

"So, how are you playing the game so far?"

"Usually I just go with a party inside the dungeon but so far we are always wiped out."

Hearing Luna's reply, Ryou finally feel a headache coming. He knows the she is 'unique' but he never expected for her to be this unique.

"So, how did you end up with this class?"

"The character class clown? When I make my character it was already like this."

"Isn't there a choice to make for choosing your class?"

"Um, I don't remember seeing something like that or being asked to choose my class."

Ryou feel something fishy about it. Was unique class something that can't be chosen by a player and it was some kind of lottery which will be given to a player and they have no choice about it? Seems like, to know more about it, Ryou need to search for some info in the forum later. Aaru is a game which doesn't provide the player with database of class or monsters. It was entirely up to the player to provide information and share it to the other player. It was like finishing a jigsaw puzzle called database and participated by the players.

"So, how are you going to help me with killing the monster?"

Luna thinking for a while before tilted her head and speak innocently: "I don't know."

「I knew it! I surely knew it before that I will regret my decision to come in a party with her. But this is worse than I thought before. Not to mention the 'impossible' difficulty level that I never heard before. 」

"So, have you ever fight with a monster before?" Ryou's question are quickly answered as Luna shook her head. Ryou can feel that his headache is getting stronger and stronger.

"Have you ever go out to a field before?"

Noticing at how the players are crowding the 'horned rabbit' hunting grounds, she should face no problem leveling up. Although it takes time, it was surely possible and it was something easy that even a noob can do.

"Um, whenever I come out to the field, there's always monsters coming out and killed me. Near the forest, there's this big bad wolf with grey fur. At the plains, there's this big black bird that keep on attacking me. At the sea area, there's a big hideous shark that waits for me and ready to eat me whenever I enter the water."

If earlier Ryou feel something isn't right, now he can absolutely sure that something is really not right. The grey fur wolf should be the tempest wolf. The black bird will be the black garuda and the hideous shark should be the 'spear shark'. Although he never met with the spear shark but he knows about it from the forum. The three of them are known as 'level keeper' and really famous at the beginner's area field. For the three of them to keep on hunting Luna, and the impossible difficulty level of the dungeon, the problem surely lies on Luna.

Ryou is looking at her with a gaze that seemed to be trying to find out everything about her and that makes her uncomfortable and fidgeting.

"W-w-what is it?"

"Tell me, do you have a skill?"

"Ah, if you want to know you should just ask me. You didn't need to look at me like that. Indeed, I have a skill called "fortune in misfortune". However, the information about the skill itself is pretty vague."

Luna then described about her skill to Ryou and this confirmed his suspicion. Normally a player won't be able to learn a skill at level 1 but Luna's character has a skill at level 1. The skill fortune in misfortune description itself are pretty messed up. It said that: "In every fortune, there's misfortune. In every misfortune, there's fortune."

「I guess there's nothing that I can do about it. Let's just try to fight against a monster and see how it goes. 」

"Alright Luna, we will go look for a lone monster to kill and level up. It goes like this; firstly, I will hit the monster from far using my bow and when it approaches, you try your best not to get killed while dodging its attack and maybe you can attack too if you got the chance."

As a dungeon that is located in the beginner's village, the monster that is occupying the dungeon itself are monsters that can be found in the beginner's village area. Not long after walking, they found their first target, a horned rabbit. However, this horned rabbit is enhanced by the impossible difficulty and looked different. The horn on top of its head are looking sharp like a spear and colored red. Its skin is also black and with red eyes, it looked like a killer rabbit.

Ryou prepares his arrow and he is sending signal to Luna using the corner of his eyes. Luna nodded and the arrow flew from Ryou's bow.

The arrow flew in a clean arc and it landed at the back of the horned rabbit's head.

-40

With the damage that he dealt, it will take around 6 to 7 arrows before the rabbit is killed. Ryou steadily launching an arrow after another however, the horned rabbit didn't stay still doing nothing. By the time the fourth arrow landed on his body, the horned rabbit is already approaching Luna. It was to be expected as she is standing 10 meters in front of Ryou to act as the tank of the party. Ryou thought that she should be able to act as some kind of obstacle for the horned rabbit. At least she will be able to take one or two hit from the horned rabbit while Ryou is attacking it from the distance.

There's only one miscalculation in Ryou's plan and that is Luna. If it was a normal player, they might have tried to attack the horned rabbit or making evasive movement. As soon as the horned rabbit comes near her and going to attack, she started to duck down while turning her body and screamed.

It was lucky enough that the horned rabbit was pouncing towards her head so when she ducked, the attack of the horned rabbit is miss. Even though it looked like a serendipity, she achieved what she is tasked to do so Ryou can't make any complain. He immediately followed up with another attack and killed the horned rabbit with "double strafe".

Ryou wanted to lash out at Luna but he refrained and they are searching for another horned rabbit. It was a repeat of the previous action. Ryou is attacking first from far while Luna will be the one tasked to be the tank. After four arrows, once again the horned rabbit is in front of Luna. This time she seemed to be improved by a bit since she didn't close her eyes but she still ducked and the horned rabbit attack missed her.

One time can be considered luck; two times is a great luck. When it happened more than three times and it happened again and again in the same way, something must be wrong. When they are hunting the horned rabbit, the same event is repeated. Horned rabbit attacking, Luna ducked, the attack is miss.

Ryou didn't get it at all. Is it the weak AI of the horned rabbit as a level 1 monster? Or does it have something to do with Luna?

This time, Ryou doesn't ordered Luna to be the tank. He wanted to try out if he dodged in the same manner as Luna, what will happen? He is curious to find out.

He finds another horned rabbit and soon the rabbit is approaching. When the horned rabbit is going to attack, Ryou ducked down but this time it was really different from his expectation. The horned rabbit's horn, perfectly lands on his b.u.t.t.

"F*ck it hurts!"

Ryou feel the agony of his 'chrysanthemum' being pierced. It wasn't his fault because he makes the same movement as Luna, ducked down while turning his body and that expose his rear to the horned rabbit. In agony, he launched "double strafe" and killed the horned rabbit which is sticking behind him. Only after it was killed, the monster corpse isn't disappeared before he looted it.

Luna who watched the whole scene can only look at Ryou with eyes full of sympathy and heart full of laughter. She definitely didn't want something like that to happen to her so she takes note to not turn her body the next time she ducked.