by Fujino Omori
“Bell, are you sure…? After all I’ve…”
“…It’s thanks to you, Nahza, that Lilly and I are still alive today.”
It was the day that I was surrounded by a horde of killer ants.
No matter what the actual price was, the fact that she talked me into purchasing a magic potion was the deciding factor in a desperate battle.
But above all, I can’t just abandon someone who helped me in the past.
I relax the muscles in my brow and smile at her. Her eyes open in disbelief for a moment before she hides her face.
“I’m sorry…Thank you.”
Her last words barely louder than a whisper, she jerks her head down in what is an unmistakable bow.
Quest accepted
• Client: Miach Familia
• Reward: original healing item
• Content: retrieve monster eggs
• Comment: Let’s do our best. They’re counting on us.
We leave the city early the next morning.
I was told as much last night, so I cut my training with Aiz short and meet up with Lord Miach to help with preparations. Lady Hestia and Lilly join us after we hire a horse-drawn cart for the day from another merchant.
Two divine beings and three humans of different races. I doubt anyone has ever seen a party like ours. We arrive at the city wall as the sun reaches the mountains in the distance.
“Bell, you’re such a hard worker. Getting up extra early today to help Miach get ready like this.”
“Ha-ha-ha-ha…”
Just like Lilly, I haven’t told the goddess about my training with Aiz, either. I really don’t want to think about what would happen if she ever found out.
Apologizing over and over in my mind, I quickly engage Nahza in conversation before the situation gets out of hand.
“Hey, um, Nahza. So, as you said yesterday…”
“Yes. There is no time to prepare money for payment by the end of today. So the plan is to turn the tables on them and create an original healing item to sell to Dian Cecht Familia to cover the costs…”
She responds in her usual monotone voice. She’s wearing rather loose clothing compared to her usual strange combination of garments.
Once we finish some rather monotonous paperwork, we receive clearance to exit Orario’s East Gate. A vast prairie spreads up before us, greens and golds swaying in the breeze.
“Lilly asked yesterday, but will this plan actually work? Making a new item from scratch is not easy…”
“Not a problem, I’ve got an idea…”
Nahza answers Lilly’s question with a quiet confidence. As usual, Nahza looks like she could fall asleep at any moment. Shff, shff. Her tail is lazily swishing back and forth behind her.
“I didn’t hear where we’re headed today. Where’s this cart taking us?”
“The Deep Forest Seoro. It’s not too far away, but we’ll be in this cart a while. Since we’re all here together, now would be a good time for bonding.”
This time it was Lord Miach who answers Lady Hestia’s question. He looks at Lilly while saying that last part.
This wooden cart is a lot more cramped than I thought it would be. My shoulders brush up against my neighbors every time the wheels hit a bump in the road. All of us are sitting in a circle with Lord Miach closest to the driver, me next, then Lady Hestia, Lilly, and finally Nahza on the other side of Lord Miach.
The morning sun shines down directly on us because this cart doesn’t have a canopy or roof of any kind. Feeling the warmth on our faces, we take Lord Miach’s advice and strike up a conversation.
“Miss Nahza. Lilly knows that you successfully switched from adventurer to chemist. Does that mean that Miss Nahza has learned Synthesize as well?”
“Yes, I have…I learned enough by helping make medicine to gain the correct excelia and was very lucky…”
“Um, is Synthesize one of those…?”
“It’s an Advanced Ability that allows a person to create higher-quality items and medicine, Mr. Bell.”
So that means that an adventurer could learn an ability called Synthesize when they level up, if they have the right excelia. Lilly goes on to explain that it allows a person to create a potion so powerful that it can close wounds on contact, just like a healing spell.
It sounds a lot like the Advanced Ability Forge, in that only professionals tend to learn it and it has a deep connection with creating strong weapons and potent items.
Even if two different people create the same item using the same ingredients, the results will be completely different if one of them has an Advanced Ability.
“Wait, you have an Advanced Ability, so that means…”
“Yeah. I’m Level Two…”
My eyes shoot open as wide as they go.
N-Nazha is just as strong as other upper-class adventurers…
“I made it down into the middle levels, but a monster nearly burned me alive down there…Then it started eating chunks of my arms and legs.”
“Oh no—”
“It took a lot of work to get my left arm and legs back to normal, but my right arm was beyond saving. The beast ate everything, even my bones…Ever since that day, I haven’t been able to fight a monster. Just standing in front of one of them…My body won’t stop shaking.”
Chills run up and down my spine as I listen to her gruesome tale.
The stench of charred flesh all over her body.
The feeling of being on her back and utterly defenseless as a monster devours her right arm.
All of the traumatic memories of pain and fear that have literally been burned into her revive every time she faces any monster. She tells me everything.
“…Sorry, I didn’t want to scare you.”
“Ah, i-it’s okay…”
“Anyway, don’t let your guard down while crawling the Dungeon…It took me six years to level up…but it only takes a second to lose everything you’ve worked for.”
I clear my throat and take Nahza’s warning to heart.
