—[Gods' Ordeal], the innermost chamber of the 9th underground floor.
Ever since then, I had wandered these blue passages in search of a worthy opponent, only to find small fry at every turn.
Their attacks were crude and beastly; no matter how far their physical prowess exceeded mine, there was no way they could ever land a blow. It was an absolute waste of raw potential. A mere brush of my wooden sword against the joints of their insectoid carapaces was enough to shatter them into pieces.
"At this rate, I would've been better off just practicing my swings."
Over the past three years or so, my base stats had risen to an average of around 5. The only reason it had taken three whole years of searching through a dungeon filled with such weaklings just to reach the 10th floor was that the place was absurdly massive. What was worse, the floors seemed to expand exponentially the deeper one went.
Furthermore, the dungeon contained safe zones that monsters couldn't enter, housing teleportation magic circles that led back to the surface. Traveling between these safe zones within the labyrinth took a dozen or so days on its own.
Naturally, my supply of packed [Hard Poison Insect] lunches couldn't last forever. So, I turned the dungeon's insect monsters into my food supply. I pressed forward, slaughtering and devouring them as I went.
Descending the stairs beyond the innermost chamber of the 9th floor, I found a single massive bee standing in solemn vigil.
"The first ordeal, Defeat the Killer Hornet, will now commence."
A woman's voice echoed in my head, and I raised the [Unbreakable Stick].
At long last, I might have finally stumbled upon the worthy foe I sought.
"Let us slaughter each other to our hearts' content!"
Letting out a shout of joy that nearly tore my throat, I advanced toward the monstrous hornet.
Without warning, the monster's entire body shuddered, and its form blurred. A sudden chill ran through me. I shifted my center of gravity ever so slightly, but my left arm was still deeply gouged.
"Mm. A foe too fast for the eye to track? Not bad. Not bad at all."
My face twisted in ecstatic delight at the long-lost, pleasant rush of pain as I leveled the [Unbreakable Stick].
An unseen enemy. A truly formidable opponent. Nothing could be more wonderful. Resolutely tamping down my racing pulse, I tightened my grip on the wooden sword.
"Is that all you've got in the end...?"
My disappointment was as profound as my initial excitement. True, I couldn't track its movements with my eyes, but it only ever moved in straight lines. On top of that, it invariably had to stop in one place and vibrate its entire body before executing its burst of speed. It was practically begging me to dodge.
To make matters worse, its trump card was...
A barrage of venomous, purple liquid fired in unison from its stinger toward the space above my head. I raised my wooden sword into a high stance.
"[Kai-Style Swordsmanship: One-Sword Style], Third Form—Moon Mirror."
Guiding the toxic mass hurtling toward me along the wooden blade, I sent it flying right back.
As if time itself were flowing in reverse, the purple venom slammed into the hornet's tail, dissolving it into sludge right at the base.
"Sorry, but that kind of projectile won't work on me."
Third Form—Moon Mirror was a counter technique I had developed specifically to deflect the ranged attacks of Silver of the Magic Sword.
Silver's lightning-fast spells were one thing, but swatting away a mediocre attack like that was child's play.
From the look of it, the discharge seemed to be a corrosive venom. Not that it would have done anything to me either way.
Screeching, the giant hornet clung to the ceiling to put distance between us.
Hmm. Unlike the other bugs, it hasn't fled or lost its will to fight, even in such a hopeless situation.
It may be a bug, but it seems to possess the pride of a warrior.
"Allow me to end your misery."
Gripping the wooden sword in my left hand, I dropped low into a stance and rested my right hand lightly near the tip.
It was my fastest high-speed movement technique to date. I would answer its resolve with that.
The hornet's body trembled, and—
"[Kai-Style Swordsmanship: One-Sword Style], Second Form—Lightning Speed."
—my incantation rang out at the exact same instant. Several streaks of light flashed through the room, and I was already behind it.
"Gii-gii...?"
The creature instinctively tried to look back, but its head smoothly slid off its neck, followed by its limbs and torso collapsing in pieces to the floor.
"Rest now."
I flicked the green fluid from my wooden sword and sheathed it at my waist.
"Defeat of the Killer Hornet confirmed. The first ordeal has been cleared.
The clear reward will now appear."
The woman's voice resonated, and an elongated wooden chest materialized in the center of the chamber.
Opening it revealed a longsword with a blade glowing crimson. I appraised it immediately.
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★ Flame Sword: Utilizes atmospheric mana to ignite anything it slashes.
- Rank: Advanced
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A sword that burns whatever it cuts, huh? With this, I can steam-roast the bugs. It might even make them taste a little better, which makes it quite the find.
After healing the wounds from the Killer Hornet fight with an Elixir, I headed down the stairs leading to the 11th floor. The ground below was a sea of bubbling, churning magma.
Mm. Splendid! Wonderful! If it calls itself an ordeal, it wouldn't be worth doing unless it went this far.
Still, what should I do? I couldn't advance like this. It would be one thing if I had heat-resistant boots, but unfortunately, I had no such convenient gear on hand.
"Mm, resistance, is it...? This might make for a good experiment."
Conveniently, the chamber of the 10th floor's ordeal doubled as a safe zone, complete with a teleportation circle back to the surface.
I took off my [Escape Boots], stashed them in my item box, dipped my foot straight into the magma, and yanked it right back out.
"Tch! Guess once isn't going to cut it."
Grimacing through the excruciating pain, I clicked my tongue at my right foot, which had been incinerated from the ankle down. I fully restored it with an Elixir and repeated the process.
Just as I finished my fiftieth repetition—
"Requirements for acquiring [Weak Heat Resistance] have been met. Skill—[Weak Heat Resistance] has been acquired."
The woman's voice rang in my head, and a translucent panel appeared before my eyes.
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Skill—[Weak Heat Resistance]: Grants slight resistance to heat.
Acquisition Requirement: Expose a part of the body to extreme heat 50 times.
Rank: Beginner
Rank-Up Requirement: Expose a part of the body to extreme heat 500 times.
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Yes! Perfect! Absolutely magnificent! I have all the time and Elixirs in the world! That gives me my next immediate goal. I'll keep this up until I acquire [Heat Assimilation].