The air in the dungeon grew damp as Rina and Keitaro pressed onward, the faint sound of dripping water echoing through the corridors. The flickering light from Rina's staff illuminated the path ahead, casting eerie shadows on the walls.
"How much farther to the exit?" Keitaro asked, his voice a mix of impatience and anxiety.
"Not far," Rina replied, her tone clipped and focused.
"Are you sure this time? Or is it another 'I think' situation?"
Rina huffed. "Yes, I'm sure. Now be quiet. The dungeon isn't going to roll out a welcome mat for us."
Keitaro muttered something about "rude dungeon etiquette" but held his tongue as they pressed forward. The corridor widened into a small chamber filled with broken rubble and slimy puddles.
A low squelching noise echoed from the shadows. Rina stopped, her staff raised.
"What is it?" Keitaro asked, suddenly nervous.
"Stay quiet," Rina whispered, her eyes scanning the chamber.
A blob of gelatinous goo slithered into view, its translucent body glistening in the dim light. The faint outlines of bones and scraps of metal floated inside it.
"A slime," Rina muttered, relaxing slightly.
Keitaro let out a snort. "A slime? Really? Those are like the weakest enemies in every anime and manga ever! This should be a cakewalk."
"Shh," Rina hissed, stepping forward.
She raised her staff and muttered an incantation. A small ball of fire shot from the staff's tip, striking the slime directly. The creature quivered as its outer layer sizzled and melted away.
"See? No problem," Rina said, lowering her staff.
But as the slime recoiled, it suddenly began to reconstitute itself, reforming its damaged parts with ease.
"Uh… Rina? Why isn't it dead?" Keitaro asked, his voice rising.
Rina frowned, gripping her staff tightly. "It's… just being stubborn, that's all. I'll finish it off."
She launched another fireball at the slime, and then another, but the creature absorbed the attacks, its gelatinous body rippling but refusing to dissolve entirely.
"Okay, maybe this one's a little tougher than usual," Rina admitted, her voice strained.
"Are you serious?" Keitaro groaned. "It's just a slime! How hard can it be?"
Rina ignored him, her jaw set in determination. The slime lunged, a pseudopod of goo whipping out toward her. She barely dodged, stumbling backward as the attack grazed her robes.
"Rina! Watch out!" Keitaro shouted.
"I know!" she snapped, summoning a gust of wind to push the slime back. The creature wobbled but recovered quickly, oozing forward with unnerving persistence.
"Why won't it just die?" Keitaro said, panic creeping into his voice.
Rina didn't answer, sweat dripping down her face as she tried another spell. A swirling vortex of air slammed into the slime, scattering bits of its body across the chamber.
For a moment, it seemed like the fight was over—but the pieces of goo began to wiggle and merge back together, reforming into the same quivering mass.
Rina bit her lip, her confidence waning.
"You're struggling against a slime," Keitaro said, disbelief evident in his voice. "Are you sure you're a mage?"
Rina flinched, but her expression hardened. "Of course I'm a mage!" she snapped, hurling another fireball at the slime.
The creature lunged again, forcing her to leap out of the way. Her foot caught on a piece of rubble, and she fell to the ground with a yelp. The slime surged forward, its gelatinous body quivering as it prepared to engulf her.
"Rina!" Keitaro shouted.
Rina scrambled to her feet, her breathing ragged. She raised her staff, desperation flashing in her eyes. With a shout, she unleashed a concentrated blast of wind and fire, slamming into the slime with enough force to splatter it across the chamber walls.
This time, the creature didn't reform. The remaining bits of goo sizzled and melted into harmless puddles.
Rina sank to her knees, her staff clattering to the ground.
"Finally," she muttered, wiping sweat from her brow.
Keitaro let out a long sigh of relief. "That… was way harder than I expected. I thought slimes were supposed to be pushovers."
"They are," Rina said quietly, avoiding his gaze.
Keitaro tilted his lid in confusion. "Then why—"
"Can we not talk about it?" Rina interrupted, her tone sharper than usual. She stood up, brushing herself off.
"Rina," Keitaro said cautiously, "you were struggling. Like, really struggling. Are you sure you're okay?"
Rina hesitated, her green eyes darting to the ground. "I'm fine," she said quickly. "Let's just keep moving."
Keitaro wasn't convinced. "You're not exactly acting like someone who's confident in their abilities."
Rina's grip tightened on her staff. "Look, I'm still learning, okay?" she blurted, her cheeks flushing. "I'm a mage in training. I've only been at this for a few months."
Keitaro blinked. "Wait, you're not even fully qualified?"
