Ihoujin, Dungeon ni Moguru-Chapter 8.1: Arrow Shot From Pitch-Black Darkness I - Part 1

「I'm backー」

It was almost dusk by the time I returned to the camp. Putting the piece of meat, which was wrapped with leaves that had a preservative effect, into a container in the food tent, I threw my equipment into my tent.

『Wel~come back』

『Welcome back』

That voice stopped me in my tracks.

「Huh, what's this?」

There was a cylindrical-shaped Makina pod, and placed beside it was a mini-Makina pod, which just happened to be the same size as the lantern hanging at my waist.

The pod that I picked up started talking.

『Although it slightly violated the articles of the law, Izora's capabilities were judged to be essential for exploring the dungeon, so Izora had Makina separate out my functionalities. Please call me the Izora pod from now on』

「Is the communication problem unlikely to be resolved? If I take Izora to the dungeon, there’s a possibility that she might get destroyed」

The simple probe had already broke during today's exploration. I didn't want to expose a part of the artificial intelligence, which was irreplaceable, to danger. There should be more than a dozen spares for the glasses-type device though.

『Even if Izora’s functionalities are separated, Izora’s core still remains inside Makina. Only when the semi-quantum communication fails, will Izora's consciousness be copied into the pod, which will make it independent. Once communication is restored, synchronization will start and the copy will be merged back with the core』

「Sorry, I don't quite understand. So it's not a problem if the pod itself gets destroyed?」

『In a nutshell, it's like having an out-of-body experience. There are no problems. As for spare parts, there are enough for 23 pods. It’ll be troublesome if you let them get destroyed easily, but I will leave that to your judgment』

「Understood」

I wasn’t completely satisfied, but if they said that there would be no problems, then I would trust them.

「Leaving that aside, what's that smell?」

It smelled like tomato sauce. Did Makina cook? That was my first thought, but A.I.s were not allowed by the law to move autonomously. I also didn’t do something dangerous like leaving a fire source anywhere within the reach of Makina’s arm.

「Hmm, so you’ve returned. Dinner is ready. Eat it before it cools down」

「Huh?!」

Misuranika-sama jumped on top of Makina.

『Souya-san, it's dinner made by god-sama! You’ll definitely be blessed!』

「Are you serious?」

There was a pot placed in the simple kitchen. I opened the lid and stirred it with a ladle. The only ingredients in the soup, which was made from tomato paste, were beans that had been crushed simply. I had thought of eating the nice fillet of meat that I had gotten right away, but I’ll eat it after it had aged after all.

「Then, with thanks, itadakimasu」

I scooped the soup into a bowl and brought a spoonful of it to my mouth.

It had a simple taste.

The soup was seasoned well, had a faint garlic flavor, and tasted creamy, probably because cheese had been mixed into it. The crushed beans were easy to eat and their texture didn’t clash with the soup. It was a calming taste. It was gentle on the stomach so I ate a lot.

Was this home cooking? The food in the bars were all heavily salted in order to sell more alcohol. Also, it was tremendously oily and the vegetables were sour for some reason. Hearty and exotic, though with little color. The portions were admittedly big but I was tired of its taste.

In order to move the human body, both salt and oil were essential. In view of the differences in physical abilities, the people from this side probably expended a large amount of both. But I was an ordinary person. If I ate according to the adventurers’ standards, my kidneys would be damaged. I would die.

「Misuranika-sama. It’s very delicious」

「Is that so? It’s because you were starting out on your exploration today, so I showed off my skills. I rarely do something like this, you know? Be grateful with all your heart! I’m off to sleep then」

「Yes, definitely」

I raised the empty bowl with both hands. Her tail rustled the tent as she disappeared into it. After repeatedly refilling my bowl, I had emptied the pot, so I washed everything and prepared to sleep.

I realized then that there was a matter of grave importance.

「Makina」

『Yes, Souya-san?』

「Did Misuranika-sama cook the soup in human form?」

『Yes?』

I drew closer to Makina and whispered.

「Did you do as I said, and recorded it?」

『Yes?』

「Great, show me」

『Team member Souya, Izora needs to talk to you confidentially. Please change locations』

「………………」

Izora had spoken to me. I took her mini-pod and went on a short walk.

It was late at night, and it was dark on the plain. The lights from the distant camp danced like a bonfire.

