Then the party went on through the forest for a while, but when the sun was getting high, Lloyd stopped and said.

'It's time we went back.'
What, already?

　I don't think I've killed much of a monster yet.
　Lloyd smiles and says with a wry smile, as if such emotions were on his face.

''Even so, we've killed a lot more than we planned. Besides, there's a return trip on the adventure. If you don't plan on camping out, you'll turn back while you have the energy to spare.

　That's the way it is.
　If it is said, you have a point. We can't understand this kind of thing without asking a specialist.

　And then, at that moment, Yifa looked across the forest and spoke to me.
　And then Yifa, who had her eyes on the other side of the forest, spoke to me.

You know what that is, Seika-kun? What is that...?
Hmm...?

　I looked out of the corner of my eye.
　There was some kind of huge fruit growing out of the ground, a huge fruit that was bulging out of the ground in a blubbery and creepy way.
　A single vine, not growing on a tree or even a single leaf, was growing from the ground, dangling from the fruit.

　It was obviously a strange plant.

'Oh, that's a call (coring) trap, isn't it?'

　Lloyd, noticing our exchange, says from behind me.

'What is it?　It's,
One of the traps in the dungeon is one that attracts a large number of monsters to the surrounding area. That's a calling trap. In underground dungeons, they look like fake treasure chests, and when you open them, they make a loud noise, but in the forest they look like that.
'So it's not a plant? What happens when you touch it?
''A strong smelling liquid will splash around and it will attract the monsters. But it won't burst at the slightest touch, though.

　Geez, that sucks.

"Yeah, do you want to try it?
What...?

　I stare at Lloyd, who just said something outrageous.

"No, no, you don't want to...
Don't worry. There aren't many monsters in this forest to begin with. There's no great danger. I'm more afraid of panicking when I accidentally stepped on a trap. It's better to try these things when you can and get used to them.
'Ummm...'

　I was feeling uneasy, so I glanced at Amu, who seemed to sense my concern.
　As if he sensed my concern, Amu says, "It's okay.

It's okay. It's a low-level dungeon, and there are eight of us.
Well I guess I'll give it a try then.
Good. Of course we'll help you destroy it. Let's get ready to go.

　At the sound of Lloyd's voice, the female heavy warriors, the monks and the archers each quickly set up their battle positions.

''We can't afford to get the scent on you, let's just crack it open with our arrows.
No, I'm fine.

　Before the archer could nip the arrow in the air, I flew my Hitogata and stuck it to the fruit.

《Phase of Sun - The Art of the Thin Thunder》.

　The sunshine caused a small-scale lightning bolt to flow through the Hitogata.
　With a click, sparks flew and the strange fruit burst.

　The scattered juices stained the surrounding grass and leaves.

''Ugh.''

　I held my nose.
　The smell was quite strong.

　It didn't take long before the effect was felt.
　One by one, the living room mails began to gather in the trees and in the shadows of the grass and leaves.
　I wondered where they were all located, but in the blink of an eye, the area around me was covered with living room mails.

''Hey, isn't this too much?

　Amu says, a little impatiently.
　Lloyd also mumbles with a voice sound that is filled with nervousness.

''Strange, what is this number........ It can't be helped. Everyone get into position. You should also discard your luggage for now. You can run away when the need arises...
Oh, no, it's fine. This much.
What's the...?

　I let the bewildered Lloyd aside and let my hat fly.

　I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to find out what's going on here.
　It's not something you should try with these kinds of spells.

　The position of the Hitogata that flew in all directions is adjusted. It may be the first time to use this jutsu in an actual battle, come to think of it. The power is, well, appropriate.

　I make a sign with both hands.

"The Phases of Wood, Fire and Earth - The Art of Heavenly Flowers.

　In the next moment, the sound of an explosion roared through the forest.
　At the same time as the magic, a haze of white smoke was generated and covered the entire area.

''Geho, Geho!''
My ears!

