Sousetsuka

14





Looks like the paralysis was gone by the time they arrived at the town, Heles asked Lecan to let her walk on her own.

Lecan noticed his mistake on their way walking to the inn.

(Ah crap.)

(Forgot to finish Snow off.)

That's someone who would be a pain in the rear if left alive.

The spearsman is alive too, and since it's supposedly a six-man party, they've got five enemies now sans the one that died.

He's probably long gone already even if he goes back now, and Lecan has no idea which one's their mansion. In any case, since the incident of rescuing a woman from her abductors is already over with, fighting them now would make his side the assailant.

High-ranking adventurers are well respected in this town.

Those guys also boasted how they were invited to a town lord's banquet.

Meaning they have connections to the authority.

No idea what house is Paizalun, but it's apparently a noble's.

It's possible they'd try to alter the truth and push all faults on Lecan alone in this matter.

Telling the truth might work, it might not.

Either way, it's going to be an annoyance.

And Lecan hates annoyances.

Besides, Snow's group could come at them anytime.

If they attack Lecan's group in the middle of the town, there could be collateral damage among the populace.

(Hold on.)

(If we're gonna get attacked anyway.)

If they're gonna get attacked anyway, might as well let it happen in a dungeon.

Killing them inside a dungeon won't count as a crime.

And come to think of it, they've only got a few days remaining anyway.

If they just conquer the lowest floor and leave this town quickly, whatever Snow is gonna do won't be a concern to Lecan at all.

(Alright.)

(Let's go to the dungeon.)

(Everything will get resolved then.)

By the time they got the inn, Lecan had made his decision.





15





Both Eda and Arios had also just got back to the inn when Lecan and Heles arrived.

"We're going to the dungeon now."

"That's sudden."

"That's master for you."

"I will abide by Lecan-dono's decision."

The group headed for the dungeon.

Heles went to Adventurer Association to fetch some luggage she had left in their custody.

Then, on the 18th of month six, Lecan's party began their final expedition in Dungeon Ninae.



<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >

16





The group <Teleport>ed to floor 40's entrance.

Lecan asked Eda to cast <Purification> on Heles.

Eda did as she was told.

Heles and Arios were dumbfounded.

"I-It can't be, <Purification>?"

"And I had just sworn myself to stop getting surprised."

"Keep this ability a secret."

They passed through floor 40.

Engaging in three combats in total.

Lecan picked the optimal route with <Graph Make>.

This <Graph Make> ability ignores finer details of the terrain and shows whether a path is passable or not. And that's not all, it even displays magic beast locations.

Truly a magic tailor-made for exploring dungeons.

They had dinner and then breakfast in the morning of the next day.

"From floor 41 to 44, the enemies are the greater variant of Octocular Great Spiders. They're even sturdier than ever. Magic attacks don't work on them. I mean, not very effective at all. They seldom spit venom, but they have three very troublesome abilities in <Sleep>, <Instant Death> and <Destroy>."

"But didn't so many magic beasts we faced before have <Sleep>?"

"The effectiveness is on a whole other level. It's pretty much a different ability. It's said that you have to arm yourself with multiple equipment to resist all those here."

"Is <Instant Death> a venom?"

"No, it's not. It's a curse. It can come from any direction once you're within the range. There is no way to dodge this. Hence, you need equipment to repel curses."

"What does <Destroy> destroy?"

"Metal. Be it swords or armor, once bitten by a spider, there's a chance of it breaking. It will break into pieces. The chance of activation is quite high, you have to keep that in mind if you're bitten."

"Is that it. Let's go then."

The group went down floor 40 stairs.

Lecan took <Guardian Jewel of Zana> from his <Storage> and equipped it.

They got to floor 41.

There's one other party in the back. A six people group.

Lecan's party would encounter their first enemy soon.

Lecan charged ahead. Followed by Arios and Heles.

If these spiders don't spit venom, petrification, or white breath, then first thing first is to face it head-on.

Lecan swung <Sword of Aghost> overhead then swung it down the magic beast's head.

A head that was distinctly harder than all other spiders they fought so far.

However, his destructive force boosted by <Guardian Jewel of Zana> far exceeded even that.

The spider met its demise with its head cracked open.

"Just what, what happened?"

"And I had just renewed my resolve not to get surprised earlier."

"Is it a Red Purple Potion? No, I didn't see him drinking one, besides this is impossible even if he did."

"I was surprised too, but eh, it's Lecan 'fter all. I'm used to surprises by now."

"Think of the remaining four floors as a whetstone to grind yourself sharp."

"Yes."

"Un!"

"Acknowledged."

They engaged in five battles on floor 41.

They had lunch and descended to floor 42.

On floor 42, there were times when Lecan couldn't end the fight in one hit.

In one such case, Arios and Heles would jump in to attract the magic beasts' attention while Lecan finished them off with a second strike.

Their coordination was going smoothly.

They fought six battles and camped near the exit.

"Relaxing before a campfire, drinking soup like this inside a dungeon where so many scary magic beasts prowl all over the place. It all feels so wondrous."

"It really does. Makes you question if the world inside dungeon is the real world."

"Fufufu. Both Eda-dono, and Arios-dono are such romanticists."

"Does Heles-dono not have someone you're engaged with?"

"No, I have none."

What an awfully prying question, thought Lecan.

Though, marriage and stuff might not necessarily be a private matter to high-ranking nobles.

"It's normally unthinkable for a lady my age to not have a fiance let alone unmarried. Well, please don't pry any further if you would."

"Don't you ever have anyone you like though?"

"Haha. I spent all my time bettering myself in military arts, I couldn't afford to even think about that. Besides, every one of them just lagged behind me, a woman."

"Oh you said every one of them, so you got applications then."

"Haha. There might be some."

"I mean, it's Heles-san after all. You must get like 100, 200 men proposing you, right?"

"I wonder about that. I never counted, but those numbers sound about right."

"But all of them were weak, weren't they."

"Not even worth considering."

"Even if you didn't have someone you like, isn't there someone you wouldn't mind falling for?"

"No... Not really."

"Ah, you stole a glance at Lecan just now, didn't you?"

"I did not."

"You did, didn't you?"

"I am telling you I did not."

"Lecan really is a bad person."

"I agree with that one."

"How do I say this, that's a conversation you don't want to stick your head in."

"Eat meat."






Previous Chapter

13





Snow is holding an unusual weapon.

Lecan noticed something here.

(It's the same weapon Vouka's town lord asked Shira help order, the weapon that shoots out flame magic.)

He has no idea why this man is holding one such weapon.

At any rate, right now Snow is attempting to shoot flame magic from inside the wagon at Lecan on the coachman's seat.

Lecan thought of casting a <Flame Spear> at him for a moment, but he stopped short since blood could spill on Heles.

"<Wind (Wizel)>!"

A gust of wind was generated, blowing the weapon away from Snow's hand.

"Ah"

Snow thrust his hand out of the window as he tried to catch the weapon.

Lecan bent over to grab that hand and pulled it toward the valley side.

"Uwaa"

The door broke apart as Snow jumped out of it.

His weapon has already fallen in the valley.

Snow got a hold of the ground just when he was about to fall. He's only a half step away from the cliff.

Lecan followed and jumped out of the coachman's seat.

"Y-you bastard. Do you have any idea, who I am? Don't think you're going to get off easily doing this to me, Snow Paizalun."

"Ask yourself that, did you believe you'll get off this scott-free?"

Lecan vigilantly probed the inside of the wagon with <3D Perception> even while exchanging word.

It's okay. Heles is safe.

The spearsman seems to have fainted, he somehow got himself in a bent position, not moving.

"I'll let you off if you beg for it now."

Snow came slashing at Lecan even while saying that.

An excellent drawing speed.

He's got to admit that much at least.

Lecan lightly stepped backward to dodge the blade and cast a spell.

"<Wind>!"

Snow had stepped forward with his right leg to draw his sword, a gust of wind along with ground dust blew at him from his left. Losing his balance, Snow fell to the verge of the cliff.

"<Flame Spear>!"

Lecan's magic attack should have pierced through Snow's chest.

However, it got repelled.

Or rather, it dispersed away.

(He's got an anti-magic equipment on him huh.)

Snow lost control of his body after receiving an impact just when he was trying balance himself, he rolled down the valley as the ground below him collapsing.

Lecan peeked inside the wagon.

Heles isn't waking up despite this much commotion.

Lecan grabbed the spearsman and threw him in the valley.


<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >


Lecan laid Heles on the backseat of the passenger box.

It looked uncomfortable with her knees bent, but unfolding her glossy hair revealed her peaceful sleeping face.

Heles isn't wearing her usual armor today, she's got a tidy shirt and a fluffy skirt on her.

"Heles."

She doesn't respond at all even after being called.

Lecan took a yellow potion out of <Storage> and squashed it over Heles's face.

After a slight pause, Heles began coming to.

"Uuun."

Realizing that it could be dangerous if she moved suddenly as she woke up, Lecan held Heles in his arms and moved behind the wagon. Since Heles's <Box> is also inside the wagon, he brought it with him using <Float>.

Heles weakly opened her eyes in Lecan's arms.

Then she noticed Lecan right before her eyes, and burst into smile.

"You came, for me."

"Yea. Can you walk."

"...No. It appears I cannot. I'm sorry but could you carry me like this."

"I see."

Looks like her body is still paralyzed even though the abnormal status has come undone.

It might have been a cursed weapon.

Then he should scratch Heles with <Dagger of Harut>.

That's one option.

(She's got such a feminine build.)

Her forged body is brimming with boyish vibrancy, and yet the bulges on her chest and waist bring about her feminine charm.

Her slender legs have this purity yet lascivious to them, there's nothing that blocks Lecan from the throat and collarbone before him.

Her make-up-less face is thoroughly smooth, her slightly open lips are bewitching.

He can't bring himself to point blade at such a beautiful body.

