Chapter 15

Aichi's dungeon exploration continues.

After passing through the tar shark floor, he has now advanced to the fiftieth floor. Aichi has completely lost track of time and has no idea how many days have passed. Despite this, it is true that he is advancing at an astonishing speed. During this period, he has engaged in several life-or-death battles with monsters that can only be described as unreasonably strong.

For example, on a floor where the entire dungeon was covered in a thin layer of toxic mist, he was attacked by frogs (rainbow-colored) that could spit poisonous phlegm up to two meters and moths (resembling Mothra) that could sprinkle paralyzing scale powder. Without the blessing of the divine water that he regularly takes, he would have died many times just from exploring.

When Aichi was poisoned by the rainbow frog, his motor nerves were directly damaged, causing him to experience pain similar to when he first ate monster meat. If he hadn't hidden the divine water in his molar beforehand, he would have died. Incidentally, the container he used was a small, thin one made of stone that would break when bitten. It was fortunate that he had prepared emergency divine water.

Of course, both of these creatures were eaten. Eating the moth was still a bit of a struggle, but to strengthen himself, he resolved to eat it. In contrast, the frog was delicious, and Aichi had no regrets after eating it.

Additionally, despite being an underground dungeon, there was a floor that resembled a dense forest. It was very humid and lush with vegetation, making it the most uncomfortable place Aichi had encountered so far. The monsters on this floor were giant centipedes and trees.

While walking through the forest, a giant centipede suddenly fell from a tree, giving Aichi goosebumps. The feeling was truly terrible. Moreover, this centipede could split into many segments at its joints to attack its prey. One centipede could become thirty, looking like black cockroaches in a kitchen. Aichi initially used the Dorna to shoot, but with the overwhelming number, reloading took too much time, so he switched to using the [Wind Claw] to cut them directly. Despite this, some were too fast to cut, and he even used the unfamiliar [Kick] technique, fighting to the death. It was at this moment that Aichi resolved to hone his quick reloading and kicking skills. Drenched in the purple body fluid of the split centipedes, Aichi sighed deeply.

Incidentally, in terms of RPGs, the tree monsters resembled Trent. They would thrust out their roots from underground and attack enemies like whips. However, the most distinctive feature of these Trent-like creatures was not their precise attacks. When they felt threatened, they would throw red fruits from their heads. These fruits had no offensive power, and when Aichi tried eating one, he was paralyzed for several minutes. It wasn't due to poison or anything, but because the fruit was deliciously chaotic. A fresh, juicy, and sweet red fruit that looked like an apple but tasted like a watermelon.

Rather than the discomfort of the floor's environment being blown away from his mind, he momentarily forgot about the dungeon exploration itself. In fact, this was the first fresh food (aside from fresh meat) he had had in several days. Aichi's eyes turned into those of a hunter, and he launched an attack with the determination to hunt down all the Trent-like creatures. Finally, when he was satisfied, he resumed his dungeon exploration, and the Trent-like creatures were almost all gone.

With this feeling, he broke through the floors and, when he noticed, he was already at the fiftieth floor, with no sign of the end. Incidentally, Aichi's current attributes are as follows:

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Nagumo Aichi, 17 years old, male, Level: 49

Profession: Alchemist

Strength: 880

Endurance: 970

Resistance: 860

Agility: 1040

Magic: 760

Magic Resistance: 760

Skills: Alchemy [Mineral Identification], [Precision Alchemy], [Mineral Detection], [Mineral Separation], [Mineral Fusion], [Replication Alchemy]. Magic Manipulation, [Stomach Acid Enhancement], [Lightning Wrapping], [Sky Step] [Air Force], [Earth Contraction], [Powerful Kick]. [Wind Claw], [Night Vision], [Far Sight], [Breath Detection], [Magic Detection], [Breath Concealment], [Poison Resistance], [Paralysis Resistance], [Petrification Resistance], [Language Understanding]

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Aichi is now actively training in gun skills, kicking techniques, and alchemy at the base he has set up on the fiftieth floor. In fact, he has already discovered the stairs leading down, but he has stopped here because the fiftieth floor is a clearly different place.

