“The Bloodstained Ore I have is the only one. If I had more, I could gather so much data…”
Seeing Aisha’s frustration, Yuma spoke up.
“Well, there’s no use worrying about what we don’t have. Let’s take it one step at a time, once a day.”
There’s no need to rush so much. That’s what Yuma thought, but—
“Let’s go get it.”
“Huh?”
“We know that the Varlin that creates this Demon Ore is in the 56th Stratum of the Black Dungeon. That’s right, we should just go there to get it!”
“No, no, the 56th Stratum!? That’s way too deep! Isn’t one enough?”
The 56th Stratum is too deep, and the story about eating strange Demon Ores is different. Yuma tried to refuse somehow, but—
“We still need more Bloodstained Ore. Besides, if the duration of the ability gets longer, the time for experimentation will conversely get shorter. Don’t worry, I’ll support you!”
“But, still…”
“No need to worry, Yuma-kun. It’s been proven that there’s no problem with you using the Bloodstained Ore. All that’s left is to gather the numbers. Well, leave it to me!”
In the end, even the reluctant president couldn’t refuse Aisha’s request, and Yuma and the others ended up making a U-turn back to the ‘Black Dungeon’ in Yokohama.
◇◇◇
By the time they arrived in Yokohama, it was past six in the evening. They decided to postpone delving into the Dungeon until tomorrow and stayed at a hotel in Yokohama that day. And the next morning—
“Are you ready? Yuma.”
“Yes, I’m ready.”
Yuma replied to the president, carrying a large backpack. Inside, nitroglycerin bombs were packed tightly.
“Even so, Aisha-san, where did you get such a large amount of nitroglycerin?”
“I don’t know where she got it, but it was definitely obtained through illegal channels. It’s better not to pry too much.”
It’s terrifying to carry a backpack full of bombs, but without it, they can’t even get to the middle Stratums. More terrifying than bombs are the Monsters swarming in the middle Stratums of the Black Dungeon. He had no choice but to take it. The president and Yuma met up with Aisha and left the hotel they were staying at. The three of them stood in front of the heavily guarded gate of the ‘Black Dungeon.’ From today, the full-scale conquest of the middle Stratums would begin.
◇◇◇
“Take this!”
Yuma, who was Metallized, swung his Pickel. A dull sound rang out, and fragments of rock scattered around. Blocked by the sturdy arm, the Pickel didn’t reach the Monster’s head. Towering before him was a Rock Golem over two meters tall. Its entire body was grayish-brown, and its face had two red, glowing eyes. It was the largest of the humanoid Golems he had seen so far.
“Damn it!!”
This time, the president slammed his Hexagonal Rod. However, the Golem only staggered slightly and didn’t fall. Letting out an earth-shaking groan, the rock Monster charged at the president. It raised an arm as thick as a log and dropped it from directly above. The president also defended with his Hexagonal Rod, but his knees buckled from the force of the impact. Even so, he barely managed to push back the Golem’s arm with the Hexagonal Rod held in both hands.
“Damn! Yuma, use the bombs!! We can’t win against this thing by fighting normally.”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
Yuma lowered the backpack he was carrying and took out a metal device and a cylinder filled with nitro. He couldn’t use the Bloodstained Ore’s ability until he reached the 56th Stratum. Since he could only activate the ability for three minutes, he had to conserve it until he defeated the Varlin. He attached the metal fitting to the tip of the Pickel and set the white cylinder in the center. Leaving only the surface of the white cylinder exposed, he used his ‘Liquid Metallization’ ability to cover the entire Pickel.
“President, I’m ready! Please step back!”
“I can block the impact with Water Magic. Do it without hesitation! Yuma!!”
“Y-Yes!”
Yuma ran towards the Golem and swung his Pickel. The president mustered his strength and pushed the Golem away. Seeing that, Yuma slammed the Pickel into the Golem’s head. The moment it hit, a flash of light ran through. The tip of the Pickel exploded, shattering the Golem’s head, and rocks scattered around. The president instantly erected a Water Barrier, blocking the flying fragments. On the other hand, Yuma, who was blown away by the explosion, rolled around and crashed into the rock wall.
“…Ouch…”
Yuma shook his head. The explosion occurred right in front of him, and the impact was so great that he thought he would lose consciousness, but as expected, there wasn’t a single scratch on his body. Its sturdiness was guaranteed. Yuma immediately stood up and looked at the Golem. The rock remains, with its head gone and smoke rising, swayed and fell to the ground.
“D-Did I do it?”
As Yuma watched with bated breath, the Golem turned to sand and disappeared.
“Yuma, are you alright?”
The president came over, worried.
“Yes, I’m fine. Are you not injured, President?”
“Don’t worry about me. I’m a veteran Seeker, after all!”
While Yuma and the president were talking, Aisha crouched down in front of the Golem that had turned to sand. There, there was a small, silver-shining “orb.”
“Hehe, look, you two.”
“Huh?”
At Aisha’s words, the president and Yuma turned around. Aisha showed them the orb she was holding in her hand.
“It’s the rare Demon Ore, Pure Silver.”