37-34th Episode: Pick up souvenirs, the strongest onmyoji





 After going through the passageway that stretched to the back of the boss room, what we arrived at was a small room.

''This is....''
I don't know, maybe that's what the room is for, I don't know.

 In the center of the room was an altar of sorts.
 And on top of it, a sword was propped up.

 Although it was covered in dust and looked very old.......it was a magnificent sword.
 The hilt was modestly ornamented, and one could feel a faint flow of power.
 There was not a single rust floating on the beautiful silver sword barrel.
 What could it be made of? It doesn't look like steel or bronze........

Is this........holy silver (mithril)?
'Mithril? And...

 I think it was a rare metal that allows magic power to pass through.

I've only seen a mithril weapon once, maybe.
Is that a pretty good one?
''It's the perfect material for a staff sword. Since it's so rare, it's expensive, so if you put this on the market, it'll probably fetch quite a bit of money... Still, I wouldn't want to pull this out and take it home with me.

 And then Amu looked at the altar with a creepy look.

 Mithril's sword was stabbing at the altar, and it was a huge hand.
 It had five fingers, but it wasn't human.
 Its lumpy skin was almost reptilian.

''Sealing........right? This,
I know.
I don't know what's wrong with my hand.
I'm sure they've torn them apart and sealed them up in different lands.

 There were examples of powerful demons being sealed that way in their previous lives as well.
 It's a different kind of seal than sending them to a phase.

''You mean that's how bad it is?''
Maybe. But.....

 I grabbed the hilt of my sword and pulled it haphazardly out of my hand.

''What? Hey!
It's okay. This hand has lost its power long ago.

 The giant hand had cracked and crumbled as he pulled out his sword.
 It must be quite old. I can't feel the faintest flow of power or anything else.

''But why would they seal it up deep in the dungeon?
It's a good idea to call up the Naga when that hand was still powerful, and it eventually became the nucleus, and over a long period of time the dungeon spread out.... This place looks like the ruins of something originally.
Yeah. I see.

 Well, whatever.

Yes, Amu.

 I hold out my sword to Amu.

"What?
Isn't this a nice sword? Why don't you use it?
...Are you sure? You could have taken credit for it.
I don't use a sword. I don't want to sell it, but it's very rare and you should use it if you can.
Are you sure about this? My current staff sword was damaged by the acid, so I'm very grateful for that, but...

 As Amu said this, he took the hilt and set up the sword barrel.
 Then something falls off the pommel and rolls on the floor with a bang.
 I picked it up.

What, did you lose some of your jewelry?
No it's a ring.

 Apparently it was hooked to the handle head. I didn't notice it, thinking it was just a piece of decoration.

 It's a beautiful ring, albeit covered in dust.
 A ring of mithril, the same as the sword barrel, fitted with a small magic stone of intricate color.

 There are no letters or magic circles, but I can feel the power flowing through it.
 This could be.....

"Amu, can I have this one?
I don't see any reason to say no... yes, this is still a good sword. It needs to be fixed, though.

 Amu, who was wielding a mithril sword, says with satisfaction.

''I didn't expect to find such a find.
Yeah. We've been lucky.

 I'm really... really lucky.
 At first I didn't think I'd fall into such a trivial trap, but then I learned about Amu's curse, and I got an interesting souvenir.
 If I had just let Yifa go, it could have been the worst thing that could have happened, so my decision was good too," Amu says.

 Amu says.

'I wish I had gotten a dungeon drop, too.
Dungeon Drop?
In some dungeons, there are items that fall out of the dungeon. In some dungeons, items may be found in the dungeon. These items are created by the dungeon, just like the monsters, so they are the blessings of the maze (dungeon drop).
Wow.

 Speaking of which, I remember a lost family in a previous life could be given a spell that would bring wealth to its owner.

''That sounds like a fun thing to look for.
Yes.

 Amu laughs and says.

"Being an adventurer is a trivial profession, but it's interesting. Well, it's not a world that high ranking aristocrats would be involved in.
Ha, no you're an adventurer. Not bad.
What, are you serious?
'Even though you're a nobleman, you're a concubine's son and can't take over the house. I have to work.
If you're from the academy and your grades are good, why don't you become a regular government official? Don't you think you can become a court magician?
Officials...