It was an ancient night.

There were countless stars in the heavens, and the land swayed like an ocean. The sounds of the insects were calming.

『With regards to future explorations, Izora has a suggestion』

「Uh-huh」

It was a suggestion that I had anticipated.

『Please cancel the contract with Misuranika-sama. You’re now contracted to the Night Owl, Gravius-sama. Being contracted to the sister gods of Minerva doesn't seems to bring much prestige to adventurers, but it’s still significantly better than a god that conceals her followers, don’t you agree?』

My scroll had been blank.

Of course, I went to the Guild after that, and had Evetta-san try it again. But it failed, so I got the Guild President, who complained again that it was unheard of, to help me. As I feared, it still failed. No matter how many scrolls we used, they instantly became blank. After wasting around 30 scrolls, the Guild President sent for an old man with a long beard.

It appeared that he was an expert at appraising magic-related things.

According to that person, the cause of my problem was the god I was contracted to.

Deception and concealment.

Misuranika-sama’s divine nature was strongly tied to those two traits. The effects of that also affected me, her follower.

One piece of good news was that the information that had been concealed was from before the contract was formed, and it might not affect what I learned from that point onwards.

I decided to bet on that possibility starting from tomorrow.

Another piece of good news was that Irvin had only just arrived in town very recently, so it would take him three days to repair and upgrade his equipment’s specifications for use inside the dungeon. The timing was just right then for Zenobia to go study at the magic academy in the city to learn magic that was useful inside the dungeon. Shuna and Bel also decided to sightsee around the city in order to purchase additional equipment for themselves.

We had promised to meet up again at the bar three days from today.

To be clear, my problem was very serious.

Who would want to follow a leader who couldn’t prove his identity? The lives of everyone in an adventuring party were entrusted to one another. No one would want to work together with a person who didn’t have a decent track record, and wouldn’t tell you his past. The worst-case scenario would be if I couldn’t be in a party with Irvin and the others. I had no practical skills. No one would let someone who couldn’t show his history on top of that into their party. Even I won't want to take care of someone like that.

「Does Makina have the same opinion as you?」

『Makina is opposed to it. Because her fundamental principles are based on Japanese morality. It’s truly ridiculous』

「I alsoー」

I had the same opinion, but Izora interrupted me before I could speak.

『Please think about it carefully. The party members that you have now are very outstanding. This is the result from compiling all the information obtained from monitoring them. The party is well-balanced, with no personal or ideological conflicts. Moreover, you’ve managed to successfully cover up your own inabilities. As things stand, continuing to explore the dungeon as their leader is probably the shortest path to meeting our objective. What were you trying to accomplish by coming here? You came here to obtain the money needed to pay for your sister, Shiju…, Shujiu…, Shujichi…, Shuzuchi……………… You came here to obtain the money needed to pay for your sister’s surgery, did you not?』

I wonder what that was.

Because she stumbled over her words, everything had flown out the window.

『Izora did not stumble over my words. It’s only because the transfer of my functionalities is not yet complete』

「Okay」

『It's true. Please believe me』

「Okay」

『You have a grace period of three days. Be prepared to cancel the contract by then. That’s okay, right?』

「………………Understood」

I only gave a reluctant reply. Even if she was powerless, she was the only god who had reached out her hand to me in this alternate world. I couldn’t renounce her based on such a simple, mercenary way of thinking. I was very aware of the fact that I had no margin for error, and that I had no other options. But, it wasn’t something like that. This wasn’t something like that.

『Your reply is soft』

「Alright, I got it. I’ll think about it」

『Is that so? Alright then』 fr𝚎e𝙬𝚎𝚋𝚗૦ν𝚎𝒍.c૦m

Izora went silent.

I returned to the camp, brushed my teeth and wiped off my sweat. I had forgotten about it because the latter half was such a mess, but I explored the dungeon for the first time today. I hadn’t felt that I was having a relatively hard time until the exploration. Or rather, I had only just solved one problem before another difficult problem came up. Good grief.

I felt heavy-hearted and my body was craving rest.

Entering my tent, I found Misuranika-sama sleeping while curled up in a ball beside my pillow. She was almost always sleeping. I laid down carefully so as to not wake her up.

I was tired. I was also reasonably sleepy. But my consciousness didn’t fall into the abyss. It seems like my heart was more fraught with complicated worries than I had thought.

