“It’s quiet.”
“Are we the only ones here?”
“Well, who knows.”
I shrugged in response to Lewis’s question and stared hard into the impenetrable fog. In the game, it was just a tad spooky, but in reality, the chill creeping up my neck felt like I had stepped into the afterlife.
This isn’t just a place where undead dwell.
“Don’t make any loud noises while moving. Even if a Zombie suddenly jumps out, don’t scream. Got it?”
As I looked back and warned them, the kids all nodded in unison.
It seemed like my recent experiences in the two dungeons we had been to were helping out.
See, that’s why you need to gain experience points! We’re not leveling up like in the game, but humans learn from experiences in any form.
Especially since this party is filled with geniuses, the efficiency of ‘experience’ was unmatched.
Right now, just Lewis was able to learn how to deal with monsters like Wyverns through hands-on practice. Elisa and Shuri had reduced mistakes in their incantations and aiming during battle.
I was planning to slowly feed those kids experiences again this time.
“Johann, there’s a vague shape up ahead.”
“Signal.”
Lewis immediately raised his hand to signal for everyone to stop.
The bustling noises quieted down.
I strained my eyes, trying to spot the figure Lewis pointed out. How much time passed? A vague shape of an adult man appeared to my eyes. It meant we were getting quite close.
“Rue, it’s time for you to work.”
[Ugh, I’m not feeling it today…]
“Call of the Abyss.”
A slimy yet chilling sensation gripped my right arm. I extended what had been a ‘human arm’ towards the figure. The tentacle, stretching like rubber, moved forward for a few seconds before it grasped the enigmatic shape.
“Lewis. It’s about twenty steps away. Remember that.”
“Yes.”
I turned the figure I had dragged over this way and that to check it. Just an ordinary Zombie. It was trying to bite at my tentacle, but my appendage wasn’t something a Zombie’s teeth could get through.
I held the Zombie above my head and said, “Grrr…”
“Can you see? These kinds will ambush from the fog, so stay alert.”
I tossed aside the now useless Zombie. Ignoring the unpleasant sounds it made while disappearing, I signaled with my left arm to start moving again.
Once more, the sound of footsteps filled my ears.
Fewer enemies than I thought.
It was a realization that came to me after walking about a hundred steps.
In the game, there would have been hundreds of Zombies and Skeletons around. But here in this area… nothing.
There are three possibilities.
Either for some reason, the undead aren’t appearing,
or they’re crowded in a corner somewhere,
or maybe…
“Karina. Prepare your Purification Magic. Let it spread deep into the ground.”
“Got it.”
Did Karina sense something was off? She immediately clasped her hands over her chest and began reciting a prayer. The chant sounded so sacred, merely hearing it further elevated my spirit. I narrowed my eyes and glared into the fog.
The sounds of crushed earth and the putrid smell of decaying corpses, along with the unpleasant moaning, began to increase sharply.
“Even if their brains have rotted, the leader isn’t one of them.”
Right. This is reality.
Not some programmed fake, but real.
Ambush operations like this were fully expected. Since I couldn’t pinpoint the exact location, I relied on Karina’s power to react just before the ambush began.
Listening to her prayer, I quietly raised my right hand into a fist. A signal to prepare for battle. The sounds of something moving busily behind me began to emerge.
“…Deliver.”
Just as the shapes in the fog became clearly visible, Karina’s Purification Magic swept through the Fog Graveyard, bringing with it a soft warmth. Wherever her aura passed, the figures were dispersed like sand.
“It seems the area is secure. I’ll stop to check for any additional incoming enemies before we move on.”
A flame from the Phoenix ignites in my hand. The baseball-sized fireball floats above my palm, pushing back the fog slightly. It was one of the few energies capable of resisting this fog.
I hurled the fireball ahead. It should make a sound once it hits something. I confirmed I could faintly hear that sound after a while and spread my right hand again.
We began to move once more.
————–
“Wow, there’s no fog here!”
“Because Karina’s barrier is set up.”
It wasn’t just a normal phenomenon; it was the effect of something in the core of this dungeon, pushed back by Karina’s Sacred Power, which could at least push back a radius of about seven meters.
