Harem in a Labyrinth

"Master, the boss room is up ahead," Roxanne says, her gaze fixed on the closed door ahead.

One of the good things about the Vale Labyrinth is that it's still a new labyrinth, meaning there is no line in front of the Boss rooms. It almost feels like it is our personal labyrinth to explore.

"The boss monster here should be the same as the one we fought on Quratar's fourth floor—a Beep Sheep," Sherry says, narrowing her eyes at me. "Master, it will most likely use the same Sleep Skill again."

I knew that she was looking at me like that, because I had used the Swap Skill in that battle to change position's with her without warning her. 

Anyways I nod ignoring her eyes, as I can't promise to her that it won't happen again. Roxanne then begins explaining the battle formation to the newer girls, while Sherry provides tips from her own experience.

This waiting room offers us a reprieve; as no demons will enter here, giving us ample time to prepare. I take the opportunity to open my system and adjust my jobs and points. 

_

[Job Setting

Acquired Job: Villager Level 25, Thief Level 20, Hero Level 20, Farmer Level 1, Explorer Level 32, Swordsman Level 1, Warrior Level 31, Merchant Level 20, Wizard Level 30, Herbalist Level 1, Monk Level 18, Alchemist Level 20, Sex Maniac Level 13, Knight Level 1, Bounty Hunter Level 1, Cook Level 1

Set Job: Explorer Level 32, Hero Level 20, Wizard Level 31, Alchemist Level 20, Sex Maniac Level 13, Monk Level 19]

_

Today's setup included some changes. Since Merchant had already reached level 20, I swapped it out for Sex Maniac. Last night had proven how useful that job could be, so I wanted to level it up further. It had already jumped from level 12 to 13.

Monk was kept in because it was close to level 20, and it has also levelled up once from 18 to 19. 

The Other Jobs are the ones that I can't remove even if I wanted to. Like Explorer is the one with the highest level, providing me the most amount of BP. Hero is a must have, as it has the most comprehensive effect, on not only myself but my whole party. 

Wizard I need because I am the back line damage dealer in this party. Alchemist is needed to keep the Advanced Plating skill active. Monk also has the other usage of the Heal skill, which is useful to have in emergencies. 

I try to keep as many Jobs as I can during the labyrinth runs, as that way I can maximise the experience distributed to each job. And right now Six Jobs is the limit.

However, since I wouldn't be using magic in this fight, I decided to replace Wizard with Swordsman. Swordsman was a job I wanted to level up for quite some time now, infact I should try to level up all my jobs to Level 10 first to unlock their initial rewards.

Next, I check my character settings and adjust my BP distribution.

_

[Character Settings

BP:0

Status: 

Bonus Equipment: Weapon 2

Bonus Spells: 

Bonus Skills: Experience Gain x 5, Crystallisation Upgrade x 6, Sixth Job, Appraisal, Character Reset]

_

Bonus point used: 130

Bonus Equipment: 3

Weapon 2

[Curtana

-Attack Power x5

-Incantation Interruption]

Crystallisation Upgrade x 6 (x64): 63

Exp Gain Up x 5 (x20): 31

Sixth Job: 31

Char reset: 1

Appraisal: 1

_

This time I take out my points from the Exp gain up and Exp reduction and add them to Crystallisation Upgrade. I am not sure when my Green Crystal will change to Yellow, but knowing that Boss Monsters give out the most experience I should keep trying. 

I keep Exp gain up, so that my party and I can level up x20 times faster, until now they were levelling up x40 and I was at x800, but now I too am levelling up at x20. 

As I am not using Magic, I take out my sleek sword Curtana, which has the Incantation Interruption skill. In the future when I have some extra BP's to spare, I would like to give this sword to Roxanne during Boss fights so she can interrupt the Boss's casting. 

Maybe Miria will also work, as in the original story she was quite good at it, although right now she is way too under levelled. In fact all the new girls are quite low levelled that's why I am a tiny bit worried about the upcoming fight. 

"Alright, follow the attack lineup Roxanne explained," I say, addressing the party. "Stay calm, and if the boss targets you, don't panic. You are protected by the plating, but for the newer members, maintaining distance is safest. Attack only when you see an opening." I try to relax their nerves as this will be the first Boss battle for some of them. 

After ensuring that everyone had their potions ready, we stepped into the boss room, with Roxanne taking on the front. In the dark room smoke gathers at the center, coalescing into a massive, demonic sheep.

[Beep Sheep Level 5]

"BAAAA!" The Sheep bellows, standing half a person taller than me.

Roxanne fearlessly charges forward, stabbing at its open mouth. Anastasia and Lillia hesitates at the sight of the towering creature but quickly joined the fray after seeing Roxanne and Sherry in motion.

The line up was a pretty simple one, Roxanne is at the front attacking with her sword and defending with her shield. She has the Monster's full attention. 

On the Monster's right is Sherry and Lillia, here Lillia has to take a step closer to the Boss as she is using a sword and Sherry has to stand just beside her with her spear. 

On the left, Miria and Anastasia mirrored their setup. Miria attacking with the sword and shield and Anastasia poking it with her Spear. 

I am in the second most dangerous spot, directly behind the Sheep. I have to keep in mind that it does attack with a back kick, which isn't that hard for me to predict because of the Initial Movement Sense skill of mine. 

