Chapter 34: Please Don't Work With Adventurers (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 34: Please Don't Work With Adventurers (3)
It wasn't how I'd planned, but we defeated the 5th-floor boss.
Before heading down to the 6th floor, we decided to divide the treasure we'd collected. Everyone emptied their backpacks and laid out the loot on the ground.
Valuables worth about 3000 Gold.
A Goblin Shaman's Amulet.
A Goblin Knight's Sword.
A Goblin Lord's Necklace.
And some other miscellaneous junk.
I gave everything to the other three, except for Gubred's necklace.
Zenia, surprised, asked if I was sure, and I nodded without hesitation.
They were just items from floors 1 to 5.
They'd fetch a decent price outside, but they had no other value.
While they happily divided the treasure, I examined Gubred's necklace.
Was it because 500 years had passed?
It was covered in black grime and mold.
'An item I've never seen in the game.'
What kind of effect does it have?
Maybe an appraiser could tell me.
“Are you done dividing the loot? Let's move to the next floor.”
At the end of the 5th floor was a stone gate, identical to the one we saw when we first entered the dungeon.
The only difference was that all four of us had to place our hands on this one.
Once it confirmed that all party members were alive, the stone gate opened.
Beyond the gate, a portal glowed blue.
“Let's go.”
I led the way.
The real problem for this party would start on the next floor.
“You probably didn't feel much of a threat on floors 1 to 5. Your skills and experience are too great to be threatened by mere goblins.”
Rustle.
The sound of crunching grass followed every footstep.
Unlike the floors above, the 6th basement floor had the atmosphere of a meadow. However, since it was enclosed by white stone walls, it was still a maze.
“For starters, the monsters will be on a completely different level. The traps will be incomparably more dangerous as well.”
“Come on, really? There's no way it'll be that different just one floor down,” Chris said with a shrug.
Such bravado, fitting for a teenager.
“Yes. It's that different. You two know about Blue Wolves, right?”
I said, turning to Zenia and Kurva. At the mention of Blue Wolves, both their expressions turned serious.
“Blue Wolves... aren't those level 22 monsters? They appear here?”
“That's right. So we need to be careful from now on. If we're not, someone could actually die.”
“...Isn't that too dangerous?” Zenia asked in a worried voice. I gave a bitter smile.
“This is a dungeon. If you come to a dungeon, you have to accept this level of risk.”
High risk, high return.
It's the way of the world, and it applies to dungeons too.
Dungeons are places that offer treasures everyone covets, but they are equally dangerous. Wanting to take the treasure without taking any risks is no different from being a highway robber.
“It's not that, but...” She glanced at Chris.
It seemed she was worried not for her own life, but for her son's.
“Can't we send him back? He's still too young to face this kind of danger.”
“Mom, what are you talking about! Why are you deciding that on your own?!”
“You be quiet! There are steps to becoming an adventurer. A dungeon is too soon for you, who just had your coming-of-age ceremony!”
An argument broke out between mother and son.
Neither would back down an inch, and it felt like if I left them alone, they'd argue forever.
'It's not like we can send him back anyway.'
This dungeon requires four people to proceed. That means if even one person leaves, it becomes impossible to clear.
I'm pretty sure I told them that on the way here. Did they forget in their excitement?
Just as I was about to remind Zenia of this fact to calm her down.
“Quiet for a moment.”
I felt something approaching.
At my words, the arguing mother and son fell silent.
As we stood there on guard, a large wolf appeared from the right fork in the path about ten meters ahead.
“It's... not a Blue Wolf.”
I nodded at Zenia's words. The wolf that had suddenly appeared didn't have blue fur. It was an ordinary gray-furred wolf. Though its size was anything but ordinary.
'Its right foreleg is injured.'
It wasn't just injured; it was completely severed.
“Whoa... it's huge. But since it's missing a leg, I could probably take it on by myself, right? Right, Mom?”
“...Yes, this could be a good chance to gain some experience. Go ahead.”
“Alright! Heh heh, that bastard's dead now... Gack!”
I grabbed the scruff of Chris's neck as he was walking forward boldly. He clutched his throat and made a choked complaint, but I paid him no mind.
My gaze was still fixed on the wolf's foreleg. Blood was steadily dripping from it.
“We need to back away. We can't get close to that wolf.”
“What? What do you mean...”
Awoooo—
Howls echoed from all directions.
Damn, are we too late?
“Wh-what is that?!”
“What do you think? It's the pack, coming to catch the prey that got away.”
“Prey? Wolves eat other wolves?”
“What else are they going to eat when they're the only ones in the dungeon? Shut up and get ready to run. Though it looks like it's too late for that, too.”
-Grrr... Bark!
The gray wolf barked, looking back at the path it came from. In that instant, a blue-furred wolf shot out from the alley and sank its teeth into the gray wolf's neck.
-Yelp...
Was that loud yelp its final act of defiance? The gray wolf went limp without much of a struggle.
After finishing off its prey, the Blue Wolf turned its gaze to new targets.
It stared at us with menacing eyes.
“Stay close.”
I immediately drew my sword and ran forward.
The Blue Wolf dropped the gray one. Recognizing me as new prey, it lunged with its massive jaws wide open.
Its maw was large enough to swallow me in one bite.
If it could, that is.
[Wolf Slayer]
A skill effective against beast-type monsters.
The wolf's upper jaw and the top of its head were cleanly sliced off.
-Bark!
From the forks to the left and right, two more Blue Wolves leaped out, one from each side.
No problem.
I just had to swing my sword twice.
[Wolf Slayer]
[Wolf Slayer]
After killing the two wolves, I glanced back. The others were stunned at first, but they quickly came to their senses and started following close behind me.
Good, that's all I need.
