Chapter 5: A Luxurious Hot Pot With Extremely High-Class Ingredients

We’d finally gotten through to the reptile zone, the 19th floor.

“Do you know what monsters appear on this floor, Elrand?”

“From this point on, the documents start getting sparser. I think this floor is turtles, but......”

“They are here.”

The ones slowly coming down the passage right towards us were......

“Hmm? Those are... they look like soft-shelled turtles......” I stared closer at the approaching turtle, and it really was basically a soft-shelled turtle. Even though there was no water nearby, there were huge soft-shelled turtles over a meter long heading our way in a group of about ten.

“‘Soft-shelled turtles’? Those are called ‘big bite turtles.’ It’s been a while since I’ve seen one. They move slowly, but be careful: if you get bit, they won’t let go until either you die, or they do.”

So they won’t let go? That’s literally just like a soft-shelled turtle. Getting bit by a soft-shelled turtle that big... well, you probably wouldn’t get off scot-free. It might actually be instant death depending on where it gets you. Thank goodness they’re slow, I guess.

“With how slow they are, I guess it’s kind of a waste to use dark balls on them.”

“Oh yeah, we were supposed to test them out, weren’t we? Hmmm, then why not wait until the next floor?”

“Mn? What boring opponents. Dora, Sui, I leave it to you.” Seeing the soft-shelled turtles, Fel instantly lost his drive.

Well, they are really slow. Even I can probably just stab them with my spear as long as I stay beyond their reach.

《You got it! Leave it to me!》

《Sui will do it too!》

*Thudshh-thudshh-thudshh*

Dora-chan unleashed spiked pillars of ice at the soft-shelled turtles.

《Tch! Ice magic’s no good, huh? Then, Lightning!》

It’s said that soft-shelled turtle’s shells are comparatively pliant, but it looked like their shells in this world were really hard. Understanding that his Ice magic wasn’t doing any good, Dora-chan immediately switched over to Lightning magic.

*Snap* *Crackle-crackle*

A lightning strike akin to a powerful stun gun struck the soft-shelled turtle.

As for Sui, it had just shot its 18th Acid Bullet at the soft-shelled turtles.

*Pew-pew-pew*

Sui’s Acid Bullets ate through the soft-shelled turtle’s shell.

Now then, let’s check the drops......

“Is this big bite turtle meat? The fact that meat dropped means it’s edible, but I’ve never heard of anyone eating big bite turtle meat......” Elrand said, seeming confused while looking at the hunk of meat.

Apparently, they didn’t eat soft-shelled turtles in this world. Personally, I was happy since I wasn’t expecting any meat to drop from this dungeon... Not only that, it was a luxury food item like soft-shelled turtle. I myself had only eaten soft-shelled turtle enough times that I could count it on one hand due to its price, but cooking it in a hot pot was really, really good.

“I tried eating that because Appraisal said it was good, but it was not actually that amazing. It was not bad, but it was not good either.”

It seemed like Fel had eaten it before, but didn’t really care for it. I tried appraising it too, just in case.

【Big Bite Turtle Meat】

An extremely delicious meat with light flavor. Abundant in collagen and good for skin.

It’s totally just a soft-shelled turtle.

And, it’s gotta be hot pot for soft-shelled turtle, right? Soft-shelled turtle hot pot’s ridiculously good...... Oh, wait.

“Fel, did you eat it raw?”

“Of course. Did you think I could cook like a human?”

Good point.

“You know, this meat is incredibly good in a hot pot.”

“What? Really?” Fel immediately brought his face really close to mine upon hearing it was delicious.

Elrand was also in shock, hearing that soft-shelled turtle meat was delicious.

“Yeah. This meat is good by itself, but having it in a hot pot with some good stock to make zosui rice soup with is great, too.”

“Okay, we are hunting more. Dora, Sui, help me.”

《All right! So that’s delicious, right? Okay, then let’s keep getting more!》

《Meat~!》

Man, you guys’re really selfish.

“Uhh, is big bite turtle meat actually really good?” Elrand asked, stiff-faced.

“I know how you feel given how they look, but it’s true that they’re delicious in a hot pot.”

“If you say so, it’s probably true Mukohda, but...... I’ve lived so long, but I see there’s still more to learn. Please, let me try some.”

“Of course. That’s why we’re obtaining meat right now.”

After that, we started hunting soft-shelled turtles. Other than meat, the soft-shelled turtles also dropped blood in small bottles, as well as their shells. But at any rate, we just wanted meat, so we kept killing them, intent on completely wiping this floor clean. I also defeated several myself while making sure to keep my distance so I wouldn’t get bitten.

We could stock up on meat on this floor, and I could fairly easily gain experience here as well, so it was totally a bonus-time freebie floor for us......

...I was an idiot for thinking that.

I trembled in fear at the sight of the boss room. There were a total of six extra-huge soft-shelled turtles that were over 3 meters in length just plodding around.

Aren’t those just kaiju?

“Those are giant bite turtles, I see. So they really do exist......”

Apparently Elrand had learned of them from a book, and this was his first time seeing one.

“They really are big, no? At that size we can look forward to the meat as well, most likely. Okay. Dora, Sui, we are going.”

《You got it!》

《Meat!》

Sui, I don’t think you should just be yelling that as a battle cry.

*BOOM-BOOM*

*BLAM-BLAM*

*Pew-pew*

Fel and Dora-chan used Lightning magic, and Sui used its Acid Bullets.

The six extra-huge soft-shelled turtles — or giant bite turtles, rather — fell and disappeared one after the other. They left behind two large chunks of meat and a smallish magic stone.

《Ohhh! We managed a huge chunk of meat!》

《Meat, meat!》

Excited for the meat, Dora-chan was flying in circles, and Sui was bouncing everywhere.

