Chapter 195
Time rewinds slightly.
The party, climbing the stairs from the lowest level to escape the collapsing “Death Sea That Devours the Land,” reached the spiral corridor just as Shizuma had predicted.
However, the corridor was already beginning to collapse. Massive rocks rained down through the open spaces, threatening to crush the very spot where they stood.
“Shizuma! We should turn back!”
“Rivana! That’s not an option! He said he’d be fine! We’re jumping into the open space immediately!”
Rivana, thinking of the one they had left behind—Shizuma—tried desperately to retreat.
In contrast, Melt remained calm, holding the bell tightly and storing it safely in her magical storage device to prevent losing it.
“Rivana, Shizuma really will be fine. Let’s go!”
“Melt… understood.”
Thanks to Melt, who was closest to Shizuma, speaking to her so calmly, Rivana nodded firmly, and the two jumped together into the open space.
Feeling the familiar sensation of floating, the exploration party soon found themselves in a shallow area outside the dungeon.
“What the…!?”
“The dungeon entrance—it’s collapsing!”
“Everyone, run!”
Soon, one after another, people from inside the dungeon were teleported into the shallow waters.
They had all jumped into the open space to escape the crisis.
Some were not alone; rubble from the dungeon was teleported with them, hinting to onlookers that perhaps this was the end of the dungeon.
“The people being teleported have disappeared… and the dungeon entrance… it’s completely gone into the sea.”
“So… the dungeon has truly vanished…”
Gark and Araza murmured, as if savoring the moment.
Their long-cherished goal of conquering the dungeon had been confirmed by its disappearance.
But simultaneously, they noticed—albeit a moment too late—that Shizuma was nowhere to be seen.
And then—
“W-why!? Why!!!! This… this…!”
They saw Melt desperately waving her hands in the shallow water, but no one nearby could call out to her.
In her hands was the bell, the half of the bell entrusted to her by Shizuma—the “Summoning Bell.”
But no matter how much she shook it, it made no sound. Melt realized that this also meant Shizuma could not return.
“Why… why won’t it ring…?”
“Melt, what’s going on?”
“The bell… if I ring it, Shizuma should come back… but it won’t… ring…”
“A bell…? A teleportation magical tool…? That actually exists?”
“It does… I saw it before… If you ring it, Shizuma comes back after a while… but… it won’t ring…”
The reason was simple: the previously used bell still exists.
And the counterpart bell, which Still should have manifested, hasn’t yet.
Still had been heading toward the mastermind and wanted to ensure that ringing the “Teleportation Bell” by mistake wouldn’t return her to Yasha Island mid-journey.
Moreover, the current form was not Shizuma, but Still. She absolutely had to avoid that.
Thus, the bell did not ring. Melt, in despair, stored it back in her magical storage and returned to base camp.
“Why… why won’t it ring…?”
“Hmm… could I borrow it for a moment?”
“No! Absolutely not! This was entrusted to me by Shizuma! I have to ring it myself!”
“I see, my apologies.”
Even back at the camp, Melt continued desperately shaking the bell.
With tears welling in her eyes, she seemed to think that her own actions—or inaction—might prevent Shizuma from returning, perhaps even leading to his death.
“Please… ring… please ring…!”
“…Melt.”
Rivana did not disbelieve Melt’s words.
She trusted that the bell might indeed hold mysterious power, as Melt said.
Given that Shizuma, who managed the brigade’s supplies of powerful healing items and extraordinary accessories, possessed a magical tool capable of something like teleportation, it was not unreasonable.
But at the same time… the thought also crossed Rivana’s mind that the bell might not ring because “the target no longer exists in this world”—the worst-case scenario.
Having faced cruel realities countless times before, she could not ignore that possibility.
Yet she could not bring herself to tell Melt.
So all she could do was watch Melt, desperately trying to make the bell ring, with a mixture of pain and sympathy.
“Melt… let’s take a little rest.”
“No! I have to… I have to ring it… Shizuma can’t come back otherwise…!”
“Then… it’s better not to shake it so desperately. Just lightly.”
“O-okay…”
All she could do was advise her so her arms wouldn’t be injured.
The other members also silently watched, concerned and pained.
By now… everyone had reached the same conclusion as Rivana.
Eventually, Melt fell asleep, exhausted, still clutching the bell.
Seeing her so pitiful and earnest, the others quietly spoke, faces heavy with grief.
“…She was such a close partner. Her suffering must be unimaginable.”
“Continuing to shake the bell might even be her way of… forgetting that she might inadvertently reach him herself…”
Araza and Gark spoke, worrying over the two who had been central to the dungeon’s conquest.
“…If Melt decides to stay here, I will stay too.”
