Chapter 45

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 45

Chapter Title: To Lena Stuck in the Wall....(1)

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A single clump of grass, completely detached and alone—not from the bundle of poisonous herbs I'd prepared for resistance training, not from the spices for cooking, not even from the plants I'd gathered while surveying the vegetation on the 9th floor—tumbled out of my pocket.

I wasn't sure when I'd even picked it up. I hadn't sorted it separately to begin with, and I'm no expert who could identify it just by looks... Anyway, it didn't match any of the grasses I had memorized...

Most of the herbs in my pocket were poisonous anyway, so I took a bite off the end to test it. None of the poisonous ones I'd brought along could threaten my life.

"...?"

But even after chewing and waiting, [Poison Resistance] didn't react at all. It just had that typical bitter taste of grass. Not even [Venom Arts] triggered.

I turned the clump in my hand this way and that, then just set it aside. If it wasn't poison, I wouldn't have any immediate use for it. Right now, it was time to train [Poison Resistance]. Alright... starting with the bleeding poison...

"Here to switch... What the hell happened to you?"

I was in the middle of chewing poison to train my resistance when Lena, freshly woken from sleep, came to take over the night watch. What did she mean, what happened?

Puzzled, I glanced around and saw the area was splattered with blood from the bleeding poisons. Somehow, in the chaos, my [Regeneration] skill had activated too... Well, I could train that skill as well, so it was a total win, right?

I wiped the blood off with a bandage soaked in water since there wasn't anything better, then handed over to Lena. She freaked out when she saw the spot where I'd been sitting was soaked in blood and chose a different place. Just in case, I used [Venom Arts] and water to clean up any traces of poison. I couldn't let Lena get poisoned.

"...Seeing you like this, I guess it's true you trained under Alensia."

As I wiped the blood, Lena stared at me with a look of disgust. It was similar to the expression I'd had when I first saw Alensia... Had I picked up her habits that much? But it was useful, so whatever.

I adjusted the lingering fatigue in my body with [Heavenly Touch] and headed to the tent I'd set up. Even in a labyrinth, I figured sleep would come easily.

The poisons had made me drowsy, so I only hastily cleared the urgent stuff without a full cleanup before passing out. I'd gotten rid of anything that could spread poison, so the rest could wait until morning...

Watching Ian settle in to sleep, Lena plopped down by the campfire. Just to be safe, she spread her mana around to ward off intruders and sorted through the thoughts swirling in her head.

First and foremost was her dear friend Hiss. She'd been separated with that guy named Hiro—had something happened? Even if it had, Hiss could probably escape unscathed... but still.

She wanted to rush off to find Hiss right away, but as a mage, she forced herself to think rationally. In a labyrinth, anything could happen, and she knew they needed to rest whenever they had the chance to camp.

Next up was Ian, the guy who'd just fallen asleep—the man she despised. Especially since he was hanging around Hiss. He hadn't done anything creepy during the massage, unlike what she'd expected from a guy...(Though he actually had.) Still, she had no intention of trusting a man easily.

But Ian had been recommended by Alensia. Back when she was a beginner adventurer, Alensia had trained her—that beautiful, strong adventurer who was her ideal. And she'd recommended this guy?

During her own training, Lena had been proud of her skills. She'd endured Alensia's "training" longer than any other trainee, earning praise for her patience.

Even so, she hadn't received Alensia's recommendation. Advanced adventurers each had one recommendation slot... And she'd used it on a guy who'd barely become an adventurer?

Alensia was famous among elves for honing her senses to deliver iron-fisted justice to men with impure intentions. Lena had admired that about her. But if Alensia had recommended this guy, did that mean even she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠trusted him enough?

Her mind a tangle, she poked at the campfire needlessly. Trying to clear her head, she scanned the surroundings and spotted the remnants Ian hadn't fully cleaned up. He knew handling poison was dangerous, since most of it was gone, but faint traces lingered.

Feeling oddly unsettled, Lena gathered the leftovers in one spot and burned them. Stems left after eating the poisonous parts, traces of jerky from his midnight snacks, bloodstains soaked into the dirt...

As she cleared them, she found a lone clump of grass discarded by itself. Known as "pink rabbit," it was a type of herb. Concentrated, it served as a heat inducer exclusive to beastkin, but in small amounts, its effects were weak, making it a popular treat among beastkin.

'Did Ian bring this?'

But it seemed unlikely—it was just tossed carelessly aside, unlike his other items. Tucked in a corner. She sniffed it, and a pleasant scent that lightly stirred her beastkin instincts wafted up.

"Kerrrung..."

Before she knew it, she was sniffing it repeatedly.

Like a cat getting high on catnip, she held it close to her nose and savored the smell. She knew from experience that just sniffing was fine since she wasn't ingesting it, so Lena tried to soothe her restless mind with the "pink rabbit's" aroma.

