It all happened while I was leisurely hunting Blood Bats in the Gandakia Dungeon as usual.
“Everyone knows Flying types are weak against Electric moves,” I merrily joked to myself as I zapped the nimble, fanged bats flying toward me in the darkness.
Then, out of nowhere, a chorus of screams from farther down the floor reverberated along the stone walls.
Sounds like someone is getting attacked by a strong monster. I don’t really want to put myself in danger, but if the monster is injured already, maybe I can score myself some EXP—I mean, go help them... Yeah, I’m still in good shape, so I might as well go for that easy EXP—er, go help those people in need.
And so, having assessed the situation and decided on my next course of action, I ventured deeper into the dungeon.
I usually spent my time picking off Blood Bats, so I hardly ever set foot in the floors beyond. This area of the Gandakia Dungeon, known as the Dark Corridors, was dreadfully damp and dreary. Coupled with its peculiar putrid stench, there weren’t many places that could possibly be less pleasant. It was a well-known fact that the greatest obstacles for Divers venturing here weren’t the monsters but the heinous odor and sticky floors, which only grew worse as you continued forward. In other words, I avoided this area for a reason, though it wasn’t the first time I’d been here.
“Ugh... How can this place smell so nasty? It’s so much worse than the area I usually stay in. This is supposed to be a fantasy world, for cryin’ out loud.”
As my ideal image of the fantasy world came crashing down and my nose was just about ready to implode from the reeking stench, a dome-shaped area opened up ahead.
I turned the dial on the hiking lamp attached to my safari hat all the way up and readjusted my safari jacket. I gave my staff, which was adorned with a souvenir amethyst from Oshamambe, Hokkaido, two good shakes, and I walked down a path illuminated by a pale light.
✦ ✦ ✦
In the area ahead, which seemed to be the boss room of the Dark Corridors, a monster and a silver-haired girl were in the middle of a deadly battle.
“Yikes... Guess I goofed.”
I was somewhat regretting getting baited by the potential EXP as I took cover at the side of the passageway and observed the boss. It was one of the several boss-class monsters in the Dark Corridors: a four-armed and goat-headed absolute unit of a fiend with muscles on top of muscles, its colossal form enough to send bodybuilders running in fear. It swung a giant halberd fitting for a beast of its size.
Facing the hulking boss monster was a young girl who seemed to be around my age. Her long silver hair was bound in a big ponytail that curled at the end, almost like a squirrel’s tail. She’d stepped into combat with nothing but her fists for weapons and thin, tattered clothes for protection. In fact, her shredded clothes didn’t even cover the parts they should’ve been covering, though now wasn’t the time to be concerned about that. Among her characteristics, one immediately stood out: her ears were abnormally long compared to those of a human. The tips of her long, pointed ears extended downward, about fifteen centimeters in length.
“A Long-Ears...”
Here in the world of Do-Melta, the Long-Ears Tribe was a race said to be particularly favored by the goddess of beauty and war, Sapphia the Blue. The Long-Ears were blessed with gender-transcending beauty, physical and magical prowess, and intelligence—pretty much everything you could ask for. Basically, they were the top race of Do-Melta. But it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows: they were so naturally well-off that the other races, especially humans, treated them with envy and jealousy. And with their breathtakingly good looks, they were, unfortunately, often targeted to be sold into slavery.
As I got a better look, I noticed the girl fighting before me had a collar around her neck and a ball and chain weighing her down. Judging by the fact that she’d been brought into the dungeon, she was likely a combat slave.
“So where’s her master?” I asked myself.
I scanned the room for the slave master, who would likely be even more of a pain to deal with than the boss, but I only saw bodies of fully equipped men and women sprawled across the stone pavement. I figured the screams I’d heard earlier had come from them. I could just picture their encounter with the massive beast and how their hopeless battle had come to an end. The Long-Ears girl must’ve been the last one standing thanks to her physical superiority.
Well, rest in peace and all that.
Anyway, as strong as the Long-Ears girl may be, she was clearly at a disadvantage. She couldn’t utilize her full power because of the magical restraints on her, and the boss was wearing her down.
“It’s not like I want to help her because she’s a cute girl...or because I feel sorry for slaves or anything like that. It’s the EXP. Yup, the whole reason I came here was so I could get a piece of that EXP,” I told myself as I charged up my mana.
The boss was still completely focused on its opponent and paid no mind to anything outside of the room. Although light emanated from my magic, it wasn’t noticeable thanks to the countless candles that conveniently lit up the boss room. All I had to do now was store up enough energy to unleash magic powerful enough to wipe out the enemy in one shot—and hope the girl would survive in the meantime.
Sorry if I don’t make it in time, I thought and continued to focus on my task.
Suddenly, the boss hit the girl with a powerful blow, sending her flying through the air and crashing into a wall. The girl fell to the ground, face down and unmoving. The monster raised its enormous halberd overhead, then swung it down toward its victim.
But as one might expect, I made it just in the nick of time.
“Charge complete. Quaternary Magic: Ameithys Bolt!”
A magic circle expanded from the tip of my staff, where a giant sphere of lightning surrounded by flashes of electric tendrils emerged. The supercharged blast of energy sped directly toward the boss and blasted right through it, scorching it from inside out. Bolts of lightning continuously zapped the monster, causing it to roar in pain until it eventually fell to the ground and crumbled away. All that remained were the monster’s crystalline core stone, the Long-Ears girl, face down on the ground, and me.
“All right, level up—wait, what? This makes hunting Blood Bats look pointless...”
My eyes widened at the sheer amount of EXP I’d obtained from taking the boss down as I—Kudo Akira—walked toward the fallen girl.
§
I suddenly awakened from a languid slumber. It seemed I’d fallen asleep. In a daze, I tried to take in the situation.
I didn’t recognize my surroundings. Looking around, I could tell I wasn’t in the Dark Corridors of the Gandakia Dungeon but a hollow space at the edge of the Yellow Wall Vestiges on the floor just prior. Apparently, this was one of the safe areas on this floor. Driven into the ground around the area were many crystal stakes for warding off monsters. These stakes kept monsters at bay so one could sleep here without fear of being attacked.
A chill went down my spine at the realization that I’d fallen asleep on the job as a slave; not to mention, we were in the middle of a dungeon. I curled up and wrapped my arms around myself, then I noticed I was under a thick and ridiculously soft towel.
As I was mesmerized by the towel’s softness, I detected someone’s presence nearby. I glanced in the stranger’s direction and saw a young boy boiling water with some sort of magical device.
“Oh, you’re awake. Gimme a minute, I’m making some corn soup,” said the boy with a smile.
I had no idea what this “corn soup” was, but the sound of an external voice began to clear the fog in my head.