Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 60: Luggage Carrier ⑱
Three days later, we continued exploring the dungeon.
This was the final third floor.
There was nothing that seemed outwardly different.
We checked our path using the map scroll, fought slimes and skeletons that attacked us, and occasionally a treant as well.
Then we checked our path again using the scroll map.
It was the same repetitive cycle.
At a glance, everything seemed fine.
In reality, the exploration was progressing smoothly.
However, the atmosphere around us felt heavy and suffocating, unlike yesterday.
That said, there wasn’t complete silence. Axe and Mineha were not ignoring each other.
They had small conversations, not just the bare minimum, but it was clear that there was a lack of emotional connection between them.
They talked but didn’t look at each other’s faces or eyes even once. I remembered something from my past life. This kind of interaction was probably social politeness.
Axe cut down a skeleton and then inserted a white stake into its bones.
A holy stake. Apparently, without this, the skeletons would revive.
I had never known this before. What a hassle. If it were an Elixir Knife, there wouldn’t be such a need. I had brought it just in case, though I probably wouldn’t use it.
Then, we took our second break of the day.
We sat on fallen and broken stone pillars, using them as makeshift chairs, chatting. In between, we ate dried meat and drank water.
“By the way, skeletons really do seem to have the souls of people who can’t find peace, don’t they?”
I recalled their broken forms and the forest we had passed through earlier. When I said this, the other four blinked in confusion, their eyes wide.
Seeing their almost identical reactions, I flinched.
“What are you talking about?”
“Huh?”
“Skeletons don’t have human souls in them.”
“But they’re human bones.”
“Skeletions are dungeon monsters. They’re not made from human bones.”
“Wait, you mean they’re not human bones?”
“Listen. Wof, sure, they’re skeletons. There are actually people who deal with bones of humans who died in the dungeon. But think about it. No one has died in this dungeon.”
“Oh!”
That’s right.
This dungeon had only been created recently, under the guild’s management, so no one should have entered it.
So, a skeleton in this dungeon was suspicious.
“But, I can’t say for sure. There are people like my seventh sister who break the rules.”
“Did she break the rules? But even if she died, there wouldn’t be that many of them. We’ve already defeated dozens of skeletons.”
“Now that you mention it, you’re right.”
Even if there were fools, it seemed unlikely there would be dozens of them.
Axe, with a contemplative look, asked.
“Wof, do you know what dungeon monsters are?”
“Not really… I don’t know in detail.”
“Dungeon monsters are monsters that are born in the dungeon. They only exist inside the dungeon and will inevitably attack explorers and people who wander inside.”
“…They only exist inside the dungeon?”
“Yeah. You’ve never seen a skeleton outside the dungeon, have you?”
“Now that you mention it.”
I really hadn’t seen any outside.
“So, Wof, those aren’t human bones. So, don’t worry about it.”
“Okay…”
Skeletons only exist inside the dungeon… So what about that forest?
That forest had so many things that didn’t add up.
But does that mean it was a dungeon?
No, it was a forest. Outside.
There was no entrance or layers like in a dungeon.
As I thought about this, Mineha, who was sitting on my shoulder, said:
“Remember this. All undead monsters are dungeon monsters.”
“Does that mean if there are undead, then it must be a dungeon?”
“Exactly. Why are you asking like that’s a question?”
“No, I’m just learning.”
It really was a learning experience.
That forest might have been a dungeon.
But I still had doubts.
It would be a good idea to know more about dungeons.
Ad
“…Souls. The sea of souls.”
“Huh? Axe, is that some kind of poem like my sixteenth sister’s?”
“Ah, no, I was just reminded of a story about an ancient artifact that holds souls.”
“Such a thing exists?”
“Souls?”
“It’s a legendary artifact. I’ve heard someone with the rank of a first-grade explorer has one.”
“Hmm. It wouldn’t be strange if a first-class explorer had something like that.”
“Speaking of first-class, Axe, you mentioned you’ve met one before, right?”
“Ah, well…”
“Is that so?”
Wow, meeting one of the 27 explorers who are known as the kings of the world is amazing.
Hm? Axe? Why is he giving me a puzzled look?
“Is that so?”
“Huh?”
“Ah, I see… No, never mind. It’s nothing.”
Ad
It doesn’t seem like nothing, though. What’s going on?
Just as we were getting up, signaling the end of our break, the ground suddenly shook.
It was a subtle tremor.
“What’s that?”
“Oh, an earthquake?”
“It shook.”
“That’s ominous.”
“—Huh?”
I immediately used [Crisis Detection] and froze in terror.
Everything was pitch black. I couldn’t see anything.
Moments later, an overwhelming shock and vibration struck everything.
There were screams and cries, and the sound of a collision echoed.
I don’t remember what happened after that.
I heard the sound of water.
The sound of water dripping.
“…Cold…”
I slowly got up.
The coldness was because the floor had a thin layer of water on it.
As I stood, I noticed the ceiling made of rock faintly glowing.
“…Where am I?”
The floor was covered with stone, and the ceiling looked like a cave.
There was rubble, a wide water-filled path in a semicircular shape.
I didn’t recognize it at all.
I activated the relic [Crisis Detection].
“Ah!?”
I pulled out a knife with my left hand and summoned [Vanish] in my right.
Three red dots appeared, moving closer toward me.
“Shu…shu-shu…”
“Shuulllll…”
“Shurururu… Shyaaahhh—”
I could hear it. The sounds mixed with the water.
It was like the sound of a snake— and then the enemy revealed itself, and I groaned.
“…Lizard…man…”
The monster that appeared was a humanoid lizard, green in color.
When it saw me, its reptilian eyes narrowed in a way only snakes do.
I hated this reptilian reaction.