How To Suck Honey With Extras [EN]: Chapter 121

133. It’s Just Business (5)

The explanations are scathing in places.

Gratitude aside, what’s with the resentment?

I have a hunch, and it makes me feel uneasy.

Influence signifies a person’s importance in that world.

At least it means I’ve become someone whose name someone has heard at least once.

‘I was prepared, but it’s a bit early…’

I thought I’d gain this much influence after Volume 7.

I didn’t think delivering a meal once would lead to this.

I’m a little afraid of this unexpected achievement, but at the same time, I can’t help but smile.

‘So, I’ve achieved this much, but is anything else changing?’

There probably is.

The messages continue.

I checked them one by one.

Sure enough, there was another change.

You can now apply new permissions due to a significant increase in influence.

You can now observe the influence of others.

However, acquiring this permission will cost 1,000 points.

Please consider carefully.

Do you agree?

Like before, permissions are generated that consume points to enhance something, separate from abilities.

“Well, well? Are you going to make me recover points like this?”

Moreover, looking at the amount of influence consumed, it’s an amount I couldn’t have obtained through ordinary means before I came here.

“Fine. I’ll get it.”

I like that tactic.

I’m a man who takes the bait! A man who does as he’s told!

I boldly clicked . [The system interface button]

Click! Click! Give it to me now!

I had a feeling that if I refused, this option wouldn’t appear next time.

It’s not good to miss opportunities because you think they’re a waste.

Above all, the part about observing the influence of others appealed to me a bit.

I wonder what kind of ability it is.

I immediately felt a strange sensation as the permission settled into my body.

“…Is it done?”

Let’s check.

I went straight downstairs.

Mallow was there, discussing something with the merchants.

“Oh! Mr. Aileen, are you up already?”

“How unusual. Mr. Aileen coming out at this hour…”

“Is something the matter?”

In addition, it’s past lunchtime.

I want to ask them what kind of person they think I am, but that doesn’t matter right now.

Responding appropriately, I looked above Mallow’s head.

Is the usage to strongly focus on wanting to see the influence of others?

Mallow – Extra

Nothing different than usual?

Observing the influence of others… Aren’t you supposed to show me something more?

I’m disappointed! I’ve been completely scammed!

I wanted to shout that.

At that moment.

Mallow – Extra

Corresponding Influence – 4

Possessed Abilities – None

Stamina: 37

Agility: 24

Willpower: 30

Magic Power: 2

“…Huh?”

A window expanded before my eyes, and more information began to appear.

It even shows the individual’s stats.

Truly, stats befitting a perfect extra.

“Mr. Aileen? Is something the matter? You seemed surprised…”

“Ah, it’s nothing. I almost slipped. Oops, dangerous.”

Making excuses, I turned around and quickly checked the window in front of me again.

‘Could it be that I can check the stats of others?’

If so, it’s quite a big advantage.

Nothing is as important as information.

Knowing the strength of the opponent like this dramatically increases the survival rate.

If I think I can’t win, I can just run away as soon as I observe them.

This time, I wanted to check the abilities of another person.

There was a worker who caught my eye.

Fuloone – Extra

He’s also an extra, so I should check him for comparison.

Show me about you!

I glared.

However.

Permission to view this person’s information has been denied.

Your influence is not closely connected enough to be applied to this person’s influence.

Sadly, it seems I was rejected.

“Could it be that this doesn’t work on just anyone?”

What’s the difference between Mallow and this worker, Fuloone?

It was obvious.

Mallow is someone I’ve known for months.

Someone I’ve directly introduced myself to and built some rapport with.

On the other hand, I only know that this worker is affiliated with this place, and I haven’t even heard his name.

‘…I see! Is that the difference?’

Perhaps my guess isn’t far off.

Often in games, the more you improve your relationship with a character, the more detailed profile you can see.

You can understand it as something similar to that.

In short, it means don’t think about getting something for nothing.

‘Having a prerequisite to be able to see it… It’s annoying, but it’s much better than not having it at all.’

I’ve been thinking that judging only by roles as I have until now could lead to mistakes.

The more you can see, the better.

‘Or perhaps it means I should take more interest in others?’

I grinned as I looked at my newly changed role.

* * *

Even after spending points, I still have plenty left.

I still have 905pt of influence points left, so let’s use that too.

‘I was already wondering how to improve this headache.’

I went out to the plains outside the city, found a suitable place, and checked several times to make sure there were no other dangers around.

Then, I closed my eyes and began to concentrate in order to unleash spiritism [magic system using spirits].

First, I need to check the problem thoroughly.

“Fluorite, come out.”

The moment I called out the name to summon Fluorite, a high-grade spirit with the ability to manipulate shadows.

“Ugh… The consumption rate is still intense.”

A large amount of mana is being sucked in.

As expected of a high-grade spirit.

As I felt last time, it’s no exaggeration to say that its consumption efficiency is worse compared to other spirits.

After converting nearly 30% of my mana into spirit power and offering it, a spirit in the shape of a small cat barely crawled out from under my feet.

