Chapter 18

It seems we have secured water.

I once again think how convenient magic is.

I'm glad, but the way we found out is a bit too subtle.

Changing my mindset, if we have water, the next step is food.

To avoid repeating the same thing, I'll try with magic first.

"Beef bowl"

No matter how delicious an image I create, it doesn't work.

Hmm~ What about vegetables or meat before cooking?

"Cabbage"

...

"Chicken"

If cabbage is impossible, chicken is also impossible.

Why did I even try!

The strange looks from Coa and the others.

I feel like burying myself in a hole.

Taking a deep breath.

I judge that getting food with magic is impossible.

So, what should I do?

Nuts, at least!

Mushrooms are scary, so no.

Since we're surrounded by a forest, there should be something.

I'll explore the area around the cave.

There are no nuts in the purified area.

Only giant trees.

There are smaller trees, but no flowers or fruits.

This is a problem.

I got a headbutt from Hio.

I was surprised because it was sudden, but why?

Hio nodded once at my surprised face.

Then, with Shion and Crow, he ran out of the barrier.

Eh!

The three of them ran off somewhere.

What happened?

Even when I looked at Coa, he just stared back and nodded.

Sorry, but nodding doesn't help.

Eh~ Could they have left me behind?

I don't want to think that.

When I look troubled, Coa also looks troubled.

I can now distinguish Coa's troubled face.

But this one is because we don't understand each other.

So, what should I do?

I want to wait for Hio and the others, but I don't know if they'll come back.

I need to solve the food problem as soon as possible...

I'll calm down and start exploring.

...I'll believe they'll come back.

I wanted to say I discovered the cave's secret.

It's just that I'm a boy, so I can't help but think that way.

...

What I found was an entrance.

It seems we were in a space near the top of a rock mountain.

What I found was a regular entrance from the ground.

I won't recklessly go in.

Absolutely not.

Even if I'm drawn to it, that would be too reckless here.

So I activate spatial recognition with magic.

Images float up in my mind.

It's a strange feeling, no matter how many times I do it.

I examine the cave from the images.

I thought the cave was quite large, but seeing it in the images, it's really huge.

...And there seems to be a slope inside the cave.

When I move along the slope, I discover a second floor.

The second floor is also large... Ah, there's another slope.

It seems... to be a three-story cave.

Ah, no, it's a four-story cave.

We were in the topmost part.

And, my heart is racing, I'm excited.

I discovered the underground!

Just the sound of "cave underground" raises my spirits.

...

The excitement I had suddenly dropped.

Checking with spatial recognition, the underground has two floors.

And... I discovered a black mass.

I hate curses.