Impregnation Reincarnation Adventurer ep032. Omen

 

 

A scout in the adventuring world is a guy with keen intuition.

I’m the type of person who developed skills through accumulated experience based on knowledge and training from senior adventurers, but Cindy’s the opposite type, she could spot traps with just her intuition.

「 There. Something’s there 」

Her ability to quickly spot traps and ambush attacks that I couldn’t detect is truly worthy of her nickname, “clairvoyant”

「 Err, it’s the same trap that summoned the stone golems earlier. How can you recognize something like this in an instant, Cindy? 」

「 It’s amazing, right? Praise me 」

I pat Cindy on the head, who’s proudly puffing her small chest.

Her spoiled child behavior never changed.

Her height, her chest, and her ass, it’s all the same.

No matter how many levels she gets, her body doesn’t grow.

「 Muu, are you thinking of something rude? 」

「 No, I do not 」

Cindy’s angry at my obvious lie kept tapping my shin.

I’m carefully disarming the trap so go easy on me.

「 –Okay, that’s disarmed now 」

I looked up and saw people looking at me in admiration.

Claire clapped her hands.

「 That’s great, you could disarm the trap that Cindy couldn’t! 」

「 Are you sure that you’re iron ranked? 」

「 You got this 」

Brid, Miks, and Zash opened their mouths.

Admiration, doubt, and trust.

I respond to their feelings with a vague smile.

「 Stop wasting time chatter! Zalmen, don’t be too gullible either! 」

Alex proclaims.

「 I know, Let’s move on. Cindy 」

「 Sure 」

The scouting duo once again led in the dungeon.

Be as quick as possible, but be careful to never fall into a deadly trap.

It’s already been three days since I woke up.

We loaded as much as we could carry and brought it into the dungeon, but the food and water we had loaded up in larger quantities would get consumed too fast by this number of people. There’s no room for us anymore. I want to get out of the dungeon as soon as possible. I want to find Marie a second sooner. With that thought in mind, Alex and I are exploring the depths at the back of the Mara dungeon.

Unlike the front dungeon, which had nothing but value as a structure, the back dungeon, lured by the teleporters contained a ton of traps. Most of them were pitfalls or cages that restrained intruders, but they also included some dangerous contraptions that summoned golems, like the one Alex and the group were fighting earlier.

The dungeon isn’t a den of monsters, but there are a ton of anti-intruder devices set up to block our way every time. They steadily chip our time and mental strength.

By the way, Alex’s rashness was the reason why he activated the trap and ended up battling a golem, even though the trap was easy to find and disarm thanks to Cindy.

I’m feeling a gaze, it’s him glaring with a sullen look.

I cower my shoulders and look back to show that I have no other intentions.

「 Well, that’s understandable. 」

We’re witnessing a scene that’s unlike the depths of a dungeon.

An expansive greenery. Fresh water constantly flows from the fountain.

Water overflowing from the fountain circulates in the garden through ditches that function as a river. You can see the shadows of the fishes shimmering underneath the water. That’s an exquisite artificial garden built deep in the dungeon. We gazed at its beauty and majesty.

「 This garden seems to be some kind of sanctuary. Amazing. How on earth did they manage to apply magic to such a large area? 」

Claire marvels.

Sanctuary is one of the magic, a miracle that priests create. By performing a ritual with magic tools, you can set up a ward within a certain area to prevent monsters from detecting it. It’s a special skill of priests that’s very helpful to have on the field. Magic tools are disposable and expensive, and their effects don’t last that long, at best it’s only a few hours, making it difficult to manage the cost of using them regularly, even though they’re great for adventurers.

Let’s use my previous life knowledge to say that it’s an exclusive skill for priests that allow them to create a safe zone for resting on the field map.

I used to keep the party purse so I understand her surprise.

Even more now, thanks to the magic of these glasses, a thin haze-like curtain is visible at the border of the garden. The “Sanctuary” Claire’s talking about probably refers to this area surrounded by the curtain.