Besides, it's unclear whether it's really a curse.

At any rate, having <Purification> cast on her ASAP would be best.

Lecan put Heles on a bush for a moment as he put away his sword, guardian jewel, and shield in <Storage>. Along with Heles's <Box>.

Then he held Heles in his arms once again.

"Hold tight."

Heles's delicate arms cling on Lecan's neck.

A soft sweet scent filled Lecan's nasal cavity.

Lecan flew in the sky while gently holding Heles in his arms.

They could have used the wagon to go back, but there could be someone in town familiar with that wagon, which would led to trouble.

Besides, this is faster than riding a wagon.

"To think there's a man out there who could easily carry me like a girl."

Thus the woman in his arms muttered, but erased by winds, her word never reached Lecan's ear.







Previous Chapter

11





The next day, Lecan spent the whole day sleeping.

He got up in the evening, had a light meal at the inn and went back to sleep.

The day after, he took a walk together with Heles to sell the dungeon items.

They've been doing this often already, but since they've got a lot to sell this time around, many stores won't accept everything and some even attempt to lower the price. As for Venom Sacs, they go to specific purchasers.

The 44 carcasses of mid variants were worth 16 gold coins. It's a lot of money, but Heles complained to the shopkeeper at the first shop. It's way too cheap, she said.

However, the shopkeeper explained that he had to lower the price since there's a lot more damaged legs than expected.

Where'd those damages even come from, it was the result of Heles's reckless charges paired with her powerful magic sword. In other word, she reaped what she sowed, thus she could only hang down her head halfway through the shopkeeper's explanation.

For the two giant variants, they had left them on four shops right after they got out of the dungeon, and they came out to worth nine large gold coins.

It's because you rarely ever see legs of giant variants from those floors in such a flawless state.

Each of Lecan's group gets 62 gold coins.

Eda's eyes almost popped out during the money splitting.

Another day afterward, Lecan spent most of his time sleeping and took his meal at the inn.

Lecan let Eda go shopping.

She had used up half of the 100 arrows she brought already.

Since she was all out of poison too, Lecan had her buy twice the previous amount.

She hasn't shot an arrow enchanted with paralyze curse yet, but Lecan told her to have another five enchanted. Since the shaman was apparently an unusual one even for a town with many shamans like this, his work must be pretty good, and his fee is cheaper than most.

The day after, Lecan went out to purchase food and firewood. He bought many yellow potions that undo abnormal status in particular. The break is for four days. Meaning, today's the last.

Lecan was keeping his focus on <Life Detection> the whole time he strolled the town and shopped around

<Life Detection> is an ability to detect living beings in a 1000 step radius.

Red dots are humans, green dots are birds, fish, insect, and blue dots are magic beasts.

In his former world, everyone possessed mana with variations in the amount, but in this world, those who possess mana are the uncommon ones.

Hence, many humans only get displayed as very faint red dots.

Even though you can detect presences of humans with this ability, you can't tell them apart.

However, the ways these dots are displayed have subtle differences about them, you can sort of distinguish who is who in some cases.

Fortunately, since Eda, Arios and Heles all possess mana, Lecan has been tracking these four since morning as a practice to distinguish individuals.

He had been dabbling in this kind of practice a few times before, and he could only be grateful to have been given an opportunity to do this now.

He's lost sight of Arios's red dot for quite some time already. Since this town houses many individuals with mana pools akin to Arios's, Lecan lost him the moment he mingled in crowd. There's no way to tell who's who by then.

Heles possesses a far larger pool of mana than Arios. And although there's a lot of individuals who rival or even exceed hers as expected of a dungeon town, he's managing to keep tracking her somehow.

Eda's red dot stands out due to her huge amount of mana. Lecan feels like he's gradually getting familiar with her dot's characteristic. He could now find her out even after looking away.

Lecan noticed the unnatural movement of Heles's red dot.

It's been moving together with three other red dots for awhile now.

At first he thought they would eventually disperse since they were in the middle of the town, but they wouldn't.

The four red dots are advancing toward the suburb.

(They're moving too fast together.)

(A wagon?)

(Are they traveling on board a wagon?）

Heles's red dot is gradually going far away.

Suddenly.

A chill ran down Lecan's spine.

(Not good!)

Lecan ran off.



<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >

12





Dungeon Ninae is located in the heart of the town.

Or rather, a town has been established around Dungeon Ninae.

The town lord's mansion is located to the south of the dungeon, with other nobles' mansions around it.

There's a mountain range to the north of the town, and at the base, quite a distance away from the town, gorgeous mansions stand erect here and there.

These are mansions owned by high-ranking adventurers who earn their keep in Dungeon Ninae.

The wagon is heading toward one of those mansions.

Lecan ran and ran as his <Overking Bear> overcoat fluttered intensely in the wind.

He made use of <Gust> wind to accelerate further once he was out of public eyes.

Once he got in a mountain path, he pushed his back even stronger with <Gust>, leaping atop trees, chasing after the wagon.

(That's the one.)

Lecan found the wagon as he jumped over a mountain stream and landed ahead of it.

The wagon is drawing near.

Lecan took <Guardian Jewel of Zana> from his <Storage>, put it in his shirt's pocket, took the gauntlet-form <Shield of Wolkan>, equipped it on his left hand, and then hung <Sword of Rusk> on his waist.

The wagon slowed down in front of Lecan.

"Bastard! Didja have a death wish! Outta the way!"

The coachman is a male adventurer.

It's one of the men who was with Snow. Must be a member of that something something party.

"I'll have you return Heles."

"Whaat!"

"I know Heles is inside that wagon."

"She ain't nowhere! I told ya, outta the way!"

Lecan has caught Heles in <3D Perception>.

Looks like she's alive. But she's not moving, fast asleep.

"Why is Heles sleeping? What have you done to her?"

"Run him over!"

Someone shouted from inside the wagon.

The voice sounds familiar.

It's the flat-faced man, Snow's voice.

Snow's head and right hand protruded out of the wagon's window, his right hand was holding something.

"<Deploy (Parshoot)>!"

Reacting to a spell cast, Lecan turned his gauntlet into <Shield of Wolkan> and readied it on his left hand.

A dazzling light gushed out of Snow's right hand.

<Shield of Wolkan> flicked away a flame ball coming Lecan's way.

The coachman hit the reins to make the horses run.

Lecan quickly ran up to his right, a slope, and recited a spell.

"<Flame Spear>!"

The mighty offensive spell blew away the coachman's head.

Lecan jumped onto the wagon while kicking away the coachman using the momentum and reined in the bridle.

The headless coachman fell down the valley.

It was supposed to be a light kick, but thinking again, he's got <Guardian Jewel of Zana> equipped. A kick with boots equipped was judged as an attack.

A spear tip pierced through the coachman's seat.

There should not be enough room to carry a spear inside the passenger seat.

This spear must be a grace-laden item.

Lecan lightly dodged the spear while thinking that, and grabbed it with his right hand as the thrust reached its apex.

The spearsman tried to pull his spear back.

As expected of a spearsman who traverses dungeon depths. He's got herculean strength.

However, Lecan's right hand that's grabbing the spear isn't moving at all.

(Hm?)

(Doesn't seem like <Guardian Jewel of Zana> is in effect right now.)

(Has my grip strength gone up?)

Then, thought Lecan as he slowly pulled the thick spear with his welled up strength.

A groan could be heard inside the wagon.

Lecan's <3D Perception> could see a burly brawny spearsman frantically trying to stop the spear from coming off his hands.

"<Reduction (Pilua)>."

With his shield turning back into gauntlet, Lecan put his left hand on the spear as well and pulled it with both hands.

The spear easily came off. Which he immediately thrust back in.

The blunt end of the spear hit the spearsman's solar plexus.

The man fell down.

Lecan wholly pulled out the spear and threw it away in front of the wagon.







Previous Chapter

10





Lecan caught sight of an unfamiliar party.

<Jade's Restaurant> is a gathering spot for parties who explore Dungeon Ninae's lower stratum, but upper and middle stratum parties would also sometimes have a feast here whenever they earned big.

It's the reason why top groups and the groups ranked next are familiar with each other.

Since Heles is acquainted with such parties, she sometimes introduce Lecan to one.

However, it's the first time he's seen this particular party.

It's clear at a glance that these adventurers are quite formidable.

(Wonder if they came from someplace else.)

(But they sure are making themselves at home.)

It's a six people group, but one in particular is standing out.

A flat-faced man with long blond hair wearing a shirt with a conspicuously large opening on the chest area.

Every single one of his gestures is exaggerated, like he's acting out a jester.

Other adventurers sitting next to their table are trying to make a conversation, but that man only replies to female adventurers.

Some of them even go out of their way and sit next to the man.

The man responded in an overly familiar manner, he would sometimes touch their waist and buttocks. Some of the women shrieked kya kya, but they don't look to be against it.

That flat-faced man stood up and went toward the entrance.

Eda and Heles had just arrived there, that man tried to enthusiastically speak to Heles about something.

Heles brushed him aside and tried to go to Lecan's table, but that man grabbed her arm and wouldn't let go.

Heles pointed at Lecan, the man declared something. Then she finally shook him off forcefully.

The man stretched out his hand in an attempt to touch Heles's buttocks as she left, but Eda nicely blocked him off.

(Good timing.)

(She might have a hidden talent in defense as well.)

"Lecan. Sorry for making you wait. Huh? Arios-kun, not here yet?"

"Yea."

"Some weird guy bothered us at the entrance just now."

"I see."
<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >
Lecan saw everything through <3D Perception> but he chose to keep silent.

"Heles-san, who's that guy anyway?"

"Well, I believe I have mentioned about how I joined five parties in total during my time in this town, one of those is <Untainted Heroes (Sarimisard)>, he's the leader of that party."

"Ah, and so that's why he said something like, 'Come back to this chest of mine'."

