Chapter 328

Souvenir Gathering

(No meat is turning uuup~)

As we progressed through the forest, monsters other than the Hiding Chameleon began to appear, but none of the loot was edible, much to Vector's dismay.

“Maybe that is the kind of the dungeon we are in.”

(Ehh~ why no meat~)

“It’s not certain yet whether there won’t be any, but there doesn’t seem to be much hope on this floor.”

(That can’t be~)

In addition to the dyes, the loot from this level consisted of colorful wax and colorful glass beads.

(Meat for a souvenir would be good!)

“Well, I do think that they would be happy to receive a good piece of meat as a souvenir, but…”

(Right!)

“I’m sure they would be happy with something else, too.”

“Yeah, Obaasama would love anything.”

“Yeah, Obaasama would be happy just listening to our stories.”

(I know!)

Rebecca-san, of course, and all of our close friends would be happy with whatever souvenirs we get them. In fact, they would be happy just hearing about our journey.

I think Vector knows that, but regardless, he just wants the meat.

“... It’s almost lunchtime, so why don’t we have a hearty meat dish?”

“”((Wanna eat!))””

Allen, Elena, Joule, and Vector swiftly reacted to my words.

“Then, let’s look for a place to res—---”

“That way, I think?”

“Yes, let’s go that way.”

(Allen and Elena say to go that way.)

(ALright, let’s go! Let’s go right now!)

The two children and two animals started to move before I could say anything about finding a place to rest, and they ran off.

“... They are gone, huh~”

(My, oh my, those kids~)

(They ran off, huh~)

(Geez~)

“Anyhow, let’s go after them.”

(((Okay.)))

I wanted to chase after the kids who went ahead of us with Feat, Bolt and Mile, but Allen and Elena came back.

“What’s wrong?”

“We shouldn’t have gone.”

“Out of Oniichan’s sight.”

“”So we returned!””

Allen and Elena seemed to have remembered my words and came back in a hurry.

"You two are good at keeping your promises, aren't you~”

"”Ehehe~””

While Allen and Elena returned, Joule and Vector did not, so when we met up with them, they were lectured by Feat and Mile, and almost had their food reduced, but they managed to avoid that.

Then, after lunch, we were able to get a few more white dyes on the second floor, but none of the meat that Vector was craving as we looked for the third floor, which we eventually found.

◇ ◇ ◇

We have been steadily conquering one floor a day, and today we were about to face the fifth floor.

By the way, the third floor was the red forest, where we got a lot of red dye. The fourth floor was a blue forest, and we got a lot of blue dye.

“Everyone, are your eyes okay~?”

“”Okay!””

It's a dungeon that's hard on the eyes anyway, so I was considering leaving early, but… no one has said that their eyes hurt. I, too, feel a little flickering here and there, but after a short break, I don't feel any discomfort at all.

(I wonder what color the forest will be next~)

(Indeed~ I’m thinking black?)

(I think it will be yellow.)

(It doesn’t matter what color! I want meat to be there!)

(Vector, being overly persistent is bad!)

Rather, once we got to this point, we started wondering what the next floor would be like, and we were all making predictions as we went along.

“”(((((Ohh~)))))””

“Oh, it feels kind of normal this time?”

The fifth floor was a green forest.

“I wonder if this floor will be easy to conquer?”

(I wonder, too. Let’s move out quickly~)

It's not normal for the trunks and branches of trees to be green, but it's not like there aren't forests where the trunks are covered in moss and the whole thing looks green, so I didn't feel that strange.

(Takumi Nii~ Look!)

“N? Mile?”

“”Vanished?””

As I was walking through the forest, I was unexpectedly called by Mile. But when I tried to look for her, I couldn't find her.

“”Ah! There! That place!””

“N~... Ah, you are right.”

Mile was blending in with a green tree of a similar color to her own.

(I’m a Hiding Chameleon onw!)

“”Ohh~ amaz~””

“Yep, that’s awesome. I couldn’t tell for a moment where you were.”

When the kids and I praised her, Mile puffed out her chest happily.

(Wah! I should have done this too in the white forest!)

(Oh! I could have done it in the red forest, too!)

Joule and Vector were frustrated by Mile's actions. Is it because I praised her?

(I have a pattern so it wouldn’t be possible for me.)

(I think it would be difficult for me too even if we were in a yellow forest.)

Feat and Bolt were a bit frustrated.

(Yay! I think I can do this in a normal forest as well!)

“For covert action? That would be certainly possible for you, Mile.”

As Mile said, even in a normal forest, she would be able to blend in.

Then, seeing the exchange between me and Mile, the other four animals looked even more frustrated.

“Why do you look so frustrated?”

(But~ If I was able to do that, I would become even more useful to you, Oniichan~)

(Indeed~ Being able to help from the shadows is a good thing.)

(Yeah. It’s delightful to have more means of helping.)

(I wanna be able to do many things!)

Rather than wanting to imitate the Hiding Chameleon, they seemed to envy the fact that she was able to increase her usefulness.

"Don't look so frustrated, Mile is the best at covert actions. On the other hand, Joule and Vector are useful for brute force and defense, while Feat and Bolt are useful for mobility and agility, right?"

(That’s true, but~)

I told them that they didn't have to worry about it because each of them had their own unique strengths, but they didn't seem too convinced.

"Well, it's good to have more tricks up your sleeves, so let's see if we can come up with some more tricks together.”

“”(((((Yeah!)))))””

I recalled making a few types of weapons for myself, so it’s not like I don’t know what Joule and the others were thinking. The more tricks you have up your sleeves, the better, of course.

And so, since we are in a dungeon, I suggested that we practice some small skills, not necessarily a training, though. Not only Joule and the other three animals, but also Allen, Elena and Mile responded cheerfully.