Tsukaishi⑥ – Fire Dungeon.
Before lunch.
According to the story, the Chimera Variant still hasn’t been subjugated.
The Chimera Variant travels in a pack with regular Chimeras.
Even when found, it uses the Chimeras as decoys and immediately flees.
We’re just going in circles, making no progress.
And that’s where my Relic comes in.
“You intend to utilize [Danger Detection] effectively?”
“And didn’t you have that Fortune-type Relic?”
“Ah, that one doesn’t react to living things.”
“What’s that? But it reacted during the Monokeros incident, did it not?”
“That was reacting to the Monokeros’s Horn. Not the Monokeros as a whole.”
“Hmm. I see.”
“If the Chimera had something like a horn, I think it would react, but…”
“Was there one, I wonder? Anyway, setting that aside, it would be a great help if Wof would cooperate with us.”
I looked at the Witch.
“Ah, ah, yes yes. No need to worry. I doubt Alveld will attack. But, let’s see. Perhaps we should assign a Tier I Seeker as an escort just in case? Then young Wof can go to the Fire Dungeon too.”
“Ah, yes. Understood. Ms. Pachira. If I can be of assistance, I’ll lend my strength.”
“Pleased to work with you.”
I shook hands with Ms. Pachira.
“Well then, well then, it’s my turn now. Young Wof. Do you recall how Alveld used his Relics?”
“How…? Well… he chanted the Relic.”
Now that she mentioned it, I wondered. Why did he chant the Relic?
Relics can be used without chanting.
So the fact that he chanted must mean it was a necessary part of the process.
“Hmm hmm. Anything else?”
“…Um…”
That guy definitely said… ‘Why shape it? Just see and call.’
“See and call? But I didn’t understand what that meant.”
“Hm? What? What are you talking about?”
Ms. Pachira tilted her head. I explained.
Ms. Pachira nodded.
“I see. It’s because Wof doesn’t have attribute Relics.”
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it. How are attributes used?”
“Um… Sorry. I don’t know.”
“Then allow me to demonstrate.”
As she said that, Ms. Pachira went out into the courtyard.
“Using fire here would be bad, so I suppose I’ll use wind.”
Ms. Pachira chanted.
“Come. [Wind Edge].”
She unleashed a blade of wind. Then she looked at me.
“Did you notice anything?”
“You chanted.”
“Is that all, I wonder?”
“…Uhh… Sorry.”
“It’s the gaze. I unleashed the wind blade in the direction I looked.”
“Your gaze?”
“It’s fundamental, though. You decide the direction with your gaze and activate it by chanting.”
“……”
That’s right. I looked at Shardina and chanted—it was the same.
I see. So that was the basic method.
“Yes yes. That’s the basic way. However, young Wof’s concern is the inability to control the power. Control, or rather, fine control.”
“Y-Yes.”
“That’s where I come in.”
Hayyarn appeared.
Full of misplaced confidence, as usual.
“Hayyarn.”
“I heard from the Witch. After checking the database, I found out it’s possible to create a training machine using an [Evil Eye].”
“Training… machine…?”
“Upon further investigation, I was even able to unlock the Lab’s training room. And the training room’s functions include a Relic training program. The program content covers Relic adjustment and operation via gaze, and the training machine is used for that.”
“You can do that?”
The Lab can do that much?
“The training machine requires something specific. An eyeball harboring an [Evil Eye]. Around here, that would be the Chimera Variant.”
“You mean I need to go get its eyeball!?”
“That’s the gist of it.”
I looked at Ms. Pachira.
“It matters not. We just need to subjugate it.”
So that’s how it is. I understood.
Let’s go. To the Fire Dungeon.
The Fire Dungeon is located west of Hydrangea.
Heading west, the greenery gradually disappears, replaced by rugged, rocky terrain.
Steam vents everywhere, and the geothermal heat makes the surroundings hot.
Wearing armor would probably cause burns.
That’s why even Lupinus-san, who’s always in armor, is lightly dressed here.
It feels somewhat refreshing.
“Mineha-san couldn’t come?”
“Mm… Said something about… urgent business coming up… or something.”
“Can’t be helped.”
Apparently, Dagaa is with her too.
Come to think of it, Mineha-san’s mother is also Tier I, so she should be coming.
Mineha-san’s name was on the Tsukaishi request list too.
“The Fire Dungeon. This is my first time entering.”
Shiro-san said, looking up at the entrance.
Her white dress and the tea table strapped to her back stood out conspicuously.
She was the one who had volunteered to be my escort.
The Witch and Munieca-san had hauled Hayyarn off towards the Lab.
Munieca-san was concerned about the Menos Doll. About Shardina.
I didn’t know about the Witch.
“I never expected someone of First Class to accompany us.”
Lupinus-san said, looking slightly tense.
“Don’t misunderstand. Shiro is Wof-kun’s escort. I won’t interfere otherwise.”
“That is fine. This is our problem, after all.”
“Mm… But… introductions… Yo, Liv’s Liv… Member… of ‘Torquetum’… Nice to meetcha.”
“I am the leader of ‘Torquetum,’ Lupinus=Loadenton.”
“Pachira. Also a member.”
“Shiro=White=Weiss=Blanche=Album=Sephide. I work as a Tier I Seeker.”
“I know of you. The ‘Immortal White Rose Princess,’ correct?”
