Three days immediately passed. They continued their journey into the depths.
Things were going smoothly as Yuichi thought so as they traversed the 39th dungeon floor all the way, which was still part of the Crystal Floor Level.
Depending on how the dungeon is designed, each decile level's specific biome or theme may change. Each level of a dungeon is commonly referred to as a "floor" or "level." Themes associated with common biomes include elemental planes, lava-filled chambers, crypts, icy caverns, forests, and more.
Dungeons are formed in ten equal parts of floors. The first part is the 1st floor range to the 10th floor, which is the Stone Floor. The second part is the 11th floor to the 20th floor, which is the Partial Mutated Luminance Floor. The third part is the 21st floor to the 30th floor, part of the Luminance Floor. The fourth part is the 31st to 40th floor, part of the Dark Floor. The fifth part is the 41st floor to the 50th floor, which is in Crystal Floor.
The rest are yet to be discovered, although, this doesn't apply to all dungeon gates. There are some Dungeon Gates that are formed in deciles or quantiles, in other words, four or five parts of the dungeon biome level.
Needless to say, entering a dungeon gate may vary in theme and difficulty. The descriptions explained above are specifics on the dungeon Yuichi had stuck with.
Over roughly 40 minutes of walking in-depth, Yuichi stumbled across some monsters but was easily defeated by his hand, Lumiella's reliability also helps them advance without difficulties.
Although they are still new to each other, Ubaki does have a little contribution to their party. She was given a rusty old sword Yuichi had found somewhere in the dungeon and, surprisingly, she was skillful about wielding such a dangerous blade.
After more walking in the dungeon, they finally arrived at the end of the 43rd floor as they walked the downward path the system showed Yuichi their new location.
｢Floor 47th - Crystal Floor｣
'So far, we have walked almost three days and three hours in this dungeon and traveled over four floors now. Is the dungeon floor that long to explore, to be honest?' he contemplated.
Dungeon Floors usually are big to explore, but it doesn't mean they take forever to completely explore. Dungeon Floors can be roughly estimated at 15-25 kilometers or around 15 miles. Walking may be slower to reach the end of the floor.
The reason why Yuichi thought about that is because he was leisurely taking his time in the dungeon as if he was secretly admiring its structure, but he wasn't even aware of it. In four months and 17 days of being marooned in the dungeon, he was halfway there to meet the exit of this crappy place.
Another reason is that Lumiella occasionally sleeps more than he does. For example, if Yuichi takes a nap for about six hours, Lumiella doubles that number to herself. Yuichi wouldn't disturb her often too, instead, he would just wait by killing some time in the dungeon like slaying monsters and exploring the place around them.
'I want to speed things up. We should move forward and leave this dungeon for good...' he pondered.
He doesn't have a date goal, but, over one year, Yuichi will engage in various quests and experiences aimed at personal growth and development. Through these experiences, he will acquire new skills and knowledge, ultimately emerging as stronger and more resilient than he was previously.
With this estimation, surely, Yuichi won't be long in the dungeon. It would also be his birthday once he got out in the dungeon with his two exquisite companions.
His previous level was around 39 when he encountered Ubaki in a C-Rank dungeon room. Throughout their journey, he has been slaying monsters with the help of his two companions and has earned a bunch of EXP that he leveled up from 39 to 42.
｢EXP Progression: 84266/172200｣
｢Current Level: 42｣
Unlike before, farming experience points are becoming more efficient because of Lumiella and Ubaki too. While Yuichi takes the front, Ubaki assists her master in confronting the monster while Lumiella provides back support with her powerful summoning magic.
'I've been killing monsters and counted them for about 40 of them crystal monsters. Yet, I'm still under level from the dungeon floor itself.'
Indeed, he's still under level from the dungeon floor as his level is 42 and the dungeon floor he's in is 44. He had a reason to comment about it since monsters depend on the dungeon level, which may cause trouble if he stumbled across a high-level monster that he might not be able to defeat.
When he kills a monster on his own, he receives a solo EXP determined by the system. But when Lumiella or Ubaki kills a monster, the EXP is still distributed to Yuichi and the system will determine the cause as "killed by splash damage".
Because of this, whenever they slay a monster and either Lumiella or Ubaki kills it, the system will give the EXP to Yuichi instead because Lumiella and Ubaki aren't recognized as "players".
It's a huge advantage for Yuichi he can let his two exquisite companions do the job for him if he needs to efficiently get experience points.
But the system showed fairness over this. If Yuichi didn't touch an enemy and either Lumiella or Ubaki killed it, he wouldn't receive any EXP because he's in a state of neutrality.
If he feels threatened or threatened by any adversary he faces and either Lumiella or Ubaki eliminates them, that's where the EXP distribution occurs. Sadly, there's no auto farming experience points.
In this case, he counted 40 monsters that he had slain with the help of Lumiella's piercing vine and Ubaki's assistance. He wouldn't have done it easily without them.
While they were walking on the ground of the 44th floor, the atmosphere seems to be getting more chiller as they progress. The coldness in the vicinity makes Yuichi think that the crystal stones around them are ice that froze by the low temperature.