It is a space that is bone-chilling no matter how you look at it. At the end of the road, there is a three-meter-high, elaborately decorated double door, with a pair of cyclopes sitting on either side, half of their bodies embedded in the walls.

As soon as Aichi stepped into that space, a chill ran through his body, and he stepped back because it felt very wrong. Of course, Aichi had no intention of fleeing without preparing his equipment. He had to investigate the "change" that had finally appeared.

Aichi felt a mix of disgust and anticipation. Opening that door would indeed confront him with some kind of disaster, but at the same time, it felt like the end of this endless dungeon exploration and a breath of fresh air.

"Like Pandora's box... So, what kind of hope is inside?"

Aichi confirmed his current combat techniques, weapons, and skills, adjusting them to a perfect state. After completing all preparations, he slowly drew the Dorna and pressed it lightly to his forehead, closing his eyes. He had already made up his mind, but repeating it wasn't useless. Aichi delved into his inner self, spoke his wish aloud, and made a vow.

"I will continue to survive and return home. Japan, home... I will return. Anything that obstructs me is an enemy. Enemy... kill!"

When Aichi opened his eyes, a faint, invincible smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.

On the way to the door, Aichi moved cautiously, and nothing particularly unusual happened as he approached the door. Upon closer inspection, the decoration was even more beautiful. In the center of the door, there were two indented areas with magic arrays drawn in them.

"? I don't understand. I thought I had learned a lot, but... I've never seen this kind of magic array before."

When Aichi was called incompetent, he focused on studying to compensate for his low abilities. Of course, he hadn't learned everything, but it was strange that he couldn't understand this magic array at all.

"Quite an ancient thing, perhaps?"

While speculating, Aichi investigated the door but still couldn't understand anything special. He was indeed uneasy, so he cautiously checked for traps. It seemed that his current level of knowledge was not enough to decipher this.

"Can't help it, I'll use alchemy to break through as usual."

Clearly, no matter how he pushed or pulled, the door wouldn't budge. Therefore, he decided to use alchemy to create a passage as usual.

Aichi touched the door with his right hand and began the alchemy. But just as he started, the door emitted a red current, repelling his hand, which began to smoke. Aichi cursed and drank the divine water to recover. Then, something unusual happened.

Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh!!

Suddenly, a barbaric roar echoed through the room. Aichi immediately took a step back, maintaining a distance from the door. He calmly reached for his gun with his right hand, ready to shoot at any moment.

As the roar reverberated, the true source of the sound finally began to move.

"Well, if it's not fresh, it's not fresh, I guess."

In front of Aichi, who was muttering with a small, bitter laugh, the two cyclopes carved on either side of the door shattered the surrounding walls and climbed out. Unbeknownst to him, the gray skin that had blended with the walls had now turned dark green.

The cyclopes resembled the Cyclops from a certain game. They held four-meter-long swords that seemed to have appeared from nowhere, forcibly pulling out the half of their bodies still embedded in the walls, and fixed their gaze on Aichi, preparing to eliminate the unwelcome intruder.

In that instant, Do Bang!

With a startling gunshot, the electromagnetically accelerated Tauru mineral bullet pierced the single eye of the right Cyclops, splattering brain matter. The bullet penetrated the exploded head and shattered the wall behind it. The left Cyclops stared in a dazed manner at the right Cyclops, which twitched twice and fell forward, the impact of its massive body shaking the entire room and sending dust flying.

"Sorry, the atmosphere suggests this isn't an enemy to wait for."

Purely ruthless. No, considering the battles Aichi has been through, this was a natural action, but... the right Cyclops was truly pitiful.

Perhaps they were sealed here as protectors of the door. In this place deeper than the bottom of hell, visitors were probably nonexistent. When they finally had a chance to serve their purpose, perhaps they were filled with joy.

But before they could even speak their lines, Aichi blew off their important single eye. This is not just pitiful; it's the epitome of pitiful.

