Chapter 76, What It Takes to Grow

Translator: Barnnn

 

When Ize opened her eyes, the world was still draped in dim, gray light.

For a fleeting moment, she wondered if it was raining — the gentle morning sun had been a regular guest of late — but the canvas wall just inches from her face quickly reminded her where she was.

 

[Ah, right. We camped in the Dungeon last night.]

 

She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, and quickly checked over her adventurer gear. Satisfied, she crawled out of the tent on all fours.

The campsite was still and quiet. Neither Hal nor Fieda were up yet. She didn’t know the time, but they would probably be waking soon.

Using water from her bottles, she washed her face and brushed her teeth. Somewhere in the neighboring tents, she heard faint rustling — the creak of a bedroll shifting — and then a low, throaty yawn echoed from Hal’s.

Fieda was the first to emerge. With a casual wave, he strolled over to the portable toilet they’d left out from the night before.

Moments later, Hal stumbled out of his tent. He froze mid-motion, still on all fours, striking an unintentionally comical pose — like a living emoji.

 

“Ughhh… my body hurts,” he groaned.

“Good morning, Hal. What happened?” Ize asked, her voice bright with amusement.

“Morning… I’ve got muscle aches everywhere. Must’ve used muscles I never touch, walking on all that sand,” he grumbled, grimacing as he tried to straighten. “I swear, no matter how I move, everything hurts.”

“People say it’s better not to heal muscle soreness with magic, right?”

“Yeah… That’s why I’m gonna slooowly stretch it out. If I tried walking now, I’d probably start screaming.”

 

Grimacing dramatically, Hal sank into a lazy, cat-like stretch, groaning through a series of exaggerated Godzilla-like noises as he slowly worked through his aches.

Ize was rinsing her mouth when Fieda returned. He paused, watching Hal’s increasingly bizarre poses with a skeptical tilt of his head.

 

“…Why the hell is he like that?”

“Muscle pain,” Ize answered.

“Ah. I see… Hmm.”

 

Without another word, Fieda strolled over and jabbed Hal sharply between the shoulder blades with one finger.

 

“Aaaiiiiiieeeeee!” Hal shrieked, his voice cracking into a pitch far better suited to a teenage girl.

 

Ize snorted, barely managing to stifle a laugh. She turned away, biting her lower lip, and busied herself by setting out breakfast on the camp table.

Today’s menu was, as usual, Etta’s signature breakfast set. They’d had it nearly every day in town, and somehow, even here in the Dungeon, it made the morning feel just a little more ordinary.

As she arranged the plates, she glanced at the two men. They were now engaged in some impromptu sparring — an odd combination of stretches and playful grappling, each testing the other’s balance.

 

“Breakfast’s ready!” she called out.

“On it!” Hal shouted back, disentangling himself.

“Thanks,” Fieda added with a nod.

 

Once they were seated, Hal conjured hot water for tea while the three reviewed the day’s plan over their meal.

 

“This floor should take about an hour more to clear, assuming no battles,” Hal estimated.

“Right. And we’re gathering Sugar Mandragora on the forty-ninth floor next,” Fieda said.

“As for the Mystic Beasts…” Ize furrowed her brow in concentration. “What was it again? Every time I try to remember, I keep picturing some old lumberjack belting out enka songs while hacking at trees.”

Fieda blinked, clearly lost. “Enka…? Well, I don’t know what that is, but this floor has Treants and Gold Jackets.”

“Ah! Right, the giant wasp Mystic Beasts,” Ize said, snapping her fingers.

“And what, the name reminds you of that singer in a flashy gold suit?” Hal teased.

“Why’d I think of a lumberjack, anyway? …Maybe I mixed it up with the Treant?” Ize sheepishly tilted her head.

 

Hal tried to hold in his laughter, but his shoulders shook with the effort.

Fieda decided it was best not to linger on the tangent.

 

“Anyway, Gold Jackets are venomous,” he reminded them. “Ize, you’re on Detoxify duty. Hal, use water and wind magic to mess with their flight pattern. Treants won’t attack unless provoked, so as long as we move carefully, we should be fine.”

“And if we do get into a fight?” Hal asked.

“Their branches are their weapons. I’ll hold them off at the front. Ize, use Shadow Bind for crowd control. Hal, put up water walls for defense.”

“Got it!”

“I’ll keep us posted on enemy locations with Perception,” Ize added.

“Good. Let’s clean up and get moving.”

 

◆

 

They cleared the rest of the forty-eighth floor without incident, leaving behind the sandy terrain that had tormented Hal’s muscles. The forty-ninth floor was a stark contrast — a dense forest teeming with life. Their progress here had been  relatively smooth so far.

The Gold Jackets, as their name suggested, were enormous wasp-like Mystic Beasts, roughly the size of cats and just as aggressive as their Earth counterparts. And like Rainbees, they moved in swarms.

