Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: 4th Floor. Preparations for the End
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"We really took down that monster from the myths."
"That's me."
Albert took off his helmet and wiped away the sweat pouring down his face like he'd been caught in a downpour. He nodded as if to confirm my words.
"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have stood a chance."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ You have learned the structure of the current floor. You have grown. You have defeated the three sub-bosses of the underground sewers. You have grown. I ignored Albert, who was making obvious statements in a cringeworthy way, and the thrilling rush that hit my mind from the achievement and growth logs popping up right on cue made my lips curl into a grin.
It was probably just the sweet reward left behind, making me smirk uncontrollably.
Thud-thud-thud─ Boom!
The ceiling collapsed, dropping heavy bricks and a massive object right in front of me. A chest framed in silver, just like the one that had emerged from the Giant Slime Blob's body.
Dust settled thickly over my head, but I didn't care one bit—the chest was that welcome.
"This is..."
"The reward for slaying that beast. What's inside is mine. Take the silver trim if you want."
I wanted to snag the silver too, but it was dead weight, and I couldn't exactly head to a village anyway.
I might regret it once I got back home, though.
"Mm. Got it. Need help carrying it?"
Albert seemed pretty keen on the silver himself and readily agreed to help.
Makes sense—if you're not diving deeper into hell like me, you could just pry off that silver frame and sell it for a few hundred gold easy.
I shook my head at Albert, who was itching to help—probably for the silver—and opened the chest instead.
Creeeak—
The rusty hinges screeched against my eardrums.
The treasures spilling out into the world made me forget the gash across my chest—I did a full flip in the air.
"Kyaa~ Hoo!"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Gaaah! Slime!!! Severa!!! Dave!!! Albert!!! The wound hurts so much!"
"Told you not to make a fuss. Healing potions dropped too—use one."
"Gaaah! That's too precious to waste!"
Severa looked down at me pitifully, then slapped her palm over her face.
She was right—it's wise not to move violently after taking a sword to the chest. I should've heeded the veterans' hard-earned advice. Blame the reward; it was just too damn juicy.
I wanted to call a lawyer!
"How did I end up stuck with this guy..."
Severa sighed and placed her hand on my chest, where the bandages were soaked red.
A cool, ectoplasmic sensation seeped in slowly. She'd make a killing in the massage business.
And with that stray thought, the burning pain vanished.
"Gaaah! Severa! The wound doesn't hurt anymore!"
"Stop making a fuss, it's embarrassing...! It's just basic pain relief magic. Not healed, so don't move."
I didn't know she could do that. My trashy quick-shot onahole Severa suddenly seemed different.
As if reading my mind, her glare sharpened, so I looked away innocently.
"Haa... Now that the irregular polyhedron's destroyed too, the sewers should go back to normal, right?"
Severa glanced at the Wanderer, now turned into an onahole, then looked up at the ceiling as if peering toward Whitechamber on the surface.
I wanted to give her a firm yes, but honestly, I had no clue either.
We've taken out all three sub-bosses, torched the lab, smashed the irregular polyhedron, and beaten the Sewer King—but what happens next isn't shown since you move to the next area.
Even with 3,000 hours in the game, I only know how to clear dungeons fast, safe, and clean. Can't see what the devs didn't show.
Still...
"The sewers got messed up and the portal opened because of magic power. Source is gone, so it'll probably revert. No idea how long, though."
"I see..."
Severa seemed satisfied, her worries lifting as her lips quirked up slightly.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Even then, the ear-splitting metallic bangs kept coming.
Irritated, I turned to see Albert hammering away at the chest, flattening the silver trim with his mace and shaping it.
"What're you doing?"
"Thinning it out to pad inside my armor. Flashy stuff draws trouble."
"All to yourself?"
He paused mid-swing, staring like I'd asked something stupidly obvious.
"Dragging those trembling weaklings here without proper fights already means they owe me. Besides, you and I handled the real dangers, didn't we?"
"True enough."
Nearly twenty criminals. Most were probably ordinary folk with no combat experience.
Even with his knight title and skills, hauling that untrained mob down to floor 4 without losses meant he'd done his job.
And yeah, the real threats were on us.
Albert kept flattening the silver thinly while eyeing the stairs to floor 5.
"You said a massive alligator's waiting on 5."
"Yeah."
He stared silently at the stairs for a moment, then leaned against the wall, maybe tired of the smithing.
"Big, but just a slow animal. No need to waste time, right?"
After the Bell of the End, he figured he could rush the Sewer King too? I shook my head at Albert, clearly signaling he wanted out ASAP.
