NOVEL NEXT Chapter 18
My daily schedule starts by climbing the watchtower and half-heartedly sneaking a peek at the snakes.
Normally, I would have a quick breakfast and head to the beach for a leisurely stroll and some scouting, but since I have to prepare for a showdown with the snakes, I had no choice but to move my schedule forward. Once I wipe out all the little snakes, the only thing left will be the dungeon.
Once I break through the dungeon…
Can I escape?
It’s clear that the only place I haven’t been on this island is inside the dungeon, so it’s the only place I can get hints on how to leave this island. The problem is, I have no idea what might be lurking beneath that dungeon.
To put it bluntly, another final boss from the Survival Academy could be waiting for me in there.
Of course, there’s no way that creature would be sleeping on this island… but something related to it could pop out. After all, this island itself wasn’t featured in the Survival Academy. It might as well have been a DLC island they were planning to release. Those DLC merchants were infamous for being utterly annoying.
New map added! New quest! New allies! Discover the secrets of the deserted island with your companions! Something like that, you know? Their advertisements were so off-putting that I often wondered if they even had a marketing team. Ha, I miss that now.
I remember the days when I’d sit back in my chair, hands on the keyboard and mouse, and enjoy gaming in utmost comfort.
Dreaming of DLCs while honestly entering my card number into the payment window like a fool.
Speaking of gaming, I realized it’s been months since I last opened my status window. It has to be useful for something, right? It’s not like there’s a level-up system to allocate stats, and it’s so unintelligible it might have been designed to humiliate me. I wish they’d at least make it a weapon I could wield!
Anyway, it doesn’t seem bad to open the status window after such a long time.
Even if I’ve been dead in the water for ten years, the appearance of the heroine from the Survival Academy might mean something has changed.
I suddenly shouted a word I hadn’t missed in a long time.
“Status Window!”
[Johann Quartz]
!(@&#^!&!@(&!($#!@*
(&$(#!&!@(&()#!)($()!&
@!&$(!@&)(!&$##@
[!@&^!#*^]
($&!(@!&)&#$)!(@&^(!
!@()&!#)
!@(&!(&!1
“…Damn, what was I hoping for in the status window? What an idiot.”
It’s the same as ten years ago. Why was I even given a status window that can’t fulfill its purpose?
Stats and skills all appear in alien languages, so I can’t gain anything from the status window. If you’re going to possess me, at least shower me with cheat codes! I want characteristics like EX-level growth so I can punch bears and snakes into submission like a final boss! I don’t want to deal with traps and poison!
“I don’t know. Forget the status window and everything else; I’ll just ignore it.”
It’s not really a crucial matter right now. It’s better to observe the snakes’ movements at this time. I waved my hand to banish the status window from view. As I did, it faded away like smoke.
Haah.
I pulled out the hard jerky I brought from home and bit into it. The salty flavor tickled my tongue. Nothing wakes you up like salty jerky. Speaking of which, I’m running low on jerky. Once this is over, I need to catch some rabbits and make enough jerky to fill at least one crate.
Might as well dry out all the rabbit species living on this island.
If, if the whirlpool disappears, then it’s time to start a long journey.
Though that only makes sense if there’s a clue to escape inside the dungeon.
Ah, I’m thirsty. Chewing on the salty jerky makes my tongue tingle. I took out the newly made leather canteen and gulped down the water inside. The taste of well water is really good. The water distilled from seawater has a bad taste. It’s extremely inefficient to boil a pot and barely extract a cup of water. When it’s tough to supply drinking water, I’ll take it, but… well, since the well has been purified, that’s not an issue anymore.
Ah, refreshing. I wiped the cool water flowing down my chin. Drinking water while overlooking the island’s scenery from a high point was truly amazing. It was quiet today, but it seemed like the snakes successfully repelled the zombie rush. I couldn’t see any sign of the hydra next to me. Hopefully, it’s worn out by now and fast asleep.
“Is it about time?”
If the hydra is worn out, that’s great news. An enemy being tired is synonymous with being vulnerable to surprise attacks. But, judging by the way the snakes’ habitat looks, it might not be the case.
“It’s practically a poison swamp now.”
The scenery created by mixing poison, mountain fortresses, blood, and corpses was pretty spooky, even for someone like me who’s seen a lot. Just a few days ago, the forest was lush and green, but now it’s filled with rotten trees dyed purple, hills revealing their pathetic insides, and purple swamps formed in the exposed territory.
It looked like a literal land of death.
“…Did I go too far?”
