HTACS 77

Chapter 77

D/Z SAGA’s party system.

Though it’s based on an RPG, it’s a game with heroine endings determined by affection and route choices.

Magic Department. Knight Department.

Not just the main heroines and sub-heroines of each department.

Extra heroines, heroines unlocked after the second playthrough, and a final heroine route that opens after clearing all heroines.

There’s also a protagonist corruption route, and since that route is also subdivided, there isn’t just one heroine for it either.

As a result of popularity polls, there have been cases where a sub-heroine from the corruption route beat a main route heroine.

And naturally, if you fail affection management, you won’t even make it to Act 12.

If things go to hell, the message “No one who saw Kelterus after that ever saw him again” appears and you die.

If you neglect a heroine or her affection drops, Kelterus will dump her with “Sorry, I’ve lost interest in you now.”

If you mess up flag management, a heroine will die saying “…Kelterus, I wish I could have laughed with you a little more…”

Thinking about it brings tears to my eyes again.

Anyway, setting that aside—

So how do you manage heroine affection?

Simple. Put them in your party and go hunting often.

I don’t really understand why going hunting and leveling up is tied to raising heroine affection.

If you see someone you like on the street, you say “I like that person—I’m applying for a hunt now,” and if you click, you draw your sword, raise your spear, kill monsters together, split the rewards in a bloody atmosphere, and then ask “We seem to work really well together—can I ask you out after this?” What kind of world is this?

I don’t want to live in that kind of world.

Anyway, this party system is extremely important.

Why is it so important? Haha. I can explain it simply.

**【The stat gap within the party is extreme.】**

**【Stat sharing is not available!】**

…See?

I told you it’s extremely important.

—

D/Z SAGA is not a god-tier game.

I won’t call it a trash game, honestly, but it’s a game that barely grazes the line between decent and masterpiece.

But if a game is too perfect, it’s not really a game. A game needs to have slightly outdated, trashy parts to be charming.

And if you look for the trashy parts of this game, it’s definitely the party system.

For example, let’s say I’m playing as Kelterus in the original, entering the Magic Department and recruiting party members.

Eve would be the default, and then Regina would appear. And since I raised Kelterus for magic, his Mana would have grown.

Then the party would look like this:

**【Eve von Lohengrin: Mana 22】**

**【Regina Sierra: Mana 21】**

**【Kelterus: Mana 19+1】**

Here, Kelterus gets an extra +1 to Mana because there are two party members with higher Mana than him, and due to the Mana Synchronization system, he receives an additional Mana bonus!

If you enter the Knight Department, Nephti or Leon Weiss would boost Stamina and Strength.

In-game, this is why Strength bonus parties are shortened to things like “Str-Party.”

The rest are called “Magic-Party,” “Stamina-Party,” “Agility-Party,” and so on.

Yes.

Kelterus receives guidance from the strong people around him, unites their hearts, and gains additional stats. That’s the setting—which is why he later becomes comparable to Eve in Mana.

What a massive bus ride.

However, there’s a huge problem here: if the stat gap is too extreme, you can’t receive support.

In other words, even if you put Eve with Mana 22 in the party, she doesn’t grant a +1 Mana blessing to all party members—only to those with Mana 18 or above.

This seems to be a balance measure to prevent Kelterus from riding Eve’s Mana 22 bus early on. Actually, that’s probably it. A difference of 1 Mana in the early game is huge.

So applying this concept to me—Wolfram von Lohengrin—

to receive additional stat bonuses, only party members with Stamina 6, Strength 7, Mana 7, and Agility 12 or below are eligible.

Hmm. If it had been someone other than Ayla… what would it have been like?

For example, someone else… that is…

“Is there anyone?”

Thinking about it carefully, there’s no way someone like that is still enrolled in Zefflin.

If their stats are only 4 higher than Wolfram’s, they’d have dropped out by now.

“Mille-feuille… wouldn’t work either.”

What about Mille-feuille, who was about to be expelled as an underachiever?

Mille-feuille’s Stamina, Strength, Mana, and Agility are 9, 8, 11, and 6 respectively. Wolfram’s are 2, 4, 3, and 8.

If Mille-feuille had become the first party member, she’d give a +1 Strength bonus…

But saying I should take even that is nonsense.

Because overwhelmingly powerful characters—just by existing—have the right to join the party.

