What in the world are Miduchi and Angela doing discussing something?

While glancing at them to the side I declared.

"Well then, it's about time for everyone to return to the surface."

"It was 11,000,000 right? It's fine as long as we pay it right?"

Basu is making a face as if I was making fun of them as he said it.

They're seriously carrying it!? s.h.i.+t.

"..Just a moment ago I cured Basu-san, Hyuruni-san, and Flameshaft-san once again. It's only obvious for the price to go up right?"

I'm glad I remembered before replying.

"That's not something you should be acting so cool about."

He completely saw through it. But, if I were to admit it here then regardless of whether I go or not they'll probably go all on their own.

"..Eh? What are you saying? You understand from just now right? It was my party that defeated this vampire you know? None of you did any work at all right? Even Basu-san didn't you just get paralyzed again and lay around?"

It's already gotten too annoying to act discrete~

Even if you all want to continue down this pa.s.sage and get killed it doesn't...matter to me at all.

If you all come along with us it's just a bother.

If you end up being paralyzed and collapse I can't freeze things and if anyone gets taken hostage it's not like you can just abandon them right?

In worst case their blood might be sucked and it would just increase the number of enemies.

It's plenty with just Miduchi, my combat slaves, and I.

Just that is more than enough for battle.

..That's right!

"And even if everyone comes along didn't it say something as if there's still vampires remaining?"

"Huh? Did it say something? Like that?"

"I panicked from being paralyzed so I didn't notice."

"Me too."

"I, was a bit further away so I couldn't hear anything."

"Did it say something?"

"I could hear it say something about being skilled about magic."

..Is that so.

It sounded like something important so properly listen!

"In any case, it's true there still seems to be some vampires. Do you want to be paralyzed and end up having to trouble me again?"

I intentionally made an arrogant expression as if making fun of them as I said it.

"That's fine already. It's certainly true that we're just a burden to you."

Anderson said in order to smooth things over.

Well, you weren't paralyzed so you wouldn't be as much of a burden as the others though.

But, if there's no one to lead {Black.Topaz} and the followers then they won't be able to return~ to the surface.

"That might be fine for you all but not only did Sara from our party get killed but even Roberto was abducted. We can't back off that easily."

The spear attacker Bunny-man from the {Verdure.Brotherhood}, Korumain complained.

That is~ I can understand those feelings.

I'm sure there's also your pride, you want to save your leader with your own abilities or at least be of some help towards it, I can understand.

"Han? Are you picking a fight with our {Black.Topaz}? Even our Kaku was killed. If you say too much I'll kill you~!?"

Anderson replied in a threatening tone almost like a yakuza.

"Ah? Who do you think you're talking to? A coward who runs away without even getting revenge for their sub-leader being killed should just back off!"

"That's right, these ball-less b.a.s.t.a.r.ds! If your leader has no b.a.l.l.s then it means none of you do!"

"What was that, b.i.t.c.h!"

"Ah, sis! These b.a.s.t.a.r.ds, saying whatever they want!"

Ah, really~ They're all bickering back and forth while ma.s.saging themselves like idiots.

"Shut your mouths~!! All of you underlings just be quiet! Second-rate adventurer trash who are stuck just wandering around the mere 7th floor should be quiet and listen to what master says!!"

Zulu roared. If you hadn't said it I was about to.

"Come now, Zulu. You shouldn't speak so rudely...Putting that aside, I really wish everyone would just understand already. What can you do with your bodies in that condition? We can't just wait around here for everyone to return to their best condition you know."

I attempted to speak in a soft tone almost like Koumon-sama scolding Suke-san. Kaku-san is..I guess Angela? But, he seems like he'd be bad at making speeches like that.

Personally I think there's either some room that {Lord} is hiding in beyond that door or otherwise a teleport crystal kind of like on the 8th floor which teleports to a different area on the 4th floor. Since there's no guarantee that there's only one vampire on the 4th floor it would be troublesome if any other adventurers are made into the vampire's familiars and increase their numbers. Furthermore, now that Viruhaima has been abducted there's no time to waste taking our time and letting them make even him into a vampire increasing their combat strength.

Suddenly I noticed Miduchi in a place a bit of distance away looking at me as if she wanted to say something. At the same time the orders "caution", "don't make noise", and "discuss it" appeared in my head. I guess she has something she wants to discuss without anyone else hearing it.

"Excuse me for a moment."

And I just said that before heading to where Miduchi and Angela were standing.

After going to where they were Miduchi started whispering to me with an expression as if it was somewhat difficult to talk about.

"Sorry, it's started"

"Eh?"

What has?

"I, don't think I can go with you today."

