Volume 1 Chapter 25 The Guardian Of The Path To The Lower Layer
For a while after that, we rested in the hollow.
Among the members, Veronica needed rest the most.
She casts Healing Magic (Holy Magic) on Leoness, who acts as a shield for the party and withstands attacks during the battle, but her magic power seems to be depleted rapidly. After finishing her portable food, she slept right there.
By the way, sleeping inside a dungeon is a feat that can only be accomplished if one has incredibly tough nerves.
Perhaps this is what it means to carry oneself as an S-rank adventurer.
Fatina and Ryuin were happily engaged in conversation. Maybe they get along well because they are of the same gender.
Leoness was sitting down, taking care of his large shield.
The role of protecting the party is extremely important, and stable battles would be impossible without his strength.
"Hah."
After about an hour had passed like that, Veronica suddenly widened her eyes and sat up.
"...Fully recovered."
"Is Ark-san okay? I haven't used much magic, so I'm fine."
"Oh, I'm fine too. With my [Instant Death Magic], I can absorb the status and magic power of the opponent I defeated, so don't worry too much."
When Ryuin asked about magic power, all three of them froze in place as if they were Hobgoblins from earlier.
"...What's that? Isn't that a bit unfair?"
"I've never heard of such an ability..."
"...That's why your status increased."
"Is Ark-sama's ability not normal?"
When Fatina asked Ryuin, she shook her head vigorously.
"From what I've heard, it's far from normal. But well, there must be a reason why Ark-san is so strong at Level Cap 1... I understand now."
Ryuin nodded while crossing her arms.
In my case, I have the ability of "Soul Retrieval", so if there is an opponent affected by Instant Death Magic nearby, I can absorb their magic power along with their status, allowing me to activate (Death) almost unlimitedly. Therefore, I can continue fighting as long as there are monsters around.
For opponents who have resistance to Instant Death Magic, I would need to use "Quadruple" to unleash a fourfold strike of (Death), which requires a large amount of magic power. However, with the status I absorbed from the Shadow Chimera through "Soul Retrieval", I should be able to unleash it multiple times.
Moreover, although I haven't tried it yet, I believe I can use the abilities of "Multiple Chant" and "Quadruple" simultaneously.
However, in that case, I should be cautious as it will likely consume a large amount of magic power all at once when using them.
Magic power can be described as a kind of mental strength. It is said that if it completely depletes, one becomes unsteady and eventually collapses. If it happens during battle, it is practically the same as being unable to fight. Magicians must be extremely careful about this.
"Now, shall we continue?"
With our magic power fully restored, we immediately began preparing to depart.
"Ryuin-san, how far can we go today?"
"Well, honestly, I didn't think the two of you would be this strong, so I thought we should just go back on the first day... but how about we go all the way to the end of the middle layer today? Is that alright with you, Ark-san?"
"Yeah, I don't mind."
And so, without delay, we passed through the hollow and continued further ahead.
Once again, beyond the hollow, there was a wide path, but thick tree roots were protruding from the stone walls everywhere.
(There's no sunlight, yet the deeper we go, the green becomes even denser.)
The name "Emerald Green Dungeon" is indeed fitting. We must be careful not to trip over the roots that unexpectedly sprout.
"If you feel it's dangerous from here, let's go back immediately. We also don't know what lies at the deepest part of the middle layer."
"Are there not many people who go deep into the middle layer?"
"It seems that way. You know, adventurers have a kind of 'life is precious' mentality, don't they? So, even skilled adventurers of B-Rank or A-Rank seem to dislike encountering monsters from the lower layer."
Gaston mentioned before that there are stories of monsters occasionally crossing their habitat boundaries and moving within the dungeon.
If middle layer monsters come to the upper layer, they can be defeated by a high-ranked adventurers' party, but when it comes to lower layer monsters, a single one becomes significantly powerful, so it won't be easy to deal with.
Even if they were to escape, the distance from the end of the middle layer to the surface is too far. If they're unlucky, they might encounter another monster along the way and get caught in a pincer attack.
Unless they're incredibly skilled, like an S-Rank party, the risk would be too high.
As I continue to ponder these thoughts, we walk for a while.
And then, after some time passes, I think all the party members must have noticed something strange.
The monsters aren't appearing at all.
"...No monsters are coming."
Veronica breaks the silence and voices what probably everyone was thinking.
"It's definitely strange... I wonder what's going on?"
"Yeah, there doesn't seem to be any presence nearby."
"Do you think they saw us and ran away?"
Curious, but still moving forward, suddenly a black door appears in front of us. It's about twice the height of Leoness, who is the tallest in the party.
The door seems to be made of iron or something, solid and immovable. There doesn't seem to be a keyhole. The only thing nearby is a large rock.
"Why are there so many rocks placed here?"
Fatina gazes at the large rock lying on the ground.
It's certainly strange, but it's just a rock, so there's no reaction, of course.
"Did the door suddenly appear here? Well, let's just open it and investigate inside for now..."
Leoness, looking dubious, touches the door.
Suddenly, the rocks on the ground begin to move with a clattering sound.
"Huh!? W-what is this!?"
"Leoness, get back! It's a trap!"
Responding to Ryuin's words, Leoness hurriedly retreats and raises the enormous shield on his shoulder.
The scattered rocks start to float in the air and eventually take on human forms.
'Rumble, rumble, rumble...'
The air trembled as a deep, low voice emerged, revealing a gigantic humanoid stone figure—a golem. It stood as tall as a gate, making Leoness standing in front of it look like a mere child.
Between the rocks shaping its body, there ran a light akin to fiery red flames, seemingly connecting each rock together.
"It seems like this guy is the reason there are no monsters around!"
"A golem isn't just any A-rank monster; they're only supposed to be found in ancient ruins! Why would something like this be in the middle layer of the dungeon!?"
Ryuin, taken aback by the sudden turn of events, drew her sword and took a defensive stance.
The golem, rather than being a monster, was a type of creature powered by magic.
Created through magic, it was feared by adventurers for indiscriminately attacking anyone attempting to venture deeper into the ruins, much like a monster would.
The Golem, which had stopped making noise, began to move towards us, shaking the ground as it came.
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