The Earth-san Has Leveled Up!

1-2. The Last Hope: Synthesis Enhancement

Never let your guard down in a dungeon.

Even as tears welled up, Meiko quickly picked up the items dropped by the spring balloon and retraced her steps.

“Soo… Hoo…”

She sat down in the corridor, taking deep breaths.

Calm down. Calm down, Meiko Hitsujitani.

She whispered this to herself, forcefully shaking off her unease.

“For now, status.”

She focused her mind.

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Hitsujiya Meiko

Age: 15

Job: None

Karma: +1316 《Will to Live Earnestly +40》

Level: 1

Mana: 21/21

Skill: [Synthesis Enhancement]

Title: [The One Who Congratulated Earth-san]

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“My karma increased. And 《Will to Live Earnestly》? Was that the right thing to do system-wise?”

There was so much she didn’t understand about the karma system, so she decided to set it aside for now.

Looking further, she noticed that both her level and mana had increased by 1. However, as far as her level was concerned, she didn’t feel any stronger.

Even clenching her fist yielded no sense of newfound strength.

“Maybe level 1 just doesn’t amount to much? More importantly…”

[Synthesis Enhancement]

Meiko’s greatest strength was undoubtedly this

The details of the skill, which she’d discovered earlier in a moment of clarity, were as follows:

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• Synthesis Enhancement is a magic that enhances an object by sacrificing materials.

Using it consumes both the material and mana.

• Both the item to be enhanced and the material must be non-living objects.

Additionally, you must either own the items or have explicit permission from the owner.

• The enhancement works best when the material closely matches the category of the object being enhanced.

Dungeon-sourced materials yield significantly better results than earth-sourced ones.

Example: To enhance an iron sword, dungeon-sourced swords or metals work well.

• The enhanced object retains its original nature.

For example, sacrificing orichalcum to an iron sword won’t turn it into an orichalcum sword.

It will remain an iron sword, only with improved performance.

• Every object has an enhancement limit.

• Those with Synthesis Enhancement can use:

◦ Fusion Appraisal: to see enhancement values and limits.

◦ Favorites: to avoid accidentally using cherished items as materials.

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These were the rules.

“Is it like enhancing items in games? In any case, with this…”

Meiko looked at the spring she had just obtained.

It was wide enough for her slender arm to fit through its inner ring.

The metal was thin, and when she squeezed it between her hands, it twanged amusingly.

It was kind of fun.

No! Time-waster alert!

Shaking off the strangely addictive allure of “twanging”, Meiko decided to use [Synthesis Enhancement].

The skill worked better when the material was in the same category as the object to be enhanced.

The scissors were made of some kind of metal, and the spring was also metallic.

Thus, it should yield a reasonably good effect.

However, it was important to note that no matter how much the scissors were enhanced, they would always remain mini scissors.

Fusing the spring with the scissors wouldn’t turn them into cutting shears, nor would it change their material.

The enhancement would only improve their performance.

With that in mind, Meiko first used Fusion Appraisal on the mini scissors.

No windows appeared, but she somehow understood: “Ah, these scissors have an enhancement value of 0/100.” The denominator represented the enhancement limit.

The spring, on the other hand, showed 0/50.

“I’ll fuse the spring with the scissors! Oh, but first, I’ll add the scissors to my favorites. Done!”

When she concentrated, the scissors were registered as a favorite.

No visible change occurred.

The main event followed.

She glanced around to ensure no enemies were nearby. Dungeons were no place for carelessness!

Once again, focusing her thoughts intensely, she fused the spring with the scissors.

The spring transformed into particles of light and was absorbed into the scissors.

The mini scissors felt… stronger.

When she used Fusion Appraisal, the scissors’ enhancement value was now “25/100.”

The numbers had certainly increased, but there was no visible change.

Fusion Appraisal didn’t reveal any details about changes in attack power either.

“Ahaha! Is this ability even reliable?”

Unease lingered.

