Must Save, Entering the Dungeon (4)

“Whoo, this place has been cleaned up. I’m sure some people avoid it because it’s getting harder and harder, but I think it’s enough for a level-up. What do you think, sir?”

“Are there any dodgers?”

“Yes, about five.”

“I see. Five of them survived on this floor. You don’t have to worry.”

Meanwhile, Evan, who could not have imagined that Save would have accomplished the unprecedented achievement of getting through the first floor, had a much faster and more pleasant exploration than his usual dungeon expedition thanks to the new member, Mirole.

“It’s already the 49th floor…”

“How long have we been in the dungeon?”

“Uh… it’s been three days now.”

Evan now knew why Mirole was able to return from the dungeon’s 30th floor in two days.

That was because, if she entered the dungeon and used her bow, most of the monsters on the floor died.

Of course, her method had the disadvantage of triggering a trap or killing those in secret spaces; it also created a lot of missed opportunities with acquiring achievements.

“You missed the Dungeon’s achievements, Mirole. If you use your ability, I’m sure you could’ve found them.”

The missed achievements, before the 70th floor, were now growing… Since Evan wanted to give them away to the main character’s party anyway, they should be grateful for the current situation in which Mirole was rushing through the dungeon. However, Mirole replied with a faint smile at his thanks.

“No, I don’t go that far in pursuit of the power of the dungeon. In fact, it’s not that big to say that I haven’t gained significant power from the dungeon so far.”

Actually, that was true. As Mirole already had a high level of existence and various skills after living and training for a long time, there had not been much change in her abilities yet, regardless of the rising of the dungeon’s difficulty level.

“But the level is not the only blessing the dungeon brings. The same goes for skills, but if you get a special job… Just wait, you’ll see.”

“Hoo-hoo, yes. The leader knows it well.”

In Yo-Ma Great War Zero, Mirole eventually received a very special job, no matter how things went. That was why, after many years, she had been held up by the elves. It was never just because she was a high elf.

God was sensible, too. If the blessing he gave was a loss to the target, how could it be considered a blessing?

Furthermore, Mirole was already perfect in terms of skill, so she was only gaining dungeon levels through the dungeon, rather than gaining battle experience or levels of existence. Perhaps she would have to go down to the 80th floor to realize she had gotten stronger after entering the dungeon.

“Well, let’s find the way down to the next floor.”

After talking to Evan, Mirole said this and raised one hand. There was a faint wind at the tip of her finger, and soon, it splattered like smoke. It was a spirit move.

“I can’t help but admire this spirit trick every time I see it.”

“This is just in case… How else do you prepare for upcoming enemies?”

“Yeah, I’m sure even the Demon King can’t do that.”

Originally, exploring long distances with spirits in the dungeon was of no use, but of course, the restriction was meaningless because Mirole had just killed all the monsters.

Shoot an arrow, shoot a spirit, find the stairs. With these simple moves, the group was able to break through the 31st to 49th floors. The very existence of Mirole was a bug. Even if you used a game cheat key, you wouldn’t be able to do it this blatantly.

“Fortunately, the stairs are close. Then let’s take it easy.”

The only thing the group had to do was move to the stairs. That was why it took three days to descend from the 31st to the 49th floor.

Of course, it was nice to be able to skip this simple dungeon so easily, but Evan couldn’t help feeling a bit useless.

In fact, that was what anyone who had ever been in the dungeon with Evan felt!

“Guys, let’s take it easy.”

Evan turned back and declared this. Since joining the dungeon, Mirole had been using the term “take it easy”, but the group had already been well aware of its true meaning.

“That means ‘run to death,’ according to Her Highness Serena.”

“Why are you bothering me? I’m here to fight the dungeon, and I’m not here to run!”

[Gosh!]

[Gosssh!]

“Let’s run first. I’m going to take a break before I go into the 50th floor.”

Belois, Anastasia, and Serena were the most physically challenged party members.

However, Belois knew how to fly, and Anastasia was also very adept at following the group by harmonizing Druid and the witch’s magic, while Serena had no means to do so. A Slime was not a very suitable mount.

Serena seriously agonized over whether she should really get a suitable mount pet in the dungeon. But instead, she looked at Evan with mournful eyes.

“Evan, I’ve been trying so hard.”

“Yeah, you didn’t complain and followed well. I’m proud of you.”

“Then can you give me a piggyback ride?”

“Uh….”

