Sun and Moon Room

Which way did the Lepras go, right or left?

I thought as I circulated the mana in my body to activate my Clairvoyance.

If I were to search for "wounded Lepras", I should be able to immediately tell what that monster is up to.

However, that doesn't mean I would be able to tell where it is.

It would take time for me to find out.

That being the case, it would be quicker to take a glimpse into the past and find out the path it took.

It would take an enormous amount of mana to see into the past, but I only wanted to see what happened just a minute or so ago.

If it's just that, it should be less stressful on the body.

Probably...

Having decided on my plan, I take out a stick chocolate.

Using this will increase the power of a magic I use by 30%.

Holding it in front of my chest, I swung it down, I elevated my mana.

"Do you want to go forward or go back?"

The usual voice echoed in my head.

Choosing "go back", I kept my gaze on the fork in the road.

A vision opened up like a haze around me.

For a while, all I could see was an empty dungeon corridor, but soon I could hear rough breathing and scuttling footsteps.

Thereupon, the Lepras without a right hand came into my view.

The Lepras looked puzzled for a moment, but then, looking back for a moment, it proceeded to the right path.

Knowing that is enough already.

I quickly released my magic.

[Right. It went right.]

[How do you know?]

Merle asked me that, but my clairvoyant power is a secret.

[No time to explain. In any case, let's go.]

[Merle, let's trust Yuusuke-san.]

Since Mira said so, it seems that Merle also accepted the situation.

We followed the Lepras again.

As soon as we started running, I felt a pain in my chest, as if I had been pricked by a small thorn.

The aggravating pain kept on pricking me, and I couldn't help but click my tongue.

[Tsk.]

[Is something the matter?]

[Nothing. I'm just a little out of sorts.]

According to Michelle, these discomforts will lessen as the amount of mana I have increased.

It was apparently because the stick chocolate had forcibly increased my mana usage that I'm experiencing this.

I guess I would need to work on this a little more.]

[There it is.]

Merle, who was running in front of us, raised her hand and whispered.

Peeking out from the shadows of a rock, I saw the Lepras standing in front of a wall decorated with reliefs of a sun and a moon.

It raised its remaining left fist and began pounding on the wall.

Gon, gon, gon! Gon, gon, gon, gon!

After hitting the sun three times and the moon four times, the wall with the reliefs split in two, revealing an entrance.

[So that place had such a mechanism huh.]

I could hear Merle's surprised murmurs.

She, who had reinforced her body using magic, has much better eyesight than I do.

[Did you get a glimpse inside?]

[It's impossible from this angle. Whatever is inside that room, we can only charge in ourselves to know.]

[Wait a moment.]

I sat down again and decided to use my Clairvoyance.

This time, I would just phase through the wall, so I wouldn't need to use a stick chocolate.

[You gonna use your strange magic again?]

[Nevermind that, just give me a moment.]

I closed my eyes and activated Clairvoyance.

Gradually moving around my viewpoint, I came up to the wall with the sun and moon reliefs.

Since I'm currently intangible, I don't even need to hit the wall and open the door.

I just phased straight through the stone wall and flew into the Lepras den.

[Ugheek!]

I inadvertently felt nauseous.

I mean, it can't be helped. The first thing that entered my sight was an adventurer chained to the wall in a terrible state.

Seemingly dead already, his eyes were clouded white and lifeless.

His body was covered with gruesome torture marks, which I think must have been inflicted by the Leprases.

His body had so many... different kinds of injuries that it's hard for me to list them all.

I had heard that they enjoyed torturing people, but I had never expected anything like this.

Once again, I felt I had learned the horrors of the dungeon.

[Yuusuke-san, are you alright? Pull yourself together.]

I think I heard Mira's voice coming from somewhere far away.

Regaining my composure, I observed the surroundings once again.

There was a campfire in the center of the room, and a large pot was hanging over the fire.

They seemed to be stewing something, as a Lepras was stirring the contents with a ladle.

The human bones piled up in the corner of the room suggest that their food was probably humans...

Stifling the nausea rising up from beneath my throat again, I shifted my gaze to the back of the room.

Thereupon, the Lepras we were tracking earlier was wrapping a cloth around its arm.

It doesn't seem like they had any other comrades in the room.

Releasing my Clairvoyance, I turned to Merle and Mira.

[There's only the wounded Lepras and another Lepras. If we launch a surprise attack, wouldn't we be able to defeat them?]

[That won't be any problem, but how do you know what's in there?]

[With something like fortune-telling. Just trust me on this.]

[Fortune-telling huh... Alright, I'll believe you, Yuusuke-san.]

Both Merle and Mira nodded toward me.

When we came in front of the reliefs, I readied my 8-shot pistol and Mira readied her magic rod.

As Merle also held up her buckler, she struck her fist at the sun and moon reliefs.

Gon, gon, gon! Gon, gon, gon, gon!

The wall immediately parted in two, revealing a dark entrance.

Since I had given them information about what was behind the wall beforehand, Mira and I rushed inside to bring down the Lepras sitting in front of the pot.

""

My pistol blasted fire and Mira's wind blades danced wildly.

Unable to put up much of a fight, the Lepras in front of the pot fell next to the fire.

Soon after, the wounded Lepras rushed forward from inside the room, but Mira and I finished it off with my pistol and her magic.

Thanks to the fact that it was restricted in its movements within the small room and that it was already wounded, we had no difficulty taking it down.

[It's finally over huh.]

[Yeah... Urph!]

It was then that the putrid smell of the room hit my nose and I finally vomited out the contents of my stomach.

[Geez, get a grip, will you?]

Even though she complained, Merle rubbed my back.

It's exactly because of this kindness of hers that makes her someone one can't dislike.

[Uegghh...]

[If Michelle-san sees this scene, she might kill us. Please pull yourself together.]

Even when she said such things, Merle kept rubbing my back.

[Sorry. I'm alright now. That aside, let's give the guy on the wall some proper burial.]

[I guess so...]

The three of us dug a hole and buried the wounded adventurer.

With the door left open, Mira used Wind Magic, and the smell in the room seemed to have diminished a lot.

[Now then... Let's look for the treasure!]

As if to switch away from the previous vibe, Merle raised her bright voice.

Mira and I vigorously nodded.