"Sorry for my tardiness."

"Ah, Arios-kun. Welcome. We just got here too."

"Is that right. So, who's coming back to whose chest again?"

"It's that long blond haired man sitting over there. He's the leader of <Sarimisard> party, apparently he's got a lingering attachment with Heles-san."

"Lingering attachment? Was he her lover."

"No way! That man's party was the one that brought me to floor 41 and helped me make the <Mark> there."

"Ah, I see."

"However, I saw through that man, he had no intention to go for the lowest floor despite his mouth saying so. Hence why I went to look for other party. Besides, that man is, umm."

Heles who was usually a firm talker suddenly looked bashful while glancing at Lecan on and off.

"Did something happen? Heles-san."

"Umu. Err. As a condition to take me to the lower stratum, he, umm. In short. He demanded something that I absolutely cannot comply."

"Ew, what an awful man."

"So he's that kind of guy."

Eda and Arios seemed to understand what Heles was tyring to say, but Lecan doesn't. Hence, he asked.

"Did he ask an amount of money you cannot pay?"

Eda and Arios looked at Lecan with a surprised look on their faces.

"Lecan. Are you seriously asking that?"

"Being dull is a violence in a way."

"Hm? What are you talking about? Ah, I see. Did he ask for that sword you brought from home?"

Heles looks downward with a reddened face.

Eda is glaring at Lecan, Arios looks stumped.

"Hey hey, guys. I see you're having fun."

The flat-faced man went to talk to Lecan's group.

"Are you Lecan?"

"Yea."

"Hahaha. I'm Snow. Leader of <Sarimisard>, you see. Naturally, you know about <Sarimisard>, don't you?"

"Heard about it just now."

"Oh oh. What's this, the up-and-coming Dungeon Ninae's party <Willard> is lacking in their information gathering? That won't do at all."

"Really."

"Us <Sarimisard> is the party that has reached floor 44. We're only a few steps away from conquering the lowest floor. In other word. We're the party which holds the biggest influence in this town right now. We even get invited to the townlord's banquet on the tenth."

"Good for you."

"Hahaha. Thank you. By the way, Lecan. A warning to you."

Snow put his hand on Lecan's shoulder and kept talking while leaving it there.

"You've been blessed with luck and gotten floor 40's <Mark>, but you're up against the greater variants on floor 41 and below. It's a whole another world. A friendly advice. You should spend three months slowly amassing experience on floor 40 before you start seriously going for lower stratum. Of course."

Snow smiled and looked at Heles.

"That means Heles won't finish her objective in time. Heles-san, we have a position open in our party for you. Let us aim for the lowest floor together. And to achieve that, we should better know each other. Actually, our party has gotten hold of a wonderful mansion. How about spending this night"

Lecan suddenly unleashed his bloodlust.

Snow shook as he took his hand away from Lecan's shoulder. As if he had touched something hot.

Lecan's right eye is gleaming fierily. It's the eye of a beast.

Other adventurers sitting nearby jolted on their chairs as they turned toward him.

It's as if a last floor's dungeon boss has abruptly made its advent there.

Snow gulped down his saliva and then tried to speak, but his voice sounded slightly shaky.

"L-let's discuss about this another time. My friends' waiting for me, bye now."

Nuru came by as the flat-faced man left. She's the recovery user of <Azcaris>.

"Lecan-chan."

She coquettishly leaned on him from behind, twirling her bewitching arms around Lecan's neck and pushing her voluptuous breast on his back while nibbing on Lecan's left ear.

"Ufun. It's been awhile."

"Yea."

"Snow boy, you see, is a son of a noble in another town. Which makes him clueless of scary stuff."

"Really."

"This town's adventurers are all aware Heles-chan is a daughter of a high-ranking noble just by looking at her, so no one's going to bother her, you see~"

"I see."

"They won't let her join their party either. I mean, it'd be a huge headache to them and the town lord if they bring her to the lowest floor and let her die there. That's why <Azcariz>, <Vega>, and <Jaira> wouldn't let Heles-chan join them."

"So that's how it was."

"Back then Snow boy made a pass at Veta-chan once, which prompted that all brawn Kagaru to mess him up so bad. He stopped showing up here afterward. Cause <Jaira> might be here after all."

So that's the reason why he never saw <Sarimisard> before.

"But now that <Jaira>'s gone, and they reached floor 44, they've been super excitable."

"Might be because of alcohol too."

"Oh he's drunk alright, that Snow boy. I mean, he's got achievements to back, earns a lot and is popular with women. And if he could make a flower beyond reach, Heles-chan, his woman, even for one night, he's sure gonna get even more famous."

"I don't care what people think."

"So cool. You're giving me the chill. Aan. It's throbbing."

"Thanks for the info. I owe you."

"Then tell me please. It's weird for that <Jaira> to just up and go back home all of a sudden. That they suffered injuries in an expedition must be a sham too. It must be something to do with you, right. If you tell me, I'll let you eat me after meat and vegetable... ah, ouch ouch."

<Azcariz>'s leader, Dual Blade Falkan had pulled the female recovery user Nuru's hair.

"Sorry about this, Lecan. I'm taking this girl back."

"Yea."

Nuru got dragged away while yelping ouch ouch along the way.

"Fumu, I see how it is now. That Snow guy demanded Heles to have sex with him as a condition to bring her to the lowest floor."

Heles spilled out the wine she was drinking.

Eda threw the tea she was drinking at Lecan.





Previous Chapter

9





After selling the Octocular Great Spider's legs, Lecan took a bath and went to <Jade's Restaurat>. He felt like having a drink.

The other three will join him after they cleaned themselves up.

<Vega> wasn't present that night.

Lecan took a seat and ordered today's special and some ale.

Jade, the restaurant's owner, came by.

"Lecan. Come with me for a bit."

The restaurant doesn't have private rooms, but it's got a small meeting room-like room. He was led there.

"Rumor of a man carrying mid-variant of Octocular Great Spider's legs on his shoulder is a hot topic in this town right now."

"Really."

"I've never seen anyone bringing all eight legs back before."

"I could only carry four at a time."

"Don't tell me, all eight legs were intact?"

"No. Three of those were cut at the joints."

"And you managed to beat it like that huh. Unbelievable."

"Really."

"Things' gotten a bit messy."

"Hou."

"The townlord agreed to exiling <Jaira>, but now he's got a newfound interest in the party that turned the table hard on <Jaira>."

"I'm not interested."

"I don't think I have to tell you this, but townlords of dungeon cities are a position that can easily brings you ire from the surroundings."

"Don't care."

"If a dispute occurs with another fiefdom, chances are high that townlord will hire high-ranking adventurers. No townlord's willing to go up against that kind of townlord."

"I heard town lords are prohibited from fighting against one another."

"No. They won't publicly go to war. They simply won't. But small skirmishes are daily occurrences. Of course, the lords would insist they have nothing to do with it. Anyway, you just gotta keep this fact in mind, townlords with might backing them are powerful."

"Well, no surprise there."

"Hence these townlords give preferential treatments to strong adventurers, and make a big deal out of the littlest things. And they sometimes invite those adventurers to their mansion. You'd sometimes get invited to banquets when some bigwigs from other territories visit. To flaunt, 'look the force we have here'."

"Nothing to do with me."

"How'd you even get by all this time anyway."

"What's your business."

"The townlord said he wanted to meet you guys."

"Have you told this townlord we're leaving this town on the 25th?"

"No. I haven't."

"All good then. Tell him we're currently busy trying to conquer the dungeon."

"Got it. But they might formally summon you."
<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >
"I'll deal with that when that time comes."

"You're really free, aren't you."

"Well yeah, that's how adventurers roll."

"Haha. That's what I believed in my youth as well."

"Giving up your freedom to be bound by something is a form of freedom also."

"I see. That might be true. That's all I need. I'll get in touch if anything else comes up."

"Thanks."

"But, damn. You're chipping at the dungeon at some crazy pace. Won't you get to the last floor at this rate?"

"That's the plan."

Jade fell silent for a while. Then he abruptly spoke.

"The boss on the last floor is the Queen variant of Octocular Great Spiders."

"Hou."

"It's got <Morph>, <Magic Eye>, <Freeze>, <Charm>, <Float>, <Warp>, <Instant Death Venom>, and <Summon> as its abilities."

"Fumu."

"It assumes the form of a human girl at first, with its lower half buried in rocks. This is a mimicry by <Morph>. It's awfully sturdy despite looking so soft, but it's still on the softer side than its true form. You gotta shoot all paralyze, curse and the likes you can shoot when it's in that form. Otherwise, you won't stand a chance."

"Got it."

"This spider will read your abilities with <Magic Eye>. It's gonna shoot <Freeze> at the one it deems most dangerous to freeze them to death. Since <Freeze> is a magic attack, anti-curse equipment don't work against it."

"It can read abilities?"

"Yeah. It's gonna come at the one it deems a toughie. <Freeze> only reaches about 20 steps away at most, so you can simply attack it from a distance, but unfortunately, it's immune to magic when it's in girl form."

"What."

"Once it's received enough damage past a certain threshold, it will morph back into its true form. The size is about as big as the lesser variant. A wee bit bigger than you, I reckon."

"Fumu."

"It's real sturdy. As is the abdomen. It also moves around blindingly fast. Its <Float> ability enables it to moves around by floating. It only makes its body float a bit above the ground, but in this state it can use all eight legs to attack you by lifting its body up. This one's quite tricky as well."

"How come."

"It's fast, hard and clever."

"Clever in what way."

"It persistently goes after your vital and weak points."

"I see."

"But its back is wide open in this state."

"Hou."

"And the Queen possesses a predisposition to persistently go after the one who deals it the biggest damage."

"Sounds exploitable."

"Indeed. So you put about three people with high offensive and defensive power on the front line, make them attack the Queen till they get its attention, and then someone else aim for its heart with a highly penetrating weapon from behind. That's the general strategy."

