“The effect of this ring is incredible,” Lowell remarked.
He was referring to the Ring of Malice Conversion. A set for the whole party had dropped from a Pandora Gift, so I’d made sure everyone was wearing one. This was our first real battle since equipping them, and it seemed the results were finally sinking in.
“Yeah, the mana recovery is amazing! I can use Shock Voice way more often now!”
“It really is. For something as simple as Tree Manipulation, my mana recovers almost the instant I use it. I might be able to keep it up indefinitely!”
The blessing of mana recovery was a game-changer. I’d already noticed its value back in the city of Aingurna. I constantly kept Speed and Power active even while walking through town to train my non-elemental magic, and with the ring equipped, my recovery speed was high enough to completely offset the cost of the Body Enhancement Magic. I figured I might as well keep them active throughout our entire dungeon crawl now. I was even considering learning a few more enhancement spells to stack with them.
“The mana recovery is one thing, but the status boost is equally impressive,” Lowell continued. “My body feels noticeably lighter. I doubt I could have parried the Fear Trent’s attacks so cleanly without the ring's help.”
[I could run way faster than usual too!]
The vanguard members definitely seemed to be feeling the most benefit from the stat increases.
“We really lucked out getting these.”
[We’ll have to make sure we thank Lord Lamuyadas!]
“It’s a shame they only work in the dungeon, though,” Lowell noted. “If we get too used to this sensation, we might have a hard time adjusting once we’re back outside.”
He had a point. The Ring of Malice Conversion was useless in the outside world where there was no malice to fuel it. That said, it seemed like a waste not to use such a powerful item—especially since using it helped purge the dungeon’s malice in the process. I decided we’d be fine as long as we took them off occasionally to keep our natural senses sharp.
“Well, leaving that aside for now... let’s check the loot.”
“Right.”
Magic stones and square timber were scattered across the ground where the Fear Trent had fallen.
“Square timber, huh? Given how much we need, I was actually hoping for logs.”
“Most people would consider the logs the dud drop, you know,” Lowell reminded me.
Fear Trents dropped two types of wood: small square timber and large logs. The timber was the perfect size for making staves, which made it the preferred drop for most adventurers. While you could get far more material out of a log by processing it, they were incredibly unpopular. Unless you had a Storage Ring, they were nearly impossible to haul back. It might be doable on the shallow floors, but lugging a giant log from the 20th Floor all the way back to Aingurna was a nightmare—unless you had access to a Teleportation Door, anyway.
Still, we planned on hunting more monsters to stock up on magic stones and experience. I was confident we’d gather all the wood we needed before the day was out.
We spent the next several hours scouting the floor. The Fear Trent was the only B-Rank monster on the 20th Floor. Its rank was largely due to the lethality of its mimicry-based ambushes; its actual combat prowess was relatively low for its level. Since it was primarily a defensive plant-type, I didn't feel like we were in any real danger.
That didn’t mean exploration was going smoothly, however. The Fear Trent’s mimicry was a massive headache. Thanks to Spira, we weren't getting caught in any traps, but we still couldn't spot the monsters unless we got uncomfortably close. Our timber collection was progressing at a snail's pace.
Eventually, we found a small clearing in the woods and decided to take a breather. While the rest of the 20th Floor forest was draped in a heavy, gloomy atmosphere, this area was a break in the canopy that let the light shine through.
“What’s this supposed to be?”
“A flowerbed?”
Halfa and Spira were peering curiously at the center of the clearing. It was a beautiful sight, with a riot of colorful flowers in full bloom—but it felt completely out of place in this dark forest. A ring of jagged stone pillars stood around the flowers like a primitive fence.
“As far as I remember from the lectures, there wasn't supposed to be a terrain trap like this here...”
“If we don't know what it is, we shouldn't get too close,” Lowell warned.
I doubted it was a terrain trap, but that didn't mean it was safe. Prioritizing caution, we kept our distance and sat down to rest.
“Man... I wish we could make this more efficient.”
“You mean the Fear Trents? Their mimicry is just that good.”
“Yeah,” Spira agreed. “Even I can’t tell them apart from normal trees until I’m practically on top of them.”
If Spira—a literal specialist in forest terrain—couldn't spot them, there was no way the rest of us would find them through sheer observation. However, just because our eyes weren't enough didn't mean we were out of options.
“Why don't we use the Item-finding Rod?” Halfa suggested.
When it came to beast-type monsters that moved around, the rod was hit-or-miss. But for lurking monsters like Golden Slimes or plant-types like the Fear Trent that stayed rooted in one spot, it was the perfect tool.
Then Shiroru chimed in with an even more efficient idea.
[Hmm? They aren't exactly rare, right? If that’s the case, why not just use a slip?]
“Good point.”
The 'slips' Shiroru meant were Attraction Slips. Back when we were hunting Golden Slimes, we’d used the Item-finding Rod to narrow down a direction first, only using a slip once we were close. That was because Golden Slimes were so rare that there was no guarantee one would even be within the slip’s range.
Fear Trents, however, weren't rare at all—they were just hard to find. As long as we didn't overdo it, there was no risk of depopulating the floor.
Now, an Attraction Slip pulls in monsters at random, so it wasn't guaranteed to bring us a Fear Trent. But nobody bothered to mention that. It was a bit too late to be picky.
“Alright, let’s give it a shot.”
We stood up, ending our break early to test the plan. The moment I activated the Attraction Slip, a magic circle manifested in the air—but it was tiny. Definitely not big enough for a Fear Trent.
“Wait, what?”
“Kyaa!? Wait, what is—!? Fugya!”
Almost the exact moment I voiced my confusion, something shot out of the magic circle. Before I could even process what it was, the object let out a high-pitched shriek and hurtled straight at me. It happened too fast for me to dodge.
As I felt something warm and fleshy slap onto my face and cling there, only one thought crossed my mind.
What just happened?!