It completely covers the entire garden. At a low estimate, I could spend my entire lifetime wage as an adventurer just trying to cover this range and it still won’t be enough.

「 This is the essence of the magical civilization that sustained the prosperity of the magical city of Mara. This garden is just part of it 」

I muttered to myself.

「 This is amazing. So beautiful 」

「 Is this lamp also powered by magic? Or? 」

「 If it’s the sun’s rays, then we’re close to the exit! 」

「 Finally! We can get out! Let’s look for the exit as soon as possible! 」

「 Leave it to me! 」

「 H-Hey! Be careful! 」

「 Cindy’s going too. Zaryu stays here 」

Cindy followed the trio as they rushed out without hiding their excitement.

From her accustomed behavior, I guessed that Cindy’s always following up with party members who are brave in this way. I’m impressed by how much she’s grown into someone reliable. At the same time, I feel a bit lonely.

「 I guess I’m out of the game now 」

Words spill out of my mouth as I watch Cindy and others go off.

Cindy was quite a handful–or should I say that she’s a tricky one–disciple, and is now doing her job as a key player in the party’s dungeon exploration. When I see her, I feel like she’s become a distant presence in my life.

「 That’s not true. Cindy can trust you to babysit Alex so she can move freely like that. Normally, I would’ve kicked all three of their frazzled butts to stop them 」

Claire scolded me for being sentimental.

「 Hey, why does this small fry have to babysit me?! Sure, it was my fault that I activated the trap earlier and I’m reflecting on it, but why does an iron rank have to babysit me? 」

Claire continued, smiling through the ranting Alex.

「 Cindy, Alex, and me. We all got this far because of your help. Therefore, don’t be so self-deprecating. I’m sad to see you look at us that way. We still think of you as one of our own 」

「 I don’t ever recall being comrades with someone coward 」

「 –Alex. I’ll get angry 」

「 Don’t raise your mace! Get away! 」

Alex quickly turns to my back and grabbed me by my shoulders to turn me into a meat shield.

「 Zaryu, do something! 」

「 Stop it! We’re in the dungeon! 」

「 Ufufu, Zaryu, you should move over 」

「 You think I can handle this monstrous level 15 Alex! Wait, don’t just let down your guard, something’s wrong 」

I desperately try to quiet both of them down while searching for the source of discomfort welling up inside me.

We’re in a garden with a sanctuary found in the dungeon.

In the depths of Mara, there were golems as dungeon defense, and yet not a single monster was to be seen. Despite that, there’s a sanctuary here. Is it a coincidence? Or a necessity? Was it a common practice for people in Mara to have sanctuary over their gardens? That’s absurd. No matter how good they are as a magic civilization, their energy should be finite. Even if they were prepared for war or calamities, they’re not going to waste energy considering the cost of maintaining this. There has to be something… There’s something in the garden. There has to be. The same goes for those relentless traps. That visibly powerful golem is a contraption designed to repel intruders.

The abandoned city of Mara. A hidden dungeon. The interiors. Safe Zone. Defense Equipment. Invaders—…

「 –There’s something in this dungeon! 」

A flash of certainty and a foreboding feeling flashed through my brain like a lightning bolt.

At the same time, a high-frequency sound that could shatter glass pierced my eardrums.

「 W-What’s this sound?! 」

「 I-It’s tearing the sanctuary!? 」

Alex and Claire cried in pain.

「 「 「 Woaaaaaah!? 」 」 」

I hear more screams from a distance.

I can’t hear Cindy’s voice. I’m having goosebumps!

「 Alex! Claire! 」

I shouted with all my might.

My body, which had been restrained, is now free.

Claire’s eyes turned to me.

「 Go to Cindy, right now! 」

「 –!! Yeah! 」

「 Let’s hurry! 」

I run through the garden with the two who regained themselves.

Goosebumps spread with every step.

A slimy, yet familiar smell hits my nose.

The thick smell of death was starting to waft through the beautiful gardens.