What is it? She must have noticed my confused expression. Miduchi brought her mouth to my ears while making an expression as if I'm dense.

"That's why I'm saying, that. It started. It seems Maruso noticed it when she was using her special skill."

Ah, her period huh..Against vampires that is..I wonder?

Just because they suck blood I wonder if they're sensitive to the smell of blood? Like sharks.

If that's the case then it would mean our surprise attack will completely fail.

Putting aside whether or not there even is a chance for a surprise attack, it means we could completely lose that possibility from the start.

"Also, this. It seems Maruso noticed it just now. At the end she managed to grab it in the confusion. Look look~"

After Miduchi took a potion out of her emergency pack she handed it over to me together with that.

A ring made of some kind of stone that's been crafted extremely thin almost like wire. It's considerably damaged and along with how thin it is unless you were paying pretty close attention you're almost certain to miss seeing it.

"Don't hurry like usual. Take your time and drink the potion."

I open the cork on the potion and slowly drink from the bottle while using {Identify} on the ring.

Invisibility Ring

Hiyas.h.i.+nsu Zircon

Condition: Good

Manufacture Date: 2/5/6631

Value: 1

Durability: 4

The same effect as the spell {Invisibility}(However, it includes this ring itself): Charge Count(47/999)

The one who equips this ring can become invisible along with the ring for as many times as there are charges remaining. For every charge used the user can stay invisible for up to one hour maximum. If the user makes any sort of attack actions then regardless of the remaining time the effect will immediately be cancelled.

..Hmm, a {Magic.Item} is it.

So this is the reason Angela was aiming for it's left arm?

It's big that she was able to obtain a precious {Magic.Item} without anyone realizing it.

She must have noticed it when she landed her first attack.

So everything after that was half an act I guess?

So it wasn't unnatural to chop him up when gathering the magic stone.

Everyone, was looking away after all.

Ah!!?

That vampire we met the last time..I guess I turned it to dust along with the ring?

Well there's no point bringing it up at this point.

In any case, I offer cheers to Angela in my heart.

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

In the end, it seems all of the remaining people are going to return carrying the corpses.

They're just a burden(they were mostly useless just before after all) by being here so that's for the best.

However, I can't afford to return.

Though I'd really like to go back once and return with Gwine and everyone else but the more time that pa.s.ses the chances of Viruhaima being made into a vampire increase(though, judging by the amount of time that's already pa.s.sed..), and if the vampire we just annihilated was periodically in contact with the others then things would get troublesome if they notice there's no further contact.

If I were that {Lord} then the first thing I'd think after being unable to get into contact with my underling is that they may have died. After all it's in the middle of a dungeon with adventurers wandering around.

And then if a p.a.w.n with that level of skill is taken down I'd immediately start preparing my defenses a.s.suming my information was leaked. I'd also consider increasing my number of p.a.w.ns. Considering the vampires abilities it seems possible.

In that case, in order to obtain their eyes there's choice other than to hurry and attack them as soon as possible.

After all we've already confirmed the fact that there's a being he considers {Lord} to exist here. In other words, it's very possible that just having his eyes might be insufficient.

..However, it hurts that Miduchi's period started...

If Miduchi, who's the next strongest after me, isn't around then it'll be even more dangerous. But, putting it frankly if the number of enemies with strength on the vampire cla.s.s of the one just now increase it's even worse. Even newcomer vampires like Kaku and Sara were powered up considerably.

I still have close to 7,000 MP remaining. With all six of my combat slaves here there's plenty of combat strength. In addition to them Giberuti is here as well so if it's just two days or so there's no problem with supplies.

"Miduchi, follow the pa.s.sage those guys used and return to the surface."

"But.."

"Even Angela was able to notice it. I'm sure the vampires will notice it as well. Relax. We'll definitely gouge out that {Lord} or whatevers eyeb.a.l.l.s for you."

I take a storage bottle from Miduchi and carefully packed it away.

I hesitated on whether or not to leave the ring to her but in the end I decided to bring it along.

It's too scary to get naked against vampires so I don't know whether or not I'll use it but it's still big being able to turn invisible for an hour without consuming any MP.

In the worst case it's possible to use it to run away as well.

But I think there probably won't be any chances to use it.

I walk over to where all of the {Verdure.Brothers} are making displeased faces.

"Right now we're about to start investigating that door and if there's no problem we'll be heading inside. If it's just one or two people then it's fine if they accompany us. But.."

"Got it. That you can't guarantee the safety of anyone who comes along. Jiru and I will come along from our party."

Basu said while pointing to the Wolf-race bow user Jurietta.Kamushu.

She's also the magician that managed to back us up in combat just now with the {Fire Javelin} with pretty good timing.

