Chapter 37
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Dungeon
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The next day.
When I arrived at the guild in the morning, sure enough, there was no sign of Kobson. That fucking bastard. Merria had come early and was waiting, lounging in a chair, drowsily basking in the sunlight.
"Hey. I'm here."
"...Oh. You made it."
"Looks like Kobson didn't get the message or something. He's a no-show."
"Nothing we can do about it. We'll have to find someone else."
"Just in case, let's wait a bit."
"Sure."
Not wanting to just kill time waiting idly for Kobson, I ordered two beers. The Adventurer's Guild often sells booze to the jobless drifters constantly hunting for work or to the diligent adventurers fresh back from completing quests.
"Here."
The beer came in glasses that weren't all that big, one copper per glass. They looked cheap size-wise and it hurt a little, but I wasn't some kid whining about overpriced ramen at a PC bang, so I handed one over to Merria without hesitation.
"Whoa, you're actually buying? Thanks!"
Merria's face, which had been blank and sleepy, lit up instantly. No one in this era hated booze. And it wasn't just this era—probably no one in any world hated alcohol.
"I'm the one making you wait. Least I can do is buy a round."
"Cheers."
More than anything, since I was the reason she had to wait, it would've bugged me more if I didn't do something like this.
"You're so considerate."
"Basic human decency."
We clinked glasses with Merria and chugged our beers. The taste was pretty much the same as back on Earth. Human taste buds must all converge on the same flavor through some kind of evolutionary pressure. One glass left me wanting a bit more.
"How about just one more?"
"Thanks!"
And so, unintentionally, I ended up drinking with her alone starting from the morning. Booze has a way of loosening tongues. Merria asked if I had any dungeon stories or info to share.
"Well, I've been in a few dungeons myself."
What should I talk about... Yeah, the kobold dungeon sounds good. That was back when I was still an F-rank adventurer, total worthless human trash barely scraping by. It's been over a year, maybe not quite two...
"You told me about the Ossuary Palace yesterday, so I'll share a dungeon story from one I went to."
The memory of nearly dying there was still vivid.
So close I could reach out and touch it if I tried.
"Where to start... Back when I was a total newbie, I went into a kobold burrow and almost bit it. Kobolds are these rat-looking monsters that dig underground nests like ants... You know about them, right? A few years ago, a massive kobold burrow was discovered near Krasheim. It got designated as a dungeon right away, and adventurers flocked there. Kobolds have this habit of piling up all the 'obstacles' they hit while digging into one spot. Like a trash room for them, but for us, it's a treasure trove. Plus, rumors flew about mana stones or whatever turning up sometimes. That's what drew the adventurers in."
"So? Did you go hunting for that stuff too?"
Merria asked with an intrigued look.
"Kinda... But that wasn't my goal. What did I know back then with jack shit to my name? Dungeon popped up, money to be made, people will gather. That kinda vibe. I teamed up with some F-rank buddies I'd gotten familiar with and headed in. Our goal wasn't grand. Just earn a few days' pay. Even ten coppers each would be profit. We could scavenge what others dropped. Stuff like that. Honestly, I was scared, but with numbers on our side, I wasn't too freaked. Kinda excited, even."
Who could've guessed that would be why I ended up a total loner loser with no friends? Kobolds were the poster child for weak-as-fuck enemies even F-ranks could repel multiple times, so we underestimated them.
"And so..."
"Hey there."
As I opened my mouth to continue, a familiar voice came from behind.
"Booze in the middle of the day? Typical barbarian shit. Haven't seen you in a while—hiding out here, huh?"
"...Not a case of same name, different people, then."
And there he was, Kobson, showing up with weirdly high energy. Blond hair tied back, face dotted with freckles—my fellow E-rank adventurer. Last time was the cockatrice hunt.
"What happened next?"
"Ah, I'll tell you later."
Kobson caught sight of my drinking buddy being a woman and gave me a weird look. I gestured for him to sit beside me.
"Take a seat first. Been forever. You look like you've been doing well."
"Every time I see you, barbarian, you're onto a new girl. Wild animal. No self-control, as expected from a barbarian."
I brushed off Kobson's bullshit and got to the point.