"Got it. Is that all."

"And also, oh yeah. It can use <Charm> in either form. Apparently it's got a relatively short range. Getting hit by one would end up in infighting between yourselves."

"Must be a curse."

"It's a curse. So you absolutely want to have anti-curse equipped. And also <Warp>. The Queen uses this often, it'll abruptly show up in a different spot in the middle of battle. A literal instantaneous movement. It can't warp away too far apparently. Ten steps at most. But it could still mean the Queen you've been fighting head-on all this time suddenly showing up behind you. It's downright cheap. Most peeps dying in the Queen War fell prey to this ability."

"I see."

"<Instant Death Venom> instantly kills you if it touches your bare skin. It can reach 50 steps away, so take caution."

"Green potion won't make it in time then."

"You just gotta make sure to never let it touch yer' skin. This venom sells for awfully lots of money. Probs only great nobles could afford it. It's called Queen Venom."

"So you'll make a killing if you can get its Venom Sac."

"Exactly. But this Venom Sac is located right below its heart, so it rarely ever comes out intact. When it gets torn as you aim for its heart, the content spill out and get mixed in its blood and bodily liquid, see."

"What about <Summon>."

"This one's been put as part of its ability, but supposedly no surviving adventurers have ever witnessed it for real. I never seen one myself."

"What does it do."

"Apparently a swarm of ten thousand Spotted Spiders will emerge out."

"What?"

"The condition to trigger it is unknown. Many people even believe this ability doesn't actually exist. Well, you probably won't come across it anyway."

"What if I did."

"Who knows. Nothing you can do about it. Run away. If you can that is."

"Thanks for telling me. I owe you a huge one."

"That's my line for the matter with <Jaira>. It's being handled as we speak. The mansion ends up getting bought by a certain party."

"I see."

Lecan stood up as he said that.

Then he recalled something and asked.

"Jade."

"Ou. What's up."

"Is there some sort of proof for defeating a dungeon boss?"

"Ah. In case of this dungeon, the guild will issue a Proof of Conquest. They'd give you one if you bring them the boss's magic stone or part of its body right after you beat it."

"I see."






Previous Chapter

7





"Alright, time to go."

"At two of Princess Turtle (Fengel) today again I see."

"Hm?"

"There are times when Lecan-dono would wake up later than usual depending on your degree of exhaustion the day before. Your breakfast periods would also slightly shift at times. And yet, you will always wake up at two of Fengel if it's for fighting."

"Hou. Really."

"In a place with no nights or days like inside this dungeon, Lecan-dono's inner clock always gets its time right, I see."

"That doesn't matter. I fight once I'm ready to. That's all."

That day, the group went down the floor 40.

The magic beasts got even faster, their legs and heads got even sturdier.

During the first and second battles, Lecan and Heles couldn't match their timings and almost resulted in friendly fires.

Then that happened in the third battle.

Lecan would always choose the most effective and sure-fire attacks to kill a magic beast. On top of that, he also adjusts his action so that he won't end up hitting the other, or get in their way.

If anything, Heles kept getting in their way.

Nevertheless, Lecan would patiently include Heles in his calculations as he launched his assault.

However, something was changing in Heles during that fight.

That is, she managed to lead Lecan's actions.

Heles rushed headlong toward the magic beast, and when the spider opened its mouth to attack Heles, Lecan felt like she was swinging her sword in a way that induced Lecan to wield her sword toward her head from behind.

Lecan followed that demand. Unleashing an attack that would pulverize Heles's head if she did not dodge.

Heles bent over and hit the magic beast's front legs.

Lecan's sword coming at her head from behind grazed the top of her head as it cut the attacking magic beast's face horizontally.

That ended the fight.

"Heles-san!"

Arios ran up.

"That was a wonderful coordination!"

"What?"

Heles is dumbfounded.

It seems she hasn't realized what she's just done.

"You got it."

Lecan spoke to her from behind.

The look on Heles's face changed as she recalled what she just did.

"Ah, I, did I."

"That was good."

"But, why did I. But, I knew that Lecan-dono's sword was coming from behind my head right in that moment. Hence why I could act so reckless."

"You led Lecan-san to initiate that attack, Heles-san."

"Led? No, that's not it. I foresaw it. How Lecan-dono would swing his sword."

"Yes. In practice, or rather, that's how Heles-san sees it subjectively. But to Lecan-san, he swung his sword as instructed by Heles-san. Isn't that right?"

"Yea."

"Coordination? That was a coordination?"

"Heles."

"What is it."

"Adventurers who fight with their lives on the line don't form up coordination. They come up with it."

"Coordination isn't formed up. But come up?"

"You can't beat magic beasts by chaining down your arms for the sake of coordination. Give your maximum effort at attacking, and let other guys incorporate your effort in their attack to the fullest. That's coordination."

"Incorporate, to the fullest."

"Doesn't matter which did the attack first when you look back later. That's how a proper coordination's like."

"No looking back."

"Knock your left fist to your right. Which fist hit which?"

"Both hit each other."

"Ain't it. That's how it goes."

"I don't really get it though."

"Anyway. You did good. You've attained a new strength. Don't forget it."

"Ah. Thank y..."

Glittering tears fell down Heles's beautiful eyes.

"Tears...? Am, I, crying?"

Heles herself probably has no idea why she's crying.

Those tears aren't sorrowful tears.

"Yup yup. I know that feel. I mean, Lecan made me cry too."

"I, see. He made Eda-dono cry too huh."

"Lecan is a bad person."

"I see. That's right. Lecan-dono is a bad person."

After a bit, Eda and Heles went to help Lecan and Arios carving out mats.

Afterward, the way they fought was unrecognizable from before.

The three would move freely in all directions while supporting each other, amplifying their strength.

The whirlwind given rise by the three easily destroyed every magic beast they came across to.

How Eda would smash an eye of the spiders contributes greatly as well.

Her <Recovery> would also immediately fly to whoever got hurt by the magic beasts' attacks. None of the three swordsmen doubted that.

This was the moment these four became a party in the truest sense.



<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >

8





"We got floor 40's <Mark> now."

"I still can't believe it. To think we so easily beat giant variants of floor 40 in succession. When I got my <Mark>, we even had to recruit temporary members and it still took quite a long time to narrowly beat those variants."

"Oh man, everyone was so awesome today."

"Don't sell yourself short Eda-san, didn't you shoot through that magic beast's heart when it raised its head high up trying to squash Lecan-san. That was truly splendid."

"Ehehehe. Thanks. Arios-kun was so cool too. You cut four legs so fast."

"We're getting back above ground once we're done carving out these mats. But this giant variant's legs won't fit into my <Box> even if we cut them at the joints."

"Ooh. Lecan-dono's enigmatic <Box> finally shows its limit."

"No. These are just way too big to fit no matter how you look at it."

"Umu. We also only fetched the venom sac when we beat these back then. It's simply not"

"I'll carry these back on my shoulder."

"Wha?"

"What'd you say?"

"Arios-kun. You can't apply common sense to Lecan-san, you know."

"Sheesh, Lecan-dono, you're really just unbelievable."

"What is?"

"Err. Even parties who make these floors their hunting grounds only hunt two spiders in half a day, or at most four in one day. And yet this party hunted ten today, eleven yesterday, and the day before yesterday, we got five on floor 36, eight on floor 37, 12 on floor 38, so we hunted err, 25 spiders in a day."

"I just felt like it then."

"That makes it even more tremendous. It's simply out of the norm to engage in so many fights."

"Four spiders in an entire day, isn't that too few battles?"

"You drink a potion when you're hurt. Since another potion will be less effective afterward, suffering a serious wound could spell disaster if you don't let it cool down."

"Ah, I see."

"Two high <Recovery> users in one party is simply unprecedented. Besides, I heard you could only cast high <Recovery> four times a day even with blue potions. Since continuous casting in a short amount of time should have been impossible, it's understandable how that recovery user Nunu would be that frantic."

"Eh? Four times, you're kidding right?"

"I am not. Still, these legs aren't too damaged, everything is gathered, and the venom sacs still have got lots of venom left. These will likely fetch handsomely."

"And yet there was no treasure chest drop at all, what's up with that?"

"Hahaha. Weird isn't it. But the mats from spiders on these floors could very well fetch so much more than average treasure chests."

"Ooh really. That's good then."






Previous Chapter

5





They fought only five times on floor 36 before descending.

Floor 37, eight times.

Afterward, they had lunch.

The situation changed on floor 38.

A magic beast dodged Lecan's <Flame Spear>. The magic landed on the left sturdy part of its head, damaging only a little.

Lecan had charged out already.

The magic beast spat out venom.

Lecan who dodged this by crouching while moving to the left mowed down the magic beast's third leg on the right side.

The magic beast was about to turn around toward Lecan, he chopped off its pivotal leg right at that moment, tumbling it down to the right.

Ending up in a pose like it was presenting its neck to Lecan.

Lecan mercilessly lopped its head off.

Most fights on this floor ended up similarly.

The spiders here possessed the nimbleness to dodge Lecan's first strike, but they didn't stand a chance against the successive rapid barrage of attack.

He defeated 12 spiders, in which no one, not Arios, Heles, nor Eda participated even once.

They camped near the exit after the 12th magic beast was taken care of.

Heles seemed to be awfully fond of the crackling camp fire, she was gazing at it with a very content look on her face.

"Lecan-san. What you showed me today was truly eye-opening."

"Hm?"

"Your quick decision making at a moment's notice. Precise barrage of attack with no wasted movement. It was as if I was looking at the true depth of swords itself."

"I see."

"Arios-dono, so you managed to learn something from the battle today."

"Yes. Heles-san. I have come up with a few things I'd like to try out once we're out of the dungeon. It might result in the birth of new moves for my fighting school."

