Chapter 85, Lightning Strike

Translator: Barnnn

 

Crack-crack-crack-CRASH!

KA-BOOOOM!

 

Clatter!

Rumble-rumble-rumble…

 

“Aiiieee!”

“Waaahhh!”

“Hey, what the–!?”

“Kekkyooo!”

 

Lightning tore through the air with a deafening roar, and blinding flashes of white lit up the thirty-eighth floor’s grassland. The sheer violence of the sound drove the three adventurers — and one creature — down to the ground, hands clamped over their ears.

When the light finally cleared, what remained was a branching scar scorched into the earth, like a web of veins crawling outward from the blast point.

 

“Ah, my ears feel weird… Let me heal us,” said Ize, her expression scrunching with discomfort.

“Thanks. My bad — I didn’t expect it to discharge all at once like that,” Hal muttered, still crouched on the ground.

“Is this something that could actually be used in combat?” Fieda asked, peering at the charred remains.

“Not the way it is now,” Hal sighed. “Even if we wanted to improve it, we’d have to stay inside the Dungeon, right? No way this would be allowed anywhere else.”

“Absolutely not, especially the Guild’s training areas,” Ize agreed with a shake of her head.

 

Hal let out a long, deflated breath. He turned his gaze back across the grassland.

It was the third day of their trip, and he and Ize had spent the afternoon practicing magic.

Their brainstorm — “Lightning means thunderclouds!” — had led Hal to craft a massive cloud using wind and water magic. That part had gone surprisingly well.

But then they’d decided, why not toss in that iron ball Joe, Origin of Thievery’s shopkeeper, had given them?

The instant it was hurled under the cloud, it exploded. Thunder like falling bombs, lightning flashes, and the earth itself quaking had all come in a single devastating burst.

 

“Still can’t control it,” Hal groaned.

“Want to try again?” Ize offered, tilting her head.

“No thanks. Kinda traumatized right now.”

Fieda, who had been watching from a distance, spoke up. “I can see with Overview — some adventurers ahead of us have already started retreating. Word of this is definitely going to spread.”

“…Heh. First they call me a Goblin… now what would they call Hal?” Ize muttered.

“I don’t even want to guess,” Fieda replied, running a hand through his now-frizzy hair and blowing air through his nose.

 

Hal looked visibly disheartened. Seeing this, Ize stepped forward and presented Sato, who was nestled in her arms. She held the little creature out and gave it a gentle shake.

 

“Kekyo?”

“Sato says you shouldn’t let it get you down,” she said cheerfully.

“There’s no way it said that.”

“Are you sure? Hugging Sato is guaranteed to cheer you up. It’s packed with nutrients and draws out toxins. A real vitamin boost for the soul!”

“R-right… That’s the weirdest pep talk I’ve ever heard. Fine, I’ll take it.”

“Kekyoo!”

 

Hal accepted the small, leafy creature, burying his face in it. As Sato’s leaf gently quivered, it almost looked like he was patting Hal’s head. The sight was oddly comforting.

 

“Should we call it a day?” Fieda asked.

“What’s your preference, Hal?” Ize asked playfully. “A rampage therapy course or a relaxing bath course?”

“Rampage!”

“Welp, you heard him,” Ize said with a grin.

“Got it,” Fieda nodded. “Let’s push through to the forty-first floor like we planned. Hal, if you burn through all your MP, Ize will carry you the rest of the way.”

“She will NOT! I’ll control my power properly!”

“Aww, don’t be shy, my dear little princess,” Ize teased.

“Damn it! I’ll finish this with energy to spare! Let’s go! I’m gonna hunt you down, prime-cut meat!”

“You mean Orc Generals,” Fieda corrected.

 

That day, the Orc Generals didn’t disappear from the forty-first floor — but it certainly felt that way.

High on adrenaline and the prospect of a double-digit haul of meat, Hal created a typhoon-like vortex by combining wind and water magic. He blasted the Orc Generals around with reckless abandon.