After tossing and turning for a while,

「What’s wrong? Are you terrified of the dungeon?」

It looks like I had woken Misuranika-sama up.

I could hear her voice around the back of my head. I gave an ambiguous reply.

「No, that's not it」

「It’s fine. That's a fear that everyone has. Those who do not fear the unknown, die early. Don't look over here」

What? I thought. A sexy, bare leg rested on my waist. Two white arms extended from behind, and encircled my neck. I felt her slightly warm breath on my ear. Two mounds pressed against my back. They felt quite firm and yet, unspeakably soft. The military policeman hadn't been wrong.

「Something special for you just for today. With the warmth of flesh, you’ll fall asleep before long. But if you turn around, I’ll curse you to death」

「No, on the contrary, I won’t be able to sleep like this」

「Nyan~」

「Misuranika-sama?」

Her breathing was soft and regular. I pinched her two soft arms, then fearfully slid my hand along her silky-smooth thigh. There was no reaction from her. It seemed like she was asleep.

This was bad, I was getting all kinds of excited.

How should I put it, it had been a long time lately, or rather forever, but when humans were tired, they would want it more, no, calm down. For what reason was I here, for what(nani)? Nani? Calm down, calm down, nani. You’re supposed to list the numbers of pi at times like this, right? Alright, three. It's over. My excitement was not dampened. A wrong place was becoming curved. Because of that, Iー *(see below)

The side of the tent lifted up.

Something rolled in, then stopped in front of me. It was the Izora pod.

『Please use this. It’s a sedative. If you can no longer control your emotions, inject this. This is exactly the time for it』

The arm of the pod proffered a ballpoint-pen-sized needle-less syringe.

There were many things that I wanted to retort about, but I took it gratefully and injected it into my neck. Although there wasn't much pain, my body shook with the uncomfortable feeling of a foreign substance flowing through my body.

「A.I.s are prohibited by the law from moving autonomously, right?」

『This is not moving autonomously. I only lost my balance coincidently and rolled over here by chance. Please set your mind at ease, I can go back on my own』

Wasn't that called moving autonomously? Were A.I.s supposed to be able to ignore the laws so easily? Wasn't this possibly a fatal flaw?

『There is a well-known line from Izora's country.「I did not have sexual relations with that woman」You understand the meaning behind that line, right?』*(see below)

「No, I have no idea」

『The lesson is that even a man who had sworn his love for his wife in front of God, and used enormous amounts of money and extensive connections to earn the majority’s approval to hold the highest responsibility in the largest nation, will do stupid things when it comes to women』

「Got it」

I should stop enquiring too deeply. It felt like I was seeing the darkness inside her.

「By the way, Izora」

『Yes?』

「When will the effects of the sedative kick in?」

『Two seconds later』

I passed out.

※

※

【8th day】

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It was really straight-forward.

By the adventurers’ standards, my strength was completely inadequate. It would probably be difficult for me to even kill a Chocho with a long sword. The muscles for holding and shooting firearms were totally different from the muscles used for swinging swords. I also had no time to retrain myself from now on. In that case, the weapons that I could use naturally were limited.

「Hey, storekeeper」

「GYAAAAAAA!」

I dropped by the Zavua merchant company's main store to look for a weapon.

「Let me have a quick look at the weapons」

「EEEEEEEEEK!」

The shopkeeper’s knees had given way and he was backing away. It was a pretty large store, so I guessed that there were about 30 people inside, including the store clerks. They were all watching us. It looked like bad rumors about me were going to be spread again.

「I’m just here for the merchandise today」

「HYAAAAAAAA!」

「I’m going to the Eruomea merchant company」

「Excuse me, I lost my composure for a bit there. How can I help you today?」

He suddenly went quiet, pulled himself together and was fixing his clothes. I had figured out how to deal with the merchants here.

「I want to see the crossbows. Do you have any here?」

「Crossbows? Yes, we have them, they’re over here」

Crossbows were lined up in an unfrequented corner of the store.

「It’s a product that isn’t very popular with adventurers. Nevertheless, we don’t display inferior goods」

There were about 20 types. They all differed in design and material, but the basic structure was the same.

「Can I touch them?」

「Please feel free to do so」

To allay my concerns, I took a crossbow and pulled its string.

