Chapter 26
Everyone went off to the raid, huh?
What the heck—come on, is that even fair?
After finishing a pleasant lunch with Shurado, I was feeling a bit sulky as I tried to enter the dungeon—and then I remembered something.
Before the Power hell started, I had returned 'Mugen High-Load ver3.0' to Dr.
I had promised to pick it up the next morning.
However, because of Power, I couldn't even get close to the camp—mentally, that is—so naturally, I ended up ignoring my promise with Dr.
I loiter around the camp's purchasing area.
If I wander around here, Dr. will find me on his own.
"Hey, Finger Man. Did you enjoy your vacation?"
As expected, he found me this time too, popping up out of nowhere.
"So, you've appeared, Dr."
"I pop up anywhere, you know."
"My vacation wasn't fun at all."
"Hahaha, I see. Well, I've heard various rumors, but let's put that aside for now. Behold! This Evolved 'Mugen High-Load ver3.5'!"
"Huh? What about ver3.0?"
"It exploded."
"Figures. I already knew that."
"But thanks to having a few days, I was able to settle down and thoroughly investigate the mystery of Mugen High-Load."
"Wha—don't tell me you figured it out. The true nature of the mysterious item you created yourself!"
"Yeah. I figured out that I don't understand anything about it."
Just give up already.
"However, I've mostly summarized its characteristics. Here, take a look at this."
Grade 6 Divine Artifact Level
Grade 5 Holy Relic Level
Grade 4 Legendary Level ↑G5 requires verification
——Technical Limit of Artificial Equipment——
Grade 3 Top Quality ↑G4 requires about 300,000
Grade 2 High Quality ↑G3 requires about 200,000
Grade 1 Good Quality ↑G2 requires about 100,000
Dr. speculates that anomalous substance can only Evolve "one stage at a time."
"And it probably, yeah, requires sufficient proficiency, I think."
"Huh? You sound a bit unsure."
"Eh?"
"Did you verify it? The foundation must have plenty of crystals and anomalous substance (anomaly), right?"
"Eh? Eh? Eh?"
Dr.'s eyes are darting around.
"The key to the important resource storage is guarded by Shurado, so it's impossible. If I sneak in and borrow just a tiny bit of crystal, Shurado comes to me with a sledgehammer in hand, smiling, and says, 'I'm torn between smashing the crystal or Dr. first!'"
That's Shurado for you.
She doesn't let any misconduct slide.
"Well, from the small experiments I did, it's definitely true that proficiency is necessary. Because when I tried to Evolve an anomalous substance I'd never used before, it didn't budge an inch."
Let's sum up the conversation.
For the evolution of anomalous substance:
- Evolution happens one stage at a time
- Required crystals increase based on grade
- Evolution doesn't happen without sufficient proficiency
"Mugen High-Load is an artificial equipment designed as a next-generation dungeon bag, combining a 13-dimensional model derived from true string theory with ultra-particle spatial expansion theory."
He's started putting on his scientist face again.
Spouting complicated words to sound all smart and wise.
"Evolution and transformation likely occur due to a hyper-compression phenomenon when connecting the inside of the bag to 13-dimensional space, triggering a fusion between anomalous substance (anomaly) and crystals."
"Oh, I see, I completely understand (※I don't)."
"The evolution of anomalous substance is probably a first in human history. I want to solidify this achievement and present it at a conference! Now, take this 'Mugen High-Load ver3.5'! There's not much time until the dungeon is conquered! Before the dungeon boss is defeated and the dungeon is cleared, bring back crystals and gather enough data!"
This is a deal that benefits me too.
Besides, I owe Dr. quite a bit, one way or another.
Helping this old man get recognized as an inventor isn't a bad idea either.
I enter the dungeon and activate 'Labyrinth Conqueror.' The map of the first floor is displayed on the black lenses, projected into space, and I take a picture of the hunting grounds with my smartphone to upload to SNS.
Now, after finishing my daily routine, the next destination is the 10th floor, but... what's this? There's some strange mark displayed on 'Labyrinth Conqueror.'
It's not a treasure chest marker. Treasure chests seem to be quite rare objects, and there doesn't appear to be one on this floor.
That makes it even more intriguing.
What kind of mark is it?
It's not a hunting ground.
It's pinpointing a very specific spot.
Thinking about it won't get me anywhere, so I decide to go to the location.
I pass through the corridor, descend the stairs within the floor—not the stairs between floors—and navigate the winding, natural cave-like path until I finally reach the marked spot.
"It's beyond this wall, huh."
When I zoom in on the 3D map, I realize the mark's coordinates are in a physically inaccessible location.
I tap the wall lightly.
It's hard. I try knocking on it a bit.
No luck. I thought it might be an illusory wall like in Dark Souls, where attacking lets you pass through, but nope.
"Then, brute force it is."
I step back from the wall and prepare 'Finger Snap Lv4.'
I don't know how hard this wall is.
But it shouldn't be indestructible.
Based on my experience of evaporating ruins when I defeated 'Resource Boss: Guardian of Purity,' I figure that with roughly ATK 60,000, I can destroy and evaporate the dungeon as an object itself.
