Since the staff didn't have a name to begin with, Ren Isana couldn't be bothered to come up with one. He figured he would just name it later if something came to mind, or maybe just call it Merly. The name didn't really matter anyway, as long as it was practical.
Everyone was left speechless when Ren mentioned it had no name. Asuna couldn't help but call him out. "You literally named the weapons you made for everyone else, but when it comes to your own top-tier magic staff, you just skip it?"
He had seriously named so many of their weapons, even going as far as engraving those names into the metal so they couldn't be changed. Yet, when it came to his own gear, he just couldn't be bothered?
"That makes a lot of sense. In that case, this staff will be called Merly," Ren said, immediately agreeing with Asuna. He couldn't just leave it nameless, after all.
And so, it was cheerfully decided that the staff would be named Merly. However, the name left everyone a bit bewildered. *Merly? Why does that sound like a girl's name?*
"Merly? A girl's name?" Asuna voiced the question directly, narrowing her eyes as she tried to recall if Ren knew anyone by that name.
*There isn't anyone at school with that name, right? Why Merly?* Asuna suddenly felt very invested in this. *Could it be his ex-girlfriend or something?*
"In the Arthurian legends, there's a grand wizard named Merlin, but I think she was probably a girl. King Arthur was a girl too, you know. So, naming this weapon Merly is basically just naming it Merlin," Ren explained casually.
Everyone stared at him, completely dumbfounded. *How on earth could King Arthur be a girl? Is he just spouting nonsense?* Still, they at least understood the logic behind the staff's new name.
Asuna, who had suspected it was an ex-girlfriend's name, was left speechless. Well, it seemed she had just been overthinking things. After all, Ren didn't exactly look like the type of guy who had an ex.
From what she had heard, he used to be a total loner who kept to himself and never talked to anyone in class. Since many of their current classmates had been in his class before—Sora being one of them—that loudmouth had already spilled plenty of stories about Ren's past.
"Alright, I'm going to grab some food. You all keep working hard. We're heading into the Dungeon the day after tomorrow, which means you have one day left to familiarize yourselves with that spell." Ren toyed with his new weapon, announcing his schedule while engraving a magical mark onto the staff.
He then turned and walked out. His words made the others tense up, especially those who hadn't yet mastered [Perception Magic]. It was a rather frustrating situation for them.
*Looks like we'll have to pull an all-nighter,* many thought to themselves as they followed him out. Everyone else had already eaten dinner; Ren was the only one who hadn't.
After leaving the workshop, most of the group returned to their respective rooms. Ren headed to the dining hall to eat, but Asuna, Megumi Kato, and Yukino Yukinoshita tagged along.
The three girls sat across from Ren, watching him eat. Ren glanced at them between bites. "Have you all mastered it already? Why are you crowding around me?"
*Did they come specifically to watch me eat? Isn't that awkward?* Ren couldn't comprehend their thought process and couldn't help but complain internally.
"We've already mastered the spell. We mainly wanted to ask if we need to go out and buy some supplies," Yukino Yukinoshita said, getting straight to the point. "If we're going into the Dungeon, we should make ample preparations, right?"
That was their main concern. They couldn't just wait until the moment of departure to buy things. With so many people in their group, it would be best to go out tomorrow and purchase everything in advance.
"Yeah, I'll give you the funds. Just take some people out tomorrow and buy what we need. Make sure to bring along the ones who have a Spatial Backpack," Ren instructed after a moment of thought.
The three girls nodded. Asuna even pulled out a small notebook. "Tell us, what exactly do we need to buy? I'll take everyone out tomorrow and get everything ready."
Seeing how prepared she was, Ren simply rattled off a list of necessary supplies, along with the names of several medicinal herbs native to this world.
Hearing the list of herbs, Asuna couldn't help but frown. "Are you planning to use these to make Red Potions and Blue Potions? Will we have enough time?"
She immediately understood his intentions—there was no other use for them besides brewing potions. But with only one day left, would there be enough time?
"We'll have time to make a batch. Besides, it's not like we can't brew them while we're in the Dungeon, right?" Ren shrugged nonchalantly. The herbs he had listed were common medicinal plants in this world.
His potions were vastly different from the standard healing potions of this world. They were an entirely new version he had developed by combining the pharmacology of both worlds, heavily utilizing the numerous recipes found in the book Miach had given him.
