Volume 5, Chapter 2 - Trying Out Capturing the Dungeon – Part 3
This chapter is updated by wuxiaworld.eu
On the third underground floor, 『F43』 was written.
It was written in this world’s letters, but when it was this short, Diablo could understand it.
──So it is written like this in this place.
It might be good if he learned the Lifelia Kingdom’s language eventually.
The third floor’s mechanism was a homage to a certain retro game but……since the retro game that was the source material wasn’t in this other world, it turned out to be a floor with no hints.
It was made so that when Slimes of differing color were defeated in order, the staircase going down would appear.
Their stationing and movements were random.
However, the Slimes’ movements were slow, and since it wasn’t a very spacious maze, they were able to clear it quickly.
The fourth underground floor──
『Do you want to go to the next floorー!?』
The moment they went through the door, they were engulfed in hot air.
Rem’s expression distorted.
「……Wh, what is this?」
「Hyah!? Rem, isn’t that!?」
Looking down from the cliff that acted as their foothold, Rem raised a scream.
What was flaming and burning was, lava.
That heat had changed this floor’s air into a scorching heat.
Rem was suspicious.
「……There shouldn’t be, any volcanoes in this area. And we haven’t gone deep enough to see something like that. Isn’t this just an illusion created through magic?」
「This hot feeling……is an illusion?」
Maybe because she was weak to heat, Lumachina dripped sweat and asked that.
Rem also wiped the sweat from her own forehead.
「……Certainly, this does not appear to be an illusion. But I believe there is no mistake that it is lava created through magic.」
「In any case, let’s continue on ahead -ssu. If we stay here the whole time, it feels like we’ll dry up -ssu!」
Horun’s words were reasonable.
When they continued on ahead, the cliff that was their foothold was interrupted before long. Below was lava. A wire rope stretched out to the opposite side.
There was a gondola hooked onto that wire rope.
「……Are we supposed to go to the other side with this?」
「So hot!?」
Having touched the gondola that was made from iron, Shera made an uproar. Her fingertip turned red. It seemed that she was scalded.
Lumachina held one hand out.
「Ara ara, please show some modest mercy to the great and honorable God’s follower that lives on this blessed land……《Cure Light》.」
*Hou* Her hand shined.
Shera’s scald was cured in an instant. Going *waaー*, she let out a smile.
「Thank you, Lumachina-chan!」
「If you are going to give thanks, send them to Kami-sama.」
「Un! Thank you, Kami-sama!」
Rem breathed a sigh.
「……Even though you knew that things were heated up by the lava, why would you touch an iron gondola, you stupid Elf. I’m sure that even Kami-sama is bothered by you.」
「I mean, I was wondering about how to move it!」
「At the very least, wear some leather gloves.」
「Ah, I see.」
As for Rem, she had iron tekkou equipped.
She was a Summoner, but she could also manage close combat using her fists like a Fist Fighter. She possessed the tekkou as her weapon.
Lumachina asked a question.
「Rem-san, isn’t it hot?」
「……That is, well, it is hot, isn’t it.」
「I feel like I’m dying -ssu.」
The one that was the most exhausted was Horun.
To think that the Warrior-type man would be exhausted before the Healer woman, how pathetic! So not only was his outward appearance that of a child, even the inside was like that.
That being said, this heat was unexpected for Diablo as well.
Both the gondola and the lava were arranged by him, but in the game, there was only a graphic that made it look hot. In actuality, it felt as if they had turned into ingredients that were being cooked or something.
──If we don’t hurry up and clear this floor, we’ll be annihilated from dehydration.
Everyone got on board the gondola.
After pushing the lever forward, it started to slowly advance forward.
It rumbled and shook.
「It’s shaking! It’s shaking!」
When Shera made an uproar, Rem glared at her.
「……Keep silent. What will you do if there are monsters? Do you intend on calling them out?」
「Uguh.」
Diablo shrugged his shoulders.
「Be at ease. Monsters have not been deployed in this fourth underground floor. However, you are not only going to be shaken around in the gondola. In fact, you could say that the true terror of this dungeon is going to start from hereon out.」
「……Wh, what was that?」
The gondola came to a halt.
Horun raised an agitated voice.