**【The party member’s talent is truly excellent—all magical actions receive an additional +5% bonus!】**

**【The party member’s talent is truly excellent—all magical actions have a +5% chance of great success!】**

If you stack capable party members, you get bonuses specific to Magic Parties—not just stats. Action bonuses, great success bonuses, etc. There are many benefits.

That 5% is determined by trust, bonds, mutual friendship—and for heroines, affection. From my memory, the maximum is 8%. To reach 8%, you’d have to go into that heroine’s route and get to just before the ending—which means Ayla trusts me immensely.

“…Ayla.”

“Yes?”

“You are the symbol of my trust. I look forward to working with you.”

“Yesss! Just leave it to me!”

—

Hmm. Strictly speaking, I never even dreamed of profiting from stats in the first place.

At first, I didn’t even know the party system existed, and even if I did, there’s no one around weak enough to give me support.

I could hire some 4-tier trash from the labor market and live with +1 stats here and there, but that would mess up the party balance entirely.

Ayla’s stats are overwhelmingly good, so I’m getting benefits to magical actions—if I put those trashy characters in the party, I’d get stat bonuses but my judgment bonuses would be thrown in the trash.

So when crafting, I run Agility parties, and when I need a tank, a Stamina party. For physical damage, a Strength party. It’s a difficult, cryptic game.

But most of that is useless to me.

However, regardless of that, once you form a party, there’s something you absolutely want to get early on.

“Ayla.”

“Yes. Did you call me, Wolfram?”

“Do you have time this weekend?”

“Yes, I do. Exams are over, and there are no social gatherings.”

Is that so.

Then this is the perfect opportunity.

“Then could you accompany me on an expedition?”

“…An expedition?”

“Yes. It might take a bit of time—but would you be willing?”

When you form your first party, there’s a mini-quest you absolutely must do.

The problem is that it takes a bit of time.

Ayla brought her index finger to her chin, thought for a moment, then smiled brightly.

“Wolfram. That way of asking is wrong.”

“…Hmm?”

“Telling me ‘Let’s do this together. I trust you’ would make me much happier, you know?”

“……Hmm. Let’s do this together. I want to ask you, the one I trust.”

“Of course, I’ll gladly accept. So who’s coming, and what time do we leave? Should I come out early in the morning?”

Thinking about the quest trigger, I shook my head.

“No. You’re the only one accompanying me. And there’s no need to come out early in the morning.”

“Ah, aha… I-is that so. Just the two of us. Yes. Understood. So it’ll end quickly?”

“No. We’ll be in the field until midnight. We’ll probably stay overnight.”

“Aha. I see. One night. Return the next day. I see. Then we can leave at a leisurely pace.”

Ayla nodded in understanding.

Then, with wide, startled cat eyes, she asked again.

“…Pardon? O-one… night…?”

“Hmm. That’s right.”

—

As I mentioned earlier, Act 2 is about meeting each route’s heroines and raising affection with them through episodes.

A prime example is 2-1—Eve’s Black Flag hideout infiltration incident.

Somehow I ended up accompanying her, but originally it’s an episode where Kelterus puts Eve in his first party and encounters the Black Flag executives alongside student council officers.

If you clear that episode, a rather convenient system is unlocked between Eve and Kelterus, who are in the same party. It’s a skill that can only be assigned to one person per party, and at the same time, if you’re building a party system, it’s an essential skill.

I’m really glad I didn’t get the party system when I went to the field with Eve.

Otherwise, I might have unlocked this skill with Eve first. Thinking about it, that’s truly disgusting.

Anyway. We’re currently at the Sleeping Mountain Range to obtain this skill.

We really come here often. Really.

“U-um. How far are we going? Ah 【Black Crystal】 【Territory Control】”

“It won’t take long. Hmm. Patrasche. This is about right.”

We rode Patrasche’s cart together, roughly setting up camp at the midpoint of the deep mountain range.

The campsite I’d visited with Eve before still had traces of its remains.

The monsters we encountered on the way were casually struck down by Ayla with black crystal.

And before my eyes, a sorrowful status window appeared.

**【You contributed nothing to the battle. You do not receive stat bonuses.】**

**【You contributed nothing to the battle. You do not receive stat bonuses.**】

…That’s a bit sad.

Well, anyway.

I set up monster-repelling herbs and barrier stones, set up a tent with Patrasche’s telekinesis, and lit a bonfire.

Then I lightly prepared a meal. Ayla asked, “Should I help?” but I shook my head. Since I brought her out for my own convenience, this much is only fair.

