Feels like we’ve gone back to the days of adventuring, huh.

The cave the lizardmen warriors entered had turned into a dungeon.

We were worried about them when we found traps along the way, but then—should we call it the worst-case scenario, or just expected?—the lizardmen were surrounded by a massive army of monsters.

It was one of those common dungeon rooms where monsters spawn in overwhelming numbers, practically like a trap.

The space was as big as Kyle’s manor or a church’s grounds.

Since it was a natural cave-type dungeon, stepping through the door would’ve been a shock—just open, endless space.

Probably, when the lizardmen first entered, there were only a few monsters in there. They chased them deep in, got close to the center, and then—bam—monsters poured out from hidden passages all around.

The lizardmen, cornered in the farthest corner of the room, barely holding on.

Raidock barked instantly.

"Castor sisters, cover them now! Finish off the rest!"

"“““Got it!!””"

Then Eva took a step forward.

"I'll clear the way! 'White Heat Beam'!!"

The magic she unleashed was a blend of light and flame—a beam of blinding white light shot forth.

Highly focused, minimal collateral damage, but drained a ton of mana.

With hundreds of monsters filling the vast room, the white heat beam cut through like a knife through a rug, burning and vaporizing the enemies straight ahead.

"Eva! Think about your remaining mana potion!"

"I'm fine! I'll hold back from now on!"

"Right! We're pushing through the path Eva cleared—out in front of the lizards!"

No more alchemy ingredients left. Can't brew any more recovery potions. Only what we've got on hand—most of it used up in the last frog fight. Gotta watch our mana usage real careful now.

We're sprinting across the scorched path made by white-hot beams, rocketing straight to the corner where the lizards are pinned down.

"Shurru! Leave the explanation to them!"

"Yeah!"

Shurru, swinging his spear beside me, dashes toward the lizards.

Most of them are wounded. A few more seconds and we’d’ve had bodies on the floor.

"Shurru! What’s this 'with humans' nonsense!?"

"Details later! The village chief knows about this already!"

"What?!"

They’re strong, so everyone focus on self-defense! Serious injuries—Healing Potion! Light wounds—Marilyn… that chest saint’s healing magic, go ahead!

“Chest… you’re really sure the village chief okayed this?”

“I swear.”

“Got it! Everyone, do what Shurru says!”

A few fighters looked like they wanted to argue, but once Shurru’s leader-type spoke, they moved right away.

Good. Wouldn’t’ve been funny if we got attacked from behind by our own side.

Still… chest saint, huh…

Well, not wrong. Yeah.

“Alright! Moda, cover your sisters! Leifan, hold the center! Soral and Jitarou—fire away!!”

“Got it!”

“Jitarou! Don’t hit Raidock!?”

“Leave it to me! Doryaah!”

Two arrows punched holes through the monsters surrounding them.

The lizardman who’d been getting treated muttered quietly.

“Amazing… just the two of you wearing down the monsters!”

A blue flash cut through the air.

“Well then, I’ll give it my all.”

Of course. Raidock.

Every time his sword flashed, more monsters shattered into pieces.

Sure, they were just orcs and giant spiders. No matter how many there were, they weren’t our match.

I keep up with Raidock, careful not to strain my magic.

“Your back’s open, Raidock! ‘Wind Blades, Thousand Cuts!’”

I sliced through the horde trying to flank Raidock with a gust of wind.

He smirked.

“Hah! You think I’m gonna just sit still? Back’s covered! Just watch your magic!”

“Told you I know that already!”

I ran my fingers along the belt holding my potion bottles.

Right, let’s try out that alchemical weapon I didn’t get to use in the frog battle. Minimal mana cost.

My potion bottles were custom-made for me by Leifan.

They’re harder than glass, test-tube shaped, can be shattered on command with magic, and the shards vanish safely when broken.

A bit of a niche design, but perfect for me—spent years mastering throwing techniques as an adventurer.

“Raidock, move!”

“Got it!”

He doesn’t even argue, just steps aside smoothly. Somehow we’ve become a thing. Almost smile.

“Eat this!”

I toss the bottle like a knife.

Magic-adjusted—explodes the moment it hits the monster, contents spraying out.

It exploded into dozens of times its original size the moment it touched the air, wrapping the monster in a thick cloud.

