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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Kee-e-e-eck!”
[Wow, that’s effective. I’m glad I don’t have a nose.]
The small, monkey-like monster writhed on the ground, foaming at the mouth. Its eyes were watering, overwhelmed by the amplified garlic odor.
It was almost pitiful.
I knew the smell was potent enough to make someone dizzy, but I didn’t expect such a violent reaction.
“What in the world did you bring?!”
Shuri asked, her tail standing straight up.
I placed my foot gently on the monster’s head and kindly answered.
“Garlic.”
Crack.
Its head was softer than I thought.
“G-Garlic?”
“You know, the stuff they put in aglio e olio.”
“Th-That stuff! It smells awful!”
“So don’t take your masks off. If you do… it’s hell.”
Thanks for the explanation, Viola.
I closed the box and systematically crushed the incapacitated monsters’ heads with my foot.
They had been too overwhelmed to even try to escape, so we finished clearing the area in less than five minutes.
“Crafting.”
I created a pit, tossed the bodies inside, and covered it with dirt, sprinkling some extra garlic on top for good measure. That should keep anything away for a while.
I finished tidying up and looked at the novice adventurers waiting for my next instructions.
“This is how we’ll deal with the monsters. Understood?”
“What do we do when we run out of garlic?”
“We fight.”
By then, we would reek of garlic anyway, so there wouldn’t be a need to use more. The group nodded and prepared to move.
I slung my backpack over my shoulder.
I wanted to snack on some jerky, but the thought of taking off my gas mask in this garlic-infused environment and having to shout “Gas! Gas! Gas!” made me lose my appetite.
[T/N: 0_0]
Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.
“Let’s move.”
Whether by good luck or bad, we encountered the withered tree monsters five more times.
The experience from the first encounter proved invaluable, and the subsequent battles went much smoother.
By the fifth encounter, we were able to take down the tree monster before it even had a chance to spew its monkey minions.
Shuri’s lightning magic and my mucus spray immobilized it, allowing us to incinerate it without any resistance.
I looked at our handiwork with satisfaction.
“Well done.”
Mages were the best damage dealers.
With a competent mage, all we needed to do was maintain formation and control the enemy’s movement.
A couple of well-placed spells could wipe them out. This was why adventurers practically begged mages to join their parties.
I hoped Elisa would grow into a powerful mage like Shuri. A decisive weapon capable of casting at least first-tier magic.
First-tier magic was practically essential for dealing significant damage to the final boss.
I wanted to see Meteor in action.
“Mister, something’s wrong with my prosthetic.”
“Come here.”
Was its durability lower than I thought?
I pulled up Viola’s sleeve and examined the prosthetic. Bits of monster flesh were stuck in the joints. It looked like she had been punching monsters with it.
“Did you punch a monster with your prosthetic?”
“It lunged at me, so I instinctively…”
“How much impact did you feel in your shoulder?”
“Hmm, quite a bit? My shoulder’s a little sore.”
“The shock absorption isn’t sufficient…”
“It felt good, though.”
She had a fiery personality.
It seemed the prosthetic arm wasn’t quite perfected yet. I placed my hand on her shoulder and detached the prosthetic.
“I’ll replace it with a spare. Hold your sleeve so it doesn’t fall.”
“Uh, yeah, okay, but it’s a bit…”
Why was she blushing? Was she embarrassed to show her armpit? It wasn’t like I hadn’t seen it before.
Ah, it was probably because of the other people around.
“Shuri. Come here for a moment.”
“Yes?”
“Viola seems embarrassed. I’ll teach you how to attach the prosthetic, so can you replace it for her?”
“Oh, Mister!”
“Uh, yes!”
Shuri quickly approached and respectfully received the spare prosthetic.
Seeing her handle it like a precious artifact, I told her it was fine to treat it casually and showed her how to attach it, using the broken prosthetic as an example.
“L-Like this?”
“Yes. Just like that.”
“There.”
As soon as the prosthetic was attached, Viola rotated her shoulder.
Fortunately, there didn’t seem to be any issues with the new one, so we resumed our exploration.
“Is this the staircase to the second level?”
Unlike the simple downward slope at the entrance, the path to the second level was a proper staircase.
This would make going down much easier.
We sat down by the stairs for a short rest. We hadn’t stopped since entering the dungeon, so it was time for a break.
“Crafting.”
We gathered inside the small structure I created and took off our gas masks. A pungent smell filled the air. It seemed we reeked of garlic from all the spraying.
Looking at the others, they seemed to be suffering from the smell as well.
Shuri was coughing and had to put her gas mask back on.
