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Chapter 57
While everyone was trying to gather their thoughts, Thompson was the first to ask for an explanation.
"Hey, Mr First Place, what in the world happened to us?"
Before answering, I posed a question to Thompson. It was necessary to get a clear grasp of the situation from those directly involved.
"First, could you describe how you felt?"
"Uh, well... that is..."
Thompson scratched the back of his neck, recalling the recent events. His stiff expression suggested it wasn't a pleasant memory.
"How should I put it? It was like I suddenly turned into a different person. My heart raced, I felt suffocated, and anger kept welling up... It was as if the function controlling my emotions had malfunctioned."
"I see. What about the others?"
"Similar for me. I felt like picking fights..."
"One thing's for sure, I wasn't myself."
Everyone had similar reactions. Only then could I draw a clear conclusion.
As expected, this incident was caused by her ability.
"It seems you were likely affected by Asmodeus's power."
"Asmodeus? Asmodeus... Are you referring to the Legion Commander of Desire?"
"That's right. The symptoms you experienced are identical to those exposed to Asmodeus's power. Though I'm not sure how it happened."
After saying that, I looked at each member of the group, hoping for some clue.
A moment later, Kayla, who had been lost in thought, clapped her hands as if she had remembered something.
"Ah, could it be…?"
"Because of that flower?"
"Flower?"
Did everyone understand what Kayla was talking about? Everyone except me widened their eyes.
"...Miss, I think you're right."
"Right?"
"...Indeed, that flower was definitely strange."
Since it seemed like everyone but me was on the same page, I gestured for a quick explanation.
Thompson was the first to speak.
"You see... there was a single flower blooming in the deepest part of the turtle's cave. It was in a very suspicious location."
"...What did it look like?"
"It had crimson petals, and it seemed to glow...? Anyway, it was such a beautiful flower that it kept catching my eye even during the fight."
"Hmm."
A flower... It wasn't the form I had anticipated, but it was certainly possible. Asmodeus's favorite color was crimson.
"Did the flower have a scent?"
"Scent?"
Thompson, who had been reminiscing, soon spoke with a puzzled expression.
"There was a peculiar fragrance inside the cave, but I'm not sure if it was coming from the flower."
And at that moment, Kayla interjected.
"If you're talking about the perfume-like scent, then yes. I smelled it myself after the battle ended."
A perfume-like scent.
Kayla's words perfectly clarified the situation.
It seemed that Asmodeus had somehow imbued the flower with her power.
And that power seemed to have turned our party members into madmen.
"I didn't even go near it because it looked suspicious. Can you still be affected like this?"
"If you smelled the fragrance, even without approaching it... it's certainly possible."
"Huh, that's a terrifying power, making caution meaningless. As expected, you can't let your guard down against those demons."
Just then, Thompson asked with a curious look on his face,
"But, Mr. First Place, how did we wake up?"
How did they wake up?
The method to wake up wasn't that difficult.
All it required was proper utilization of the game's system.
"Do you remember me telling you before that dungeons are spaces in a completely different dimension?"
"Ah, you certainly did. But why?"
"That's all there is to it. That's how you were freed from the influence."
"What?"
Thompson, who had been lost in thought for a moment, was startled as if he had realized something.
"Don't tell me... her power can't reach this far?"
"Yes, precisely."
Thompson immediately got the right answer.
As expected, he's smarter than he looks.
Well, that's probably why he's a mage.
Anyway,
"Even if it wasn't Asmodeus's influence, it would still be the same. No power can have any effect here."
Explaining from a game perspective made it a bit easier.
'Upon entering a dungeon, all buffs and debuffs are removed.'
That's all there is to it.
"That's amazing. To think a dungeon would be such a mystical place... Or should I be more surprised that you used it this way?"
"I only knew the theory; this is my first time putting it into practice."
That was a lie.
I must have benefited from this in the game at least thousands of times.
To begin with, not knowing this was the same as not knowing how to play [Demon Fantasy].
Finding a dungeon, hunting extensively nearby, then entering the dungeon to clear all status effects for additional gains.
Shortened to 'dungeon con,' this was a trick that existed as a 'national rule' in [Demon Fantasy].
It could be considered one of the essential skills that any veteran player must know.
Well, compared to those, it did take me a while to recall it.
"...As expected, applying game knowledge to reality doesn't work as well as I thought."
Even though I know this world originated from a game, a strange sense of incongruity keeps hindering my judgement.
If I had been watching this through a monitor screen instead of with my own eyes, I would have immediately thought of 'dungeon con.'
Of course, complaining about it wouldn't change anything.
'Ultimately, I have to adapt myself.'
Vowing to view situations with a more gamer-like perspective from now on, I changed the subject.