Those things aren’t evolving in a strange direction, are they? A snake that’s not just poisonous but has poison covering its entire body? One that can spray poison like a water gun? Or maybe snakes the size of an anaconda are filled with poison too…
I shuddered at the horrific thoughts. It’s a pointless imagination. It’s already annoying enough dealing with the sneaky snakes; can you imagine how much worse it would be if they evolved like X Pokemon? I’ve been having a hellish time drifting through this place, and it wouldn’t increase in difficulty from here on out. After all, evolution doesn’t occur so easily… or does it? There were mutant monsters evolving rapidly even in the Survival Academy.
Ah, I feel dizzy.
Thinking of all the possibilities brings on a headache. Spending ten years in a place where a single misstep could cost you your life has naturally made me a master of shadow boxing, but I really need to fix this habit.
“…Enough.”
I should go eat something.
There’s no point in worrying here; it’s better to discuss things with Renny while I eat. After all, the practical battle will primarily involve me and Renny.
Karina will be in charge of healing, so she’ll be waiting for us in the rear. There’s no guarantee we won’t get injured while fighting the snakes, and we have no idea what might happen in the dungeon once we eliminate all the snakes. So we definitely need a reliable safety net. Karina, who uses excellent healing magic, fits that role perfectly.
If I remember correctly, Karina isn’t exactly skilled in combat. Even when she appeared as a final boss, she didn’t do much other than randomly shoot magic.
And even then, her magic was weak…
“Don’t ever say it’s over if I’m breathing…”
I awkwardly hummed a song whose melody I could barely remember as I headed home.
——————–
“Oh, you’re here? Please, have a seat! I made breakfast!”
…I’ve really become a local. I thought, gazing at the clams and larvae floating in the bubbling pot.
“Johann! Here!”
Karina handed me a bowl filled with soup. I carefully took the bowl and sniffed it.
The unique earthy smell of larvae mixed with the scent of the sea emitted an indescribable aroma. I glanced at Renny, who was bringing the soup to her mouth with a somewhat resigned expression.
“Karina, try to be a bit more like that.”
Whether it’s larvae, earthworms, or whatever, she eats it all without a fuss.
…Is Karina the weird one? Looking at her, you’d think she wouldn’t touch any of this, yet she’s taken to it like a champ.
Other than the first day, her expression has been practically unbothered. If anything, she seems to be enjoying it.
…I must be mistaken, right?
“Is it tasty?”
“…Yeah.”
I answered awkwardly, although Renny seemed to be doing fine. But when I stand in front of Karina, my words get stuck in my throat making it hard to breathe. Even after nearly two weeks, that hasn’t changed. Is it because I’m a virgin, or is it just because I’m straining my neck to talk to a flower on a cliff like Karina?
Whichever it is, it doesn’t matter, since I have conclusively decided it’s pointless to dwell on it.
“How are the snakes?”
“It’s become hell.”
How many snakes are left, anyway? I couldn’t gauge how many remained in a land that looked like that. And it’s not just that; the terrain has changed dangerously, so we need to revise our entire plan. There’s no way I can step on a swamp that seems like it will turn my whole body purple with just a touch.
No matter how much Karina is there, she can’t use healing magic endlessly. If she could, she would have already organized a Hydra raid party and taken down the hydra heads.
“Hell, huh… is that a good thing?”
“No. The forest has collapsed, and a poisonous swamp has formed. We need to scout.”
I could go alone, but since we’ll have to fight together anyway, it’s more efficient to have Renny and I go on the scouting mission. Just having an ally with me for emergencies brings me some comfort. Although she doesn’t emit the terrifying aura of a final boss yet, since she’s not fully healed…
These kids are strong enough to cut through any obstacles.
“After eating, we’ll head out for scouting.”
“I’ll finally get to stretch my legs a bit.”
It seemed like Renny was excited about going outside. Karina had kept her confined, saying patients should remain still, so I guess that was a little frustrating for her. I cleaned out the bowl and set it on the tray I made two days ago. It was designed for easy dish placement.
“I still haven’t gotten used to it…”
As I heard Renny grumbling, I started tossing the necessary items into my leather pouch. Jerky to quell my hunger, various tools, small bottles for poison, and leather to cover my body. I could easily gather the remaining materials locally, so this was enough to take with me.
“We’re heading out right away.”
“Oh, wait. Karina, when you go outside, please keep a close eye on your surroundings and try not to stray too far from home. We can’t guarantee your safety while we’re away. No, you should stay in the shelter while we’re gone…”
“Renny. It’s fine. Let’s hurry.”
Is it impressive that Renny can make Karina make that exasperated face, or is it impressive that Karina can just be exasperated without going over the edge? I wouldn’t know.
If it were me, I might even enjoy being coddled that much…
Better to have someone than to have nobody, after all.
“Hey, what’s with you? Why are you spaced out? Are you sick?”
“Nothing. Let’s go.”
It feels like it’s going to be a rather chaotic scouting mission.
For some reason, I thought that when I looked at Renny.