"Wow, so that's how you do it! I see, I see!"

"The core of the «Princess of the Castle» is «Wall Summon». So, you'll be taking it to LV10 before anything. This skill can be used in many ways, not only for defense. It would depend on the situation, but you can use it to interrupt an opponent, or even hide yourself behind them for a surprise attack."

Wall Summon was incredible in multiple aspects; in particular, they could be used as shields to defend against an opponent's ranged attack of AoE attacks.

By using the summoned wall as shield, the party members also could act freely without having to worry about their rearguard shielder.

Moreover, at Level 10, the cooldown was quite short, allowing for re-activation in just 12 seconds, so it's a must-have.

"But you have to be careful about aggro. Drawing aggro is crucial against bosses. However, the boss needs to be able to see its target. So, be careful when hiding behind this wall. If the boss loses sight of its target, it will move on to the next objective."

"I thought this was a skill just for guild battles, but you can use it against bosses too? That's amazing, Zephyr-kun! You really do know everything!"

"Hehe, it's nothing."

After Sharon allocated her SP, I taught her how to use the acquired skills and magic. Under the admiring gaze of Sharon, I had to say I was feeling quite proud of myself.

"This is pretty much all the details you need to know about your second-order tree. Now, the rest is to practice with them."

"Alright, then I will train to exhaustion! I have found my dream high-ranking job I always wanted. I am going to make sure I do my best in guild battles and dungeons, so that I can repay you and Mert-kun for your support!"

"I'm looking forward to that day."

Incredible. I could've felt a burning enthusiasm emitting out of her eyes.

But then, as if she recalled something, she brought her face closer to me, whispering her gratitude.

"Thank you really very much for teaching me all the wonders, Zephyr-kun!"

"I-it's good to hear."

Good lord.

Sharon had quite a cute voice to herself. My heart unwittingly skipped a beat when she whispered in my ear.

If that wasn't enough, due to the positioning, it was almost like she was in my arms. That made me a little flustered with how close everything was.

Sharon was just one of those girls who is naturally close to guys.

After thanking me, Sharon said, "See you later!" and headed off to test out her skills.

As I watched her go, the next member arrived.

"I saw everything, Zephyr-san."

"You know you can not watch as well, Orihime-san."

It was Orihime-san.

I felt like we've had this exchange before.

"Hehe. I thought you and Rina were hitting it off nicely before, but now that I think about it, you don't have anyone special, do you, Zephyr-san?"

She really saw me at the awkward timing. She liked the sweet and sour youth stories, didn't she?

"Sharon-san is adorable, isn't she? She has a lot of feminine charm as well. What did you think, Zephyr-san?"

"No idea what you're talking about."

"Uh-huh, men are just too shy. Sharon got that close, you must have seen it clearly."

I knew what Orihime-san was getting at. It's true that I was a little flustered by the size of her chest armor.

Sharon was also shorter than me, so leaning in to whisper in my ear from the front means looking down. Naturally, my vision was filled with the view of... magnanimous chest armor, but it's a gentleman's oblique to pretend not to have seen it.

"Well, unlike Rina-san, Sharon-san's feelings were pure gratitude, so it can't be helped, can it?"

"Alright, enough talk. We have others waiting, so let's move on to the «Mermaid Princess» instructions~"

Continuing this topic felt like it might get me into trouble, so I cut it short. Orihime-san looked a little disappointed, but I had already noticed that the other members who were practicing nearby had started to eavesdrop, so I steered the topic.

"Indeed. Zephyr-san, I look forward to your guidance again."

Since Orihime-san also seemed to have switched equipment, I immediately began to impart the ultimate job building instruction for her.

Before that, there was one thing I wanted to ask.

"By the way, Orihime-san, how far along are you with your Conqueror's Mark?"

"Oh, I've already acquired all of the Beginner-low marks. I should be able to secure all of the Beginner-mid marks next week."

"Amazing. Academy's support really puts you in the fast-track."

Conqueror's Mark was a testament given by the dungeon to those who overcome its trials when they clear it.

Orihime-san had transferred from a non-combat department which assisted with support and recovery outside the dungeon.

Obviously, this meant she hadn't cleared any dungeons either. And without any Conqueror's Mark from clearing the dungeon, it wasn't possible to challenge higher levels in the Extra-Dungeon. So I'd inquired about the progress.

After all, dungeons rules were inviolable, something even the academy had no say.

For reference, the requirement of the Extra-Dungeon were:

1. Three Conqueror's Mark from Beginner-low dungeons allowed the level gain till LV20~30.2. Three Conqueror's Mark from Beginner-mid dungeon allowed the level gain till LV30~40.