“Hey, this meat is delicious in a hot pot or whatever it is, right? Make it quickly,” Fel demanded. Dora-chan and Sui were also raising a fuss in their desire to eat.

“We can’t do it here. If we take too long, the giant bite turtles will show up again.”

“Mm, that is true. Then, let us return to the safe area to make it. It is almost time for dinner. I am hungry.”

It’s already that time, huh? “Oh fine. Let’s go back and eat dinner at the safe area.”

We returned from the boss room to the safe area on the floor.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

At Fel’s request, today’s dinner was soft-shelled turtle hot pot. Prodded on to hurry by Fel, I quickly bought the ingredients I needed with my skill. Whipping out my prized magic stove from my Item Box, I started cooking.

Though soft-shelled turtle hot pot wasn’t all that hard to prepare in the first place: as long as you made sure to remove the scum that appeared, the ingredients themselves would provide excellent umami and make for a delicious hot pot.

As for why I knew how to cook soft-shelled turtle, this was also thanks to the internet. I had ordered some online because I wanted to try eating soft-shelled turtle, but traveling to eat it was too big a hurdle for me. And situations like that were exactly what online ordering was for.

Ordering and eating a soft-shelled turtle hot pot in your house, alone — that was the height of luxury. The zosui soup I had made out of the leftovers of the hot pot had also been incredibly delicious.

Just remembering it makes me drool... Wait, now’s not the time for reminiscing. If I don’t hurry, Fel and the others’ll be mad. I have to make the hot pot as soon as possible.

I put my magic stove to full use, with a hot pot on each of the four burners.

~◇~◇~◇~

After adding water and seaweed dashi to a clay pot and setting it to boil, add cooking sake and soft-shelled turtle meat cut into appropriately-sized pieces into the pot to simmer.

In the process, take out the seaweed dashi, and start scooping out any scum that forms. Removing the scum is absolutely necessary for the taste of the dish, so make sure to do it thoroughly and carefully.

Once all the scum is taken out, add in the vegetables. This time, I’ll go with a simple preparation of just spring onions and Chinese cabbage.

Once the vegetables wilt, adjust the taste with soy sauce and salt, before putting the tofu in last. When the tofu is heated up, the dish is finished.

~◇~◇~◇~

Khhh! It looks so good!

I took some deep wooden dishes, and loaded them up with a large portion of soft-shelled turtle meat, vegetables, and tofu before handing it out to Fel and the others.

“Here you go, soft-shelled turtle hot pot. It’s hot, so be careful.”

“Understood.”

《Ohh, so this is their meat.》

《It smells so good~.》

After giving it some time to cool off, Fel and the others started to eat.

“Mh? Mmmh...... This is quite good. To think that meat would become this delicious......”

Fel, who seemed to have taken a liking to the soft-shelled turtle hot pot, started to chow down.

《This is good meat, contrary to how they look.》

It seemed that Dora-chan also liked the food.

《This is tasty~.》

And Sui makes three, it seems.

Both Fel and Dora-chan were eating single-mindedly, their mouths glossy with fluids. Sui, who was just as entranced by the food, seemed to be jigglier than usual.

I should probably be getting more servings ready for everyone, but I can’t wait anymore. I’ll be eating now.

“Let’s eat too, Elrand.”

Elrand and I shared a single pot. I filled out a wooden bowl with soft-shelled turtle meat, vegetables, and tofu before handing it to Elrand.

“Here you go.”

“Y-Yeah......”

Even though I told him it was good, it seemed like Elrand was still hesitant. I understood how unbelievable it was from how the monsters looked. Thinking like that, the first guy who ever tried soft-shelled turtle must have been a damn hero.

In my case, I already know it’s delicious, so I’ll eat it as soon as I fill my bowl.

I bit into the soft-shelled turtle.

“Delicious!” The otherworld soft-shelled turtle was light in flavor, but clearly had its own umami. And with so few bones but so much meat, the texture was great as well. This is better than the soft-shelled turtle I ordered back then.

Engrossed, I continued to eat the soft-shelled turtle.

“You’re eating it like it’s delicious, I see. For big bite turtles to be that good......” Elrand must have finally prepared himself, as he bit into his soft-shelled turtle.

“This is......!!”

Right? Right? It’s good, isn’t it?

Elrand also started to eat the soft-shelled turtle, engrossed by its flavor.

Drinking too much of the soup would ruin the finisher, so while keeping that desire in check, I enjoyed the heck out of it. Once I was filled to an extent, I shifted my efforts back to churning out soft-shelled turtle hot pots. In fact, I ended up having to buy even more clay pots with my skill in the process.

After all of us had our fill of soft-shelled turtle, it was time for the finisher. The zosui soup, with lots of the soft-shelled turtle’s umami, was superb, and even Fel and the others sung its praises.

“Whew, that was great.”

“Indeed. I was honestly surprised that it was this good.”

《That was delicious~.》

《It was so tasty~.》

“This is a new discovery! To think that big bite turtles would be this good!”

Soft-shelled turtles are the best, no? I want to do this again.

“Hey, do we still have more of that meat?”

“Ahh, we technically do, but with how we ate that just now, it’s only enough for five... no, four more meals.”

“Okay. Then let us go through this floor again.”

《We’re going to get more meat, right? I’m all for it, if it’s this good.》

《Sui is fine with it too~. This meat was good.》

Fel and the others were completely set on going through the 19th floor again. Personally, I wanted as much of the soft-shelled turtle meat as I could get as well. And the experience on this floor was a great bonus, too.

“Elrand, would it be okay to go through this floor again?”

“Of course. In exchange, let me eat that again.”

“Sure.”

