We fully enjoyed the twelfth floor and now we arrived at the thirteenth floor.
""Blue~""
This time, it was a blue rock tunnel.
"I see. If that's the case, the next floor might be white... or rather, a transparent tunnel?"
""Why?""
"I was just thinking that it might be the same color as the first floor forest. The first floor forest had green, red, blue, and transparent, right?"
""Oh~""
Somehow, I feel that this dungeon is composed of the four colors we saw on the first floor.
"Let's hurry up and check it out!"
"It will surely be transparent!"
Allen and Elena seem eager to see the next floor, so they briskly proceed through the thirteenth floor.
"Aren't you going to collect the blue Ant Honey?"
""... Will collect it.""
When I mentioned the loot from the blue Ant Soldier that would likely appear on this floor, the two quickly changed their minds.
(Allen, Elena, it came right away~)
""Will defeat it! —Water Blade.""
Responding to Joule's call, the children immediately cast their magic.
""Got the blue honey~""
And they successfully obtained the blue Ant Honey they were after.
"Well then... shall we go to the fourteenth floor?"
"Not yet~"
"Not until we collect more~"
As expected, a few pieces of Ant Honey weren't enough for them, so we enjoyed hunting ants on this floor a bit more before aiming for the fourteenth floor.
◇ ◇ ◇
""Oh~""
"It really is transparent, huh~"
As expected, the fourteenth floor was a transparent tunnel. Well, it wasn't perfectly clear, but rather somewhat cloudy.
"Transparent stone, huh?"
""Can we use it?""
"Hmm, I don't know if it's usable, but it's certainly rare."
""Then, let's take it as a souvenir~""
Since it's rare, we decided to mine and collect a little of it. There might be some use for it after all.
(Uwah!)
"What? What happened?"
Just as we collected a decent amount of stone and started walking to seriously tackle the fourteenth floor, Vector suddenly shouted. Startled, I looked over to see him crouching on the ground.
(I fell into a hole~)
"A hole?"
(Yeah, a hole. The ground was dented, but I didn't notice at all~)
After hearing Vector's words, I took a closer look around. Sure enough, there were slight depressions and raised areas on the ground.
"There are bumpy areas just like the other floors, but because it's transparent, they're hard to notice. ...It's dangerous."
Even just walking normally, we could trip if we're not careful.
"Everyone, no running."
""((((Okay))))""
"Umu."
Since it's dangerous, we decided to walk slowly.
"Ah, I have a bad feeling... Do you think there might be transparent monsters on this floor?"
""Ah!""
Invisible enemies would be too dangerous.
""Something might come~""
"Really? Is it within sight already?"
"Not yet~"
"From now on~"
As we were thinking about this, it seemed something triggered Allen and Elena's Presence Detection.
""It's here!""
(It's a white Soldier Ant!)
"Good. If it's that, we can see it."
Soon after, a pure white soldier ant appeared, not a transparent one. I'm relieved we weren't ambushed by an invisible monster.
""Water Blade.""
Allen and Elena immediately cast their magic to defeat the Soldier Ant and then started to run towards the loot.
"I told you, no running."
""Oh, right~""
It seemed that running towards the loot had become a habit for them, and they did it unconsciously.
"The honey is white~"
"This one is transparent~"
"Really, both types?"
When we walked over to pick up the drop items, there were indeed two kinds of Ant Honey.
""They drop both~""
"Heh~ Oh, yes, both are definitely Ant Honey."
""Yay~""
Using Appraisal to check, both were indeed ant honey. The white one looked like condensed milk, and the transparent one like syrup.
"These two seem pretty usable."
""Really?""
"Yes, like for sweetening cold drinks, among other things."
""Let's collect a lot!""
It would be great for sweetening iced coffee. We had something similar to syrup before, but it was watery and not very sweet, making it hard to use in drinks. The white one could also be used in milk-based drinks. Oh, and the green, red, and blue Ant Honey might work well as syrup for shaved ice. I'll have to try that later.
(Whoa!)
"Radian!?"
Just as we were about to start collecting Ant Honey again, we heard Radian's shout. When I hurriedly looked over, I saw a pet door-like flap on the wall, swinging. And Radian was nowhere to be seen!
""Radian!""
"Wait! Allen, Elena! Why did you jump in without caution?"
Following Radian, Allen and Elena also jumped through the flap. I hurriedly opened the door to look through and saw that it led to a slide-like chute, ending in a small semi-underground room.
"Allen, Elena, Radian, are you okay!?"
""We're okay!""
(I'm fine~)
It seemed they weren't hurt. However, the door was too small for me to follow.
(Oniichan, I will follow them down.)
(I will too, Niisama.)
"Alright, please."
(Understood.)
(Got it.)
Joule and Feat, in their smaller forms, could pass through the door, so they went down to follow the kids.
(Mumu? … I don't think I can fit through this.)
"... You don't have to force yourself to go."
Vector also tried to go through the door, but even when he shrank, it looked like he wouldn't fit. I stopped him before he got stuck, as that would prevent me from checking below as well.
"Hey, can you guys come back?"
(Please wait a bit, Oniichan. Allen and Elena have started exploring the room with great interest.)
When I called for them to come back, Joule asked for some time.
(Is something down there?)
(There must be treasure!)
Bolt and Mile could fit through the door, but they seemed to have decided to stay here with me.
"Hmm... well, it doesn't seem like there are any monsters, so it should be fine, right?"
"Even if there are no monsters, there could be traps."
"I see, that's a valid concern. Let me go down and check."
Kaiser turned into a snake and slithered down.
"... It's frustrating that I can't go myself."
I was worried about the children, but there wasn't much I could do, and that made me feel uneasy.