Chapter 11 (1/2)

The First Dungeon ②

After I reached the underground part of this dungeon, I used [Detection] and [Search] to look around. I don’t know the structure of this bas.e.m.e.nt, but the enemies were quite far. It seems the area is quite large.

I tell Sara that she should use her [Detection] as much as possible to increase its level further, and afterwards, we all fall in line and advance.

After we had gone further in, we manage to spot an enemy.

It’s a Venomous Bat. It looks like a small, normal bat, and it seems weak at first glance, but its fangs have enough venom to kill a human in one bite.

Indeed, this might not be an enemy I can leave to the girls. Since they don’t have [Abnormal State Immunity], I’ll slice it in two with my sword…

I put the corpse in the item box, and as we keep advancing I get a reaction from the [Search] skill.

When I place my hand on the wall that the skill has reacted to, I find out that there is a hidden door.

There doesn’t seem to be any traps around it, so I casually open it.

– Sword of exorcism rank4

STR+32

Deals major damage to creatures of undead origins.

I didn’t even put it in the item box, and yet I can see all its information.

Is this the benefit of the [Growth] skill?

「Sara, this is for you」

「You’re the only one who uses a sword」

「Thank you very much!」

I pa.s.s the sword to Sara and we all leave the room.

There’s a golem ahead.

Good, let’s make him our practice partner.

「Everyone listen」

There’s only one golem ahead, so I tell the girls to defeat it on their own.

I tell the girls a strategy they could use to defeat the golem.

Umm, I know I proposed this plan myself, but I’m still a little nervous.

「Wait, why are you going to the front!」

「Don’t quarrel you tw- Kya!」

「Celica-san are you okay!?」

As I had expected, this is a chaotic battle.

The strategy was supposed to go like this: while Celica and Sara confined the golem, Charlotte and Mira were going to break the golem’s core.

Celica can’t attack while she’s under attack, so because she was avoiding and parrying the attacks from the golem, she was left without a chance to attack. Since the golem hadn’t had its moves restricted, it easily deflected Charlotte’s magic.

Because the golem managed to avoid the arrow and magic another two times, Charlotte decides to run to the front. Celica was distracted by this, and was blown away. That’s the current situation.

Celica, who was blown away, is safe and is being healed by Mira’s magic.

The problem is…

「You’re in the way, move it!」

「You’re the one that’s in the way!」

These two are avoiding the golem’s attacks while shouting at each other.

Even if they sometimes manage to attack with their fists and sword, the golem takes very little damage. The little bit of damage it takes from Charlotte’s fists is instantly healed, and the damage taken is 0. The attacks from Sara’s sword don’t even leave a scratch.

「It’s over, huh?」

At this rate, they won’t be able to beat the golem.

I step between the golem and the two girls, and gouge out the core from its forehead.

「Don’t fight」

「「This guy is in the wrong」」

Haa, these two…

Afterwards, I left those two quarrelling and head over to Celica and Mira.

「Are you okay, Celica?」

「Yes, I’m fine after Mira-chan’s healing. Thank you, Mira-chan」

Mira seemed happy when Celica stroked her hair.

I confirmed that Celica wasn’t injured, and then I drag the two quarrelling girls over, and gather everyone in one place.

「From now on, I will defeat the enemies by myself」

From the fight with the golem, I saw that the girls are still lacking in power. Even though they all had sad looks, everyone nodded.

Everyone… especially Mira and Sara, needs to get stronger. Otherwise, their dream of world peace will stay as just a dream.

「After we leave the dungeon, you’ll all have a mock battle against me」

After I said that, everyone’s face somehow turned to despair.

「No, that’s impossible!」

「Uu, I decided to give my life for Maika-san. To be killed by Maika-san…」

「Even a lady like myself will get hurt in a fight with a monster like yo- Ouch!?」

So rude, watch your mouth.

Muu, am I really that scary?

I was gentle until now, so from now on let’s try to be even more gentle.

Anyway, let’s return to exploring this dungeon.

The enemies we’ve encountered so far were, the Venomous Bat, Golems, and an Orc. We’ve only seen these 3 so far. Combat is easier than I though.

We found another set of stairs, but we still haven’t explored the whole underground area, so we resume our search.

As a result,

– Poison Gra.s.s rank3

10 bundles

– Bracelet of power rank4

STR+11

I obtained these items from treasure chests. I gave the bracelet to Celica, and I’ll use the Poison Gra.s.s for alchemy later.

Perhaps I can use this to make an Antidote Potion. The girls don’t have the [Abnormal State Immunity] skill, so the sooner the better. When we leave the dungeon, I’ll ask Maria about alchemy.

However, why hasn’t this dungeon been cleared yet?

While I’m thinking about such things, we descend the stairs and head further underground. Eventually we arrive near a door.

The door opens and closes.

… I discovered something amazing.

The moment I saw it, I understood why this dungeon hasn’t been cleared yet.

I understand why now though. Probably, adventurers of rank 6 barely managed to get to this place. The dungeon’s rank is determined by the rank of the weakest party that can return alive. When you say rank 6, that means a rank 6 adventurer made it to this place. Everyone returns after getting to this point. As a result, this dungeon still has yet to be cleared.

「Aren’t we going to enter?」

「Un, it’s better if you wait here」

This is bad. I can’t take the girls in there.

In a more serious way than usual, I’ll tell them not to go in without my permission.

「Sorry, you guys should all leave first」

I wonder if I conveyed my seriousness. Either way, the always moody Charlotte silently nodded.