The next day, we went around the 19th floor. Everyone was full of energy due to the soft-shelled turtle hot pot, and, knowing that was the cause of their pep and vigor, we moved to secure more of the meat. Hence, we spent the whole day hunting around the 19th floor.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

We were on the 20th-floor of the dungeon, the 2nd floor of this dungeon’s reptile zone. This floor played home to giant iguanas; when I tried using Appraisal on one of them, I found it was called a “big bronze iguana.”

Including the tail, it was close to 2 meters long and bronze colored, and unlike earth iguanas, their mouths were filled to the brim with small, sharp teeth. They moved fairly fast, so they might have been considered annoying, but it was nothing for my three familiars.

Or rather, the usual massacre was so pronounced this time that even though they were enemies, I was actually feeling sorry for them.

Well, it was partially my fault it happened, though. Maybe.

We ended up having soft-shelled turtle hot pot again that night for dinner, since Fel begged me for it. That made two dinners in a row. Probably thanks to that, Fel and the others were full of energy, like their eyes were glinting with drive, or something.

So everyone was happily mowing their way through iguanas. Elrand was also more energetic than usual, and he was downing iguanas one-by-one with his dance-like swordplay. I had absolutely no room to do anything, so I just focused on collecting drops.

By the way, the big bronze iguanas dropped their hides and livers that oh-so-courteously appeared in bottles. When I appraised them, the livers apparently turned into medicine to promote regularity.

In spite of moving through the 20th floor like we were trying to commit iguana genocide, it only took us a scant couple hours to reach the boss room. The boss room was home to seven “giant bronze iguanas,” which were about twice as big as the regular big bronze iguanas.

“Nonono, that’s just a dinosaur,” was what I wanted to reflexively shoot back, but Fel and the others were already inside, not even phased by their appearance.

I guess it was just becoming routine now: like always, they sent the giant bronze iguanas to their deaths in just a couple minutes. All that was left behind was one hide, a liver, and a smallish magic stone.

While picking those up, I was quietly congratulating myself on not feeding them the soft-shelled turtle’s blood. Even I felt some resistance to consuming it, so I didn’t drink the blood that came with my order in the past, either, and that’s why I didn’t feed them any of it either, even though we had gotten some as drops.

Thinking back on it, that was the right decision. I quietly appraised it before making the soft-shelled turtle hot pot last night, and it said it was “highly nutritious, making one sturdy and strong. Especially effective on bodies that have been weakened. Also amplifies one’s vigor.” If just soft-shelled turtle hot pot had this effect, if I were to give them blood as well, I wouldn’t even be able to imagine how much they’d hustle.

“Well then, let’s move to the next floor.”

“Indeed. We are going to the next floor.”

《Sure! Next, next!》

《Sui will beat lots!》

“*Sigh* ......Sure, fine.”

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

What we found on the 21st floor were obviously extremely dangerous crocodiles, which were almost 3 meters long, with red scales like the color of blood. I used Appraisal, and found out that they were called “red killer crocodiles.” Their sharp, pointy teeth and strong-looking jaws told me that being bit by one would be no joke. They also moved faster than I expected with their short legs. Right after descending to the 21st floor, we were greeted by a huge group of them, just spread out through the passageway. However, my three familiars quickly got rid of those red crocodiles.

By the way, the red killer crocodiles dropped sharp teeth and hides.

Just as I thought that this floor wouldn’t take all that long at this pace, Fel and the others all complained of their hunger, and we were forced to stop for lunch at a nearby safe area.

“Meat.”

《Yeah, meat.》

《Sui wants mea—t.》

All three of them requested meat for something really solid and hearty, so for lunch I decided I’d make stewed pork rice bowls with meat I’d pre-prepared.

Although we had meat for breakfast, too, it was a fairly light meal, since I used the poultry soboro I’d made to make soboro rice bowls. That must have caused them to want something heartier.

On top of the rice, I laid thickly cut stewed pork, and a marinated soft-boiled egg.

All three of them were eating with gusto. Elrand was also eating with a vigor that more than matched my familiars, as well.

Once we’d filled up, we once again set off through the passages of the 21st floor. However, the red killer crocodiles weren’t a match for Fel and the others. Our exploration of the 21st floor went smoothly, and the monsters in the boss room — “giant red killer crocodiles” that were roughly 5 meters long — were defeated in no time.

The giant red killer crocodiles were — at least, they were supposed to be — A-ranked monsters, but in front of Fel and the others, it was like taking candy from a baby. Elrand and I picked up the drops, which consisted of hides and magic stones.

“Mukohda, you guys really do go through the dungeon so quickly, huh?”

Normally, adventurers probably put their lives on the line to desperately get through a dungeon. I’m feeling a little sorry.

However, it’s just because Fel and the others are ridiculously strong. Also, I think having eaten those soft-shelled turtles two days in a row was having an effect.

Unsurprisingly, I’d secretly sworn to myself not to let that happen again.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

Our exploration of the dungeon went smoothly, outside of fitting in meals and breaks.

Meals and breaks are important, though — especially for us. The stomach clocks for all three of my familiars are unerringly accurate, after all. Fel’s most of all.

At any rate, with breaks in between (because I was getting hounded by everyone), we went through the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th floors. Thanks to Fel and the others hustling so hard, I hadn’t had a chance to try out the dark balls yet. We had to put off the experiments all the way to the 25th floor.

By the way, the 22nd floor was black anacondas, which were huge snakes with matte black scales. They dropped their scales as well as huge chunks of meat, and the boss room had tyrant black anacondas (which, just like the name suggested, were just huge black anacondas), who also had largish magic stones.

I wasn’t sure if I was happy about snake meat. I mean, I’ve already eaten black and red serpents, but it’s different when you see them moving and alive first.

I’ll still eat it because it’d be a waste otherwise, though.

The next floor, the 23rd, was home to scavenger lizards, which were basically Komodo dragons, the only difference being their venomous-looking black-red color.