“But that arm of yours, it’s very, very well-made. Do you ever have any problem using it?”
“No, I can move it naturally…”
“It cost an incredible amount of money, but I ordered the best item that Dian had available. While it pains me to admit this, I can trust that anything his Familia makes will be very high quality.”
The deities in the cart change the topic and clear the air. The mood quickly changes from dark and uncomfortable to light and friendly.
We’re following one road that leads from Orario’s East Gate and through a blanket of green that spreads in all directions. Since Orario is the home of the only dungeon in the world, well-kept roads are required to sell magic-stone goods outside the city. The road that we’re on is made of a white stone and is very smooth.
“Lord Miach doesn’t recognize my feelings for him at all…although I’m glad he doesn’t notice all the other girls looking at him with hearts in their eyes…Sometimes I wonder if he really is a god…”
“Ahh, I know the feeling. My Bell is just as dense. I don’t know how many times his cluelessness has made me cry.”
“Hee-hee, but in Lady Hestia’s case, Mr. Bell’s keeping his distance out of respect and doesn’t see Lady Hestia as a girl. It would be a good idea to realize that, you know…And Lilly gets treated like a little sister.”
““…””
Why did all the girls suddenly get so scary, and why does it feel like the cart is shrinking?
I can hear them whispering to each other, but Lord Miach and I can’t understand what they’re saying. All I know is I suddenly feel very small.
We pass by many carts heading toward Orario on our way down the road that cuts through the expansive grasslands.
We finally reach our destination with the sun high overhead.
“S-so this is…”
“Okay, I can see why they call it the deep forest.”
The goddess and I marvel at the scen
ery. This is the first time either of us have come here.
Deep Forest Seoro.
It’s an incredibly dense forest located at the base of the Alb mountain range, directly east from Orario.
Every single tree in front of me reaches high into the sky, their trunks many times thicker than any other tree I’ve ever seen. The ground is covered in vibrant wildflowers and moss. This green realm is truly ruled by nature.
All of us quickly hop out of the cart and grab each of the bags we brought with us.
After telling the cart driver we hired to wait for us outside the forest, all of us step into the wilderness together.
“We’re going to get some monster eggs, right?”
“Yep. They’re not drop items, but actual eggs…”
We came all the way out here to find eggs that were laid by monsters. Nahza must need them as an ingredient for her new healing potion.
The monsters that escaped the Dungeon in the Old Age learned to live on land and reproduce on their own. Their descendants are scattered all around the world even today. Considering that they’re still alive, the fact that they lay eggs should make perfect sense…But now I’m so used to the fact that monsters are born from the dungeon walls that the thought of them laying eggs just feels weird.
I keep my head on a swivel, looking for monsters as we make our way through the forest.
“…Bell, stop there.”
I was leading the group down a thin path through the trees when Nahza calls out to me and I stop moving.
She can see something up ahead: a wide, round depression in the ground.
Nahza starts giving out orders a moment later. First, she tells Lord Miach and Lady Hestia to wait here. Then she puts Lilly in charge of protecting them.
Last, she waves her hand and motions for me to follow her.
“Bell, here.”
Keeping her shoulders low to the ground, Nahza brings me some equipment.
A heavily worn broadsword and a backpack with something inside.
“Wh-what’s this for?”
“These guys are tough without a weapon this big…Put the backpack on.”
I break out in a cold sweat, pondering what she meant by that. Nahza goes a few paces ahead of me and stops in the shade of a tree just in front of the depression.
Sniff, sniff. I can hear Nahza taking in all of the smells as the dog ears on her head arch back and open wide.
The tension in the air is starting to make me nervous. My heart begins to pick up the pace when suddenly—Nahza moves.
She reaches past my shoulder and swiftly opens the top of the backpack.
“Uck…?!”
My sinuses erupt in pain the instant a new stench wafts up my nostrils.
I know the smell, but I can’t quite place it. Nahza salutes me as I rack my brain for an answer.
“I wish you luck, Bell. Sorry.”
She takes off before I can even say, “Huh?”
She darts through the trees with the speed and agility befitting a Level 2 adventurer and leaves me behind.
I stare at where she was for a moment, blinking, when…out of nowhere, splat.
“…eh?”
A strange goo falls down from overhead.
I can feel the warm, clear liquid running down my shoulder. Slowly but surely, I look up.
“UuuUuu…”
What greets my eyes is the drooling mouth of a large dinosaur.
Then it hits me: I remember where I’ve smelled the stuff that’s in the backpack. Blood is racing so fast in my veins that I could pass out at any moment.
It’s a trap made of raw meat that draws out hungry monsters.
“UUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!”
“DDAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!”
Scream and roar mix.
I turn my back to the massive chin and take off at full speed.
“Uh, isn’t that a large-category monster?!”
“Whaa, B-Bell?!”
“B-bloodsaurus…?!”
Hestia was the first to yell out, followed closely by Lilly’s shriek of surprise.
A five-meder-tall, carnivorous, red dinosaur had appeared.