Even the potions sold in Miach's shop had their recipes recorded in that book. Thinking of this, Ren added, "Buy the herbs from Miach's Workshop. If possible, sign a purchase agreement with them to supply us with these herbs and Antidote Potions every month."
Ren hadn't forgotten the favor Miach had done for him. Since they had to buy the materials anyway, they might as well give the order to his Familia. It was a small way to help them out.
"How much do we need?" Asuna didn't question his decision. Everyone present understood why he wanted to give the order to Miach's Workshop.
The spell they had learned today likely originated from there. The Miach Familia seemed to be struggling financially, so Ren was just trying to help them out. She fully supported the idea.
"Get one hundred sets of each herb I mentioned, and five hundred bottles of Antidote Potions. You can also have them handle our supply of empty bottles and similar items. This world doesn't exactly use potion pouches," Ren said, quickly calculating the numbers.
Everyone practically drank his potions like fruit juice anyway, so preparing extra wouldn't hurt. Not to mention, maintaining [Perception Magic] required Blue Potions as fuel to replenish their Magic Power.
Without a doubt, their consumption of Blue Potions was about to skyrocket, so making a surplus was the right move. Besides, with their spatial equipment, they could carry as much as they wanted.
"Understood. I'll go buy them tomorrow. Is there anything else we need to prepare?" Asuna jotted everything down. All of these items could easily be sourced from Miach's Workshop.
"Food and fruit. Prepare enough to feed forty-two people for a month. You should also stock up on daily necessities. Aside from that, remind the other girls to pack their own personal hygiene products. The conditions in the Dungeon aren't exactly luxurious," Ren said between bites.
Ren trusted that Asuna and the others understood what he meant regarding the girls' needs. After all, that time of the month was inevitable, and Ren planned for this Dungeon dive to last at least half a month. It was best they went in fully prepared.
The three girls' mouths twitched slightly at his bluntness, but they remained silent. *This guy really thought of everything, didn't he?*
"That's about it. I'll handle things like purified water. Just distribute the rest of the supplies among the Spatial Backpacks," Ren concluded, finalizing the plan.
That covered most of the essentials. Anything they lacked could just be sourced directly from the Dungeon. For instance, if equipment needed repairs, Ren could simply harvest materials and fix them on the spot.
His Spatial Ring was massive. If he stored enough water, everyone could live quite comfortably in the Dungeon for a long time—provided no one wandered off and got lost, of course.
"Got it. We'll go hold a meeting with the girls," Asuna said, having recorded all of Ren's instructions. She, Megumi Kato, and Yukino Yukinoshita then stood up and left the dining hall.
After seeing them off, Ren went back to his meal. Once he finished dinner, he handed his tray to the kitchen staff on duty and returned to his room to wash up.
Once he was done, Ren used the Familia's crest to broadcast a message to everyone. Activating the mark on his hand, he spoke slowly, "Tomorrow, anyone who has mastered [Perception Magic] will go out with Asuna to buy supplies. Those who haven't mastered it yet can come find me at any time."
His message was quickly met with a chorus of acknowledgments. Everyone understood their assignments.
With that settled, Ren closed his eyes and began to use [Meditation]. He figured he wasn't far from a breakthrough. Hopefully, this deep dive into the Dungeon would give him the push he needed.
His target... the Floor Boss of the 27th Floor, Amphisbaena. However, to deal with that boss, Ren needed to make a few specific preparations. For example, learning a few Ice-attribute spells.
Sweeping his senses over the girls' dormitory, he noticed that Riveria had stayed the night. Ren immediately made up his mind. Her magic was top-tier. He would just have her demonstrate it tomorrow so he could learn it.
In exchange... well, Ren could teach her a spell too. Maybe [Piercing Magic Bullet]? He was sure she would be highly interested in it. With his plan set, Ren slipped into a state of deep [Meditation].
The night passed quietly. After waking up and eating breakfast the next morning, Ren called Asuna and the others over. He handed her the funds for the day's shopping—a total of 5,000,000 Valis.
With the money in hand, Asuna immediately led her group into Orario to purchase the necessary supplies. Meanwhile, Ren stayed behind at the Familia headquarters to tutor the classmates who had yet to master [Life Perception].
After answering a few questions for the stragglers, Ren went straight to find Riveria. She was currently chatting with Natsuki Minamiya. Seeing Ren approach, Riveria looked a bit puzzled.
