Year 7442, Month 8, Day 14

On a hot day as summer nears it's end once again today the five of us are challenging the dungeon. Since we've explored the dungeon countless times we're already used to fighting the monsters that come out on the 1st floor. However, we still can't let our guards down. If we make a single mistake we could get seriously injured and even death is possible beyond that. I can't even remember the number of times the three front-line attackers have gotten injured. They usually end up being injured by opponents that appear in the afternoon when their ability to concentrate starts to break and we end up having to retreat. Today was the same. Unable to avoid the charge of a gnoll with a crude spear Zulu ended up taking an injury to his thigh.

I immediately a.s.sisted them and after wiping out the enemies I healed Zulu's wound. Zulu apologized but it doesn't particularly bother me. It's true Zulu was in the wrong by letting his guard down but it was also Bel and my mistake thinking Zulu would be fine so we weren't able to a.s.sist him right away and since we're advancing cautiously it's about the time start to become unable to focus. It's a bit early but since I'm sure there's still pain remaining in Zulu's leg we should head back for today.

It was when I was thinking that while I cut open the pitiful gnolls chest to take out the magic stone. I heard something that was clearly a humans voice from somewhere saying "save me". It's been two and a half months since we started exploring the dungeon and this is our first time coming across another living adventurer inside. We exchange glances and look further in the cave where the voice came from. Of course we can't see anything but we couldn't help but to do so. I guess this is a trait of living things.

"What should we do?"

Ralpha asked. Right now I'm strictly training her with magic. I'm sure she wants to freely use magic as well, she doesn't make any complaints and focuses on the training every day, but it will still probably take about 1 month before her void magic reaches level 1. It's really unfortunate that her MP didn't increase during her last level up. As a matter of fact a large portion of the combat we're doing lately has the objective of leveling up Ralpha.

"Let's move forward while keeping an eye on things."

After I respond and Bel said as well.

"But, I heard, save me. I think it would be a good idea to hurry."

Her manner of speech has gotten a lot softer. But, she still tries to speak politely to me and since it's unnecessary to tell her to go out of her way to fix that I've just ignored it. She just learned void magic the other day. She's training the same as Ralpha right now but in another week or so I'm sure her level will go up. Having more than 30 times the amount of MP than Ralpha is that much more valid in earning experience towards magic and it's to point where Ralpha is a bit pitiful. Zenom said to that Bel.

"There's no need to hurry. Everything that happens in the dungeon is your own responsibility. I won't say we shouldn't save them or not to save them. But, the area ahead of here we haven't pa.s.sed by yet. There might be a trap. If we go to save them and get caught in a trap then it's pointless."

Zenom is a pillar of the party with how he's always calm and composed. There's a personal opinion in his words and everyone pays attention to those warnings. Obviously I do as well.

I washed my hands with water magic and after wiping them with a towel I opened the map and checked our current location once again. Going off the terrain from around where we teleported, the location we are is probably, here. If the map is correct then 100 meters ahead of us the cave should bend to the left and after continuing a bit from there it should connect to a large room. That large room should be connect to two other caves from the cave we're advancing through. Right, I bought a map, but this map was a fake. There seems to be a considerable number of mistaken places and while the traps are written down but there aren't enough to match up to them at all. We're treasuring it because it's quite a bit better than not having one at all but there's no way we can put all of our faith into it.

Zulu is watching as I confirm the map. I'm sure he wants to say something as well but he's careful of his position and actions so unless I give him permission he doesn't speak pointlessly. He's a good subordinate.

"Then, Zenom, take up the front with me. Zulu hold up the center and I'll leave the rear to Bel and Ralpha."

After giving simple instructions I ignored the gnoll's corpse and picked up my bayonet. Lined up with Zenom I cautiously start walking. Zenom hits the ground with a roughly 3 m pole as we move forward. Just before we were about to make it to the curve to the left the sound from Zenom hitting the ground changed. A trap huh? We walk around the edge avoiding the trap and after pa.s.sing the trap we started walking towards the large room that should be ahead of here.

The voice calling for help is still continuing. After turning the corner it's gotten louder. I say,

"We're on our way! Give it your best!"

and just said that but after all raising our pace would be foolish so we carefully continued walking forward. I guess they heard my voice, the owner voice said,

"It's a slime! Be careful!"

And gave us the warning. A slime huh... I've seen one on the edge of Bakuddo once in the past. I'm sure the only attacks that will work on it will be my magic.

"Only magic works against slimes. I've seen one once in the past. There's no other choice than to burn it with fire...He probably can't be saved.."

After I said that I took the pole from Zenom and stood at the front. According to the story I heard from the hunter in Bakuddo, Zachary Dokush, it seems that slimes wrap up their victims and melt them. Being melted alive is a seriously frightening way of dying. It's probably for their sake that I kill them and put them out of their misery. I thought that.

I didn't turn around but I felt the presence of everyone following after me. These softies. Ah, do they intend to take the magic stone? Even I've never taken the magic stone from a human or non-human before..Do you guys seriously intend to cut open the chest of a person? Putting aside Zenom who's been an adventurer for countless years, I wonder if Ralpha, Bel, and Zulu intend to do that? I'll put it aside for now.