They pretty much lived exactly like the Komodo dragons I had seen on TV before, meaning they would bite and envenom their enemies first, before slowly devouring them once they were weakened.

A shockingly large number of scavenger lizards appeared. The boss room was so flooded with them there almost wasn’t anywhere to even stand. There were even some who were resorting to cannibalism in the room.

Of course, it was no problem for Fel and the others, though.

The scavenger lizards dropped their purple-red hides, and venom stored in a bottle. This venom stopped blood clotting, which, just as implied, would force one to bleed out from a wound, killing them through circulatory shock. The lizards were dropping some scary stuff.

While I was wondering if something this horrific even had a use, Elrand said, “I can’t say it out loud, but this does have its uses.”

Apparently the other poisons and venoms have their uses too, but to think there’d be people willing to pay for stuff like this. This world is scary.

On the 24th floor were the familiar and delicious red and black serpents. I was thinking they’d drop their skin, meat, and magic stones, and I was exactly right. Everyone, including me, already knew how tasty black and red serpents were. I had them securing meat with enough force to wipe the snakes out.

Thanks to that, I ended up with a huge amount of their meat. I got a lot of their highly priced skins and magic stones too, so I was feeling pretty good about it. All three of my familiars were making a fuss about karaage, though.

We have the black anaconda’s meat, too, so let’s make a snake meat feast once we get out of here.

With all of that happening, we kept going down further and further at a good pace, and finally managed to reach the last floor of the reptile zone, the 25th floor.

Now then, what’s going to come at us?

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

“These are...... crimson asps? Another troublesome one......” Elrand was making an extremely hateful expression as he said that.

Crimson asps looked exactly like cobras, except that they were colored a purplish red and were around 3 meters in length.

And, currently, there was a pack of them occupying and blocking the way forward. Their signature flat heads were raised as they made hissing sounds to intimidate us.

“How cheeky. Dora, Sui, let us go.”

《Yeah!》

《Okay!》

Elrand called out to Fel and the others, who were closing in on the crimson asps.

“They have an extremely strong venom, so please be careful! You probably won’t survive if you’re bitten. Also, they’ll spit clouds of venom as well, so be careful of that, too!”

I had figured they’d have venom since they looked like cobras, but I didn’t expect the clouds of venom.

“Also......” Elrand, who was about to say something, suddenly whipped out his favorite sword instead and got into his stance.

I wondered what happened, and soon found out when a single crimson asp that wound its way through my familiars while they were busy attacking approached us, looking like it would lunge at us any second.

Oh no......!

*Spanggg!*

The crimson asp’s head flew through the air.

“They’re surprisingly quick like this, so be careful,” Elrand said, cleaning the blood off of his favorite sword.

“Hahh, that was close. Thanks, Elrand.” That was almost really bad back there.

“Even though Fel, Dora-chan, and Sui are around, you can’t just let your guard down, Mukohda,” Elrand said, looking a little exasperated.

You’re right. I completely had my guard down, since I had Perfect Defense on top of Fel and the others. But that’s no good, huh? Even with Perfect Defense, I can’t just let my guard down. I have no idea what can happen, and I’m in the most danger just when I believe I’m completely fine. Carelessness is the enemy.

I stored several dark balls in my bag so that they’d be easy to prepare, and held my mithril spear tight.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

“Hahh!”

*Spang*

While Elrand was standing his ground, I tossed a dark ball at an approaching crowd of crimson asps.

The black mist, which came out of the ball and covered the crimson asps, disappeared after about ten seconds. It left behind a bunch of crimson asps that were suddenly moving with great difficulty; the affected crimson asps slowly dragged themselves across the stone floors.

“These dark balls are really amazingly effective, aren’t they~?” Elrand remarked passionately, watching the crimson asps struggle.

“They really are. I didn’t think they’d be this powerful, either.”

Now, even I can beat a crimson asp.

After that, I used several more dark balls on the crimson asps, and made doubly sure the rumor was the truth — that the effect really was, “touching the black mist that spreads will afflict you with a status condition, halving all your stats.”

When I tried using Appraisal on crimson asps that the black mist had touched, the status condition really was there, and it looked like it lasted for ten minutes. I relayed that information to Elrand as well.

Of course, I never told him I had the Appraisal skill, and just said that Fel was the one appraising them.

“Now, let’s beat them while the status condition still lasts.”

“Yes.”

Elrand and I approached the affected crimson asps. Only the two of us, Elrand and I, were fighting crimson asps in this hallway. All three of my familiars were fighting in a nearby room. They were most likely already done, though.

Now that we understood the dark ball’s effects, in situations like this where a room was nearby, we would split into two parties and battle, because I asked Fel and the others to do so. Since I knew that even I could beat an A-ranked monster with the use of dark balls, I needed to fight as many of them as possible in order to gain more experience so that I wouldn’t get complained at by the gods later, who were definitely watching me right now. Most importantly, leveling up would do me some good as well.

Even so, my opponents were monsters with such powerful venom that I’d die if I was ever bitten, so I still carried some of Sui’s special elixir with me, just in case. I had it stored in my bag for ready use.

“Hahh!”

Even though their stats were halved thanks to the dark ball, it wasn’t like they lost their venom. After approaching carefully, I stabbed at their heads with my mithril spear. Repeating that over and over, I continued to kill crimson asps. Elrand was beheading crimson asps with his favorite sword, as well.

“Whew, they’re all gone, huh?”

“Yes. Let’s pick up the drops.”

We started picking up their drops, which consisted of their skins, bottles of venom, magic stones, and meat.

That’s right, meat. Once again, I got more snake meat. I had black anaconda, black and red serpent, and now crimson asp meat. I’d better compare them with a snake meat feast.

《Master—! Sui beat lots of them and picked this up!》

“Oh, thanks Sui.”

