Volume 4 Chapter 89 Sparks
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Master! Please, look!”
It happened on a certain day.
While I was taking a short break at the Love Hotel, a sudden call came in from Rozmiaque. When I stepped into the lobby, there he was—a long-haired, blonde elf man, practically bouncing with excitement.
”Master! I did it! I’ve finally succeeded in incorporating the burning flower I harvested from that scorching dungeon into my plant magic!”
Now that he mentioned it, I remembered—he had been researching that for a while.
With a theatrical flourish, Rozmiaque placed a hand over his chest and began to chant.
And then—
“Ssloualbo, Skintilla (Burning Flower).”
The moment his chant rang out, a gentle glow lit up his palm. From its center, a tender sprout emerged, aglow with warmth. The red cotyledons swayed in the air—and in an instant, they bloomed.
The petals shone crimson, jewel-like in their luster. Fine sparks danced from the heart of the flower.
”Oh…!”
The sound slipped out before I knew it.
Red. Fiery. Beautiful.
It was a magical blossom imbued with flame—a vivid symbol of burning life, captivating all who beheld it. A far cry from ordinary plant magic.
”How is it, Master? This flower adapted to the dungeon’s heat. Its petals are fire-resistant—and it even grows by feeding on flames!”
Rozmiaque puffed out his chest, practically glowing with pride.
I studied the fire-kissed flower as it scattered sparks. If the enemy was weak to fire, this alone could prove decisive.
His plant magic had been useless on the sixth floor—too hot, the flora scorched to ash. But this… this could survive there.
”This… seems useful.”
”Yes! Please, use it however you wish! If my creation can serve you, Master, then I’ve never known greater honor!”
His respect was excessive—but his loyalty, his skill, were genuine.
”All right. I’m counting on you, Rozmiaque.”
”Haha! I am honored! Master, I shall labor day and night to deliver even greater results!”
With the blazing flower as his backdrop, the elven sorcerer straightened and offered a deep, formal bow.
* * *
The sixth floor of the dungeon—Scorching Dragon Peak—was more or less a colossal underground cavern.
The ground was forged from dark red stone. Here and there, pools of molten lava pulsed with ominous light. In the far distance, a volcano belched fire into the air.
That much was strange enough. But the true anomaly was overhead.
Looking up, it was as if gravity had reversed. Rivers of magma flowed along a jagged ceiling of rock. No pillars, no supports. Instead of a sky, we had an upside-down world of lava above our heads.
Through this burning underworld, we pressed on.
We defeated the dragons guarding the path. Shot down wyverns circling overhead. Hunted salamanders wreathed in fire. We cracked open treasure chests to uncover enchanted tools, scavenged burning ore, and harvested wild herbs saturated with magma’s nectar.
The landscape hardly changed—but we found something.
”Something’s flying!”
Kéa was the first to spot it. She pointed high into the air.
”A balloon?”
It looked like a red sphere. Squashed like a steamed bun—a balloon-shaped object bobbing in the sky.
”Can you tell what it is?” I asked.
Lifia and Rozmiaque both shook their heads.
”It’s still outside our detection range…” Lifia murmured.
An unknown entity. And yet, curiosity gnawed at us.
We advanced, heading for the red sphere drifting in the sky.
After a while, something strange happened.
”Isn’t it… getting closer?” Korukona muttered.
”Master. It’s within detection range now,” Lifia reported. “It appears to be a monster. The presence is similar to a slime.”
A flying slime? What the hell? Was it buoyed by hot air like a balloon—or filled with gas? Or was some magical force at work?
”Then can we shoot it down?”
”Yeah.”
If it’s a monster, we kill it. Yomi opened her spellbook and began a chant.
“Altair Ray!”
A lance of pure white light burst from her palm, streaking through the sky. It struck the red sphere, punching a hole clean through.
For a moment, the slime’s surface quivered. The hole rippled… then vanished as its form regenerated.
It kept drifting toward us as if nothing had happened.
”No good…! It’s too massive—and its regeneration’s too fast!” Yomi growled.
The red slime floated soundlessly overhead. At first it had seemed small—balloon-sized—but now, its true scale was impossible to miss.
”…It’s huge.”
I muttered without thinking.
Its diameter easily spanned several hundred meters—large enough to swallow a castle whole. Its translucent surface glistened like mucous, revealing a dim interior. The lower half was fluid, glowing red; the upper half hollow.
”Yomi. What about an ice beam?”
Fire magic would be useless here—we needed a cold edge.
”Ice beam’s got limited range. It won’t reach,” she replied, frustrated.
Among our party, Yomi’s spells had the greatest reach. If even she couldn’t hit it…
Meanwhile, the red slime drifted silently closer until it hovered directly above us. Still, it made no move to descend.
”Okay… this range should do it.”
Yomi spread open two spellbooks at once and began chanting. Wind fluttered through the pages, and magic circles flared to life around us.
But before her spell could complete—
The red slime changed.
Its body began to sag—and from its base, thick, dark red liquid started to fall.
”Lava!?”
“Mooluumve, Éamus (Wind Wall).”
At the same time I shouted, Lifia activated her Spirit Magic. A wall of wind surged upward, deflecting the descending lava.
But the volume… that was the problem.
The slime was enormous. The lava spilling from it became a torrential flood, crashing down with unstoppable force. Lifia’s wind wall couldn’t hold.
“Ssloualbo, Blazing Leaf Hollow (Suinti Caum)!”
Rozmiaque shouted his spell.
From beneath his feet, vines with deep crimson leaves burst forth, writhing to life. The leaves, flickering like tongues of flame, spread wide as the vines twist and coil like serpents, forming a dome-shaped barrier around us.