Without a Conqueror's Mark due to transfer from a different department, she would've been stuck levelling.

But I guess the academy was completely prepared. They even put up the assistance to help them through it.

The more I learnt about it, the more I was amazed. It was truly nice.

The limit was Beginner-mid dungeons given the stopping point of power levelling, which certainly weren't that much, but it was still a good start.

And speaking of the support, our Kairi from «Arc-Arcadia» was one of the participants from the assisting group. Kairi's unique skill, «Invisible Party», was invincible in the beginner dungeons since the monsters there didn't have «Detection» skill.

This allowed her to cover the entire dungeon without any monster interrupting them and challenge the boss straight.

Academy also had the information on shortest routes for the lower dungeons. In the end, the task was simply to help the party reach the boss room, defeat the boss, and return. Oh, and of course, the boss was someone else's responsibility.

Due to her excellency, she was now academy's favourite too. I heard she's in high demand.

Having gained the merit, the person herself was jumping in delight.

With all the support from the academy, even the non-combat department transferees were getting there.

Orihime-san was progressing well. Her job, «Mermaid Princess», was much like «Songstress Princess», so she also had someone close to refer to.

In her case, she was the healer version of «Songstress Princess», using songs to not provide buff, but healing. And as the sole healer among all the «Princess» category jobs, the specs were undoubtedly top-of-the-chart.

«Priestess», her previous job, was also sufficient for healing, but when it comes to sustainance---«Mermaid Princess» keep the healing ongoing for as long as she continued singing---there was no parallel.

"I have to say, though, Orihime-san. You're quite daring to jump from a high-mid tier to high-high tier job."

"«Priestess» was my last-minute choice due to some circumstances during the entrance ceremony. But, the one I'd truly wanted was «Mermaid Princess». I'm truly grateful for your support, Zephyr-san. With this, I will be able to support Reglam-sama even more."

Reglam was the source of motivation for Orihime-san, huh. You're being truly loved, you know that, Reglam?

I was a little envious.

While discussing such matters, I taught Orihime-san where to invest in SP and how to train her skills.

"You'll want to include various «Blessing Song» buffs and «Curse Song» debuffs. This will greatly expand your combat options."

"Yes. I think it's a well-balanced composition."

As it was her initial goal, Orihime-san was already familiar with the skills.

I was glad she seemed satisfied as I went through and guided her.

Speaking of, one might assume «Mermaid Princes» equipment would be sea-shell themed. However, she was dressed in a blue-themed dress, reminiscent of the ocean. It suits her perfectly, and there was certain elegance to it when worn by her. The fluttering long skirt radiated pure elegance.

The seashells were only for her hair ornament.

After Orihime-san finished, it was Katalina's turn.

---«Closeted Maiden.»

The said job from the «Marquis» category excelled in role such as rearguard tank and magic attacker. Plus, with healing capabilities also baked in, it was a very powerful job.

"Your job is excellent against ranged attacks, Katalina. Though that's what rearguard means. The opponent has to be a ranged attacker to properly utilise your job. It means there would be time you have to be careful about your opponent, but in retrospect, this specialisation provides an edge against enemies who use magic or long-range attacks."

"Understood! Please tell me what I should do then!"

From a general overview, it would appear the job should be used to cast barriers on other frontline tanks to shoulder the damage. In contrast to this, the «Closeted Maiden» was fared better with RES build. Why? Because carrying a shield was useless in this job.

What about the ranged physical attack? Well, that's where RES played the part. The job had barrier skills that scales off RES. As long as a barrier was used, ranged physical attacks were also manageable.

Also, much like Misato's barrier that had properties to reflect attack, «Closeted Maiden»'s barrier could parry, deflect, and reflect.

To put it short, she covered the long-ranged attacks that vanguard tanks were often weak to.

At the advanced version of the job, even the close range attacks wouldn't be a threat, but I digress. With her proficiency in both offense and healing, she should become a competent member against ranged attack bosses.

I explained that to her as well.

In offence, «Closeted Maiden» was an incredible magic attacker. So, alongside other specialisations, she was an all-rounder. And conversely, the lower the compatibility with the opponent, the lesser her role would be.

Today, I taught her how to play as a rearguard tank, and how to effectively utilise her job, where its forte and weakness lies etc.

T/N - Just a heads up, I read about the illustration page error—though it's been couple weeks since then—and have fixed it. All the illustration, coloured and b&w should be now properly in their places.