“What the hell is this!?”

“Don’t touch it, Raidock! That’s Trimoji!”

“Hah… look at that. Even the one who got hit by the momentum’s caught in it! Haha! This is easy!”

“Too much of it, and you’ll end up catching your own side too—kinda ruins the fun.”

“Alright, Craft! Don’t toss it near me! Throw it toward the back ones!”

“Got it!”

The alchemical Trimoji I’d quietly prepared seems to have worked.

Of course, I’ve also made the dissolving potion, so it can hold enemies at bay for a moment.

It’d choke a person if it hit them in the face—using it on humans is a bit iffy.

But against monsters? No need to hold back!

“Craft! Can you spread it wider?”

Bardack came up behind me, pointing at the enemy cluster ahead.

Bardack, a mage without the sigil of a sorcerer, tries not to waste magic. He asks, like this, as if it means something.

Can do it, but that’ll weaken the grip—won’t hold long, and they’ll slip away fast.

No problem if it’s just a second.

Wait a sec

I set the alchemy potion vial on the palm of my hand and add alchemy magic.

"Alchemy: Enhanced Capacity Dilution Efficiency"

I used alchemy to dilute and stretch out the elixir.

You could make a lot with an alchemy cauldron, but right now I’m doing it all by magic—only enough for one potion bottle at a time.

We’re in the middle of a fight, you know.

Back when we had no materials, and the whispers of the sigil were scarce—this is how we used to alchemize.

Normally, the amount of medicine would increase, but I tweaked it so the volume expands after touching the air.

Wider and more spread out than before, but the effect’s weaker now.

"Alright! Let’s go, Raidock!"

"Count on me!"

I tossed the alchemized trimochi behind the front line, where Raidock and the others were thinning the numbers. Unlike last time, I detonated it just above the monsters’ heads—trimochi bloomed out in a wide arc, covering nearly ten of them.

"Looks like a net, huh."

"Nice work, Craft! Take this! 'Craft Flame Bomb!'"

The highest-tier flame spell I’ve ever seen Raidock use—exploded right in the middle of the monsters, now trapped by the trimochi.

"Ah, so that’s how it works! All trapped by the trimochi, wiped out in one go! Smart thinking, Raidock!"

"Ha. Just 'cause Craft made it, that's all. One more round!"

"Right!"

After wiping out another enemy group, Leifan leaned back slightly, relaxing a bit, standing to the side.

"Craft, you might not realize it, but this thing's actually pretty impressive."

"Is it?"

Weapons that can hit allies? That’s tricky to use.

"Exactly. Which means, when you actually think about it—like we just did—it’s actually super useful."

Fair point. Makes sense.

That was the kind of room you’d sometimes find in dungeons—packed with monsters, waiting. But we cleared it without breaking a sweat.

◆

"Damn... what the hell are these people?"

"Over a hundred? Seriously? Can't believe it."

"Maybe three hundred?"

"Come on, not that many, right?"

"Either way, taking down that many monsters without a single scratch... humans are terrifying."

Nah, nah, I don't wanna be lumped in with some average adventurer back in the kingdom, seriously.

Ah, you don’t even know what average means, do you?

"Look, I’m not bragging or anything, but us—centered around that blue-haired swordsman—we’re pretty damn good, even by human standards in the kingdom."

"Really?"

"Yep. Otherwise, how’d we survive deep in the woods, far from human settlements?"

"True enough."

"Thanks, humans."

"Same here. We got helped out by your village. Hey, you hear about the swamp incident?"

"Shururu told me. Heard there was a whole army of Paralyze Baron Frogs, and a Titan Duke Frog showed up."

"Yeah. We all pitched in and kicked their asses."

"Right... you protected the village while we were gone. Thanks again."

Shook hands hard with the lizardman leader.

"Awesome! Craft-sama!"

Schlurrrr! Shururu leapt straight at me.

From the chest.

"Whoa!? Shururu!?!"

"Guess it's true—Craft-sama's the best! Warrior among warriors!"

"Wait—warrior, even though you're magic-based?"

"Warrior means one who has courage. Craft, you're definitely that."

"Ah, thanks..."

Flustered by praise from the warrior leader, but can't bite back—too soft!

Can't wait for the manga!