Crown of the Wonderland ⑤
Great Temple. Southeast.
When we reached the vicinity of the Encampment, we found the carcass of a Mimic Puppet Box.
For some reason, Rell-san was standing guard on top of the carcass.
He looked down at us and said.
“It’s just like my twelfth sister’s Relic.”
What kind of Relic is that?
“Rell-san. This is…”
“The new Encampment.”
“Huh?”
I was about to ask if Rell-san and his group had defeated this Mimic Puppet Box.
That was an unexpected answer.
“Ah, Rell-san-ssu.”
“Bid, is that you? It’s been a while. You’re short a few people over there. About four.”
“One’s back home, and the other three… we left them behind over there-ssu.”
“Over there, huh. Whether that was a good thing or not, I don’t know, just like my fifth sister.”
“Unlucky constitution. Always picks the wrong option out of two.”
“You still have a lot of sisters-ssu, huh.”
Bid-san gave a wry smile.
Rell-san chuckled softly and looked at Ms. Pachira and the others.
“…Torquetum, is it?”
“Rell. Fang of Thunder, isn’t it?”
“That’s right.”
“Wof seems to be in your care.”
Eh? Me? Well, yes, I suppose I am greatly indebted to them.
“Indeed. But just as the rumors say, it’s all women… Even now, that’s quite a few.”
“It’s only natural, as we are an all-female Party.”
“Speaking of women, Wof. Where’s Mineha?”
“Ah!”
I hurriedly opened my pouch.
Then, I carefully and gently took out Mineha-san, who was wrapped in a handkerchief.
I could tell she was alive from the faint warmth and the rising and falling of her upper body.
“Is that a Fairial-ssu?”
“Is she sleeping?”
“Nn… tiny creature…”
“How cute.”
Rell-san climbed down from the Puppet Box.
He looked at Mineha-san and said.
“The Great Temple?”
“Yes. She suddenly collapsed.”
Ax-san had warned me.
About the strange pressure emanating from the center of the Great Temple.
I didn’t feel anything, but Mineha-san collapsed because of it.
Rell-san observed her.
“She seems to be breathing.”
“Yes.”
I think she’s just weakened. So she should be okay.
And just in case, I have an Elixir.
Just then, Ax-san emerged from the box part of the Puppet Box carcass.
“Rell. Maybe we should also look for those two like Alexander did, whoaah!?”
Ax-san was surprised.
Well, that’s bound to happen when there’s such a large crowd milling about.
But… he came out from inside the Puppet Box?
And searching like Alexander-san?
“What in tarnation. This is… quite a crowd-be.”
Hoss-san also came out of the Puppet Box.
What’s going on?
I explained the situation.
Ax-san understood.
“Ah… I see. The Dungeon anomaly subjugation group, huh? No point standing around talking. We just set up a new Encampment. Shall we talk inside?”
Rell-san welcomed us like that.
Could that mean— Everyone fell silent.
Who on earth suggested such a thing?
The Puppet Box. I’m inside it now.
This is the new Encampment.
“I can’t believe we’re inside a defeated Monster.”
“The teeth at the entrance are scary-ssu.”
“Ah, those make for a good guard.”
“That may be true-ssu, but…”
It seems Bid-san isn’t fond of the teeth at the entrance.
I understand how she feels. Having giant human-like teeth at the entrance is… unpleasant for me too.
Lupinus-san said, sounding exasperated.
“I expected it to be much more… visceral.”
“…To think… there’s nothing… inside…”
“To think the insides are just an empty box of considerable size.”
That’s right. This is the inside of the Mimic Puppet Box.
A Dungeon Monster, a giant Mimic that turns what it eats into puppets.
For me, it’s a detestable Monster that caused a tragedy at the Junkyard.
Its insides are an empty box.
The material is unknown, but it’s somewhat soft yet hard.
Inside the box, torches were set up, along with three tents and a campfire.
The smoke from the campfire rose upwards. But I couldn’t see any smoke.
“Um, Ax-san. Where is Alexander-san?”
I asked since I couldn’t see him. Ax-san sighed.
“…When the earthquake hit and things got chaotic around here, a swarm of puppets and Mimics suddenly appeared. After we repelled some of them, Alexander got really worried about you guys and headed towards the Great Temple.”
“Is that what happened?”
“Then this Mimic Puppet Box attacked us-be.”
“We managed to defeat it somehow.”
“With just the three of you-ssu!?”
“It was tough, but as a consequence, or rather, our Encampment got completely wrecked.”
“So we figured, why not reuse this thing-be, and here we are.”
“I-I see.”
But still, why did they decide to make the inside of a Puppet Box their Encampment?
“Is this truly alright? It may be spacious, but having a campfire in an enclosed space is dangerous.”
“Th-th-that’s, well, for some reason the smoke gets sucked upwards, so it’s fine-be.”
“That ‘for some reason’ just makes me more anxious-ssu.”
“Nn… agree…”
“N-n-no need to worry-be. W-we searched this box from corner to corner-be!”
“Also, the heart I shot through was lying deeper inside.”
“A heart…”
“And there was a half-formed puppet stuck in there too.”
“My anxiety just doubled-ssu!”
“Relax. We’re burning it now. Don’t talk like my fifth sister.”
“That sister is the source of anxiety-be.”
What did the fifth sister do?
“Wait, eh, this campfire couldn’t possibly be!”