The conversion rate for 'Finger Snap Lv4' is HP1:ATK100.
The HP I'll use is 600.
——HP600 ATK60,000
Pale blue sparks form between my thumb and middle finger.
Before, the intense friction meant I had to put so much force into it that my hand would turn red just to snap my fingers.
But now, I don't need to snap with all my strength for something like this.
I give a sharp snap, lightly flicking my fingers.
"Excalibur"
——Snap
A crimson light forms in the center of the dungeon wall.
The crimson light grows larger and larger.
A massive amount of energy concentrates in one spot, the extreme heat melting the wall—and then, an explosion occurs.
The wall is completely obliterated and evaporates without a trace.
That much is fine.
But the power was too strong.
Cracks spread to the surrounding walls and ceiling, and a minor collapse seems imminent.
Definitely miscalculated the firepower here.
Well, the attempt succeeded, so it's all good.
I found a space beyond the wall.
I jump over a pool of red-hot magma to reach the hidden area.
In the hidden area, there's a pedestal with a fragment of black stone placed on it.
The item name is 'Calamity Beast 1/12.'
I pick it up.
However, I can't open the details.
Does that mean it's incomplete as an item?
"1/12? Does it have something to do with January 12th? No, that's not it... does it mean one-twelfth?"
Could it be the kind of item that only shows its effect after collecting all 12 pieces?
I descended to the second floor.
The same mark as on the first floor was reflected in 'Labyrinth Conqueror.'
I decided to head there right away.
However, as expected, the mark is on the other side of a physically impenetrable wall.
Since it's a 3D map, I can tell there's a space beyond this.
Conversely, unless it's a 3D map, there's no way to notice it.
It's a truly hidden treasure in the fullest sense.
HP 300, ATK 30,000
Reflecting on my actions, I snapped my fingers with restrained power.
The wall shattered, and a path opened up.
With ATK 30,000, it seems breaking walls is no problem.
"Found it."
'Calamity Beast 1/12' was placed on a pedestal with a solemn atmosphere, so I combined it with the 'Calamity Beast 1/12' I obtained earlier.
It became 'Calamity Beast 2/12.'
It's confirmed. There are ten more of these to go.
Bracing myself for the long journey ahead, I continued to break the walls of hidden areas—one per floor—collecting and combining the hidden anomalous substances (anomalies).
Along the way, I encountered monsters, defeated them, and collected crystals and experience points. Of course, if there was a treasure chest mark, I retrieved small chests hidden behind rocks or in gaps in the walls. Fortunately, 'Small treasure chest' can be stored in 'Mugen High-Load ver3.5,' so I didn't have to carry them by hand.
I finally descended to the twelfth floor.
I've accumulated a decent amount of crystals.
I've also found five treasure chests.
"Hm, what's that...?"
A large group of explorers is coming from the depths of the dungeon.
They all look utterly exhausted.
Judging by the situation, they're probably a dungeon boss raid team that fought through a raid battle.
Their return must mean the raid battle is over.
"So, this dungeon is fully conquered, huh?"
Before the dungeon gets sealed off, I collected the last piece.
"Combine 'Calamity Beast 11/12' and 'Calamity Beast 1/12'!"
And there it is, completed as 'Calamity Beast.'
Finally, it's done. It's been a long road.
When I finally assembled the puzzle, it turned into a perfectly round bird statue.
It's cute. It looks just like a bird I've seen on SNS.
What was its name again?
Hmm... Oh, right, I think it was Shimaenaga.
A subspecies of a small bird called Enaga, distributed in Hokkaido, I believe.
It looks exactly like that one.
And at that moment...
The statue began to glow, transforming into a ring with a unique pattern of intertwined white and black rings.
The item name itself remains 'Calamity Beast,' unchanged.
It seems that upon completion, it simply took the optimal form as an item.
Oh?
The ring started to glow.
And then, with a soft 'pwan,' a bird enveloped in light emerged.
As expected, it's a Shimaenaga.
It's the cute little bird I often see on SNS.
But why did a Shimaenaga appear? I'm curious.
Shall I check the details?
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'Calamity Beast'
A ferocious bird that once destroyed the world.
The Calamity Beast chooses its summoner.
If you value your life, do not summon it.
Consumes MP 1,000 to summon the Calamity Beast.
────────────────────
......
The Shimaenaga perches delicately on my finger.
Just to be sure, I check my status.
────────────────────
Akagi Hideo
Level 110
HP 4,089/8,115
MP 192/1,499
Skills
'Finger Snap Lv4'
'Phobia Syndrome Lv3'
'One Strike'
'Steel Spirit'
Equipment
'Blue Blood Lv2' G3
'Proof of the Chosen One' G3
'Labyrinth Conqueror' G4
'Adolphene's Holy Shroud' G3
'Mugen High-Load ver3.5' G4
'Calamity Beast' G6
────────────────────
Huh... that's strange. My MP has been drained, and by about 1,000, no less... Wait, does this mean I've summoned it?
"Chii-chii-chii"
"......"
"Chii-chii-chii"
"Um, I summoned you by mistake, so could you maybe go back...?"
With a trembling voice, I pleaded with the white, ferocious bird resting its wings.