Kays Translations

Chapter 97: The True Nature of the Cave

The critically injured adventurer’s major wounds had been closed, but he still had broken bones. The C-rank team quickly made an improvised stretcher and escorted him away together with the other members of the D-rank team.

Bob alone remained behind to guide the way.

Bob’s hastily assembled D-rank team had initially made steady progress, defeating more than ten orcs. Faced with so many, they suspected there might be an orc settlement nearby. Since they had already met their quota, they switched to searching the surrounding area.

That was how they discovered the cave the orcs had been coming from.

They cautiously used [Enemy Detection] and confirmed that it showed no one inside. Reassured, they entered—only to find not an empty cave, but a large number of orcs. One member was injured in the ensuing ambush.

They retreated while protecting the wounded adventurer, but with an injured companion, escape proved impossible. They used earth magic to take refuge atop the slope and called for help.

If Bob’s account was accurate, the cave interfered with [Enemy Detection].

Since a B-rank team was present, they decided it would be best to investigate while they had the chance. Bob led the remaining teams to the cave.

The cave felt unnatural, as though it had recently “appeared” rather than having stood there for years. It showed no signs of age whatsoever, and its very existence gave the party an eerie feeling.

After collecting himself, the thief from the B-rank team tried [Enemy Detection], but—as expected—it detected nothing.

Tauro’s [Presence Detection], however, sensed two orcs. Even so, [True Eye], which should have been linked to [Presence Detection], displayed no silhouettes.

“Two orcs are coming up from below,” Tauro warned.

“What?”

The thief stared at him in disbelief, but two orcs soon emerged from the cave.

The group swiftly defeated them and concluded that the cave might somehow prevent abilities used outside it from affecting its interior.

“We won’t know for certain until we go inside and check,” the B-rank team’s leader suggested.

They entered.

According to Bob, when his team had gone in, they had found a properly built staircase partway down, followed by paved floors and walls that glowed faintly.

“That can’t be…”

The D-rank team’s leader had been skeptical, but as they advanced, a solidly constructed staircase truly did appear.

Descending it brought them into a chamber with paved, faintly glowing floors and walls, exactly as Bob had described.

“…I’ve never seen anything like this either, but it may be a dungeon,” the B-rank leader said, dumbfounded.

“Let’s look around.”

The party nodded and searched the chamber. It was smaller than they had expected, and there didn’t appear to be another staircase leading farther down.

Everyone had noticed one suspicious object and was watching it from a distance: at the rear of the chamber stood a pedestal, above which floated a diamond-shaped, crystal-like stone.

“…That may be the dungeon’s core,” Aeris theorized.

“Its core?” Tauro asked.

Everyone turned toward Aeris.

“Dungeons are said to keep growing day after day. There’s a theory that even the ancient dungeons in this country are still growing, and that each one has a ‘core’ hidden somewhere.”

“…And you think that’s it?”

“Probably. I don’t think this dungeon has existed for very long. It’s freshly formed. That’s why the chamber is so small and this is its only floor.”

While Aeris explained her theory, the ground beside the core began to bulge upward.

“What the…?!”

Everyone went on guard as the mound took on a humanoid form and eventually became an orc.

“Damn it! An orc just spawned!”

They rushed forward and finished the orc before it could move.

“If monsters are spawning here, then this really is one of the dungeons we’ve heard about. If that promising newcomer is right, this is the discovery of the century. But considering the nearby mountain village, I think we should destroy it.”

The B-rank leader pointed his sword at the core as he made his proposal.

“…I agree. Leaving this here would be the same as abandoning the villagers to danger. As adventurers, we can’t overlook that,” Tauro said with a nod.

He had expected Aeris to object, but she agreed.

“If a dungeon can be destroyed, I think it’s better to destroy it,” Aeris declared.

The decision to destroy the core was unanimous.

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