232-208 Try to metastasize

Two days back at home, we were back in the dungeon early.

The reason was to deal with the boss.

Our plan was to set up a transfer point before the troublesome lizard zombies returned.

After quickly disposing of the demons, I reached the dungeon - the Dungeon of Summer.

I'm sure no one will use this name, so let's just use it.

--Shall we put up a sign at the entrance to the dungeon?

I don't think anyone will come.

Yeah, the transition point at the entrance is fine.

Sounds good.

It's solid, so it hasn't been dug up, and it's responsive, so it's not broken.

The problem was that it was buried in the dungeon, under the cobblestones.

I've confirmed that it didn't break down in a few days, but will it still be safe now?

Ah, I'm going to have to run around kicking those fish again... Nao, can't you do something?

Don't be absurd. Space magic is difficult.

I sighed and protested to Toya, who was looking at the entrance to the dungeon and complaining.

If you can easily make a long-distance transfer with a little training, there are more users of space magic - I don't know if there are, but it's not for nothing that it's said to be difficult.

It's not impossible, because the author of the grimoire that I have has made it possible to transfer across countries. ...... Unless the author is being vain.

Oh, Nao, that's the thing. I've been studying the map over and over, and I think I might be able to get to the transition point on the eighth level.

Really?

Yeah. Well, let's go in and check it out.

Yeah, sure.

If we can, that's pretty good news, but it's hard to detect the transfer point outside the dungeon.

We quickly stepped into the dungeon and checked the transfer point on the spot.

"Oh, this means we can go to the eighth level, huh?

There were three reactions we could sense.

One of them is of course the one at the entrance right next to you, but there are two more reactions.

Considering the distance and depth, they must be the transfer points on the fifth and eighth levels.

The one on the fifth layer is detectable, but it's a bit difficult to actually fly. Even the "teleportation" of jumping by yourself might fail.

The eighth layer is less than a kilometer away, and it's a perfect distance that "area teleportation" can just barely manage.

However, if I carry all of them, I will probably collapse on the spot.

Yuki, can you carry one of them?

"Well, ......, I think I'm the only one who can be teleported, right?

Yuki is a little troubled, and answers with an apologetic expression.

No, there's no need to force it. There's no need to force it, but it's me plus three others or ...... Sorry if I fall.

"Don't worry about it!　Even if Nao is down for half a day or so, it's still faster than getting to layer 8 on foot.

I don't know. I'm not sure what you mean by that.

It's true, but you don't care enough.

He smiled and patted me on the shoulder, and I slammed my fist into his stomach. She doesn't seem to be holding back at all.

"Well, well. If you fall, you can rest for a while. You can recover to some extent with Recover Mental Strength.

"Right. In the meantime, Toya will stay awake and take care of you.

What?　I don't get a shift?

Since you're going to work until Nao falls, you'll do it, right?

...... Oh, if you ask me to do it.

In fact, the only person besides me who is capable of searching for the enemy is Toya.

If I want to be safe, Toya has to stay awake while I sleep.

Well, even if I'm exhausted to the last minute, I'm sure I'll recover after half a day's rest, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem.

"Phew ......, let's go then. Everyone stay close to me except Yuki.

When I see that Yuki is a little bit away from me and the other three are gathered near me, I cast a spell.

"Area Teleportation"!

My vision changes in an instant.

At the same time, the magic power is lost from the body at once.

It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

Are you okay?

Somehow ....... Let me sit down for now.

Yes.

I'm not nauseous, but I'm exhausted to the point where it's hard to stand.

While I was sitting on the floor leaning against the wall with the help of a worried Natsuki and Haruka, Yuki followed us to the other side of the room.

Yuki, who was on her own, didn't seem to be as worn out as I was, and although she wobbled a bit at the moment of the transition, she walked on her feet and sat down next to me.

You're really tight, aren't you?

"Yeah. Is Yuki okay?

I was teleported.

Nao, you're going to use Mental Recovery, right?

Natsuki sat down on Yuki's other side, grabbed my hand and cast a spell, which made me feel a little less tired, but I still needed to rest for a while.

