"Now that you mention it," Lily replied.
"Based on my knowledge from light novels and games, I believe this connects to somewhere far away. Perhaps another dungeon or the deepest part of this one."
"What should we do?"
"I'll enter the fluctuation alone to investigate. I have Transfer, so if things go south, I can return here immediately."
"Wait a second. If this anomaly is a trap, it might lead to a really dangerous place. Identify Trap!"
"It doesn't seem to be a trap," I said.
"Thank you, Lily. If it were a trap, I might have been stuck in the stone."
Ignoring Lily's puzzled expression, I stepped into the distortion.
On the other side of the distortion lay a cave dungeon, similar to the ones we'd encountered before, with the tunnel extending further ahead. After getting used to the brightness of Lily's light, the dim glow of the cave felt much darker.
I assumed that the familiar black, mirror-like Sky space was behind me, just like when I first entered the dungeon. So I turned to look, only to find a solid rock wall—nothing else was there. I took a few steps toward the wall, but it was just a dead end. "So it was a one-way passage. If it weren't me, that could have been a real problem."
"Transfer!"
Not wanting to worry Lily, I quickly used Transfer to return to the cave dungeon where she was waiting.
"Lily, it's just like this cave over there. I could access it from here, but there was nothing behind me when I emerged, so it was a one-way trip."
"Where did it lead?"
"All I could tell was that the cave continued straight ahead."
"Next time, let's go together."
"Right."
Once more, I stepped into the distortion, and Lily followed closely behind me, with Bunny perched on her shoulder as usual.
"Detect anomaly!"
The new cave showed no signs of anything unusual.
"This cave seems quite long as well."
"I really want to know where we are. It's probably still within the dungeon, but it could be a different one."
I muttered "map" while keeping an eye on the corner of my vision, but based on our current location, the dungeon we had just come from seemed to be outside the map.
"Is there an upward staircase ahead?"
"I can't say for sure, but there should be something in As Expected. After all, there's that Sky feature."
"Now that you mention it, the dungeon is actually quite comfortable in a way. The temperature is just right, and it's dry enough that we hardly sweat."
"It's said that dungeons are designed to attract people, often with treasure chests, so it makes sense that the environment inside would be pleasant for humans."
"That's true."
"But remember, the entrance to the dungeon we entered was pretty hard to find, right?"
"Yeah, that's right. So, does that mean the dungeon wants people with some level of skill, not just novices?"
"That might be it. We may never uncover the truth, but isn't it more interesting for the mystery to remain intact?"
As we chatted casually, we strolled deeper into the new cave dungeon.
"What is that?"
As Lily and I ventured deeper into the cave, a silhouette resembling a four-legged animal appeared about 100 meters ahead. There were three of them, and they were quite large.
I had never seen a calf in person, but these creatures seemed to be at least that size. I took a defensive stance with my staff.
"Those are probably wolf-type monsters," I said.
"Rockwell, can I take them all down?" Lily asked eagerly.
"Of course, but what's on your mind?"
"I want to try out a new spell."
"What kind of magic?"
"Just wait and see."
Her confidence facing monsters the size of calves was impressive. I would act as her backup, ready to step in if she missed one.
Suddenly, the monsters charged toward us. As the lead wolf closed the distance, I could see clearly that it was indeed a wolf.
When the wolf was about 30 meters away, I heard Lily shout from behind, "Lightning!"
At that moment, a brilliant white light struck the lead wolf, and the energy split off, hitting the other two running behind.
All three wolves fell forward, momentum carrying them down as they lay still.
"Wow," I marveled.
Lily called the spell "Lightning," but with my experience in light novels and games, I recognized it as "Chain Lightning." Regardless of the name, it was impressive.
"It worked out well."
As Lily approached the wolf she had taken down in one strike, she found all three lying dead with their eyes wide open.
"I forgot to appraise that slime earlier, but let me check it now. Appraisal. Cave Wolf, it says."
"Cave Wolf, huh? I've never seen a real wolf, but this one is massive."
"It looks like it weighs close to 100 kilograms."
"It might be even heavier. If one of these charged at you like a sumo wrestler, just the impact would be devastating. I should store the bodies for now. You can eat cow meat, but I don't think wolf meat is edible."
"Can you even eat monster meat?"
"Based on what I know from light novels and games, it seems you can. Sometimes, it even has unique benefits that regular meat doesn't offer. After escaping from the temple, I often had skewers of meat without knowing exactly what it was, so it might be more common than you think. Still, even if wolf meat is edible, it's probably tough and unpleasant, right? I bet Risa would know about that; I'll ask her when we get back."
"Good idea."
"By the way, my staff and Lily's mace are getting darker. According to my light novel and game knowledge, when you defeat monsters, your weapons get stronger and change color. But I haven't been fighting with my staff recently, and I don't think Lily has used her mace either. Maybe defeating any monster strengthens the main weapons of everyone in the party."
"My magic staff was just an ordinary stick I found in a temple, but now it looks incredibly powerful and it's gotten quite heavy, too."
"My mace has also become heavier, yet it's still just as easy to handle."
