Spider 79:
Taboo: [Atone]
We have levelled up quite a bit from killing many strong sea Monsters the past few days.
But at this rate, I will never be able to take on the Demon Lord any time soon.
And now that she is searching the ocean for us, we are gonna have to relocate soon.
Thing is I don't know how many more of those Puppets are out there waiting to ambush us around where we have been.
The most sure fire way to overcome the odds is to just get strong enough to ignore those problems.
In other words, I need juicer prey.
<Araba?>
Araba: <Yes, Hiiro Wakaba?>
<Hiiro is fine actually.
Anyway, do you know of a place other than the labyrinth where I can kill high level Monsters to level up quickly?>
Araba: <Hm, I presume you want to avoid locations that ????? is likely to have place traps for us, yes?>
<Yep.>
Araba: <Lost Neon, not that I recommend going there.
Nor do I consider what I presume to be your approach to our current problem, which is to overpower our enemies completely, a good one.>
<...Uh, I am just gonna ignore the second part for now because I am more curious about this Lost Neon.>
Araba: <Very well, Lost Neon is located on the northern side of the Dragon Sea.
It is made up of many artificial islands from the old world, brought together to form a larger one today.
One is supposed to find it by going north of the World Turtle from the southern side of the Dragon Sea, as it is otherwise invisible to the eye from afar.>
<Oh! I knew it!>
Taboo: [Atone]
<It facing north was a hint to something larger!>
Araba: <So you have noticed, clever.
Anyway, the mechanical Monsters there have Stats ranging from 10000 to 90000, along with having many Skills.
Besides humanoids and Legendary Monsters, they give the most amount of Exp on average.>
<Then what are we waiting for, let's make our way there to beat up some robots.>
Araba: <You said to ignore the second part for the time being, not completely.>
Damn it, he caught on to my bullshit.
Araba: <For one, it is too far away, it will likely take years for us to reach that place from here, and that's assuming the most ideal of conditions.
Secondly, you are planning on overpowering your enemies, aren't you?>
<Well, yeah, that's the most guaranteed way to solve the problem at hand.>
Araba: <Yes, but your approach is hindering your growth.
To rely on power alone will leave your technique and tactics underdeveloped.
Sure, you will have to gain a lot more power to take on ?????.
But the same can't be said for her forces, in which there is no real obstacle to stop you from taking them on or pressure to finish things quickly.
You can easily evade ????? as you whittle away at her forces with clever tactics.
There is no need to take the easy way out, so don't.>
<Oh sure, I can totally take on those Puppets that have now teamed up in a fair fight.>
Araba: <And why must you take them on in a fair fight?>
<Huh?>
Taboo: [Atone]
Araba: <There is no rule established between you and them here.
There is no agreement to fight fairly.
Don't let your pride in being a fighter cloud your judgement, restrict your options.
The only thing that matters here is defeating your enemies to your Earth Wyrm safe.>
<...Good point, I should think outside the box more.
And her name is Feirune by the way.>
I said as I wrote the name in the sand.
Araba: <Understood.
Anyway, you should be aware of your options, so it is not wrong to consider overpowering your enemies, as that is an option in itself.
But you should learn to be more opportunistic, seeing where you can get away with solving problems in harder ways to test yourself and gain precious practical experience.
You can train and theorise all you want, but at the end of the day, it is experience with reality that separates the great from the greatest.
In this case, why not use your creativity to take the enemies out despite the power imbalance?
Not unlike how you used what I believe to be [Sloth] to defeat me, bypassing my defence.>
<Okay, so I gotta try and turn every situation into a training arc.
But, how do I know when I am ready?>
Araba: <You can't, there is no such thing as being truly ready.
There is only familiarity, built by experience, which means you just have to take action even when you don't feel prepared enough.
You still should prepare to the best of your ability of course, just that the preparation itself will never drive the unease of uncertainty away, of which you must learn to overcome yourself.>
<..So basically, I gotta throw myself into the deep end of the pool and just deal with it.>
Taboo: [Atone]
Araba: <Once you made the necessary preparation, yes.>
<Okay, so I need to find another way of killing those Puppets other than direct combat.