“Spicy…!”
“Wash your faces with water. It’ll help.”
“Cough… Why are you fine, Johann?”
“I’m used to it.”
Koreans have garlic in their blood.
Though this body had no connection to Korea.
Let’s just say it was my soul food.
Lost in thought, I watched the others suffer.
They eventually followed my advice and splashed water on their faces, then pulled out jerky from their bags and started eating, enjoying a brief respite.
“This is easier than I expected.”
“The first level usually isn’t that difficult. And the rewards aren’t great either. But Johann, shouldn’t we have skinned those monsters? They’re a new species, right? We could have gotten a good price…”
“Their hides were too easily torn.”
“Of course they were! Nothing can withstand a mithril shovel! Even a dragon would be scratched! Even that giant tree monster was getting gouged!”
“Mithril?”
“Oops.”
Tsk.
I glared at the blabbermouth cat. I then confirmed to Lewis and Shuri, who were now staring at my shovel, that it was indeed made of mithril.
There was no need to lie.
They were the protagonist couple, they wouldn’t spread rumors.
“Don’t tell anyone. It’s a secret for now.”
Nothing was more troublesome than attracting unwanted attention. Dealing with them wouldn’t be difficult, but it was still risky, considering the shovel was purchased with embezzled funds.
Fortunately, the kind-hearted protagonist couple readily agreed. Like they say, couples start to resemble each other.
“I’m more tired than I thought…”
“This is relatively easy for an unexplored dungeon.”
Our smooth progress was only possible due to our preparations and the individual skills of each member. A normal adventurer party would have likely suffered casualties dealing with those tree monsters.
Those monsters were a major threat to parties without a mage. If it weren’t for us, they would have been a significant obstacle.
Even the small monkeys weren’t as weak as they seemed.
They were weaker than goblins, but their sheer numbers and agility made them a nuisance.
They just happened to be vulnerable to my bio-chemical warfare.
This was why thorough research was crucial for dungeon exploration. Even a party lacking in combat power could significantly reduce the difficulty of a dungeon by bringing items that countered the monsters within.
“…Gather every bit of information you can. Sometimes, the smallest piece of information can determine the outcome of a battle.”
“Yes! I’ll keep that in mind!”
“Yes!”
“I see…”
They were such good kids, truly befitting the protagonist couple. They listened attentively to my advice.
I smiled, pleased to see Lewis and Shuri absorbing my knowledge.
If I kept training them like this, they would eventually be able to handle most situations without me lifting a finger. I made up my mind to continue guiding Lewis.
…Though I planned to mostly observe during this dungeon raid, as it was more of a test run.
“Listen up. There’s something we need to check before going down to the second level. Shuri, how much mana do you have left?”
“About two-thirds!”
“Conserve your mana on the second level. We don’t know what we’ll encounter, so stick to fourth-tier magic as much as possible. Only use third-tier magic if absolutely necessary. And Viola.”
“Yeah.”
“How many reagents do you have left?”
“I only used two. I punched the rest…”
“You’re quite the brawler.”
“It seemed like a waste to use reagents on those little monkeys. And the best way to gather data on durability and design flaws is through direct combat. For example, I learned that bits of flesh tend to get stuck in the joints.”
“Even so, try to avoid punching things on the second level. We don’t know what we’ll encounter.”
“Got it.”
“Lewis, just keep doing what you’re doing. Intercept any attacks from the front. If you can’t handle it, call me or ask Shuri for third-tier magic.”
“Understood.”
“Sif, you’re still on reconnaissance. Report any suspicious structures or traces of monsters immediately. Hide as much as possible during combat.”
“Easy! Got it!”
“…Then pick up your bags. We’re going down to the second level.”
[I hope there’s something interesting on the second level. The first level was rather boring.]
…That didn’t sound good.
I made sure everyone had their bags and stepped out of the structure, stopping at the top of the stairs leading to the second level.
“Anything you’ve forgotten?”
“No.”
“Need to use the restroom?”
“Uh… can I go quickly?”
Nature calls, I guess.
I created a pit and a temporary wall nearby and returned to my spot.
“Make it quick. Go in groups of three.”
The three women put down their bags and disappeared behind the wall. I looked at Lewis, who was awkwardly scratching his head, and then at the dimly lit staircase.
What awaited us on the second level?
The monsters on the first level weren’t strong enough to wipe out adventurer parties.
If my guess was correct, the first level was just a warm-up, and the second level…
“We’re back!”
“Alright. Pick up your bags.”
Time to go down to the second level.
We stepped onto the dimly lit staircase.
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