Chapter 14
Chapter 14
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Ilana (1)
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As soon as I entered the dungeon, I headed straight for the 1st floor boss room.
Thanks to mapping the route while following the subjugation team yesterday, I had no trouble finding my way.
Creak—
The boss room door slid open smoothly.
The interior showed no trace of yesterday's battle, as if it had never happened.
Once a boss is defeated, it takes a full month to respawn.
That means this boss room stays safe for an entire month.
No monsters respawn here until its owner revives.
I moved to the back of the empty boss room.
Two massive statues stood back-to-back, spears in hand, as if guarding something.
Approaching them revealed a faintly shimmering gate.
The entrance to the underground 2nd floor.
The gate emitted a soft green glow.
A sign it was functioning normally.
Gates in the Labyrinth Dungeon normally give off green light, but there are exceptions.
Red gates that only appear under specific conditions.
Reverse labyrinths.
These have traits similar to the Abyss Door and sometimes harbor monsters unfit for that floor.
Always be cautious when crossing a gate.
Boss rooms never open gates to reverse labyrinths, though.
Still, things might have changed since it switched to single-player mode.
"Let's go."
Confirming the gate was green, I stepped inside without hesitation.
My vision rippled, and the background melted away.
"......"
When I opened my eyes again, what appeared was less a dungeon and more a cave.
The walls and floor were covered in moisture-laden moss and unidentified slime, squelching underfoot with every step.
Underground Dungeon 2nd floor.
True to its damp, sticky terrain, slimes and reptile-type monsters lurked here.
I immediately opened the status window to check the map.
As expected, everything was shrouded in black fog except for my current position.
I proceeded cautiously, staying alert to my surroundings.
Then.
Squelch—
A sound came from behind, like wet moss being stepped on.
I whipped my head around immediately.
— Grrrk.
A reptile head covered in green scales.
A bipedal monster wielding a sharp spear.
Lizardman.
Spotting me, it flicked out its long tongue and thrust its spear without hesitation.
The slick floor gave it explosive acceleration, closing in at tremendous speed.
But.
Whoosh—
Just before the spear tip pierced my chest, my body skipped through space.
— Grk?
With its prey vanishing before its eyes, the Lizardman glanced around in confusion.
I stood silently ten meters behind it, drawing up my mana.
Humm—
A Mana Bolt compressed sharply at my fingertips.
I fired it straight at the beast.
Thuk!
— Keeik!
It tumbled forward with a shriek. But my mana was low; it scrambled away with agile movements.
I generated another Mana Bolt.
This time aimed at its head.
Splut!
The second bolt blew the Lizardman's head apart.
"Too bad."
After grinding goblins in packs of thirty, taking them down one by one felt unsatisfying.
Part of me wanted to head back to the 1st floor.
But with my level over 10, experience from 1st floor monsters had dropped sharply, so that wasn't an option.
On the other hand, kiting them for mob hunts was risky with those sharp spears.
Unlike puny goblins, Lizardmen onward made it hard to kite while taking hits.
Even recovering stamina with runes only worked against weak goblins.
"Well, nothing for it."
I pondered briefly, but no better ideas came.
At least solo, mob hunting was off the table.
Using a Basic Mana Recovery Rune, I went to pick up the dropped mana stone.
As I pocketed it in my inventory and turned to move on—
"Um, over there—!"
A voice called out. I turned toward it.
Someone had stopped me.
Looking that way, I saw—
"Um, p-party... would you...?"
A timid woman with purple bangs hiding her eyes, head bowed low.
It was Ilana.
"Th-thank you... hehe......"
I'd agreed to party with Ilana for a while.
I considered refusing, but saw no real need.
Rejecting for no reason might draw unwanted attention.
Who knows what grudges could come back to bite later when you can't read their intentions.
Ilana said she'd gotten a new staff after the Abyss Door subjugation yesterday.
Her mana had increased substantially, extending the duration of her Bubble spell far beyond before.
Truth be told, I'd been hoping for this.
Her Bubble had low damage but was perfect for mob hunting if used right.
However.
'What was with that demeanor before?'
The cold, analytical poise from yesterday clashed with her current shy facade.
Split personality...? Nah.
Glancing back as we walked, Ilana trailed close behind, clutching her staff with both hands. Nothing suspicious.
— Kirik.
"It, it's out...!"
A new Lizardman appeared.
Hunting first.
"Bubble it, then we'll run. Ready?"
"Y-yes?"
"Here it comes!"
Plop.
At my shout, Ilana urgently cast Bubble on the Lizardman.
No time to stand around, though.
"Run!"
I quickly scouted a nearby room.
— Kiririk.
Two more huddled together.
They raised their spears and charged upon spotting us, but—
— Kiek?
Both got trapped in Bubbles before reaching us.
That made three. When the Bubbles popped, they'd all rush us.
The first Bubble still held strong.
"Hah... hah..."
Ilana was already panting hard, despite barely running.
Acting? But her eyes were rolling back—no way it was fake.
"Let's find two more."
Urging the exhausted Ilana along, I checked every nearby room.
Plop plop.
"Five."
We successfully Bubble-trapped five in total.
At that moment.
Pop! Pop pop!
Bubbles burst in the distance like bursting soap orbs.
The first three Lizardmen charged toward us.
I positioned us so their path overlapped with the two still trapped.
The enraged trio stormed into our room, merging with the five.
Seizing the moment, I hurled a sphere of lightning between them.
Crackle—!!
Chain Lightning erupted, charring all five Lizardmen black.
Mana density dropped on the 2nd floor underground, slightly weakening it, but still effective.
"Wow......"
Ilana, sprawled exhausted on the floor, clapped weakly.
"That's the spell from yesterday, right? It's so pretty every time."
With tension eased, her speech cleared up.
I gathered the five dropped mana stones and handed her two.
"Ah... th-thanks......"
We could divvy up after, but settling immediately avoided disputes.
It also let us disband anytime without hassle.
"Take a break."
"Ah, um, s-sorry... because of me......"
As she tried to stand, I stopped her and sat a short distance away.
Not out of consideration for her.
I'd bottomed out mana on Chain Lightning and didn't want to show it.
My mana pool was slightly above average—for my level.
In absolute terms, it was still pitiful.
Conveniently, Ilana seemed frail stamina-wise, so I could play it off.
"Feeling okay to move?"
"Y-yes... sorry, because of me......"
"No problem. Let's go."
I stood up.
Still a long way to level 20.
"Good work."
"You too......"
Partying with Ilana had been quite satisfying.
If only her mana and stamina held up, I'd party all day.
I'd even gained two whole levels.
Focused on mob hunting, though, we'd delved pretty deep into the 2nd floor.
Solo, I'd use a scroll to bail, but with Ilana...
"Time to head back."
"Y-yes...!"
I opened the status window and activated the map.
Tracing our path back—
Splat.
"Eek!"
A slime leaped from around the corridor corner.
It bounded high, lunging straight at Ilana.
Then.
Boom!
A Fireball erupted from Ilana's fingertips.
It collided mid-leap with the slime, exploding spectacularly.
I fired a Mana Bolt into the fallen slime.
"Whew... that scared me......!"
Ilana let out a lighthearted whine.
Mages learning basic Fireball wasn't unusual.
Still, for some reason, using it reminded me of that golden-haired Kingdom noblewoman, Elana.
Come to think of it, their faces were a bit similar.
Names too: Ilana and Elana......
"Um... why are you staring......?"
"Nothing."
I shook my head lightly, clearing the thought.
Getting out of the dungeon came first.