By the time they made camp, he was barely holding himself together, face pale and stomach churning from magical energy near-depletion. But he managed to stagger back, driven by stubborn pride alone — only to collapse into a squat, swaying.

 

“If you feel that sick, might as well cast one more spell and knock yourself out,” Fieda said flatly.

“Good idea,” Hal mumbled, dazed.

“Wait, hang on, for dinner, we’d like– aww, too late.”

 

Hal, ever dutiful, summoned a bucket and filled it with water before slumping forward into unconsciousness.

 

“Well, nothing for it,” Ize said with a resigned smile. “The container house is already out. Fieda, would you do the honors? And if possible, a princess carry?”

“I don’t know what that is. I’ll just sling him over my shoulder.”

“Boooring.”

 

Fieda hoisted Hal like a sack of potatoes and disappeared into the shelter. Ize had hoped to borrow the skewered meat set from Hal’s Magic Bag, but with him out cold, she had no choice but to pull ingredients from her own. She laid them out on the table just as Fieda returned.

 

“Sato wanted to stay with Hal,” he said.

“Do you think it’ll help him recover?”

“Not sure. You recovered a third of your MP in an hour, right?”

“Yes. When I woke up, that much had come back.”

“Then Hal should be up around the same time. Until then, just rest.”

“All right. We’ve been pushing hard for three days. This’ll be a good break.”

 

They proceeded to brew tea with water heated over a slow flame and began sorting the day’s loot.

With how long this expedition was turning out to be, the loot had piled up. Without daily organization, it would be impossible to keep track of everything for Guild appraisal.

They tallied the goods, estimated their value on paper, and tucked the notes into each bag.

 

“I’ve never really thought about how much money it takes to travel,” Ize murmured.

“That’s normal, when your parents are still around,” Fieda replied.

“If we save enough, we could live somewhere really nice, right?”

“You planning to buy, not build?”

“Which is more common?”

“Both are just about the same, actually. Rich folks rarely rebuild. Even in the royal capital, strict regulations make new builds rare. In the countryside, though, families expand or shrink and remodel all the time. If a Mystic Beast attacks, they might even move and build from scratch.”

“I see… I don’t think I’d live in the city anyway. Probably somewhere semi-rural.”

“Then save enough to have options.”

“Good idea. Let’s both do our best, Fieda!”

“Y-yeah…”

 

Just like Hal had once said, Fieda sometimes drew strange lines around things.

The idea that he might live in the same house Ize and Hal dreamed of hadn’t even crossed his mind.

 

[Right… I’ll just keep dragging him along until he’s SURE he’s one of us.] “Time to squeeze every last coin out of your adult savings!”

“Please don’t.”

 

Mission ‘Drag-Fieda-Into-Paying-Mortgage’ — failed.

 

◆

 

Hal never woke, not even once, from magical energy depletion. And so the fourth day dawned with him still fast asleep.

 

“…Huh? Morning already…?” Hal mumbled.

 

His voice roused Ize, who turned over and blinked at him with sleepy eyes.

 

“How’re you feeling?” she asked.

“I’m good. MP’s full now,” Hal said, sitting up with a stretch. “Hey, I had this crazy dream — I was beating down a bunch of Orc Generals, and then suddenly I turned into an Orc King. That was a dream, right?”

“…It wasn’t,” Ize replied flatly.

“What?”

“Because, look–” She gestured toward the foot of his bed.

“Kekyo!” chirped a familiar, leafy voice.

“Gyaah! A Mandragora!”

“Would you idiots shut up already!? It’s too early for this!” Fieda’s voice cracked like lightning.

“”Sorryyy,”” Hal and Ize chimed sheepishly.

“Kekyo,” Sato echoed in a more subdued tone.

 

Fieda’s lightning strike was entirely metaphorical, but no less effective. The three of them fell into silence.

