Chapter 99

March 3rd.

Finally, we are starting our activities as a party of seven.

We are planning to head to the Miliela Mine Dungeon for a week starting today. Depending on our levels, we might be able to return earlier.

The conditions for challenging the dungeon are three D-rank members, one F-rank member, and three slaves. It is recommended to have at least D-rank, so normally, with more than half being F-rank, we wouldn't be able to challenge it. However, we have been given permission to do so.

Additionally, Shimaou is with us as a familiar. Momo and Lychee are also here, but they are not considered part of the fighting force. Carol and Rott are staying at the Tamer Guild.

Beforehand, I gave Crow some special training to boost his defense, but I'm a bit worried that Ars hasn't had any.

"Well, our goal is to clear the dungeon in a week and level everyone up to 30."

"Is that a realistic goal?"

In response to my brother's words, Crow reacts, but I don't think it's impossible.

This dungeon has 30 floors. The enemies are weaker than in the Mushroom Forest Dungeon. However, with this number of people, it's not ideal for gaining experience.

Many adventurers start here and level up to around 45, starting from level 30. It's said that leveling up in the upper floors here is more efficient than in the upper floors of the Mushroom Forest.

"Outside of boss battles, it's best to split into a group of four and a group of three plus Shimaou. If our levels don't rise by the final day, we can split further. Since Crane is the only healer, I think it's best to assign him to Crow and Ars. What do you think?"

"Sure, sure! I think that's a good idea!"

In response to my brother's words, Leus agrees, but since Ars is an attacker, it would be better to have a tank here.

Since Crow and I are magic users and Ars has the lowest level... well, we can manage with healing magic, but it's a bit risky.

"Can you have Naga or Tiga? Without a tank, if I get targeted, what will you do?"

Crow rejects Leus's suggestion. Yeah, that makes sense.

"I'll use healing magic?"

"Please don't assume I'll be attacked. I request Naga."

"...Alright."

Yeah, Naga is more stable. Tiga isn't bad, but the level difference directly affects their durability.

Plus, Naga can be defeated quickly. If it takes too long, the backline might be in danger, so I think this is the right choice.

Up to the 20th floor, there are no wandering bosses, so there shouldn't be any problems. We decided to meet at the exit of the 9th floor, just before the 10th floor.

"Then, let's get going."

After defeating the entrance boss with all seven of us, we split up and set off. My brother's group headed straight ahead, but we decided to discuss our plans before proceeding.

"First, Ars, you're an attacker, right? The monsters here are tough, but do your attacks connect?"

"Um... not really. And... my weapon isn't very good."

Indeed... this iron sword is of very poor quality. When I asked where he got this sword, he said he received it in a town called Caesius.

I was going to ask who gave it to him, but he looked so gloomy that I didn't. It might have been from that girl, which would be awkward to ask about.

Either way, with this weapon, it could break at any time, so I'll recommend buying a new one. Just like when I broke my weapon with the giant snake, an imperfect weapon is too dangerous.

"Got it. Then... Naga, can I borrow your weapon?"

"...Sure, which one?"

"Spear... while a greatsword has more attack power, there are many fire-resistant monsters here, so let's go with the spear. You probably haven't used one before, but I'll teach you the basics."

I taught Ars the basics of using a spear and handed him Naga's spear.

Naga seems to focus on using a large shield and doesn't participate in attacks.

"Can I ask why?"

"First, I'm borrowing Naga's weapon because it's enchanted. The monsters here have high DEF but low MDF. If we can wrap our attacks in magic, they should connect, so let's try that."

I had him hold the weapon and wrap it in lightning. Yeah, it's working... there shouldn't be any monsters resistant to lightning, so this should make a big difference.

"The spear is better for concentrated attacks, which is good for the monsters here. If you try to slash, it will be deflected, so a thrust with the spear is better. As your level increases, your attacks will connect more, so let's use this. If you're fighting rock-type monsters, your sword might break."

"O-okay."

"Getting used to channeling magic will take some time. The magic stones here contain magic power, so don't worry about MP and use it freely, okay?"