Looking at Serena’s light-weight clothes, Evan tried to think of alternatives.

Normally, he’d have thought that listening to her childishness would be bad, but it was a pretty justifiable case this time. He thought he should provide at least that much support for her, who was physically weak in the team.

“Okay, then come here…”

“Was it that hard?”

But as Evan was about to give Serena a piggyback ride, Belois stepped in.

“Then I’ll cast a flying spell on you.”

With magic, Belois put Serena’s body in the air. Serena then asked her after a brief daze.

“Was this something you could use on me, too?”

“Yes.”

“But why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

“Because you didn’t ask me to.”

Belois answered calmly. Surely Serena had never asked her to cast a spell. This was because she didn’t know that Belois’ flying magic was applicable to others.

“I see. Because I didn’t tell you. Whoo, Whoo…”

“Oh, Serena, you look like you’re about to cry.”

“Oh, she’s still a kid.”

Eventually, it was concluded after Evan came forward and hugged Serena, who was about to make a disturbance on the spot. While Serena sobbed like a princess in Evan’s arms, Belois was scolded by Evan for the first time in a long time.

“I’m sorry, my judgment was poor.”

“It’s okay, but next time, please pay attention.”

“Yes, sir.”

Since its reopening, the size of the dungeon became larger as it went down. The level was not comparable to the previous dungeon.

Moreover, Mirole was running at a speed that was almost limitless, so it was only natural for a tamer who did not usually deal with her body to get tired. It was not unreasonable to accumulate fatigue that could not be solved in a short period of time by divine magic.

At least Evan thought so.

“…”

“…”

Belois, who had just gotten scolded by Evan, looked slowly at Serena, who was sobbing in his arms.

In fact, she didn’t put the flying magic on Serena because she was immature in her judgment, but because she was just calculating if Serena had enough stamina. Perhaps she still had enough stamina.

“Whoo.”

Then, at one moment, a smile passed by Serena’s mouth. It was the smile of the winner. As expected, she did the performance from the beginning with the intention of hugging Evan. A play that scapegoated Belois.

‘I see. That’s it, let’s resume the war.’

She had been quiet lately. However, it seemed to be unusual again for some time; it was more evident after the last festival.

Perhaps this was because she realized there was progress in Evan’s relationship with Belois… and as well, the existence of a new rival, Mirole, would have been an added stimulus.

“Hoo, hoo, hoo…”

“Oh, Belois is acting weird right now.”

“Shine, shut up.”

“But why me!?”

Of course, Belois was not the only one who was uncomfortable with Serena’s hug to Evan. Naturally, the eyes of the women moved fiercely in the air.

It was a fierce battle for Evan to increase physical contact and to reduce their competitors’ favor…!

“No, don’t stare at each other. Direct it to the dungeon.”

“Shine, don’t turn your eyes to other girls. I’m the only one watching.”

“Sigh. This is just the beginning.”

This was all because the dungeon didn’t seem like a dungeon. Shine sighed, thinking that he would rather go over the 70th floor and fight the monsters properly.

There was a faint staircase down to the 50th floor.

* * *

[A baptism of eternal spirits…How on earth can they give a blessing beyond this?]

[To raise an unordinary being, even in a limited area, was their plan.]

[This is an ancient soul, a divine blessing… The eternal elven princess, your excess work from the first floor to the 49th floor of the dungeon is too much for us to handle.]

The voices were also embarrassed by the unprecedented situation in which a person of the old generation, who they believed would never come to Dungeon, was moving forward from the first floor.

According to the Dungeon mechanisms identified by Evan in the past, when a floor was cleared with extraordinary feats, the dungeon achievements that could not be compensated for accumulated and accrued until they reached a proper blessing worthy of the achievements. It was such the case with Mirole, her blessing accumulated from the first to 49th floors because there was nothing substantial for her to receive.

[No, wait a minute. Isn’t there a good way?]

It was a conversation between God and the voices that Mirole could not hear.

[She doesn’t have a second quest yet. If she breaks through the 50th floor, she will be given a second quest.]

[Now that I think about it….]

[If you give her a new quest, we’ll be able to give her the right skills!]

[But that means we must make a monster of her class? I remember there were a lot of talks when we recognized her as a leader…]

[This is new.]

This was said by one of the voices, in a tone that seemed to fade away.

[Anyway, it’s not a monster, and it’s a fate that cannot be stopped.]