"No," Rina admitted reluctantly. "This dungeon is supposed to be a low-level challenge… but things aren't exactly going according to plan."
Keitaro stared at her, stunned. "You mean to tell me my life depends on a rookie?"
Rina glared at him. "Hey, I just saved your porcelain butt, didn't I? Cut me some slack."
Keitaro sighed, a mix of exasperation and amusement. "Fair enough. But maybe next time, don't act so confident when you're barely hanging on."
Rina rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress a small smile. "Noted. Now, let's keep moving before something worse shows up."
As they resumed their trek through the dungeon, Keitaro found himself feeling oddly impressed. Rina might have been inexperienced, but her determination and courage were undeniable.
For her part, Rina tried to shake off her embarrassment. She had a lot to prove—not just to herself, but to the strange, talking toilet that had somehow become her companion.
The dungeon grew quieter as Rina and Keitaro pressed on, their earlier tension slowly giving way to cautious relief. The eerie glow of the dungeon walls provided faint illumination, and the only sound was the steady clink of Rina's boots against the stone floor.
Keitaro finally broke the silence. "So… any idea how much farther to the exit?"
"Not too far," Rina said, though her voice lacked the certainty she'd had before. "We've cleared most of the dungeon's lower sections, so the exit should be just ahead."
"Good," Keitaro said. "I don't know how much more of this dungeon life I can handle."
Rina glanced down at him, curiosity flickering in her eyes. "Hey, back there… you said something about slimes being weak in 'anime and manga.' What's that supposed to mean?"
Keitaro hesitated. "Oh, right. Uh… it's kind of hard to explain. They're things from my world."
"Your world?" Rina prompted, her brows furrowing.
"Yeah. I mean, I wasn't always a toilet," Keitaro said, his tone taking on a wistful edge. "Back in my world, I was a human. Just a regular guy. You know, going to work, watching TV, that kind of stuff. But my favorite pastime was watching anime and reading manga."
Rina looked puzzled. "Anime and manga… are those some kind of books or magic scrolls?"
Keitaro chuckled. "Not exactly. Manga are kind of like illustrated stories—think of them as picture books for older kids and adults. And anime is… well, imagine those stories turned into moving pictures with voices and music."
Rina tilted her head, her expression skeptical but intrigued. "That sounds… complicated."
"It's not, really," Keitaro said. "In my world, anime and manga are a big deal. They tell all kinds of stories—adventures, romances, battles, you name it. I was what you'd call an otaku—someone who's a little obsessed with that stuff."
"Obsessed?" Rina raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah," Keitaro admitted sheepishly. "I spent most of my free time watching anime, reading manga, and collecting merchandise. I even had a waifu."
"A waifu?" Rina repeated, the word unfamiliar on her tongue.
"Uh…" Keitaro hesitated, realizing how awkward this might sound. "A waifu is… how do I put this? It's like a character from anime or manga that you really admire or have a crush on. Kind of like a favorite hero or idol, but more personal."
Rina's eyes widened in disbelief. "You… had a crush on a fictional character?"
"Hey, don't judge," Keitaro said defensively. "It's more common than you think! My waifu was Belldandy. She's this kind, gentle goddess with long, flowing hair and a smile that could melt your heart."
Rina snorted. "You fell for a goddess? Isn't that aiming a little high?"
"She wasn't just any goddess," Keitaro said, his tone growing reverent. "She was perfect. Sweet, caring, and she always put others before herself. She was… well, let's just say she set a pretty high bar for what I'd want in a partner."
Rina's expression softened slightly, though she tried to hide it. "So… you spent your life admiring someone who wasn't even real?"
"It's not like that," Keitaro said quickly. "I mean, sure, she's fictional, but the feelings—the lessons you learn from those characters—they're real. Anime and manga helped me get through a lot of tough times. They inspired me."
Rina was quiet for a moment, her green eyes studying him thoughtfully. "You're a strange one, Keitaro."
"Yeah, well, I'm a toilet now, so I guess strange is kind of my thing," he said with a laugh.
Rina smiled faintly. "Your world sounds… interesting. I can't imagine having stories like that where I'm from. Most of our tales are just passed down orally or written in old tomes. Nothing like what you described."
"Maybe I'll tell you more about it someday," Keitaro said. "That is, if we survive this dungeon."
Rina rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress a small laugh. "Fair enough. Now let's focus on getting out of here."
As they continued toward the exit, Keitaro found himself feeling strangely at ease. For the first time since his bizarre reincarnation, he'd had a chance to talk about his old life, and it felt oddly comforting.
And for Rina, the more she listened to Keitaro's strange stories, the more she realized just how different—and unexpectedly fascinating—he really was.