I was dumbfounded.
Are they using puppets as firewood?
Well, they do seem kind of woody, but they were originally… you know.
Well, they’re different now, so maybe it’s fine. Let’s stop thinking about it.
Bid-san approached Hoss-san, who was stirring a pot.
“What are you cooking-ssu?”
“I-i-it’s Assorted Meat stew. Gets boring having only soup… -be, y’know.”
“…Looks delicious… slurp. Nn.”
“I-if you’d like, h-h-have some-be. Here.”
“Nn… Thanks…”
Hoss-san ladled some stew into a bowl for Liv-san.
Bid-san also tasted the Assorted Meat stew.
Something seems off about Hoss-san. Is he nervous?
After that, we ate, drank, and introduced ourselves to each other.
And then, it was formally decided that Ms. Pachira’s group would also camp here.
Right away, the number of tents increased to six.
Everyone disarmed and relaxed.
Everyone, including me, was tired.
We decided to talk things over after resting for a while.
When I moved away from the campfire towards the tents, Liv-san and Bid-san were talking.
“I’m so jealous-ssu. Liv-san’s Relic [Storage] and Legacy [High-Performance Tent] are amazing-ssu!”
“…Embarrassing…”
Embarrassing… hmm.
No, that storage. It’s not a Relic. It’s a product of technology.
The high-performance tent isn’t a Legacy either. It’s a product of technology.
Behind the other five tents, there was a unique, trapezoidal gray tent.
No, it was a house. Judging by the material, it wasn’t cloth.
Its appearance was also completely out of place, looking more like something from an alien survival scenario than another world.
Since it was the women’s tent, naturally, I didn’t go inside.
But it apparently had beds, a shower, and even a flush toilet.
It’s just insanely amazing.
Just a little while ago, Bid-san teased me, saying, ‘Wof-kun, let’s take a bath together-ssu’.
Give me a break.
I placed Mineha-san inside the third tent.
This one is used for storage.
If she woke up in the Torquetum tent, she’d definitely panic.
On the other hand, the other tents are sleeping quarters, and they’re noisy with people around.
So, the storage tent it is. I laid her down on top of a barrel to make her easy to spot.
After she collapsed, I’d instinctively put her back in the pouch again. I feel kind of bad about that.
If she seems unwell, I’ll use the Elixir.
“…Still…”
Alone now, I let out a deep sigh.
I couldn’t help but clench my fists tightly, gritting my teeth.
It’s frustrating. Unbearably frustrating. I feel like punching that wooden box over there.
I won’t do it, but that’s how frustrated and, at the same time, pathetic I feel. I can’t forgive myself.
Even in the memories of my past life, I’ve never felt this frustrated and pathetic.
“Cooldown…”
Until now, whenever I used [Generous], I always won.
So, I never had to use it consecutively before.
I didn’t notice at all.
It never occurred to me, never even crossed my mind.
Because I’d been using it cautiously, treating it like something delicate.
That’s no excuse.
It won’t matter if I’m dead.
“…Haaah…”
The Fourth Relic [Generous] has a cooldown.
[The Silent One] had one too, after all.
Why didn’t I consider that [Generous] might have one as well?
I try activating [Generous] right now.
But nothing happens. My hair, my eyes, that sense of exhilaration, that overwhelming pressure—none of it appears.
More than an hour has passed since then, but it’s still on cooldown.
“…”
“Excuse me, child.”
“Whoa! Y-Yes?”
Lupinus-san was standing behind me before I knew it.
“What is it?”
“Um, you startled me.”
Since she’s disarmed, Lupinus-san is also lightly dressed.
She’s wearing a pale vanilla-colored dress.
Her gentle, casual appearance, so different from when she’s in armor, throws me off a bit.
“I see. By the way, that Fairial over there. Leaving her in her armor must be uncomfortable.”
“Eh? But there’s no way I could undress her.”
No way, no way. Mineha-san.
Even though she’s small, she has an amazing figure for her apparent age, so it’s impossible.
“You’re just a child, there’s no need to worry about such things.”
“That’s not true. We’re male and female. I don’t think age matters.”
“Oh? I suppose you have a point. In that case, I shall do it.”
“Y-Yes. Please do.”
“Then please step outside.”
“Yes.”
I exit somewhat flustered.
I happened to run into Ms. Pachira, and our eyes met.
“What is it, Wof? Did something happen?”
“Ah, no, um… there was something I couldn’t do myself.”
“Hmm? Right. Let me return this.”
Saying that, Ms. Pachira handed me a small vial.
It was empty.
“Did you use it?”
“Aye. Not I, but it was used. It was a great help. My thanks.”
“…I’m glad.”
“Still, to think we’d meet you here.”
“Me too.”
I hadn’t expected to see her at all.
Ms. Pachira smiled.
“As for me, you know… Being able to meet you… Honestly, I was glad.”
“That goes for me too—”
“What are you doing?”
Suddenly, Lupinus-san came out of the tent.
Right. This is the tent entrance.
“W-We were just talking a little. And you?”
“…I was helping the Fairial girl out of her armor. It’s pitiful for her to stay dressed like that.”
“Indeed.”
“Both of you. Let’s go. It’s almost time for our discussion.”
“Mm.”
“We need to discuss various things about what comes next, don’t we?”
“Y-Yes.”
What comes next, huh.
I wonder what’s really going to happen from now on.