Sui had picked up all the drops from their room. Having Sui expel all the drops from its body, I stored them in my Item Box.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

After all that, we reached the boss room, but we wanted to avoid continuing onward and having to spend our night on an undead floor, so we decided to camp in the safe area near the boss room instead.

Everyone was complaining about their hunger, too.

Tonight’s dinner was hashed-beef rice using bloody horn-bull meat. I served an extra-large portion of the food to my three familiars in deep wooden dishes. Then, Elrand and I had our own meals in a smaller sized wooden bowl.

“Here you go, Elrand.”

“Oh, this smells nice~. What kind of food is this?” Elrand was all smiles after smelling the dish.

“It’s called hashed-beef rice. Please eat these white grains together with the brown sauce. It’s good.”

“I see. So together............ Oho? This is great! It’s complex, and has this deep, indescribable flavor.”

Elrand wouldn’t put down his spoon. I’m glad that even Elrand, a gourmand, likes it.

I also started on my portion. Everyone’s appetites were probably stoked from all the exercise in the dungeon, as they cleanly polished off the entire huge cylindrical pot of hashed-beef rice I had made.

“I still do not quite feel satisfied. You have snake meat, no? Make karaage,” Fel demanded.

《Karaage? That sounds great!》

《Karaage~.》

Hearing that word, both Dora-chan and Sui started making a fuss as well.

“No, no, I can’t make it now. If you haven’t had enough...... Ah, I still have some sea serpent karaage.”

“Mm? Fine. That will do.”

After plating some sea serpent karaage, I placed it in front of Fel.

《I want some too.》

《Sui also wants some.》

I served some more sea serpent karaage to both of them.

“Um, I think I just heard sea serpent......”

“Ah, do you want some too Elrand? This is sea serpent karaage.”

“I’ll eat it! It’s been several decades since I’ve last had sea serpent.”

As soon as I handed him the food, he started eating. He really ate a lot, despite being so thin.

“This karaage stuff is really delicious~. The meat is soft and the taste is integrated well. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of this. Sea serpent’s already delicious since it’s such a wonderfully rare ingredient, but with your cooking, it just got even better, Mukohda.”

“Indeed. Karaage is good.”

《Karaage really is great, right?》

《Karaage is delicious.》

Yep, can’t go wrong with karaage. No matter where or when, it’ll be popular. Ah, focusing the snake meat feast on karaage might be a good idea once we get out of this dungeon. Of course I’d use the standard soy sauce and salt marinades, but it might also be nice to use some different ones, too.

I started daydreaming about what I’d do after getting out of the dungeon.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

In the boss room, there were three giant purplish red cobras wound together. They were over a meter thick, and looked like they might be 20 meters long.

“Those are king crimson asps...... This is the first time I’ve ever seen one live............” Elrand whispered beside me. He stared, dazed by the sight.

A monster that even Elrand’s never actually seen...

When I appraised them, I found them to be S-ranked.

We continued to watch the huge cobras from outside the boss room as they hissed and threatened us. With how big they are, I could probably be swallowed in a single bite.

*Gulp*......

“Hm, it is perfect that there are three. Dora, Sui, we will each take on one.”

《One each, huh? Alright!》

《Let’s go!》

Not even caring that Fel just said that they would take on one each, Dora-chan and Sui rushed into the boss room.

“My god, those two......” Fel said, entering the boss room a step late.

After that, how should I put it......

The bosses were completely outmatched by the three of them.

The king crimson asp Fel faced off against died getting split in four by a single Rending Claws attack. Dora-chan’s opponent died with three huge holes opened up in it by Dora-chan himself, who flew right through it covered in Lightning magic. Sui’s king crimson asp got melted from top to bottom with Acid Bullets.

Even though they were enemies, it was so one-sided I felt sorry for them.

《Master — look, look, a huge piece of meat dropped!》

I looked, and the king crimson asp that Sui defeated dropped a gigantic chunk of meat.

“Ohh, that’s huge~.” This one looks like it’ll last a while. Also, it was an S-ranked monster, so it should have dropped a magic stone...

“Oh, there it is, found it. It’s pretty big.” Searching around where the meat dropped, I picked up a red, round magic stone.

“Mukohda, the ones Fel and Dora-chan defeated dropped skin, fangs, and magic stones.”

“Ohh, their skins really are huge......” I wonder how many regular snakes-worth this is.

“Hey, there is a treasure chest here, too.”

I got closer, and found a simple wooden box that looked nothing like a normal treasure chest set flush with a wall.

“This is a treasure chest?”

“There is no doubt: I used Appraisal on it.”

“What about traps?”

“When it is opened, it is set so a pitfall will appear right in front of the box.”

Ghh, a pitfall? All the traps up until now were in the treasure chest itself, but now there’s a pitfall......

We were saved thanks to Appraisal, but it wouldn’t be funny for anyone else to open the box expecting a trap inside only to find a pitfall.

“Well then, I’ll open it.” I stood to the side against the wall, leaving some space from the treasure chest just in case, and used my spear to open the treasure chest. The spear tip caught on the metal fixture of the box, and I carefully undid the clasp and opened the box.

*Clannggg!*

As soon as I opened the box, a hole opened up in the floor in front of it. After a little while, the floor went back to normal, but I made sure not to step in the same area as I looked into the box, just in case.

“Ohhh!” I couldn’t stop myself. “These’re gold ingots...... one, two, three...... There’s ten of them! That’s pretty nice!”

Elrand was also all smiles, seeing the shining gold bars.

The weight of the pile of gold bars sure feels nice.

After retrieving the gold bars, we moved down the stairs to the next floor. Now, it was finally time for the last undead floor.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

“We’re finally at the last undead floor, huh?”

“Yes. Apparently the last one who conquered the dungeon found a lich when they came through, but there’s no guarantee it will be the same. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised no matter what comes out. Let’s be careful as we move forward.”

