Side Story 2: Undersea Dungeon 07

We reached B3F of the dungeon, and the number of traps and magical beasts started rising pretty fast. Since the Dungeon Master was a fiend, some of our foes were even cloaked in evil energy. Well, it’s still a trap-focused dungeon, so there weren’t a huge number of them.

They attempted to launch pincer attacks on us, so we were forced to stay on our toes.

That said, all of them were small fry so far. I took care of them pretty quickly.

Fran hadn’t had much chance to fight, but she maintained a sharp, alert expression the whole time.

Honestly, she’s never been the type to maintain concentration for very long outside of combat. It’s pretty rare for her to focus during uneventful travel like this.

Could it be that becoming a Rank S adventurer has awakened her sense of responsibility?

「…Hehe.」

『Fran? What’s up?』

Wait, she even looks excited for some reason. What was there for her to enjoy?

「Master, remember what you said it before?」

『Hmm?』

「That seafood curry is justice.」

Huh? Did I say that? I honestly don’t remember, but I guess I might’ve mentioned it while teaching her about curry.

I know Fran would never forget curry-related memories, so I probably did say that at some point. But I’ve made her seafood curry plenty of times, right?

「And that seafood gives good broth.」

『Yeah, that’s true.』

「So if we hunt lots of sea monsters, we’ll get all kinds of broth. So seafood is justice.」

I guess Fran will always be excited about food. It’s good to have something that motivates you, but…

「What is this “seafood curry” you mention? Is it some kind of food?」

「Nn! Curry is the strongest food!」

「Hoh? I have never heard of such a thing. It seems human civilization has undergone many advancements while I was away.」

「Master made it.」

「W-What?! Food created by a divine sword?! I should have expected as much from a legendary Intelligence Weapon! Truly beyond my imagination!」

Silent Sea looked genuinely astonished. Such expressions made him seem very human-like.

Watching his reaction made Fran happier than ever, and she started praising both me and curry.

「So this curry must be delicious then.」

「Nn. Curry is the strongest, Master is also the strongest, and seafood curry is the very best.」

The triple-layered compliment! But, uh, most of the monsters we’ve defeated so far aren’t even seafood! They’re mostly the kind you find on land!

I’ve told her before that “seafood” is made out of ingredients coming from the sea, and indeed, this dungeon is in the sea. However, the availability of air meant a majority were beast-type monsters.

I guess we did find some crab, shrimp, and octopus monsters, so there wasn’t a complete lack of seafood… Well, I’ll just make sure to grab any we can find.

「Hmm… To think your blade would possess the ability to create entirely new dishes. And it holds immense power as well, yes?」

「The strongest.」

Fran is throwing around the word “strongest” like it’s on a bargain sale. And it seems Silent Sea is taking her completely seriously.

「T-The strongest blade is capable of creating the strongest food…? You may be holding the greatest divine sword in history!」

「Hehe. Exactly.」

「This bodes well for our efforts in clearing the dungeon!」

No, stop! Don’t raise the bar that high!

『W-Well, I can’t unleash my full power unless I’m up against something like a fragment of the Evil God…』

「Nonsense, you are an Intelligence Weapon. Your value lies in your sharp intellect!」

「Nn! Master knows everything.」

「Oooh! That is most impressive!」

Silent Sea’s eyes sparkled innocently with his respect for me! This guy is way too pure!

『I-I’ll do my best, but uh… Saying I know everything is a bit of an overstatement, you know…』

「Even as a divine sword, you remain humble! Very admirable!」

「Nn!」

Okay, this isn’t working. Silent Sea seems to hold unlimited faith in the divine, perhaps due to being born from Leviathan. Simply being a divine beast or divine sword is enough to earn his unconditional respect.

I ended up giving up, because at this point, nothing I said was going to change his opinion. I’ll just have to do my best to meet his expectations. Otherwise, he might turn around and go, “Tch! I expected greatness from a divine sword, but this is just worthless garbage! What a disappointment!”

After all, my reputation is essentially Fran’s reputation. I can’t let her down.

「Woof woof!」

「Hm? This scent… it’s stronger than anything we’ve seen so far!」

「Woof.」

We’d apparently arrived at the boss room during our conversation. This was already past the point where Silent Sea’s party retreated last time, so we had no information on the boss.

『We don’t know what kind of boss it is. Let’s be careful.』

「Nn.」

『If it comes down to it, I’ll go all out.』

That said, the various abilities I gained upon becoming a divine sword came with restrictions.

Trail of Bonds allows me draw power from the many people who have formed ties with Fran, and Evil God’s Shadow allows me to manifest Jashin-chan, who is currently sealed inside me.

These are my two main abilities, but I can’t even use them unless I’m up against something like an extremely powerful servant of the Evil God.

Simply using Divine Sword Release does boost me and Fran to ridiculous levels. But honestly, I must admit that our base strength is a step behind the other divine swords.

「Now then, let us charge in!」

「Woof!」

「Nn!」

We stepped into the boss room with Silent Sea at the lead. Not because he was leading us or anything. Rather, he intended to act as our shield if things got dangerous.

「Hoh? Is that what they call a minotaur? This is my first time seeing one.」

「Really?」

「Yes, since there are none in the sea. I’ve witnessed goblins and orcs during my time ashore, but this one is new to me.」

Makes sense. Silent Sea wouldn’t see many land monsters since he lives underwater, and I guess minotaurs are one of the rarer fiends to begin with.

I hear that Sahagin and the Deep Ones are the most well-known fiends underwater.

「Woof woof!」

「Oh? You say minotaurs are tasty if you can ignore the evil energy?」

「Woof!」

「Good to know!」

Minotaurs are humanoid bulls that reek of evil energy, so Fran and I couldn’t possibly count them as food. But apparently, Urushi ate one without issue before.

He probably swallowed a bit of the flesh while biting it to death. Judging by his visible drool, he must have found it quite delicious.

「Do you mind leaving this one to us?」

『Sure, go ahead.』

「Nn. I’m interested in how you fight, Silent Sea.」

「Then Urushi and I shall take on this foe!」

「Woof!」

「Fuhaha! It’s been a while since I’ve had beef!」

「Woof woof!」

「Beef…」

Fran, no! You may have resistance to evil energy, but I’m not letting you eat that!

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