“Millia, you and Sif prepare the meal.”
“Okay! I’ll make it delicious!”
“I’ll keep an eye on the seasoning, so don’t just throw things in. I can’t stand salty stew.”
“I’ll do it well this time!”
While Millia and Sif bickered as they went to grab cooking tools, I checked the state of the makeshift lodging I had made.
The Thief was no problem. The thickness was fine. I had used a Skill to make the floor strong, so nothing could come up through it.
But I couldn’t let my guard down completely.
Even though Zombies and Skeletons would only possess the strength of an adult male at best, the leader here was a monster at least three meters tall.
A surprisingly strong one for a monster that drags around minions, so I had to be cautious.
Only that creature could peer through this fog.
“Everyone, prepare first. Renny and I will be on guard, so call us when the meal is ready. Renny, let’s go.”
“Hmm, I wonder if those guys will come up…”
Renny and I leaned against either side of the entrance I had made and observed the surroundings. Though there wasn’t much to see, unlike me, Renny had a keen sense and would likely pick up on any approaching creatures before they got too close.
“Renny, don’t you sense anything?”
“Hmmm, not really. I purified this entire area before setting up camp, so they shouldn’t be able to approach for a while.”
Since the monsters here were all Zombies or Skeletons, she was probably right. They wouldn’t dare approach after Karina’s Purification Magic, the best Sacred Power on the continent.
“Chasing after the kids is harder than I thought.”
“Is that so.”
“Normally, when it’s just Karina, I only have to focus on her; but keeping an eye on everyone makes my head feel like it’s spinning, you know? That kind of feeling.”
It seemed like keeping watch over many people was unfamiliar for Renny.
“You don’t need to be overly careful. Just sensing any presence around you will let me handle it.”
“Yeah… that’s true. But maybe it’s a bit of a job hazard. Thinking of them as a protective target makes me too anxious.”
“Stay relaxed. I’m here, right? If you feel overwhelmed, just tell me. I’ll listen and, if possible, solve it too.”
“Hey, you… sigh. Just please don’t go around saying that to everyone.”
What a reaction! I turned my head to stare at Renny’s back and then turned to gaze into the fog again.
So, a silence drew a line between us.
“Johann, Renny! The food is ready.”
Millia peeked her head out from the entrance, delivering the good news with a smaller voice than usual.
Meal time, huh.
“Renny, go in and eat first. I’ll keep watch.”
“No, I’ll watch; you go eat first.”
“No, you…”
“Just go in if I say so!”
As Renny pushed me toward the entrance, I had no choice but to step inside the lodging.
“Johann, where’s Renny?”
“She told me to eat first.”
“Oh…”
“I’ll eat and then come back out to keep watch.”
“I’ll go out with you.”
Next, it was Lewis and Sif’s turn. Watching the two gobble up the stew, I grabbed my spoon.
I was curious to see how much better it had become this time.
“Johann!”
What’s up? I turned my head at Millia’s sudden call to find the silver spoon I had brought. In the curved part of the spoon, steam wafted up from a bubbling liquid with large chunks floating in it.
“Ah~”
“I can handle my own!”
“Ah~!”
Is she not going to put it down before I eat? Letting out a sigh, I bit down on the spoon.
“It’s definitely better than at the Dragon’s Grave.”
“See, see?”
“Millia, you’ve really improved your skills!”
“Y-yeah, the flavor is just right.”
Has Millia finally learned the concept of seasoning?
“I learned from Ashley.”
“Hope you keep learning hard.”
I didn’t want soup sweeter than candy.
Thus ended our cozy dinner, and after deciding who would take the night watch, we took out our sleeping bags and laid down in the temporary camp.
“We’ll need to be busy tomorrow, so try to sleep as comfortably as you can.”
“Okay.”
Millia, who was lying right beside me, nodded vigorously. I fixed her slightly crooked hair and adjusted my position so Millia could comfortably snuggle up.
“Hehe.”
“Johann…”
“Yes?”
“…Nothing.”
Karina turned her head away from me with a complicated expression.
She seemed like she had something to say.
…But I didn’t know.
I quietly closed my eyes and fell into slumber.
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