"Riveria, could I see your magic? In return, I can teach you a pretty good spell," Ren said, stating his intentions directly.
A flash of surprise crossed Riveria's eyes, but she quickly caught on to his thought process. "Are you trying to learn my magic?"
Ren had easily learned Ais's magic just by watching her, so it stood to reason he could do the same with hers. Plus, he was offering to trade another spell in exchange.
She had no reason to refuse. Even if she did, Ren would eventually find a way to see it and learn it anyway. Since he only needed to observe it a few times to master it, she might as well be generous and make the trade.
"Exactly. We're planning to enter the Dungeon tomorrow, and my target is the Floor Boss on the 27th Floor. So, I need to learn some Ice-attribute magic," Ren admitted openly.
"Alright. Shall we change locations?" Understanding his reasoning, Riveria felt relieved. It seemed Ren had done his research. The Floor Boss of the 27th Floor would indeed be incredibly difficult to deal with without Ice magic.
"Sure, let's head outside the headquarters." Relieved that she had agreed, Ren gestured for her to follow and started walking toward the exit of the Familia compound.
Riveria followed right behind him. She was quite curious about what spell Ren intended to teach her. She had already begun to grasp the fundamentals of the magic system from his world.
If she could learn more, she was naturally more than willing. The magic from his world was far more practical than their own—especially after mastering [Meditation]. She could clearly feel the Magic Power within her growing stronger by the day.
Watching the two leave, Natsuki Minamiya turned to Lefiya with an amused expression. "Come on, let's go watch. This should be interesting."
Opening her parasol, she strolled after them. Lefiya didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but she didn't refuse and quickly hurried to catch up.
The group of four left the Familia headquarters together. Many of the students noticed them and were curious, but no one stopped what they were doing. After all, they were still racing against the clock to master [Life Perception].
Ais was also quite curious when she saw them leave, but she was currently in the middle of a training session with Yor Forger and felt it would be rude to walk away. However, Yor was just as curious as she was, so the assassin took the initiative to pause their training.
"Ais-chan, come on! Let's go see what they're up to!" Yor said, leading the way. Ais quickly sheathed her weapon and followed. Just like that, two more people joined the audience... or rather, three.
"I feel like I'm going to lose my job. Ever since you got here, there's been nothing for me to do." Just as Yor stepped out of the compound, a figure suddenly appeared beside her. It was Shizuka Hiratsuka.
Hearing Shizuka Hiratsuka's complaint, Yor couldn't help but laugh awkwardly. "Hiratsuka-sensei, don't you just drink, sleep, and drink some more every day? How could you possibly be unemployed?"
It was true. Ever since arriving in this world, the alcoholic Shizuka Hiratsuka had completely let loose. Every night, she would drag Yor and the others out drinking, get completely wasted, sleep until dusk, and then wake up to contemplate the meaning of life.
That was exactly why no one ever saw her around during the day. As for losing her job? That was nonsense. Shizuka Hiratsuka was simply too lazy to steal Yor's spotlight.
Her expertise lay in hand-to-hand combat and martial arts, whereas Yor specialized in various weapons. In the Dungeon, weapons were far more practical, which was why she rarely made an appearance.
"Hehe, you caught me. But those brats have gotten used to your training now. Once they come back from this next trip and break through their limits, it'll finally be my turn to step up," Shizuka Hiratsuka chuckled. She then turned her gaze to Ais and greeted her with a smile.
Ais stared at her blankly. She had never seen this woman before. *Is she a teacher too? There are other teachers in this Familia?* Ais had been completely unaware of this.
Seeing the woman greet her, Ais quickly nodded in response, though she had no idea how to address her.
"I'm Shizuka Hiratsuka, the martial arts instructor for those brats. If you ever need anything, feel free to ask me!" Shizuka Hiratsuka introduced herself, noticing the girl's confusion.
Hearing her name, Ais silently committed it to memory and introduced herself in return. After getting acquainted, the three of them quickened their pace to catch up with Ren and the others.
Since the Hestia Familia was located in the outskirts of the city, there was plenty of open space nearby. Ren led Riveria to the edge of a spacious wasteland and pulled out the magic staff he had forged the day before.
Riveria's attention was immediately drawn to Ren's staff. She could tell its exceptional quality at a single glance, which left her incredibly surprised. *He actually finished it in just one day?*