Chapter 18

Seiki had a little bit of stamina left.

He looked at his watch; it was 3 PM.

"Since I'm here, I might as well go as far as I can."

If he felt any danger, he could just run away.

He activated the gate and began exploring the fourth floor.

"…And before that, I should check the board, right?"

He took out his skill board and checked it.

Seiki Haruki (27) Gender: Male

Skill Points: 1

"Well, as expected, I haven't gained any points."

Maybe he could get points by defeating a boss?

He had a slight hope, but it didn't come true.

This way, various things about the skill board became clear.

1. 1 point for each new highest floor reached in the dungeon (common across all dungeons).

2. 1 point for defeating a rare enemy (once per type?).

3. No points for defeating a boss.

4. No points for defeating common enemies.

5. Skills grow naturally even without allocating points.

That's about it.

The conditions for gaining points are quite strict.

Still, the effect of allocating a single point is tremendous.

Since it rapidly accelerates the growth of something that grows naturally, it makes sense that the conditions are strict.

"…Hmm?"

Seiki's eyes stopped at the "Imitation" skill.

- Skills

- Weapon Proficiency

- One-handed Sword: 1

- Throwing: 0

- Light Armor: 0

- Stealth: 0

- Imitation: 0 (NEW)

"I didn't have Imitation before. So it must have been unlocked."

Indeed, Seiki had been imitating his opponents' movements during battles.

This was because his combat skills were low, and he also lacked experience.

Seiki tried to cover his lack of technique and experience by learning good movements from his opponents.

Probably, his practice of imitation reached a certain level, and the skill tree item was unlocked.

Imitation was unexpected, but as he had imagined, new skills appear based on practice.

"Should I allocate points, or not…?"

His body itched to allocate points to the new skill.

He wanted to.

However, it wouldn't be very useful to allocate points now.

Since Imitation can be practiced frequently, it would be more efficient to let it grow a bit before allocating points.

When he went down to the fourth floor, the color of the walls and ceiling had changed slightly.

The first three floors were a dark brown.

The fourth floor was a dark green.

The different shades of green formed a mottled pattern.

"Beautiful. I wonder how this happened?"

Seiki couldn't help but be captivated by the colors.

What percentage of CMYK is this?

It would be a hassle to print, he thought, a professional habit even though he had already retired.

As he walked down the corridor that would take a lot of work to print, plants were growing from the ground.

The same kind of onion monster he saw on the second floor.

But the leaves were clearly different.

The stem was thick, and many leaves grew from it.

At the top of the thickest stem in the center, a pink flower, almost white, was blooming.

"I feel like I've seen this plant before, but where was it?"

As he was thinking, the plant suddenly started moving.

It didn't walk around like an onion.

But it moved its leaves and pointed the tip of the thickest stem at him.

He had a bad feeling.

Seiki slid his feet and crouched down.

The distance was five meters.

The stem swelled up, and something rounded came up.

When it reached the tip—

"—What, a fixed cannon?"

Something with mass flew at Seiki from the tip.

The speed of the projectile was just barely visible to the eye.

Avoiding it wasn't a problem.

Since he could see the timing and direction, there was no way he couldn't avoid it.

But that was only from this position.

…Could he get closer?

While dodging the projectile, Seiki slowly closed the distance.

His eyes gradually got used to the speed of the cannonball (or whatever it was).

But it was still a close call.

If he got one meter closer, he wouldn't be able to avoid it.

For now, Seiki retreated.

It seemed the monster's range was five meters.

When he moved out of range, the attacks stopped.

"Does it run out of ammo… or something?"

If he could make it waste all its ammo, he might be able to win.

Seiki's eyes were fixed on the ammo that fell to the ground.

This is…

"Potato?"

When he picked it up, it was definitely a potato.

"Is this a potato monster?!"

Ah, that's why it looked familiar…

He had grown potatoes in a home garden before, so it was natural that he recognized it.

Seiki's body suddenly became excited.

To get potatoes as well as onions!

What a wonderful dungeon!

Seiki happily continued to provoke the potato plant.

The potato monster fired potatoes like it was nothing.

But after firing about 40 potatoes, it seemed to run out of ammo. No more potatoes came out, no matter how close he got.

"…Damn."

The stem without potatoes was drooping, looking lifeless.

Perhaps it was using its life force to attack.

What a monster…

However,

"I have no use for you without your potatoes."

With a swift slash of his dagger, Seiki mercilessly cut the potato plant's stem from the ground.

40 potatoes from one plant.

Delicious. A very delicious monster.