As planned, Hal and Ize worked in tandem to weaken the creatures with magic. Hal’s wind spells scattered their formation, while Ize’s dark magic dragged at their movements, slowing them mid-flight. The disrupted swarm made easy prey for Fieda, who moved in with sharp, efficient precision, his blade flashing through the gap-riddled ranks.

Ize attempted to assist with her daggers, but it quickly became clear her reach was far too short — the airborne Gold Jackets hovered just beyond her weapon and arms’ range.

Stooping to gather Magicite, wings, and venomous stingers from the fallen foes, she pouted faintly, clearly irked at her lack of effectiveness.

 

“You know, Ize,” Hal called over. “What if you tried pulling them down with dark magic?”

“Hm? Like… making Shadow Bind stronger?” she asked, tilting her head. “Increasing the pulling power or something?”

“Pulling power…? Like gravity or something?” Fieda interjected. “Oh, which reminds me…”

“What is it, Fieda?”

“I read about this Sage once — I must’ve told you about them before, too. They claimed dark magic had a strong influence on gravity. Can’t say I remember the details, though. Sorry.”

“Dark magic… affecting gravity…” Hal murmured.

“Wait…” Ize’s eyes widened. “Gravity pulls in light too, right? So, if you combined light and dark magic… you could maybe distort time or space. Like… teleportation? Like the Goddess told me?”

“Whoa, whoa! That’s badass!” Hal gasped, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

“Hehehe… Hal, you feel it too, don’t you? The edgelord in you is stirring!”

“Hahaha! Ize, we’re on the cusp of controlling the entire world!”

 

Their voices rang out dramatically, caught up in the infectious glee of their own wild theorizing — until, in perfect sync, Fieda’s hands came down hard on the tops of their heads.

 

“Ow!”

“Hey!”

“Focus. We’re still in the Dungeon. Let’s move.”

“”…Yessir,”” they mumbled in unison.

 

They continued experimenting with Ize’s magic through the subsequent battles. Her early attempts to ensnare the airborne Gold Jackets fell short, and eventually, Fieda offered a new suggestion.

 

“Instead of targeting them one by one, why not try covering the whole swarm with gravity?”

“Like… trapping them in a heavy space?” Ize’s eyes lit up at the visualization.

“Yeah. A gravity trap room, maybe,” Hal added.

“That’s way easier to picture. Can I try it next time we hit a swarm?”

“Go for it,” Fieda approved with a nod.

“All right!”

 

Under their guidance, Ize’s magic grew stronger — more controlled and versatile. With Fieda and Hal at her side, she felt free to push her imagination without hesitation.

No matter how bold or reckless her attempts, they had her back. They wouldn’t blame her for failing, and they were strong enough to prevent things from going south.

And because of that, she could give it her all.

 

◆

 

As they rested, Ize gazed straight ahead, her eyes fixed on the forest stretching out before them.

The Dungeon’s peculiar, scattered light filtered through the canopy, washing the leaves in a rich, verdant glow. Yet, among the sea of green, she spotted something off — subtle but unmistakable.

 

“There are a few Treants mixed in,” she murmured.

“Yeah, I can see them with my Eye of Appraisal.” Hal nodded, his eyes narrowing slightly. “They’re not supposed to be hostile, right, Fieda?”

“That’s what I’ve heard,” Fieda confirmed. “But do you want to steer clear of them just in case?”

 

Hal and Ize exchanged a glance. Then, almost in unison, they voiced the same thought.

 

“Mind if I take a closer look? I want a more detailed appraisal,” Hal asked.

“I promise I won’t get too close,” Ize added with a small smile.

Fieda exhaled lightly, having already expected their answer. With a brief nod, he relented. “Fine. Let’s go.”

“”All right!”” they replied in perfect sync, their eyes brightening with a shared spark of curiosity.

 

At first glance, the Treants were nearly indistinguishable from the ordinary trees around them. But as the trio drew closer, Hal and Ize began to feel the difference.

 

“Is that… magical energy?” Hal murmured, frowning slightly as a faint, electric tingle stirred against his skin.

“It’s like… a ticklish, prickling sensation,” Ize added, brushing her fingertips through the subtle current.

Fieda furrowed his brow and shook his head slightly. “I… uh, don’t feel anything,” he muttered, puzzled. “Is it because I’m not a mage, or do you feel it more easily because it doesn’t exist in your world?”

 

The two could only shrug, unable to answer for sure. Slowly, they crept closer.

 

“Maybe it’s because they grow by absorbing energy,” Hal suggested. “And it’s the Dungeon’s ambient magic flowing into them.”

“Like they’re pulling in the density and feeding off it?” Ize added, her eyes narrowing in concentration.

“Yeah, something like that…”

 

Hal’s lips twitched faintly, and he rubbed his chin as if trying to suppress a smile. His mouth worked soundlessly for a moment, and Fieda, catching the odd behavior, shot him a flat look.

 

“You wanna say something more?” he asked suspiciously.

