Chapter 68

"......It's you, huh?"

"――Eek!!"

Hiren let out a small scream behind him.

Beside her, Seiki was disappointed by the unexpected creature that appeared.

It was about a meter long and as thick as a baseball bat.

Its black body was covered in a slimy membrane.

The eight pairs of eyes on its head glared at Seiki all at once.

What appeared was the slimy eel that Seiki had encountered many times before.

"But this is the food floor, so why is there a monster deterrent...? Hm, food floor?"

While dodging the slimy eel's mucus attack, Seiki suddenly realized something.

—Could this thing be edible?

Once he realized this, things moved quickly.

Seiki swiftly decapitated the eel and then sliced its body open lengthwise.

With a splat, the eel's organs and mucus hit the ground.

"Ugh!"

At the sight, Hiren's face turned pale behind him.

She clutched her mouth and crouched down, trembling.

Ignoring Hiren, Seiki picked up the freshly killed slimy eel.

"Hmm..."

Although he had used the slimy eel many times before, Seiki had only recognized it as a monster deterrent.

But after preparing it, he realized something.

The slimy eel was the best white meat.

"White rice and... eel... hehehe."

With a strange laugh, Seiki dashed out into the wetlands.

—*Pop*.

With a light popping sound, Seiki's legs went numb and he stopped.

In his hands were six slimy eels.

Four more were tied to his belt.

Rara, who was supposed to be in his bag, was suddenly waiting by the gate with Hiren.

"......Huh?"

Why am I in this state?

Seiki recalled his actions.

After defeating the first one, Seiki, driven by hunger, threw himself into capturing more eels.

But even on the food floor, the mid-layer monsters were formidable.

The slimy eel released a slimy substance from its body, reducing the effectiveness of Seiki's short sword attacks.

The eel's defense was strong.

The short sword's edge would dull instantly upon contact with the slime.

Seiki struggled with the eel's defeat, but the battle ended abruptly.

The slime the eel secreted to protect itself was so powerful that it trapped the eel, making it unable to move.

Seiki mercilessly stabbed the eel's neck with his short sword as it was immobilized in the slime.

Even the strongest ability is just a hindrance if it can't be controlled.

It's ironic that the power meant to protect became a curse.

Seiki approached the gate, making squelching sounds to avoid getting stuck in the slime.

"......Huff"

"(Shiver...)"

Hiren and Rara greeted Seiki with the kind of look (gesture) one gives to a wild animal.

Why do they have to look at me like that?

"I'm sorry for getting so absorbed in hunting alone."

"No, I don't really mind that."

Then what is it?

Seiki tilted his head, but he couldn't understand.

With a *splat* sound, he placed the eels on the ground and began to prepare them one by one.

As he started with his filleting knife, Hiren and Rara moved away from Seiki.

"......What's wrong?"

"No, please continue without worrying."

"O-Okay."

Encouraged by Hiren, Seiki continued to prepare the eels one after another.

There were ten eels in total.

With this many, they could enjoy a variety of dishes.

When he tried to put the prepared eels in the magic bag, Hiren refused.

Unable to put them in his own bag due to Rara's scolding, Seiki had no choice but to carry them in his hands.

Feeling dejected at being rejected by both of them, Seiki headed to the gate with five eels in each hand.

Back on the surface, Seiki headed to the prefab.

"Ah?!"

When he entered the shop, Shuon's eyes widened.

It was rare for her to react so quickly to Seiki entering the shop.

"I need you to buy these materials."

"Ah! Don't come here! Don't come here with that pervert air!!"

"What did I do?!"

He was being treated terribly.

Seiki was not a criminal.

He didn't look like a criminal either.

He was just a regular adventurer!

To be rejected to this extent...

"Um, Seikasei?"

"What?"

"Isn't it a bit much to come into the shop like that...?"

Only then did Seiki realize that his body was covered in the slime secreted by the slimy eels.

Feeling hurt even by Esta's avoidance, Seiki washed the slime off his body with well water, tears streaming down his face.

After selling the materials and giving the locusts he hunted as a gift to Esta to make her happy, Seiki struck the hot stones in the brazier with confidence.

He cut the eels into small pieces and placed them on the grill.

The fat from the eels sizzled and dripped onto the hot stones, creating smoke.

"Mmm, that smells good."

Shuon's nose twitched, and she held her chopsticks firmly.

"......Why are you here?"

Of course, Seiki hadn't called her.

As soon as he started the charcoal grilling, she approached like a moth to a flame.

"Since you made my shop all slimy, it's only fair that you apologize, right?"

"......"

Indeed, Seiki had entered the shop covered in slime.

He was at fault, and it wasn't unreasonable to offer the eels as an apology.

But for some reason,

he wanted to refuse when asked by Shuon.

He served the rice in a bowl and placed the grilled eel on top.

It would have been perfect with some wasabi soy sauce, but he had to make do without it.

He sprinkled salted plum on top to finish.

"Let's eat!"

Seiki and Hiren took their first bites of the grilled eel.

Shuon also picked up a piece skillfully with her chopsticks and took a bite.

"—!"

The rich fat of the eel spread in their mouths.

The meat was well-firmed, and the more they chewed, the more the sweetness seeped out.

The cartilage mixed in with the meat provided a satisfying crunch, creating the perfect texture.

The strong seasoning didn't mask the natural flavor of the eel, making it even more distinct.

The taste was like white fish.

The texture was more like that of a conger eel or a hagfish, rather than the typical eel.

There was no muddy taste in the meat.

The aroma of the charcoal was wonderfully fragrant.