'Good just like this, keep attacking it in a rhythm' I encourage the party, especially the new girls who were doing a good job of attacking the boss.

We can't see the damage numbers here, but I am sure that I and Roxanne were doing the most damage. Me because of my higher levels and better weapon and Roxanne because of her critical hits attacking the boss's eyes and mouth. 

The others are too low levelled to do any substantial damage, so even the Boss was ignoring them. 

"Beeeee!" The Sheep stops attacking and opens its mouth wide, giving out a peculiar sound. 

I was waiting for this so just as the floor beneath it lights up in a formation, I attack its back interrupting the skill. 

"BAAA!" It angrily turns around and rams its head straight towards me. Although it was so big, it moved swiftly looking like a truck ready to hit me head on. 

I instinctively perform a barrel roll getting out of its way.

I would have liked to use Overwhelming or even the Swordsman skill Slash, but I haven't invested in the Incantation Shortening or Incantation Omission skills due to a lack of BP. Without them, I would have to recite the entire lengthy incantation in Brahim just to activate those skills. Who has the time to do all that in the middle of a battle?

I get up as the Sheep turns around and faces me once again. 'Master let me come' Roxanne's voice sounds in my head, I understand what she means as she is on the other side of the room. 

'Careful, Roxanne,' I say through the party link as I activate Location Swap, switching places with her. In the blink of an eye, I find myself on the far side of the room, and Roxanne is now face-to-face with the Boss.

She charges at the Boss head-on, delivering a swift strike before gracefully doing a back flip to dodge its counterattack. The Boss seems to have forgotten about me as its attention is locked on Roxanne once again. 

'Lets get back in formation' I say over the link, as I hurriedly go behind the Sheep again. The other girls also get back to their positions. 

I have been counting my strikes, and when I estimate that the Boss's HP must be nearing zero, I ask all the party members to stop attacking. 

Roxanne deftly parries and dodges the Boss's attacks, buying me enough time to strike the Sheep's vulnerable backside two more times. With the final blow, the Boss vanishes in a puff of smoke.

I had to inflict the last attack if I wanted the crystallisation upgrade skill to work. 

"Haa... haaa... We did it!" Anastasia exclaims joyfully, collapsing onto the ground, drenched in sweat.

"Haa... Finally!" Lillia adds, smiling despite the sweat glistening on her forehead.

I have to admit, this was the longest fight the new party members have faced. The main reason was my decision not to use Magic or Skills, which significantly reduced our damage per second, even with the addition of more members to the party.

"Fisssh!" Miria was not exhausted at all, as she picks up the dropped item and brings it to me. 

[Sheep Skill Crystal]

"Master, is that a skill crystal?" Sherry asks, coming to my side. Unlike the others, she doesn't seem out of breath.

"Yeah, it's a Sheep Skill Crystal," I reply, examining the diamond-like, shimmering white gem.

"It must be Master's luck! As Skill crystals rarely drop in the labyrinth!" Roxanne chimes in cheerfully.

"A Skill Crystal?... Does it add skills to weapons?" Lillia asks, stepping closer for a better look.

"Haa... A Sheep Skill Crystal can add the Sleep skill to a weapon or grant Sleep Resistance to armor," Anastasia explains, standing shakily on her feet.

"She's correct," Sherry nods. "Master can see empty slots... so I could try adding the skill to Master's sword or his steel armor," she offers with a hint of confidence.

"There is no rush ... we can discuss what to do with the crystal back home" I decide simply. 

"Master, it's almost time for breakfast," Roxanne reminds me promptly.

"Fish-desu!" Miria adds excitedly.

"Alright, alright... Let's head home after reaching the next floor," I say with a smile.

The girls nod happily and fall in line behind me as we move towards the black door. I store the skill crystal in my bag and check my Green Crystal, which frustratingly remains green. I wasn't expecting it to change—it still needs at least 100,000 demons to turn yellow. Although it would be nice if my Appraisal skill showed a numerical count on the crystal.

We step through the door into another lit chamber, marking our arrival on the Vale Labyrinth's sixth floor. Good, we are now at the same level in both the Quratar and Vale labyrinth.

"Let's go," I say, opening a Warp Door back to our house in Quratar.

Once home, the girls hand back their equipment, and we freshen up.

Standing on the balcony of the top floor, I watch the sunrise over our expansive estate. The morning air feels crisp and refreshing. Despite the beauty, it feels a little lonely up here, so I open another Warp Door to the kitchen below.

In the kitchen, I find the girls laughing and chatting as they prepare breakfast. Even Anastasia and Lillia are smiling, which warms my heart.

I listen in and they were discussing the Beep Sheep, the Boss we just defeated. Most of the talk though was revolving around how amazing Roxanne was during the battle.

I can't deny it—she is the MVP of this party. During the last Boss battle, she was attacking and performing backflips as easy as breathing.

"Master is much more amazing than me. If Master wants, he can move so fast that even I can barely follow his movements," Roxanne says with a smile, glancing over her shoulder at me.

The others notice her gaze and quiet down as they turn to face me.

"You were amazing too, Roxanne. In fact, all of you did really well in today's labyrinth run," I say with a warm smile. "Now, let's finish breakfast so you can all enjoy your Day off!"

***

amit has used his points to claim an extra chapter for the prior to the previous week!

I sincerely thank you for your support!