「FuwaAah, it stopped -ssu! We’re done for -ssu! It’s so hot that we’re gonna die -ssu!」
「Shut it. If you find it hot, then take off that pointless equipment. Something like leather armor that hasn’t been endowed with magic, it is nothing but dead weight against the monsters we will be facing against beyond here.」
「Uu……」
「More importantly, concentrate on the incoming questions. They will come to you as well.」
「Eh?」
With a *kan kan kan kan!*, a chime resounded.
『Do you want to go on aheadー!? O～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～!!』
That voice could be heard from nowhere in particular.
Diablo wiped the sweat from his forehead.
To think that he himself, moreover in a party, would participate in this……it was the worst.
『From here on, the questions of a quiz will be asked! If you get it correct, the gondola will advance! If you get it incorrect, the wire rope will slacken! Heaven, or hell! The Lava Crossing Ultra Super Miracle Quiz!』
──When I made this, a quiz show was on TV. Moreover, since I had sleepless nights for about three days, I had a strange high tension going on.
Experiencing this objectively like this……
How embarassing.
It was a dark history.
If it was possible, he would first construct this floor over again.
The reasons why he couldn’t say that he himself had created this dungeon increased by one more.
『All party members will answer in the quiz in turns!』
Diablo gritted his teeth.
He himself made the setting for the quiz. No matter what maniac subject was brought up, he would be able answer all of the questions correctly.
However, there was a rule that all members of the party had to answer. If there was someone that was ignorant, they would end up dragging everyone down.
It was a friendship breaking type of rule.
Winners and losers would come out in the party, and this rule that made the losers become a bother to the others would produce criticism from their companions.
It was something like doing a large jump rope with the entire class. When even one person missed the timing for the jump, it would be treated as if everyone failed.
Revealing the party’s excess baggage──It was that sort of devilish rule.
──Well, if they are members that got along well and were able to consult each other on online chats or in real life, this wouldn’t be much of a problem though. This floor at least……
The problem was whether or not Rem and the others could clear the cult-like quiz related to Cross Reverie. This was another world, and there were no online chats, telephones, or people inside of them.
『Question! Is the thing that is not effective on Cyclops Crocodiles, magic? Or swords?』
Rem raised her hand.
「……It is magic.」
To think that she would answer herself without any timidity in spite of the quiz having started quite abruptly. She had a comprehensive faculty and assertiveness that wasn’t common.
There was a momentary pause.
『The correct answer is……Magic has no effectー!! Splendid!』
The gondola shook, and advanced several meters.
Rem nodded.
「……Like this, it looks like we’ll be able to arrive on the other side if we answer correctly five times.」
「Umu」
「An easy victory -ssu ne! I will answer the next one -ssu!」
Horun rolled up his sleeves.
『Question! Is the habitat that the Madara Snake lives in, in water? In the trees? Or in a hole?』
「Erm……In, in a hole -ssu!」
『Bubuー!! The correct answer is, in waterー!!』
「Wahー!?」
Horun held his head in his arms. Rem and Shera also screamed.
Diablo breathed a sigh.
Even without having to say it, criticism from the party would gather. This was the fearsomeness of the friendship breaking rule.
『The gondola, goes down!!』
The stretched out wire rope loosened, and with a *gakuh*, the gondola’s position lowered.
「Kyah!?」
Diablo supported Lumachina who had her balance broken.
「You had best be careful.」
「Th, thank you very much.」
In the event that the others got scalded, they could be cured by Lumachina’s miracles, but miracles couldn’t be used on her herself. It could be cured if there were HP Recovery Potions but……
When he had a substantial amount of HP shaved off in the fight against the Head of the Holy Knights, he used up all of the ones he had on hand.
*Fuwah* The heat increased.
It must have been because they got closer to the lava.
Rem took off her tekkou. And then, she took off the belt that she stored her Summoned Beast crystals in, and turned it into hand luggage.
「……Fuu」
「It’s so hot!」
Shera took off her shoulder cape. On top of that, she grabbed the hem of her skirt, and flapped and fanned it. That released some heat.
Even Lumachina took off the mantle that was put on her.
「It certainly is hot, isn’t it……It is dizzying.」
「UUuー」
While only Horun was dripping sweat, he didn’t take off any clothes. Was it a manly show of endurance?
Even Diablo wanted to take off his mantle but……
Due to his habit, since it “wasn’t Demon King-like”, he stubbornly stuck through it.
Shera raised one hand.
