An icy breath escaped the jaws of a quadrupedal monster with lupine characteristics. Its fangs, claws, tail, and fur were reinforced with shards of gleaming ice, giving it a chilling and fearsome appearance. The chamber was littered with these menacing beasts, their eyes unfathomably deep and cold as they prowled.
[Arctic Dire Wolf | Lvl 25 | General]
The imposing presence of these creatures sent a chill down Daisuke's spine. Deactivating the Eye of Verity, he slowly withdrew from the bend he had been peeking around. Moving stealthily, he scaled a wall, disappearing into a hidden cavern that led him back to the others in under five minutes.
"Arf!" Zephyr leaped into Daisuke's arms upon his return, his energy and vitality finally restored.
"Zephyr, you're finally awake!" Daisuke cheered in an undertone as he hugged the pup close. "That Berserk skill really did a number on you, buddy; I thought you were never going to wake up."
Lyanna raised one eyebrow teasingly. "I'm surprised you weren't knocked out cold too, after battling that thing."
"I felt like it," Daisuke confessed with a wry smile. "But if I pass out in here, I might just wake up in heaven."
"Or hell," Gavric added.
"Hey!" Daisuke retorted with a playful jab of his finger. "We only accept positive vibes in this party, buddy."
Elena couldn't help but giggle. "I never thought you could be this talkative, Haxks."
"She's right, y'know," Rexar accused with a frown. "You gave us nothing but the cold shoulder before the dungeon."
"Just thought I'd try to lighten the mood while we're down here," Daisuke explained.
"Well, it's definitely appreciated," said Finnian.
Milo nodded in agreement with a smile, but Rexar pouted.
"So," Gavric urged, "what did you find out?"
The group's undivided attention was on Daisuke as he relayed the information. "Dire Wolves. Lots of them. But we should be safe if we camp here for the night. Let's all get plenty of rest and devise a game plan tomorrow. All in favor?"
Everyone raised their hand. "Aye~"
Suddenly, Milo's stomach growled loudly, and he awkwardly punched himself in the gut. "S-Sorry," he apologized, his cheeks flushing as he tousled his hair. "My body's cannibalizing itself trying to replenish my mana."
Elena placed a hand on her tummy dejectedly. "Come to think of it, we haven't had anything to eat since breakfast."
Lyanna's expression crumpled. "Of all the weeks to start a diet, I had to choose this one."
"I could eat an entire minitaur right now," murmured Rexar, his own stomach now growling in protest.
Though Gavric and Finnian were equally famished, they remained stoically silent, refusing to voice any complaints. Daisuke, noticing their hunger, heaved a wan smile. With a flick of his arm, he summoned a pile of firewood from his inventory. They fell onto the ground with a clatter, and then he began neatly stacking them together into a heap, astonishing the group.
"Zephyr."
"Ruff~"
With evident restraint, the canine spat a tiny ball of fire onto the dried wood, swiftly engulfing them in flames. Next, Daisuke retrieved the sizeable heap of moss he had gathered.
Rexar shifted his gaze to Finnian with a challenging frown, and the samurai raised his hands in surrender.
"I still don't think that makes him a ranker," he defended flatly.
Milo smiled at their playfulness.
"Do you recall when I went to fetch my weapon?" Daisuke began to explain. "Upon revisiting the place where we fell into the dungeon, I noticed that the roots from the trees on the surface were protruding from the walls.
Anticipating that we might be spending several nights down here, I took the liberty of preparing firewood. Additionally, I collected all the moss I could find on the walls; we can use it as bedding to sleep on."
Gavric closed his mouth, his surprise evident as he spoke. "At this point, your resourcefulness doesn't surprise me anymore," he acknowledged. "What truly has me stumped is your storage ability. Do you happen to possess a magic bag like Professor Bayley?"
As Daisuke contemplated his response, he summoned a wooden pail he had received from Gretchen, its contents sloshing gently as he lifted it. Filled with cool, refreshing water, he topped up a mug and began passing it around to quench their thirst.
"What I have possesses the same subspace capabilities as a magic bag," he informed, "but it uses a different concept. Instead of a material object, this storage space is made possible entirely due to a skill."
"…A skill?" Lyanna's eyebrow quirked in question. "Oh. You mean magic?"
Daisuke frowned inwardly. It looks like NPCs are not meant to fathom the world from the perspective of a player; what we see as skills, they perceive as a form of magic.
"Then I suppose it's just one of the many perks of being a Fallen," Finnian assumed.
"Yes, that's right," Daisuke confirmed—though, he wasn't sure how to feel about being referred to as a Fallen.
Everyone waited in anticipation to see what else he would conjure from his seemingly endless bag of tricks. What had initially started as a demonstration of resourcefulness had now evolved into a captivating magic show.
"After some experimentation," Daisuke continued, "I've discovered that anything I store inside this subspace is frozen in time, which means..."
With a wave of his hand, he conjured a bed of large leaves, upon which he summoned loaves of bread, fruits, roasted Horned Rabbit, and fish. "...I can even maintain food at the same temperature it was placed in, and it never spoils."
Between the groundbreaking revelation and the tantalizing smell of the food, everyone was left completely dumbstruck.
"Help yourselves," offered Daisuke with a smile. "I have enough rations to last us a few weeks, and we can always cut down a few monsters if we run out."
The party, their hunger overcoming them, began feasting like starving wolves.
"Under normal circumstances," Daisuke added, "I would offer a stew to warm your bellies, but I've had a bad experience with food attracting monsters, which is why I gave you cold bread and meat."
"That's nom-nom-nom understandable," spat Gavric with a mouthful of bread. "The smell of hot food nom-nom-nom carries much farther."
"Wow, this is delicious!" Elena gushed excitedly. "Haxks nom-nom-nom… did you make all this yourself?"
Daisuke patted his head shyly. "…Yeah."
Lyanna, with a twinkle in her eye, exclaimed, "Oh my gosh! This is great! Haxks, by chance… do you have a girlfriend? I could definitely get used to this."
Elena pouted in jealousy, prompting her to eat even faster for some inexplicable reason.
"Ha-ha!" Gavric chuckled. "They do say the quickest way to a woman's heart is through her stomach. I guess they were onto something."
Laughter and camaraderie filled the chamber as the party enjoyed their unexpected feast in the midst of uncertainty and danger.