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Contagious Heroism – Part 06

The wall featured the number 18 in large characters.

Five days had passed since Hikaru appeared in the dungeon.

He started from the 37th floor. He was both relieved to be halfway there but also disappointed at how much further he had to go.

“Looking back, it’s been quite a journey.”

Each floor offered its own surprises.

There were volcanoes and icebergs, salty seas, flowing rivers. Cultivated fields—how they were maintained, he had no idea—abandoned villages, hills, tidal flats, swamps, limestone cavess. Every imaginable terrain, filled with diverse creatures.

Some creatures were familiar to Hikaru, while others were strange. He hunted animals and fish for food. They didn’t turn into magic stones upon death, indicating they were real creatures, not dungeon-born monsters.

Before Hikaru was a bonfire, with meat skewered on a stick, which could have been a lizard or dragon. He wasn’t really sure. The fat sizzled as it dripped onto the fire, emitting an appetizing aroma.

The fire was in a cave in a rock. About ten meters behind Hikaru was the cave’s exit—but beyond lay a sheer cliff. And there were clouds below.

He couldn’t quite wrap his head around the idea of being above the clouds inside a dungeon. It almost drove him insane. However, he also sensed the thin air typical of high altitudes. If it weren’t for the number 18 past the cave, he might have mistaken this place for a mountaintop rather than a dungeon.

“Seriously, what is this place?” Hikaru wondered aloud.

A lizard or dragon carcass lay about twenty meters away. It was more than he could eat, but with no other edible creatures on this floor, he had no other choice.

“Let’s eat for now.”

Confirming the meat was cooked, Hikaru took a skewer, sprinkled some rock salt he found, and took a bite.

“Ouch!”

Juices dripped from the meat. It tasted delicious. It had the texture of chicken breast, with some tendons, and the juices spread throughout the mouth. There was no gamey smell either. It was simply flavorful. He wished he could bring some more meat with him, but it would likely spoil in a few days.

“It’s difficult to eat. I guess I’ll slice it up.”

Hikaru took out a knife and cut off a piece of the meat, then brought it to his mouth. Yum.

“This knife is pretty handy.”

He had found it inside a treasure chest. It had a simple design, like a fruit knife, with a blade about fifteen centimeters long and the thickness of a forefinger. An integral knife, both handle and blade were crafted from a single piece of material, with a color resembling ivory, midway between white and beige. He actually thought it was ivory at first. It was incredibly sharp. He used this knife to kill the lizard/dragon and even to carve into rock walls. He didn’t want to test it too much for fear of breaking it.

As a matter of fact, Hikaru found more than just a knife.

A cloak as smooth as plastic, thin but surprisingly warm, clasped with a large, sparkling gem that seemed to hold the entire galaxy within it. At first glance, the purple leather backpack seemed unsettling, but its effect was unbelievable. It was deeper than it looked, almost like the space inside was distorted. He wasn’t sure if it was some kind of magic item. Despite its physics-defying property, it didn’t reduce weight, and its depth was only about three times what it appeared.

Thanks to it, however, Hikaru could store a longsword inside.

“I can’t use a longsword myself, but its length sure comes in handy for all sorts of things.”

The longsword was beautifully crafted, its scabbard embedded with a magic gem. When drawn, Hikaru could faintly sense magical energy on the blade, even without using Mana Detection.

The sword’s color was red. A deep red. Though not an expert on weapons, Hikaru could tell it was a fine masterpiece.

“It can knock down fruits from high places or function as a makeshift ladder.”

To Hikaru, it was simply a “handy long stick that cuts”.

The cloak helped conceal his Japanese attire, and the backpack was useful for storing treasures he found. All in all, he was doing great. And there was more.

“My Soul Rank has finally gone up after stagnating for so long.”

His Soul Rank had increased while hunting for food. He couldn’t hunt in Japan, and the actions he took in the Quinbrand Empire and during the Accursed Toxin catastrophe in general had forced him to spend points as soon as his rank went up. He had been wanting to have some extra points in hand.

Unexpectedly, he achieved his goal in this dungeon. It brought a smile to his face.

“Well, I didn’t really ask to be here, so it’s nice to have some perks like this. Now, how should I allocate these points?”

With four points available, Hikaru pondered how to use them.

“Vitality-related stats are important, as they directly affect life and death, and Magical Power has its appeal. If I want to enhance my forte, Stealth, then Agility is key, but… huh?”

At that moment, Hikaru noticed words appearing under the number “18”.

“Words?” He came closer.