 Honestly, I was sick of the life of a government official during my yin and yang dormitory days.
 It's busy, it's full of drudgery, my coworkers are incompetent, the company is depressing... I don't want to do it until I'm reborn.

''I don't want to be an official.... Besides, adventurers make a lot of money, right?
Successful people are. But they're a danger to themselves.
'I don't mind that. I like the fact that you look free more than anything else.

 If you're strong, you can make a lot of money fast and free, no strings attached.
 That's what I'm good at.
 It's always good to have money.

 I smile at him.

I had a lot of fun fighting with him this time. "I'll think about it some time in the future.
Is that...? Then think about it. Um, if you become an adventurer...
Let's go on another adventure together. Be prepared this time. I feel like I can go anywhere with Amu.
Uh, yeah I'm about to.

 A little embarrassed, Amu looked away.

 Being an adventurer would allow him to be close to Amu.
 That's the biggest thing.
 Basically, if you are an adventurer who acts in a party unit, you will not stand out, even if you are a little strong.
 I will be quietly happy behind Amu's spectacular success.

 I've gained a lot of trust from this.
 This life is going really well.
 Is it really that easy to start over?

Well, let's get on with it. If this is an underground ruin made by man, the exit should be very close...
Wait.

 I stopped Amu as he started to walk away.

"There's a door ahead. I'll check it out.

 A short passage extending from the altar room.
 Even from here, they could see the bronze door beyond.

 Amu said quizzically.

'We've defeated the boss, so there's nothing there.
Just in case. I'll be back in a minute.

 With that, I walk to the door.

Seika-sama...
I know.

 I had noticed it from the moment I entered the altar room.
 The great flow of power beyond this.

 The dungeon has not yet lost its power.
 The nucleus is still alive.

 I flew a lighted Hitogata through the gap in the bronze door and peered softly inside.

 A vast room.
 There, I see three Nagas.

 To the right, a golden-scaled Naga.
 To the left, a silver-scaled Naga.
 And in the center, a noxious, rainbow-colored Naga sat solemnly with its arms crossed and mangled.

 The amount of power was different from the Naga from earlier.
 It was obvious that this was not good.

 I winced.

 No, you'll have to read the air....

 We were just about to finish, you know. Why are you folding? I don't want any of that right now.

 I glance at Amu.
 No matter how brave he is, it would be impossible to deal with those three animals right now........
 It can't be helped.

 From the gap in the door, I send three new Hitogata flying.
 They were silently stuck to the three Naga, who were not moving with their eyes closed.
 I set up a mark with one hand.

''Phase of Yin----The Art of the Ice Tree.

 The yin qi instantly took away the heat - the three Nagas all turned into mere ice statues.
 The power vanished from the entire dungeon as if a light had fallen off.
 It looks like that one was the real nucleus after all.

"Wha-what? Now.
'Uh ... the dungeon has lost its power, hasn't it?'
Yeah, but the boss is already...
Maybe that Naga was alive a while ago. You know, snakes are very powerful and alive.

 He said the right thing and skipped the door's human rattling and dumped the Naga's corpse into phase.
 Okay, the evidence is gone.
 I open the door.

I can't find anything in this room. If the dungeon is still alive, there might be a monster in here.
'Ummm ... yeah? What's so weird...

 I point to the back of the room to Amu, who doesn't seem to be able to understand what's going on, and I point to the back of the room to fool him.

"There seems to be a passage at the back of the room. It might be a way out.

 In fact, it was a shikigami that I had already skipped, and I knew that the end of it was a staircase that led upwards.
 The drop door, which was the exit, was covered with dirt and didn't look like it would be easy to open... but there were plenty of ways to do it.

 In the temple ruins on the ground, the teachers of the school were there.
 They must have come to look for them. They appear to be in a great hurry to find him. I'm the son of a nobleman, after all.

 I'm sure you'll be able to see one of them from the bee's view and chuckle inwardly.

 I see.
 I guess I'm a lucky guy, huh?