In any case, we had narrowly escaped the crisis.
Now it was time to overcome the next hurdle.
"Shall we get going?"
We had roughly three hours left. We had to escape this place within that time.
***
"This is better than before. We don't need to find our way, and there seem to be far fewer traps than yesterday."
I nodded in agreement with Thompson's words.
"This is usually the typical form of a dungeon. The maze dungeon we entered yesterday was a bit of a special case."
As he said, this dungeon had a very ordinary structure.
Most paths were linear, so we could just go straight.
The difference was that, unlike the maze, this one had multiple levels.
"Haaap!"
Kieeeeek....
And the monsters here gave experience points.
Swoosh-
I sheathed my sword, feeling the fullness entering my body.
'Hmm, by now...'
Currently, I was calculating how much my experience increased each time I gained it.
This way, I could figure out the effectiveness of the experience artifact I possessed.
This was possible because, unlike the general field where each individual demon gave different amounts of experience, here, the experience gained was standardized in proportion to the level.
'It should be about half full now.'
Just as I finished calculating,
"But, Mr. First Place, that demon Asmodeus..."
Thompson, who was walking ahead, turned around, seemingly curious about something.
"Why on earth did she plant that flower there?"
"Huh?"
"Isn't it strange? That she planted that flower in Sector 7, where there are few people, inside a turtle cave that's not easily noticeable."
Now that he mentioned it, it was a plausible question.
A question that I hadn't considered yet, as I was focused on how to break free from the influence.
"Hmm... you're right. It is strange."
Why did Asmodeus plant a flower in such a place?
Actually, that wasn't the only strange thing.
'Come to think of it... wasn't that area near that Valefor guy's territory?'
Just yesterday, we had dealt with a pedestrian who was a subordinate of Valefor.
That meant the entire vicinity was under Valefor's control.
But there was a trace of Asmodeus' power there?
'...Definitely strange.'
Considering the demon race's characteristic of valuing their territory, this was not a normal occurrence.
Therefore, it meant there was definitely something going on...
'Ugh...'
Was it because there wasn't enough evidence?
Even after pondering for a long time, I couldn't readily find an answer.
'...Well, if there's a problem because of it, I'll naturally find out.'
In the end, I decided to stop worrying and focus on exploring the dungeon.
One way or another, our escape was the most important thing right now.
Just as I was thinking that,
"Oh?"
Kayla, who was walking alongside Thompson, pointed ahead as if she had discovered something.
And there, an object of a familiar shape was placed.
"That's what you were talking about, right?"
It was the first treasure chest we had found in this dungeon.
"Ah, Miss! Be careful!"
Thompson reacted immediately and pulled Kayla back.
Seeing him act appropriately without needing instructions made me feel like I finally had proper party members.
"Oh, come on, I know all about it. Why are you overreacting?"
"...It's good to be able to think of it as an overreaction. Miss, if you were to see that monster chest yourself, you wouldn't be able to say that."
"Just how scary could it be..."
"...It is a scary one, Miss Kayla."
While they were conversing amongst themselves, I stepped forward with my sword of light.
Clang!
My sword of light bounced back as I thrust it.
'For now, it's a reward.'
Fortunately, it wasn't a mimic.
Then, from now on, it was a matter of luck.
'Gold, equipment, artifact, stats, traits...'
Five types of rewards could come from the chest.
None of them were useless, but if I had to choose, the two most needed rewards right now were:
Artifacts and traits.
More precisely, mental-type artifacts and traits.
Our party was currently too vulnerable to mental-type abilities.
In fact, when we were subjugating the demon turtle, if we didn't have to protect the survivor lady, the entire party would have been in danger, wouldn't we?
Furthermore,
'We don't know when, where, or how we'll encounter it.'
Now that it was revealed to be the ability of Asmodeus, mental-type rewards became even more crucial.
Of course, this was all under optimistic circumstances.
I didn't have high hopes, even though I thought about it.
'What are the chances of getting what we need from opening one chest?'
Having expectations would only lead to greater disappointment.
Just as I was thinking that and about to open the chest,
"Wait, can I open that?"
Kayla, who was watching me from a short distance, suddenly asked.
"Why?"
"Just seems like it would be fun."
"It doesn't make much difference who opens it."
"So, is that a yes or a no?"
At her slightly sharp question, I stepped aside.
"Do as you please."
If it didn't matter who opened it, it was better for the person who wanted to open it to do so.
"Heeheehee, alright."
Kayla, with a mischievous laugh, rubbed her palms together and stood before the chest.
Perhaps because it was her first time opening a chest, she seemed quite excited.
"Come forth!"
Without any hesitation, she flung open the lid of the chest.
And then.
Click!
Along with the always pleasant sound, a golden light scattered in all directions.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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