-Nyaa~.

“…You’re quite expensive. Can’t you be a little more fuel-efficient?”

-Nya~.

It shakes its head. It seems it doesn’t want to.

‘This guy is different from other spirits. Is it natural?’

It’s a high-grade spirit, and it’s different from the spirits I raised from the lowest grade.

Undine and the other spirits have been optimized for me because I’ve grown them to my liking.

In other words, they’re compatible.

However, this guy was already high-grade when I contracted with him.

I don’t know if it grew naturally or if it grew by contracting with someone before, but its fundamental nature is different from other spirits.

‘That’s why the spirit power consumption efficiency is quite bad…’

To compare it to a car, it’s not tuned to my senses.

It’s like the feeling when you just bought a car that someone else was driving.

‘But that’s not the real problem…’

This guy’s problem is separate.

“Fluorite, I want to practice controlling your power, so I want you to attack the target set up over there.”

I pointed to a scarecrow made by weaving wooden blocks and gave specific instructions, just like when I first learned spiritism.

Fluorite meowed lightly and bristled all over.

Soon, a change occurs.

It draws in all the shadows around it, including mine.

The spiritism using this guy’s power.

The ability to manipulate and materialize all the surrounding shadows begins to manifest.

Fluorite, which absorbed the shadows as if sucking them in, fired the shadow blades.

A total of five blades fly towards the target I instructed.

“…Ugh.”

However, just before they hit, my concentration scattered due to a sense of discomfort rising from inside my chest.

It’s heavy.

It’s not that I feel the actual weight, but that’s the only way to describe it.

And the sensation of enduring that heavy consumption reached its limit.

The trajectory of the flying shadow blades twisted and scattered in all directions.

‘I’m missing again… I can’t maintain control.’

It’s the same phenomenon as when I was on the merchant ship heading to the Falzente Principality.

‘It’s hard to concentrate… I can’t control the details.’

Basically, the characteristic of the ability called spiritism is that the spirit exerts its power on its own, but it’s also true that the range of sensation for supplying the spirit master’s mana is large for bigger techniques.

Because I can’t properly maintain that sensation, Fluorite can’t properly exert its abilities either.

‘Is the cause that I’m weak?’

My capacity as a spirit master is intermediate.

However, this guy is a powerful spirit, probably a difficult one even among high-grade spirits.

The gap is bigger than I realize.

“At this rate, I won’t be able to properly use the spirit I contracted with…”

Improvement is needed. Right now.

As I was thinking about how to do that.

“Hey! Wait! Are you trying to kill me?!”

I heard someone’s voice.

It’s the direction where the stray shadow landed.

Could it be?

I checked with my senses to make sure there was no one there and was practicing?

“…Who is it?”

“Who do you think it is! It’s me!”

The one who burst into the thicket, getting angry, was Rusel.

“Are you picking a fight now! Are you still holding a grudge about what happened back then! Jerk!”

…She’s saying things that make me not want to think that all elves are so talkative; somehow, she’s very angry.

“What are you talking about? You suddenly pop out… I suspect you’re the one picking a fight right now?”

“You attacked me!”

“…Huh?”

Wondering what nonsense she was talking about, I reflexively looked at where Rusel came from, and I saw an ice pillar standing there.

And that pillar was broken in part, as if it had been gouged out by something sharp.

Did she say she was attacked?

“…Ah.”

“You can’t deny it, can you!”

It seemed that the shadow blade I misfired flew towards Rusel.

It seems she quickly defended with spiritism, but she seems to be genuinely terrified, judging by how completely excited and out of her mind she is.

“No… I’m sorry about that. Wait? Why were you there to get hit?! I definitely made sure no one was there before I shot!”

I was going to let it go, thinking it was an accident that happened because I was careless, but when I thought about it, I chose this place specifically to prevent such accidents.

Besides, I definitely didn’t sense Rusel’s presence?

“You… Were you hiding?”

Rusel, who had been raging, stopped abruptly!

“…Haa, if it’s an accident, it can’t be helped. But if it wasn’t for me, you would have died. It’s better to be careful. Be careful in the future.”

Rusel suddenly calmed down as if she had changed completely and stepped back.

No. Where are you going, you peeping elf?

Look at her trying to get away with it because her position is disadvantageous.

Swoosh.

Before Rusel could take three steps, sharp shadow blades surrounded her from all sides.

“I want to ask you something? More than that, where are you going? You peeping tom?”

I’m not so easygoing that I’ll just let that go.

“….”

“For reference, I’m not good at controlling that, so I don’t know when I’ll miss? You saw me make a mistake just now, right?”

I deliberately pretended to clench my hand into a fist.

“Yes. I’m sorry for peeping.”

In the end, Rusel stiffly turned her body around again and surrendered.

“So. I apologized, so that’s it?”

There’s no way that’s it.

I happen to have something to ask.

“More than that, it’s perfect timing. Ms. Rusel? As a senior spirit master, would you give some advice to a cute junior?”

“Ugh…”

“You will, right?”

Of course, I won’t take no for an answer.