"[Paralyze], [Paralyze], [Paralyze], [Paralyze]—[Paralyze], [Para, lyze]!"
Eight monsters paralyzed in total.
An unexpected—stroke of luck.
The eight stopped by paralysis are serving as obstacles.
"[Paralyze]!"
Thanks to that, while they awkwardly shove their comrades aside, I have just enough time to release the skill—
"Kh—aa...?"
A sensation like my blood is draining away.
This is bad.
My consciousness is...
My own personal MP is running dangerously low.
I move my eyeballs.
How many... left...?
"Pikko! Kukko ro!"
Here it comes.
Bird head...!
I force my strength and raise my arm.
"[Paralyze]!"
"Ko, ke, ke? Ke..."
It stops.
"U, aa—... aa?"
My vision whites out for an instant.
I shift my gaze.
"Ugh?"
What the hell is that.
Zoro zoro...
Reinforcements.
Five or so more appear from both sides.
They keep coming.
This is seriously bad now.
It's over.
I'm done.
"————"
Why is that, I wonder.
I do not really get it.
But somehow—
I start laughing.
"Kh, kuku... Got it, then—"
If it's going to run out, let it run out.
My body is on the verge of collapsing.
My consciousness is on the verge of breaking.
I pull it back.
With sheer stubbornness.
"Let's do this, then...!"
Until it runs out!
Thinking "it's over" or whatever—
"That's something to think about after it actually runs out! —[Paralyze]! [Paralyze]! [Paralyze]! [Paralyze]! [Pa, ra—"
Fwoosh.
The sensation of something snapping.
Has my MP... hit rock bottom?
My body's axis wavers.
My legs can no longer support me.
My consciousness can no longer hold its axis.
"So my mental strength ran out... first, huh—f, fufu... No, wait, me... I can probably still fire... one more shot, right? It's a waste otherwise..."
I raise my trembling hand.
For real this time,
"With a mob's stubbornness—let's squeeze out every last drop... Mimori Tou—"
The final,
"Kwe! Guee—"
...Huh?
What was that voice just now?
It sounded like a death cry—
[Level up.]
In that instant, power surges.
Consciousness regains color.
The haze clears away.
[LV 1 → LV 258]
Huh?
What?
What just happened?
More importantly,
"[Paralyze]!"
Why?
A Minotaur leaps at me.
I bestow paralysis mid-air.
"[Paralyze]! [Paralyze]! [Paralyze]————!"
Why did my level go up?
"Ah."
I get it.
I look around.
The bird head lying face-down.
The very first one I bestowed poison on.
It finally died.
From the poison damage.
That's why a massive amount of experience poured in all at once.
Enormous experience points.
The robed man mentioned growth rates.
I do not think the lowest-rank hero like me has a high one.
The required experience to level up is probably enormous too.
That much is clear from how my skill levels have not risen.
"In short—"
I look at the monsters.
"The monsters in these discard ruins give an insane amount of experience."
Abnormally high.
Probably impossible to beat them in a normal fight.
I recall our first encounters.
The Minotaur.
The bird head.
Their movements were slow.
They were looking down on me.
Completely.
They did not even need to use one-tenth of their power.
Trash.
Weakling.
So they let their guard down.
They had killing intent, but they were not going all out.
Because I was the weakest.
Because I was bottom-tier.
That gave me the leeway to use [Paralyze].
Conversely, if I had been even somewhat strong...
If they had recognized me as a "dangerous enemy."
They probably would have killed me before I could use my unique skill.
Also.
Does leveling up recover MP?
About half of the max?
Or full recovery?
Or just the increased correction value added on?
Either way—
I lock onto the monsters.
If I keep leveling up—
"I can keep fighting! —[Paralyze]!"
It connected.
By a hair.
"[Paralyze]! [Paralyze]! [Paralyze]!"
[Skill level increased.]
[LV 1 → LV 2]
It went up.
Probably the skill level of [Paralyze].
Is skill experience separate from the experience I just gained?
Does skill experience depend on the number of uses?
My own level jumped dramatically.
But I do not sense any new skills acquired.
New skill acquisition might depend on skill level.
For now, though—
"Getting through here is top priority—"
I gather mana.
Before I realized it, I could do it naturally.
I capture the monsters in my vision.
I suddenly notice.
"Hey, hey."
What the hell.
"It's letting me do multi-target designation now..."
Multiple target lock.
A [▽] mark appears above the heads of eight monsters.
All eight in my field of view, together—
"[Paralyze]"
They stop.
Eight at once.
Paralysis success.
My unique skill.
The possibility emerges that the only one it does not work on is that goddess.
Success rate since arriving in the discard ruins—still
One hundred percent.
The paralyzed monsters form a convenient wall.
Until the paralysis wears off, they will serve as a reliable barrier.
"Hmph..."
So that's how it is, huh?
"If one of them gives that much experience—"
A vicious grin.
"If I wipe out every single monster here... I'll get a massive haul of experience, right...? Isn't that right!? Come on!?"
While the monsters shove aside their paralyzed comrades,
I apply the skill one by one to the paralyzed monsters.
"[Poison], [Poison], [Poison], [Poison], [Poison], [Poison], [Poison], [Poison]—"
Poco poco...
Poco oo...
Powa...
Powa, powa...
To me right now,
"[Poison]"
[Skill level increased.]
[LV 1 → LV 2]
The monsters in front of me no longer look like anything but experience points EXP.