It let out one bloodcurdling roar after another as it rampaged through the forest, chasing the “rabbit” that was to become its next meal.
“H-hold on a second here. That’s a monster that shows up on the thirtieth floor…!”
“There’s no problem. Monsters on the surface are much weaker than the ones found in the Dungeon.”
In contrast to Lilly’s shaking voice, Nahza’s response was quite calm.
“Now’s our chance to enter the depression. We need to work quickly while Bell leads the monsters away.”
Nahza guided Hestia and the others down the slope.
The depression was revealed to be a monster’s nest; the group spotted ten or more eggs situated in a space between two trees.
“Wasn’t there a better way we could have done this…?”
“No. If we faced all of the bloodsauruses at once, we wouldn’t have been able to protect Lord Miach and Lady Hestia.”
“My apologies, Bell…”
“Less talking, more grabbing, dammit! That thing’s going to eat Bell!”
Hestia scolded the others for pointless conversation as all of them shoved as many eggs as they could into the bags they had brought with them.
Their work done, each of them slung a bag full of eggs over their shoulders.
“Miss Nahza, was that true, about the monsters?”
“It is. Hundreds of generations of reproducing have taken their toll on the beasts. The magic stone in their chests is so small it might as well not be there.”
Nahza answered Lilly’s question as she adjusted her bag of eggs.
Monsters that were separated from the Dungeon followed their instincts to ensure the survival of their species.
They began relying on strength of numbers as their own physical prowess began to decline. Since each individual needed less power to survive, magic stones became smaller over time.
As each successive generation’s magic stone decreased in size, so did each individual monster’s in strength. At this point, monsters on the surface didn’t even compare with the “originals” in the Dungeon.
“Bloodsauruses on the surface might be a little bit stronger than an orc in the Dungeon…”
Said Nahza as she cast her gaze in Bell’s direction.
The boy was currently being chased by three such monsters. Their numbers had increased. Bell’s yelps of fright echoed through the forest.
Nahza straightened up and took hold of the weapon strapped to her back.
It was a longbow that stood just as tall as she did. Holding the weapon steady with her silver arm, she nocked an arrow using her left hand.
There was enough space between her and the monsters to prevent Nahza’s traumatic memories from triggering. The sun’s rays illuminating pieces of the asymmetric light armor equipped over her traveling garb, Nahza narrowed her eyes for an instant before the arrow hurtled forward.
The projectile tore through the air the instant that Nahza lifted her fingers, and it found its target: the eye of a bloodsaurus.
“!!”
A deep roar of pain sounded through the trees.
Its balance and vision gone, the injured bloodsaurus staggered into the one next to it at full speed, sending both of them to the ground.
Bell felt the shock wave of their impact and saw the leaves shake around him. He looked over his shoulder and his eyes went wide as he drew the broadsword into position. The last bloodsaurus charging him with reckless abandon, Bell chose to believe in Nahza’s support, drove his heel into the dirt, and charged headlong into the monster’s path.
“This makes me so happy.”
“YAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!”
Nahza, grinning from ear to ear, unleashed another arrow at the same time that Bell let loose a battle cry.
&nbs
p; The arrow got there just in time, piercing the beast’s eye just before Bell got into position. Reeling in pain, the monster was defenseless against the incoming blade.
Bell’s jumping strike took a slice out of the base of the bloodsaurus’s lower neck. Fresh blood spraying like a fountain, the beast fell to its knees.
Bell went in for another strike to finish it off but lost his balance in mid-swing. Nahza couldn’t help but laugh as she watched from her vantage point.
“Nahza, that’s enough.”
“Okay…”
She turned to face Miach, the same smile still plastered on her face.
Nahza scanned the group, making sure that both Lilly and Hestia had bags of eggs securely fastened to their backs, before looking back in Bell’s direction.
The boy emerged from behind a tree, using the broadsword as a walking stick. “Can we go now?” he said with a very pathetic look in his eyes. Nahza smiled and nodded.
“Time to go home, Bell.”
Beneath a night sky studded with stars.
A vial containing a dark blue liquid was given to a man standing in the open doorway of a large mansion.
“This is my Familia’s latest product. I guarantee its effectiveness.”
“Eh, geh…!”
Dian Cecht gasped as he took the vial from Miach’s outstretched hands.
After closely inspecting it himself, the deity handed the vial to his assistant, Amid, and asked for her opinion.
The girl took a sip and went silent. Both of the gods waited with bated breath for a moment before she looked up and gave a very curt nod.
“A double potion that restores physical strength and mental energy…This is the first of its kind. Therefore, you would be able to sell them for quite a high price at your Familia’s shops. It is sure to meet the demand of many adventurers, don’t you agree?”
“Geh, grrrr…!”
“I have twenty of them right here. The profits from their sale should more than cover this month’s payment. Please buy them.”
“Wh…Why youuuuuuuuuuuuuuu…?!”
A deep roar of frustration rang out under the night sky.
Bell and the others, waiting on the outside of the mansion’s four high walls, knew the transaction was successful the moment they heard it.