We approached close enough to look into the large room and nervously looked in. The large room is about 30 m in every direction and just like other places inside of the dungeon the walls and ceiling are giving off light. It was the scenery of h.e.l.l inside the room. I heard Bel and Ralpha say "hi" as they held their breath behind me.

There's a green viscous liquid scattered all around the room and it's swallowed the adventurer party. There's already four people that have stopped moving. They've fallen all over the place and their bodies are covered in the slime. In the corner of the room there's one person remaining that has been swallowed up to his chest and still has his sword held in his free right arm trying to escape.

After he saw us and,

"Sa...Save me! I can't do anything about these things! No matter what we tried they wouldn't die!"

And yelled that. In any case, there's no other choice than to do something. After I put my bayonet around my shoulder I held up both of my hands and aimed them in the room. I can't do anything but burn everything that can be burnt with {Flamethrower}. I burnt all the slime in the way to where the man was and got close to him. The man is still training to escape from the slime but it's clear that it's not going anywhere. It's only a matter of time before this man gets swallowed by the slime and after suffocating to death he'll slowly be melted, digested, and absorbed I'm sure. There's no choice than to do what I can.

I adjusted my {Flamethrower} into a thin gas-burner shape and got it close to the slime being careful not to burn the man's body. When the spell was about to reach the slime it suddenly changed its movements. The slime that was slowly moving to completely cover the man suddenly rolled up into a ball after detecting the flame. Well I had predicted it so it wasn't anything to be surprised over but the problem was that the place the slime rolled up to was the farthest place in its body away from the flame. In other words, it rolled up contracting to around where the man's chest was. Since I'm sure the volume itself didn't change. It ended up creating an orb of viscous liquid right around the man's chest.

Eh~ Things that happen will happen. Try not to die. I think that was spreading out the flame from my {Flamethrower}. From the fear of suffocating and the heat from the flame near his lower body the man started rolling around with his upper body covered in the slime. But, I succeeded in killing the slime. Leaving the convulsing man just as he is I started using {Flamethrower} and it didn't take much time at all to finish killing all of the slime I could see.

In any case, I was able to get rid of the dangerous monster for now. Next is healing this man. I crouched down to the man and started using a healing spell to heal him. Simultaneously I identified him. The man is 24 years old. Level is 8. As an adventurer he's somewhere between a newcomer and a mid-cla.s.s I guess. Zenom and the others started gathering what appears to be the man's allies together. At the same time I saw Bel and Ralpha pick up the magic stone from inside of the slime(since it's originally a viscous liquid, it just looks like a dirty puddle of water) with a disgusted face.

When I identified it's corpse it was supposedly a Green Slime. Since it was a deep green color liquid as if algae had floated up I thought it was different from the Brown Slime I saw in the past but as expected it was different.

In any case, it seems that the man has recovered so he should be able to at least talk.

"That was dangerous. But, I've already burnt all of the slimes to death so it should be already fine."

After I said that and the man said,

"A..Ah..Thanks. My name is Turner. Turner Doruleon. Who are you?"

Since he said that I named myself as well. And then the man said with admiration.

"However, that was some amazing skill with magic. If you can use magic this well than that..."

After saying that far and Turner looked at the corpses of his allies lined up beside him and bit his lip in regret.

Even though I'm sure the pain from the burns still remains the man firmly stood up and stuck a knife into the chests of his allies. When I was dumbfounded with my eyes wide open and he quickly cut open their chests and took the magic stones out. I'm sure she saw that scene because Bel tightly held my hand as hers were trembling. Her face is pale. My facial expression is probably pretty bad as well. At the same time I felt angry. What in the world is this guy doing cutting up the corpses of his allies!

Since I couldn't stand watching anymore I was about to call out to him but after he took out the magic stone of the first one with his hands covered in blood Turner started crying.

"~~~!!! Alice...Alice.."

Eh...What? What is? This?

"Is this your first time seeing someone take the magic stone out of a person? There's quite a few of them, people like that."

Ralpha quietly approached us and told us that. I see, I guess it's something like an article of the deceased... It's true I know of it as knowledge. When I was in Bakuddo I saw a total of five funerals. Among those one of those was the time when six people were killed by the Horned Bear. All of the funerals were performed by burning the corpse near the river and after taking the magic stone out from the remaining bones that was buried. The bones and ashes were washed away in the river. It's true that the magic stone was used in place for the remains. The bereaved family digs a deep hole at night when no one is looking and buried the magic stone there.

The location can be anywhere. It's fine in a place the person who died liked, it's fine at the edge of the fields, or in a garden. In any case, it's fine if even just one person knows in a location that no one will dig up. After hearing that I accepted it thinking that the religious customs are different so the concept of making graves would be different as well. I feel like the concept of returning to nature would be a primeval thing but the teaching of the temple that G.o.d exists in everything in this world also feels natural as well. For the most part it's not as if you can't call it a cremation so I didn't have any doubts about it back then.

.............

【Female/14/9/7422 ・ Dog-People Race ・ Ronslail Family Owned Slave】

【Age： 20 Years Old】

【HP： 90(90)　MP： 4(4)】

【Speed： 17】

【Endurance： 14】

【Special Skill: Super Sense of Smell】

"I understand. I'll buy her for 6,300,000 Z."