Apparently, Progenitor-san’s teleportation magic isn’t ideal for transporting large groups, so we were sent via standard teleportation magic instead.
Stepping through the pitch-black void, I emerged in an entirely different place.
It was a bizarre sensation.
We had arrived in a small clearing within the forest. Rocks were piled high near the center; one of the crevices between them likely served as the entrance to the Northern Dungeon.
Just knowing a dungeon was there made the simple pile of rocks look like ancient ruins.
Beyond the rocks, a massive mountain dominated the skyline.
We were still a fair distance away, but its scale was breathtaking.
It looked like a colossal wall.
Since that mountain isn't visible from the Village of the Great Tree, I finally felt how far we had traveled.
Magic is truly incredible.
As I took it all in, I noticed a strange sensation beneath my feet.
...
Is it the soil?
The ground around here felt soft.
Well, it was still firm, but it lacked the density of the earth around the Village of the Great Tree.
At this consistency, I felt like I could till it even without the Universal Farming Tool.
The real question was whether the soil was nutrient-rich, but...
Since a forest grew here, it couldn't be completely barren.
Maybe I should try tilling it—ah, wait, the timing is bad.
Winter is almost here, after all.
While I was lost in thought, the rest of the group finished their transit.
I wanted to put off the more tedious tasks, but that wasn't an option.
"First, let's offer our greetings."
I’m not particularly bad at meeting new people, but I still get nervous.
I had to make sure I wasn't being rude.
I was just about to ask Hakuren and Rusty to act as guides, since they had been here before, when a heavy rumbling and sharp vibrations echoed from the rock crevices.
Then, the Giants emerged.
Their appearance... was basically a mass of fur.
I could see limbs, but their entire bodies were covered in thick hair.
They looked comical, like something out of a children's television show.
However, they were enormous.
They towered far above me.
Most were about three meters tall, but a few were easily in the five-meter class.
The Giants came charging out of the rock gaps one after another, racing toward us.
What was going on?
I could feel a sense of sheer desperation coming from them.
There was no doubt we were their target.
I prepared to offer a greeting, but they split into two groups, veering around us to take up positions at our rear.
Wait, what?
Confused, I looked around until Ann pointed toward the rocky area.
Following the Giants, a snake large enough to swallow a human whole slithered out.
A Bloody Viper.
Had they been fleeing from that?
I recalled hearing that Hakuren and Rusty had exterminated most of them; was this a stray survivor?
I summoned the Universal Farming Tool in its Hoe form and took a stance.
But then, the Bloody Viper started acting strangely.
Huh?
Instead of pursuing the Giants, the snake began thrashing wildly on the spot.
What was happening?
Looking closer, I saw that the viper's tail had been torn off, spraying blood everywhere.
Then, a massive set of jaws appeared—the very mouth that must have bitten off the tail.
"Earth Rat!" Ria shouted.
"They’re magic beasts that excel at tunneling! They attack from below!"
Earth Rats.
They were called "rats," but with those burrowing skills, they were more like giant moles.
Regardless, they were clearly dangerous.
The Bloody Viper was devoured right before our eyes.
"Damn it. If we'd killed it first, we could have harvested the meat..." Rusty muttered.
I didn't think this was the time for such complaints.
The Earth Rat turned its gaze toward us.
I could feel the Giants trembling with fear behind us.
Sensing their terror, the Earth Rat lunged at us.
It stayed above ground, charging straight ahead.
Before I could even swing my Hoe, the others opened fire.
Hakuren and Rusty delivered heavy strikes; Daga and Ria followed with sword slashes; and Lu, Tia, and Flora bombarded it with magic.
Yeah, that was definitely overkill.
Honestly, I'm pretty sure it was over the moment Ria's sword connected.
In any case, the danger was gone... or so I hoped.
Kuro and the others fanned out to maintain a perimeter.
Zabuton's Children surrounded the rock pile, weaving webs.
Rather than a physical barrier, the threads seemed to act as a sensor network to detect anything emerging from the earth.
That was a relief.
Or so I thought, until Zabuton's Children suddenly started a commotion.
As we went on high alert, a section of the ground suddenly erupted, launching one of Kuro’s pups into the air.
A massive mouth burst from the dirt, opening wide to swallow the airborne pup whole.
...Another Earth Rat?
There was more than one?
No, that wasn't the priority.
"Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa!"
Panic!
I had to save him!
If I used the Hoe... no, that wouldn't work.
If I accidentally turned the pup into soil along with the monster, I’d never be able to live with myself.
An Axe? A Machete?
No, the Earth Rat was already trying to dive back underground to escape.
Aiming for its backside, I drove the Scythe form of the Universal Farming Tool into it and hauled it back onto the surface.
My strength alone wouldn't have been enough, but with the aid of the tool, I managed it.
The Earth Rat let out what sounded like a cry of shock.
I felt a bit bad for interfering with the natural order, but I was taking Kuro’s pup back.
With the Scythe, I decapitated the Earth Rat.
Then, I sliced the body open.
I found the pup inside.
He was coated in stomach acid and wasn't moving.
Was I too late?
Just as my heart sank, he gave his body a vigorous shake and opened his eyes.
"Oh!"
Thank goodness.
I’d made it in time.
I let out a heavy sigh of relief.
Then, I realized something.
I was covered in blood.
Great.
The pup I saved tried to nuzzle me in gratitude, but that just made us both even filthier.
"Wait, there might be more! Stay sharp!"
I shouted the warning, though everyone else was already prepared.
"...I checked with detection magic, but it seems there aren't any more nearby," Lu said.
"My search yielded the same result," Tia added.
Apparently, Lu and Tia could scan the area with magic.
In the end, there were seven Earth Rats in total.
Once their locations were pinpointed, the fight turned into a one-sided cleanup. Hakuren, Rusty, Bulga, and Stifano dashed off to handle the rest.
Soon, the infestation was wiped out.
"Earth Rats usually live much further to the east... it’s quite rare to see them in this area," Ria explained.
I wondered if something had happened in the east.
Regardless, I was so covered in filth that I had to ask Progenitor-san to teleport me back to the village to wash up.
It was a very short journey.
I’d be heading back immediately, though.
"Thank you for the rescue."
The Giants gathered in front of the dungeon entrance and bowed in unison.
There were so many of them—furry masses everywhere.
There were about fifty in total.
It was a significant group.
About half of them were roughly human-sized... they were likely children.
We had rescued five of them from the stomachs of the slain Earth Rats.
Thanks to that, while there were injuries, it seemed no one had died.
That was a relief.
"By the way, I heard that Earth Rats don't normally show up here. Do you have any idea why they did?"
"Well, about that..."
The giant seemed hesitant to speak.
Was it out of politeness?
"It's fine, please tell me."
"Well... a while back... when those two ladies came and exterminated the Bloody Vipers, a section of the dungeon collapsed."
The representative of the Giants looked toward Hakuren and Rusty.
Come to think of it, I did remember a report about them doing something like that.
"It’s dangerous to leave a cave-in as it is, so we were repairing it bit by bit..."
Don't tell me...
"The collapsed area ended up connecting to a tunnel we didn't know about, and they came through from there."
Ah...
I see.
I see, I see.
...
"I am terribly sorry."
I bowed my head to the Giants, who were already bowing to me.