As they leaned in together to examine the pamphlet, Lily and Iona were discussing their options. Before long, the other four, including Lisa, began peering over Lily's shoulder to get a better look.
"There are a total of 32 flavors. I'll be serving them every day starting today, so feel free to taste them in order." I said, but everyone had serious expressions as they stared intently at the pamphlet.
"Have you mostly decided?" I asked. One by one, I handed out cones filled with their chosen flavors. "You can eat the brown container that holds the ice cream too. Just be careful not to bite too quickly, or melted ice cream might drip down or fall off."
Having had a bitter experience with soft serve and chocolate cones, I offered these words of caution. I chose matcha ice cream, a flavor crafted by someone who must have been either a genius or a quirky soul. Its rich taste and sophistication perfectly matched my adult palate.
After finishing our ice cream and lounging on the grass for a while, I sensed a presence around us.
"Rockwell! We're surrounded. It's probably Goblins!" Lily seemed to notice it too.
I got up and took out my trusty staff for the first time in ages. Despite their weakness, being surrounded from all sides raised concerns about the safety of the children.
In a split second, I decided to empty a vial of nitroglycerin potion into the bushes where I thought the Goblins might be lurking. It fell into the underbrush, and, unpleasantly, it didn't shatter or explode due to the foliage and dirt. Instead, about ten Goblins emerged from the thicket, screeching and brandishing their clubs as they charged toward us.
Not wanting the vial to be a danger, I quickly retrieved it from the bushes, even though I couldn't see exactly where it landed. I had a general idea of its location and collected it back into my item box. In the end, my nitroglycerin ploy turned out to be pointless, but it seemed no one, including Lily, noticed what I had done.
The ten Goblins continued their wild screeches and swung their clubs as they rushed toward us.
"Leave it to me! Everyone, get down!"
"Fireball! Fireball! Fireball!"
With a swift spin, three fireballs erupted from Lily's hands, hurtling toward the advancing goblins. Each fireball struck its target, sending one goblin flying apart in a burst of limbs, while another nearby was caught in the blast and met its end. Despite moving slower than expected, the fireballs carried a formidable force.
Nonetheless, three goblins that managed to escape turned and fled.
As they ran, Lily called out, "Fire Arrow! Fire Arrow! Fire Arrow!" The three arrows shot forth with incredible speed, piercing the heads of the fleeing goblins.
Lisa and the children stared at Lily, mouths agape. They had just witnessed a terrifying display; the seemingly kind older sister was, in fact, astonishingly powerful. Concerned that the children might be frightened by Lily's strength, I said, "Lily, you did great. If it had been me, I wouldn't have been able to protect the kids if we were surrounded. Thank you."
My praise seemed to ease the children's anxiety a bit.
Despite everything, the area around the fireball explosion was littered with the mangled remains of Goblins—some limbs shattered and scattered, others bizarrely twisted. The heads of three Goblins shot by fire arrows were almost entirely blown off. In short, it was a gruesome sight, and an unpleasant smell wafted through the air.
"Something stinks; let's pack up. Everyone out of the seats and put on your shoes. I'll handle the cleanup," I said. I gathered all the trash, including leftover food and drinks, from the seats and stored them in my item box, then transferred them to the material box. This way, nothing went to waste—truly a zero-emission approach.
Fortunately, due to the earlier chaos, there were no Goblins near the Turtle vehicle, so it remained intact. "Now, let's go for a drive to work up an appetite!"
Once everyone was in the car, I started the engine. The windshield was smeared with an unidentifiable liquid, so I activated the washer and wiped it clean with the wipers. Upon closer inspection, there was also a mysterious substance covering the hood. Given that my initial plan was to run over some Goblins, it felt insignificant.
"Lily, if we head south from here, there's a dungeon owned by the temple, right?"
"I've heard stories about it, but I've never been there myself, so I don't know where it is."
"Well, I guess we'll try searching for it with the mindset that we're lucky if we find it."
"I don't know how many there are, but I've heard that temple guards are keeping watch at the entrance."
"Then let's just scatter them!"
"Are we going to kill them?"
"That might happen, but if we drive the Turtle while honking the horn, they'll probably run away."
"I suppose you're right. Just seeing this vehicle made people on horseback and travelers along the road flee in fear, so honking should send the temple guards scurrying too."
"Don't forget to buckle your seatbelts!"
I tightened my seatbelt and took off. Our goal is the dungeon! As of now, all I know is that there's an entrance to the south. I realize that heading south blindly while searching through the overgrown wilderness won't be easy.
Every jolt of the bumpy ride sends the kids into fits of laughter, making the dungeon hunt feel like an exhilarating off-road adventure. Even if we lose our way back, getting the vehicle stowed and transferring home is a breeze.
As the Turtle crashes through thickets, we occasionally run into goblins, but they are quick to flee in surprise.
"I often encounter goblins. Do you think they have a nest around here?"
"I can't really say," replied Lily, who, having never seen light novels or anime, seemed uncomfortable discussing such topics.
Then, from behind us, someone asked, "Master, if we find a goblin nest, will you defeat all the goblins there?"