Wanderer and Bell of the End split into two phases, so individually weaker.
The Giant Slime Blob alone was tougher than the Wanderer.
And the Sewer King, actual boss not sub, packs even higher raw stats.
Detour routes exist for a reason.
"Croc's hide tougher than Bell of the End twice over per hit. Easier to predict than tentacles since it's just a croc, though."
"That much, huh..."
If I'd sounded even a bit positive, he'd have pushed to clear 5 right then. Albert sighed deeply instead.
Weeks trapped down here—stress must be insane.
Still, Severa and Slime's Fuel are borderline, and need to tame the Wanderer. Time required.
'Bell of the End has me a bit spooked.'
Hoping Onahole Creation's power lets it shrug off bosses like that.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ ⚡ Strength: 10(+1) 💨 Agility: 15(+0) ✨ Magic Power: 21/46 ■■■■■□□□□□ 💪 Stamina: 32/91 ■■■■□□□□□□ 🍀 Luck: 94/110 ■■■■■■■■■□|□ Hunger 🛡️ Endurance: 88/110 ■■■■■■■■■□|□ Thirst 🌡️ Temperature: ◁■■■■■■□□□□▷ 🧠 Mind: 08(+0) 👁️ Sense: 09(+1) 💖 Charm: 14(+2) 📈 Investible Points: 1 Skills
Thief's Luck | Battle Command | Hero I
Magic
Onahole Creation (Magic -25)
The status screen after beating the Bell of the End looked pretty solid.
A week of swordsmanship and physical training from Albert got me logs for learning Knight's Swordsmanship and Knight's Physical Training, boosting Strength and Constitution. Sense... still not sure.
Seems like it gives bonuses for learning game-hidden lore.
And what pleased me most: Hero I.
Bonus skill for clearing all three sub-bosses before multiples-of-5 boss floors.
'Hard to get, just a bonus, but the effect is busted.'
True to the heroic name: final Health/Magic +10%, max Hunger/Thirst +10, final damage dealt +10%.
Level 1 effect. In 30-floor D.D., max Hero V possible.
Requires smashing all 15 sub-bosses, but no skill beats Hero V.
'Good it dodged balancing. Who even does boss rushes?'
One downside: doesn't apply to summons.
Or it'd be all summon meta Hero grinding chaos.
I dumped the point into Charm, hitting 15, and closed the status.
"Got a question. Mind?"
"Shoot."
Albert stopped me as I stood to leave.
"Even after hunting the croc, you said a portal appears."
"Precisely, one's smack in the sewer drain. Squeeze by without touching, maybe escape."
"Not what I meant..."
"Then what? That's all I know."
Albert scratched his head awkwardly, then slowly donned his armor, now heavier with silver plates.
"We criminals have to push on to escape, but not you. You knew about unheard-of mythic monsters, the portal blocking the unknown exit. Your goal was that portal all along—not escape, but whatever new danger awaits beyond."
And you know what's behind it too, he added mentally.
Wary of a backstab now? But Albert just sluggishly adjusted his uncomfortable armor.
No weapon drawn, no flight prep.
"You're no criminal. At least not Whitechamber's—I'd have seen your face living there my whole life."
Conviction etched his face.
Is my face that unique? I felt my features—only handsome contours met my fingers.
"I want your goal. What you aim to achieve on this journey."
He stared straight at me, face like our first meeting: emotionless, appraising.
And I just found the question annoying.
What changes if he knows? Still, as a kind neighbor, I respect elders.
Good at tweaking even single consonants below, too.
"Gonna go home."
And while at it.
"Wanna try being a hero once."
"..."
The stern middle-aged face went blank in an instant.
Like hearing forbidden words—or getting wished-for news from left field.
"A hero, huh..."
Albert hummed thoughtfully, and I groped Severa's ass in the gap.
Each squeeze wrapped my fingers in squishy, sticky ectoplasmic flesh.
"...Lustful pervert."
"Heroes are lustful by nature. I'm a hero-in-training, so half-lustful."
Anyone can be in training with a thought, right?
9th-grade destroyer can be SKY prep, jobless scratching belly all day can be civil servant prep—in this world.
Severa whispered cutely in my ear, embarrassed at getting caught playing, so I patted her ass.
"Anyway, head back to the others. I got stuff left."
"Mm. Got it."
He said got it but dawdled, so I kicked his ass to hurry him off.
"Fuck off, gotta jerk it but this crusty old dude's clinging?"
Dunno what filthy old men think, but fapping's serious business.