"Got it, thanks."

Ars is practicing with the spear while Naga gives advice, so I'll leave it to them.

Crow seems to have been waiting for our conversation to end.

"Then, Crow, let's focus on magic. If you can, try to build up magic power before casting to increase your attack power."

"Can you explain that a bit more clearly?"

"Like this."

I cast Water <Water> and showed him how to make water drip, then how to channel magic to make it shoot out forcefully.

"Pretty handy, huh?"

"Well, you can do it by controlling the amount of MP and visualizing it. Once you get used to it, you can do a lot of things."

"Still, I don't see the need to focus it like that."

"Handy... focusing is actually harder. I use it a lot in alchemy."

Crow casts Water <Water> and makes water drip. He can do almost the same as me. Yeah, I'm surprised he can do that much.

I find it very useful in alchemy.

It's true that it's not useful in combat. If you can focus, you should be able to build up power, so that shouldn't be a problem.

"Then, how do we fight?"

"...I'll basically stop them. ...Bats and other things might attack from above, so it won't be completely safe..."

"Preferably, Crow can use magic to knock them down from above... how about it?"

"Pretty demanding... but for aerial enemies, wind magic should work. I'll do my best."

"Okay. I think wind magic is best. If possible, I'd like you to level up your wind magic."

Crow already knew wind magic, so it's better to focus on that. If he can learn lightning magic, it might make stampedes easier.

Then, the four of us proceed through the dungeon.

We try to engage in as many battles as possible to level up the two of them... but we also need to be careful to avoid dangerous routes.

Compared to Tiga and Leus last time, we have more difficulty with defense, so we need to be careful not to get surrounded... even if Naga can stop them... Crow is more paper-thin than I am.

We did some special training beforehand, so the level-up gains are better... but I didn't learn resistance abilities until level 10, so the difference shouldn't be too big as we grow.

Additionally, Ars doesn't seem to be getting as strong as I expected, given his stat gains... for a combat class at the third level, he's only using stats.

We haven't properly exchanged information about unique skills... partly because of time, but also because there's a reluctance to reveal our cards.

In the future, differences in what we hope for might lead us to different paths, making it difficult to openly share abilities.

"Don't push yourself too hard, okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"Try to take the monsters without losing any advantage... it's impressive that you can use your abilities so precisely."

Crow seems to be using <Life Detection>, <Magic Detection>, and <Awareness> to ensure there's no danger.

It requires a lot of concentration to use all three at once, but considering the danger... I prioritize safety until their defense improves.

"Can you see that?"

"You're using SP and MP for something. My detection skills aren't that high... but I can tell you're making things easier for us. Your SP and MP are decreasing even though you're not fighting, which is strange."

"...We need to level up the two of them. It's better not to interfere as much as possible so they can gain more experience. I'm just making sure we don't miss any... and being discreet."

I've heard that stats can be seen, but it might be better to do something about it. While it might be good to have an overall grasp, it's not a good feeling to constantly check someone's stats.

"By the way, do you think I'll be one-shot by a boss?"

"Hmm. A boss might, but the dungeon only has monsters of a certain level, so it should be fine."

Outside the dungeon, irregulars like King Shimaou or a giant snake that should be hibernating can appear.

In the dungeon, the monsters are fixed, so gathering information reduces the danger. The danger from monsters...

The danger from traps and human errors is higher in the dungeon.

"Even if the tank can stop basic attacks, it's not guaranteed. ...Honestly, it's painful that our defense didn't improve much until level 10. That's probably how the Empire raised us."

This was the case with Tiga and Leus as well. They probably intended to control our growth to avoid making us too strong.

They likely avoided giving us abilities, especially in defense, to keep us weak.

"Them too?"

"Yeah. But those two seem to level up easily. Even without specific numbers, they quickly surpassed the danger threshold and seem to level up easily like Naga."

I think this is due to racial differences. Leus, Tiga, Crow, and my brother are all mixed, and Ars is a quarter. Their stat gains seem to vary.