　I could hear such voices around me.
　I coughed and coughed, too, and hurriedly cleared the smoke with a cigarette lighter.

What are you doing for me?
I'm sorry.

　I apologize flatly to Amu.

　As expected, it was a little too much gunpowder.
　This jutsu, inevitably, the sound and smoke is terrible.

　When the smoke finally cleared and I looked around........the scenery around me was quite spectacular.

''Nah........!
"Li, the living mail...

　The living mails that had been gathered together had all collapsed and turned into mere armor.
　The holes in various parts of the armor testified to the power of the art.

　Sulfur, charcoal, and nitre. When these were mixed in the right amount and set on fire, a violent explosion would occur.
　《Shintian Hua》 is a simple technique of creating something called gunpowder, which I knew in the Song Dynasty, and sending the stone pebbles flying.........but it is a crazy power. It is frightening to know that this can be done without a curse.

　However, it needs to be improved before it can be used in war.
　The sound and smoke are awful, they don't tolerate humidity, and their range is short. Even the curses are so difficult to use, so there must be more work to do.

　But that's about it.
　I looked around the forest and spoke to Lloyd, who stood dumbfounded.

The monsters don't seem to be coming around any more. I don't know if it's because the corralling traps have lost their effectiveness, or if it's because of the sulfuric smell and the sound of the explosion, but I think it's safe to assume that it's over for now.
'Oh, oh yes. If I let my guard down now........no, no, wait a minute!

　Lloyd says as he comes to himself.

'Yes, that was you?'
Yes. I took it a little too far.
A little...?　Was it magic?
Well, yeah.
''I've never seen or heard of anything like that. What kind of magic was that? What the hell are you....

　Lloyd exhales as he sees me laughing vaguely while keeping my mouth shut.

"...I won't ask for details. It was something I said myself, wasn't it?
Thank you.
Good. Well, let's turn back for today. It's a shame about this amount of material, but we can't carry it.
That's all right. I feel bad saying this, but I'll take it away for you.

　I let the Hitogata fly... and with a short mantra, I open the door to the empty phase.
　I continue to move the Hitogata and let the armor of the Living Mail be sucked into the distortion of space.

　I smilingly explain to those who open their mouths.

"I didn't tell you this, but I actually have an item box.
This can't be an item box!
What?

　Lloyd's words upset me so much that I couldn't help but blurt out something dumb.

'Isn't this an item box?'

　Lloyd says, holding his head.

'At least ... all the item box-holding transporters (porters) that I know of were storing items by touching them with their hands. I've never seen materials sucked into the distortion of the landscape like that.''
I'm a magician, so the item box is a bit different.
I don't see that as a problem, but how much capacity do you need, by the way?
Yo, capacity?

　I'm confused. I hadn't really thought about it.

　There's no information in phase, it's an empty world, so to speak.
　Theoretically speaking, of course, there is a storage limit.
　But even if you put a star in it, the limit is probably a long way off, so I never paid any attention to it when I was using it.

　I was puzzled when I answered, "You can put as much as you want in there.

"I can fit as many as I want, but...
Any amount?　No way. Haven't you ever measured your limits?
No, sir.
"...how much stuff have you put away, up to now?
"Uh....

　I twisted my head seriously.
　Naturally, it's an event from a previous life....

'A little lake full of water, I guess.

　After I said it, I wondered if this wouldn't come across.......but apparently that wasn't the point.

''Wha........ho, really an item box with unlimited capacity!
I didn't think it was real...

　Lloyd's party members were buzzing. Lloyd himself is already at a loss for words.

　...and it seems that the item box is not what I imagined it to be.

You didn't know you could do that.

　Amu says dismissively.

"I'm not surprised by what you do anymore," he says.
It's kind of like this is Seika-kun, isn't it?
I'm used to it.

　I couldn't help but let out a dry laugh at the women's words.

　Maybe....it was impossible for me to live inconspicuously in the first place.