130-an unexpected encounter




 The Ancient Ruins of Flame, a huge dungeon that leads to the fifth city, Griffith.
 Although it's called the Ancient Ruins, the actual dungeon is mostly in the ground. In other words, it's an underground labyrinth similar to the Labyrinth of Stardust.

'This might not be so kind to swordsmen, that's for sure.

 As I crushed the skull of the attacking Proto-Golem with an upper kick, I realized the reason why this dungeon was not very popular.

 The bodies of the monsters that appear in the Ancient Ruins of Flame are mostly made of rock and metal.
 Well, that in itself is not so different from the "Scorching Rocks" in the perpetual scorched earth not far from the Ancient Ruins. It might be better to call it a characteristic of this region as a whole.

 What is so troublesome about rock and metal monsters for swordsmen?
 This is not because of the realistic reason that hard things like rocks are hard to cut with a sword, but because most of these monsters have "slash resistance".

 Just as I once had a hard time against frogs with "slash resistance" in the swamp near Dualis, monsters with such resistance are troublesome for users of such weapons.
 It's not that you can't defeat them, of course, but the more moves you make, the more your weapon's durability diminishes unless you get a critical hit.
 In short, there is little return for wear and tear. That's why most swordsman players will choose the World Tree Cave.

'You can see why no one chooses the Ancient Ruins of Flame in general.

 I muttered to myself as I walked out into the large hall, crushing the three or so proto-golems that had been hanging around.
 The proto-golems seemed stronger than the petite golems I had defeated so many times in the Labyrinth of Stardust.
 It was about the size of a normal human, and the attacks I tried on it were surprisingly heavy.
 However, its movements are too slow, and it can be easily broken just by hitting it as hard as you can, as if it has a core in its head.

 However, this is also due to my overly high status. I could crush them all with my bare hands, and the darkness on my back was literally a burden.

'You're making a mess of it.
'You're getting too strong.
You've got a lot of golems and ruins.
I'm not sure what to do.

'I think it's hot ...... in terms of temperature. I also thought it would have more flames burning in it.

 Is it called 'flaming' because it's near permanent scorched earth, or is it called that for some other reason?
 I don't know which came first, so I can't say for sure, but so far the flame element is too weak to be called a flame.
 If you don't have heat-resistant items, you'll take damage, so it's not entirely impossible.

 However, it's only been half an hour since I started the game, and even if I follow the map I bought at Fierce, I'm still only about 10% of the way through.
 At this pace, it'll take me about five hours. It can't be helped that I'm taking it easy, but I've got to quit the delivery at around six o'clock today because I'm expecting a visitor or something, so there's nothing better than getting through early.

Hmmm, now that I know what kind of monsters are out there, let's dive in at once. There's no reason to take it slow.

'The demon village is too far away...'
"I can't wait to see the fifth town.
I can't wait to see the fifth town.
"It's already 8:00 in the morning, Himi.
I just got hit by a hobgoblin and got despatched, so I'm bored again.
I've been hit by a hobgoblin and received a despena, so I'm bored again." "That's why I told you to wait until someone else wakes up. ......



'It's been a bumpy ride, hasn't it?


☆☆


 We continued to descend the ancient ruins for about an hour, and finally reached the middle of the map.
 It was a dimly lit tunnel-like passage that had been barely maintained so far, but we finally reached the deepest part, which was a large hollow brightly lit.

'Magma.

'It's magma.
'It's so beautiful.
"Looks hot.
"Will I die if I fall?
"If you fall, you'll die instantly.
If you fall, you'll die instantly.

'Wow, you're pretty deadly, aren't you Magma?

 Frighteningly, at a quick glance, it seems that the straight line of this cavity is about a kilometer long.
 There are holes in the walls and ground of the cave, and magma seems to be flowing out of them.
 It seems that magma is flowing out from these holes.
 The central part of the cavity has completely collapsed, and magma is flowing through the cracks that have formed. It looks like a valley with a river of magma flowing through it.
 Looking at it this way, the foothold we are standing on now may not be very stable.

 There is also a simple bridge to cross the valley, which was probably added later.
 It looks rather shabby, but at least the players who reached Griffith before I arrived must have climbed over it or jumped over the ravine, so I don't want to think that it will break.

'Hmm, who's there?

 I was only paying attention to the flow of magma, but if I looked closely, I could see a figure on the other side of the bridge.
 He was wearing dark blue light armor and a metal bowl. ...... Hmm? Horns?

It might be a player from the demon tribe.

'I can't see them at all.
I can see a shadow, but...

I'll go there anyway.