It read: “Are you out of your mind? You’re leaving? I told you this was the Great Labyrinth of Runay-aas, didn’t I?”

What?

There was only one person he could think of who would—and could—send such a message.

“Soaarunay. What are you up to?” Hikaru asked, but there was only the sound of the wind blowing through.

Then, more words were added: “The wisdom of the whole Saak family is gathered in this place. There’s plenty here that would pique the interest of anyone who’s dabbled in magic. And yet, you want to leave? Why? Did you not understand what I said? You’re heading towards the upper floors, towards the exit. The numbers written on the wall indicate the number of floors, and when it reaches zero, you’ll reach the surface.”

“I know that already!”

Whether Soaarunay was writing this knowing he was here, or if she was just sending a message to all floors, he couldn’t tell.

“I’m going back! Just leave me alone!” Hikaru shouted, but there was no response. “Whatever.”

Hikaru brushed it off and climbed the stairs to the 17th floor. What greeted him there was an expansive ocean.

“No way.”

It stretched endlessly before him. Above, a clear blue sky, and below, waves shimmering under the artificial sun’s light.

If not for the solid ground beneath him and walls flanking both sides, it would be easy to forget he was inside a dungeon. If anything, being reminded that he was in a dungeon almost fried his brain.

“Hmm?”

The wall to the side bore the large number 17, and words suddenly appeared beneath it.

“Hey, didn’t you read my message on the 18th floor? Or did you read it, but ignored it and came here anyway? Quit playing around.”

“…”

It was Soaarunay again.

Irked by her message, Hikaru grasped how Soaarunay’s surveillance system functioned.

She could tell which floor he was on but couldn’t monitor his every move. It appeared to be a rather rudimentary surveillance setup.

The message she sent to him could be programmed to appear under each floor number. Hikaru confirmed this with his Mana Detection, noting magical formulas capable of displaying text near the number.

“That’s the 17th floor. If you proceed straight ahead, you’ll reach the surface! Plus, this floor is an ocean, so you can’t continue. It’s too vast for a human to swim across. Swimwear is available at the entrance directly opposite the exit, but they’re out of reach if you’ve entered from the exit.”

“…”

Hikaru stared at the message with a look of disbelief.

“Swimwear? Nice try.”

His Mana Detection was picking up a massive magical presence lurking beneath the water. It would be clear from above that right in front of the path leading to the 18th floor was a gigantic fish several meters in size, hiding.

“Besides the waves and the breeze, there’s no sign of life. At least, not at first glance. But dive into the sea thinking you can simply swim across, and you’ll soon find yourself surrounded by countless monsters.”

Fighting underwater was significantly disadvantageous for humans compared to land combat. Sword swings would be sluggish, fire magic and wind magic were unusable, earth magic was impeded by water resistance, and casting water magic risked collateral damage. Unless one specialized in underwater combat—like a seasoned fisherman—they’d end up as fish food.

In essence, the swimwear that invited people to swim was itself a trap.

“By the way.”

More text appeared.

“How did you even make it back there? I’m pretty sure this place is no cakewalk for solo adventurers like you. Was it sheer luck? That would explain stumbling upon the treasure chest. Ah, I should’ve rigged some traps in there.”

“Is she stupid?” Hikaru muttered. “She’s basically admitting there are no traps on the chests up ahead. Well, I’ll still double-check before opening them.”

Hikaru thought Soaarunay was being careless. She mentioned there was swimwear at the entrance on the opposite side, which was her saying that he could reach the entrance by swimming straight from the exit.

Perhaps the direct route was the most dangerous, and Soaarunay didn’t want him to opt for the safer path along the wall, hence the verbal bait. But for Hikaru, it was valuable intel.

Because Soaarunay didn’t know about Hikaru’s Stealth. The sea monsters lurking on this ocean floor posed zero threat to him.

“Ugh… what a pain.”

Hikaru shed his clothes, stashing everything into his backpack and sealing it tightly. He never imagined winding up stark naked in a place like this, but at least he was alone. If Lavia were here…

“Lavia’s porcelain skin against the sea. I wouldn’t mind seeing that.”

Muttering to himself, Hikaru plunged into the sea. The water temperature was just perfect. He swam straight ahead.

Swimming wasn’t his forte, but he wasn’t half bad either. Plus, with his fundamental stats on the Soul Board boosted, he glided through the water effortlessly.

Once I reach the other side, I’ll snag a few fish. Can’t beat the taste of seafood.

The thought gave him peace and serenity. But upon reaching the 16th floor, he was once again bombarded by Soaarunay’s relentless messages: “Why,” “How,” “Quit messing around.”