Chapter 15: I’ll Ask My Master

The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter — LNCrawler · All chapters

Chapter 15:
I’ll Ask My Master

THE GOLDEN BEE pierced the tree’s trunk with its stinger and began extracting its magic. Once it had been stung, the tree seemed to be in too much pain to keep counterattacking. Dory clutched her chest and sank to her knees. I stroked her back and, after a bit, the bee flew off, seemingly having gotten its fill.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Yes…I’m feeling better for now. I don’t think it’ll be back for a few hours.”

I gritted my teeth. I didn’t stand a chance as I was. At a loss for what to do, I asked Dory, “How many more times could you endure that?”

“It depends on how much it takes. But if I’m lucky, two or three more times…”

But once she lost all her magic, she’d die, same as any being in this world. At best, the bee wouldn’t be back for another half day, so maybe going back to the first floor and coming up with a plan was a good idea. But I had to leave on that expedition tomorrow, and leaving Dory now was tantamount to abandoning her. We had no time to spare. In any case, it was probably dark outside the dungeon, so I needed to spend the night here.

“I’ll start by explaining my abilities,” I said. I told her that I only had 500 LP at the moment, so I was potentially blocked off from the most effective methods possible.

“So, doing stuff with an attractive member of the opposite sex could help?”

“Yeah, but that might be a little hard under the circumstances.”

“Am I no good? I am a woman right now.”

I think “little girl” is more appropriate here. I told her it wouldn’t work, but she insisted I try, so I gave in. We started with a princess carry.

Dory was low on magic and she wasn’t super energetic, but she still smiled happily when I picked her up.

“Does this feel good?” she asked.

“I guess? I feel kind of like a knight to a little princess.”

“Well, I have a present for you, Sir Knight.”

She gave me a gentle peck on the cheek. I was surprised, but I thanked her and carried her over to her real body. I gently stroked the trunk of the tree.

“Can you feel this?”

“I can. Your gentle touch feels nice.”

“I know I look kind of wimpy,” I said. “But I give a mean massage.”

I ran my fingers over the tree a few times and Dory smiled at me warmly. It was such a calm moment it was hard to imagine I was fighting monsters to the death a mere hour before. I didn’t really have time to relax, but for some reason she put me at ease.

“So, did you earn some LP?”

“Look, I’m telling you, you’re so little it’s not going to—it worked?!”

No way. How did I get 800 LP from that? Was I a secret creep? The thought tormented me. Nooo, that couldn’t be it—pleasurable life experiences, right? Like having a kid? Especially one that looked kind of like how my daughter might if Emma were… Anyway, point being, I’d earned all that LP, so I had nothing to be upset about. If my master had been there, she would’ve teased the heck out of me for getting so worked up about it.

“Oh! That’s right! My master is here in this dungeon!” I exclaimed. Olivia had way more experience dealing with stuff like this. If anyone might have an idea, she would. “Dory, can you leave this place?”

“I can’t control my projection if it strays too far.”

“Okay, then wait for me. I’m going to go talk to my master. She’s up on the second floor. I’ll be back soon, I promise, so don’t do anything crazy.”

The forest was crawling with all sorts of dangerous monsters. Dory might just be a projection, but it was no doubt better if she didn’t get damaged.

“I’ll wait for you, Noir.”

“I promise I’ll be back.”

I could finally use my Dungeon Elevator skill again, so I did. Once on the second floor, I went straight to my master’s chamber.

“Master, I have a big problem.”

<Well, hey, you came to the right place! I’ve been waiting for the moment when my sweet apprentice would come to his master for help!>

She always seemed to enjoy it when I came to visit. I could probably take a page from her every now and again. At any rate, I explained what was going on.

“S-seven hundred…? Did you beat it?”

“Wow. How did you do it?”

“That’s it?!”

<Yup. But sorry, I don’t think you have the LP to pull that off right now.>

“Oh, yeah…”

<Personally, I think you should call it quits on this one,> she scolded in an unusually amused tone. <I really don’t want you to die, and I don’t think you’re in any position to go up against that bee directly.>

The first problem was its Flight skill. That was bound to get annoying. There were High-Speed, Super High-Speed, and Hyper-Speed variations, and while it just had the lowest grade of the High-Speed variation, that made a big difference. It would make it hard for your average adventurer to even visually track it.

And then there was its other skill, Intense Stinger. It was a stronger version of basic Stinger and I probably wouldn’t survive a single hit. Not only did it have lethal venom, it caused such intense pain it’d be impossible to counterattack. And to think Dory was so regularly stung…

“Huh, maybe I should make a poison immunity skill.”

“I guess my only option is to roll the dice, then.”

<Not at all. That’s not very like you, Noir. You’re not one to throw up your hands and give up.> She let out a frustrated sigh and continued. <It’s not going to be risk-free, but I’ll tell you a way to increase your chances of winning.>

“That’s why I like you, Master!”

“You’re the best and the most beautiful, Master Olivia!”

<Well now I’m in a good mood, so sure, I’ll tell you. How were things between the monsters in that forest? The different species probably didn’t get along very well, right?> She was right. And it wasn’t just different species; even the pillbugs were fighting with each other. <Sooo, if you give the right critter a push in the right direction, they might do the job for you. Shall I give you my strategy, my apprentice?>

“Yes, please.”

I listened carefully to Olivia’s directions. Once she finished, a spark of hope kindled in my heart. Of course, this wasn’t a guaranteed win. If I screwed up, I could die…but it was definitely the best option. I went over the plan multiple times, and the hours flew by. At last, I stood.

“Well, I’m off.”

“Master, I’m pretty sure I’m headed the other direction after I die.”

<Aw, then I won’t be able to beat you up! Your master Olivia has been a very naughty girl, after all.>

When she got like this, the best option was just not to engage. I headed back to the seventh floor.