"Don't worry. Even if I don't return once you get back to the surface our party will properly pay the compensation."

I couldn't care less about spare change but as long as you understand then it's easier on me.

Of course, I don't mind even if we were to bring along over 10 people as well but there's no guarantee that things beyond here will still be the 4th floor.

"I understand. The two of you, how is the condition of your bodies doing?"

"There's already no problem."

"Me too."

The two of them replied immediately. Well they're still super first-rate adventurers. If there were any problems remaining I'm sure they wouldn't volunteer.

"Well then, from here on out I'll be taking command of this party. You'll properly obey my orders right?"

"Yeah."

"I don't mind."

The two of them quietly nodded.

"Then, first off one of you two please enter that door and confirm what's beyond it. After confirming things, if possible please return right away to report about it."

Just in case I tried saying that.

"Ku..Greed..you...the most dangerous job.."

Renbaru started making complaints.

"Stop it, Ren. I'll abide so there's no problem."

Basu said that restraining the members of the {Verdure.Brotherhood} who were about to have an outburst and briskly walked in front of the door.

"..Hmm, here I guess."

After saying that he put his hand on the door without hesitation and started putting strength into it.

The door started opening upwards almost like a shop curtain.

Including me, everyone was watching over the series of events with their weapons ready.

Of course, it's just in case there's any monsters lurking on the other side of the door.

However, the only thing on the other side of the door was a hallway just like everywhere else on the 4th floor.

The difference was that it was only one meter or so wide and three meters high.

Several meters in the pa.s.sage turns to the left.

After all it wasn't a pitfall I guess.

If it were a pitfall then I'd have no idea how he managed to come back.

Just in case Basu tied a rope around his waist and took a step into the pa.s.sage.

In the worst case we can always pull the rope and safely recover him.

"..Something is here!?"

Basu said in excitement while peeking at something from further down the curve.

"Something you say, what is it?"

Jiru tried asking Basu. Certainly.

"If I don't get a bit closer then I can't..Something's flas.h.i.+ng..Also, there's something written here. Ah, no, it's floating..waiting Hanumin? What in the world is this?"

What in the world is our line.

Since it seems like there's nothing that would have an effect on our bodies I went in to take a look.

A bit ahead of the curve inside was a dead end and above the floor there was a plate giving off a pink colored light that seemed to be floating slightly.

It reminds me of a hologram.

On the center of that plate there were words written in the Ragudariosu language.

{On Standby}

If I were to forcefully try and translate the Ragudariosu language written on the plate into 21st century j.a.panese then that's what it would probably mean.

I glare at the plate while thinking.

First off, what is this?

Most likely it seems to be some sort of teleportation device.

The destination is unknown.

But, there should be a method to return.

Next up, what to do about Miduchi?

Should I bring along Miduchi or the other reincarnated people to investigate that kind of suspicious place?

However, right now investigation isn't the goal.

Of course it's not rescuing Viruhaima either.

The primary objective is to gouge out the eyeb.a.l.l.s of a {Vampire Lord}.

Investigating things can be done afterwards.

It's unknown whether there's an a single or multiple opponents believed to be waiting beyond there but there's almost a 100% chance that vampires are included in them.

If were to question whether it's possible to negotiate with those individuals then I think it's probably impossible.

If someone were to ask you for your eyeb.a.l.l.s there's no one who would say, "here you go".

Then, in that case there's definitely going to be a battle.

It's fine to carefully take our time investigating things after that.

I forcefully restrain my rapidly beating heart.

I returned from the pa.s.sage and stood in front of everyone before starting to talk.

"We're about to go further inside to take a look. I intend on returning once within five minutes but if five minutes pa.s.ses and no one returns then with Anderson-san as the leader, everyone please depart for the teleport crystal at the center of the 4th floor. Just in case from our party we'll send along Miduchi as an escort."

And then I immediately ordered Zulu.

"Zulu. Stand on top of that flas.h.i.+ng floor. I think it'll probably teleport you to somewhere. After you teleport if there's nothing you need to battle then just take a glance around before coming back as fast as possible. Most likely if you take one step forward from where you're standing then take a step back to where you were I think you should be able to return. If you end up having to fight something then get as far away as possible and endure it for one minute. If you don't return within 30 seconds then we'll all follow after you inside."

Zulu immediately followed my order and disappeared further inside the pa.s.sage. If it's the same as the teleport crystals then you won't know where you'll be teleported to but my intuition is telling me that this goes back and forth between a specific location. If that wasn't the case then the fact that the vampire was using it in the first place is too unnatural.

While watching over from the back, Zulu took a step onto the flas.h.i.+ng plate before turning into a powder of light and disappearing. It's completely the same as the teleport crystals.

