In the lobby of the Nagoya Dungeon, they were selling rice balls.
There was also tea available for a fee, and a service where you could refill your thermos.
Apparently, they used high-quality tea leaves from a famous brand called Myō○en or something.
Both were a bit pricey, but since we were here, I bought them anyway.
「Today, the 25th floor is reserved. If you need to pass through that floor, please ring the bell placed at the entrance to call for assistance. If there’s no bell, that means the reservation period is over, and you’re free to explore as usual.」
A staff explained as we were guided to the third floor, which was open for free movement.
Floor reservations were one of the privileges granted to members of the EPO Corporation and only available from the 21st floor and up—but the process to apply was a hassle, so we’d never used it before.
Not that we really needed to—after all, we had our own PD dungeons, which didn’t require any applications.
Our target was the melons on the 17th floor, so there was no real need to go as far as the 25th.
But I couldn’t help but wonder—was that floor so amazing that someone would go out of their way to reserve it?
As we made our way downward using the map, I thought about it.
I’d left my smartphone in the locker at the changing room, so I couldn’t look it up now.
In times like this…
『Hime, quick question.』
『What is it, Taira?』
『We’re in the Nagoya Dungeon right now—』
『Excuse me!? Weren’t you going back to Osaka!?』
『Yeah, but I wanted to try dungeon melon.』
I filled her in on what happened on the bullet train.
『Unbelievable… Anyway, you want info on the monsters on the 25th floor, right? Regular websites only go up to the 20th.』
『Exactly. Can you find out?』
『Hold on… Okay, I got it. There’s a dragon on the 25th floor.』
『A dragon? That kind of dragon!?』
The image of a certain wish-granting dragon you summon with seven glowing orbs popped into my head—but no, that couldn’t be it.
『Not the one you’re thinking of. It actually looks more like a velociraptor. It’s even registered under the name Velotor.』
『Veloci—what is that, some kind of kaiju?』
Maybe something like King Ghid○ra?
I’d looked that up after what King-san said earlier had stuck with me.
『Not a kaiju, a dinosaur. Theropod type. You know, the kind that runs like an ostrich.』
『Oh, like the ones in Jurassic P○rk.』
I couldn’t picture King Ghid○ra, but that movie had aired a bunch of times on Friday Night Road○how, so that one I knew.
『So, what about that dragon?』
『Its scales are gaining attention as a new material. During the Mount Fuji incident, even tank armor was useless against monsters.』
『So they’re gonna make tanks out of dragon scales?』
A dragon tank, huh…
Sounds like something that shows up as an early-game boss and breaks way too easily… No, never mind, must be my imagination.
Still, how many scales would you even need for something like that?
『Thanks for the intel.』
『No problem. I don’t mind being the one you rely on. Since I gave a little ground to Milk and Ayame, I’ve got to make up for it somehow, right?』
That made me smile.
I ended the telepathic link with Hime and shared the info with Milk and Ayame.
「Dragon scales, huh? This really is a fantasy world.」
「Kinda late for that, considering we live with an elf and a fox goddess. Anyway, let’s pass through the 25th floor while we’re at it.」
「Why?」
「If the government ever asks for dragon scales, we’ll want this dungeon registered to our PD list. Better to have Velokita—er, Velotor marked so we can take it down anytime. Plus—」
「Plus?」
「I want Mizuno-san to craft some gear from dragon scales one day.」
※ ※ ※
「Achoo!」
「Mizuno-senpai, are you catching a cold?」
「No, just a little chill and an itchy nose.」
「That totally means you’re getting sick. You should rest.」
「Yeah, once I finish what I’m working on, I’ll take a short nap.」
※ ※ ※
Whether it’s Nagoya, Tokyo, or Osaka, a dungeon’s a dungeon.
As long as you’ve got a map, you can reach the stairs easily, and since we set out in the morning, we arrived at the 17th floor—our original goal—by early afternoon.
Now then, which monster drops the melon—
「What the hell is that disgusting thing—」
A giant, green… slug?
Its head looked like it had a lion’s mane.
「That’s a Shishi-umiushi. A sea slug monster. It spits acid, so be careful.」
「Ugh, a sea slug… Not exactly eager to get close. So where’s the one that drops the melon?」
「Taira, it’s that one. That’s the one that drops it.」
…You’ve gotta be kidding me.
That one? Really? I really don’t want to get near it.
「Ichino-san, I’d like to try a spell I’ve been working on. May I?」
「Sure, go ahead.」
What kind of spell is Ayame about to test here?
「Slug Death!」
Ayame cast her spell.
Slug Death? Wait, not Slime Death?
But no, I hadn’t misheard. The sea slug—definitely not a slime—dropped dead on the spot.
A bottle filled with green liquid appeared.
Is this a potion?
[Melon Soda: A super tasty melon soda]
Oh. Right. We were aiming for melon stuff.
「Ayame, what was that spell?」
「I learned it after leveling up my Instant Death (Slime) magic. It seems to work on slugs and snails, and thankfully, it worked on sea slugs too.」
A spell that kills slugs and snails instantly, huh.
Bet it’d work on those guys from the planet N○mek too.
After that, Ayame and I used magic, and Milk helped with her gun to bring down more Shishi-umiushi.
We managed to collect five melons and around thirty bottles of melon soda before deciding it was time for a late lunch.
The tenmusu was great, but honestly, the tea stood out the most.
Its refreshing aroma, sharp bitterness, and subtle sweetness made it well worth the price.
After lunch, we headed for the boss room.
And the boss turned out to be—
「A crayfish!?」
A giant, bright red crayfish floated in the air above us.
「Apparently, it’s called Shrimp God. It drops a Dungeon Lobster.」
So it’s not a crayfish, but a lobster?
「A lobster, huh… Guess we should fry it up like one of Nagoya’s specialties—ebi fry.」
「If you’re making ebi fry, I think it’d taste better with a regular prawn. Just buy some kuruma ebi on the way back.」
Milk muttered that with a sigh.
Okay, how do we take it down?
It’s airborne, so Hime’s Tenshou would’ve been perfect, but since she’s not here, it’ll have to be Ayame’s magic or Milk’s gun.
…Actually, if I jump seriously, maybe I can reach that high?
「Ichino-san, leave this to me! Zen-chan!」
「My time has come.」
Ayame pulled out a yatsude leaf, transforming it in an instant into its usual form: the oni-loli tengu, Zen.
And thus began the epic battle—flying shrimp vs. flying little girl.
It was over in less time than it takes to make cup noodles.
Shrimp God transformed into a massive lobster.
「This is bad.」
I muttered gravely.
The lobster was just too big.
We didn’t have a deep fryer or a tempura pot at home big enough to handle something this huge.
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