"That's one of the mysteries of the dungeon, I suppose."
We continued our walk, sticking to the main path despite numerous side trails. We hadn't encountered any wolves, but thanks to Bunny's warnings, Lily fired Fire Arrows a few times to fend off some slimes. My role remained limited to collecting the remains.
As we ventured deeper into the cave, something approached us from ahead.
"Hey, something's flying our way.
It's a flying monster, but it doesn't have bat-like wings. Looks like a new type."
About fifty meters ahead, we spotted a monster hovering in the air. It wasn't very large, resembling a larger toy drone, but it was undoubtedly a unique creature of the dungeon.
I readied my staff, while Lily fixed her gaze on the creature. Once it got within range, she would easily shoot it down.
The monster approached, sizing us up.
Oh! It really is a drone!
"Lily, let's observe it instead of shooting."
"Understood."
In a park near Zenjirou's apartment, a dungeon had appeared inside a pyramid. At the entrance of this dungeon, located in the Sky Cave, a unit headquarters of the Ground Self-Defense Force was set up. Inside the headquarters, a soldier operated a reconnaissance drone while looking at a laptop screen. He addressed the Captain, saying, "Captain, we have detected two humanoid monsters 250 meters ahead of the 1st Squad, 2nd Platoon. There seems to be a light source nearby."
"Humanoids? This is the first time we've encountered such monsters. Exercise caution," the Captain replied.
"Understood."
The Captain then issued further instructions to the 1st Squad, 2nd Platoon. "This is the Captain. The drone has spotted two humanoid monsters 250 meters ahead of your position. Proceed forward to confirm details. However, since these humanoid monsters might not be hostile, refrain from engaging until further orders."
'1st Squad, 2nd Platoon acknowledges.'
The drone slowly approached the humanoid figures, revealing their full appearance. The Captain leaned over the drone operator's shoulder to peek at the laptop monitor. "They're humans! Dressed in leather armor and wearing helmets. But what's that glowing, fiery orb above one of their heads? The backlight makes it hard to see the details."
The second squad of the first platoon observed that the two figures ahead were clearly human.
"Two of you should approach with caution and demonstrate that we have no intention to engage. The remaining four will maintain a distance of twenty meters behind the two and stay alert for any changes," the commander instructed.
"Understood, first platoon, second squad."
"I'd like to see their facial expressions, but can we filter it somehow?"
"We've been trying that—how about this?"
"It's a woman with a light above her head; the other is a man. The man holds a long stick with both hands at the ready. The woman appears to be empty-handed, but wait—does she have something on her shoulder?
It's a bird. The woman has a bird perched on her shoulder. Who are these people?"
The drone pulled back slightly, revealing two men approaching with their hands raised to shoulder height.
They wore what looked like Self-Defense Force camouflage uniforms, slung their weapons over their shoulders, and had grenades attached to their belts. They unmistakably appeared to be part of the Self-Defense Force. With their night vision goggles lifted to their helmets, their facial features were clearly visible—without a doubt, they were Japanese.
It seemed we had jumped into a dungeon that had formed in Japan.
"We have no intention to fight," a Self-Defense Force member spoke to us in English. To them, we might be seen as aliens or worse, monsters, which could explain their cautious approach. I lowered the staff I had been holding, gripping it in my left hand as I faced the approaching soldier.
"We're both Japanese. So, you're with the Self-Defense Forces, right?"
"Why are Japanese people here?"
"Let's just say we've got our reasons for being here. And just to clarify, we didn't intrude into the pyramid on a whim."
"What's going on?"
"If it's come to this, I can't avoid giving you some details."
I'd rather not divulge much, but I can't come up with a better story. So here goes—
We were summoned from another world, managed to escape, and found ourselves exploring this dungeon as adventurers. We'll go with that. It might lack some specifics, but it's essentially the truth.
Still, if this turns into a serious interrogation, they'll separate me from Lily, making it tough to coordinate our stories.
It's a bit problematic that both our faces are known to the police, but I suppose I'll just have to play dumb. I want to return before those at the mansion start worrying, but that seems unlikely.
Fortunately, with my Transfer ability, I can send things to any location I remember, so I can write a letter and send it. I've handed over my cash to Lisa for now, so I should manage, and if I need to, I can send money too. If I end up being held for too long, I'll definitely make my escape.
As for Bunny, my Parrot, I'm not sure if it can survive in this dungeon, so I'll need to return it to paradise soon.
A figure resembling a Self-Defense Forces captain spoke into the radio.
"This is Squad 2 of Infantry Platoon 1. We have secured one male and one female, presumably Japanese."
"The squad is to return to the company headquarters with the two."
"Squad 2, understood."
"I would like to speak with both of you, so please accompany us to headquarters."
I nodded at Lily and replied to the captain, "Understood."
Guided by the Self-Defense Forces, Lily and I walked through the cave. After about two kilometers, we reached a large chamber, known as Sky Cave, where several makeshift tables were set up, crowded with people. This must be the company headquarters. During our walk, I managed to convey the story to Lily, letting her know that Bunny was being returned to paradise.