 Perhaps it's because this cave itself is quite large, but even getting to the central bridge took longer than I expected. Even so, it took me about a minute to get there.

'This bridge is pretty solid.

'I'm going to knock over it.
"I'm going to break it.
"My muscles can't take it. ......
I laughed a little.

'If I do that, I'll get beaten up by players on their way to Griffith.

 I'm just testing the bridge to see how strong it is. But I guess this kind of object is supposed to be unbreakable.
 And so we crossed the bridge and arrived at the player we saw earlier.
 He's probably been waiting for me to reach him, since he hasn't moved so far. ...... Anyway, let's talk to him.

'Excuse me.



'Hmm, you've finally come this far. I've been waiting for you, Sukuna-san.

 The one who said this in a slightly theatrical tone was a ...... male ......-like player from the demon tribe.
 The avatar is completely female. If anything, his avatar is much more feminine in proportion than mine, but his voice is that of an austere man.
 It could be a nekama, or it could be a woman with a really good voice. Well, I don't really care about the gender of the player inside.

'I'm Meme Meme Meme Meme. It's the first time we've met.

'Eh, uh, ......, are you the Meguru from the dedicated forums?'

 Meme-mem-mem-mem-mem. In the event that you have any questions regarding where and how to use the site, please do not hesitate to contact us.
 The 'M' is 'nine' and the 'Le' is 'Meguru'. The name Meguru was apparently a last ditch effort to keep the name from being used in a game that doesn't allow name confusion at the moment.

 He ...... her?
 Anyway, Meguru is a senior player of the same race who has already reached the village of demons, a player who learned the demon dance earlier than I did, and most importantly, a player whose occupation is the same as mine, "Doji".
 I don't know how many children there are after me now, but according to Amber, there were less than 10 before me, so Meguru is one of the few players.

'So, why did you come all the way here? You're taking some kind of quest in your village, aren't you, Meguru-san?

'Yes, I heard from Himiko that Sukuna-san has finally started heading to the demon village. I have no choice but to go see her!

'I see.

 That's why he came here from his village via Griffith in such a short time.
 You have an overwhelming power of action that reminds me of Kittenmaru when we first met.

'I'm sure I was hoping to meet you and show you the way to our village, but there's another boss I want you to help me with, Skuna-san.

'Boss ......?'

'Yes, it's a hidden boss that's separate from the dungeon boss of the Ancient Ruins of Flame. However, the existence of this boss itself has been known since a rather early stage, and it's not a rare monster. ......'

 When Meguru said that much, he frowned slightly and continued.

'It's really strong. I had to defeat it in order to complete my personal quest, but I couldn't manage it. I've asked players who've reached the demon village to help me, but that didn't work either. So we had to ask even higher level players to help us.

'Ah, it's true that I'm also quite high level.

 Considering that the recommended level for exiting this dungeon is around 55, my current level is far too high.
 In fact, I haven't used a single weapon in the entire time I've been here. I was in a state of what could be called status violence.

'I don't think it's just level, but what about ......? I'm not going to lie, this dungeon is boring at Sukuna's level, isn't it? Why don't we play one more before we go to the demon's village?

 And it seems that Meguru-san saw right through me. After all, Mehgul-san is also a child, a profession with its own peculiarities, so perhaps there are similarities between us.


 And Meguru was right, I was getting tired of beating monsters of different levels.
 Let's be honest.
 I want to fight so badly.

'Hmmm, I don't mind your idea of winning. I'm glad you asked. I'm sure all the listeners were getting bored by now.

"Let's go!
"You can get through even with the worst of the despena.
"I'm sure Skuna was the most bored.
You can do whatever you want.
"The boss fight!

'Haha, thanks. Okay, Meguru, I'm good. Let's go kill the hidden boss.

'I knew you'd be on board. The room with the hidden boss is not far from here, so I'll explain about the boss as we walk. Also, it's itchy, so you don't need to use polite words from Sukuna-san to me. It's just a habit of mine.

 I guess I'm like Toka-chan.
 It is said that if you use honorific or polite language all the time, it will make you feel uncomfortable if you don't use it.
 I'm more comfortable speaking normally, so I decided to take advantage of his kindness.

'I guess I'll let you do that then. So, Meguru-san, what kind of monsters are we dealing with?

 I forgot to ask the most important question.
 The boss we're about to fight, Meguru-san, who I assume has been defeated many times, doesn't have that information.
 In response to my question, Meguru-san, with a mysterious look on his face, told me the name of the monster I was to fight.

'The monster's name is the Volcano Golem. It's a huge golem with a level of nearly 80 and an appropriate amount of power, with a Hellfire attribute.