 

“Shame,” Ize muttered. “I was going to use Camouflage to make Fieda look like an Orc General. Or maybe I should’ve disguised you as an Orc King, so that when you stand in front of a mirror…”

“That might’ve worked better,” Hal said. “Like, imagine putting a mirror on the wall and then saying, ‘See? You’ve already become the Orc King!’ Ugh, chills.”

“Let’s try that next time–”

“No, don’t,” Fieda cut in. “Hal, if you’re feeling all right, rinse off and get ready.”

“Okay, okay, I’m going.”

“You two are a menace…”

“Good morning, Fieda!” Ize called out cheerfully.

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll be outside getting breakfast ready. Come out when you’re done,” Fieda replied.

“Thanks!”

 

As Ize changed her clothes, she glanced at the wall thoughtfully. Maybe a mirror really wouldn’t be a bad idea. She made a mental note to bring it up with Fieda later.

A few minutes later, Hal stepped out, hair still damp.

 

“Man, a morning shower hits the spot.”

“There he is. Looks fifteen, acts like he’s stuck in junior high,” Ize teased.

“Hey, get it right. Looks fifteen, brain of a thirty-three-year-old. Or wait — was it thirty-two?”

“Strange. I thought your de-aging was supposed to affect the brain, too.”

“Maybe the other dimension’s God forgot to include that in the procedure.”

“Ahh. That would explain it, then.”

 

They both fell silent at the same moment, staring at each other with perfectly blank faces.

 

“…What are you two doing now?” Fieda asked.

“Sensei! Ize’s refusing to play along with my jokes!” Hal cried dramatically.

“‘Sensei’ The hell does that mean?”

“I’m not good at receiving,” Ize replied with a straight face. “I never joined the volleyball team.”

“You’re supposed to use a basketball metaphor!”

“Ah! I’ve done it again!”

“…Breakfast. Now,” Fieda grumbled.

“”Yes, sir!”” they chorused, breaking into grins and slapping a high five before taking their seats.

 

Breakfast and Sato were already waiting on the table. As always, Ize reached out, gently stroking Sato’s leaf while casting a soft healing spell.

 

“Kekyo,” the little plant murmured, bowing its broad leaf in a quaint little gesture.

 

It was a familiar, peaceful morning scene.

 

“–Hal,” Fieda said, shifting to business, “your stamina and MP are both fully recovered?”

“Good to go. Sorry for the trouble,” Hal said, giving a small bow that mirrored Sato’s just moments ago.

“…Fieda carried you to bed princess-style, so no problem,” Ize added with a teasing smile.

“I carried him over my shoulder. You saw that,” Fieda retorted.

“Lies that fall apart instantly are no good, Ize,” Hal chuckled.

“Next time I’ll bribe him in advance,” Ize said.

“See that you do,” Hal replied, wagging a finger.

 

Fieda, now growing more adept at ignoring their antics, cut in to discuss their plans.

 

“We’ll aim for the forty-sixth or forty-seventh floor today. Tomorrow, we scout the forty-ninth and call it.”

“Floor forty-six, huh?” Hal mused. “Didn’t we skip most of the fights there last time?”

“Yes. Back then, we prioritized gathering those Bannanan Buns on the forty-seventh floor,” Ize reminded him. “Want to try fighting this time?”

“Hal, think you can test yesterday’s magic again there?” Fieda asked.

“You’re serious?”

“I am,” Fieda said. “Thinking back, I wonder if part of the problem yesterday was that the cloud you summoned was too big. If you keep it smaller, it might be faster to bring out and easier to control.”

“You know… you might be right.”

“Let’s give it another shot, Hal,” Ize said, eyes gleaming. “Forty-six has Giant Turtles. Let’s go for a Turtle King today. You’ll be the Turtle King!”

“I will not,” Hal groaned.

 

And so began Hal’s lightning magic redemption arc — on the forty-sixth floor.