Revi's PoV:

Large roots slammed onto the ground as Mira leaped towards the source of the attack: a huge dragon-like creature that is made up of bark.

The wooden dragon released many bark projectiles at Mira, but a shield made of sparkling crystals appeared in her left hand and blocked all the shots.  The wooden dragon stopped its barrage after seeing it did nothing, but that only inspired Mira to throw the crystal shield like a frisbee at the dragon.

As one would expect, the edges of a shield made from solid crystals are razor-sharp. The shield throw cut a deep wound in the side of the dragon, but it had managed to dodge so that the attack did not hit anything vital. 

The shield-frisbee was not Mira's main attack though. While the dragon was preoccupied with the shield, she had wrapped her greatsword with light and lightning and was wearing a wicked-looking gauntlet made of black crystals with a golden tint. The dragon could not move away in time! Right as the slash was about to connect-

*Bzzzzt*

[TIME IS UP. RETURNING TO THE MAIN ENTRANCE.]

...we were transferred out. Mira's slash collided with the ground outside the Dungeon and created a miniature ravine. Yes, ravine. Not rift. It's too deep and long to be named as such. Just how much power did you force into that attack?

"GYAAAARGH!! We lost agaaaaain!!" - Mira

The woman who had created a small natural disaster however is rolling on the ground while shouting. Act your age...

We are currently standing outside the Dungeon "Time-Eating Jungle", which is surrounded by the Jukai Village. The village is made solely for the people who come to challenge this Dungeon over the years. It's made of shabby, Wakoku-style houses, but it has many similarities with the town around that forge-Dungeon in the desert.

As its name says, the "Time-Eating Jungle" is a jungle-type Dungeon that requires you to beat the boss on the fifth floor to clear it. That in itself is good, but those nasty extra conditions...

"Hey, we have to meet the others now." - Revi

"...10 more minutes. GYAAAAA!!" - Mira

Act your age...no, act as a female...something at least.

Ignoring her protests, I dragged Mira along to our regular table at the inn. Flint and the others were already waiting for us.

"So, the 'reduce the number of slowpokes' strategy didn't work?" - Flint

"Can't say it was worthy of being called a 'strategy'." - Revi

"I was desperate! We've already been here for a week!" - Mira

"Dungeon captures takes quite some time, remember?" - Flint

"Ah! I was polluted by Garami's common sense. Yes, Dungeons are difficult. Now my mind is clearer. Thanks-hii!" - Mira

I felt a little angry at that statement, so I kicked her under the table.

"...Guess we are all a little irritable over this place." - Karnel

"That's putting it lightly! Ugh, that first day was the worst!" - Mira

Yes, I have to agree...

---

One week earlier:

"Wow... that's a lot of vegetation..." - Flint

After entering the Dungeon, we were met with a forest... no, it was called a "jungle"? Anyways, the first floor of the Dungeon is filled with plants I've never seen before. Seems...exotic.

"Okay, we got no time to waste! We will be kicked out of this place after 5 hours have passed so-gyaaaa!!" - Mira

"Whoooaa!?" - Flint

"H-heeeelp!!" - Karnel

The vines grabbed Mira by the ankle and lifted her into the sky. And Flint and Karnel followed her soon after. Why not me or Iron? ...who are you calling heavy!?

---

Present:

"It took us an hour to get loose from those ankle-grabbers..." - Flint

"Then we were caught again while we were being attacked by those coconut-shooting plants." - Karnel

"My shield got dented..." - Iron

"Things went better after we found out that we could burn the place to ashes." - Mira

"THAT was satisfying." - Flint

The next attempt went as one would expect. Flint and Iron made a path of hellfire through the forest until we found the doorway to the next floor. Sometimes I joined in, which was great for testing out my Death-spells~.

"It still irks me that we did not get EXP for that." - Flint

"It's the rules. Nothing we can do about it." - Iron

I agree with Flint even so! We cannot take over a Chaos Dungeon! And I wanted a personal garden to cultivate medical herbs...

"If those plants just stayed burned and didn't regenerate at such rapid speed, we could have cleared that floor in less of an hour!!" - Mira

"We are still obtaining skill proficiency, so with time, Flint and Iron may clear it before that." - Karnel

"Is that something a Druid should say?" - Flint

"Those plants are not friendly at all, so even I have to say that the world is better off without them." - Karnel

If Karnel, that Karnel, is saying that, then he means it. If we only faced plant traps and plant monsters, then things wouldn't be so bad. The second floor told us to give up those pipe dreams right away...

---

One week earlier minus one Dungeon floor:

"F-finally one floor down." - Mira

We reached the second floor while being covered in ashes. I should have bought [Smoke Resistance]...*cough, cough*...

"Hey! Can anyone see anything?" - Flint

"Nothing. Just fog." - Karnel

Aaaand, the second floor is just as annoying as the first one. Above, we had to walk almost in the blind due to the heavy vegetation. Now we are literally blind due to this... fog? It feels different from the fog in Tir na Nog...

*Splash*

"Enemies! And water traps!" - Flint

And we had to fight monsters while making sure not to hit anyone in this fog...

---

Present:

"I'm still feeling the headache I got from getting hit by Iron's shield." - Flint

"If Karnel did not have [Earth Sonar], we could have used days trying to get out of that big rain cloud." - Mira

"Using the environment as one big trap... too sneaky..." - Flint

"I could not have done it alone. Mira obtaining [Electrolocation] is what really made a difference." - Karnel

Everyone had to upgrade their Perception skills before we managed to get past the "cloud floor" as we have so fittingly named it. 