I'm probably mixed too... but I'm a magic user.

Crow, despite being a magic user, has more SP than MP. Like my brother, bird people seem to have higher SP growth.

"Interesting... but isn't it surprisingly quiet?"

There might be gathering points ahead, but there are a lot of people. There seem to be about three times as many people as when we came with four last time.

However, the exit is beyond the gathering points, so we can't bypass them.

We want to level up without drawing attention, so having a lot of people around is really troublesome.

"There are more people than when we came a week ago. I don't know why."

"It's because of your brother and the Empire's adventurers... hey, kid. How are you doing?"

"Huh? Notos? What are you doing in the lower floors? And what do you mean by my brother and the Empire?"

"I'm in the lower floors because one of our members is injured. And just now, your brother's party gathered a rare stone. Seeing that, everyone is flocking to the gathering points... such rarities don't appear often, even in the upper floors."

I see.

A familiar adventurer explained this to me. However, my brother... or rather, Leus, gathered a rare item.

I understand why people want it, but I didn't expect such a crowd.

"The Empire is in turmoil, so many of their adventurers have come here... this might indicate a stampede in the Empire."

"Is that bad?"

"The general is dead, and the military is in a bad state. With more adventurers coming here, the country can't just trust the Empire's adventurers and rely on them for the stampede, nor can they spare the manpower to help elsewhere."

I understand that they can't rely on adventurers from other countries.

Adventurers prioritize their own safety, and giving them risky missions can lead to them fleeing. For a village, their own safety is more important... and the possibility is even higher for those coming from the Empire.

"Hey, kid. Can you tell me how many more people there are?"

"You're with the kid. Well... if we consider the original number of adventurers based in this town as 10, there are 5 from the Empire, 3 from other regions. Additionally, about 10% of those who usually earn money in other regions return to help during the stampede. The number has almost doubled."

After looking at Crow's face, he smiled and provided the information... the number has increased significantly, but it's not quite double the original.

I thought there were more unfamiliar faces, but I didn't realize it had increased so much.

With a sudden increase in adventurers, the security situation might worsen... yeah, I've noticed an increase in misbehaving adventurers.

"Even though things have calmed down, there was a shortage of healing potions a while ago. The increase in people is due to more escort requests from the Commercial Guild, and many adventurers who came here have stayed. Additionally, the rewards for quests in this town are good, so they are likely to stay until the stampede emergency quests end."

"Thank you. Is this a good enough thank you? I'll buy you a drink when we get back to town."

I offered a large water bottle as a thank you.

I prepared one for each of us, but since they weren't needed, I have seven, so giving one shouldn't be a problem.

"Hey, the kid is growing up. What's this?"

"A fatigue recovery drink... it's a mixture of salt, syrup, and diluted healing potions. I'm currently researching it with my master... the recovery effect is low, but adventurers need to hydrate, so it's easy to drink... since you guys don't need to drink recovery potions, I think it's better to drink this after a battle or when you're sweating. It's a prototype, so please give me your feedback later."

It's essentially a sports drink. They don't seem to exist in this world, but I think a sports drink is good for replenishing salt and sugar, so I made one.

However, my companions didn't like it... it looks like green juice and tastes worse than a sports drink. The recovery effect is a slight HP and SP boost.

It's more for hydration... but they said it's "unpalatable." They want it to taste like Pocari or Aquarius. They said they can't drink it as it is.

I understand that it should taste good, and water is fine when you're not tired... but since they refused to take it, I'll give it to someone else.

"Well, I'll take it without hesitation. If you're not gathering, I'll guide you to the exit. You don't want to get hassled."

"Thank you."

We won't gather in the crowded area, so I thanked him and accepted his offer to guide us to the exit. Even if I said we wouldn't cut in, it might have led to a conflict, so this was quite helpful.

"Having two kids around makes it easier to get hassled, so be careful."

He's talking to Crow and Ars, suggesting they need protection, but unfortunately, they are the newbies who don't know the ropes. Well, Crow and I are indeed among the few young adventurers in this town.

Let's quickly move to the next floor.