I made a salad with dressing using Mayo Beans, cream pasta with Cream Beans, and two smoothies with Mix Beans. After setting everything up, I sat down.

“Wow…”

“What’s wrong? Eat before it gets cold.”

“Y-yes. But… Wolfram, you’re more used to camping than I expected.”

“It’s nothing. When you think about my goals, it’s only natural.”

To become the world’s best convenience store owner, you also have to be good at cooking.

This isn’t a factory churning out meal kits.

“…That’s true. To go outside and see the world, you’d need to be good at cooking too. And camping… Someday, Wolfram will go to fulfill his dream.”

“……?”

“I think it’s a good dream. Then I’ll eat well, Wolfram!”

“Hmm.”

After finishing the meal and cleaning up, Ayla made a chair of black crystal in front of the bonfire and sat down.

So far, we’ve done two major things:

‘We went to the field with a party member and fought.’

‘We shared a meal together.’

And for the final trigger—I took my seat and spoke to Ayla.

“Hoo. It’s okay. Ayla Trista. It’ll be fine. Wolfram said he’d wait.”

While Ayla was muttering something, I finished cleaning up and sat on the chair she’d made.

“Eep?!”

“Why are you so surprised?”

“Ah, no. You suddenly… you suddenly came close and startled me.”

“Then I apologize.”

“……Wolfram. Why did you come on this expedition today?”

“…Hmm.”

What should I say?

If I said I came to get a skill because she’s my party member, I’d probably get a spear through the gut and die, right?

In times like this, just…

“I wanted to have a conversation.”

“…A conversation?”

“Yes. Lately, I’ve been so busy with this and that that I haven’t had time to have a calm talk. I’d appreciate it if you’d see this as an opportunity to deepen the bond with my best comrade in rebellion.”

“Ah… Y-yes!”

Only then did Ayla erase the awkwardness she’d been showing all day and smile brightly at me.

“So, Ayla. ‘Let’s have a conversation.'”

“I’m all for it! Wolfram! Let’s talk a lot!”

With this, all the triggers were met, and immediately after, a holographic panel appeared before my eyes, then disappeared.

**【During break time, the party member agreed to converse!】**

**【Intimacy with the party member deepens!】**

**【You have completed a camping trip with your first party member after an expedition!】**

**【Achievement unlocked.】**

**【You have obtained the title ‘Die, You Social Butterfly’!】**

“What should we talk about?”

“Ah, how about old stories?”

“Old stories? Hmm. What kind?”

“Stories from our childhood!”

“……”

Those are Wolfram von Lohengrin’s memories.

They’re stories that Lee Young-jin doesn’t know—stories not even in the setting book.

“So many things happened that I don’t remember them all. To be honest, my childhood memories are quite hazy.”

“…Ah. I see. Wolfram’s childhood… must have been painful, just because of your low ability.”

“Hmm. I’m sorry.”

“Ah, no. I’m the one who should be sorry.”

“So won’t you tell me? What happened in my childhood.”

“……Y-yes! Well, you see…”

Ayla began to chatter happily.

There were parts where she deliberately avoided certain topics, but I was able to piece together what kind of relationship Ayla and Wolfram had.

And then—

“…So, Wolfram… …well… you see…”

“If you’re sleepy, go inside and rest.”

“Yesss…”

Checking the clock, it was 10:30 PM.

Just as Ayla said, she really does fall asleep at this hour.

As Ayla went into the tent and fell asleep, I looked at the system window before me.

**【You have acquired a skill!】**

**【Heart Link】**

**【8T】**

**【Party-only skill】**

**【A skill where mutual trust creates a bond of fate, different from magic. When a party member’s HP drops below a certain level, it is shared with the party leader! When a party member suffers a status ailment, it is shared with the party leader!】**

I read the skill and nodded.

“Just as I thought—I got it.”

It’s a kind of add-on skill that immediately displays party members’ status ailments and HP drops. Having this makes a huge difference in party management.

When I activated the skill, a small face icon of Ayla appeared before me, with a green, healthy HP bar next to it, a blue glowing Mana bar, and a status indicator showing no abnormalities.

“When Act 2 ends, Act 3 begins. And Act 3’s final boss is Ayla Trista.”

I hope nothing happens, but they say you never know how fate will turn.

So I have to prepare.

The fact that Ayla became a party member also means that as the party leader, I must protect her from danger.

That’s the playstyle of Lee Young-jin—who has a total D/Z SAGA playtime of 20,000 hours, was a cafe operator, and has never let a party member die even once.