If there had been eel sauce or wasabi soy sauce,

Seiki might have lost consciousness from the deliciousness.

Seiki chewed the grilled eel, moved by its flavor.

He had never tasted such delicious eel before.

"Amazing..."

"Ugh... ugh..."

"Huff huff!"

Hiren was moving her mouth while tears streamed down her face.

Shuon was eagerly devouring the grilled eel.

As they enjoyed the grilled eel, Esta, who had finished the locusts, rubbed against Seiki.

"Hm? Do you want some, Esta?"

He gave her a piece of the grilled eel.

Esta raised her legs in a celebratory gesture.

She was very expressive.

On the other hand, Rara remained at a distance, unmoving.

When Seiki asked if she wanted some, she shook her leaves from side to side and watered the soil in the planter with the water bottle she had prepared.

She didn't seem very interested in the eel.

The ten eels were quickly devoured by the three of them and Esta.

* * *

It was time to level up.

While suppressing the 14th floor, Seiki pondered.

His skill levels were fine.

Seiki, Rara, and Hiren were all capable of handling monsters.

However, their base levels were starting to feel a bit lacking.

This became apparent during the hunts on the 13th and 14th floors.

Previously, they could level up with 20 to 30 kills, experiencing only mild level-up dizziness.

Now, they felt level-up dizziness after just 10 kills and occasionally experienced severe headaches.

Their base levels were not keeping up with the floor levels.

Seiki and his companions were still in their first year as adventurers.

Although they had advanced to the mid-layers and become intermediate adventurers, they had far less combat experience compared to other adventurers.

Lack of combat experience led to slower responses to unexpected situations.

Combat experience couldn't be gained overnight; it required time.

Seiki had to compensate for the lack of combat experience with skills and base levels to progress in the dungeon.

Higher skills and base levels allowed for better handling of unexpected situations.

While skills could be improved on the board, base levels required consistent leveling.

It would be better to focus on raising base levels before an unexpected event led to an accident.

The slime released by the 14th floor boss was very powerful, rendering all of Seiki's attacks ineffective.

However, Hiren's lightning strikes were surprisingly effective, and they managed to defeat the boss.

The slime-covered boss made a *squelch* sound as it was absorbed into the dungeon, along with the slime.

"Ugh..."

Did the level-up dizziness get worse when fighting the boss alone?

The main contributor, Seiki, didn't celebrate but instead crouched down, covering his mouth.

After the boss disappeared, the drops and stairs appeared.

The drops were the skin of the slimy eel and...

"......Eel replicas?"

There were two slimy eel figurines made of unknown material.

Holding them, Seiki didn't sense anything special.

He would have Shuon appraise them later.

The 15th floor was a stark contrast to the 14th, a dry grassland.

Occasionally, the wind lifted the sand from the ground, coloring the air brown.

After activating the gate, Seiki immediately began scouting.

His neck tingled.

He sensed a strong, different kind of presence.

Swallowing hard, Seiki's detection caught a single monster.

He immediately assumed a battle stance.

Drawing his two short swords, a white-furred monster appeared in front of him.

"—Werewolf!"

Seiki's blood boiled.

He had fought a werewolf once during a stampede.

At the time, he never wanted to fight one again.

But as he leveled up, Seiki gradually began to look forward to a rematch.

The strength, the beauty,

were etched in his mind, refusing to fade.

How much stronger had he become since then?

How much of his current strength would be effective against the werewolf?

Seiki was eager to find out.

Finally, he found it.

Finally, he reached it.

Seiki grinned and lunged forward.

Seiki and the werewolf collided mid-air.

—*Clang*!

Short swords met claws, producing a high-pitched sound.

Strength was equal.

Agility was the same.

But Seiki stepped back.

The werewolf's claw passed by his nose.

"You're still as beautiful."

Cold sweat trickled down Seiki's back.

If his retreat had been a fraction of a second slower, the werewolf's claw would have deeply pierced his temple.

The werewolf's movements were more beautiful than Seiki's.

The lack of wasted motion allowed for faster and more precise strikes.

Seiki's spine shivered.

Good.

Very good!

Seiki had been imitating the werewolf's movements.

He had also studied the movements of swordsmanship experts through videos.

But it wasn't enough.

"Still not there."

The werewolf he had fought before was weaker.

The memory had slightly degraded over time.

The image of the werewolf in Seiki's mind had deteriorated.

He had to start over.

While disappointed that he still couldn't match the werewolf, he felt a surge of motivation.

The beauty he had imagined still had room for improvement.

Just realizing this was a significant gain.

There was still more to achieve.

There was still more to reach.

So focus.

Focus!

Seiki's consciousness delved deeper.

He concentrated, focused, imagined, and hypothesized.

He assumed, tried, adjusted, and retried.

Seiki repeatedly attacked the werewolf.

He slashed, thrust, kicked, and deflected.

He retreated, turned, stepped in, and countered.

Rara deflected all the dangerous attacks.

This allowed Seiki to focus deeply.

Occasionally, Hiren shouted.

Seiki immediately retreated.

In an instant, a bright flash.

A loud thunderclap split the air.

But Hiren's lightning strike couldn't stun the werewolf for even a fraction of a second.

It wasn't that it didn't work.

The skill's power was just too weak.

Still, a small opening was created.

Seiki quickly capitalized on it, shaking the werewolf.

The werewolf lunged forward.

At that moment,

Hiren struck the werewolf with another lightning bolt.

The slimy eel is a combination of a conger eel and a hagfish.

It has eight pairs of eyes. (Note: Despite being called an "eight-eyed eel," it only has two eyes.)