The Walking Daikons approached at the pace of a casual stroll. The Hopping Ninjins were bouncing all over the place, but their closing speed wasn't any different from the daikons. We were able to stand our ground and wait for them with plenty of time to spare. Meanwhile, the Nofu Madman stayed in the rear, screaming at the vegetables for some reason.
『They don't look strong at all!』
『In truth, they aren't.』
Listening to Shiroru and the others chatter, I took an experimental jab at a Walking Daikon that had waddled close. My knife pierced its body with ease.
“DAIKON!!”
“Whoa, what the—?”
The strike seemed to kill it instantly, but it let out a high-pitched shriek right before it dissolved into light. The volume was... well, manageable. It startled me, but that was about it.
『They are a special variant of Mandrake, after all. That is how they scream at the moment of death.』
Mandrakes were monsters known for letting out eerie wails right before they died. That scream was apparently a form of death magic; it was said that hearing it from point-blank range could be fatal. Still, a regular Mandrake didn't usually scream its own name.
“Ei!”
“Ya!”
““NINJIN!!””
Close by, Halfa and Spira were taking down the ninjins. Those seemed to be roughly the same strength as the daikons. Since they hopped around, they were a bit harder to hit—which might make them slightly tougher than the daikons—but I doubted they were even as strong as a goblin. Then again, this was only the First Floor, so I suppose this was to be expected.
“They’re quite noisy if you cull them all at once...”
Lowell finished off the remaining daikons. He was scowling slightly, likely because he’d heard several death cries in rapid succession. When you used a sword to sweep through a dense group, you could wipe them out instantly, but the overlapping final screams were apparently a bit much for the ears.
“The drops are... well, exactly what I expected.”
The items dropped by the Walking Daikons and Hopping Ninjins were actual daikons and carrots. They appeared to be guaranteed drops. In exchange, we didn't find a single magic stone.
『I’ve seen these somewhere before, haven't I?』
“Um, yeah. You have.”
Shiroru trotted over and asked the question while patting a daikon with her paw. Even if the names were different, similar vegetables were sold everywhere. I’d used them in my cooking before, so she probably recognized them.
“Gue, gueee!”
“Ah, the Nofu Madman. I forgot about him.”
The lone survivor, the Nofu Madman, was stomping his feet in a fit of pique. He was roughly the size of a human and was even wielding a hoe, so he looked slightly more formidable than the others. He wasn't much of a threat to us, but for rookies entering a dungeon for the first time, he might be a tough opponent. However—
“Oh, he’s leaving?”
“You’re right.”
Just as Halfa noted, the Nofu Madman ranted for a bit longer before retreating into a nearby building. We waited for a while to see if he was going to trigger some kind of event, but nothing happened.
I looked to Garna for an explanation, and she gave a small nod before clarifying.
『The Nofu Madman is a type of monster that, unusually for this dungeon, rarely initiates direct combat. Though, of course, he will defend himself if you attack him first.』
So, he really did just run away?
Well, if he wasn't dangerous, we could just leave him be. What I was really curious about were his drops.
“Does he drop anything special if we kill him?”
『He drops “Rich Soil.” It is excellent earth for growing crops... though, in a floor where food drops in such abundance, I wonder if there is much point in going out of one's way to farm it...』
Ah, yeah. A farmer might want it, but I doubted an adventurer would find it worth the effort of hauling it back. It was probably fine to leave the Nofu Madman alone.
“Hey, hey, what are you going to make with these, Tort?”
『It’ll be something delicious, right? I can't wait!』
While I was gathering the daikons and carrots, Halfa looked up at me with sparkling eyes. Even Shiroru was talking as if my cooking was a foregone conclusion.
Well, since they were perfectly good ingredients, I didn't mind making something.
“I can't do much with just these, though.”
“Hmm, I guess you’re right. In that case, we need to find more ingredients!”
『I want to eat meat! We have to find meat!』
And so, our exploration continued. This floor seemed to be a place where food could be obtained in massive quantities. According to Garna, this was largely due to the influence of Asheraska, who was also a God of Abundance. I wondered what had happened to the talk about balancing the gods' powers, but... well, being able to find food was never a bad thing.
In the Farming Village Area, we found various other crops besides daikons and carrots. We encountered monsters that looked like cucumbers and eggplants with four legs, and barley was growing naturally in the fields. What really made me happy, though, was finding soba and rice mixed in with the rest. I wasn't sure if smooth soba noodles or white rice would be popular with everyone here, but I had something new to look forward to.
In the other areas, beast-type monsters were common. I usually thought of beast monsters as being fast, but the ones here were quite laid-back. In gaming terms, I suppose you’d call them “non-active.” Since they wouldn't turn hostile until we attacked them, even rookie adventurers would find them easy to handle. Naturally, their drops consisted of various types of meat.
“Now Shiroru will be satisfied too.”
『Definitely! Oh, but I want octopus too! Are there no octopuses?』
“The Earth God’s influence is strong here, so there probably aren't any sea creatures, right?”
『Aww, really...?』
Even if he represented abundance, I assumed marine life was outside his jurisdiction. He was the Earth God, after all. Or so I thought.
『An octopus? We have the Land Kraken, if that suffices.』
『Oh! This dungeon is incredible!』
Shiroru was overjoyed at Garna’s casual remark.
Seriously, this place had everything.