"Cut the crap... Hey, Kobson. This lady and I are forming a dungeon exploration party. Wanna join?"
"Buy me a drink and I'm in."
"See ya. Catch you later."
Dutch pay between guys, obviously. I waved him off, trying to send him back where he belonged.
"Harsh, man. Fine, whatever. I came to this city for the dungeon anyway. Count me in."
"Alright, let's register the party then."
With Kobson on board, now we just need to recruit a decent priest. In dungeons, a healer who can handle emergency treatment is essential. And holy spells would help a ton with the darkness inside.
"Merria. This is Kobson, the guy I mentioned. Gear looks solid, right? He looks rough, but he's reliable. No complaints there."
"Yeah, seems good. Kobson? I'm Merria. Nice to meet you."
"Looks like the barbarian was causing trouble. Nice to meet you too."
"Drop the deep voice, asshole."
Kobson's party registration was done. Plenty of time left today—let's scout for a priest to recruit.
"Any churches around here?"
I knew Krasheim, my turf, but this was Isbrandt. No clue where the churches were. I asked Merria, who'd been here longer.
"Hmm. From what I know, Salvation Celestial Society, Soul Purification Cult... Brass Celestial Society, Ascension Society? Something like that? Might be more, but I'm not sure."
Merria named the local churches: Salvation Celestial Society, Soul Purification Cult, Brass Celestial Society, and Ascension Society.
Just hearing the names, they sounded like sketchy cults tucked away somewhere. But this world was polytheistic, with all sorts of gods and faiths, so it was natural.
Each church had different signature powers (different gods and all), so to get proper info, we'd need locals or church folk. None of us—me, Kobson, or Merria—were Isbrandt natives, so we were clueless.
The Brass Celestial Society priests from that sermon could use Heal... Wonder about the rest.
"Gotta have a priest who can heal for a dungeon run. Kobson, any of those churches have that?"
"Worked with an apprentice from Salvation Celestial Society once. They could heal, but they were stingy with it."
"Got it?"
Guess we should check one of those first.
As we discussed which church to hit first, the guild door creaked open.
Clank, clank.
Nice gear. The satisfying sound of metal armor echoed—who could it be? I turned around.
"Hm?"
It was a short nun. Blue-tinged habit, iron light armor. Sound came from there. She wore a fancy glowing cross necklace... Radiant Cross Society? Yeah, that was their symbol.
The ones rumored to be full of violent psychos. Then I noticed her hair: radiant crimson, like melted ruby, shining brilliantly.
Wait a sec.
Suddenly, someone came to mind.
"Ah, isn't that Katt?"
"Sister Elise?"
"Good to see you. It's been a while. How have you been?"
Elise greeted me with her usual blank expression.
I returned the greeting, stunned. What was this? Family reunion? She looked mostly the same since last time, but her gear had clearly leveled up.
Had she job-changed from junior nun to mid-rank or something?
"I put that giant spider carapace you gifted me to good use."
"Oh, really? Heh heh, glad to hear it."
Come to think of it, I gave her that as a parting gift, like swapping snacks. Merria and Kobson asked if we knew each other. I waved them off—I'll explain later.
"But... what brings you to Isbrandt, Sister Elise?"
"The church assigned me a mission. I'm here to investigate."
This special forces nun sure stayed busy.
"Haha, like that kobold idol last time? Man, you guys are always on the move."
"Exactly. Turns out there's circumstantial evidence linking that to the kobold sanctuary in the dungeon called the Ossuary Palace. I'm here to check it out."
The Ossuary Palace—that's the dungeon we were heading to.
This unexpected stroke of luck hit me. If I played it right with Elise, she might join us for the exploration. I'd seen her superhuman skills up close last time—guaranteed quality.
"Can't investigate alone, so I came to the guild to recruit help... Pardon me, but are you free right now, Katt? If it's alright, how about teaming up again? Your experience would be perfect."
Elise said that to me. I called her name seriously.
"Sister Elise."
"Yes?"
"We just formed a party to explore the Ossuary Palace ourselves. Rather than us asking if you can join, mind if we go together? Great minds think alike."
Our eyes met.
"Looking forward to working with you."
"Same here. This has to be fate between me and the sister."
We shook hands, facing each other.