Chapter 74: Impromptu Wolf Gang ③ – Therefore.

I looked into Hayan and formed a hypothesis based on the limited data available.

It’s just a possibility, but not an impossible one.

“A mechanism using three eggs.”

Normally, that would be the end of it.
Alhazard Abramelin, who possessed none of the eggs, likely gave up at this point.

But there is a way to manage it.

That is: witchcraft—the exploration techniques shown in the Tomb of Death.

Still… is it really okay to learn that? I hesitate.

That witch’s craft is akin to using cheat codes or exploits in a game.

Is it really okay to use that?
My past-life memories whisper ethical concerns.

And yet—I decided that it was worth learning.

Resolving myself, I asked the witch.

When she asked why, I explained, mixing in my theory.

“Hmm, hmm. I see. That might indeed be the case.”

“…The Holy Elixir Egg buried in the garbage heap where the sanctuary lies—there’s no way that’s a coincidence. That’s why I want to learn.”

“Indeed, indeed. Even without that, it’s something worth learning. But also very difficult, mind you.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“Mmhmm. Such clear eyes you have. Wof-boy’s straight silver eyes. Kon likes that, mm.”

“Th-thank you very much.”

Her blunt compliment made me blush. The witch smiled.

“Now then, I don’t mind teaching you.”

“Thank you.”

“However, however—you must remember: this requires resolve.”

“Resolve?”

“Resolve”—I was puzzled, and the witch smiled.

Ah, what a beautiful yet wicked smile.

“Now then, can you guess what kind of resolve?”

“…Resolve……”

“Oh don’t worry, don’t overthink it. It’s a very simple thing, Wof-boy.”

“…Simple?”

What kind of resolve is “simple”?

The witch nodded deeply, looking utterly delighted, and spoke:

“It’s this: you must be ready to destroy the dungeon.”

…That’s not simple at all.

I had no desire to destroy the dungeon, but I still learned her techniques.

I hadn’t mastered them, but I could now do a few things.

Admittedly, every one of those things feels like cheating when it comes to dungeon exploration.

Still—I wanted to know.

“So, what now?”

“First, I need to examine it.”

“Examine what?”

“Hmm… let’s see what you can do.”

They made it sound like a challenge, so I took another look.

A blue altar. Almost identical to the white altar in the sanctuary—just a different color.

It looked like a pedestal meant for placing eggs.

But that was just an impression.

This pedestal can distinguish between the Holy Elixir Egg and the others.

I started to think: how does this mechanism work?

If it can differentiate the Elixir Egg, then it must be able to detect the contents.

In other words, a sensor or something is built into the pedestal to detect what’s inside.

If the contents don’t match, it won’t activate.
If they do match, it activates. Makes sense, makes sense.

“Hmm…”

“Wof?”

“Can you do it?”

“…We believe in you…”

“Na?”

Nope. No way. I had absolutely no clue how to do that.

What even is a content-sensing sensor? What does “match to activate” even mean?

Is this a heist movie or a spy flick?

This isn’t fantasy anymore.

Wait—maybe it is a legendary artifact. That would make it fantasy again.

“…Yeah.”

I give up.

“Wof? Can you do it?”

No, I cannot.

“Well? Can you?”

Nope.

“…Hm?”

Hm.

“Na?”

Na.

There’s no helping it.

Time for the last resort. I’ll use Vanish to destroy the pillar and get the key.

There’s no other way. Really, no other way.

I started to summon Vanish into my hand.

“―――But but you know, can you really do that―――”

The witch’s voice echoed in my head.

“…………”

I canceled Vanish.

Then I took out the Holy Elixir Egg and placed it on the pedestal.

“Eh? What are you doing?”

“Whoa whoa, Wof!”

“…Sudden plot twist…”

The black pillar lit up and began to rotate, splitting into top and bottom halves.

“Wha—what the hell!?”

“What does this mean…?”

“…Boy… that egg is…”

“It’s the Holy Elixir Egg.”

The pillar vanished, revealing a floating key.

It had the same design, with a long shape and a sphere embedded in the center.

This time, I picked it up.

Axe-san muttered in disbelief:

“No way…”

“…”
“…”

Mineha and Liv were stunned into silence.

I picked up the egg from the pedestal and tucked it deep into my pouch.

Then the left wall slid open, revealing a new passage.

In other words, the way forward. But no one moved.

We were too stunned to move.

So that’s how it is:

Different egg types? Detection systems? There was none of that.

It opened by weight. HAHAHAHAHA.

I wanted to scream HAAAAAYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN, but held back.

