Dimension Wave Chapter 17

“… Full Harpoon.”

The sinister-looking Treant falls over defeated by that attack skill.
Sheryl’s weapon of choice is a harpoon—a fitting choice for combat on the open seas and for spearfis.h.i.+ng as well.
I think it’s categorized as a spear, but maybe harpoons are a subcategory or something.
Since joining our party, Sheryl leveled up four times to level 10 now.

“We’ve got about 500 of those Treant’s Wood already, right?”
“Yes, but some of which are not of the best quality, so we should keep at it.”

Our whole party were unanimous in that we should use the best quality mats, even if we need to spend a little more money.

“I got Alto—one of my acquaintances—to take care of the cloths.”

Strong Cloth is apparently crafted from the Sewing skill. Getting 100 of them means needing a lot of both money and labor.
When I asked him, all Alto had to say is to give him some time and he can fulfill it.
He really is a slick merchant.

“And the iron too. We’ve gotta be very careful in picking our supply. There’s a lot of c.r.a.ppy iron lately.”
“What dost thou knowest, Miss Kizuna?”

It’s because they’re smelted from Empty Cans.
Now it’s all comparatively trash since they’ve sourced more iron ore.

“N-Nothing in particular. Anyway, we’ve just about got all of the required mats, right?”
“… yep.”

Sheryl nods.
It’s been a whole day since we’ve met her at the stall.
Our method to defeating Treants begin with Shouko engaging them and I just simply chop ‘em down. They’re not strong monsters by any standards. It’s just that killing 500 of them is quite a lot.
We had no choice though. Alto says that not many other crafting professions need Treant’s Wood, so you can’t really find much for sale either.
Luckily, over the past two weeks, it seems like Sheryl has been tirelessly slaying Treants whenever she had the time to spare. Her low level sure didn’t make her work quick, but at least her weapon is good on them.

“Alright, then. Let’s get some more wood and head back to the First for the time being.”
“‘kay.”
“I was just thinking… you keep saying ‘‘kay’. Is that just how you normally speak or something?”
“Yep.”
“… are you speaking like that on purpose?”
“Not really.”
“Not that I’ve anything against it or anything.”
“‘kay.”

That’s just the way she is. I don’t know whether to describe it as curt or to say she’s bad at speaking, but maybe it’s a form of communication disorder different from Yamikage’s.
If you chat with her, she seems pretty normal. You get what her point is, but it takes a little more effort to do so.
Well, all the other players are looking for the Third City. Anyone who’s looking to venture out to sea now is probably at least a little odd.
… birds of a feather, you could say.

“… what?”

Whoops. She caught me staring.
What excuse do I have?

“Oh, nothing.”
“‘kay.”
“Anyway, just a bit more to go.”
“Yep. Kizuna, thanks.”
“It’s not just me, y’know? It’s a team effort. That includes you too, Sheryl.”
“… ‘kay.”

What? That “‘kay” sounded a little more dejected than usual.
I guess saying thanks all of a sudden can be embarra.s.sing.
Shouko and Yamikage are both showing s.h.i.+ning snickers which probably has something to do with making fun of me. I’ve gotta somehow fix that problem.

Anyway, what comes next happens two days after we’ve a.s.sembled all the materials.
We’ve sourced good iron from Romina. And aside from relying on Alto, I also ran between the First and Second looking for some good Strong Cloth.
They’ve been very helpful, but it left my wallet a little skimp.

Name/ Kizuna†Exceed
Race/ Spirit
Energy/ 26,430
Mana/ 4,300
Serin/ 16,040

Skills/ Energy Production VIII, Mana Production V, Fis.h.i.+ng Mastery IV, Gutting Mastery III, Cleaver I, Speed Gutting I, Night Vision I, Trans.m.u.tation I

Unlocked Skills/ Energy Production IX, Mana Production VI, Fis.h.i.+ng Mastery V, Cleaver II, Helmsmans.h.i.+p I, Naval Combat I, City Travelling I

I’ve unlocked yet more skills; I guess it’s the fruit of my daily labor.
But it’s not like I plan to acquire more skills right now though.

In any case, while I was running back and forth between the two cities, the three of them went hunting together.
It wasn’t only to help Sheryl grind; the monsters at sea are d.a.m.n strong.
Shouko and Yamikage’s combat-oriented skills mesh well with Sheryl’s crafting and naval combat style. Still, Sheryl needs more levels to be prepared for what’s coming up next.

And without me there grinding with them, they don’t need to worry about that requirement either.
All three of them are so uniquely specced out. You can’t help but think of us as a party of oddb.a.l.l.s.

“… Kizuna, and everyone else too, sign this.”

While I was lost in thought of our skills and builds, Sheryl stood in front of the materials and handed us a piece of paper.
I have to say that this feels a little sketchy, but it really isn’t.

“What’s this?”
“This is a deed of joint owners.h.i.+p, isn’t it?”
“I have heard not of such a thing.”

That’s an ex-frontliner for you. Shouko knows the ins and outs of everything.
A deed of joint owners.h.i.+p.
It’s a t.i.tle deed for anything that’s high-valued to equally split the owners.h.i.+p between each person.
In our case, it’s for the owners.h.i.+p of “s.h.i.+p”.
n.o.body other than us four can put the s.h.i.+p in their inventory.
And if the s.h.i.+p is to be sold, it’ll require the signature of all owners. The money received for it would be equally split between us four too. It’s really like the real thing IRL.

“Wow… I didn’t know there’s something like this.”

Well, it makes sense. If someone were to s.n.a.t.c.h something valuable and run away with it, it’d p.i.s.s everyone else off.
The craftsmen understand the frustration as well, I’m sure.
Anyway, the three of us might be a little ignorant of the details, but we can tell that Sheryl is serious about heading to the sea.

This really makes my heart race.
I don’t know what’ll happen out there, but I feel like the four of us can take on the sea.

“Alright, lemme put my name down then.”

On the piece of paper was Sheryl’s name already and as soon as took ahold of it, my name was printed on there too. I thought I had to type in my name manually.
I pa.s.sed it to Shouko beside me and afterwards, she pa.s.sed it to Yamikage. With that, everyone’s name is on the contract.

“The s.h.i.+p, then, I’ll start working on it. I’ll contact you when it’s done. Do whatever in the meantime.”

Sheryl walks up to the pile of materials, fires her skill up, and begins building the boat.
It probably doesn’t take too much time, but according to Alto, it takes a few hours if someone were to try to craft it at home.
Since the boat is made to fit four and have enough s.p.a.ce to move around in, it should be pretty accommodating instead of fitting perfectly. That’s maybe why we have time to go off and do our own stuff right now.
But just watching her make it is tough. Someone like me with no skills in boatbuilding should get out of her way. I’ll put some faith in Sheryl and try to relax.

“So, Kizuna, Yamikage, what shall we do now?”
“I have already mended my equipment the other day, so your faithful shadow has no needs.”
“I was hoping to watch her build our s.h.i.+p.”
“What a splendid idea! Well, then, let us give Sheryl our support.”

We stand far enough to not get in Sheryl’s way of building our boat but close enough to gaze at her working.

“…”

As always, she lacks much expression. but she took a quick glance at us with a weird look.
Ugh… it’s my fault. I’m not physically in her way but I bet we’re messing with her head. No surprise there.
W-Well, I’m sure she thinks that we’re all buds together in the same party, right?
Maybe we’re getting a little too chummy too quickly, but still.
In any case, I prayed.

Please, I pray that our presence will not negatively affect how the s.h.i.+p turns out…

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