I nodded in response to Elrand’s words. I’d already applied the holy seals to everyone. We were fully prepared, but this was still the 26th floor. That meant that this was the dungeon’s deepest area.

From what I heard before, a lot of different undead appear here, from ghouls to wraiths, and even liches. But, that information was from 200 years ago, when the last adventurer conquered this place, so it couldn’t be relied on. Anything could come up.

The first enemies we encountered were a group of ghouls and mummies. All three of my familiars immediately attacked.

“Mummies can freely control the bandages they’re wrapped in, so please be careful!” Elrand called out.

Fel and the others were strong, though. Just like always, they defeated the undead with maximum efficiency.

“Dora-chan watch out!!” Elrand yelled as he jumped forward. Then......

*Spangg!*

A mummy’s head flew through the air. While Dora-chan was preoccupied with a ghoul, the mummy had tried to bind him with its bandages, so Elrand beheaded it.

“To try to touch Dora-chan with those filthy bandages...... Dying is a matter of course. I will personally pass judgment on any lowlife that tries to dirty Dora-chan! Oh, that’s a good idea. Yes, let’s do that. It’s decided — we’re exterminating all the undead on this floor.”

“E-Elrand......?”

Elrand’s eyes were scary. After that, Elrand naturally jumped into the fray.

“Hey, Dora, you are not being careful enough!”

《Tch! ......Shaddap, I know already!》

Dora-chan must have been aware of his own carelessness, so he didn’t say anything more, but instead returned to attacking the undead even more fiercely, as if he was taking out his anger on them.

After that, well, what should I say...... The invincible trio and an angry Elrand made for a scary quartet. A super dangerous group to their enemies. Everyone mercilessly attacked their foes.

Somewhere in the middle there was a room with a lich that used powerful magic, but even that was like a bug to the quartet. It was all I could manage to keep up with them and pick up drops.

Then, finally we reached the boss room of the 26th floor. Inside......

“Are those all liches? But the one in the middle is kind of different.”

There were five liches in the boss room. The liches, with their sunken eyes and skinny bodies that were literally just skin and bones, were wearing black robes. However, the lich in the middle had scraggly long white hair on its head and a heavily dulled gold crown.

“No way, is that? ......No, but............” Seeing the crown on the middle lich, Elrand’s expression changed.

“Oh? An emperor lich. As an opponent, it is not unworthy,” Fel said, licking his lips as he peered into the room.

“So i-it really is an emperor lich......”

According to Elrand, emperor liches were the highest form of the species, and were S-ranked undead that could use high level magic. Looking into the boss room, I locked eyes with the emperor lich.

It sneered.

Brrrrrrrrr! Shivers ran along my entire body.

J-Just now, he sneered at me. That emperor lich, it looked at me and laughed! Weren’t the monsters in the boss room supposed to not notice you until you went inside? That’s how it was up until now. They only recognize us as enemies once we’re inside. But that emperor lich, it just looked at me and laughed. He definitely knows I’m here.

*Gulp*......

Somehow, I get the feeling that this guy is the most dangerous one yet.

“That one, it knows we are here.”

“Y-Yeah, thought so.”

“Huh? Weren’t floor bosses not supposed to recognize us until we went inside?”

“That is probably the norm for dungeons like this. However, this does happen sometimes. That is, monsters that do not fit into the rules appear.”

Hearing Fel explain, Elrand’s expression changed into one of shock and terror.

“So that means, as soon as we go in, it’ll attack us with magic?”

It was exactly as Elrand said. Since it knew we were here, there was no way those liches would let go of their best opportunity.

“Do not worry. I will erect a strong barrier for us. It will be able to withstand at least ten hits of the high-ranking magic an emperor lich can unleash.”

“T-Ten hits of high-ranking magic......”

“In the meantime, we must finish it at all costs. Or is ten hits too little?” Fel said provocatively, and Dora-chan and Sui took the bait.

《Hah! Ten hits is too many! Actually, that thing’ll never hit me with magic at all!》

《That’s right, Uncle Fel! Sui won’t lose to that thing! Sui will definitely beat it!》

Both Dora-chan and Sui had the emperor lich in their sights, and were raring to go.

“Indeed, that is the spirit. Oh yes, you will just be in the way, so do not come in. What will the elf do? Will you come?”

Wha-! ...... You’re just leaving me out?

...No, I get that I’ll just be in the way. I already knew I was the weakest one here, too. But you know, you don’t have to say it bluntly and out loud like that. Can’t you like, skirt around it? Or wrap it up nicely so it doesn’t sound as bad? Well, it’s probably impossible to expect tact out of Fel, though.

“I’ve decided. I’m going in. Given my age, I took on the guildmaster job, so I thought I’d never have a chance to raise my level again...... But with an emperor lich as an opponent, I can expect my level to rise, too. Sir Fel, you will protect me with a barrier too, right?”

It looked like Elrand was going to challenge the Emperor lich, too.

“Hm, very well...... Okay, the barriers are up, Dora, Sui, Elf. Now then, let us go!”

Following Fel’s call, everybody else entered the boss room. The liches that had been waiting unleashed a hail of fireballs.

Fel, the strongest of our team, was on the receiving end of an especially large one. But all of them dodged the attacks beautifully. Then, everyone attacked the liches at nearly the same time.

《As if your magic’ll ever hit! Here’s your magic back, eat it!》

*Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud*

Sharply pointed pillars of ice rained down on the liches.

“Gghiiiieeeehhhhhh!”

The sharpened pillars of ice produced by Dora-chan skewered two of the liches, and they disappeared while screaming in their death throes.

《Attacks like that won’t hit Sui! Sui is strong!》

*Pew-pew-pew*

Sui shot its Acid Bullets at the lich, and its body that was just skin and bones covered by a robe melted.

