D.I.O

Chapter 124

Dang it. I wanted to try expanding my entire cycle of internal energy to output four-hundred and eighty years of internal energy, someday.

Did you really think that could be possible? If you were capable of such a cheat move, youd be able to blast away a dragon with a single attack. At least, you would if you struck it squarely.

Merlin nodded. In truth, he had expected as much, and he had overextended his internal energy output to test whether his expectations were correct.

It seems that I need to contain the output of internal energy to my limit of one cycle.

To output more internal energy, Merlin had to increase his internal energy capacity, but for whatever reason, his gold core was stabilizing at one cycle with no signs of increasing.

Can you walk?

Merlin shook his head.

It doesnt look likely at the moment.

Eh! Its that bad?

Ill be fine soon. If youre concerned about getting to our lodging, there are other ways.

Merlins body rose and hovered ten centimeters from the ground. The two spirits that always surrounded him, Younghwi and Shining, were lifting him up.

Lets go.

Hmm.

Miho made a concerned face, but Merlin didnt care. No user should have been concerned that their in-game character might become sick, right? Regardless, Miho was worried.

It was a powerful attack. No matter how powerful he is, he couldnt be fine after such a tremendous output of energy. Will his body be okay? All this because of my pride

Though she was concerned, Miho hid her inner feelings and asked, What was the skill that you used just now? It didnt look like an illusion-based magic spell.

Obviously, it was martial arts Eh? Wait, you dont know martial arts?

Merlin was taken aback for a moment, until he remembered that the monsters in the south didnt use martial arts. Instead, they reinforced their bodies, used some form of magic, or employed a monster-qi specific ability. The variance in their power levels were based solely on how well they could control their specific ability.

Martial arts? Ah, I think Ive heard of it before. The Jin species use that skill. Are you a Jin?

The Jin?

Oh, right, youre not a Jin, youre a passenger.

Not paying any mind to Merlins question, Miho continued mumbling to herself. Though this behavior wasnt normal for Miho, the relatively insensitive Merlin didnt feel that anything was off.

Did I ever mention to you that I was a passenger?

Before Merlin could finish his thought, they entered the front door to their lodging. From the outside, the building looked like a small, single room structure, but it looked much more spacious from within.

Whir!

What was that?

Its the buildings system recognizing and registering us as guests. Itll be maintained until we leave.

How interesting. I couldnt sense any magic being used.

The lodging space was clean. To be frank, it was barebones. The only furniture was two single beds and one table. Though the room had minimal furnishings, what was there looked of high quality.

Do you want something to eat? Miho asked.

Oh, I brought a lot of food with me.

Since Merlin traveled often, eating was always a high priority. In terms of food, clothing, and shelter, he had his magic-infused clothing and mobile-card housing, but he always needed to restock on food wherever he went. Since he had to always be mindful about his stock of food, he had fully stocked his housing and inventory space with food at Starting before he left. As an ability user, Merlin didnt require that much food. Based on his current stockpile, hed be able to sustain himself for about a year.

Hey, try this.

Hmm? Whats that?

Its called a hamburger. You dont know what bread is, do you?

Bread?

Looking at her golden eyes staring back at him, Merlin couldnt help but find Miho cute.

Its made from flour uhm anyway, theres something called flour. Its a processed type of food.

Ooh.

Muttering in amazement at all the different types of food Merlin had, Miho took a hamburger and ate it. Having opened her eyes to the wonder of new foods, her resistance to trying new food seemed to diminish by the second.

Chomp. Chomp.

With her small mouth, she got to work on the hamburger. Her expression of satisfaction was like a sharp dagger; a dagger that was piercing Merlins heart.

Ugh!!

Eh? Whats wrong?

N-nothing. Im fine.

Merlin waved his hand as if to signal that it was nothing, but Miho had seen Merlin anguish in pain from his injuries just ten minutes ago, so she couldnt help but feel concerned.

You look like youre in a lot of pain does it still hurt?

Merlin gave an awkward laugh.

Ugh. Shes so gosh darn cute.

Even though he was a person who considered young people, who hadnt gone through the rigors of social life, equal to animals, Merlin couldnt help but be enamored by Miho. However, he couldnt just hug her and roll around on the ground with her like he did when she was in her fox form.

Hey, Miho. Cant you revert to your normal look as a fox?

What? You dont like how I look now?

Surprised at Mihos sensitive reaction, Merlin suddenly waved his hands.

N-no, no, its nothing like that. I just thought it would be more comfortable for you.

Hmpf! Im not going to change back into a fox until Im done with this travel assignment.

Miho snapped her body around after saying this and threw herself onto her bed.

Whys she acting like that?

Not understanding Mihos attitude, Merlin scratched the back of his head, took off his wide-brimmed hat, put it on the table, and laid down on his bed. He thought about taking off his robe to sleep comfortably, but he didnt think this was necessary since hed just be setting himself to sleep-mode before logging out. He wasnt really going to sleep.

I probably cant just log off, right?

When one logged out, the location that one would be placed after logging in would be based on the spatial coordinates where the user was last located. So if Merlin logged out while on a moving object, as he was now, he would reappear in the location where the moving object was before he logged out. In this situation, Merlin would probably reappear in the sky and fall straight down into the sea. However, if he used sleep-mode before logging off, his characters body would still be present in DIO, and he would be able to avoid logging back on mid-air.

Hey, Miho.

What.