“I know of ‘Torquetum’ as well.”
“Oh, how honorable.”
“I have a favorable impression of hardworking girls.”
“That makes me happy. By the way, aren’t you a bit too close to Wof?”
Shiro-san was stuck right against my arm.
Perhaps because she was soft and pure white, she felt cool to the touch.
“That’s because I’m her escort.”
“Mm… Too much… bodyguard…”
“I also believe it’s rather improper for a man and woman to be in such close contact.”
Lupinus-san offered her gentle rebuke, her cheeks slightly flushed.
Shiro-san looked disappointed as she moved away. Ms. Pachira gave me a sidelong glance.
“Wh-What is it?”
“You two seem quite close.”
“I think so too…”
My overwhelming feeling was bewilderment as to why.
“Now then, we are heading to the 13th floor. As a result of repeated investigations, it has been determined that the Chimera Variant is lurking there. However, even knowing where it lurks, subjugating it is difficult.”
“Even though you know where it is?”
“You’ll understand when we get there. Wof. I’ll explain the route. First, we head to the 4th floor. There, we Teleport to the 9th. From the 9th, we go to the 10th, and there we Teleport to the 13th. That’s it. On the 10th floor, there is a monster called a Keeper.”
“Keeper?”
“Sometimes dungeons have them. Like gatekeepers guarding the next floor.”
Is it like an area boss?
So those exist too.
“Salamandra. But it’s not a particularly strong monster.”
They must think that because they’ve investigated it many times.
Judging by the name, maybe it’s a fire serpent?
“Mm… But… don’t let your guard down… You never know… what might happen in a dungeon.”
“Y-Yes.”
I braced myself.
First, the 4th floor.
The Fire Dungeon is a lava cavern.
It’s black and rugged, with little variation between floors.
It’s constantly hot and humid due to geothermal heat, and the monsters that appear are also red and burning.
4th Floor. Numerous spheres of light float between the black rock ground and the low rock ceiling.
They’re Liv-san’s light spheres.
“A good Party.”
“Yes, they are.”
Shiro-san and I watched ‘Torquetum’ fight.
Lupinus-san held her shield ready, Liv-san’s blade gleamed, and Ms. Pachira brandished her staff.
“Their roles are clearly defined. Their combination is good too. Above all, the way they can understand each other and move just by looking is excellent.”
“Eye contact?”
“Yes, it’s wonderful. But it’s a shame.”
“What is?”
“I won’t say, because I believe they probably realize it themselves.”
A shame… huh.
‘Torquetum’ was fighting Goblins with red skin.
Red Goblins.
It’s been a while since I saw them, but they still look like nothing more than brats.
Other than their red skin, they don’t seem any different.
But that red skin is a bit troublesome, making them resistant to heat.
And they just keep pouring out, endlessly.
A quick count showed over 20 of them.
Goblins aren’t weaklings.
Copper Rank Mid-tier. As respawning enemies go, they’re moderately strong and annoying.
Lupinus-san raised her shield, deflecting enemy attacks, and Liv-san slashed at the openings created.
Then, Ms. Pachira’s wind attribute Relic cut them down.
They skillfully repeated this pattern, reducing the Goblins’ numbers.
The core of their offense is Ms. Pachira.
Her attribute Relics, like ‘magic,’ can attack large numbers.
Lupinus and Liv moved to allow her to comfortably activate those attributes.
Attribute attacks have cooldowns, especially the large-scale ones.
I recall Ms. Pachira possessing two attributes: [Fire] and [Wind].
I heard [Fire] is difficult to use in the Fire Dungeon because many things are heat-resistant.
Attributes, huh.
Hayyarn said he could create attribute plates.
He mentioned that currently, [Fire], [Water], and [Wind] could be mass-produced.
I thought I wanted [Fire] too, so I asked, but I was warned.
The number of Relics one can possess is proportional to the size of their soul’s vessel.
The larger the soul’s vessel, the more Relics one can hold.
If you possess a Relic while ignoring the size of your vessel, your soul’s vessel could collapse.
When the soul’s vessel collapses, the soul is released. In other words, death—that was the first I’d heard of it.
Also, plans to artificially enlarge the soul’s vessel have been proposed and scrapped many times over.
And the more powerful a Relic is, the larger the proportion of the soul’s vessel it occupies.
The Relic that occupies the largest proportion is, just as I thought, the [Pseudo-Deification Relic].
Also, apparently, there are blueprints in the Lab’s database for a device that can graph the soul’s vessel, but…
“Looks like it’s over,”
By the time I noticed, the Red Goblins had been completely wiped out.
None of them were injured.
“Indeed, we could use some slightly more powerful attacks, couldn’t we?”
“We’re defeating them reliably enough, but it sure is taking time, isn’t it?”
“Mmm… A task for the future…”
“Like Mineha-san, I also…”
Hmm? Lupinus-san. Didn’t you just look at me?
Maybe it was just my imagination.
At this rate, without me doing anything in particular, we proceeded to the 9th floor.
The 9th floor had a dark red sky like a sunset, and near a volcano, an impossibly huge black wall towered.
Nearby stood a black, burnt castle, and Monsters with black wings flew in the sky above it.
And rivers of lava. It was like a scene straight out of hell.
Against this backdrop, a majestic, four-eyed giant boar of flame.
The Good Flame Boar and ‘Torquetum’ were fighting.