And that action became a trigger, granting Ian a new skill. He was already primed for rogue-type skills thanks to [Stealth], but since overuse could be dangerous, he'd set aside items classifiable as "poison." The system judged that as an "installation," and when Lena unwittingly touched it, it registered as triggering a "trap."

Once deemed a trap "installed" by Ian, multiple skills activated in an instant.

It wasn't a massive difference, but the herb's components were definitely amplified. As a result, though she hadn't ingested it directly, the medicinal—nay, poisonous—components gradually seeped into Lena's body.

And that awakened a certain instinct in the sleeping beastkin.

"Lena, you okay?"

When I woke up, Lena, who was on watch, didn't look so hot. She seemed fidgety, like she was itching a bit...

"I-I'm fine. Just ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠worried about Hiss. Let's hurry."

Lena cut me off and rushed to pack up, taking the lead. I scratched my head and tidied the remaining traces from yesterday. Huh? That mystery grass I'd set aside was gone too? Eh, whatever.

While Ian cleaned his sleeping spot, Lena, a bit farther off, checked her body.

'Weird... I still had a few days left, so why is my heat starting now?'

By her calculations, her heat cycle should've had days to go, but since yesterday, her thighs had been tingling, and love juices were starting to flow, signaling pregnancy prep. She'd figured she had time, so she hadn't brought suppressants...

"H-Hurry up."

As Ian finished and approached, she impatiently urged him on and started walking. She hated men, but damn this body—it was picking up the male scent around her and trying to appeal to him.

She'd been a bit off yesterday, but today Lena seemed even more hysterical.

"Hurry up! Can't you take down that one skeleton faster?!"

"Who knows what that guy with Hiss might've done to her by now!"

She'd at least kept some calm yesterday, but today she was in full meltdown mode. She seemed really antsy... Was it because she was separated from Hiss? But why take it out on me?

She kept nagging me while charging ahead impatiently. I was supposed to lead, but she bulldozed forward regardless. I was worried about Hiss and Hiro too, but rushing like this could cause problems...

Navigating the maze-like corridors, I searched for any path toward the opposite hallway where Hiss might've gone, but found only storerooms and rooms—no real leads. Skeletons kept popping up to harass us in the meantime.

"Fireball! Flame Missile!"

And every time, the skeletons got obliterated by Lena's peak hysteria. I worried she'd bring the ceiling down with those high-power spells again...

-BOOM!

No sooner had I thought it than the wall her spell hit crumbled. I panicked, fearing more collapse, but the rest held firm.

"Huh?"

Looking closer, I saw another space beyond the wall. A hidden room? No way. Things were going down like this.

I approached the hole and peered in. Hmm... No enemies picked up by [Detection].

"What now?"

"Move."

She shoved me aside and fired another spell at the wall. But unlike before, it didn't crumble further.

"That's weird... This spot's weakly protected. The rest has ruin-level durability. Was the chapel ceiling yesterday like this too?"

I half-ignored Lena's guess and inspected the hole. Hmm... Big enough for a person to fit through.

"I'll go first—"

"No enemies or traps inside?"

"Huh? From what I detected, no—"

-Shove.

"............"

Ignoring me mid-sentence, the impatient Lena shoved her head through first. Protection magic, huh? She trusted that enough to act like this? No, why was the mage rushing ahead anyway?

The constant ignoring was getting on my nerves...

-Grip.

".............."

".............."

Lena, who'd pushed her head and upper body through, suddenly stopped. Looking closely, her hips—where her tail poked out—were caught in the hole. I fell silent at the sight, and Lena, embarrassed, did too.

"...Come out first."

"........"

At my words, she stayed silent and tried pulling back...

-Grip.

"...........?"

Her body moved a bit, but neither forward nor backward budged.

"...Um, Lena, are you...?"

"...Don't say it."

"...Are you stuck?"

"I said don't say it!"

Wow, this was actually happening. No, more importantly, how'd she get stuck like that? She'd gotten in, but why couldn't she get out?

Checking the gap as she tried... Ah, her chest? She'd squeezed through top-down, chest scraping past, but pulling back, it was catching. Hips seemed snagged on the tail protrusion.

"Nngh...!"

Lena kept straining, but chest or hips blocked her either way.

She'd told me not to speak, so I silently enjoyed the view. Honestly, after ignoring me ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and charging ahead, it felt a bit deserved.

"...Do something!"

Unable to free herself alone, she finally yelled at me. Geez, why vent at me when she was the one stuck?

Grumbling, I grabbed her waist to pull—since she had to come out somehow—but...

"Wait! Don't touch me!"

"Then how do I get you out?"

"Not by touching—find another entrance!"

"................."

She was being so stubborn. Who was the one rushing earlier?

Irritation flaring, I instinctively raised my hand and smacked her plump rear. Naturally, with [Sensory Block] active.

-Twitch!

"Not just this entrance—check the other walls for breakable spots..."

-Smack!

-Twitch! Twitch!

"...and tap them one by one..."

'Hmm...'

This was kinda fun?