"Huh!? Could the magic bag have dropped to harvest potatoes!?"

Of course not.

But it would be perfect for storing potatoes.

Damn!

If only he had borrowed a magic bag from Kurenai!

Next time, he would bring Kurenai here.

With that resolve, Seiki happily continued to "harvest" and defeat the potato monsters.

Maybe if he cleared this dungeon, he could have curry rice!

With that dream in mind…

*

The boss on the fourth floor was a large potato plant.

It skillfully used three thick nozzles to fire a large number of potatoes.

A terrifying fixed cannon.

Seiki couldn't even get close.

Seiki dodged the large number of potatoes while watching them shatter against the walls, tears streaming down his face.

It seemed impossible to harvest potatoes from anything other than the ones in the straight corridor.

It seemed this boss also had a limit to its ammo.

After firing about 100 potatoes, the stem lowered its head in defeat.

The fired potatoes were powerful.

Even a light graze caused a tingling sensation…

But once it ran out of ammo, it was his.

Seiki mercilessly pulled the boss out of the ground.

"Isn't it a bit too weak?"

Seiki tilted his head, but the potato monster wasn't particularly weak.

If he had been hit by the projectiles, he would have suffered life-threatening injuries.

He only felt it was weak because the strategy was clear.

If the potatoes had been infinite, Seiki would have had a much harder time.

The dungeon flickered, announcing the first defeat of the boss to everyone.

This time, it dropped one pot and ten unusually hard potatoes.

The pot looked like pottery, but the pattern wasn't Japanese.

Since he had never seen it before, Seiki couldn't say which country it was from.

It might be a unique design of the dungeon.

He would have it appraised at the store.

Next, the unusually hard potatoes.

"…What are these?"

When he touched them, they were as hard as stone.

He tried cutting them with a disassembly knife, but it didn't seem to make a dent.

"Stone?"

Why were they in the shape of potatoes?

They could be magical items, but he had no idea how to use them.

"…Whatever."

He would find out what they were once they were appraised.

For now, Seiki threw the potatoes into the pot and stored it in his bag.

It was 4:45 PM.

He decided to activate the gate to the fifth floor and then return.

He was curious about the monsters on the fifth floor.

But the monsters that appeared so far had alternated between strong and weak on each floor.

If this pattern continued, the next one would be strong.

It wouldn't be too late to hunt on the fifth floor after preparing thoroughly.

"Are you there?"

"…I'm here. Is it a problem if I am?"

When he went to the prefab store, the clerk was sulking at the counter.

Since only Seiki and Kurenai were challenging the dungeon, she must have been incredibly bored.

Or perhaps she was still sulking about being sent here.

"I need you to buy some materials and appraise some drops."

"…It's almost closing time, you know."

She seemed to have lost her motivation after being sent to the middle of nowhere.

What happened to the old her?

"Hey—"

"My name is Ayatsuki Akane. It's a beautiful name, isn't it? I'll let you call me Akane-sama as a special favor."

"…"

Beautiful name, but…

"What?"

"Nothing…"

"If you have nothing, I'm closing the store. Come back tomorrow."

"Can I go home?"

"Yes. Here, go home, go home."

"Is that so? What a shame."

Seiki deliberately sighed deeply.

"I was thinking of selling the boss drops to a grateful clerk."

"…Boss? What do you mean by boss—"

"Too bad! I have plans in Sapporo tomorrow, so if you can't buy them today, I'll sell them to a store in Sapporo!"

"Whaaat! Wait! Wait a minute! Not that! Not that! I'll buy them!"

Yeah, gotcha. A big catch… or rather, a small one.

Akane, who fell for the act, had tears in her eyes as she pulled Seiki's arm into the store.

…This one is quite strong.

Come to think of it, she had mentioned something about beating up adventurers.

She might have leveled up in the dungeon.

Anyway, selling and appraising.

Seiki took out claws, iron, a pot, and potatoes (or whatever they were) from his bag.

The rest were raccoon meat and fur, but he had stored them at home because there was too much.

Potatoes were valuable vegetables and good for storage.

He would share some with the neighbors, but he didn't plan to sell them.

While Akane was appraising, Seiki brought the raccoon meat and fur into the prefab.

When he returned, she was already done, looking strained.

"You've hunted quite a bit again, haven't you?"

"Is that so? Just about 100."

"To you, it's just 100… Plus, you defeated two bosses. Aren't you tired?"

"Of course I'm tired. I'm fighting monsters, after all."

"…You're crazy."

"Thanks. So, what's the appraisal result?"