'It feels cold around here. I need a jacket,' he thought.
At that moment, Ubaki was following him behind and noticed that Lumiella was slowing down behind. She turned around and saw Lumiella having an exhausted face that she could fall to the ground anytime soon.
Seeing Lumiella like this, Ubaki deliberately turned around and called out her master name.
"Master Yuichi, Lumiella is tired," she flatly said.
Yuichi heard her and stopped walking, turning on his heels and saw Lumiella is indeed tired from all the walking they did in the dungeon.
'What...? It's been just three hours since we woke up.' Yuichi looked momentarily disconcerted.
'That's weird... I thought Lumiella is a kid that has a lot of energy. I guess we could rest a bit for now...'
"Okay. Let's find a spot to camp and settle for now. I am also feeling kinda tired." Yuichi said to Ubaki.
Ubaki nodded and walked around the place before finally finding the spot to settle temporarily. She put down the rusty sword and picked up some rocks on the ground to make a campfire. She then formed the rock she had picked into a circle and clears the middle.
Yuichi called out his inventory and grabbed a bunch of crystal stones, putting them on the campfire. He picked up two crystal stones and used them as flint and steel by striking the stone to make a spark.
But a crystal stone's spark burns a pile of crystal stone?
Logically, stones don't scorch in the flame. But crystal stone has an element that makes that scenario possible. Crystal stone is composed of mana energy and neutral elemental magic.
Mana energy is a component that surrounds almost the entirety of a crystal stone, giving their mesmerizing blue color and gem-like texture. The mana in the crystal stone served as an energy that was stored ancient times ago.
On the other hand, there's this "neutral elemental magic" that serves as the nucleus of the crystal stone. Mentioning its name, it has a neutral core that only to be triggered by a certain amount of mana and also imitates elements when in contact.
For example, if a crystal stone was in contact with a fire, then the nucleus of the crystal stone will copy the element of fire and release mana energy outside, creating fire from the crystal stone.
Therefore, if spark can cause ignition on the crystal stone Yuichi strike together, and since the two stones have sufficient mana together, the stones will react and eventually it will nurture into a blue mesmerizing fire.
Yuichi had recently discovered this peculiar technique while he was analyzing the crystal stone a while back. Not only that, his intelligence was a huge help from discovering this.
"That was brilliant, Master." Ubaki compliment.
"Ah, it was nothing special." Yuichi replied.
Those experience points he had grinded were worth it in every bit of it. He softly smiles as he was thankful to himself, what he had done for the past four months, it was definitely worth it.
This is what the motto says: "Hard work pays off."
But amidst, all of the sudden, he had sensed a presence of danger. It was a mana presence that is something colossal, it must belong to a monster that is big.
From his location, he managed to find the location of the mana presence and it was not that far away from them. He stood up from the ground and gave a stare on the dark cavern in the distance, pondering what to do.
If this presence is what Yuichi is thinking, big and has a strong aura that smaller monsters could be immediately intimidated, then he has no choice but to eliminate this danger.
Ubaki noticed that her master was acting cautious and guarded that even she instinctively grabbed her rusty sword on the side.
"What's wrong, Master Yuichi?" She asked.
He heard her and glanced over, replying to her.
"There's something over there that is a threat to us. We will subdue it before anything happens."
Upon hearing his master's words, she instantly understood the assignment and stood up from the ground, grabbing her rusty sword on the cave wall.
"Understood."
But before she follows her master to the dark cavern in the distance, she grabs the large fabric and puts it on top of Lumiella's body as she lies down on the ground, sleeping deeply.
"We'll be back soon," Yuichi whispers to Lumiella before heading into the shadow of the dark cave.
At this very moment, they were in a hurry to slain whatever holds this massive mana presence Yuichi had detected not far away. Eliminating what is a threat to them is a must.
Yuichi runs in the hallway of the dungeon floor as he is following the trail of the mana presence. Although he's the only one who can see it, there was a white trail of ethereal glow of magic.
Ubaki followed him behind, and later on, they arrived at the location of where the mana presence is.
Right there, a monster with two feet standing on the meadow of the dungeon floor with its blankly yet harmonized appearance.
｢Crystal Goliath - Hostile｣
｢Level 44｣
｢Description: ???｣
"I found you," he mumbled seriously.
The Crystal Goliath stands at over 15 feet tall, with a humanoid shape reminiscent of ancient golems. Its body is composed of countless interlocking crystals, ranging in color from clear to various shades of blue, purple, and even amber.
Sharp crystalline spikes protrude from its shoulders and back, adding to its intimidating appearance. Glowing veins of energy pulse within its core, giving it an otherworldly aura.
Yuichi summoned out his sword as it materialized on his hand with glowing blue and prepared himself to figure it off.
He was standing still for a moment, pondering what strategy he needed to defeat this monster easily.
'This monster... It's similar to that thing,' he had a deja Vu upon seeing the monster for the first time.
'The information I needed cannot be transmitted to the system because I have to kill it first. Looking at it, I don't see any red spots that I can indicate as a weak spot.'