If it were the plant magic he used before, it would’ve burned away the instant it touched lava. But this—this is different. This is plant magic Rozmiaque devised through her research into the flora native to this land. It should be able to withstand the heat.
The red leaves close in, obscuring everything beyond them. We’re completely enveloped.
Moments later—
Fwshhh—!
The sound of lava crashing against the dome.
The vines groan beneath the impact, but they hold. Not even a crack.
We’re safe.
”Haah…”
I let out the breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. Sweat trickles down my back, the chill of it finally catching up. The glow from the burning leaves washes the interior in a soft red light.
”That was a bit dangerous, wasn’t it?”
”Yeah. Definitely a close one.”
I wipe my brow in response to Lifia’s words. This is the sixth floor of the dungeon, after all. Just because we’ve managed to take down dragons doesn’t mean we can afford to get careless.
After that, we retreated to the Love Hotel room to rest and regroup before heading out again.
Now, once more, we stand on the sixth floor—the very spot where that flying red slime had ambushed us.
In the center of the dome of fiery vines, Lifia closes her eyes and focuses.
She’s using Spirit Magic to probe for life signs.
”…No lava slimes.”
Rozmiaque flicks his fingers, releasing the spell. The fire-lit vines shrivel and crumble into ash. Outside, the lava has already cooled, forming a crusty, rock-like dome.
”Ha!”
Kéa draws her sword and slices through the newly hardened wall in a single stroke. Light spills in through the opening. We check our surroundings—no sign of lava slimes.
”From now on, I’ll fire off an Azure Star Beam before the lava starts falling.”
”Yeah, please do.”
I nod at Yomi. We’ll preempt the lava with long-range ice magic from now on. That’s probably the safest option.
If that doesn’t work, we’ll have to fall back on the magic cannon.
We’d return to the Love Hotel and bombard from the motel ship. With that kind of firepower, we could wipe out nearly any monster—even from extreme range.
But it’s not maneuverable. It’s clunky. Relying on it too much won’t help us grow. If we let our skills stagnate, one day we’ll pay for it.
Which is why we need to overcome things with our own strength whenever we can.
* * *
And so we continued our routine: gathering materials in the dungeons, resting at the Love Hotel, and enjoying the freedom of life in the city of Latipak.
Before we realized it, our clan—Azure Pearl—had started to make a name for itself across the Free City. The materials we brought back from the deep floors, the clothes and supplies we sourced from the Love Hotel… all of it sold well. It wouldn’t be surprising if the profits had grown substantial by now.
According to Tifi, adventurers looking to join our clan were stopping by all the time. But she turned them all away at the door.
”Compared to the accomplishments of Mr. Taro and the others, they’re just… not there yet.”
She said it with a smile—gentle as ever, but unshakable at her core.
”And Sir Quatro and Chairman Shell said now’s not the time to expand. They probably want to focus on quality over quantity.”
They were worried that letting in underqualified adventurers could drag down our reputation. There was also the matter of whether they’d mesh well with the rest of the main team.
But there might come a time when we just don’t have enough people. A situation where numbers trump ability.
”In that case, we’ll outsource—to the Adventurers’ Guild or other clans.”
That made sense.
We’re not a large organization by any means. But we’ve got solid people in the clan house, and if we expand too fast, we risk losing control. For now, this scale feels just right.
We were going over reports together—Tifi and I—when the front door flew open.
Quatro rushed into the clan house, eyes locked on me.
”Mr. Taro…”
Normally, he’d charge in, full of energy and grinning like a kid. But this time, his expression was grim. He stared at me with a seriousness I’d never seen from him before.
Something was wrong.
”What’s going on, Quatro? Did something happen?”
Recently, he’d asked me to start using his only name when addressing him. He was insistent about it. And honestly, I agreed—it felt strange calling a boy his age “Mr.”
He took a deep breath and spoke, voice low.
”Mr. Taro… you’re from the Kingdom of Nakuos, right?”
Technically, Yomi and I were from another world entirely, so the question wasn’t quite accurate. But Tifi and Kéa were indeed from that country.
”That’s right. Not all of us, but yeah—we’re connected to it. Deeply.”
For better or worse.
At that, Quatro looked down, eyes shadowed.
”…I just got word. The Kingdom of Nakuos has formally declared war on the Demon Race. Their armies are already on the move.”
Things in the Free City had finally calmed down. Dungeon expeditions were progressing smoothly.
But now—
The Kingdom of Nakuos was about to upend everything.
Notes:
• Rozmiaque – High-ranking elf investigating large-scale Spirit Magic usage. Condescending, believes a High Elf is involved. Uses 6-letter Spirit Magic to trap targets. Displays contempt for half-elves and humans. Aggressive interrogator, possibly capable of sensing hidden information.
• Korukona – A cat-eared girl with amber eyes. She is brave but vulnerable, showing honesty and gratitude. Taro rescues her from the pirate and plans to send her to her village.
• Latipak – A small independent state centered around its port town. Located in a strategic trade hub, it maintains neutrality despite being surrounded by large nations and Demon Race territories. It is a bustling city where humans, elves, dwarfs, and Demon Race people coexist. Known for its vibrant streets, diverse languages, and lively atmosphere.
• Quatro – Male. A young boy, the son of a council member of Latipak. His appearance is androgynous and delicate, wearing butler-style clothes. He was rescued by Ore and now spreads the ‘Room of Love’ teachings, believing Ore to be a divine figure. He is charismatic and speaks with regal dignity.
• Kingdom of Nakuos – The nation where the protagonist and companions were summoned as heroes.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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