TREHCS 29

Chapter : 29

Game of Constellations [Laika]

The Lumentis Mine turned out to be a much larger field than I had expected.
Moreover, the location I had identified so far was deep underground—somewhere that could only be reached by descending quite a distance.
It was even a coordinate that would be difficult to reach through ordinary means, so I hadn’t even considered the possibility of encountering other players here.
That’s why running into a party on-site was… remarkably lucky.

“I was trying to go solo, but lucky for me, there’s a party here, hehe.”

└ “Ah, it’s Eva;;;”
└ “Party leader, where’s your conscience?”
└ “A level 20 begging to join a Lumentis party? Aren’t you shameless, leader?”

It seems the god of rice-eating hasn’t abandoned me yet.

“My level is a secret, though.”

└ “Huh???”
└ “Troll!! This is a troll!!!”
└ “Where do I report a scam, guys?”

“Even if I told you I’m level 20, I doubt you’d believe me.”

└ “…That… that’s true;;”

I wasn’t planning on just riding someone else’s coattails the whole time.
Once I had accepted the class main quest, I could do the right thing and find another hunting spot.
Still, I needed to at least accept the quest so I could figure out my growth path, so I was willing to push myself to go there.

“I’ll just ask them to help me clear the path a bit.”

Fortunately, the quest guide popped up, so my objective was clear.

〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓
Seeking the Primordial Light
Category: Class-Main (Linked)
Difficulty: S

You have inherited the ‘Primordial Alchemy.’
If you awaken the ‘Primordial Light’ lying dormant in the Lumentis Mine, you will gain a signpost for the path you must take.

Quest Acceptance Requirement: Discovery of the ‘Broken Lumentis Statue.’
〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓〓

Luckily, the location of the Broken Lumentis Statue was a spot I already knew, and it wasn’t far from here.
So.

“Then… I guess I’ll try riding along with you guys!”

Things were looking pretty favorable.

└ “No, turn back.”
└ “Dave out! Dave out!”
└ “(•᷄- •᷅ ;)”
└ “( 乂˙-˙)”
└ “┗┐ヽ(′Д、`*)ﾉ┌┛”

Well, there was a small cause for concern.
This party… felt a bit unusually off.

“Please… can you at least say something before setting things on fire? Lowell?”
“I did, didn’t I?”
“The fire was already up… I mean, you said it after casting.”
“Oh… did I? Hehe.”

Why in the world was the warrior so completely charred?
And the remaining member, a female player who seemed like a supporter, looked completely worn out…

“…….”

The only one who looked lively was the Fire Mage, and honestly, she seemed like the source of all this unease.
Just a gut feeling.

“We just need to be careful around that woman, right, guys?”

Hmm… I guess we’ll manage.

└ “Just go solo, then.”

Ah, no can do.

step-step

Still, if they weren’t competent, they wouldn’t have made it this deep as a three-person party.
Feeling reassured, I deliberately made my footsteps audible and approached them.
After all, my destination wasn’t far.

“Excuse me… would you have room in your party for me?”

The three party members’ eyes instantly turned to me.
They had probably noticed me a while ago, so they didn’t seem very surprised.

“Ah, hello.”

The eldest-looking one, the blackened warrior, answered me.

“Were you… doing what here alone?”

They were probably wondering why I was in such a dangerous place by myself.
I already had an answer prepared.

“I’m on a quest. It’s a simple search quest, so I came alone, but it’s harder than I thought. Haha.”

└ “What? Did the leader grease his tongue or something?;;”
└ “How are they lying so naturally ㄷㄷㄷ”

Technically, it was just a simple search, right?

“Are you a melee DPS, by any chance?”

Maybe it was because of the sword I was holding…
A melee DPS? Hmm.
Could be… or could not be.
Let’s figure that out now.

“Ah, my class?”

I quickly glanced at the party to see their composition.
Then, I drew a shield in my other hand.

Clack!

Judging by the party, the role I was most likely to fill was definitely a tank.
From what I could see: one warrior, one Fire Mage, one supporter.
One battered warrior wouldn’t survive the Lumentis Ghosts’ heavy damage alone.

[Equipped Irontide Shield.]

A Tier 3 shield I had been keeping to sell later.
Looks like I’ll need to use it for now.
My role was decided.

“Ah, no. I’m the tank.”

└ “???”
└ “??”
└ “??????????”
└ “This guy’s a scammer!”

The constellations could think whatever they wanted—didn’t concern me.

