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069 Royal
Capital Dungeon 7th Floor Boss Battle
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Translator : PolterGlast
On the 7th floor,
besides Wraiths, Zombies, and Mummies, which are bandaged mummy-men (I don't
know if they're men), also appear. They sometimes appear alone, but often in
groups of 5 or more. They can even fill the passages like something out of a
horror movie. Lin and I take turns dealing with the Wraiths. Anneliese also
prioritizes the Wraiths. Zombies and Mummies are vulnerable to physical
attacks, so Gandarvan and the others handle them.
The skeletons, ghouls,
and ghosts summoned by Solidia are also active. Battles between undeads were a
bit unsettling, but all of the familiars synthesized through Familiar Synthesis
were strong and overwhelmed the monsters.
***
As we proceeded
through the 7th floor, a group of explorers approached from ahead. It was a
party of 15. Explorers usually form parties, but this was the first time I'd
seen a party of 15.
"I've heard that
on the 7th floor, multiple parties sometimes explore together," Gandarvan
explained in a low voice, on alert.
"Let us
through," I said.
"We're coming
through too," the other party's representative replied, and Gandarvan
exchanged words with him.
We split to the far
ends of the passage to pass each other. The passage was wide, so there was no
chance of bumping shoulders. Still, their odor wafted over. It was a terrible
smell, like a sweaty gym uniform that I'd forgotten to wash and left damp for
days after gym class. It permeated the air even from 10 meters away, so it must
have been quite potent. There were women mixed in among the 15 people. They
seemed accustomed to being in that smell.
When we proceed at a
quick pace through this dungeon, we can reach the boss room on the 1st floor in
about an hour. The 2nd floor takes 1 hour and 30 minutes, the 3rd floor 2
hours, the 4th floor 4 hours, the 5th floor 5 hours, and the 6th floor about 6
hours. This is the time it takes for high-level individuals like us to travel
the shortest distance. If we fight monsters while exploring, the time
increases, and we also take breaks, so it might not be a reliable reference.
At our level, we can
dash through multiple floors in one day in lower-level dungeons, but generally,
people don't do that. It's because running makes you tired. You never know what
might happen in a dungeon, so it's normal to proceed with energy to spare. Even
in low-level dungeons like the 2nd or 3rd floor, you can fall into a trap and
die.
When we get tired, we
can use Dungeon Move to teleport to the 1st floor of the dungeon, exit, and
rest. We can return to the mansion, take a bath, and rest in a warm bed.
However, ordinary explorers camp for days inside the dungeon. In that case,
it's probably natural for them to smell like that.
Water and food cannot
be resupplied inside the dungeon. Monsters sometimes drop food like meat, but
you can't eat anything that needs to be cooked without fire. Since you can't
make campfires, you can't eat it. So, you have to bring enough water and food
for the entire exploration period. It's good if you have an Item Box, but
otherwise, you have to pack it all into a large backpack. Even with an Item
Box, there's a limit to the number of slots, so you can't bring everything. You
have to carefully select what's necessary, consume water and food to make
space, and then bring back drop items. It's tough.
"You, Anneliese!?"
It was a phrase I'd heard somewhere before. A female Swordsman from the other
party called out.
"Yes. I am
Anneliese. It's been a while, Sharon-san," Anneliese replied.
"You've been
freed from the curse! That's wonderful!" Sharon exclaimed. That guy
Grissom was weird, and this was what a former comrade should have said. Good,
good.
The female Swordsman
genuinely said she was glad and then left with her party. Tears welled up in
her eyes, and her demeanor showed she was truly worried.
"Hey, Gandarvan."
"Yes?" he
replied.
"Do parties of 15
exploring the 7th floor earn a lot of money?" I asked.
"If they stay on
the 7th floor for many days and collect items, it should be quite a lot,"
Gandarvan explained. They would stay as long as they could, with some energy to
spare. The more items they brought back, the larger their share.
The magic stones,
normal drops from the attribute lizards on the 7th floor of Kerniff's
"Baldark Labyrinth," could be exchanged for 25,000 Grill each. If
they brought back 15, everyone would get 25,000 Grill. It takes many days just
to travel to and from the 7th floor, so they would probably want more money.
They might stay for half a month. With that smell, maybe even longer than half
a month. It must be tough.
I used to think it
would be easy, but being an explorer is a tough job. I was glad I had Dungeon
Move. I really mean it.
***
We proceeded,
slaughtering undead monsters, and came to a strange room.
"This is quite something..."
Gandarvan murmured with a wry smile.
More than half of the
room had no floor. There were several pillars, about 1 meter in diameter. I
guess we're supposed to step over them. Gandarvan, being a large bear beastman,
seemed to dislike this kind of thing. In contrast, Lin, the cat beastman, was
good at it and quickly moved across the pillars.
I carried Anneliese
and moved across the pillars. I had the Assassin skill Three-Dimensional
Maneuver, so if worst came to worst, I could create footholds in the air. It
was easy.