As long as we're in a party, the experience points will be shared. Even if I kill the wolves by myself, they'll still level up.
'Then there's nothing holding me back.'
Kill the monsters blocking the way.
If that's all it takes to solve the problem, isn't this easy?
But as always, the world didn't go the way I wanted.
-Click
A sound that needlessly makes one anxious.
I turned my head back.
The floor tile Kurva had stepped on was sunk about ten centimeters.
A trap.
-Clack.
My eyes darted around. Four small holes had opened on each of the walls.
'They're about five meters away. Can I deflect all the arrows?'
My body was already moving before I could even finish the calculation. The body is faster than the mind. I reached them in two steps.
-Fwip-fwip-fwip.
The moment I arrived, eight arrows were fired.
[Wild Strike]
The silver arc of my sword deflected five of the arrows.
'I couldn't block them all.'
No matter how good the skill, I can't ignore the limits of my physical body. There's a limit to the speed I can achieve with this body.
It can't be helped.
I could only hope the others managed to dodge the remaining three arrows.
I turned my head.
“MY LEGGGGGGGGGG!!!!”
Chris screamed, looking down at his skewered leg.
Ah, fuck.
With an arrow in his leg, Chris couldn't move, bringing the party to a halt. The scattered Blue Wolves gathered and surrounded them.
The Blue Wolf pack and Cloud's party were locked in a stalemate.
“Pull out the arrow and use a potion to treat it.”
Cloud said this as he stood still, leaning on his sword and watching the wolves.
Chris felt the pressure from the wolves' savage glares. Still, he moved his hands quickly to treat his wound.
He pulled out the arrow and applied the potion.
“Nngghh...!”
The potion Chris used was a low-quality, inferior one. While it worked well on scrapes and cuts, it was slow to heal major injuries like a puncture wound. Chris would have to endure immense pain until the flesh healed.
“Chris, just a little... just endure it a little longer. It'll be okay. Ugh, I should have been the one to get hit...!”
“Mom, please... just stay still...” he said, trying to calm his frantic mother.
Meanwhile, Kurva felt like he was going insane.
'Damn it. Damn it. Damn it!'
Wolves to the left. Wolves to the right. Nothing but Blue Wolves everywhere.
What would happen if they all attacked at once?
What would happen? He'd be torn to shreds without a trace.
There was only one reason those wolf bastards weren't attacking despite their numerical superiority.
'That kid, Cloud.'
He had single-handedly torn apart a dozen Blue Wolves with ease. They'd seen it themselves, so they were hesitant to charge in recklessly. A thoughtless attack would result in huge losses.
'At first, I just thought he was an unlucky bastard...' But now, it was different.
He was a fucking monster. Why the hell was someone like that only A-rank?
If I make it back alive, I'm definitely going to complain to the Guild.
...If I make it back alive.
'Fuck, I want to live!'
Like any adventurer, Kurva had a strong will to survive.
He glared at Chris, who was groaning and clutching his leg.
'If it weren't for that damn kid...!'
If Cloud had broken through the wolf pack, I could have followed him and escaped.
Kurva resented Chris, even though Chris had only been caught in the trap Kurva himself had triggered. Such is the selfishness of a cornered human.
'When is he going to be healed?!'
He was anxious, his eyes unable to stay in one place.
As time ticked by, Kurva noticed a spot in the wolves' encirclement that was unusually empty.
Seeing it, Kurva's eyes widened.
'Could it be...? Are they giving me a way out?'
It had to be. The wolves weren't stupid; they wouldn't just leave an opening like that for no reason.
From their perspective, Cloud was a natural enemy threatening the survival of their pack. The rest of us must look like small fry.
They're trying to let the small fry go so they won't interfere with the fight for the pack's survival. There's no other explanation!
'I have to go. This is my last chance.'
Just as Kurva was about to take a step.
“You'll die if you go,” Cloud said.
His voice was chilling, unlike anything they had heard from him before.
Not just Kurva, but Zenia and Chris felt a shiver run down their spines. The wolves lowered their bodies and let out short growls.
“D-die if I go? We'll die if we don't go! Are you blind? Can't you see that opening? It's obvious they're letting us go. We can live if we just run for it!”
“I understand you're scared. But get a grip. Why would they have any reason to let you go? And even if you get lucky and escape this encirclement, they'll chase you. Can you handle these wolves on your own? If so, how many?”
“I can probably handle one or two! At least the chances of survival are much higher than fighting here. What about you? Can you take on all these wolf bastards? By yourself?”
“Yes.”
An immediate answer without a hint of hesitation.
For a moment, Kurva was speechless. Then, his face crumpled in anger.
“Yeah, fuck, I'm sure you can do it, Mr. Big Shot! But we can't. If those bastards attack, you might live, but we'll all die! Fuck... this is all your fault for dragging us here in the first place, you son of a bitch!”
“Are you throwing a tantrum like a child at your age? I clearly announced we were going to a dungeon hours before we arrived. And yet, you followed, smiling brightly. Didn't you come prepared for the possibility of death?”
“...”
Kurva fell silent. To argue against that would be to tarnish his pride as an adventurer.
Cloud continued.
“Still, you're not entirely wrong. I bear a good deal of responsibility for bringing you here. So stick close to me. I'll take responsibility and make sure you get out alive.”
For a moment, Kurva's heart was swayed by his confident words.
If I follow him... maybe we really can survive this.
Kurva's reason and his instincts clashed.
And Kurva...
“Fuck off!”
He chose reason. Believing that reason would save him as it always had, he ran toward the opening where there were no wolves.
Following reason is a wise choice.
That is, if it's a sound reason, not one consumed by other emotions.
-“Gyaaaaaaah!”
Before long, a terrible scream echoed out.
Cloud sighed.
“Dumbass.”