Yuichi looked at Ubaki and said; "I have to think of a plan. That monster, I can sense magic coming out, so we must be careful."
Ubaki stared for a moment and understood him. She was waiting a moment to attack, but they have to be careful about this first.
This Goliath is freshly new to both Yuichi and Ubaki. Attacking it without a plan means death, in this case, Yuichi had one plan on his mind and was still evaluating how to execute it well without a flaw.
'Judging from those appearances, maybe it's weak against piercing attacks. Physical damage may work, but I remember correctly, these creatures are similar to the crystal stone, which means, they are immune to magic somehow,' he pondered.
When Yuichi took a step forward, the Goliath immediately alerted as it directly looked at Yuichi with its empty face. Within 15 meters radius, the Goliath can sense anything inside of that radius and become aware.
Crystal Goliath doesn't have eyes to their surroundings, but this blind creature's hearing and instinct awareness are credible and cannot be overlooked. They are the few most known creatures that can attack with purely mana energy with elemental imitation.
Yuichi steps away from the radius but the Goliath remains aware of him, staring at him as if the monster can see him.
He gritted his sword with a troubled expression as he doesn't know how to engage with that level of awareness. Fighting it head-on would be idiotic.
'Damn it, there's no opening. That goliath... Something isn't right about this.' Yuichi thought.
'Flanking it is a must to do, but when I take a step forward, that goliath immediately becomes aware of my presence. If I lower my mana presence, maybe I can go around him without getting notice. But, I don't know how to do it.'
While Yuichi was having a hard time evaluating his first move, all of the sudden, Ubaki tapped his shoulder and he glanced over her.
"Master, let me take care of it. I know how to defeat it," she flat confidently said.
Yuichi was perplexed about the suggestion. Ubaki said that she can take the goliath down, but she didn't mention any plan of how to.
"And how can you do that?" Yuichi asked in curiosity.
Ubaki looked at her sword she was holding and touched the tip of the sword to see if it was still spikey sharp. Determined about what she's gonna do, she looked at Yuichi with resolve.
"I will take its head off," she replied rather confidently but her tone remains flat.
"That's impossible. That goliath can detect anyone once you are nearby. Range attack would do the work but it needs to be a non-magic attack to damage that thing." Yuichi comments about the flaw of her plan.
"Then it's a perfect plan."
"That's good to hear... Wait, what?"
Ubaki was resolved and faced the Goliath with her confidence in her eyes, though, her expression remained incredulous.
She used her left hand to aim at the goliath's head while adjusting her right hand to throw the sword on the goliath's head. That was her plan all along.
After finding the right moment, she charges her hand with magic that she was surrounded with a green aura of magic that seems to be associated with wind. And then, whoosh, she throws the sword to the goliath's head with perfect accuracy.
The sword travels through the flow of wind and impales the goliath's head, making the 15 feet long monster give a piercing screech that it reverberated through the whole dungeon floor.
After a huge scream, its head cracked and exploded into celestial fragments on the ground, flopping its remaining body to the ground, completely neutralized.
Yuichi watches the Goliath die just like that, he couldn't believe what he had witnessed. Even himself can't take the monster down with that level of power, let alone having the most bold plan to defeat the Crystal Goliath, Ubaki was different.
'No... No freaking way...' he was completely dumbfounded in his thoughts that his expression was evident.
Yuichi awkwardly looked at Ubaki, still couldn't believe what she just did to that Goliath. It was directly disrespectful to get one shot when you know you are strong.
Ubaki fixed her pose and looked at Yuichi with her incredulous yet excited expression.
"Master, I did it," she said.
Yuichi stared for a moment, still dumbfounded and surprised before realizing that she was speaking to him.
"Huh? Oh, y-yeah! You did it..." He stuttered.
Still, he couldn't believe it after that. Yuichi realized that he wasn't able to get to know her capabilities about magic. Seeing her one shot the level 44 monster with basically nothing to worry about, it was determined that she's more powerful than she looks to be.
'Just what are you...' Yuichi was in deep thought about her origin now.
｢You have slain 1 Crystal Goliath
You have earned Solo EXP 300000
EXP Progression: 31466/189200｣
｢Level up+｣
｢Level up+｣
｢You have received a loot - Prismatic Colossus
Description: This shard, infused with the energy of the Crystal Goliath, radiates a faint glow and possesses potent magical properties. It can be used by skilled craftsmen or mages to enhance the power of weapons or spells, granting them increased potency or new abilities related to earth or crystal magic.｣
｢Discovery: Crystal Goliath - Hostile
Description: The Crystal Goliath is a towering behemoth, standing over 15 feet tall, composed entirely of shimmering crystals. Its crystalline form refracts light in mesmerizing patterns, giving it an otherworldly appearance. With immense strength derived from its dense crystal structure, it can unleash devastating attacks by channeling pure mana energy through its body. Sharp crystalline spikes protrude from its shoulders and back, adding to its intimidating presence. Glowing veins of energy pulse within its core, hinting at the formidable power contained within this formidable guardian of the crystal realm.｣