Hm...>
Araba: <Think of everything you know about them and yourself, and I am sure you will find a weakness to abuse with your abilities.
Speaking of how you should handle things, I would like to bring attention to how you handle your tension in general.>
<Oh what now?
I am trying to come up with a tactic against those Puppets right now.>
Araba: <Is it urgent that you do it right this instance?>
<...No.>
Araba: <Then don't worry about it.
In fact, this is the problem, you are always in a rush to solve the problem in front of you, causing yourself unnecessary stress that would wear you out quicker than if you take a step back to assess the severity of the situation first.
The feeling of urgency consumes you, whether you know it or not.
On the other hand, you are quick to drop your guard on things you don't consider a problem.
Like with me, you are getting way too comfortable around someone you don't fully know, can't fully know.
You either trust too much, or not at all.>
<...So I am always in high gear when doing anything, and completely relaxed when I am not.>
Araba: <Exactly, you must learn to pace yourself, to be consistent and only lean in towards one side when needed.
You need to achieve balance.>
<Um, sure.>
Taboo: [Atone]
I don't really see the problem with wanting to solve problems right away so I can relax afterwards.
And this business about how I am not supposed to trust him seems silly.
I know what your deal is now, I know I can trust you.
It just sounds like tsundere talk to me, kind of.
Araba: <You seem to have doubts.
Let me put it this way, in combat, you are far too tense, draining your stamina unnecessarily with more power put into your every movement than needed.
You have to find time to relax your body a little.>
<In the middle of a life or death fight?
Oh sure, can't see another problems with that.>
Araba: <It takes conscious effort, yes.
But then you must simply get used to it so it becomes second nature.
Not unlike your advanced use of [Dimensional Manoeuvring].>
<Or your advanced use of Stat Rising Skills mid combat?>
Araba: <Precisely.>
<Oh, now it makes sense.
Strike hard when the time is right, conserve your strength otherwise.
But like, how am I supposed to relax in the first place when my life is on the line?>
Araba: <And why is that something you should stress out so much over?>
<Uh, death duh.>
Taboo: [Atone]
<What kind of question is that?>
Araba: <And why is it that you fear death?>
<Well, y'know, it's death, it's...
It's the end, there will be no more life afterward.
No chance of rebounce, to turn things around.
No more hope of a life well lived.>
Araba: <And what is a life well lived to you?>
<I...don't know?
To be happy, be proud of who I am I guess?
Though, like, how am I supposed to be proud of myself if it is never enough?
So why bother trying to begin with actually?
I am never going to->
Araba: <Stop that train of thought.
You are no God, stop expecting absolute perfection from yourself.
As long you didn't give up on trying to do your best, then you have nothing to regret when death comes.>
<...Even surrendering?>
Araba: <I did that because I have nothing else I could do to take control of the situation from you.
So instead of lamenting what I can't do, I reflected on what I did.
I lived the way I wanted, to seek self improvement and to test myself against the odds.
Taboo: [Atone]
Araba: <I did not mind dying to you, whom I have had a glorious battle with.
I would suggest you do the same, focus on what you can do, and what you have done.
To be proud of those things instead of obsessing over what you can't do or haven't done.>
<...What I can do and have done?>
Araba: <You survived against the odds in the labyrinth, managed to become so strong that you have become a thorn in the ?????'s side, the strongest individual in the System.
Is that not to be proud of?>
<...I guess, but, no really what I care about to be honest.>
Araba: <You wish to fix humanity, I know.
But you can't fault yourself for failing to do the impossible.>
<...Yeah, you are right, that would be stupid.>
Araba: <Of course, dying is unideal, but it is not everything.>
<How I live matters more than when I die.
I rather have the audacity to be happy than be miserable to the end.>
Araba: <So, is death that important anyway?>
<No, I want to live sure, but as long as I tried my best, dying isn't something to be ashamed of.>
Araba: <There you have it, with this in mind, you should be able to relax a little in combat.>
<I hope so.>
Araba: <Now that's over with, what do you intend to do now?>
<Beat the Puppets without having to resort to overpowering them, that will show them how dangerous I am even though they are stronger.>
Araba: <That's the spirit.>
Taboo: [Atone]