"The boss claws are just larger black raccoon claws. Pretty normal. They might make a good sword if forged, but not as powerful as your weapon. The price is 5,000 yen."

"I see…"

It was still the upper floors.

It wouldn't drop anything too good.

"Next, the black ore. This is magic iron. It's a major ore from the dungeon, but it's not something you see every day. Is it rare, then?

You can't make strong weapons with just magic iron, so it's common to combine it with stronger materials. It's used for parts that require durability, like the guard, rivets, and habaki. Your dagger uses magic iron in parts. The price is 100,000 yen per kilogram."

"Wow, that's quite expensive."

"One kilogram of this can make at least ten strong weapons. It's worth it."

"I see."

It was rare, but not strong on its own.

So, it would be better to buy strong pre-made items with the money from selling it.

Thinking this, Seiki decided to sell all the magic iron.

3.5 kilograms for 350,000 yen.

A pretty good price for an upper floor boss drop.

"And this potato-like thing is a stone."

"…Yeah, so?"

"That's it."

…What?

"No, no, it's a boss drop. There must be more to it, right?"

"Sure. It's a very hard stone. And it looks very much like a potato. It could be sold as a toy. The price is 0 yen. I can't take it even if you offer it."

"No, no…! What if it explodes when you hit it—"

"It doesn't. I hit it against the table just now, and it didn't explode."

"You, what are you doing!?"

"Not 'you.' Call me Akane-sama."

"Shut up."

So cocky…

"What if it had exploded?"

"It didn't, so it's fine."

"Think about the worst-case scenario."

"Stop being so annoying. This trash can't explode."

"…"

Seiki must have been very happy to pick up this trash.

Her words were quite harsh.

But why did that boss have this trash in the first place!

"However, I can't do a detailed appraisal here, so I can't be sure. It might be a magical item with a strong effect. For example… a destruction modifier that adds damage when hit, or a throwing modifier that increases speed when thrown."

"Magical items can have such powerful effects?"

"Yes. The owners don't publicize them much, though."

Because they might be stolen, Akane shrugged.

"Would someone with a magical item be so easily stolen from?"

"There are people who would do anything to get their hands on them, and humans aren't perfect enough to defend against attacks at all times, like in the bath, toilet, or while sleeping."

"…"

Akane's dark words made Seiki shiver.

It seemed magical items were more mind-bending than he thought.

He would be very careful with the magic bag.

"But don't worry. It's likely that this is just a hobby of the boss."

"A toy-making hobby?"

"Yes. Not very peaceful."

A boss making toys in the dungeon… It doesn't make much sense.

"What do you want to do? Do a detailed appraisal? I don't think it will have any effect, though."

He was curious if it had any effect.

But the thought of spending 100,000 yen on a detailed appraisal and finding nothing made him hesitant.

Only gamblers would take that risk.

Mainly the ones who lose money…

"I'll pass."

"Prudent. As for the remaining pot, it's ultra-rare."

"Wow!?"

"This pot is a magical item that can replicate what you put in it. No matter how much you take out, it will never run out.

If you put in clean water, it will become a pot that continuously provides clean water. If you put in gold bars, it will become a gold bed that never runs out."

"What…! That's a godly item!!"

Akane's earlier words came back to him, and Seiki panicked.

What should I do!

Will I be targeted!?

I need a safe!

A heavy, large one!!

But,

"Yes, that's right."

Seiki sensed an ominous vibe from Akane's words and frowned.

"Until the stone potatoes were put in…"

"…What!?"

No way!?

In disbelief, Seiki turned the pot upside down.

A large amount of stones fell to the floor with a loud noise.

And it kept falling, and falling…

"Hey, stop it! Are you trying to make the prefab a mess!?"

Seized by a panicked Akane, the pot was returned to its original position.

This can't be…

"No, this is… Can't you reset it later?"

"Maybe. If it had that function, it wouldn't be unbuyable at our store."

"Unbuyable… By the way, if nothing was in it…"

"It would probably fetch a price of 1 trillion yen at an auction."

"Wha… What…?"

Tears welled up in Seiki's eyes.

No way…

An ultra-rare item pot turned into a trash can that endlessly produced stone potatoes…

"Well, these things happen. Maybe if you put it up for auction, someone would pay a lot for it! It's just that our store can't buy it, you know! Don't be so down! Just try harder next time! Fight!"

"…"

Being comforted by Akane, who was sulking after being demoted…

Seiki gritted his teeth.

Life doesn't always go as planned…

Thank you for waiting.

The potatoes I mentioned in the summary finally appeared!

Stay tuned to see how they will be involved in the story.