part1 · 062-ep62
Episode 62: Three Years Later
—After that, three years passed since Ren had entered the dungeon.
Ren, once fifteen, was now eighteen. Through those three years, Ren had simply kept pushing onward into the dungeon's depths.
The eleventh floor. The twelfth floor. The thirteenth floor.
The deeper the floors went, the stronger the monsters became. Even so, Ren never halted his advance.
Fighting. Getting wounded. Resting. And fighting again.
He repeated that, over and over.
◇
On the eleventh floor, he found a treasure chest during his exploration. Inside was a sword.
A new weapon for Ren, who had used a spear until then. At first, it didn't move the way he wanted.
But he kept using it in real battles, again and again.
And then—
《Survival Adaptation activated.》
《Skill 《Swordsmanship》 acquired.》
From that point on, Ren came to use the sword as his main weapon.
◇
As he kept exploring, he also became able to sense the presence of monsters.
《Skill 《Presence Detection》 acquired.》
Monsters waiting out of sight. Enemies closing in from far away.
He could now detect their presence faster than before.
And by living through dangerous situations again and again—
《Skill 《Crisis Detection》 acquired.》
Traps. Powerful enemies. Hazardous ground.
Against such things, his body had learned to be on guard without thinking.
There were battles against monsters that used poison and paralysis, too. They gave him no end of grief.
But as a result of fighting on regardless—
《Skill 《Status Ailment Resistance》 acquired.》
His very body was changing, little by little.
◇
Around the time he passed the fifteenth floor, Ren ran into a monster that used magic for the first time.
Dodging the flames the monster spat, he used 《Magic Perception》. Magic gathered inside the monster's body and turned into fire.
He could sense that flow, clear as day.
"...So this is how it uses magic."
Until then, all Ren had known was pouring magic into body strengthening and weapons. But this battle showed him a new possibility.
Ren tried it again and again. Gathering magic. Shaping it. Failing.
Trying again.
And then—
《Survival Adaptation activated.》
The handling of magic carved itself further into his body. At last, a small flame kindled in Ren's palm.
《Skill 《Fire Magic》 acquired.》
"...Fire."
It was Ren's first magic. At first, he could only produce a small flame.
Even so, each time he used it, he could handle it a little better.
◇
The sixteenth floor. The seventeenth floor. The eighteenth floor. The nineteenth floor.
The twentieth floor.
Every time he felled a powerful enemy, Ren's level climbed. His physical abilities rose. His HP and MP grew. 《Body Strengthening》 matured.
《Magic Manipulation》 matured. 《Magic Perception》 grew able to sense even finer flows of magic. 《Appraisal》, too, grew bit by bit over the long stretch of time.
And with every dangerous battle—
《Survival Adaptation activated.》
Ren adapted to his new environment.
◇
The twenty-first floor. The twenty-second floor. The twenty-third floor. The twenty-fourth floor.
The twenty-fifth floor. The twenty-sixth floor. The twenty-seventh floor. The twenty-eighth floor.
The twenty-ninth floor.
And then—
the thirtieth floor.
◇
Ren stood in a corridor on the thirtieth floor. Three years since he'd entered the dungeon. The boy who had been fifteen was now eighteen.
He'd grown taller. His build had changed a great deal, too.
At his hip hung the sword he'd obtained on the eleventh floor. Three years of battle together — by now, a weapon Ren could not do without.
Ren stopped.
"...Three years, huh."
He remembered when he'd first entered the dungeon. Nothing at all was like it had been then.
Ren used 《Appraisal》 on himself.
"Appraisal."
《Name: Kurose Ren》
《Age: 18》
《Race: Human》
《Level: 48》
《HP: 680/720》
《MP: 610/700》
《Skills》
《《Infinite Growth》》
《《Survival Adaptation》》
《《Appraisal Lv.7》》
《《Body Strengthening Lv.6》》
《《Magic Manipulation Lv.6》》
《《Magic Perception Lv.5》》
《《Item Box Lv.3》》
《《Swordsmanship Lv.5》》
《《Presence Detection Lv.5》》
《《Crisis Detection Lv.4》》
《《Status Ailment Resistance Lv.4》》
《《Fire Magic Lv.4》》
"...Quite a lot more now."
Three years ago, he hadn't had nearly this many skills.
And yet—
for Ren, this was still just a waypoint along the way.
From the depths of the thirtieth floor, a powerful presence was making itself felt.
"...It's ahead, then."
Ren rested his hand on the sword at his hip. Three years. He had lived inside the dungeon the whole time.
And even now, he could still go further.
"Let's get going."
Ren started walking, toward the depths of the thirtieth floor.