「Urg, urgh, urghhh」

I pulled, but it didn’t move an inch.

「Souya-sama, you have to secure it with your foot and pull with your core」

「I see」

The front end of the crossbow had a metal “stirrup” attached to it. I put my foot in there and with my core, I pulled, and pulled, and pulled!

「Urk, gah」

I couldn’t pull it.

「It’s defective, isn’t it?」

「It should be properly maintained though?」

I gave the crossbow to the shopkeeper. The shop owner put his foot into the stirrup and pulled, but he was also unable to pull it. He tried it a second time, but the result was the same. We tried pulling the string together, but it didn’t budge.

「Orphe! Is Orphe here?!」

The shopkeeper called out loudly. A beast-man nearly two meters tall appeared. He had an affable face that didn’t suit his huge body, ears that hung downwards and a tail that was wagging. It was a dog. It was definitely a St. Bernard.

「You, give this a try」

「Aye」

He pulled the string easily with both hands and hooked it on the “catch” linked to the trigger.

「Are you, adventurer?」

「Me? Yes, that’s right」

「Hey, Orphe, he’s a customer!」

I ignored the storekeeper and listened to the beast-man.

「Monsters, can't defeat with this. Small, can't aim, big, won’t defeat. Next shot, slow」

「I see」

Was the accuracy of a crossbow low? In the first place, I couldn’t even load it with my own hands.

「This, expensive. Fragile. Repair is expensive. Bolts are expensive, but easy to lose. For same price, bow and arrow is good」

I looked at the price tag, and written on it was the number 15 in front of the word that meant gold coins. Ex, expensive!

「Bow, in dungeon, bothersome. But, good archer, stands out. To other adventurers, can boast. Boasting, important. No boasting, adventurer easily forgotten」

「Are you an adventurer too?」

「Aye. Now, am bodyguard of young master」

I see. Prestige, huh?

I hadn’t even thought of it. So, it wasn’t enough to simply kill and go down the stairs.

「Then, show me the bows please」

「Aye」

「Souya-sama, this guy is a guard and not a store clerk though?」

「Don’t worry about it, it’s fine」

It was obvious, but it would be best to ask my peers in matters like this. Merchants would try to sell you whatever they could, so they couldn’t be trusted. Especially in matters where I didn’t have much knowledge in.

We went to where the bows were displayed. There were bows of various sizes for various races lined up there. The materials they were made of were different, but they were strung and were mostly く-shaped.

「In truth, archer’s bow, made himself. Not bought. Rip-off. But, this not bad」

The bow Orphe picked up was roughly Ω-shaped. It was small-sized but thick, and was made of at least three different kinds of materials. Was this what was called a composite bow?

「This, elf bow. Even beast-man strength, cannot break. Flexible. Can be drawn by Hemu」

Orphe grabbed the string and pulled. The bow’s materials creaked slightly as it bent. It was handed to me and I tried drawing it. It wasn’t bad. I made an image inside my head of drawing it with an arrow.

Its price was 5 gold coins. It was exceptionally expensive because the average price of the other bows was nine copper coins.

「I'll buy it. After that, please also help me choose suitable arrows」

「Aye. Cheap arrows are no good. Arrowhead, shaft, metal is good. Collect and re-use. Heavy is good. This one, Kyui arrow is recommended. After, buy arrowheads made of Gustah ore, shafts made of Domel steel. Feathers, use winged rabbit’s. Fly around on plain in evening. Also, bow string, you okay?」

「The strings are hemp, right?」

I had a material that had higher tensile strength.

「Aye」

「Then, it's fine. Okay, I’ll take 20 arrows, 20 arrowheads and 20 shafts. Storekeeper, can I have the bill please?」

「Yes, it’s 8 gold coins and 5 silver coins in total. I’ll throw in the quiver」

I paid the storekeeper.

「I will carry the bow. Please wrap up the arrows and the others」

「Okay, please wait a moment」

The storekeeper went into the back of the store.

「So, Orphe. There’s something I wanted to ask you」

I offered one copper coin as the information fee.

「Aye」

「I'm looking for someone that’s highly skilled who can teach me how to use the bow in a short time. Do you know anyone like that?」

「You, can’t use bow? Why buy bow?」

「Because of various complicated and strange circumstances」

「I see, hang in there」

He patted me on my back.

「I know, good archer, who’s free」