Dungeon of Precious Stones Again (2)
“”Found it~”
After a while, Allen and Elena returned, having found the fragment of the flying sapphire.
It was about a third the size of a toothpick.
“This is Dill-san’s, right?”“Good for you~”
Allen handed the sapphire fragment to Dill-san, who was still frozen.
“Huh!? Eh? Ehhh!?”
Dill-san looked at the fragment in his hand, then at us, then back at the fragment, seeming thoroughly confused.
“Since you got it yourself, it belongs to you, Dill-san.”
“Eh!! Is that a joke!? I got it?”
“You did~ If you find it hard to believe, why not try again?”“Dill, this spot looks good.”
Kaiser informed Dill-san of another suitable location even before I could ask.
“”Good luck~””
“O-ou…”
Dill-san, a bit more nervous than before, wielded the hammer and pounded on the branch. And with a light sound—snap♪—the branch flew off.
“You got it~”
“Will go look for it~”
The children went off again to search for the flying fragment.
“”Found it~””
This time, it seemed to be found easily, as they quickly returned and handed the fragment to Dill-san.
“... I did this?”
Still finding it unbelievable, Dill-san stared intently at the fragment in the palm of his hand.
"Do you still find it that unbelievable? How about picking two or three more?"
"No, it's fine! It's more than enough!"
"You don't have to hold back."
"I'm not holding back! It's enough! Look, you guys have already collected enough branches as well, right? Alright, let's go to the second floor! We were supposed to head to the second floor smoothly, remember?"
Dill-san, as if saying he couldn't bear to get any more branches, guided us towards the second floor.
"As Dill-san said, we talked about heading smoothly to the second floor today. Shall we go now? We've already got souvenirs and commemorative items, right?"
"Yeah, we got enough.”
"Let's go to the second floor."
"Umu, I have no problem with that.”
Today is the day for the second floor, so we decided to follow Dill-san's guidance.
"”To the second floor!””
And so, we showed our permits between the first and second floors and safely arrived at the second floor.
"As expected, the security personnel double-checked the permits for the kids."
"Hahaha, they suspected forgery."
The permits for the children were thoroughly examined for authenticity. But well, by showing the rank of the kids' guild cards, we managed to pass.
"The second floor looks like an ordinary mine tunnel."
"”What can we find here~?"”
"In this level, the iron ore is not of high quality. That's why most adventurers just pass through."
“”And monsters~?"
"A lot of bat types."
“””Bats, huh~”””
Upon hearing that most of the monsters on this floor were bats, the children, along with Kaiser, openly displayed disappointment.
"Ta-Takumi, what does this expression mean?"
"Let’s see~ maybe something like: ‘I’m disappointed because it doesn't sound like it drops meat that can be eaten'?"
“”Right on~””
The children's expressions changed to cheerful smiles at my response.
"I also prefer monsters that drop edible meat~"
“”Right~””
"......"
In response to the desire-driven statement, Dill-san seemed at a loss for words.
"Anyway, let's keep going."
"”Let’s go that way~””
The children immediately decided on the direction they wanted to go and started walking.
"... They definitely checked the map, right?"
When passing another fork in the road for the umpteenth time, Dill-san muttered quietly.
"Hahaha~ we didn't check at all~"
"That's definitely strange!?"
Allen and Elena confidently moving forward seemed perplexing to Dill-san.
“”Ah—Waterball.””
Allen and Elena found a Flame Bat and immediately released a waterball. They quickly defeated it and went to pick up the loot.
"Flame Bat, so weak~"
"All it had was black fur~"
It seems the Flame Bat was weak, and the dropped item was just a round piece of coal-like material.
"Well, even if it's an advanced dungeon, this is only the second floor, so I guess that's what you get~"
"I see~"
"Too bad."
While it might be tempting to think that the next floor could have better items, I guess it won’t be that easy.
"Dill-san, which floors are the best for mining?"
"I always mine on the fifth floor. Most adventurers aiming for mining usually do it on the fourth or fifth floor."
"I see~"
In that case, to avoid unnecessary trouble, it might be best for us to just pass through the fourth and fifth floors.
"Allen wants to mine too~"
"Elena wants to mine to~o~"
"Okay, but let's choose a floor other than the fourth or fifth for you guys to mine."
“”Why~?””
"I want to avoid contact with other adventurers as much as possible."
"”Hmm~””
It's better to avoid trouble.
"So, the sixth floor or the third floor?"
"If I had to choose, the sixth floor might be better. I think there are fewer adventurers there, so let's mine there. Allen and Elena, you might find something there, right?"
“”Got it~ Let’s go right away~””
Eager to start mining, Allen and Elena quickly start walking, or rather, they're walking at a slightly brisk pace.
"Hey, Allen, Elena, don't run! Dill-san is with us today, you know!"
I quickly reminded myself not to engage in a dungeon marathon.
Allen and Elena, upon stopping briefly, slowly turn their faces towards me. The expressions on their faces suggest a moment of realization, as if they had completely forgotten about Dill-san.
"I-It's okay~"
“”Won't run, won't run.””
Then, after uttering words that seemed like an attempt to divert attention, Allen and Elena start walking with a normal pace.
"W-What was that!?"
"Those kids were trying to dash all the way to the sixth floor."
"Huh!? Seriously? This dungeon, like other high-level dungeons, is quite extensive, you know!"
"That's right. That's why I warned them. Those kids can run for hours easily."
"... Ehh?"
Dill-san muttered in a quiet voice, "I feel like I can't keep up anymore," expressing a bit of discouragement.
