Consequently, Miti-chan’s clone ended up launching a solo suicide charge against the boss.
The goal was for her to survive as long as possible and gather as much information as she could.
"Miti-chan, how’s it looking in there?"
"Ah, something dark red and kind of big just showed up—"
The main body of Miti-chan shared her vision with the clone. I decided to use her live commentary to devise a strategy against the boss.
"It threw some gooey red stuff— I’m gonna hide on the ceiling, okay?"
"So it hurls magma, then? Hmm, we’ll have to watch out for that."
"Huh?"
"What is it?"
"It looks like its attacks can’t reach the ceiling! It tried to throw something up here, but it just fell back down and hit it. Ahaha!"
A Safe Zone! We’d struck gold.
"...Hey, Miti-chan. Can the clone use items that were given to the main body?"
"It works if they're close by— This distance should be fine—"
I see, I see.
"Penpen, didn't you say earlier that you had some offensive items prepared for this?"
"I’ve got them right here, ssu. It’s an Elementalion, but since we were the ones who made these, they should work, right ssu?"
That was true. Penpen’s bombs had been effective even against the Great Turtle.
Well then, let’s do it! Time for an "Outrange" attack from the safety of the ceiling!
"Miti-chan... you have my permission!"
"Yay! Cooling Bomb, away!"
I see. So she had Cooling Bombs. They definitely sounded like they’d be effective.
Wait, were you asking if I’d prepared anything myself? Of course I had. I handled the job of transporting the items Miti-chan made. Besides, delivery guys don’t go snooping through their packages, right?
Several muffled explosions echoed from behind the door.
"Wait."
"Hm? What’s wrong?"
"I think I beat it?"
Wait, for real?
Just as the thought crossed my mind, the Boss Room doors let out a long creak and slid open. ...I see, automatic doors.
Peering into the now-open chamber, I saw a black lump roughly the size of a Young Turtle rolling on the floor.
"Ehh. Seriously, o? That was such a letdown, o. Total trash, o."
"W-What...?! To think you truly defeated it...!"
...Ah. I understood now.
"Oh, this black thing looks like it’ll be a great material, ssu—"
"Even if you call it an Elementalion, the opponent was only at the level of a Young Turtle. It was a pushover."
"Come to think of it, Young Turtles were Elementalions too, weren't they, o? Ah, were they natural enemies to NPCs, o?"
It was incredibly anticlimactic for us, but Elementalions were creatures that NPCs fundamentally could not defeat. In that case, for anyone other than us, this was exactly what you’d call an un-clearable boss.
"...Is there a chance the dungeon's Hidden Boss is Great Turtle-level, o?"
"Probably. Well, maybe just the Young Turtle is enough for today. As long as it doesn’t interfere with the request."
"Completely clearing the dungeon isn't the objective; I simply want to use the facility capable of skill adjustment. As long as we break through this point, we should be able to reach it."
Hmm...
...Wait?
"Prince. Even if we assume someone used a Door Stopper to scout and bring back info on the boss, how did you get information on the location you can't reach unless you defeat the Elementalion boss? I sense a mystery! I've discovered a wonder, haven't I!?"
"I’m relying on the Spirit-possessed’s Notes from the past. Why do you ask?"
"What? There’s no mystery at all."
That’s right, we weren't the only Spirit-possessed around. Actually, come to think of it, there was a lore setting that said there used to be many of them back in the ancient civilization.
We didn’t get warped to a Hidden Area by a trap after entering the Boss Room. Instead, we simply passed through the chamber and arrived at our destination.
In total contrast to the caves and stone architecture we’d seen so far, the hallway transitioned into a modern, sci-fi-esque structure with sliding doors. There were even handrails with built-in conveyor belts, the kind you’d see on a spaceship. I wondered if they still worked... Oh, it moved! How about that.
"Tria-dono, do not touch things too carelessly, or a trap might activate."
"Whoops, my bad, my bad. I just got a little carried away."
The Prince searched for the target room while consulting the notes.
"Oh? Isn't this place an Ancient Ruin, o?! Come to think of it, the Prince has been calling it an Ancient Ruin the whole time, o!"
"Ah, then the Cartridges Alto-shi is looking for might be here too, ssu?"
"Prince, Prince! Can I go exploring, o!?"
"...Once I have fulfilled my objective, I do not mind, provided you ensure your safety and keep the preservation of the facility in mind."
"Okay, I'll hold back for now, o. I'm definitely exploring later, o!"
With our future plans decided, the Prince and the rest of us finally reached the target room.