Ch.120[Chapter 120] Equipment Enhancement

In truth, Sir Dominic didn’t need to decide all his equipment slots.

Two slots were already filled.

[Empty]

[Accessory: Worn Flag(T1)]

[Accessory: Alice(-)]

Now Sir Dominic only needed to think about 3 more.

Should he choose a weapon and become an offensive tank?

Should he choose armor and become a pure tank?

Or should he choose an accessory and become a support tank?

Sir Dominic’s choice was always the same.

His temperament was very aggressive, after all.

Sir Dominic selected the weapon slot and confirmed his decision.

[Weapon: Worn Shield(T1)]

[Accessory: Worn Flag(T1)]

[Accessory: Alice(-)]

[Equipment slot setup complete. Now try enhancement!]

This was the message that appeared before Sir Dominic after completing the setup.

“If you’ve finished setting up, let’s go now. Enhancement isn’t here, but one block down.”

Sir Dominic nodded.

And as he stood up, he read each description.

[Worn Shield(T1): Traces of time and the cruelty of the battlefield are evident throughout. 3% increased chance of stun when striking with the shield]

[Worn Flag(T1): Flags can symbolize honor. Is there honor here? [Standard Bearer] effect increased by 50%]

[Alice (-): The little miss should be hidden first when women and children need to be hidden. Anachronistic? Anyway, your chivalry is filled! Special rewards based on Alice’s growth.]

Though there were many stats he couldn’t understand, Sir Dominic wasn’t worried.

After all, hadn’t someone come along with Sir Dominic to explain this situation?

“Oh?”

When Sir Dominic returned to where Unryu Hime and Alice were, Alice’s expression became subtle.

She seemed confused about being “equipped” herself.

“Did you set up your slots well?”

Unryu Hime asked Sir Dominic.

Sir Dominic told Unryu Hime how he had set them up.

“I went with weapon-accessory-accessory. Two accessory slots were already filled.”

“Ah.”

Unryu Hime looked at Alice.

Clearly one would be this child since she was brought in as a companion, but what was the other one?

Unryu Hime was curious about this fact, but thinking it would be impolite to ask too deeply, she changed the subject.

“I’m surprised though. I thought you’d choose armor or an accessory, but a weapon?”

“The more aggressive one’s disposition, the better one can protect allies.”

Sir Dominic said.

“Rather, those with defensive tendencies are better at offense.”

They devour the enemy’s tactics and advance. Sir Dominic muttered quietly, recalling his days in Feralant.

Lady Alice was a master of tactics, and her staff officer Dexter was a master of strategy.

Though their strategy and tactics were defensive, they recovered territory faster than anyone else and held swords to the throats of the demon race.

Of course, Sir Dominic had saved both of them more than once.

“Anyway—”

Sir Dominic broke free from his thoughts.

It wouldn’t be polite to stand dazed in front of someone who had gone out of their way to help him.

Instead, Sir Dominic decided to take the next step in his curiosity.

“You mentioned enhancement is possible, so does that T1 written there indicate the enhancement level?”

“Something like that.”

Sir Dominic’s question was legitimate.

Those born and raised in Gachaland naturally knew all its elements, but Sir Dominic was from outside.

Considering that even “locals” sometimes get confused, it was understandable that Sir Dominic would be curious.

“T stands for Tier. It indicates the equipment’s grade. The higher the number after it, the better the equipment. Enhancement is a ritual to obtain better equipment. Just as we raise our tier, we raise the equipment’s grade.”

Sir Dominic committed to memory Unryu Hime’s explanation that higher numbers meant better equipment.

However, it was still somewhat difficult to understand from explanation alone.

Sir Dominic decided to internalize this knowledge through practical experience.

“Then let’s go for enhancement now. I’m dying of curiosity.”

The one-eyed knight tapped his foot, looking at his kind guide with eyes full of interest.

“Let’s do that, Sir Dominic.”

And seeing that look, the kunoichi smiled slightly and stood in front of the one-eyed knight to guide the way.

Alice still couldn’t shake the feeling of being “equipped” but followed behind them.

Somehow with a slightly larger weapon bag rattling as she walked.

The Industrial District doesn’t have as much average foot traffic as the Market Area, but there is one place that might be even more crowded than the Market Area.

That’s the forge responsible for enhancement.

As if it wasn’t exposed to the outermost part of the Industrial District for nothing, the forge was teeming with people buying and selling equipment, haggling over blueprint prices, and praying for successful enhancements despite its enormous size.

Among these activities, enhancement was the reason for the forge’s existence.

Opening equipment slots was one of the forge’s functions, but enhancement was its true core.

There was a time when people obsessed with enhancement would come to the forge daily, rolling enhancements like slot machines.

This was something that actually happened before the Executive branch changed seven times, when people gambled not just on enhancement but on options, and then had to improve the quality of their equipment.

Of course, with new administrations coming in, there have been many restrictions and reforms regarding enhancement.

Now, enhancement happens immediately as long as you have the resources, and most people have become accustomed to this method, though some long-time residents of Gachaland were actually dissatisfied with this approach.

The pain of losing equipment that was difficult to obtain during enhancement.

The thrill of successful enhancement.

The joy of watching someone crash spectacularly trying to keep up with those beyond their means.

Some citizens who couldn’t forget that thrilling sensation still submitted civil complaints to the Executive branch, asking to return to the old ways.

Back to the main point, Sir Dominic and Unryu Hime arrived at the department responsible for enhancement.

Sir Dominic thought it took quite a while to get there. He was told it was just one block down.

But the dwarf hadn’t lied either.

One block in the Industrial District was a square measuring 300 meters on each side.

Sir Dominic just didn’t know this fact; the dwarf had spoken honestly.

At that moment, a thought suddenly crossed Sir Dominic’s mind.

And he immediately voiced his concern to Unryu Hime.

“Lady Unryu, you said resources are needed for enhancement. But we didn’t bring any resources today, is that alright?”

That’s right.

Sir Dominic had forgotten to take resources from the warehouse.

But Unryu Hime looked at Sir Dominic and smiled brightly.

As if it were nothing.

“It’s fine. It’s automatically deducted. The resources used for enhancement disappear directly from the warehouse.”

It’s the system’s doing, Unryu Hime added.

In fact, this method was so disconnected from reality that in the early days of Gachaland, some thought it was fairy mischief.

However, knowing how convenient this method was, everyone overlooked its lack of plausibility.

“I see.”

Sir Dominic nodded.

He was quick to accept it.

Having observed various things since entering Gachaland from the outside, he had the underlying thought that anything might be possible in Gachaland.

“Then let’s go try enhancement right away. I was planning to do some enhancement today too…”

“Let’s do that.”

Sir Dominic nodded.

Enhancement zone, enhancement department, enhancement facility…

Without an exact name, people called it whatever they wanted, and Sir Dominic looked around this facility.

The service counters were already full, and there were many people at what appeared to be automatic refining devices.

“H-hehehe! 5-star enhancement! 5-star!”

“Why did the current administration make it so enhancement always succeeds if you have enough resources? A 0.2% success rate would be more fun!”

…While Gachaland’s people were generally obsessed with gacha, some here were extremely so.

First a village, then a city, then a continent, then a planet…

Those who longed for those days when they could invest enormous resources and sometimes achieve nothing.

“…Most people only do gacha to a healthy extent. Please don’t misunderstand.”

Unryu Hime said to Sir Dominic, almost apologetically.

“I’m sure they do.”

Sir Dominic observed such people carefully.

People who were in such disarray that his first thought was whether they were living in reality at all.

Looking at such people, Sir Dominic took a waiting ticket.