Spelunking

After the Dust Incident, yes, that's what we call it. The Fantastic Dreamers start taking odd jobs to train adventurers instead of hogging up all the easier mission.

Darkness put up a class on defenders and all around tanker. She has like twelve vanguards and twelve crusaders learning under her. Most of her lesson includes lectures on self sacrifice, pain tolerance, and honor.

Megumin put up a class on Two Handed Combat and Martial Arts. At first, everyone was skeptic as to why an Archwizard would teach melee combat, but then she quickly proven them that she's no amateur. Coupled by the fact that she didn't use any skill points to learn these skills, made her into a terrifying melee fighter.

Aqua didn't make a class, (thankfully), instead she works part time at the guild as a healer. She'll heal adventurers and in some cases, even revive adventurers that arrives on the guild for free. A party can even recruit her for an outrageous price.

I put up a class on magic and skills for adventurers, mage, and thieves alike. Teaching the best ways to utilize the most basic spells and skills to their advantage. From the classic create earth and create wind combo. To the deadly create water and freeze suffocation combo.

This went on for almost a week, our reputation went from the 'Strongest Party in Axel,' to the 'Four MVP of Axel'.

Right now, we're just having a very early breakfast of fried toads. Megumin and Aqua still has that sleepy look on her face and the former leans at my shoulder as she munched on some vegetable sticks. Tell you what though, she looks freaking adorable.

"What are we doing at this hour Kazuma?" Megumin muttered with her mouth full of vegetables.

"I don't think we've raided dungeons before…"

"Don't wanna," my girlfriend replied flatly before returning to her food.

Of course, as the master of explosion, dungeons are basically her worst enemy. With all the tight and cramped hallways and closed space, there's no way she can use her spell. I'd dare say putting Megumin into a dungeon will be the equivalent of turning her into a regular girl.

"Come on Megumin, you're getting good at melee combat, don't you want to practice it some more?"

"But going to mission without casting Explosion? Impossible, outrageous,"

"If we encounter a powerful enemy, we'll lure it outside then you can blow it up, how about it?"

"Hmmh…" Megumin continued munching on her food without another words.

With that, I turned to Darkness and Aqua. "Okay, so, the reason I wanted to go the dungeon is that I want to level Aqua up," the goddess raised an eyebrow after hearing that. "Honestly, you don't have to come with us since I'm planning on having Aqua clearing up the dungeon full of undead by herself."

"But Aqua already maxed out her stat…"

I blinked owlishly after hearing Darkness said that. "Run that by me again?"

"Her stats are extremely high and it won't increase anymore. Your best bet is raising her skill points."

I turned to Aqua and took a deep breath. I already reserved the entire dungeon just for today so I have no choice but to go with the plan. "Alright, Aqua, are you up for it?"

Aqua grinned a little at that. "You can leave it all to me Kazuma, I, Aqua, the archpriest of Fantastic Dreamers shall purge the dungeon clean of any undead!"

"Glad to hear it, now finish up the food and let's pack up!"

---

The Keele dungeon, a dungeon that was said to be made by an evil wizard Keele. He abducted a noble's daughter and built that dungeon to keep her and himself safe. Some say he's not evil and it's just an act of true love, some say that he's a terrible person.

Personally, I think he's one heck of a wizard.

We camped out in a refugee cabin near the entrance of the dungeon. We decided that Megumin and Darkness wouldn't be coming with us into the dungeon. Instead, they will wait outside and stand by for anything that might happen.

So it was just me and Aqua versus the deep dark dungeon. Apparently the goddess has night vision in her repostiare of godly powers. Which is great because I'm planning to hide and not show myself, letting her traverse the dungeon by herself.

"But you're not leaving me alone right?" Aqua said as I let her led the way into the dungeon.

"No, don't worry," I told her as we walked the narrow stairs down into the dungeon. It didn't take long for the dungeon to fully swallow the light from outside, making it impossible to see your hands without proper lighting or some skills.

"Kazuma…" Aqua looked around before finally meeting my gaze. "Please don't leave me alone…"

"I won't," that said, I vanished into the darkness, leaving Aqua alone.

"Ka-Kazuma? Kazuma, where are you!?"

"Somewhere," I said, using slight auditory illusion to make my voice echoes through the dungeon. I'm tempted to just leave her in the dark, but I can't do that until she sealed the entrance somehow. "Do not worry Aqua, my voice will go with you…"

Aqua gulped and nodded bravely. "Okay, it's just a dungeon…" she took a deep breath and steeled her nerves.

"And thus, the goddess traversed alone through the dark dungeon, unknowing of the dangers lurking underneath…" I narrated, doing my best attempt at M*rgan Fr*eman's voice. "Her divine aura shines like a beacon, awakening undead and monsters alike from their deep slumber…"

Aqua wailed a little at my narration. "Stop scaring me Kazuma!"

Despite her protest, my narration kept her going. At least it's assuring her that I'm not leaving her alone. She ventured deeper down the stairs until she hit the hallways of the Keele dungeon.

"After ascending to the depths of Darkness, the goddess found herself facing a corpse of an aspiring adventurer. Its decomposing body reflects on her mistake of venturing deep into the unknown by herself. Perhaps, this is a warning or something more?"

Aqua just rolled her eyes and crouched down in front of the corpse. "It's about to become an undead, I'm going to purify this child," she said.

"By the grace of her divinity, another soul was freed from the shackles of undying. Perhaps by…" my words faltered when Aqua started giggling to herself. "Oi, oi, what's so funny?" I asked, though my echoing makes it sound jarring in some way.

"But, puhehe! This is too stupid, pushing himself to challenge a dungeon alone– Puhah! Hahaha!"

"The goddess disrespectfully speak ill of the dead. Karma watches her every move with its cold merciless gaze, waiting for the perfect chance to make her pay for it…"

Aqua pretended not to hear me and looked at the branching path in front of her.

"Faced by a branching path, the goddess was faced by the dilemma of two choice. Will she perhaps, pick the right path to treasure and salvation? Or will she be whisked away by the whispers of the devil and pick the wrong path to traps and damnation?"

After a moment I sensed an enemy coming from her right. It's a gremlin, weak and shouldn't pose too much problem for even a low level adventure. I decided not to warn her and let her deal with it herself.

"Kazuma… I think there's something coming this way," Aqua looked around, trying to find me. "Kazuma, oi, Kazuma! It's not an undead!"

"Faced by an adversary beyond what she initially expected, Aqua started questioning her life decision. Spells after spells spew out of her mind as she tried to figure out the best way to deal with her incoming doom."

"GOD BLOW!!!"

Aqua decided to use a level twenty divine skill against a level one lesser demon. Of course, the demon was knocked away and died before it could hit the ground.

"With a sense of pride for killing her first enemy, Aqua continues her way through the dungeon. Many tried to stand in her way, but she was stronger than any of them. Her fist burns like the flames of gehenna and her magic shone like the gates of heaven."

With the appearance of gremlins many more monsters follow. Most of them are undead and they were all dealt oh so easily by her AOE purification spells. The gremlins and other lesser demons were pummeled to the floor with her trade mark God Blow.