I Became a Beautiful Girl, but I’m still an MMO Junkie

Episode 110: The Alchemist Amidst the Azure Flames

—

“The sound of a bell—sharpen and focus—”

Takeshi pressed his left thumb against the guard of his sword, slightly
exposing the blade, then immediately sheathed it again with a distinct chime.

At first glance, this action seemed meaningless.

“Wind Blade.”

However, I didn’t miss the thin green aura that enveloped the blade as it
returned to the sheath. It appeared that Takeshi had imbued his sword with
wind magic, perhaps enhancing its physical and magical attack power.

With his now-sharpened blade still in its sheath, Takeshi charged straight
towards me.

“I should start by resetting offense and defense.”

I couldn’t afford to stay on the defensive. My defense and HP were likely not
strong enough to withstand a single blow from Takeshi. Without panicking, I
kept the ‘Sun-Homunculus’ circling around me, swiftly stowed away the
‘Spark Lantern’ in my left hand, and took out a rough, yellowish stone instead.

“Now then…”

I lightly tossed the ‘Flash Stone’ straight up.

“Let’s start with a test.”

As the falling flash stone descended, I struck it with a rightward slash of my
short sword, using the momentum to spin myself around.

“What the…?”

By the time Takeshi noticed I had turned my back to him, it was too late; a
blinding light filled his vision.

“Ah! Too bright!”

Using the principle of inertia, I spun back to face him, eyes closed, and took
out a bottle of ‘Melting Water’ in my left hand.

“Maybe this will be easier than I thought.”

It seemed Takeshi had taken the full brunt of the flash stone’s light, leaving
him momentarily blind and immobile, giving me the upper hand. From my
earlier analysis, Takeshi was proficient in counter-attacks from a defensive
position. If he had assumed a defensive stance, he would now be an easy
target.

“Please, Fu.”

“Leave it to me!”

My next move flowed seamlessly from the first. The ‘Flash Stone’ only
blinded Takeshi for three seconds, but in a one-on-one battle, those three
seconds were crucial.

“Mmm…”

I scattered the ‘Melting Water’ forward, and the corrosive liquid, carried by
Fu’s wind, sprayed towards Takeshi like a mist of acid.

“Wind spirits, with the wisdom of my sword, separate here from there.”

Realizing my attack, Takeshi drew his sword with his right hand and stabbed
it into the ground. Green effects radiated from his position, forming a circle.

“Barrier Magic—Wind Killing Barrier.”

He raised his left hand towards me, likely casting a wide-area defensive
spell. A hemispherical wind dome formed from the floor. This larger-scale
defensive measure, compared to the small magic that had blocked Glenn’s
fireballs earlier, was chosen for this crucial moment when his vision was
impaired.

While such a barrier could deflect a physical attack, dealing with a liquid
was different. Given his current blindness, the safest defense was to use the
wind spirit’s power to blow it away or guard with magic.

Our acid rain was deflected by the wind shield, as expected. Takeshi was
indeed adept at defense.

“But that’s fine.”

By the time he had deflected my attack, my next move was ready. Knowing
Takeshi’s sword’s high attack power, I didn’t foolishly send the ‘Prickly
Brothers’ to charge and get knocked down early.

“Show me the effect of the new item.”

I dropped an item on the ground—a plant with a green stem, leaves, and a
blue flower at the tip, its roots exposed. A small blue marker appeared in my
vision.

“I see, I can set the location with this.”

I moved the blue marker to a point just outside the reach of Takeshi’s
barrier.

“Take root there.”

Following my command, the new item, the ‘Foxfire Bloom’, began to move.
The plant seemed ordinary above ground, but its roots were unique—dozens
of small white arms extended from the base, serving as roots.

These arms responded to my will, crawling along the floor towards the
marker.

The material for this slightly creepy plant came from the ‘Cloudy to Clear
Juice’ recipe taught by Nyudou-san.

The recipe for ‘Cloudy to Clear Juice’ is as follows:

– High-quality water
– Fizzing Horn
– Ash Powder
– Grapefruit Juice
– Blue Fire Flower

When combined with cooking skills, this recipe creates a gray, tasteless
carbonated drink that, when stirred with a straw, turns into a clear blue,
refreshing citrus soda called ‘Cloudy to Clear Juice.’

Inspired by this recipe, George and I experimented to create something like
ramune. After repeated trials with limited materials and synthesis, the
‘Foxfire Bloom’ was born.

‘Fizzing Horn’: A single horn on the forehead of a small fire fox, always at
high temperature, with a membrane that bubbles like magma.

‘Ash Powder’: Burnt remnants that occasionally smolder when exposed to
heat.