We arrived at the
7th-floor boss room, rested a bit, and then entered.
"Whoa, it's like
Resid●nt Evil," I
mumbled.
"Did you say
something?" Anneliese tilted her head at my muttered words.
"No,
nothing," I replied.
Well, there were
roughly 30 monsters. Individually, they weren't much, but dealing with so many
was a hassle.
"Toi-sama. May I
handle this?" Anneliese asked, puffing out her chest. As she did so, her
breasts jiggled. What a feast for the eyes. I had to bow down and pray.
"Alright then,
I'll leave it to you, Anneliese. Let's see the power of your evolved job,"
I said.
"Yes. Thank
you," she replied.
A torrent of magic
power erupted from Anneliese, who held up her staff, enveloping her in a
fantastical glow.
"Beautiful..."
I murmured, from the bottom of my heart. The magical light was beautiful, but
Anneliese herself was even more beautiful.
"Circle
Thunder," Anneliese chanted. It was Circle Thunder, created with the Magic
Creation skill she learned when her job evolved to Sage of Love.
A flash of light burst
forth, and thunder roared. Countless bolts of lightning pierced multiple
enemies. The shockwaves emitted from the lightning passed through us. It was
incredibly powerful, but the damage was even more immense.
"Whoa, almost
completely wiped out..." I murmured.
"When I evolved
to Sage of Love, the power of my magic increased by several stages,"
Anneliese explained, with a satisfied smile. Most of the monsters were
annihilated by Anneliese, who had that smile. Her smile and her actions didn't
quite match.
"Alright then,
I'll go too," I said.
"Yes. Be
careful," she replied. Gandarvan and the others had already started
attacking the remaining monsters.
The remaining monsters
were one Dullahan and three High Wraiths. The Dullahan seemed to be the leader
among the bosses, and it was the highest level at 38.
The Royal Capital's 『Joruz Labyrinth』 was a slightly higher level than Kerniff's 『Baldark Labyrinth』. Comparing the 7th-floor bosses, the Dullahan's level
38 was 3 levels higher than 『Baldark Labyrinth』's Light Lizard Lv35. Even the rare boss Dark Lizard was only Level 37,
so this was higher.
Lin and I each took on
one High Wraith. Gandarvan and the others were pounding the Dullahan, but their
attacks were being parried by its shield and sword. It was quite skilled.
Rosalina's attacks also made a hard, metallic sound when they hit. I worried
about her breaking her fists.
"Hup!" I
swung my Mithril Two-Handed Sword. The High Wraith swayed, appearing slow, but
it was surprisingly fast. I never expected it to dodge.
A black mist extended
towards me. If it touched me, I might be paralyzed.
"Saint
Attack!" I leaped backward and unleashed the holy magic Saint Attack. The
High Wraith, pierced by the holy light, vanished, leaving behind an agonizing
(and unpleasant) scream. It had already been pierced by Anneliese's Circle
Thunder, so it was defeated in one hit.
Around the same time,
Lin also defeated her High Wraith, and we joined the attack on the Dullahan. My
attack was blocked by its shield, but Lin's holy spear attack made it recoil
and create distance.
"Lin, let
loose!" I commanded.
"Yes!" she
replied. We coordinated our attacks, focusing on Lin. Thanks to its unusual
caution towards the holy spear, our attacks were easier to land. Lin drew its
attention, allowing us to activate our skills and unleash them on the Dullahan.
The enraged Dullahan
spun like a top, attacking us with its sword and shield.
"Uooooo!"
Gandarvan activated his Iron Wall skill, stopping the Dullahan's movements.
"This is the end!
Saint Cross!" I roared.
The holy magic Saint
Cross was absorbed into the Dullahan's torso. In an instant, holy light burst
from the Dullahan's torso, destroying it gruesomely.
The vanished Dullahan
left behind a shield. This seemed to be its drop item. All the other monsters
also dropped items, and among them were also metal lumps. I didn't know which
monster dropped this metal. There shouldn't have been any monsters that dropped
metal. Was this the rumored Ultra Rare Drop!?
Officially, they are
Ultra Rare Drop Items. Extremely rarely, irregular items drop from unspecified
monsters. Grimoires are said to be one of them.
·
Death Knight Shield: DEF+35, VIT+5, MIN+10. 10% chance
for instant death attack to activate when shield skill activates. HP
Auto-Recovery (Low), Auto-Repair (Low). Durability 100/100.
·
Gormodia: A metal harder than Mithril and resistant to
degradation.
I already had an
enchanted Defense Shield, but the Death Knight Shield was more interesting. Its
abilities weren't bad, and most importantly, it had an instant death attack. A
10% activation rate is low, but I didn't need to prioritize it, so I decided to
have Gandarvan equip it.
"Gandarvan, you
use the Death Knight Shield," I instructed.
"Thank you,"
he replied.
Now, as for this
Gormodia, I wondered if I could ask Bachus to forge a sword from it. As
expected of a Dwarf, Bachus's job was Master Blacksmith. He wasn't just a
drunken old man.
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