Still, Meiko resolved to live strong with this skill!

She tucked the magic stone she had obtained into her pouch.

It seemed magic stones couldn’t be used as [Synthesis Enhancement] materials.

She resumed exploring the dungeon.

Since there were still no signs of other people, she began to suspect that the area hadn’t transformed into a dungeon, but rather, she had been accidentally transported into one.

Passing through the area where the spring balloon had been, she added to her map.

Cautiously turning another corner, she was met by a second enemy before she could react.

This time, the enemy was… a book.

Even Meiko, who had played a few RPGs, immediately recognized the situation.

In RPGs, books often appear as non-living enemies, alongside swords or armor.

Quickly brushing aside any hopeful thoughts like, “Could it be a magic book that grants me power?” she assumed a battle stance.

The floating book, much like the spring balloon, immediately opened itself and began rapidly flipping its pages.

Books that appear as enemies in games are often magic types.

The Magic Book (as Meiko dubbed it) was no exception. After finishing its rapid page-flipping, it began constructing a spell.

A sphere of water appeared above the open book.

“A-Ah…”

Despite anticipating magic, Meiko failed to stop it.

She was simply too terrified.

She had no idea how magic worked or when it would activate.

The fear of being struck down mid-charge froze her in place.

As a result, she missed her chance to act and found herself in a dire situation.

She took a step back, then another, only to trip and fall onto her rear.

At that moment, a high-speed water ball zipped past the space where her face had been.

The speed was imperceptible to Meiko but would have been visible from the side, comparable to a professional baseball pitch.

Still, it was nearly impossible for an ordinary girl to see, let alone react to, a 140 km/h object heading toward her.

Miraculously dodging the attack, Meiko scrambled to her feet and bolted.

The magic book, seemingly surprised by its miss, hastily began flipping its pages again.

Closing the gap, Meiko reached the book first and swung her scissors downward.

The single strike sent the magic book tumbling to the ground, much like a fly swatted from the air.

However, it continued flipping its pages frantically, proving it wasn’t defeated yet.

Undeterred, Meiko knelt on the floor, slamming her scissors down repeatedly.

With less defense than the spring balloon, the book dissolved into particles of light soon after.

This time, Meiko felt little guilt—almost none.

The battle had made it clear that the dungeon monsters were out to kill her.

Despite her innocent, candy-loving appearance, Meiko could step up when needed!

Left behind were a book and a magic stone.

“Haa… Haa… Could it be a spellbook?”

Panting, she picked up the book.

Before examining it, she checked her main weapon—the scissors.

Despite two battles and rough handling, they remained unbent and retained their shine.

Perhaps this was thanks to [Synthesis Enhancement].

While the scissors could still cut, Meiko hadn’t used them for that purpose yet. Instead, she relied on stabbing motions, akin to thrusting.

Next, she inspected her spoils.

Opening the book, she found pages filled with intricate magic circles.

“Come forth, water! Aqua Ball!”

Holding the book in one hand, she tried chanting, but nothing happened.

She even flipped through the pages rapidly like the magic book had done, but it still had no effect.

“Maybe it’s equipment?”

The idea of a spellbook as an equipable item was common enough.

“Does that mean I just need to carry it? Hmm… Equip!”

At her command, the spellbook floated on its own.

“Whoa, seriously?”

Confronted with such a fantastical sight, Meiko’s excitement soared.

“Alright, the mystery is solved. Let’s do this, spellbook! Fire off a water sphere!”

Confident in her deduction, she gave the command—but nothing happened.

“Yeah, I have no idea!”

Despite trying various methods, she couldn’t get any magic to activate.

She tested water-based commands first, given the book’s prior behavior, but no luck.

Other elements proved equally unresponsive.

However, she did discover she could control the book to some extent with her will.

It could move within a 2-meter radius around her, with surprising speed—perhaps useful as a weapon.

“Maybe it boosts magical attack power when a magician uses it?”

For now, she concluded her investigation.