However, this magic is recovering me in exchange for Natsuki's magic power, and if I use it to recover completely, she will fall into a coma. I have more magic power than she does, after all.

Thank you.

No, I think it's just for comfort.

Do you think Yuki needs it?

No, I think I can manage.　We'll need Haruka's magic for the next floor, so save your energy.

It's an undead floor. I hope there aren't too many of them. ......

Toya came back after checking the room, the stairs and outside the door.

The Tyrant Flame Boar is still not back. But don't worry, you can get some rest.

I smiled at Toya as he prepared the bed, and Yuki and I lay down on the bed without hesitation to recover our magic power.

We took a nap for a few hours, and when we were mostly recovered, we resumed our search. We headed for the 9th floor.

It's been less than half a day since I entered the dungeon.

You'll need to rest, but the time saved by taking such a shortcut is significant.

If we can set up a transfer point on the tenth floor, it'll be even easier. ......

This time, I've prepared about ten transition points, a bit more than the usual number.

It's unlikely that we'll need all of them, but we'll need to be prepared since we ran out of them the last time we explored more than expected.

Do you think you can jump from the entrance to the tenth floor in one go?

"I don't know. What do you think?

Well, from the map I've seen, I think it's possible.　I'm thinking .......

Do we have to try it?

Yeah.

I think Yuki's map is pretty accurate, but it's not like you can draw a 3D map on a computer, and it would be impossible to perfectly match the vertical relationship and figure out the straight line distance across the hierarchy.

But it's a good thing that the transition points embedded under the cobblestones are intact. I thought they would be absorbed into the dungeon like a treasure chest disappearing.

I thought the dungeon would absorb it like a treasure chest. If it absorbs everything, I don't think it's possible to install such a thing.

The treasure chest is from the dungeon, right?

You can bring back the treasure chest itself, and it doesn't disappear when you leave the dungeon, but it's useless and bulky, so almost no adventurer would bring it back.

I'm not sure how it works.　I don't know if there's anything about it in the alchemy books.

"At least it's not in the Alchemy Encyclopedia. It's possible it's in a book I haven't read yet. ...... It's more like a guild secret, don't you think?

"Oh, I know, I know. It is possible that the guild has power because they have a monopoly on it. What about space-time magic, Nao?　There's something like that, right?

I'm not sure what you mean by "like that", you mean "create gate"?　That's not exactly the same thing, is it?

That spell is a spell that creates a gate between two points to continuously transport a large number of people and things.

It requires a user of space-time magic to activate the spell, and it continues to consume magic power while in use, and if the supply of magic power is interrupted, the gate will disappear.

It's not something that can keep the gate open for a long time.

I'm not sure about that. ....... I thought it would be useful to make one.

I can't use it yet, but it's probably based on the magic of area transport.

The level of space-time magic is 8. It is one level higher than Area Teleportation.

"Can you make it with that?　I'm not sure how you can make such a transfer device when you're struggling to use magic to jump using area transfer.

Simply put, it's the difference between dictated magic and ritual magic.

"I see, I don't understand.

"Well, I don't know." I smiled at Toya, who nodded, and continued my explanation.

The relationship between magic bags and extended space is similar. ...... Well, for example, when you're told to draw a straight line, it's hard to draw a perfect line freehand, right?　But if you use a ruler, it's easy.

Well, if you use a tool.

Yeah. In addition, if you want to draw water from a well, it is much less labor intensive to use a tool than to go down to the bottom of the well and draw water with a bucket, or to use a fishing bottle with a pulley attached, or a hand pump.

"...... So you're saying that ritual magic is more effective because it uses tools?

It's not just tools, but that's the general idea.

In terms of imagery, is there a difference between reciting a spell quickly and writing it down on paper?　You can't go wrong with the latter, can you?

This is why you need to prepare tools and perform rituals in advance compared to dictation, which is almost instantaneous.

In the event that you've got a lot of money, you'll be able to use it to buy a lot of things.

In the case of transmutation magic, for example, if you want to place a stone 100 meters away, you can think of it as the difference between being able to use a 100-meter measure and not being able to use a 100-meter measure.

On the contrary, if you are an advanced person who can control your own stride in centimeters, you may be able to do something on the level of ritual magic with dictation magic, but of course, this is impossible for me right now.