The left Cyclops' face showed a look of shock, and its gaze turned to Aichi. Its eyes seemed to be saying, "What's going on with this guy?" Aichi stood there, looking down on the left Cyclops. The left Cyclops, unaware of Aichi's weapon [gun], lowered its stance, staring at Aichi as if ready to move at any moment. Ten seconds, twenty seconds... no matter how long it took, Aichi didn't move. The left Cyclops, growing impatient, roared and took a step forward.

Then, the left Cyclops' face made intimate contact with the ground. The moment it took a step, it fell with a forceful impact. The left Cyclops, unable to understand why it fell, struggled to stand up but couldn't muster the strength. As it groaned and struggled, Aichi gradually approached, the sound of his footsteps like a countdown. Aichi came to the left Cyclops' face, pressed the gun to the back of its head, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Do Bang!

The gunshot echoed through the room. But something unexpected happened. The left Cyclops' body glowed for a moment, and the bullet was deflected by its skin.

"Hmm?"

Aichi speculated that it was probably using an inherent magic. The left Cyclops' inherent magic was likely something that significantly increased its defense.

The fallen left Cyclops twisted its mouth as if saying, "Little fool." Aichi didn't have any particular thoughts about this. He moved the gun away and kicked the left Cyclops' head with [Powerful Kick]. The kick, which traced a beautiful trajectory like a kicking rabbit, flipped the left Cyclops over. Aichi then pointed the gun at the exposed eye.

It seemed like the left Cyclops was saying, "Wait, wait a moment?" but Aichi pulled the trigger without hesitation. Indeed, the enhancement didn't affect the eye, and the bullet easily penetrated and shattered the left Cyclops' head.

"Hmm, about twenty seconds. A bit slow... due to the large body size?"

Aichi looked at the Cyclops as if analyzing an experiment. So, why did the left Cyclops suddenly fall and become immobile? It was due to the [Paralysis Grenade]. The grenade contained the scale powder of the Mothra-like creature, which, when dispersed by a small explosion, paralyzed the opponent. In the moment when the left Cyclops was focused on the fallen right Cyclops, Aichi quietly scattered the scale powder.

"Well, never mind. I'll come back for the meat later..."

Aichi looked at the door, pondered for a moment, and used [Wind Claw] to cut open the Cyclops' body and extract the magic stone. Ignoring the blood, he tried to embed the two fist-sized magic stones into the two indented areas on the door, which fit perfectly. Then, the magic stones emitted a red magical light, infusing the magic array with magic. With a sound like something cracking, the light subsided. At the same time, the entire room seemed to be filled with magic, and the walls glowed, filling the room with a brightness not seen in a long time.

The sudden brightness made Aichi squint, and he cautiously opened the door.

The door led to a vast, dark space with no light. Under the illumination of the previous room, Aichi gradually understood the layout through [Night Vision]. Two rows of thick pillars extended into the room, made of stone, as beautiful as the marble in the great hall of the Holy Church. In the center of the room, a large cubic stone was placed, reflecting the light entering the room.

Aichi focused on the cubic stone and noticed something glowing on its front.

He confirmed the surroundings and prepared to secure the open door. After all, it would be troublesome if the door slammed shut like in a horror movie as soon as he entered.

However, before Aichi could secure the open door, the thing moved.

"...Who?"

A weak, almost inaudible girl's voice. Aichi shivered and quickly focused on the center of the room. The thing that was "growing" began to move, and the light revealed its true form.

"A human...?"

The "growing" thing was a human. Her entire body was embedded in the cubic stone, with only her head exposed. Her long golden hair hung down like a female ghost in a horror movie, and her red eyes, visible through the hair, reminded him of a moon not yet risen. She looked to be around twelve or thirteen years old, quite thin, and her appearance was difficult to judge due to the hair, but her beautiful features were clear.

This was completely unexpected, and Aichi froze, as did the red-eyed girl, who continued to look at him. After a while, Aichi took a deep breath and declared with a resolute expression.

"Sorry, I made a mistake."