“…I allow it. She will need someone to support her.”
“Shizuma… it’s all my fault for suggesting he come…! Ugh!”
Rivana, too, obtained permission from Araza to stay with Melt, who was likely in the most precarious state.
By now, the Killcrawler members had already accepted Melt as a comrade, as someone precious.
And of course… Shizuma, who would not return.
Through their shared heartbreak, night passed.
And then—
“Melt. We plan to take the ship today. What about you?”
“Melt. If you stay, I will stay too.”
When Melt woke in the tent, she immediately checked the bell she still clutched and began shaking it from early morning.
Araza and Rivana spoke to her, concerned.
“I’ll take the ship too. After all, as long as I can ring the bell, Shizuma should come back no matter where he is.”
“Melt…”
“…I see. Alright, then let’s go together. But while traveling by ship or carriage, make sure to keep it safely stored. If you drop it or lose it, there’s no recovering it, right?”
“Ah… yeah, you’re right. Losing it would be terrible. I’ll keep it put away until we get home.”
The two of them were concerned for her, as she continued shaking the bell despite the strain on her arms. At least until they returned to Lindblum, they were able to give her a brief respite, which was a relief.
Yet, Melt’s insistence that Shizuma would return from anywhere still weighed heavily on them.
Now that the dungeon’s disappearance had been officially confirmed, it was clear that Shizuma, who had been left underground, was not safe.
By all reason, they understood that Shizuma would likely never come back.
Thus, Melt stored the bell in her magical storage device and set out for Lindblum.
“Hm… as expected, there are no signs of people around… no traces whatsoever. This sea of trees seems to be a land rarely tread upon.”
After three days wandering the forest, confident that no one was actively searching for her, I finally prepared to fulfill my duty once again by quietly meditating within the hollow of a large tree.
“…A bit underwhelming, but perhaps it contributed to analyzing their forces on the other side.”
The destructive spell, the status and position needed to maintain a mansion even in the empire, the likelihood of a mole among the guild’s regular staff, and the confirmation that the guild leaders were not in league with the mastermind.
Still, it seemed they were cunning indeed.
By letting Furerika wander and keeping her imprisoned without treatment, they may have also been trying to draw out those who would side with the mastermind using her as bait.
If so, the staff member who requested me to heal Furerika may already be under the guild’s control.
I closed my eyes and sent my mind inward.
Now, my master, I leave the rest to you once more—
I was summoned into a space of darkness.
While my body was entrusted to Still, I had spent most of my time training with Rue and Silent in the round table chamber. But being summoned here meant…
“Still, are you ready?”
“Yes. My master, how much do you know about the current situation?”
“Almost everything. I was surprised you let Furerika go.”
“That one… you never killed before either, Master. And she hasn’t directly opposed you. Moreover—there’s a possibility she may again be involved with the mastermind, and she seems to feel indebted to me. There’s still potential use, isn’t there?”
Still said this, but I suspected it was because she had developed some attachment to Furerika.
Though if I said it aloud, she would definitely deny it.
…Perhaps her heart is still growing after all.
It feels as if she is trying of her own will to break free from the “fanatical personality” she was given.
“Very well. Then I’ll take the form of an unused character, right?”
“Exactly. ‘Serene’ would be suitable. There might be a slight headache from her pharmaceutical knowledge, but it will be useful, and her body is fully capable of fighting.”
“Right… among the crafting-class characters… she’s about as strong as Shijima.”
“Yes. And she will use weapons your master has not yet wielded, expanding her combat range.”
‘Serene’ is a crafting-class ‘Alchemist’ with a sub-class of ‘Spear Warrior.’
Thus, she can handle close combat while also benefiting from the Alchemist skill Overdose, granting effects beyond normal limits.
In other words, she is a warrior who fights with long-reach spears or polearms while supercharging herself with potions.
Of course, this consumes a lot of resources, but she can handle healing and self-enhancement easily, making her combat abilities substantial enough to not lose in solo fights.
Though, this only applies to players equipped with sufficient gear and abundant potions.
Luckily, I meet both conditions. I’m a hardcore player.
“Understood. Still, please change the character.”
“Understood. Once you awaken, try ringing the bell. Perhaps the little fox is still shaking the bell over there.”
“Right… in the end, I’ve made her sad again…”
“…My apologies, Master.”
“No need to apologize. You acted with our welfare in mind.”
“Your words honor me. Well then… we part for a while, Master.”
Freed from the dark space, I awoke shortly after—
“Hm… I see… inside a tree hollow…”
I had awakened in a hollow camouflaged with dead wood and leaves.
My consciousness remained my own. Well then… first, I should try ringing the bell.