"I don't get it. Lecan-dono's attack, dodge, attack, attack. Once a battle was over, I understood what he did was the optimal course of actions. But how come Lecan-dono could do that? Was he aware of the best course of action even before the fight began?"

"Heles-san."

"Un? What is the matter."

"The best course of action to Lecan-san may not necessarily be the best to Heles-san as well."

"Eh? Aah. That only makes sense. Then what would be the optimum to me."

"We'll find that out tomorrow."

"I wonder about that."

"The enemies are slowly getting faster. Gradually getting sturdier. There should be room for us to take part in."

"I see."

"Haven't the battle today taught us that there are indeed things to learn in the heat of combat."

"Right."

"All right. The soup is ready~."

"Ooh! Eda-dono's soup is truly delicious. So how about it. Won't you become our house chef?"

"Which house is that and where?"

"I cannot tell you."

"Then I won't go."

"Of course. Ahahahahaha."

Laughter ensued around the campfire.

Lecan quietly smiled as well.

This party's atmosphere isn't half bad.

Thought Lecan.



<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >

6





Just as Arios guessed, there was enough room for other members to participate in the combat on floor 39.

Though it wasn't exactly a walk in the park.

Lecan would chase the magic beast around while swinging his huge sword in all directions.

One would have to swing their sword at the magic beast all while plunging in that storm-like sword dance.

It was Arios who successfully got in first.

When Lecan swiftly moved to the right after shooting a <Flame Spear> at the magic beast's chest, Arios rushed in to the left.

When the magic beast rotated its huge body toward Lecan, Arios splendidly cut off the furthest back of its four right legs.

The third and fourth legs on either side of these magic beasts are the legs that support their body, used as pivots to turn around. With one of those legs suddenly cut off, the magic beast lost its balance losing its head to Lecan's sword as a result.

The next one who managed to take part was Eda.

Eda's arrow pierced through the magic beast's eye before Lecan's <Flame Spear> could hit it.

Either due to anger or pain, or perhaps in an attempt to counter attack, the magic beast opened its mouth.

The <Flame Spear> flew into its mouth, blowing its head from the inside.

The magic beast died instantly.

Lecan briefly praised Eda, which Eda returned with her best smile.

However, this was no coincidence.

Afterwards, the same thing happened again several times.

Of course her arrows couldn't match the speed of <Flame Spear>.

Normally, archers should have the upper hands in aiming and shooting, but in Lecan's case, he doesn't take time at all to finish his preparation.

Nevertheless, there's still a slight lag for him to raise his left arm, confirm his target and cast the magic.

In that brief space of time, Eda would aim at the target and shoot through the magic beast's small eyes without fail.

When they had a lunch break in the middle of the floor, Heles went to ask Eda.

"Eda-dono. How are you able get your arrows land right before Lecan-dono's magic? I understand you're capable of hitting the same target. But that only applies to yourself. There's no point if your arrow hits long before Lecan-dono's magic does. I thought it was a coincidence at first, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Just how do you manage to instantly know that Lecan-dono is going to shoot his magic?"

"Eh? I mean, like it's simple? I just shoot it like Lecan does."

"Like Lecan-dono? No, the intervals between his attacks are never the same. There are times where he would immediately take stance the instance the magic beast came into view, and times where he would observe for awhile first. He could be slow or quick at taking stance too."

"Uun. Wonder how do I say this. It's cause, like everyone is the same, you know."

"I do not understand."

"Heles-san."

"Arios-dono, do you get it?"

"In swordsmanship, there are techniques to curb enemy on the onset of them moving right."

"Umu. There are."

"You'll fail to pull that off if you attempt the technique after the opponent has moved. You read your opponent's breathing so that when they attempt to move their arm and body to swing their sword, you unleash that technique."

"That is indeed how you do it."

"As we are human swordsmen, we do not specialize in reading magic beasts' breathing. But we can read human's because we are one ourselves. That may very well be the basis of coordination, I believe."

"Reading, human's breathing, huh. I see."

"Besides, Heles-san."

"Yes, what is it."

"I feel like I'm getting the hang of reading magic beasts' movements by observing Lecan-san's actions."

"What. Is that true."

"Oh I'll prove them to you sooner or later."

"Nunu. I shan't lose."

Lecan said nothing.

However, he was thankful that Arios would give a nice explanation in place of his poor talker self.

Anyway, the soup you drink inside a dungeon tastes so good.

Everyone here must think the same as well.

During the battles the noon of that day, Heles would keep rushing headlong into the fray.

Her actions would get in Lecan's and Arior's way, sometimes their swords would clash, sometimes their bodies, messing up their entire group's rhythm.

No matter how much defensive gear you put on, a direct hit from a dungeon depths magic beast is no joke to humans. Messing up your rhythm here is as good as facing death.

Eda's ranged <Recovery> saved the party from crises many times over.

However, Heles wouldn't stop her reckless charges.

And no one reprimanded her for it.

Heles was surely on the cusp of grasping something.






Previous Chapter

Commemorating Conclusion SS [Memento]

 

"Let's get Master a present to commemorate world's peace!"

I gathered everyone here before making that declaration.

"What's this about all of a sudden, Arisa?"

Even her confused face looks pretty, Lulu's beaut is still going strong.

"It's not sudden. I've been thinking about it all this time! Master has given us everything, and yet we've never given back anything to repay him. So, I'm thinking of prepping a present in commemoration of world's peace."

I gave my reasoning to Lulu and the girls.

"That's a good idea, Arisa-chan!"
"Yes, I think that's nice!"

Starting with Hikaru-tan and Zena-tan, everyone also agreed.

"But what kind of present should we give Master?"

Lulu's pretty face leaned as she tilted her head. This sister of mine is as cute as ever.
While everyone was mulling over it, Pochi raised her hand energetically, "Me!"

"Go on, Pochi-kun."
"Pochi writes a story nodesu. A story about everything Master has done nanodesuyo!"

After I called Pochi's name like a teacher, she cheerfully stood up and announced that.
Oh, that's a good one. Writing it straight would likely take seven years and 3.14 million characters, so you'd want to abridge it halfway through, you know?

"Tama draws picture~?"

Next to Pochi, Tama stood up and announced.

"Something like portraits?"
"Aye."

Tama nodded then began drawing a rough draft, "Like this~"
She's good. Master sitting in a flower field patting a sleeping Tama on his lap, that's so healing.
You could even add Arisa-chan in there, you know?

"How about you Liza-san?"
"The only thing I'm capable of is swinging my spear..."
"That's not true at all."
"She's right, Liza-san. Wasn't it Liza-san who taught me cooking."

Lulu supported my follow-up.
She taught her when we first set out of Seryu City, yeah.

"Lulu, it's gotta be cooking?"
"Un, since I've always made our food, I think I'm going with memorable dish this time."

What kind of memorable dish?
Think that would be meat skewers and giblet dish Master treated us after our first meeting, and also his super good first salted fish?

"Then, I could make that too. There's a dish we ate together in a dungeon."
"Frog meat steak~?"
"Yes, I'm surprised you haven't forgotten."
"Pochi remembers that too nodesu! Master said that it was good too nodesuyo!"

Master sure feasted on some real heavy stuff during his early days in this parallel world.

"And you Mia?"
"Music."
"Figured."

You think music when you think of Mia, you think Mia when you think of music.

"That's not it! I want to play Satou's story just like Pochi's together with spirits. I'm going to present music that makes the spectacles get projected on just by hearing as Aze and Shia taught me. It's true, you know?"
"That sounds nice. Do you mind if I sing along to that tune as well?"

Just as Mia was speaking in long sentences, Aze-tan showed up.

"Ooh, here she comes. Legal wife!"

Now that other high elves take turn to do their duty, she often comes here to play now.

"L-legal wife, oh you."

Aze-tan is panicking like awawawa.
It may look cunning, but that's actually just how she is.
Wonder if this is the kind of stuff that tickled Master's heartstrings?
I shrug my shoulders and get back to topic.

"Nana?"
"I shall give birth to Master's young organisms as a present and--
"Oh no you don't."

Since Nana's proportion fits right up to Master's taste, he's gonna get shot down for real if she seriously go for it.

"Too bad so I inform. Then I shall make a handmade doll instead."
"That's nice."

Her dolls are getting popular among orphanage's children lately.

"I wonder what could I do... I cannot see myself making handmade stuff with how clumsy I am."

Karina-tan is folding her arms, as if they're supporting her weighty-looking breasts.
Master's probably gonna be gone in paradise if she does a super close contact puff puff to him, but I'm never speaking that out loud. Absolutely not.
Someone spoke out as if ignoring my inner voice.

"I'm sure he'd be delighted if you give him a Boobs Ticket, you know?"
"Mii-chan!"

Mii-chan aka Kagura spoke something absurd.

"Boobs ticket? What kind of ticket would that be?"

The pure innocent Karina-tan asked back at Mii-chan with a perplexed look on her face.
She's probably thinking Mii-chan meant another thing for [Boobs], or that she misheard it.

"A ticket that lets him rub your boobs."
"W-what! You can't do that before marriage!"

Hearing Mii-chan's direct answer, Karina-tan blushed with her eyes going round and round.

"That is worth considering indeed."

The closet pervert ex-miko Sera said her absurd idea out loud.
It's hard to tell her body line due to her clothings, but Sera's got some real filled up waist, her body is quite a dynamite for a girl her age.

"Don't forget your lucky underwear."
"Yes, I'm always ready in anticipation for a chance."

Sera would sometimes get clad in a green light as she speaks to herself.
I think god Tenion is giving her advices or something. That god loves everything about love after all, not to mention how giving Oracles has been made easier now.

"Erotic things are prohibited!"
<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >
I shelved my usual self and shouted out.

"Oh my? Giving birth to successors is a noble's duty you know?"
"It's limited to 『objects』! This time the present is limited to 『objects』!"

