This dungeon doesn't have many monsters. And the monsters that are here are so weak I don't even need to use slip magic to kill them. I just kill them using my swordsmanship. Although it's self-taught and my talent is not related to combat, I can defeat even a hobgoblin without using slip magic. Though it has to be in a one on one situation.
So, I don't have to spend so much mana in this dungeon. I have spent quite a lot on the way here so I don't want to use magic as much as possible.
With the sword in my hands and a cigarette in my mouth, I kill a few goblins on my own. A cigarette remains can be used as a trace for exceptional scout. But I don't need to worry about that.
Red grass doesn't have any taste and smell. The smoke they release is also not much. And when I'm done smoking, I can just eat the remains since they're edible. So unless they're good at locating the slightest ashes on the ground which was really small and nearly impossible to see then even a dog with great sense of smell can't find you. Rather, your smell is easier to trace by a dog than the ashes.
How do I know? I tested it on my neighbor's dog back in Vassel.
No taste, no smell, edible, and the ashes are difficult to find. You can just blow on them and they will fly like dust. And it helps increasing your maximum mana. How come no one knows about this?
In the game, an alchemist discovered this. It's just a small dialogue and the protagonist can choose to smoke since then. I just believed the game's knowledge to be real and tried it. It worked.
In the game, the alchemist was kicked out from the alchemists' guild because he tried to do research using red grass even though many people have tried it but failed to find anything special about it. But the higher ups in the guild told him that there's no reason for him to continue with the research and didn't bother to give him the fund to continue his research. He insisted and then he got kicked out.
I guess his personality is just that bad. Because red grass can be found everywhere. Why do you need funding? He can just make a personal research first.
Well, in the game, his personality was horrible as well. I guess the guild just wanted to kick him out and they found the reason to do it when he proposed this research.
I don't think I will meet him in the future. I don't want to anyway.
As I continue exploring the dungeon with the cigarette in my mouth I finally reach the difficult part of this dungeon.
This dungeon is hard not because of the monsters. But the maze inside.
In front of me, there's nothing ahead other than a deep hole. On my right, there's a button. Once pressed, the mechanism will create a bridge on the hole with many paths to take. And I have to cross the bridge in the right direction or return back here before the time runs out or I will fall as the bridge disappears.
When I played the game and time ran out, the protagonist will fall and the dialogue box will come out saying that I can't escape from the hole until I die. That's game over.
But I remember the path. Even if I fall, I can stick myself to the wall. But I won't try to fall.
I press the button and using slip magic I move myself as fast as possible through the right path. I reach the end of the maze long before the bridge disappears. Still have a few minutes left until the timer runs out.
There are two more mazes like this. Although I only came here a few times during my first few times clearing the game to get more slots in the inventory, I still remember where to go. I rarely came here in the game once I knew that there's no need to have so many items in the inventory but I remember it.
The second maze is the same. I pass through it in just a few seconds.
And then near the button for the third bridge, there should be two corpses. They were people who came this far but I don't know how they die. My guess is that they're really fast and can reach this far but they took the wrong path on the second maze where they ended up getting poisoned from a trap that got activated because they passed that place. There's such trap if you go the wrong way.
But this is a few years before the game. So the corpses aren't there. But there are two dying people instead. A man and a woman. I guess this is around the time they're here before they died in the game.
"…Water," the woman says.
They must have been here for days at least. Or weeks. They tried to survive but the poison was too strong. They ended up consuming all their foods and water but they have no strength to move anymore.
Well, that's just my guess.
"Greetings should start with a hello," I say.
She doesn't show any reaction. I guess it's not the time for a joke.
I give her a bottle of water that I have. It's almost empty. And I also give her a piece of bread for food. Now I really have to return to the city before it's dark because I don't want to camp and there's no source of water anywhere nearby. It shouldn't be a problem to me though.
"Take this and this as well. Bye."
I don't care about them for now so I press the button and go to the end of the dungeon. I'll think about what to do with them when I return later on my way back out of this dungeon.
The third maze, there are flying monsters around. But I'm too fast for them to catch so I don't have any trouble reaching the end.
And now, I'm in front treasure chest where the Extra Pocket should be stored. What will I get? A pocket? A bag? I hope it's something that is really related to spatial storage-like effect.
I open it and it's actually a pouch. A black pouch that can be attached to my belt.
"Is this real?"
I put my hand inside the pouch but I can feel the end. It's just as deep as my hand and that's it. I thought it would be endless.
Or maybe it's because there's nothing inside. So I grab my sword and put one end into the pouch. And the sword gets into the pouch as if it was being swallowed.
Then when I put my hand inside again, I can feel the sword there. I didn't pull it out. Instead I put in some more items.
And when I put in my hand again, I can feel everything I have stored inside the pouch. Just by thinking of what I want to get and my hand will touch the item I want. But when I'm just checking without thinking of grabbing anything, I can feel everything inside.
Even when I'm touching the blade of my sword, my hand isn't hurt. I wonder if I can put warm food inside and if it will stay warm the next time I grab it. I'm going to check it later.
But it works! I got a spatial storage! I'll just call it my Spatial Pouch instead of Extra Pocket. Can I store all the money inside? How big is it? I will figure them out later. I'll just attach the pouch on my belt first.
Now is the time to leave. I can only leave through the path I took before. There's also a button to get the maze raise from this side as well so I can go back.
Sliding back to the previous place, I see the two people are still there. They look slightly better. I guess they're not hungry anymore because the man is standing in front of the button to stop me from pressing it.
"You didn't have that pouch before. That must be the treasure you took from this dungeon. Give it to me," the man says.
"Stop it! He can help us get out of here!" says the woman.
Really? This is how it's going to be?
"Seriously? A man who was dying a few minutes ago is threatening a healthy man who can get all the way to the end of this dungeon easily? You're crazy. Stop being an idiot or I will kill you," I say.
I'm afraid. I'm still a coward so I just act tough. But it's true that I can kill him.
I don't care anymore about how many humans I will kill. I care more about how I will survive and live. If I have to kill anyone to survive, I will kill them.
"For weeks we have been stuck in this dungeon! I won't go back without getting anything! Give that pouch to me or I will destroy the bridge!"
He presses the button and the bridge appears. Then on one hand, he prepares a magic. It must be a powerful magic that is strong enough to destroy the bridge.
"Stop it! It's enough that we can go home!" says the woman.
"Shut up, bitch! I only team up with you so I can get your body one day! Who would have thought that you're giving me so much bad luck!? Now, give that pouch to me!"
So they're a party. I thought they're lovers or something. I guess the woman is a new adventurer or something.
Well, what to do? It doesn't matter. I will live anyway. The only thing I'm thinking is that the two people who should be dead in the game are alive because of me.
I guess there will be many changes in the main storyline because of my existence. But it's fine as long as I'm alive.
"One last chance. Stop being an idiot or I will kill you," I say.
"Try it if you ca-AAAAAAAH!"
Using slip magic, I make him slip and fall to the hole. So easy. So stupid.
"Now, there's only you. What to do with you?" I look at the scared woman in front of me.