Earthen dungeon. Floor 34.
"Huh? Floor 36 is occupied?"
"What's that about?"
What is that, even.
Dumbfounded by the intel Doha had brought back, Shiro and I both stared blankly.
"Oh yeah. The clan 'Golden Horn' is illegally occupying it, yo."
"Unacceptable."
"Why would anyone go and occupy it..."
"For the Plauma mushrooms, obviously."
"Oh yay. Plauma mushrooms are a key ingredient for magic potions, yohaa."
"Magic potions..."
I vaguely recalled that consuming them boosted a Relic's power and effects.
But the dependency was so extreme it was basically like the drugs from my past life memories.
Magic potions had actually caused the downfall of entire nations.
That was why they were universally banned under international law.
Even so, they were still being brewed in secret, smuggled across borders, and traded at premium prices.
"Illegal occupation is a no-no."
"Occupying a dungeon illegally. As a First-Class Delver, I can't let that slide. That clan needs to be crushed."
"Right on. Clan's out too. Oh yeah. Bad for you."
They're crushing the clan too. Well, yeah. They are a criminal organization, after all.
We chatted as we made our way to the thirty-fifth floor.
The thirty-fifth floor was dotted with countless pools.
I could spot crystal fish, and there were delvers fishing too.
When we reached the stairs down to the thirty-sixth floor, there was a wall encircling the entire area.
On top of that, several men who were clearly thugs were skulking around the perimeter, giving off a pretty menacing vibe.
The wall looked brand-new — not ruins or debris. Did they actually build this thing?
Without warning, Shiro stepped forward. Light bloomed in her raised hand in an instant.
She swung it down.
"Sacred Ray."
A flash of light rained down.
Screams erupted from every direction as the wall shattered apart, and I could see men scrambling around in a panic.
"My turn now! Land Create Wave!"
The ground writhed and a wave of earth surged up, sweeping them all away.
Still, she'd always said she hardly ever uses her light Relic, yet there she deployed it without a second thought.
She must have been seriously angry.
Before they could even begin to understand what had happened, they were buried in the earth.
When we descended to the thirty-fifth-sixth floor, we were inside a warehouse. Wooden crates were stacked everywhere.
And there were several thuggish-looking men doing some kind of work, standing out amid the boxes.
"What the — who are you people?!"
One of them noticed. Utterly shocked.
Can't blame them. Anyone would be startled if an afro suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
"Hey! Hey! Me am Doppa! You guys already done for! Quaking land! Greatest me is Doha! [Land Create Wave Block For You]"
The ground rippled, and the thugs collapsed.
The ripple sent the stacked wooden crates toppling, and pale mushrooms spilled out from inside.
Mushrooms shaped like lanterns.
"So those are Pneuma mushrooms."
That many of them... The thugs who'd fallen remained pinned to the ground just as they were.
Part of the floor had turned into shackles and manacles, binding them in place.
I picked up a Pneuma mushroom that had rolled across the floor and tucked it into my pouch.
"I don't like this. I don't like this at all."
Siro-san chanted in a cold voice.
"[Diamond Blast]"
A glittering barrage of ice tore through the warehouse, smashed the wooden crates, and pulverized the Pneuma mushrooms.
Thugs who'd come running after hearing the commotion were caught in the crossfire as well.
"Ohh..."
Even Doppa was taken aback by that one.
Hmm. I really can't just stand around doing nothing.
Right. I'll activate Blue Saint and Dream Move.
Next, I layer Banish and Vibrasion together with exquisite precision, take careful aim, and unleash them.
[Deep Banish]
Part of Floor 36 collapsed.
Earth dungeon. Floor 56. Ruin City.
The Golden Horn clan's hideout.
"We're done here."
"Good work."
Bilijoe, the large man with golden horns, perked up at Nebra's words.
He took a sip of wine from his glass.
"But we overdid it. We're leaving this place."
"I've already prepared the reward. Take it."
"Yeah, got it. You should also think carefully about—"
"We'll earn a little more first—Huh? Emergency?"
The legendary crystal flickered rapidly.
Nebra narrowed her eyes.
"Hey. What's that?"
"It's a legendary voice crystal. This one's installed on Floor 36 and only gets used in emergencies, but—hey. What's going on?"
"Th-this is terrible, Boss! We're under attack!"
"An attack?"
"Y-yes. Floor 36 is already—"
"Who's the enemy?"
"Th-three of them... They didn't just break through — it was a complete annihilation."
"Three..."
"An afro, a white woman, and a brat."
"What's wrong, Billijoe?"
"Nebura. The job's done."
"Huh?"
"Floor 36 was attacked."
"What?!"
"The enemy is three people."
"They got wiped out by just three?"
"An afro, a white woman, and a brat."
"...What kind of lineup is that?"
"Take care of them."
"Ugh... the pay better be worth it."
Nebura sighed and left.
Rather than gathering his subordinates and heading to Floor 36, he decided to lie in wait on Floor 46, where the teleportation circle deposited its travelers.
At the time, he'd had a bad feeling about the words "afro" and "white woman."
If he had fled as that premonition dictated, he might have made it out alive.
But it was already too late.
He activated the Relic [Mist], generating a thick fog.
Nebra possessed the fog and wind Relics.
She used the thick fog to confuse her enemies, launching surprise attacks alongside her subordinates.
This was Nebra’s modus operandi—tactics that bordered on assassination.
However, there was a weakness to this method.
It was most effective in confined spaces or indoors, but in the open field, its range was limited.
Fortunately, the 46th floor was a rare forest area.
Nebra sent the thick fog drifting through the trees.
Under normal circumstances, Nebra would have held the advantage.
But Wof had Danger Discernment.
The fog was no obstacle to the ability that revealed hostile intent as red points of light.
And Wof was not the type to go unnoticed by this sudden fog.
Thus, while Nebra believed she stood in an overwhelmingly superior position, she was instead the one being hunted.
It was a ruthlessly ironic turn of events.