I'm sure you'll understand. ...... Hmm?　So, if I prepare my attack magic with that ritual magic, it will be much more effective?

I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it's a good idea.

For relatively simple attack spells, the power is directly proportional to the magic power used.

If you have a need to use different temperatures for flames, say 1,000 degrees and 1,100 degrees, it may be necessary, but as far as attacks are concerned, it is almost pointless.

On the contrary, the stove is made as a magical tool using ritual magic, or alchemy, because it needs to be used in different ways.

As for offensive magic using ritual magic, didn't Gantz-san once show us a bow made of mithril?

"...... Oh, I remember something like that. Yeah, I remember something like that. It was unsold.

Toya thinks for a moment, then claps his hands.

I can't remember, but I'm pretty sure it cost less than 100 gold coins, which is a pretty good price for a mithril weapon.

I'm sure that's what it is, but to me, it has no practical use.

In a sense, it's an excellent weapon, because it uses ritual magic as its attack magic, so it can be used like attack magic even if you can't use magic, but it seems that the number of users is quite limited.

The magic power used is constant, and the power and speed cannot be adjusted. If that's the case, wouldn't it be more convenient to use the Fire Arrow on your own?　You can't just use it as a bow, because drawing a bow forces you to consume magic power.

As an archer, you need to have two bows in addition to a bow that can also fire regular arrows?

That's what I mean.

So the target audience for that bow is people who have plenty of magic power, can't use magic, can use a bow, and don't need to use regular arrows or can carry another bow?　That's a pretty limited target audience.

That's going to be a tough sell. ......

It's a very limited target audience," he said, folding his fingers one by one.

I'm not sure what to make of this.

I'm sure there was someone who used them since they actually existed, but nowadays, who would buy ...... them?

It's a cheap weapon for mithril, but it's too expensive to buy as a talking point.

I'm sure it was a lot of work to make, but ...... I pity you.

I'm not sure how to make it, but I don't know how to make it. I think it would be a good idea to at least ask Diora-san about it.

"Right. It's free to ask him. I don't know if he'll tell me.

I'm not sure if he'll tell me." Haruka responds with a wry smile, as if to say, "Probably not.

I'm not sure if he'll teach me. The more time that passes, the more undead there will be.

"Right. All right, Toya, lead the way!

....... It stinks.

Frowning, Toya didn't complain and began to lead the way.

Fortunately, the number of undead that stood in front of us on both layers 9 and 10 was unexpectedly small, and all of them were easily erased by Haruka and her team's "purification".

The number of undead that stood in front of us on both layers was unexpectedly small.

Do you think they'll repop in three or four days?

"What do you think?　Maybe it's a resource problem?

That's a possibility. It's not like we have unlimited resources.

In the event that you've got a lot of time, you'll be able to take a look at the most effective way to get the most out of your time.

I'm not sure what to say.

I'm sure you'll be happy to know that I'm not the only one. If we had a fixed amount of resources to use, wouldn't we allocate them to replenishing the demons and bosses of other levels rather than replenishing the demons of levels 9 and 10, where there are still some left?

"Hmmm... It's like summoning points. Sounds like a possibility.

If you can summon as many as you want without limit, we can't stand it.

No matter how small they are, numbers are power.

If they keep attacking in waves, we're in danger.

It's a good thing, too. You can easily repopulate if you leave all but the demons you want to kill alone, right?　It's a good thing I'm not the only one.

...... That's one way to look at it, right?

I'm not sure what to make of it.

If you don't kill any enemies outside of the meat area, it will be easier to replenish the meat.

Well, that's great for us.

...... Okay, no more lizard zombies. So let's set up a quick transfer point.

"Right. Okay.

Move to the back room leading from the boss room, and work with Toya to embed the transition point as before.

The transition point for the eighth layer can be found quite close to here, so even if you can't transfer directly from the entrance, you should be able to transfer from the eighth layer to here without wearing yourself out.

Okay, okay.

Good work.

And now for the main event of the day, layer eleven.

With Toya leading the way with a grin and a sword at the ready, we stepped out into the grasslands of layer 11.