It's okay if it's only at skinship level, but we're just gonna trouble Master if we're doing it for real.

"I have no confidence in making things with my hands."
"It doesn't have to be handmade, does it now? What's important is the thought you put into coming up a present for Satou."

Mii-chan gave a serious advice to the anxious-looking Karina-tan.

"Un, then how about something like this?"

Hikaru-tan took out a book from her [Inventory].

"T-that's! The Tale of Founder Hero-sama!"
"The out of print phantom book that doesn't exist even in Saga Empire's Palatial Library?!"

Karina-tan was surprised, Princess Sistina--Tina-sama gave an exposition for how rare that [The Tale of Founder Hero]

"H-Hikaru-sama, could you let me take a look at it for a bit?"
"Sure thing. This was something forced on me during a larger brainwashing training after I got summoned by Saga Empire. You can even transcribe the whole book later if you want."

Oh right, Hikaru-tan had a rough start, being treated as a failed hero by Saga Empire and all.

"I shall pick a book as well then. I've just gotten a hold of a magic book not even the Forbidden Archive has after all."
"I am curious!"

I approach Tina-sama with 'want' written in my eyes.
Of course she didn't get the reference, but she agreed to let me take a quick look at the magic book before presenting it to master. I can just borrow it from Master later if I want to read it fully.

"Karina-tan, you gifting a book too? Muno Family's got some real amazing collection of everything heroes right?"
"Yes, our collection of heroes-related books is number one in Shiga Kingdom."

Lights dwell back in Karina-tan's eyes.

"Pendragon."

Mia gave a hint.

"Pendragon--that's it desuwa! I shall present 『Hero Orion's Seven Trials』 to Satou!"

A story where Master's family name comes from, that'd do nicely as a present.

"U-um!"

While I was thinking hard about my own present myself, Zena-tan spoke up loudly.

"What's wrong, Zena-tan?"
"I think all those presents sound wonderful, but since it's a commemoration for Satou-san, I think it'd be better if it's something we all make together."
"""Ah."""

Whoops, we focused too much in the present part I forgot we were talking about [Commemoration for World's Peace] originally. That's a close one.

"I guess it shouldn't be something expendable like food then?"
"We should probably avoid things that don't last."

Everyone working together to cook a dish would do nicely as a drama cd, but that doesn't feel right as a [Commemoration].

Some suggested theatrical play or musical performance, but they got rejected for the same reason as food.
Everyone voiced out their views one after another.

"How about letters of gratitudes?"
"That sounds nice, but it doesn't clear the [Everyone] part."

We're not getting there.

"What if we all writes our own word for Satou-san on an autograph board and present it to him?"
"Like an autograph collection?"
"Right, right. Like something you see in a graduation ceremony."

Well, maybe that's the best gift for Master now that he's attained divinity and transcended humanity.
Transcend beast and human, and--a phrase from combined robot flashed in my mind, but I didn't say that out loud since I'm not sure Hikaru-tan would retort.

"Presenting words, that's a wonderful idea!"
"It's a bit embarrassing, but I shall put my feelings to Satou in words desuwa."
"Ehehe, presenting words to Master, it's like a love letter."
"Feel free to write love letters. I give you my permission noja."

Everyone reacted more favorably than expected, maybe because there's no culture of autograph collection here.

"Well, since everyone seems to be on board, let's go with autograph collection then."
"Uy uy, and the board--"
"Here you go, suffice?"

Mii-chan produced a largish autograph board out of nowhere.
The name of a Japanese maker is written on its back, but since asking her about it seems like it's gonna take long, I ignore it like Master would have done.

"Since it's an autograph board, we all get 64 character per person."
"Pochi's passionate feelings can't be contained that shortly nodesu!"
"Show how to load your feelings in a few words if you truly aim to be a novelist!"
"...Yes nanodesu. Pochi will do her best, nodesuyo?"

It's gonna be tough for someone in long-sentence faction like Pochi, but please give it your all.

"Is a drawing fine~?"
"It's fine, but you can't draw something too big."
"Aye."

Letting everyone write on the board just like that would likely turn out disastrous, thus I made it so everyone got their own sheet to put on the paper. I asked Mii-chan to get gridded papers for everyone.
Hikaru-tan's got the honor of writing [Commemorating World's Peace, to Satou-san] using a calligraphy brush. She's got an unexpectedly neat handwriting.

"I've gone over the word limit again. This is hard."
"Unyunyu, words are free, furidamu nanodesu."

Liza-san and Pochi's overflowing feelings can't seem to be contained in word limits.

"With this word limit, I would use up half of it just for the opening phrase."
"Well now, this is troubling."

Due to their upbringings, Tina-sama and Sera-tan would waste the word limit like the would with ordinary letters.
With me and Hikaru giving advices, we somehow managed to finish up all our sheets before the date changed.
Tama's illustration is a drawing of everyone with Master in the center. It's like something you see in an anime conclusion commemoration.

"Arisa, you're last."

The last remaining area barely fit on the autograph board.

"OK."

I put my heart into writing my feelings in the first half of the world limit.
I've decided on what to write on the remaining limit.

『Do take care of us forever and ever, our Master!』






Previous Chapter

3





The group warped to floor 35, passed through the floor while engaging in a few fights, and went in the stairway to the floor below.

"From floor 36 on, the mid variant of Octocular Great Spiders (Gienur Hadr) will spawn. They're quite troublesome with their <Sleep>, <Deadly Venom>, <Dissolving Liquid>, <Petrification> and <Explosive Flame> attacks."

Heles began explaining like usual.

"Their color is the only truly different thing from other spiders up until here, their abilities and size don't see a radical change. Their <Sleep>, <Deadly Venom>, and <Dissolving Liquid> attacks are practically the same as other spiders. The problems are <Petrification> and <Explosive Flame>. These two make up the huge leap in difficulty."

"You mean the spiders' size, hardness and basic ability are the same as on floor 35 then?"

"No, that's not it. From floor 31 to 35, those spiders get stronger even though they share the same ability. The gaps are roughly the same as that."

"I got it."

"They spray white breath-like thing when they attack with <Petrification>. It poses no problem if you dodge it or parry it with a shield. Because <Petrification> only works on the flesh."

"Is <Petrification> a type of curse abnormal status?"

"Indeed. Thus you can resist it with anti-curse equipment. Or rather, you cannot fight them without one."

"Or equipment that prevents abnormal status."

"Hahaha. Would be nice if something like that truly exists."

"They don't?"

"I have never heard of equipment that can defend against all abnormal status as a whole. Arios-dono, do you know one?"

"There is none, is how I would answer that."

"If that doesn't have some hidden meaning behind it. Well anyway. <Petrification> can be blocked with the right equipment, however getting your eyes bathed in the white breath will make them temporarily blinded. This cannot be blocked even with anti-curse equipment."

"Hou."

"<Explosive Flame> comes in the form of sticky saliva they spit out, it will burst out in flames if it hits your body or falls on the ground. It's burning, hot and hinders your vision. You'll get blown away if one explodes near you. A direct hit won't leave you unscathed."

"How often do they use <Petrification> and <Explosive Flame>?"

"They shoot <Petrification> the moment they see an intruder. There's no clear answer on its frequency of usage. Some individuals employ only <Petrification> some only <Explosive Flame>. However, since <Explosive Flame> can only reach about a dozen steps away, they won't shoot it unless you get closer."

"They can be shot successively then?"

"Both <Petrification> and <Explosive Flame> can be rapidly fired. However, they will run out of ammo after about ten shots, they won't shoot another for awhile once that happens."

"Heles."

"Yes, what is it."

"Don't you use a shield."

"I originally did. However, I have opted to use this sword in this dungeon expedition, for its offensive power. I cannot lift a sword of this weight with one hand. Hence, I left my shield behind."

A total excuse.

But, it's clear now.

Lecan could sense a hint of crudeness in Heles's movements.

She puts it all in her attacks, but her evasion is a bit lacking.

It was due to her body being used to fighting with a shield.

(She made the decision herself, so long as she's fine with it.)

Is it really fine.

That line gnawed on Lecan.

(Hold it.)

(How about me myself?)

If someone asked if Lecan has unleashed his full strength during this dungeon expedition, the answer is a resounding no, not even once.

He's fighting while attending to other people around him.

Is that really fine, this way of fighting?

Of course not.

Fighting this way against a powerful foe will mean certain death.

(Who's this powerful foe.)

(Who's my foe.)

Obviously.

It's the dungeon boss.

The strongest magic beast that eternally waits for a challenger, alone on the lowest floor.

With reaching there as the goal, one polishes themselves on every floor they tread on.

Arios can just learn from his fight then.

Heles can re-train herself.

Eda can learn what she should learn in the heat of combat.

They themselves each will dictate what they learn.

First, the one thing that needs to be done is for Lecan, as a challenger of the dungeon boss, to show them fights he can be proud of.

Whether he would really challenge the boss or if he could even get to the lowest floor in time is another matter.

He fights today believing he would make it in time.

He just gotta keep pushing on each day.

If after all that he gives up challenging the boss this time, that's fine.

Going home after that is fine too.

But, today.

This day.

Is the day that marks his first step towards challenging the magic beast on the lowest floor.



<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >

4





Wonder how long has he been meditating.

Everyone is looking at Lecan, waiting for his order to enter the floor.

"I'll tell you this, guys."

While quietly speaking, Lecan could sense his whole body violently trembling.

"From here on, I will exert every bit of my strength."

His senses sharpened, power overflows out from deep within his body.

"Anyone is free to follow me if they can."

Breath going into the depths of his chest, the grace of air soaks his body.

"I will only fight alongside those who can keep up."

He's fully prepared for battle.

"This step."

He firmly treads on the ground, making noise.

"Is the first step toward this dungeon boss."

Lecan went into floor 36.

<Life Detection> immediately informs him of this entire floor's information.

He finds that there's no one else here.

