Chapter 152: MAV, a two-adventurer team, commonly known as MAV tactics… or so it says in the textbook.
The day after the luncheon, the dungeon exploration finally began. About ten kilometers north of the town of Valleed. After advancing through a mountainous region for nearly half a day, we finally reached the entrance of the Drefon Great Labyrinth. The large hole opened in the middle of a sheer cliff looked as if a famished labyrinth was waiting for us with its mouth wide open.
“Alright then, let’s start with setting up camp, ssu yo!”
At Alissa-san’s command, we began to set up the base camp. This kind of work went smoothly since we’d done it many times while camping during our travels.
The dungeon exploration will be conducted over five days, using the base camp as our hub. During the day, we’ll explore the dungeon, and at night, we’ll return to camp to sleep. We’ll repeat that for five days, then return to Valleed once to resupply and rest, and then explore the dungeon for another five days. That’s the plan.
It was decided that we would visit Lucretia’s mother’s grave after returning to Valleed following the first round of dungeon exploration. They said the roads damaged by the long rains should be repaired by then.
And Lucretia’s birthday is also during the first dungeon exploration. I don’t know if it’ll be inside the dungeon or after we return to base camp, but as soon as the day changes, I’ll give her the present and confess. …Alright, I’m gonna do it!
The construction of the base camp was completed earlier than planned, before the sun began to set. Then, Alissa-san made a suggestion.
“How about we try going into the dungeon for a little bit right now, ssu ka?”
According to the schedule, full-scale dungeon exploration was supposed to start tomorrow, but it would be helpful to get a look at the dungeon’s interior before then. No particular objections came from the students, and all the accompanying adventurers agreed with Alissa-san.
For now, we decided to explore the area around the entrance, so we prepared our equipment and stepped into the dungeon. Immediately after, the air touching my skin changed completely, becoming cold and clinging.
Lily hugged herself as if by reflex.
“It’s a bit chilly, isn’t it… It’s like being in an icehouse.”
“I wish I’d brought a cloak…”
Lecty hunched over and blew on her hands. Her breath wasn’t white, as expected, but it was indeed quite chilly in summer clothes… It wasn’t unbearable, but if I wasn’t careful, I could catch a cold.
“The cold is one thing, but it’s surprisingly bright inside the dungeon, isn’t it?”
Rosalie said, looking around. Now that she mentioned it, the cave ceiling and rock surfaces were indeed clear. Visibility was sufficiently secured even without bringing light sources like torches. It was as if the dungeon itself was emitting light.
“That’s due to the moss that grows inside the dungeon.”
It was Ryugu who answered Rosalie’s question. He lightly stroked the rock surface with his index finger, then rubbed it with his thumb and showed us his fingertip. Ryugu’s fingertip was emitting a faint light.
“Moss that emits light when stimulated like this grows on the dungeon walls. The luminosity varies depending on the dungeon, and moss that glows brighter than this one here is harvested and used in lighting magic tools.”
“So that was glowing because of moss, huh.”
I’d been casually using them in my dorm room and stuff, but I never thought it was actually moss. I just assumed it was some kind of ore that generated something electrical to produce light…
“Various materials that can be collected in dungeons are used for magic tools. For example, showers use an ore called a ‘water source stone’ that continuously produces water, combined with ‘heat-storing grass’ to produce hot water. Both can be collected from dungeons in the Dwarf Kingdom. The reason the magic tool industry is developed in the Dwarf Kingdom is because many such materials are produced in the local dungeons there—”
“Aaand, that’s enough!”
Tina stopped Ryugu, who had started speaking faster and faster, rattling on. She put her hands on her hips and sighed.
“Ryu-nii, you always start rambling when it comes to magic tools. Everyone’s put off by it, you know~?”
“Eh!? S-Sorry, everyone…”
“No, I’m not put off or anything.”
Though Rouge and Rosalie did look a little bored…
Actually, I was rather interested in hearing more details. The northern region of the Almira continent, where the Kingdom of Reese is located. I’d also heard that cutting-edge magic tool research and development is being carried out in the Dwarf Kingdom there.
I wonder what kind of magic tools are being made there. Maybe there are magic tools similar to the home appliances from my previous life in Japan, and if I changed my Skill to
It’s a place I’d like to visit at least once in my life.
“You like magic tools, don’t you?”
“Yes, well. It’s been an influence from my father since I was young…”
Spoken to by Lily, Ryugu smiled shyly. Could this guy have a thing for Lily…? As if noticing my suspicious gaze, Ryugu vigorously shook his head.
“M-More importantly! Monsters could appear from anywhere at any moment. Let’s stay sharp!”
“Ryu-nii, if you shout that loudly, won’t you attract monsters~?”
Tina shrugged as if to say “honestly,” and Ryugu fell silent with an awkward look on his face.
After walking for a while since entering the dungeon, we passed through a narrow passage and emerged into a wide space. It was a large cavern, shaped like a fan, gradually widening downwards. This large cavern probably leads to the depths of the Drefon Great Labyrinth.
Just after entering the large cavern, we heard the cries of creatures from somewhere. The creatures living in the dungeon are all hostile and ferocious monsters to humans.
“All students, please step back. We’ll handle this one.”
The five accompanying adventurers stepped forward as if to protect us. What appeared were lizards about two meters long from head to tail… monsters that looked like the Velociraptors I’d seen in picture books in my previous life.
There were roughly a dozen or so of them. Idiot drew the sword he carried at his waist, and the other classmates also readied their respective weapons. However, Alissa-san just crossed her arms and remained an observer, not even readying a weapon. Since Rouge is also here and she’s just watching, does that mean she’s judged them not to be much of a threat?
Just in case, I also readied my sword and focused my mind so I could use
As expected, the adventurers’ fighting style was solid. Undeterred by their numerical disadvantage, each of them used their skills and weapons to reliably finish off the monsters. Among them, Ryugu and Tina stood out, as expected.
While the other adventurers fought spectacularly with rock spears and fire bullets, the two of them steadily defeated monsters using only a sword and bow, without using skills.
“Tina!”
“Roger!”
Their coordination was incredible; Tina would shoot her bow to cover Ryugu’s blind spots, and sometimes Ryugu would act as a decoy to lure monsters into Tina’s line of fire. When it was over, the two of them alone had slaughtered more than twice as many monsters as the other three adventurers combined.
As expected of Rank B Adventurers. They’re this good even while conserving their Skills… But that’s precisely why their maneuvering is such a good reference. Ryugu, in particular, didn’t seem to be using
“That’s enough for a demonstration, ssu ne. Let’s head back, ssu yo!”
After confirming the monsters were gone, we returned the way we came at Alissa-san’s command.
We were inside the dungeon for about thirty minutes, I guess. Considering we encountered monsters right after entering, the encounter rate seems high. It looks like there won’t be any room to let my guard down during the full-scale dungeon exploration starting tomorrow…
Volume 1 is finally on sale on the 25th of this month!
I’ve released the cover art on my activity report, so please check it out!