"Isn't it a bit cruel to kill them all just because they're goblins?" I said, voicing thoughts I didn't actually believe.
"Well, goblins kidnap, kill, and eat people," Lisa responded. "And if we don't deal with them, they'll just keep multiplying. The slave traders taught me we have to eliminate any we find."
"I see. But my weapon is just a stick, and I'll be relying on Lily's magic, so I can't push things too far."
"Master, you don't need to take risks. If we find a goblin nest, we can leave it and report it to the Adventurers' Guild later. Adventurers will take care of the goblins."
"That's true, but this area is temple land, right?"
"Yes, but under such circumstances, I think the temple would allow them to enter."
"Good point. It's cheaper for them to use their soldiers than to deal with it themselves."
As we continued our conversation, the Turtle ship emerged into a more open area.
"Rockwell, over there are the temple guards," Lily said.
As she pointed out, about 100 meters ahead, six temple guards stood watch. Since I had never seen what a dungeon entrance looked like, I couldn't make an informed judgment, but the guards were undoubtedly standing near it.
"Everyone, cover your ears. It's about to get a bit noisy," I warned.
I honked the horn as I drove the Turtle toward the line of temple guards. The Turtle surged over the rugged terrain, the horn blaring as we closed the distance. The guards seemed to notice the approaching vehicle, but their surprise at the horn caused them to scatter, just as I had planned. In the back seat, Lisa and the kids dutifully covered their ears as instructed.
I had thought that the dungeon entrance would be where the guards stood, and I drove closer, but from inside the car, all I could see was an area overrun with weeds—nothing unusual at all.
"Everyone, stay put. I'm going to get out and check," I instructed.
I stepped out of the Turtle and examined the ground where the guards had been standing, but once again, I found nothing of interest.
Returning to the car, I turned to Lily and said,
"There was nothing on the ground. Why were the temple guards standing here?"
"If there was no entrance to the dungeon, that's a mystery."
"Isn't it strange? I've memorized this spot, so I can always Transfer here. Should we call it a day for now?"
"Sounds good. Wait, Rockwell, doesn't the ground ahead seem to be shimmering?"
"Oh, it does look like it's shimmering. Let me take a closer look."
They got out of the car and approached the anomaly. Using the end of a magic staff retrieved from their item box, they poked at the shimmer. To their surprise, the tip of the staff vanished. When they pulled it back, the tip reattached without issue.
Could some magic be concealing the thing at the edge of the shimmer? Perhaps it was the dungeon entrance?
I called out to Lily, who remained in the car, "Lily, could you come over here for a moment?"
When she arrived, I pointed at the shimmer and said, "Something's hidden ahead. It looks like this."
"It may be obscured by magic, but this shimmer could be the dungeon entrance itself," she suggested.
I realized I had unconsciously assumed that dungeon entrances would be clearly visible, and I hadn't considered that possibility. Lily, with her fresh perspective, had brought this insight to light.
"Let's try going inside," I said.
"Are you sure it's safe?"
"Considering they intended for Lily and the others to tackle this dungeon, peeking inside should be fine."
"You're right."
"While I'm gone, I don't know what might come out, so stay in the car."
"Okay, take care."
Once I confirmed Lily was back in the car, I tentatively dipped my left hand into the shimmering entrance. My fingers vanished one by one, and soon my entire hand from the wrist down disappeared. It didn't hurt at all, and when I pulled my hand back, it was intact, reconnected at the wrist.
Here goes!
A little nervous, I steeled myself and stepped fully into the shifting light.
As I crossed over, I found myself in a gray stone chamber. Though there was a Transfer option, so even if the entrance happened to be one-way, I wouldn't be stuck. Still, it was comforting to have a clear path back. Turning around, I didn't see anything unusual, but there was what looked like a pitch-black mirror reflecting the dim light. This must be the exit of the dungeon. Curious, I touched the tip of my versatile rod to the dark mirror; it vanished inside, but when I pulled back, it reemerged, still connected.
Surprisingly, despite the lack of lighting in the stone chamber, I could see clearly, though the light was dim. In complete darkness, I would need either a torch or a lamp, both of which I could easily craft in my alchemy workshop. I could probably even prepare a battery-powered headlamp. Still, I appreciated the user-friendly design.
After a quick examination of the stone chamber, I found it to be about ten meters square—a surprisingly spacious area in terms of rooms. Both the floor and walls were made of gray stone, and the walls felt like natural rock, not concrete. If the mysterious dungeon were made of concrete, it would resemble some kind of attraction, diminishing the seriousness of the situation, so in a way, I was grateful for the authenticity. While the material of the room didn't matter much, the real issue was that the chamber ended there; it was a dead end. If it were just a mere ten-meter-square dungeon, I could understand, but surely it couldn't be that simple.
Considering the earlier fluctuation, I pressed my hands against the walls of the chamber, searching for any oddities, but I found nothing. "Hmm, would soldiers really be stationed here to guard a mere ten-meter square stone room? Are they using Heroes to conquer this chamber? That seems unlikely."