The only adventurers on this floor are the four of them.

However, this much information isn't enough.

"<Graph Make (Coznitt)>."

Lecan recited a spell he never recited before, casted a spell he never casted before.

The graph of this floor came up in his mind.

Where to pass, which spots are impassable.

Which paths lead to enemies, which do not.

The graph tells Lecan.

Curiously enough, Lecan bore zero doubt that he could use this magic.

Zaa, zaa, zaa, zaa.

Sounds of sands crashing against his boots.

Lecan advanced through the gaps between soaring rocks without any hesitation.

And there stood the enemy.

"<Flame Spear (Bandroux)>!"

Heles mentioned that heat and light type magic do not work on these magic beasts.

It's not like Lecan doubts her.

And yet, his battle instinct told him that this was what he should do.

A spear of light landed straight on the magic beast's face.

An intense sound of explosion resounded as the spear broke into pieces in all directions.

However, the magic beast also didn't come out of it unharmed.

Its face had a huge crack on it, its head got smashed in like it got screwed into its neck.

Its huge body wouldn't move like it had lost all its functions.

Lecan had dashed out right after he shot the magic.

<Sword of Agost> struck the magic beast head-on, crushing its head open.

Crack, crack, the huge body swayed.

And crumbled down.

"Yeay. That's Lecan for you."

Eda was turning her fist round and round when Lecan turned around.

Arios and Heles stood stock still in agape.

Lecan began cutting off the magic beast's eight legs.

Arios went to help him.

Heles murmured.

"I was told that heat and light type magic don't work on them. No, I had seen first hand how it did not work."

Lecan continued the work silently without replying to her.

He further cut off the cut legs at the joints.

"And it's not like Lecan-dono had never tried his <Flame Spear> on one before. So magic could turn out so vastly different depending on its usage. I see now. I must not swallow what other people tell me whole."

Eda put on her work gloves, took out the venom sac and put it in a container.

"<Move>."

Lecan grabbed the magic stone and walked off toward his next battle.






Previous Chapter

1





They rushed to floor 32 from floor 31 in one day.

They had lunch on the center of the floor. With sand as the ground, it was comfortable to sit on.

Pretty nice for setting up a campfire too.

The enemies get stronger with each new floor.

However, their coordination is forming up nicely as well.

Someone reacts accordingly to momentary changes with the enemy.

Other members will then read that member's intention and immediately spring up to the most effective course of action.

That's true coordination.

They haven't gotten to that point yet.

However, they're closing in little by little.

Lecan stopped minding over Eda.

He stopped worrying if Eda would be caught in dissolving liquid a magic beast spat out, or if Eda could dodge an attack.

He also stopped herding magic beasts so they won't spit dissolving liquid at Eda.

He can afford to worry about her on these floors, but that probably won't be the case as they go deeper below.

Lecan leaves Eda to care for herself while he takes care of his role.

Thus he decided.

They got lots of mats as well. However, Lecan discarded the spiders' abdomen leather since he couldn't be bothered to peel it off, they only took the venom sacs. The legs too, Lecan cut them off at the joints and stored the whole things complete with the meat inside. Magic beast meat rots slowly, but it does still rot after some time, so he should make sure not to forget dropping them off.

They created the <Mark> on floor 35 and went back above ground on the evening of their fifth day exploring.

The break will be for three days so they won't forget the sensations of coordination.





<Jade's Restaurant>'s got another new door.

Going in, he found <Hellhounds (Vega)> inside.

"Yo, Lecan! Didja just get back from the dungeon?"

"Yea. Came straight here after a quick bath."

"Hahaha. We just got back yesterday noon ourselves. Where are you guys now?"

"We just got the <Mark> on floor 35."

"35! That's damn fast. You're gonna catch us up in no time at all."

"You guys are a dungeon conqueror though. Where are you exploring now?"

"We're on floor 40 this time."

"I see."

Lecan took a seat and ordered a glass of ale.

Cozwolth brought a jug with him and took the next seat to Lecan.

As Eda, Arios, and Heles haven't come yet, this table only have these two.

"So, you working toward the lowest floor?"

"I'm still undecided on that."

"Ain't Heles wanting to go there tho'."

"Hm? Ah, she asked you guys too huh. No. As conditions for her to temporarily join my party, she's not to speak anything about the lowest floor and that I'm the one deciding how our expedition's gonna be."

"Really. She's probably sayin' nothing since it's going swimmingly now, but she might start mentionin' that stuff before long."

"Might be. But that doesn't matter. I'd put a stop to our outing if I think it's getting dangerous."

"I see. That's good. Sorry for being nosy."

"Nah."

Lecan's ale got brought to the table.

Lecan ordered some dish to the waiter. He felt like eating lots of vegetables today.

"Lecan. You ever conquered a dungeon?"

"If we're talking about after my arrival at this country, I conquered Dungeon Golbul."

"Golbul? Didn't that have a restriction that only lets a limited number of people enter the lowest floor? Supposed to be why it was never conquered I heard."

"I had no idea there was a restriction."

"How many people didja have then?"

Lecan didn't reply back.

"You're not tellin' me you did it solo, are you?"

"Yea."

"Damn, you're unbelievable. A toast for this unbelievable dude."

With the call for a toast (Jo Jood), they knocked their glasses together and drank down the content.

"Pufaa, so damn good!"

The two ordered for more ale.

"Hey, Lecan."

"Hm?"

"How many dungeons didja conquer at your former place?"

"Who knows. Never counted it."

"More than ten?"

"Yea."

"Crazy stuff. You don't even look that old."

Two more glasses of ale got brought to their table.

"I've dived in a fair share of dungeons m'self since my younger days, y'see. But, I'm sticking to this one ever since <Vega> was formed."

"I see."

"I conquered this dungeon twice. But I got no more drive now."

"The fact that you did remains regardless."

"A mate died on the first conquest. Two died on the second. I ain't gonna lose no more mates."

"I see."

"You ever lost a mate on a dungeon lowest floor?"

"Yea."

"I see."

Three plates of dishes got brought in.

Cozwolth ate the stir-fried vegetable by grabbing it with his fingers.

"Yet you keep going eh. Into all kinds of dungeons one after another at that."

Lecan brought the fish dish in his mouth with a fork.

"Guys like you are probably what real adventurers' like."

"No such things as real or fake adventurers."

"HAHAHAHA. Ya got a point."

"You're an adventurer if you think you're one."

"Yer' gonna go seek other dungeons once you've conquered this one, aren't you."

"I'm thinking of going to <Dungeon of Swords>."

"Oh! That one's real nice. Also some real fierce competition tho'."

Cozwolth grabbed the fish dish with his fingers and chomped it down.

"Cheers! Glory to adventurers!"

"Cheers."

"Cheers!"

Cozwolth went back to his table.

Lecan quietly ate and drank.

Eda, Arios and Heles came.

They seemed tired that day, they retired early at the inn.



<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >

2





An unexpected visitor dropped by for Lecan the day after.

"Jade. Got a business with me?"

"Yeah. Lecan. <Jaira> has a mansion in this town, see, want it?"

"No."

"Instantly without even looking huh. You can use it while you're in this town."

"Moving out would be a bother. We eat dinner at your restaurant."

"Well dang, that's an honour. I got you. I'll have the mansion on sale."

"You do that."

"But does that mean you don't plan on staying for long in this town?"

"We're leaving this town on the 25th of month six."

"Huh. That's a little more over ten days from now. You're never gonna make it to conquer the last floor then."

"Right."

Lecan went to the weapon shop and got back his re-sharpened <Sword of Rusk>.

Then he went to sell dungeon items with Heles.

There was exactly zero treasure chest spawning this time for some weird reason, but they still earned 14 big gold coins. You really do earn a lot in the depths.

The next day and the day after was break time, and on the 12th of month six, they entered Dungeon Ninae once again.





Previous Chapter

Chapter 341 Strongest Sage, Encounters New Unit

 

"Who goes there?"

The knight stopped where he was when he heard me.
Then he saluted before giving a reply.

"I am Lucas, a member of the Royal Knights' Special Magic Force! Here under the order of his majesty the king!"

I see.
A knight who goes around as directed by the king huh.
Make sense we've seen him before at the royal capital then.

However... First time I've heard about this Special Magic Force.
We were taught about the organizational structure of the Royal Knights at the Second Academy... But Special Magic Force was never mentioned.

"That unit doesn't sound familiar... Is this Special Magic Force new?"

"Yes. It's a new unit formed thanks to Mathias-san's contributions."

"My contributions...?"

But I never got involved in formation of units at the knights though.
I only got in touch with them whenever I needed manpower.
While I was thinking that... Lucas replied.

"To be more precise, it's thanks to the textbook Mathias-san has written for the Second Academy. Us Royal Knights are currently trying to learn from that textbook as well... And those who are specializing in [Chantless Magic] among them are the Special Magic Force."

"...You gather people from other units who are good at chantless magic and make them focus training in chantless magic... Is that right?"

"Yes, that's exactly it."

Apparently this unit is a collection of elites in chantless magic.
Now that he mentions it... This knight, Lucas's mana flow is quite refined compared to your average knight.
Since the textbook I wrote seems to play a large role in this, guess it was worth writing that.

"I got it about the unit. So Lucas, what did the king order you to do? ...Would be great if you could inform the king the situation here..."

"Yes, that's exactly my mission... Since there was a high possibility of the demon lurking in this town... We had predicted that the entire town itself could face a total destruction. And so I've been dispatched here in order to deal with the aftermath."
<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >
I see.
The king had anticipated the damage already... Or rather, it turned out milder than expected.
He even sent someone to help dealing with the aftermath.

"So I guess we can leave you to handle this?"

"Yes. Originally, the town lord should be responsible for that... But since the lord here seems problematic to say the least, I shall take the responsibility to rebuild this place."