‘Blue Fire Flower’: A flower that blooms with blue flames, creating a
beautiful nighttime scene in its habitat.

Additionally, I mixed in the color ‘Solo White’ extracted from a photo of the
‘Luna Homunculus’ floating in the underground city of Yorn.

‘Solo White’: A color containing pseudo-moonlight components, capable of
being the foundation for autonomous life, suitable for independence.

Thus, the ‘Foxfire Bloom’ was created—a plant with white root-arms that
moves automatically.

‘Foxfire Bloom’: A plant that uses its root-arms to find a place to parasitize,
sustaining itself. Once it spreads its roots, it absorbs nutrients and releases
spores that ignite with a blue glow upon contact with air. These spores,
when shaken, increase and may produce new ‘Foxfire Blooms’. Fragile yet

beautiful, these blue flames create an enchanting night scene.

– Continuous Damage: 2-35
– Attribute: Red
– Trait: Blue Flame (cannot be extinguished by water)

George once mentioned, “Cordyceps grows parasitically on moth larvae and
is known in medicinal cuisine.” This somewhat appetite-suppressing fact
aside, it was time to test this.

As the protective barrier dissipated, I released another ‘Foxfire Bloom’,
setting the marker closer to me than to Takeshi.

“Hmm, strange blue flames… Is this the azure fire mist?”

The first ‘Foxfire Bloom’ had already taken root, scattering spores around
Takeshi, steadily draining his health. It was like a stationary damage-dealing
device.

Regardless of the duration of his defensive barrier, it couldn’t remain active
indefinitely. The ‘Foxfire Bloom’ scattered blue flames, continuing to grow
and spread.

“Now, what will you do, Takeshi?”

Takeshi’s earlier method of slicing Glenn’s flames would be nearly useless
against these tiny blue fire particles, at most dispersing them briefly.

“In that case, I just need to move.”

Takeshi decided to close in on me, dodging the spores while moving.

“Alright, Fu, do your thing.”

“Aye aye, sir!”

The ‘Foxfire Blooms’, now positioned in two spots, swayed violently under
the wind maiden Sylph’s breath, greatly increasing their spore output. Fu
also manipulated the direction of the spores with the wind, guiding them
towards Takeshi.

“If so, Sword Art—Wind Chime Style.”

“I won’t let you!”

Takeshi judged he could use a stronger wind to blow away the fire spores,
but he had no time to cast a large-scale barrier or spirit magic.

I used a small ‘Skyrocket Firework’ at this moment.

Takeshi narrowly dodged the incoming firework, but couldn’t evade the
sparks exploding behind him, causing him to stagger slightly.

“Damn, I’ll have to eliminate the source.”

“I won’t let you.”

He aimed to destroy the source of the continuous damage, the ‘Foxfire
Blooms’ parasitizing the floor.

His choice was correct. The ‘Foxfire Bloom’ would disappear if its main body
was hit. However, it was no longer just two blooms—the spores had spread
and taken root, multiplying to five. This also increased the continuous
damage.

I launched another ‘Skyrocket Firework’.

“Ugh! Sword Technique—Wind Whirl Slash.”

Takeshi, struggling to escape the dense foxfire, charged straight at me,
slashing diagonally from above.

The green aura on his blade disappeared, and the incoming firework was
split in two.

“I see, a single-use long-range attack… The magic on his blade is gone,
then?”

Even if he could cut through an area attack with one slash, he couldn’t fend
off countless pinpoint attacks. Takeshi groaned as the indirect damage from
the fireworks took its toll.

“Mm…”

For the first time, Takeshi showed signs of defeat, causing the onlookers to
buzz with excitement.

“He’s overwhelming… What is that skill? Is it an item?”

“Look, that guy hasn’t moved an inch and he’s holding Takeshi back.”

“Serves him right, Takeshi.”

The mercenary players analyzed the situation, but they were far from
understanding the reality.

A continuous barrage of attacks versus a consistent defense. Takeshi was
steadily losing health due to the foxfire. Although I held the upper hand, it
was a necessary tactic.

If Takeshi managed to block my attacks, the balance would shift, and I would
lose my advantage. Thus, I prepared a third ‘Skyrocket Firework’.

Maintaining a continuous barrage to prevent Takeshi from advancing was
crucial. As long as my items held out, I would keep firing.

As I aimed and prepared to launch the firework, Takeshi leapt out of my line
of sight, performing a backflip.

“Wind, wind, dance with me—Earth and Wind

separate!” Takeshi chanted while mid-air, disrupting my aim.

—

Finally, I allowed him to take the initiative.