Kays Translations

Chapter 104: Challenge to the 16th Floor

The exploration of the uncharted territory had finally begun.

As we descended to the 16th floor and looked around, all of us, including myself, immediately noticed the difference from the previous floors. The ceiling was unusually high, hinting that the monsters lurking on this floor might be larger in size.

The Minotaurs we encountered on the surface were about 250 cm tall. But judging from the height of the ceiling, it seemed like even larger monsters could appear.

"The size of the cave suddenly got bigger."

"So far, nothing has shown up in the appraisal... but with such a high ceiling, can't Dragunians fly?"

"It's definitely possible. On the flip side, there's also a possibility of flying monsters appearing."

"In any case, let's secure our formation and proceed carefully. Touya, please lead the way."

"As we planned, if there are up to four of them, we'll handle them on the spot. Everyone should be prepared for that."

"Understood!"

"Roger!"

"Got it!"

With Touya at the front, the vanguard steadily advanced, and within five minutes, we found the first large chamber. It was like the size of a school gymnasium, which meant even large creatures could move around comfortably here.

In the center of the chamber, there were four Minotaurs, seemingly frozen in place while they appeared to be feasting on something.

"Minotaurs, levels 70 to 73, with skills in roaring and axe combat. Oh, and they are eating ‘Marbled Orc Meat.'"

"So, Orcs appear on this floor too?"

"It's possible that the Minotaurs from the lower floors come up here to hunt, but we can't rule out the possibility of them moving between floors."

"That's right. Then, Touya, what's your plan?"

"Of course, I'll initiate the attack. Sakura, give the signal with your magic, and the four of us in the vanguard will rush in together. After that, Sakura will support the Village Chief, and Akiho, you'll assist Haruka."

“”"Understood!"””

As they responded, Akiho had already cast enchanting magic on everyone.

While using ice magic to freeze the area around the Minotaurs' feet, the four vanguard members rushed forward. My target was the one furthest back.

The three Minotaurs in front were restrained, struggling to free themselves while trying to reach for their weapons. However, Touya and Dragunians closed in on them in an instant, and two of them lost their heads.

Haruka was a little behind and tried to strike at the remaining Minotaur, but her attack was blocked by its axe. Just as I thought that, Akiho emerged from Haruka's shadow and swiftly struck the Minotaur's unprotected neck with her blade, ending the battle with a thud.

I ended up being the only one left facing a single Minotaur.

"Village Chief, you’ll have a one-on-one battle. I want to see how well you can handle it."

"If it gets dangerous, save me, okay?!"

Saying that, I aimed for the Minotaur's dominant arm and swung my sword down.

"Groooarrr!"

The Minotaur let out a loud scream. Next to it, its arm that was holding the weapon fell to the ground.

I didn't have time to watch it silently turn into mist and leave only magic stones and meat behind. Without hesitation, I quickly severed its other arm as well. The magic-infused iron sword easily cut through the arm and then pierced its chest, completely stopping its movement.

Taking a step back and looking at the fallen opponent, its entire body turned into black mist and only the magic stones and meat remained on the spot.

"Phew, I was a bit slow at the start. Sorry about that."

"You were the only one who was in the shadow, so it couldn't be helped. I think your approach was good."

"Village Chief, well done!"

"I managed to take one out too. I really need to learn trajectory changes soon..."

"You're still practicing that? I'm impressed by your dedication, Sakura."

As we chatted, it seemed that Merinard, who was on guard duty, had collected the drop items.

For our first battle in the cave, it was a reasonably good outcome. Although we let our guard down a bit, we proved that we could handle up to four Minotaurs simultaneously.

After that, we repeated battles and eventually found the staircase leading to the lower floor, concluding today's exploration.

Minotaurs only appeared in the large chamber, and the maximum number of them simultaneously on this floor was four. It seemed that the first battle was the climax in a way. Occasionally, we encountered Orcs, but they no longer posed any threat.

◇◇◇

Day 220 of Life in Another World

7th Day after the start of the Eastern Forest Investigation

Today marks the halfway point of the planned investigation period.

Regarding the main objective, the mystery of the "Orc appearance," we have almost certainly unraveled it to some extent. What's left is to confirm the monsters that appear up to the 20th floor and those that appear from the 21st floor onwards...

"At this rate, it's a bit uncertain if we can challenge the 21st floor in less than five days. We need to level up properly, or if we encounter even stronger monsters, it could lead to a complete wipeout."

Currently, everyone except for me has a lower level than the Minotaurs. Although their efficient skills compensate for that, I wanted to approach the challenge in the best possible condition.

"Keisuke-san, can't we extend the investigation period a bit longer? I agree with your opinion; I want to gain more combat experience."

"If possible, I'd like that too."

Sakura and Touya proposed extending their stay.

"The village has Tsubaki and the others, so I don't think it's a problem to extend the period. However, the issue is the immigration acceptance... I think Merimas should have gathered slaves by now."

"Oh right, that's true. Without the Village Chief or Haruka, it won't progress at all... Reinforcement of personnel is also important."

"Sorry about this, both of you. I want to understand the whole picture in this investigation if possible..."

"Well, it can’t be helped. We'll hold on until the last moment, and if it still seems impossible, we can try again next time."

With the discussion concluded in this manner, we said, "Let's do our best today as well!" and had breakfast.

"Village Chief, sorry for contacting you so early in the morning. Can I talk to you for a moment? 』

Merimas, whom we were just discussing, sent a telepathic message.

"Good morning, Merimas. I'm perfectly fine, but is there something happening in the town for you to contact me at this hour? 』

"Yes, actually—』

It seemed it he had something to do with the slaves in the city.

"I think it would be better if everyone listens together," I thought, and I connected his message to the six people in front of me and Tsubaki, then decided to hear the details.

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