Different from the teleport crystals the flas.h.i.+ng plate didn't lose it's radiance shortly after being used.

And then in less than 10 seconds Zulu was reformed from beads of light and returned.

"Master, just as expected beyond here is somewhere in the dungeon. It was some kind of place made of stone that I've never seen before. I think that was different from the 3rd floor as well. Also, the light only seemed to be coming from the ceiling but I think it was brighter than usual."

It seems the location Zulu teleported into was a small room five meters in every direction. There was something like a door that was left open and after taking a step forward shortly after teleport the floor regained it's pink colored radiance in the shape of the flas.h.i.+ng plate. Beyond the opened door appeared to be made of the same kind of stone as the room and spread out like a hallway.

"Alright, let's go in order. First off is Jesu, then Henry, Rubi, Mekku, Angela, and Zulu. After teleport in remain quiet and don't leave the room. Next I'll go. After that Basu-san and Jiru-san. If there's no problem to the end then Giberuti. If there's no problems after Giberuti finishes teleporting inside then I'll send someone back once."

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

Just as Zulu reported the place we teleported into was an empty storage like room made of stone.

Even if I say it was made of stone it's certainly different from the 3rd floor and almost feels like unfaced concrete. There's dust and such covering the walls so I can't really tell for sure. Then the only light appears to be coming from the ceiling but it's true it seems to be pretty bright. It falls behind the spell {Light} but even then it's considerably brighter than other places in the dungeon. Hn~ it almost feels like being in the hall of a hospital or subterranean tunnel lit up by a weak fluorescent light.

After waiting for Giberuti to teleport in I then sent Jesu back once. The details of the message were "No problem. We'll start exploring so everyone else start returning".

While waiting for Jesu to return I tried going into the hallway outside of the room. The width of the hall is about four meters. I realized it after taking a step into the hall but I feel like the floor of the hall is smooth almost like concrete as well. The borders of the floor, walls, and ceiling all seem to be at a perfect 90 degree angle as well. I can't help but think that it was artificially made.

On the floor there's footprints of bare feet that come and go, and after coming out of the room they continue to the left.

I looked around both sides but couldn't find any other footprints.

However, looking down the left side and it seems to loosely curve to the right.

It seems like the right side curves in the same way to the left.

It's something we can tell because the light is brighter than other places in the dungeon.

This hallway seems to be in the shape of a considerably large arc.

It might be possible it's a large arc that goes around the outer circ.u.mference of the dungeon or something close to that.

"How is it?"

Basu asked Jiru. Probably confirming if she can sense anything with {Super Sense of Smell}. Ah, come to think of it, I wonder if Jiru noticed Miduchi's period started? Even if she did notice she must have ignored it.

"..It's hard to tell..I don't think there's any particularly strange odors."

Hmm, even though Viruhaima pa.s.sed through, it's made of stone after all, as expected it doesn't seem to leave any odors behind...

In any case, it's not like we have any other clues so we decided to start off by following the footprints.

Though normally we should be proceeding carefully while on alert for traps but there's no particular disturbance in the pace of the bare footprints. I stopped at just saying "be careful of traps" to Zulu and Henry who are standing at the lead before I periodically used spells to detect traps.

Our movement speed is about 20~30 meters per minute.

Furthermore, there were a bunch of empty storage like rooms similar to the one we teleported into all along the left wall as we were moving but we couldn't find anything like a flas.h.i.+ng plate on the floor in any of them.

Around when we had proceeded for about 10 minutes?

We arrived at a place that seemed to have something like a board stuck to the right wall.

If you're wondering how we could tell then it's because on just a square portion of that wall on the right side there was less dust than the surrounding walls.

There was nothing below it.

"It's almost like the place where you return from the 1st floor at."

Basu whispered to himself.

Hearing that it certainly does seem to be the case.

Though there's only rooms on the left side of the hallway but if there were rooms on both sides it's true it would look just like the first room you enter at the entrance of the dungeon.

Though the light isn't from torches.

I quietly gave out a signal and entered a random room.

"Try not to talk as much as possible. In the hallway sound might echo pretty far."

After I made a complaint my slaves all looked at Basu as if to blame him for idle talk.

But, I can understand the feeling of wanting to say something.

I was about to say something myself.

"Yeah, I guess so. My bad."

It seems Basu was aware of it himself.

He honestly admit his mistake.

It's fine as long as you understand.

There's still nothing at all in the hallway.

Not a single trap or monster is coming out.

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

It's already been over one hour..No, I think we've walked for close to an hour and a half.

The hallway still appears to be the same as usual.

However, a change finally appeared.

Ahead of the right curve at the point which we can barely see the light seems to be a bit stronger.