"While it was annoying in the sense that it wasted our time, the third floor is my favorite among all four." - Karnel

"Agree!" - Revi

"Guess it was kind of fun..." - Mira

---

One week earlier minus 2 Dungeon floors:

"T-tenth attempt... but we made it!!" - Mira

"A good thing there were no Samurais in the waiting line. I wonder what happened to them? Is this place not related to their country's greatest lost treasure?" - Karnel

"Disaster clean-up duty." - Iron

"Aaaaahhh..." 

We reached the third floor after navigating through the ever-changing labyrinth of cloudiness. And the third floor...? What is this? We're standing on a piece of land next to a ravine. There are other similar pieces of land in the distance but there's no bridge to get to them. There are some strange plants on the edges of each "platform". They look like huge, round leaves. The kind that floats on lakes. Kinda spongy... let's throw something at it.

*Boing!*

Spongy indeed. The rock I threw at it landed perfectly on the next platform. We kept on throwing stuff at it for a while.

"So our only way to move forward is to use these bounce leaves." - Flint

"Okay. You two are going first." - Mira

"Why!?" - Revi & Karnel

"Because we land-lovers can't fly. Try not falling into the abyss~." - Mira

...that's a fair point, but isn't this flyers-mistreatment!?

---

Present:

"Those leaves were funny, but it takes too long figuring out the right combination that leads to the next door." - Mira

Why were those leaves able to send people flying in any direction? Just launch them towards the platform you're pointing at!!

"Karnel and Revi could skip past that floor. They have wings and all." - Flint

"No." - Revi

"I have to agree. The third floor notwithstanding, the fourth floor is impossible for us alone." - Karnel

Yes. And that place is the worst when we think about the "no-EXP" rule...

---

One week... you get the idea:

"N-no more boings..." - Iron

Someone didn't enjoy it as much as everyone else.

"Now, on to the next floor~." - Mira

And we entered a monster house. One filled with half-dragons, wyrms, and wyverns, everyone being of the Wood attribute...

"They sure went all out on this one." - Mira

Crap. There's no light in her eyes anymore...

---

Present:

"THAT MONSTER HOUSE'S BREAKING TOO MANY RULES!!" - Mira

"I've never seen so many wyrms and wyverns in the same place at once before. And I used to live in a literal kingdom of dragons." - Flint

We would have to debate if wyverns and wyrms can classify as cultured dragons (something they aren't, *hmph*), but we all did get the Hunting titles for plants, wyverns, and wyrms, so I guess there is some gain from it?

We managed to push our way through when it was only me and Mira thanks to her attracting all the monsters' attention so I could fly above them and meet her by the door, but that stunt is draining us of too much MP, SP, and everything else, making the fight against the dragon close to impossible. We need a better plan for that swarm of monsters...

"If we only obtained EXP as well..." - Revi

"That! That's the problem! Where is it all going anyway?" - Flint

"People here are still as tight-lipped as usual with the information regarding the Dungeon, so even if we ask..." - Karnel

It is the hiding place for the clue to that super-important sword after all. Rejecting people from trying would arouse suspicion, but they don't want anyone to find it for themselves, so they're at least not being loudmouthed. 

"Isn't there some way to sneak around that monster house? Or some way to extend the time?" - Mira

Complaining won't get you anywhere...

"Hey, why are we not getting any EXP from the monsters again?" - Revi

"...Dungeon rules?" - Flint

"Or... they were never real. Iron. Did you not mention once that you have a skill that creates ghostly knights...? Iron? Hello?" - Karnel

".........zzz." - Iron

"...Let's test out that theory right away. Guys, drag that bucket-helmet with you outside." - Mira

Iron, snap out of it! Your snooze is about to be extended for the rest of eternity!!

---

After a sound beat-up (Iron woke up right before it got too nasty), we had our ghostly knights. Phew...

"Yes, these seem familiar to the creatures on the fourth floor... not physically, but their mana signatures do." - Karnel

"Good, then we know that they're made from some skill and not the real thing... wait, can we get titles for beating created subordinates?" - Mira

"-!?" - Iron

"Seems like it." - Flint

"-!!??" - Iron

"...don't worry. I won't do it," I reassured Iron... but Garami is going to be more difficult to convince. 

"Revi, didn't you give the slip-on Ciara and her Ink Demons before? What's the trick!" - Mira

"...some spell I knew from [Death Magic]." - Revi

"Great! Wait, death? Not shadow or stealth or-," - Mira

"No, death. It only worked on the Ink Demons. They could not find me, or anything else after that. It's like the spell turned them blind." - Revi

"Can you use them on these knights, just to make sure?" - Flint

I did, and the knights started to walk around with their arms in front of them. Iron could confirm that they were not able to see, hear, or even smell anything. 

"Call me crazy-" - Mira

"Sword-crazy." - Revi

"I am, but I also think this could work." - Mira

"Revi, how large of a spell can you cast then?" - Flint

"... its range can be expanded at higher MAG-levels, so... if I use Genocide Drive, probably the whole fourth floor?" - Revi

"Woooow."

Ehh...no stress?

"Little miss magic-master here will be our ace against the fourth floor. How long will that give us?" - Mira

"Well...one hour?" - Flint

"Then get your gear ready! That sword is as good as ours tonight!" - Mira

And everyone went their own way after that. I should prepare some more potions...

Strange. I used to be jealous of Mira's ability to like, do anything athletic. Nowadays, she seems just...pitiable. Weird. Now, where did I put that Medicine-making Kit?

---

"Sir! We are approaching the Dungeon! We will arrive within half an hour!" 

"Good. Men, prepare for the assault! We have five targets, and we are taking no prisoners. All hail the Demon King!"

"All hail the Demon King!!"

---

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