"Got it... Sorry about this. Would have loved to minimize the collateral damage in town if we could."

We've fought many demons so far... But a fight that resulted in a huge destruction of a town was the first, I believe.
Since demons that would lurk in a town were all defeat-able without a help of Iris's power, we could be careful about collateral damage while fighting them.
Had Zaridias hid itself in a town, that whole town would have turned into a wasteland.

"Oh no. I saw Mathias-san's battle from afar... That it ended with only a partial destruction of one town is a miracle in itself."

Knight Lucas murmured seriously.

However, Zadokilgias wasn't a demon with a huge pool of mana, its strength couldn't be made evident with a simple Passive Detection.
And our combat should have looked plain from someone else's perspective... This knight Lucas might have just got the eyes for combat if he could discern Zadokilgias's strength from that.

"...You realized the danger of that demon?"

"I don't believe I'm aware the full extent of it... but I understood its terrifyingly high control of mana. Our unit also studies magic techniques... Hence, I could understand how fearsome that demon was."

"I see. This Special Magic Force has gone through some rigorous training it seems."

"It's all thanks to the textbook Mathias-san has written."

Knight Lucas saluted once again... then he surveyed the surroundings.
Stuff like toppled houses and broken furnitures are scattered around.
Stuff broken during the battle earlier.

"But... It seems a huge reconstruction effort will be needed to rebuild the whole town."

"Well, I mean, we did destroy a lot."

It's not like Iris destroyed things indiscriminately.
But, lots of buildings got destroyed from getting caught in her claws and tail attacks.

The direction where the populace fled was fine since Iris didn't head there... But where she came from got badly devastated.
I estimate around 20% of this town buildings have been damaged.
In number, it should be around 300 buildings.

However... Lucas seemed to be looking from a different angle.

"Yes, there are many broken houses... But I think this town was already at quite a bad state even before this destruction. Take a look at this."

Lucas walked into a destroyed house... And took a saucepan from what was once a kitchen.
The inhabitants seemed to be in the middle of cooking when they fled, the pan had half-cooked food inside.
The inside was... a shabby wheat gruel with barely any garnish.

"...Looks like the story about Bouseil's lord imposing high taxation was true."

"Yes. I would have hoped the capital take care of this sooner..."

Knight Lucas put down a huge bag he was carrying on his back as he said that.
Then he took out a big magic tool from the big bag.

"Is that... a Comm Magic Device?"

Ruli asked when she saw the tool.
She's probably correct. And it's a type that allows quite a long distance communication at that.





Previous Chapter

20





The four assailants got treated once they were bound.

Veta had come to as well.

"So it seems Kagaru asked our restaurant's waiter about you guys' schedule, ya see. Something seemed off, it clicked on me, and I rushed out here."

Now that he mentioned it, Lecan seems to recall talking about having the <Mark> on floor 31, and their plan to start from that floor this morning at <Jade's Restaurant>. He blurted it out since the people there asked him about it and it wasn't anything confidential.

Jade the restaurant's owner was a leader of a party that had conquered dungeons' lowest floor many times over, he's got <Marks> of many floors in this dungeon. Since the site of attack is on floor 31's exit, he must have warped to floor 32's <Mark> and ran upstairs here. He probably never imagined the battle would begin and end this quick.

Jade asked Kagaru and his party.

"Why'd you attack Lecan's party? Every one of you, answer with your own mouth."

Kagaru, Takuto, Mazu and Veta replied in turn.

"Eda wouldn't go to our party since Lecan was opposed to it. So I thought this is the only way."

"I believed Kagaru's method was the only way to uphold <Jaira>'s glory."

"Because Veta wanted Eda to join us."

"I thought Eda-chan would come to us if Lecan died."

Simplistic trains of thought. You could even say it's infantile.

However, it's also very adventurer-like in a sense.

Adventurers whose whole world revolves around exploring dungeons tend to try to overcome problems and obstacles through brute force. And in case of adventurers with strength to back, that tends to go well. Kill Lecan, snatch Eda away. Everything will go in the right direction then. With <Jaira> hanging on the cliff, they could only cling blindly to that possibility.

Jade asked Eda.

"Eda. You gonna enter <Jaira> if Lecan died?"

"I won't. I'll avenge Lecan. I'll keep swinging my sword even if I can't make it. If I die in the process, I'll go to where Lecan is."

"You guys hear her? What you did was ultimately pointless."

"Yeah. Seems so."

Kagaru's face looked like he was cleansed off an evil spirit possessing him as he said that.

It's completely unlike his expression when he was pressing Lecan to sell Eda.

Takuto and Mazu look composed as well.

Their cornered minds might have made peace now that they can't fight as adventurers anymore with their body now.

It's hard to read Veta's expression, but it's not one of anger and hatred at least.

"Lecan. What are you gonna do to these four?"

It looks as if Jade is trying to save <Jaira>'s lives.

Lecan has no problem with that.

Lecan was going to kill all four of <Jaira> originally. Because that would be the least troublesome method. However, he's also fine with not killing them if they don't mess with his party anymore in the future. Lecan doesn't really give a crap about <Jaira>'s fate either way.

Also, he's a bit bothered by Eda's brooding. Dungeons are indeed a world of kill or be killed, but lingering hatred is not good. Having too much pent-up resentment will narrow down your view, leading you toward your fall. If he had <Jaira> killed off here, Eda might start believing he did it out of grudge. That's wrong.

However, here they've got a guarantor that will ensure <Jaira> stop bothering Lecan's group even if they're not killed off.

Hence, Lecan chose a slightly confrontational reply.

"Attacking and killing people inside a dungeon isn't considered as a crime. Hence, these guys are free to try to kill us. Naturally that goes for us too. Isn't that right?"

"Of course, you're right. You're right, but would you do me one selfish favor here."

"Fumu. I'm listening"

"Even though they're like this now. These guys are heroes to young adventurers who flock to the dungeon here."
<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >
"And."

"Do ya mind if you let them off with their lives."

He was right. Jade must know <Jaira> for a long time, he may have a reason for wanting to save them. Refusing here could potentially turn Jade against Lecan's group.

That's a huge threat.

Frankly speaking, Jade alone is way more dangerous than all of <Jaira>. Lecan wishes to avoid antagonizing him if possible. Besides, if they're hostiles to each other, he can no longer visit <Jade's Restaurant>, that's bad.

"Suppose we let them off, will they really stop trying to mess with us."

"They'll be banished. I'll talk to the town lord, they can never come back to this town."

"What makes you sure that can be done without a hitch."

"I guarantee it. Besides, these guys cannot stay in adventuring business with their bodies now. They'd want to live quietly somewhere else to protect their honor at least."

"What's stopping them from attacking us outside this town."

"All their fortune besides a minimal amount of cash for starting anew will be seized. Can't think up more for now."

Considering Jade is willing to go that far, they should just leave this matter to him. Which means, only one concern remains now.

"I heard Veta has debts to Kagaru. How much is her debts and what's the story behind it."

"Eh? Got it. Oy, Kagaru. You hear that."

According to Kagaru, debts here refer to the cost of Grace items like her magic wand, necklace and stuff required to amplify her magic power.

Veta accepted Kagaru's invite and became an adventurer in order to support her mother's livelihood. Veta would send a huge amount of money to her mother every month. Thanks to that, her mother's life had improved greatly, which made Veta wanting to go back to her mother. To stop her, Kagaru made it so like she was shouldering a debt.

Veta didn't come up with the magic she cast earlier, it was her wand's Grace. The wand was dropped in Dungeon Palcimo known as <Dungeon of Magic>, and had a price tag of whopping six white gold coins. The magic power amplifying necklace also cost them two white gold coins.

"Jade."

"Yeah?"

"Send enough money to support Veta's mother from the fortune seized from these guys."

"Got it. I'll hand over the rest to you."

"Don't need it."

"Eh?"

"If we took that money, the fact that <Willard> fought <Jaira> and then took their money would remain."

"No, that's not gonna"

"Your goal is to  defend <Jaira>'s honor. Then you can't afford getting news of <Jaira> attacking <Willard> to steal their <Recovery> user out in the open. Do you not?"

"Mu. Well, you're not wrong."

"I only wish for these guys to never again mess with us. I'm not trying to profit from this. I don't want to get revenge either. Manage this in a way that leaves behind the least amount of grudge."

"I got it. You have my thanks for your generosity. I'll take these guys with me. I'll also bear the responsibility of sending Veta home."

"Sorry for the trouble, Jade. I leave this in your hand."

"Lecan. Yer' a good guy."

(Alright.)

(Forget antagonizing Jade, I managed to gain a favor.)

(This is worth sparing <Jaira>.)

As they were getting dragged to the exit by Jade, Kagaru turned around toward Lecan and spoke.

"My bad."

"Yea."

Veta spoke as well.

"Lecan-san. Forgive me."

And just before they went into the exit, Veta turned around once again.

"Eda-chan. Thank you. I'm glad I met you."

After seeing them off, Lecan spoke.

"Alright. We're having a meal break here. Let's take it easy before diving in the lower stratum."

"Eeeh?"

"Are you serious, Lecan-dono."

"Shouldn't we go back outside and rest?"

"Oh yeah, Eda. Congrats."

"Eh? What for?"

"You cast <Recovery> on me from somewhere apart earlier."

"Eh"

"What"

"Oh right, I think I did."

"How did you manage that."

"Who knows? I mean, I learned how to shoot <Sleep>. Shooting <Recovery> should come next, right?"

"No no, I've never heard of anything like that."

"<Recovery> from a remote spot?"

"You'll prove yourself far more useful than ever now that you can do that."

"Will I really?"

"Yeah. You probably broke a new ground there. You've become a new you. So, congrats."

"Un! Thank you (narou), Lecan."






[Episode 17 Dungeon Ninae Middle Stratum] End/ Next [Episode 18 Dungeon Ninae Lower Stratum]





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