No doubt about it—this alchemist was on the witch’s side. And completely rotten.

Even though they’re already dead, I still felt like they were my enemy.

If they were alive, I would’ve punched them with a Vanish Knuckle.

“…Uh, well… yeah. That was… um… well… anyway, let’s keep going…”

Axe-san, wearing a complicated expression, tried to patch things over with words.

Even someone as experienced as him must’ve never seen anything like this.

“…Yeah.”

“Agreed.”

“Yes.”

Man, that was needlessly exhausting.

We proceeded down a corridor with faded red floors and walls.

「……」
「……」
「……」
「……」

We fell silent.

We’d been walking silently earlier too, but now the air felt different.
Before, it had been tense and alert. Now, it was… a strange, indescribable atmosphere.

“No monsters are showing up.”
“Yeah.”
“Mm…”
“Na.”

“I’ve been wondering for a while now, Liv,”

“Mm? What is it?”

“That creature you’ve been carrying—what is it? It looks like a monster.”

For some reason, Dagaa had been in Liv’s arms the entire time.
Also, Mineha-san… she’s stayed in her large form this whole time. Is that okay?

More importantly, I tilted my head in confusion.

Wait… I never explained. Yeah, I didn’t explain, did I?

Mineha-san elbowed me.

“Hey, you. You didn’t tell them?”

“I didn’t.”

“We didn’t hear anything.”

“Um, Axe-san, that’s Dagaa. He’s my pet… and also my weapon.”

“? A pet and a weapon?”

“Na!”

“Yes. He’s my pet and weapon… He turns into a knife. He has the relic skill [Weapon Transformation: Blade Form].”

“…This guy’s got a relic…?”

“That’s right.”

Axe-san looked at least somewhat shocked.
Well, yeah, of course he would.

“So… this thing turns into a knife?”

“Yes, it does.”

“Huh…”

“Na!”

Dagaa transformed into a knife. Liv held it in her hand.

“Mm… so smooth.”

“Whoa, it really became a knife…”

Then Dagaa turned back into its usual form, and now curled up against Mineha-san.

She muttered “what now…” and hugged Dagaa again.

Axe-san smiled.

“You know… it’s never boring when you’re around, Wof.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

It didn’t sound like a compliment.

I gave him a flat stare. He waved it off.

Just as the mood started to lighten a bit, we stepped into a wide, bright space.

Faded white walls curved around us.
It was a semi-circular space. Strangely large.

“Hey… what is this place?”
“This wasn’t in the other two.”
“Mm… at the back… there’s a black door…”
“I’m surprised you even saw that black door from here.”

Now that they mentioned it, I could make out something that looked like a door on the far side.

“…Liv has sharp eyes… smug~”

That smug little face… cute. But still.

“Why is it so far away?”
“If you look closely, there’s a weird hole in the middle… What is that?”
“A hole? Oh, yeah, there is. Looks like something might fall from it.”
“Don’t say that! What do you mean, ‘something might fall’?”
“Who knows.”
“…………”

I stared up at the hole with a bad feeling in my gut.
And those feelings tend to be right.

Judging it to be dangerous, we drew our weapons and entered the space cautiously.

In the next instant, something fell from the hole in the ceiling. It shimmered and began to change shape.

It turned into a four-armed, four-eyed Minotaur.
And not just any Minotaur—this one was nearly twice the size of a normal one.
Its body had a bluish-bronze color, with black streaks mixed in.

Each of its four arms held a weapon.
All axes—but each one looked different.

“Another variant?”
“Doesn’t look like it’s made of metal this time.”
“How annoying.”
“Mm… I sense… a strong foe.”

Then a voice echoed through the chamber:

“Fools who try to proceed with only one of the eggs… receive the wrath of the Guardian Deity!”

“Who!?”

“Hey, it knows what we’re doing.”

“Mm… can’t get away with anything bad.”

“…………”

Then don’t let us through in the first place!

Hayan… You may be dead already, but I want to punch you. You’ve been long dead, but I still want to punch you.

The Guardian Deity—this Minotaur variant—let out a furious roar upon seeing us.

That roar alone sent a tremor through the entire semicircular room.

“It’s coming!”
“Mm… getting excited.”
“Don’t joke around!”

The Minotaur suddenly vanished. Despite its massive size, it moved with incredible speed.

Right after that, there was a loud thud as someone pushed me.

It was Mineha-san—her face full of urgency.

And I saw it.

The Minotaur’s longest axe had… sliced through her spear.

Fragments of her spear clattered to the floor with a dry sound. And then—

“Mineha-san!!”

I screamed.

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