“Tomorrow we’ll take the whole day off, so let’s take it easy.”
We’ve now beaten the boss of the fifth floor, and finished exploring the sixth.
There were a lot of people on the sixth floor, and since the quota was a hundred monsters, we used the shamal horn three times. We managed to finish it in three days, because a king appeared in all three times, along with its numerous entourage.
Also, apparently a king is worth ten monsters. The rules of this dungeon really are a mystery, but at least it helped us finish faster.
“Do you know about demons, Argo? I’d like to hear how we can counter them, if you know.”
“…I see. We need to prepare, so we’ll tell you what we know.”
“Hum, I would like to check the reference room if possible…”
Says Chris while Argo and I talk.
“Then how about you go with us? Maybe they added new information. Sora… I’m pretty sure you can’t use the reference room, because you’re not an adventurer, so you have to sit this one out. We’ll talk and gather our thoughts after we come back.”
And so, Chris and some of Argo’s party go, with Rurika and Sera instead of me.
Rurika doesn’t look too happy about it, because she’s not good at sitting still and reading.
I’m staying in the inn with Mia, Hikari, Rick, and Harold, and we’re borrowing the kitchen.
We went through a lot of food on the fourth floor, but we’re also doing this because Rick and Harold want to learn.
Mia is teaching Hikari and someone from the inn, and I’m teaching them. I say teaching, but we’re focusing on the basics, mostly soup.
As for meat, Hikari can tell them later the proper way to roast it.
“Picking your flavorings is important…”
“If it’s not something too complicated, you can mostly decide it by taste. I use combinations of stuff I bought in stores, so I’ll teach you how to get a feel for that next time.”
It comes down to preference, so they should make things that suit them.
This time, I’m teaching them simple stuff like how to cut vegetables and when to add them to the soup.
We have this for lunch, as we wait for the others to return.
◇ ◇ ◇
Demons. They’re kind of like spirits, so physical attacks don’t work too well. Magic swords, silver swords, weapons with elements attached, and magic are more effective.
They’re hard to take down, but their magic stones have a high degree of purity, and fetch a good price. Part of the reason for their high price is that there aren’t that many out there.
“Their most notable characteristic is their tendency to run away.”
“Run away?”
“Yes. We don’t know the exact criteria, but it’s said that they run away once the battle has gone on for a while, or they take a certain amount of damage. That’s why it’s hard to hunt them, and why we gave up on this floor.”
“So there aren’t many people on the seventh floor?”
“I hear it’s pretty much just Jetblack.”
Them again? He says they also help people who want to move past the seventh floor. For a considerable fee, of course.
Argo says he doesn’t know how high or low it is.
“Well, they say help, but it’s probably just because they want to monopolize hunting grounds.”
And according to Chris, demons use long distance magic if they’re far enough away, so people have to deal with it and get close. And that’s hard to do when there are multiple demons, because their magic seems infinite as they keep firing it, making it hard to get close.
Monsters do have magic energy, so I figured we could wait for it to run out and rush them, but…
“They run away when that happens. Apparently some people can get close enough just before they run out of magic energy. And there’s some unconfirmed information about them running inside walls.”
And records also mention that if you do manage to get close and deal some damage, they won’t run away immediately.
The word immediately implies they do run eventually, but apparently it’s a different story if we keep dealing damage.
…I wonder if Provoke will work.
“So, I guess it’s up to Sora’s party this time!”
Argo says they could slip between the magic of one or two, but they shouldn’t force themselves too much, because demons also cast magic in an area.
Do cello robes block it? Apparently not, as demons don’t cast darkness magic.
Using magic in an area is useful in labyrinth type dungeons, because we can fill a passage with it. But it’s not so good when it’s the enemy that’s using it.
“Demons’ bodies are like spirits, so does that mean we can only collect magic stones?”
“I think they drop horns and feathers too.”
Horns in particular are useful to make weapons that are good against demons and undead.
That makes me wonder why there aren’t more people hunting here, but only skilled blacksmiths can handle those materials, so not many people can make those weapons.
And by not many people, I mean apparently none.
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Thanks for the treat.