“G-Ghiiieeehhhhhh!!”

Sui’s larger Acid Bullets hit and ate through the lich, and it disappeared.

“I can still do this, too!”

*Spang!*

Elrand’s favorite mithril sword slashed diagonally into a lich. The lich, with its upper body sliding off at an angle, did not even raise a cry before it died.

“You are my opponent! Hah!”

*Zzzzllshhh!*

Fel swung his right front paw, unleashing a Rending Claws. Surprisingly, it was stopped by a gray colored, half-transparent barrier.

“Hm, so you can use Barrier magic. I will praise you for stopping my Rending Claws. But how about this?”

*Zzshh-zzsshh*

Both of Fel’s front paws swung one after the other, and multiple Rending Claws hit the emperor lich’s barrier. The barrier, which could not stand the multiple hits, cracked. Then......

*Clanngg!*

The emperor lich’s barrier shattered into particles.

“Die.”

*Zzllsshhhh*

The emperor lich, stripped of its means of defense, completely ate Fel’s Rending Claws.

“G-G-Ghhiiiieeehhhhh!”

The emperor lich disappeared, leaving behind an even louder death cry.

With the lich fight over, I entered the boss room.

“It’s over, huh?”

“Indeed.”

“Agh, so liches really do just drop magic stones......”

That’s right, liches only drop magic stones. They’re A-ranked, so the magic stones are all that size. Even though it’s said that undead don’t drop much, it was still way too sad.

“They’re undead, after all. There’s just not much to be used from them. Actually, it looks like the emperor lich Sir Fel defeated dropped something else, too.”

After hearing Elrand’s words, I looked over to where the emperor lich had died and found a crown along with the magic stone.

“This was the crown the emperor lich was wearing, right......?”

“I think that’s an ‘Emperor Lich’s Crown.’ I’ve only read about it in books, but if you wear one, it seems that your magic will dramatically increase. But if you use it too much, you’ll get charmed by the crown itself and become a lich.”

Whaaat? It’s nice that it dramatically increases magic, but becoming a lich is...... That’s way too awful. “Huh? Doesn’t becoming a lich mean becoming a monster?”

“Yes. But, just like I said, that’s just if you use it too much. That’s why there’s probably going to be a lot of buyers who want it for emergencies.”

From what Elrand says, it seems like there’ll be a lot of buyers for this. But even if it’s just from overuse, the consequence is becoming a lich, you know? I know you’ll get way more magic, but I’m totally not willing to risk it.

I shut the extra-large magic stone the emperor lich had left behind along with its crown in my Item Box. Then, we all descended the stairs leading to the last floor of the dungeon, the 27th.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

“Next is finally the 27th floor, isn’t it? The last boss should be a hydra, right?” I asked Elrand while we were descending the stairs.

He made a strange face. “Yes. However, I’ve only read about hydras in books...... Will it really be fine?”

It looked like Elrand was concerned after all this time. I understood how he felt though, since we’d be taking on the boss of the dungeon in its home turf on the last floor.

“Do not worry, elf. I have defeated hydras more than once before. Of course, I was alone. Right now, Dora and Sui are here too, so there is no chance for us to lose,” Fel declared, dismissing Elrand’s worries.

“This is perfect. Dora, Sui, listen to me. It is about the hydra we will be fighting next,” Fel said, and we stopped walking in the middle of the stairs. Fel probably wanted Elrand to hear this too, as he purposefully used his voice instead of telepathy.

“The hydra has nine heads. If you do not crush all of them at the same time, they will keep regenerating.”

So it’s basically a hydra straight out of a game? ...Huh? But Fel said that he has beat hydras before; if you have to crush them at the same time, how did he do it?

“All nine at the same time? Then how did you manage it, Fel?”

Fel explained that he ran into some trouble at first since he didn’t know you had to crush all nine of the heads at the same time. But, he figured that out in the middle of battle...... “I simply hit all nine heads with magic at the same time. Boom!”

Apparently, he had just made extra-huge lightning bolts with his Lightning magic and hit all nine heads at once. According to Fel, “It is definitely possible to do, but unleashing Lightning magic on that scale is somewhat tiring.”

That just means Fel’s way scarier for being able to create multiple huge lightning bolts at the same time.

“But right now Dora and Sui are here. It should not take that much time. The elf will......”

“The hydra is too much for me. I’ll stand back this time,” Elrand replied.

“Indeed. That is probably for the best. Of course, you will be observing as well.”

Yes, fine, I know already. Even if you asked me to fight a hydra, I wouldn’t do it.

“Listen well, Dora, Sui. Just as I have already said, the hydra has nine heads that must be crushed at the same time. I will take the center three. Dora will fight the three on the right, while Sui has the three on the left. Understood?”

《There won’t be that many chances to fight a hydra. I’ve got no problems with that. The right three heads, yeah? I’ll heckin’ do it!》

《Sui will have these three heads, right? Sui will try hard, too!》

Having split up three heads each for the hydra, it looked like Dora-chan and Sui were both totally ready to go.

“Well then. Once we enter the hydra’s room, destroy its heads on my signal!”

《You got it!》

《Okay!》

All three of them descended the stairs and entered the hydra’s chamber.

In the almost needlessly spacious room surrounded by brown stone walls, there was a huge and obviously dangerous-looking snake with nine heads wound up in a coil. It looked to be several tens of meters in height. All nine heads recognized the three of them as enemies, and were already about to attack.

“Okay, now!!”

At Fel’s signal, all of them attacked at once.

*BOOOMMM*

Fel’s Lightning magic, in the form of an extra-large bolt, hit all three of the hydra’s central heads.

*THDDSSHH*

Dora-chan’s Ice magic, sharply pointed pillars of ice, pierced through the hydra’s three rightmost heads at the same time.