“Whoa!!! Really a tank?”
“Awesome! Great!”

It worked.

└ “Guys;; report the scammer;;”

It’s not a scam—it’s more of a social tactic.

“Hehe.”

One of the younger members was quick to notice…

“Why isn’t the Knight wearing heavy armor?”

I expected that question.

“Ah, I’m a hidden class, not a Knight class.”
“Wow-!”
“Hidden class! Incredible!”

The other party members already seemed satisfied.
But why was the red-haired girl clapping excitedly?

“Even so… in light armor, it might be hard to survive Lumentis Ghost attacks.”

The young one was persistently skeptical, but it wasn’t a problem.
Why? I was speaking the truth.

“Sort of… an evasion-counter tank, you could say.”

It was true I wasn’t a Knight but a hidden class.
I intended to dodge and counterattack to draw aggro, so it wasn’t wrong to call it an evasion tank, right?

└ “Evasion-counter tank lol”

See? Not lying.

└ “Wow… without even spitting… someone might think he’s a Ghost Guardian.”

Oh, they even knew about Ghost Guardian? Impressive.
That’s a rare hidden class, tough to obtain.
I had played it twice. Since I mentioned evasion-counter tank, maybe I could imitate it a bit.

“Hmm.”

The supporter kid still looked displeased, but it seemed like everything would work out.
Even the blackened warrior stepping in to mediate showed that clearly.

“Actually, because of Lowell, we have some PTSD with hidden classes. That’s why this one reacts warily, don’t take it personally.”
“What? Why me!”
“Hmm… well, it’s really Lowell’s issue, not the hidden class itself…”

Ah, so the Fire Mage was also a hidden class.
No wonder she could already use Flare Storm despite being first-tier.

“And! Am I the only hidden class? Isn’t this kid a healer too?”
“Healer… not exactly a hidden class.”

Oh. The supposedly simple supporter was actually high-tier.
In Laika, becoming a healer usually required obtaining a hidden class or waiting until second-tier advancement.
Some hidden-class healer paths were well-known, so it was rare but prestigious.

I also could tell what class the kid might be with closer observation.

“That’s fine. You have to be careful when accepting strangers into your party.”

That made me feel a lot more comfortable.
Finally, I could tank while receiving healing again after a long time.

“Then…!”

Ding!
[Player ‘Rainer Bellic’ invites you to a party.]
[You have accepted the party invitation.]

“Nice to meet you, Dave.”
“Thank you!”

Alright. Since it’s come to this, I’d give more than one person’s worth.
Honestly, I was basically a level 20 with no class, but I could cover the rest with experience and vibes.

└ “Lol, he actually joined the party lol”
└ “Lucky to get a party, though slightly jealous, still exciting lol”
└ “Fun’s all that matters~”
└ “But leader; how do you plan to actually fight after bluffing?”

Once I joined, the constellations, who had been calling me a scammer, started to worry.

└ “Evasion-counter tank? lol, you know what that means, right, leader?”
└ “At least there’s a healer, so it’s better now?”

I was confident I could perform better than most regular tanks.
I had tanked countless third-tier advancements before; surely I could manage in a 40-level field.

└ “This guy underestimates the tank;; drawing aggro is a crucial role.”

But guys, doesn’t this look like a familiar routine?
You did the same when you grabbed the staff earlier…
A mage might be tricky, but a meat shield should be fine.

└ “What?! What…?”
└ “No!! Tanks are the flower of party play!”

Being a tank just means standing in the front, blocking, dodging, and protecting the DPS line…

└ “Well, not entirely wrong…”

Having satisfied the constellations, I naturally joined the front line.
Then suddenly:

[Constellation, ‘Silent Wall of the Deity’ face slightly reddens.]

Unexpected messages appeared before my eyes in rapid succession.

[Constellation, ‘Silent Wall of the Deity’ is angry: “You know nothing.”]

Huh?

[Constellation, ‘Silent Wall of the Deity’ says: “A shield is remembered longer than a sword.”]

└ “Haha, the deity is mad lol”
└ “So funny lol”

The sudden appearance of a graduated constellation froze my brain.
I mean, I was just stating facts.

[Constellation, ‘Silent Wall of the Deity’ uses ‘Oracle.’]
[Glug(喝)-!!!]

└ “Lol insane”
└ “Used Oracle just to get mad lol”

But it was only a moment of panic.
My brain immediately kicked into gear.
Sure, the sudden reaction of a graduated constellation was surprising…
But maybe this could actually be beneficial.