「Then, I’ll answer the next one.」
『Question! In the Fortress City Faltra, how many gates are there? Four? Eight? More than that?』
「Ah……」
Rem raised her voice. Diablo could understand the feeling but……
『Whoa there, in the event that there is an act that seems like giving a hint, it will be unconditionally counted as incorrect!』
In a rush, Rem shut her mouth.
Diablo stared at Shera.
──Notice! Notice! Notice!
Shera nodded.
Her eyes looked like they were saying “It’s alright”.
「Fufufu, there are two walls in Faltra City, and since each one has four gates, it’s eight!」
『The correct answer is……”More than that”ー!! There are a lot of “gates”! “Castle gates” wasn’t said in the question!』
「Eh～～～!? No way, that’s sneaky!」
It was a stereotypical trick question. The guy that created this quiz has a terrible personality.
──Well, it’s me though.
The gondola fell once more.
It drew even closer to the lava.
「So ho～t!」
Finally, Shera started to take off her clothes.
Rem opened her eyes wide.
「Wha, what are you planning to do!?」
「I mean, when it’s this hot, I get dazed, and it gets impossible to do riddlesー.」
「……Certainly, that might be true. This is for the sake of capturing the dungeon.」
Consenting to that strange reasoning, amazingly, even Rem started to strip.
Lumachina’s face went red.
「H, how shameless.」
「……If you’re an Adventurer, it’s life over shame. The capturing. It’s the same as bathing it cold water. Thinking that it’s shameless is more shameless.」
When she was seriously remonstrated by Rem, Lumachina also consented, going “so that’s how it is”.
She also started taking off her hot-looking clothes.
Horun, who was still dressed in his lightweight armor,──went *unyu*, raising a strange voice, and collapsed to the middle of the gondola. It seems that he went down from the heat.
Lumachina, who was now dressed in her underwear, tightly clenched her fists.
「Is my turn next?」
『Question! Which among these is the biggest monster? The Sand Whale, the Green Behemoth, the Legend Dragon!』
Diablo was flustered.
Of all things, she was hit with a question aimed towards the considerably high leveled people.
If it were game’s Players, they might have participated battles that were group battle events but……
Most likely, Lumachina has probably never even seen any of them. She should have seen only the Sand Whale in Zircon Tower City though.
She answered.
「According to the books in the royal capital library, it is the Legend Dragon.」
『The correct answer is……The Legend Dragon! You got the right answerー!!』
「Yoorayー!! Lumachina-chan, that was great!」
Shera hugged her.
After that, the two of them went *hot～* and made strained laughs.
As expected of the High Chief Priest. She had extensive knowledge. It seemed that her power of miracles wasn’t the only thing strong about her.
The gondola moved forward.
Beads of sweat surfaced on the girls’ skin. The drops went along the top of their smooth skin and fell.
Going *Haa……Haa……*, they panted.
They had flushed faces, and moist eyes.
While gazing at them, Diablo felt like he was starting to have a strange feeling.
Even though it should have only been hot, he had become somewhat embarrassed.
──Has even my head suffered damage due to the heat?
He felt like he was about to involuntarily extend his hand out.
No, no, that was ridiculous.
The girls were party members, they were in the middle of capturing the dungeon right now, and they were stripping because it was hot due to the lava’s heat.
Thinking that it was shameless was more shameless.
Shera let out a sigh.
「Nnu……Diablo……Next, is your turn, you know?」
Rem wiped the sweat on her chest.
「……Please get it right……If it becomes, any hotter than this, then it feels like we will have to take off even our underwear.」
「That is true. My underwear is already soaking wet.」
Even though Lumachina was blushing, she pinched her wet underwear.
──If I get it wrong, they’ll be nude!?
Diablo’s heart pounded. A large bead of sweat fell from his forehead.
『Question! Cross Reverie’s start is in, January? April? September?』
A meta type question had come.
Rem and the others didn’t even understand the meaning of the question and tilted their heads.
Naturally, Diablo knew the answer.
──Nude.
Going *no no no*, he shook his head side-to-side.
Don’t look down on me! I am a Demon King. The Demon King Diablo! MMORPGs are not just a game! I will not deny my own way of life!
「It is September. The pre-opening was planned to be in April but it was postponed to September, and the true opening was in January of the following year.」
『That is correctー!!』
Once all of the members had a turn, they had more leeway. The remaining questions were answered by Diablo and Rem, and they arrived at the opposite cliff.
When they passed through the door leading to the lower floor, the heat of the lava disappeared and felt as if it were all a lie.
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