Chapter 157: Journey Ahead

"Increase your rank...?"

[ In human terms, perhaps you would call it leveling up? The more magic power monsters absorb, the stronger we become. You saw it yourself, did you not? That slime’s attack power became completely unlike that of an ordinary slime after devouring the Imoogi. That is how it works. ]

Wait... Does that mean Mochi has become stronger than usual because it ate the Imoogi?

That incredible firepower might have been partly because of the staff, but perhaps Mochi’s attack amplification skill had already increased before that?

But wait. Mochi ate the entire Imoogi, didn’t it...?

Qiu Nuoya hurriedly pulled Mochi out of the inner pocket of his robe.

[ Nuoya, what’s wrong? ]

Qiu Nuoya appraised Mochi as it innocently stretched and contracted on his palm.

The appraisal displayed a new description.

[ Mochi, Qiu Nuoya’s tamed monster, a fragment of the oldest slime, Slime King. ]

"Mochi, when did you become a Slime King!?"

The Mochi sitting in Qiu Nuoya’s palm seemed to think for a moment before cheerfully replying.

[ Hmm... I don’t know! ]

Since the room where the dungeon core had been located already had a sealing magic circle built into the room itself, the group returned to the pitch black room they had originally been transported into.

Viktor knelt on one knee in the center of the room and began drawing intricate patterns on the floor with his staff. The design was incredibly delicate and almost artistic, but Viktor was certainly not simply drawing a picture.

"So this is how magic circles are drawn..."

Qiu Nuoya watched Viktor work without getting in his way.

Come to think of it, the letter in that mysterious room had said that he would be able to draw teleportation magic circles himself if he read the books there. But would he really be able to learn?

Using magic and drawing a magic circle were similar, yet completely different tasks. Casting magic was a fundamental skill for a mage, but drawing magic circles was more of a craftsman’s trade. There were plenty of mages who could call themselves mages yet had no ability to draw magic circles.

Viktor, however, could handle even that sort of meticulous craftsmanship flawlessly. Qiu Nuoya once again realized just how incredible he really was.

Perhaps because Viktor’s eccentric behavior usually stood out so much, seeing him seriously focused on his work like this made him look unusually cool. It was almost unfair.

Viktor said his work would take about an hour, leaving the others with little to do in the meantime.

Qiu Nuoya felt a little sad when he thought that this meant they had essentially conquered Dungeon Castle. Then again, he had not actually conquered every floor of the dungeon. They had skipped several floors along the way, so his sense of accomplishment was somewhat lacking.

"Igor, which floor of this dungeon castle left the strongest impression on you?"

"If I had to pick one, without a doubt, it would be the vast ocean on the 48th floor. But the 47th floor was pretty incredible too. It was nothing but desert."

"Desert..."

"Sand, sand, and more sand no matter how far we walked. There were Sand Scorpio lurking everywhere, attacking us even though there wasn’t a single place for us to hide. On top of the field being enormous, the temperature changes were brutal. It was scorching hot during the day and freezing cold at night. I thought we were going to die."

"Wow... that sounds rough."

"Floor 46 was a great forest, and floor 45 was a swamp. Every floor had something memorable about it, so it was hard to say which was the best. You guys should go see them for yourselves sometime. Oh, right. I almost forgot. Floor 43 had no day or night cycle, but the scenery was always bathed in the light of dusk, so it was actually quite beautiful. The monsters that appeared there were a pain, though. Death Soldier, Spectral Knight, and all sorts of other troublesome creatures."

As Qiu Nuoya listened to Igor talk about the dungeon, an hour passed in the blink of an eye. Before he knew it, Viktor had finished his work, and the teleportation magic circle was complete.

"Well, that completes everything I was asked to do."

"Good work, Viktor."

"Haha, thanks to Nuoya, conquering the final floor was a piece of cake. I’m not tired at all."

"There’s really no need to give me credit. Long and Mochi were the impressive ones. I’m still only a half-fledged mage myself, after all."

Viktor gave a wry smile and said, "You’re too modest."

But Qiu Nuoya knew that he really was still an inexperienced mage. Without Long and Mochi, he would have struggled considerably more. He could not afford to become complacent. He still had a long way to go and needed to keep improving.

And so, in less than a day, they returned from Dungeon Castle to the surface.

By the time they reached the surface, it was already well past midnight. They decided to wait until morning before reporting to the Adventurer’s Guild, so they went straight home.

Ah, but this house that had gradually come to feel like home had only been lent to them as part of the arrangement for accepting the Dungeon Castle request. Now that they had conquered Dungeon Castle, they probably could not stay here forever.

They had more than enough money to live comfortably for the time being if they sold off the Imoogi materials. Perhaps this would be a good opportunity for everyone to buy a new house and continue living together.

Then again, now that they had accomplished the goal of conquering the dungeon, so there was no particular reason for them to remain in this city.

Perhaps it would be fitting for adventurers like them to set out on a journey once again.

As they ate a late dinner, Qiu Nuoya casually brought up the subject, only for Igor to laugh and say, "Nuoya, you’re so impatient."