“Er, well…” Hal’s eyes shifted sideways. “If they’re growing with magic, I was just thinking… maybe… I could try giving them just a little water with my magic? Y’know, see what happens?”

 

Fieda arched a brow, unimpressed but unsurprised. He turned to Ize, already sensing he’d find the same thought mirrored on her face.

Sure enough, she was practically glowing with anticipation. It was as if the word “expectation” were scrawled across her forehead in bold letters. Not literally, of course — but it might as well have been.

 

Fieda let out a slow, resigned groan. “Okay… but we’re backing up. Both of you. And the magic — add only a tiny bit at a time. No going overboard. Especially you, Ize — be precise with your control.”

 

Ize gave an emphatic nod, her face suddenly solemn. She was all too aware of her shaky grasp over fine energy manipulation.

They carefully positioned themselves — Hal five meters from the Treant, with Fieda and Ize another five meters behind him.

A hush fell over the clearing.

After a few moments, the faint chill of water-elemental magical energy drifted through the air. Ize felt the pulse of Hal’s spell as his energy stirred and mixed with the Dungeon’s ambient magic.

 

“Ah!” she gasped softly. “Look!”

“Wow…”

 

Before their eyes, the Treant’s branches began to stretch and unfurl, swelling outward in a sudden, time-lapse-like surge.

Within seconds, the Treant had grown nearly a meter taller, standing out starkly against the surrounding trees.

 

“Hal! Let Ize switch in!” Fieda called.

“O-okay!” Hal responded, stepping back.

 

As he retreated, he slapped Ize’s palm in a quick high-five before swapping places with her.

Ize took a steady breath and raised her hands, conjuring a sphere of light no larger than an apple. The soft glow cradled in her palms drifted upward, weaving through the branches in a slow, spiraling ascent.

 

“…It’s beautiful,” she whispered.

 

The Treant expanded again. Water droplets from Hal’s magic clung to the foliage, refracting the glow into countless shimmering colors. For a moment, the entire tree seemed decorated with stardust, twinkling in the filtered Dungeon light.

Ize let out a breathless sigh of awe.

 

Then–

 

Rustle, rustle.

Rustle, rustle.

Snap!

 

A sharp crack rang out, followed by the dull thump of something heavy hitting the ground.

 

“Huh?” Ize’s eyes widened.

“Something… fell?” Hal muttered, already stepping forward.

“Ize!” Fieda called, breaking into a run.

“Do you know what that was, Ize?”

Ize blinked, scanning the area. “Umm… I think it’s around here…”

 

She pointed to a spot near the base of the Treant. The three of them converged, moving with cautious curiosity.

Fieda’s hand drifted to his sword as he approached. Hal and Ize trailed behind, their senses sharpening, checking their surroundings with their own skills.

 

“…A branch?” Fieda murmured.

 

A slender limb of wood lay on the ground, its appearance barely any different from an ordinary fallen branch.

 

“Could it be… from the Treant?” Ize wondered aloud.

“Doesn’t seem dangerous.” Hal knelt beside it, eyeing it carefully. “I’ll appraise it first, just in case.”

“Go for it,” Fieda said, stepping back to give him space.

 

Hal crouched lower, peering intently at the wood as he activated his skill. His eyes widened slightly.

 

“It IS from the Treant, but–” He hesitated, blinking.

“But what?” Fieda pressed.

“The Appraisal says… ‘Treant’s Gift.'”

“…What?”

 

Fieda’s voice was laced with confusion.

Ize, meanwhile, turned her gaze upward, studying the towering Treant. The droplets of water magic had already been absorbed into its bark. Though the leaves had lost their earlier shimmer, they still pulsed with subtle vitality.

 

“Did you like our magic?” she asked softly.

 

Rustle, rustle.

 

The tree stirred faintly, its branches swaying — not from wind, but with a slow, deliberate motion.

 

Ize’s lips curved into a smile. “You did, didn’t you? Is this your way of saying thanks?”

 

Rustle, rustle.

Snap!

 

“Ah…!”

 

Another branch fell at her feet. Ize crouched, lifting it gingerly in her hands.

 

“This one’s for me?” she asked.

 

The Treant’s limbs trembled once more, shifting ever so slightly.

 

Rustle, rustle.

 

Ize let out a delighted laugh. “Thank you!”

 

The Treant swayed, its movements more animated now, as if it truly understood her words.

 

Hal stepped forward, holding up his own branch with a small, grateful smile. “Thanks. We’ll treasure them.”

 

Rustle, rustle.

 

The tree’s leaves quivered in response — a wordless farewell and acknowledgment.

And as Ize and Hal stood before the mighty Treant, branches in hand, they exchanged a glance and smiled.

Though Hal kept the full details of the Appraisal to himself, they both knew — they were holding something truly special.

 

Treant’s Gift

A branch bestowed by a Treant upon those it acknowledges.

Its leaves hold potent medicinal properties, while a staff carved from its wood amplifies magical power twofold.