Volume 1 Chapter 62 Return
Shortly thereafter, Fatina's treatment was completed. Her face had completely regained its color, and she looked as usual.
"I'm all right now! I'm sorry to have worried you!"
Fatina, who had been sitting on the ground, stood up vigorously, bowed to the two of them, and then skillfully returned the sword that had fallen to the ground to its sheath.
Despite directly receiving the attacks of the powerful Guardian of the Key, her recovery was so quick, thanks to the special potion Chester had, as well as the continuous Healing Magic (Holy Magic) cast by Mel.
Furthermore, the effects of the (Protection) and the (Dispel) that were cast at the beginning of the battle, as well as the purification of the miasma, must have been effective. If the loss of vitality due to Drain Touch had continued a little longer, it's hard to say what would have happened to Fatina.
"Phew, I'm really glad we made it on time..."
Mel gazed at Fatina with tears welling up in her eyes. She must have been really worried.
In response, Fatina cheerfully said, "Thanks to you, Mel-san, I'm feeling better."
"Whew... It was a formidable opponent, but we managed to win somehow. If only I had the skill to fight as well, I'm sorry."
Chester seemed concerned about not being able to contribute to the battle. However, he realized that fighting wasn't everything.
"No, the one who should be thanked is me. If it weren't for Chester's [Teleportation Magic], we wouldn't have been able to come here. Besides, that potion was probably quite valuable, right? I'm sorry for using it."
I think the potion Chester used was probably something rare and valuable, different from what we had prepared. He used it without hesitation, so we must express our gratitude.
"Oh, please don't worry about it. I brought this for moments like these, so I'm glad I could be of help to you."
While watching their exchange, Chester had a relieved expression on his face.
It's true, as he said, we've never had an easy time fighting powerful guardians.
Except for exceptions like the [Instant Death Magic] skill that I possess, which Mel mentioned before, it seems almost impossible to defeat the guardian of the key with a normal party. The reason I was able to get close to that lich was because my stats had greatly increased from previous battles.
And one of the reasons why there is a lack of stability when facing powerful monsters is because this party doesn't have a shield role.
Not being able to divert the monster's attention means that each of us has to anticipate being attacked individually. It doesn't seem very efficient. If we had a party member like Leoness, whom we temporarily joined before and who had the ability to attract enemies, we could have approached the battle in a different way.
And so, in the current situation where we don't have members with such roles, it's up to me, the one with the highest status among the four, to move like a shield.
If the Instant Death Magic spell succeeds, the battle will be over. But, it's important not to focus too much on that. In the future, if there's a possibility that Fatina or Mel might be attacked, I'll immediately switch to a defensive position. Even if I get hurt for that purpose.
"Now, is this the so-called 'key'?"
Chester is looking at the object floating in the air, which seems to be the [Aquaflow Key], while keeping a distance. Since it's an unfamiliar item, he seems a little hesitant to touch it.
"Yes, I think this is the [Aquaflow Key]. Thanks to everyone, we were able to get it like this."
"Well done, Mel-san! This makes the second one!"
Fatina grabbed Mel's hand with both hands. In response to her, Mel nodded firmly.
"Can I leave this key with Ark-san?"
"Oh, okay."
Right now, I am in possession of another key, the [Emerald Green Key]. Unless someone tries to steal it, it's probably best to keep both keys together without separating them.
I hold my hand towards the key. Suddenly, the key disappears and merges with my body in an instant. Just like before, there's no strange feeling about it.
'The power of the [Aquaflow Key] has unlocked the maximum limit of your stats.'
Another message appears. It seems that due to the power of the key, my stats cap has been lifted, allowing me to grow through the effect of 'Soul Retrieval' once again.
However, I've always found the content displayed in these messages mysterious. I have no idea where the names of the keys come from. Maybe the key is somehow reading and interpreting information.
The leveling up system and various other aspects have always felt oddly strange, making it seem like my own skills aren't really my own.
"It's okay. The key was real."
"Oh, that's good! We got the key and managed to conquer this dungeon before the Wiol Merchant Guild. Let's go back to Trasverum right away!"
Before we knew it, the door to the room that should have been closed was open, just like when we entered. We left the room and started to go back the way we came.
On the way back to the lower layer, we walked for a while without any monsters appearing. Maybe defeating the guardian made them no longer stay in this dungeon.
The shadows of the many undead that were here before also seem to have disappeared.
And so, we returned to the small room where we can use Teleportation Magic, the only one in this dungeon.
When we opened the door, the magician who had the [Teleportation Magic] skill and was with Allen's party, whom we met earlier, was no longer there.
After the battle in the lower layer, Allen and his injured party must have returned to Trasverum. I don't know where they are or what they're doing now, but at least they no longer have a reason to be hired by the Wiol Merchant Guild.
We used Chester's Teleportation Magic to return to the middle layer again. The middle layer had become completely quiet, with only the sound of water flowing from various places.
We walked all the way to the upper layer and returned to the entrance of the dungeon. It was around the time when it started to get slightly brighter outside. Maybe because we had been in the dim lower layer for a while, it still felt a little dazzling.
Chester, who had been drinking a potion to restore magic power inside the dungeon, seemed to have fully recovered his magic power. He immediately used Teleportation Magic to transfer us to Trasverum.
When we arrived in front of the Clow Merchant Guild's trading hall, everyone finally had a relieved expression as if a weight had been lifted from their shoulders.
"Chester! Are you alright? Where on earth did you go?"
When I opened the door to the merchant guild, Elliot immediately ran up to me. He looked extremely tired and worn out, with a completely different expression from his usual sharpness. It wasn't a time when people were usually awake. He must have been waiting for Chester to come back without sleeping.
"Father, I'm sorry to have worried you. I've just returned from exploring the dungeon."
"You went into the dungeon!? How reckless...!"
"I'm sorry for leaving without saying anything. However, I conquered the dungeon with Ark-san and the others. This should calm down the outrageous actions of the Wiol Merchant Guild."
"!! I-is that true! Well done, Chester!"
Elliot placed his hands on Chester's shoulders and they laughed together.
"Chester-san, I'm glad for you!"
"Now this city should become a little more peaceful."
While watching the parent and child, Fatina and Mel smiled at each other.
We obtained the key, and they will be able to regain the peace of Trasverum. There were various problems, but we were able to gain many things in return.
I open the status.
In the bottom right frame, a symbol of a crowned skeleton had been added. I lightly touch it with my finger.
'Miasma Wave: Ability obtained from the Lich. Instant Death Magic now produces miasma, and it becomes possible to defend against attacks. It consumes magic power depending on the power of the defended attack.'
"Now, everyone. You've been in the dungeon for a long time, so you must be tired. Please take a rest. And tonight, let's invite a lot of people and have a big party!"
Taking advantage of Elliot's words, we decided to heal our tiredness from the battle. Everyone is exhausted today. We'll report to the Adventurer's Guild later. There's only one key left.
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