*Pewww*

Sui, using enlarged Acid Bullets, melted the hydra’s three leftmost heads at the same time.

All three of them destroyed the hydra’s nine heads at the same time, and it lifelessly fell over.

*Thud*

“OOAAHHH!” I couldn’t stop from cheering.

The hydra, which just looked so menacing, made me think that, although we wouldn’t lose, beating it might take some time.

But it was kinda... instant.

“A hydra, in an instant......” Elrand was also shocked at the turn of events.

Ah, the hydra’s disappearing.

What was left was an extra-large magic stone, a hide, and a dazzlingly decorated treasure chest. Could that be the dungeon boss’ treasure chest? There was a similar one in Dolan after they beat the behemoth, I remember...

When I appraised it......

【Dungeon Boss’ Treasure Chest】

A treasure chest that rarely drops upon defeating the dungeon’s boss.

No traps. That’s what I thought.

Even though it said it drops rarely, I sort of expected it, seeing as how we had just beaten a hydra, and given the fact that right now we were in the season for more special individuals than usual. I stored the extra-large magic stone and the hide into my Item Box; all that was left was finding out what was inside the chest.

Now now, what’s in the box~? Wait, where’s Elrand?

I looked around for Elrand, and found him still standing open-mouthed at the entrance of the room. It seemed that the shock of what he saw was still lingering. “Elrand!”

I called out his name, and he came to. “Hah! W-What is it?”

“Don’t ‘what is it’ me. The dungeon boss dropped a treasure chest. If you don’t come over, I’m going to open it by myself.”

“Dungeon boss treasure chest?! W-Wait a second! I’ll come look too!”

Elrand hurried over. “So this is a dungeon boss’ treasure chest...... Didn’t one appear in Dolan, too?”

“Yes. That magic sword was what was inside.”

“This is quite the dazzling chest. Just this would be worth a pretty penny.”

Truly. The dungeon boss’ treasure chest in Dolan was studded to the brim with gemstones and incredibly shiny too, after all. It’s still hibernating in my Item Box, though.

Now then, as for what’s in the box this time......

“Well then, I’m going to open it,” I said, and Elrand nodded.

“Ohhh!”

“This is amazing.”

Inside was an almost overflowing pile of gold coins and gems, as if it was trying to say to the world, “I am treasure!”

There was also something else, a bag laid on top of the gold and gems. Could this be......

【Magic Bag (Extra-Large)】

A magic bag large enough to hold the contents of 300 bags (large).

Ohh! It really is a magic bag! I definitely want this for Fel to use. The magic bag (medium) I have now is too small; I really do need this.

“Could that be a magic bag?”

“Looks like it. From Fel’s Appraisal, it’s extra-large.” I told him that Fel appraised it.

“E-Extra-large? That’s......”

From what Elrand said, extra-large magic bags hadn’t been found in twenty years. It seemed like it’d sell for a lot, but I wanted it. I’d talk to Elrand about it when we went back up to the surface.

I put the treasure chest and its contents into my Item Box exactly as it was.

“Now Aveling’s dungeon is conquered.”

“Indeed. I can scarcely believe it, though. I’ve cleared my first dungeon at this age, when I’ve long since retired from being an adventurer.”

It seemed like Elrand was deeply moved. Even Elrand, a formerly S-ranked adventurer, had never conquered a dungeon in his long life as an adventurer. It’s apparently considered a good thing if someone conquers a dungeon once in a hundred years.

“We’ve got the treasure chest, so let’s go back to the surface.”

“Yes.”

“Wait a second. I am hungry.”

《Me too—.》

《Sui too—.》

Ahh, right... on the 25th floor we spent the night and had breakfast before going straight to the boss. And after that we went straight through the undead floor, and then into the 27th floor without a break. So we haven’t had lunch yet. Of course they’d be hungry.

“For now let’s eat, and then go back up then.”

“Yes, let’s. I’m hungry, too.”

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

And so, I was currently preparing lunch in the dungeon boss’s room. Fel requested meat, and both Dora-chan and Sui agreed. All I had left of the food I’d prepared beforehand were the seafood tempura and the miso grilled golden-backed bull, so in the end I had to do something with the golden-backed bull.

Well, in the end I just kept it simple though. In other words, I was currently using my magic stove to grill miso-marinated golden-backed bull.

“Still not done?”

The three of them, and even Elrand, were waiting behind me like children, barely able to contain themselves.

“Wait a little more.” I formed rice onto everyone’s dishes and bowls and laid a bed of shredded cabbage on top to have them at the ready.

Okay, this should be about done.

I placed the finished meat on top of the cabbage to finish off the miso-grilled golden-backed bull rice bowl. The pieces of meat were big, so I cut Elrand’s and my portions beforehand to make them easier to eat.

“Here you go.” I served the food to Fel and the others, and they immediately jumped on the food.

“Hm, a meal after a fight always tastes better.”

《Yeah. This is so good!》

《It’s tasty—!》

“The food you make is always so good, Mukohda.” Elrand was also grinning happily as he ate.

“Ahh, this is so good......” With the fact that all that was left was to go back to the surface in mind, the meal tasted even better. All three of my familiars ate even more than usual. Elrand too, for some reason.

Now, all we have left to do after eating is to go back to the surface.

If we just put some magic power into the circle that appeared after beating the hydra, we’d get teleported back up. That part was very much like Dolan’s dungeon.

“Is everyone on the magic circle?”

“Indeed, I am ready.”

《Yeah.》

《Sui is on too—.》

“Well then, I’ll put in the magic.” Elrand suffused the magic circle with power, and after a moment’s floating sensation, we were standing on top of another magic circle drawn in a small room surrounded by rock walls. When I took a step off of the circle, a door opened with some rumbling, and light streamed in.

So bright......

We were on the surface for the first time in about a week.