Miho responded back with a sulking voice, but Merlin continued, unbothered.

How long will it take for us to arrive?

Moby Dick will travel around various islands and continents to gather all the representatives, so itll probably take another ten hours.

Then Ill have to wake up in at least nine hours.

Merlin organized his thoughts. The most appropriate logout time while traveling with Miho was twelve hours. Now that DIOs access time was limited to twelve hours, if Merlin connected for six days (twelve hours in real-time), he wouldnt be able to login to DIO for another six days.

But its not possible for me to be logged in for six days and take six days off.

Optimally, using sleep-mode, Merlin would have to sleep twelve hours a day within DIO. If he used up all his play time in advance by playing continuously, hed be forcefully logged out at the end of the sixth day without access to the server for another six days.

But my schedule here wont allow me to take twelve hours out of the day to sleep. I need to finish this trip in ten days if possible.

Then, Ill be up in nine hours. If I dont wake up, shake me until I awake.

Hmpf! Dont worry, Ill beat you up until you wake up. So dont worry, okay mister?

Huh?

Finally sensing that something was off, Merlin turned his gaze towards Miho. With his eyes open just a crack, he glanced at her.

What are you looking at?

Hmm Youre really not going to change back into a fox?

Never!

She looked angry, but Merlin laughed mischievously in response.

If thats the case!

With a whoosh sound, Merlin magically levitated two meters up in the air. With the assistance of his two spirits, he slipped downwards through the air as if he was riding a slide, and landed on Miho. Surprised, Miho flailed her arms and legs, but it was impossible for her to resist Merlin with her physical abilities.

Youre so cute!! I cant hold back!

Hey, let go of me! Pervert!

I dont care if Im a pervert! Hahaha!

Ack!

Not having the physical attribute (?) that represented the male gender in DIO, Merlin rolled around on Mihos bed with Miho in his arms. Suddenly, Miho grabbed his cheeks and touched the tip of her nose to Merlins. Merlin, who had somewhat his grip on reality, suddenly felt an overwhelming aura and froze.

Stay still!!

With a sharp cry, Mihos golden eyes turned red. As if it never happened, Merlin immediately stopped rolling around.

Huh w-what happened?

Hmpf!

Snorting, Miho slipped away from Merlins grasp.

Get up. she ordered him.

Merlin shot straight up.

Huh? Whats going on? Eh?

Merlin had lost control over his body. His eyes turned red as he began to operate Magic Eye. He was trying to crack Mihos magic power pattern.

Go outside and raise your hands above your head.

However, Merlin couldnt crack it.

Huh? What? Why cant I release myself

And shut your mouth.

!!

With a bewildered look on his face, Merlin dutifully walked out of the room, dropped to his knees, and raised his arms above his head. Magic power swirled around him as he continued to use Magic Eye to crack the spell and break free, but he wasnt having any luck. If Merlin had more magic power to operate with, hed be able to shatter the controlling spell with ease, but at present, Merlin was weakened and had less magic power than Miho.

In front of Merlin, Miho made a satisfied expression and laughed.

Bow down.

As soon as she gave the order, Merlin bowed down flat against the ground. Gracefully, Miho got on top of Merlins back.

You got too cocky after beating me once. However, remember that I am the Red Monsters successor. Back then, you took advantage of my surprise when you used a process of Magic Eye that I hadnt anticipated. But my ability to use Magic Eye far surpasses yours.

Miho had devoted herself to researching and testing Magic Eye after being shocked by Merlins, which he had conceived in programming. Specifically, she had studied how Merlin applied infiltration during his use of cracking. Thereafter, Mihos progress in the discipline of Magic Eye was tremendous. This was because Merlins Magic Eye had inspired her and brought an added effect to her own Magic Eye process.

As a result, Miho had increased her ability to confront other Magic Eye practitioners, raised her proficiency and mastery of Magic Eye, and greatly expanded the range of magic that she could perform while using Magic Eye. In a sense, Merlin was a kind of benefactor to her. Of course, not a single ounce of appreciation could currently be seen in Mihos eyes.

Go to sleep like that today.

Ugh

Merlin was finally able to circulate part of his internal energy, but all he could muster was a whimper. With complete control over him, Miho happily hummed a tune as she laid down on her bed. Soon, Mihos breathing became regular.

Is she asleep?

Nearly flat to the ground, Merlin was exasperated by Mihos gentle, regulated breathing. Of course, as an internal energy user with above-average stats in HP, Strength, and Stamina, Merlin didnt have any issue maintaining his bowed position, even if it went on for a few days, but he couldnt help but be surprised that Miho could sleep so soundly after leaving him in such an awkward position.

Hmm. I cant think of any good ideas. This position is so uncomfortable, its making it hard for me to concentrate on anything.

After pondering his options a bit longer, Merlin decided to just log off.

Fine. [Log Out, Sleep-Mode].

/Commencing log off. You will become immobile for the next 10 seconds. You are open to attack during this time, so if youre not in a safe area, cancel the log off process and take appropriate measures. 10, 9, 8/

There were no imminent threats that prevented his log off process. As long as he didnt receive any shocks, hed be able to log off. Of course, if he logged off without sleep-mode, hed also be freed from his current physical restraints. If he did that, however, hed also find himself in the middle of the sky when he logged back on.

Ill just take a brief rest.

As he mumbled to himself, Merlin closed his eyes. Like Miho, Merlin soon started breathing in a regular pattern.