Side Story: Uzoh and Muzoh Now

Lake Izamu lies in a frigid region. On a solitary island in that lake sits a dungeon that can only be reached during winter when the lake freezes over: [Ice Mirror Labyrinth].

This dungeon was said to have a high drop rate for magic swords, making it quite popular.

Right now, a pair of adventurers was advancing through its mysterious ice corridors while staying alert to their surroundings.

"Hmm…"

"What is it, Uzoh?"

"Well, we haven't found a magic sword, Muzoh."

"… Well, apparently they pop up pretty easily in places where they do."

The duo of Uzoh and Muzoh had been searching for a magic sword to repay their lifesaver.

They had set a one-year deadline for themselves, but they still hadn't found a magic sword.

They were also saving up money, but they didn't have enough to buy a magic sword yet either.

"Well, Kehma-san did say we didn't have to push ourselves too hard."

"'I'd rather you take two years to return the magic sword than overdo it and die,' was it? That message that came through the guild… Man, Kehma-san really is on another level, Uzoh."

"I want to work harder and repay him sooner! Muzoh!"

"By the way, Uzoh. Apparently Kehma-san became a village chief?"

"Eh, did he quit being an adventurer?! I didn't hear about that, Muzoh!"

"No. He's doing both. That dungeon… [Cave of Desires], was it? A village formed around it, they say… whoops."

He easily cut down a snowball-like monster that had attacked.

It was a monster common to this dungeon called a Snowball, nicknamed "snowball." Individually they were extremely weak, but when they grouped together they could merge into a troublesome snowman enemy.

"Still, that dungeon has apparently become quite a good one, Uzoh."

"Really? Muzoh."

"Apparently Iron Golems have started appearing there. Magic swords too, to some extent."

"… If we don't find a magic sword here, should we go back to [Cave of Desires]? Muzoh."

"Could we show our faces there without a magic sword? Uzoh."

"No way! That was a stupid question, Muzoh!"

Walking through the ice labyrinth, Uzoh and Muzoh searched for treasure chests. Along the way, they defeated cold-region monsters like Ice Goblins, Blue Lizards, and Cold Wolves. The two weren't C-Rank — known as full-fledged adventurers — for nothing.

They were also watching out for traps, but this dungeon didn't have many. At most, the footing was slippery from ice, but that wasn't a problem since they wore spikes.

Then, on the second day of exploring [Ice Mirror Labyrinth], they finally found a treasure chest. Two days for one chest. However, since it was a popular dungeon with many parties diving in at the same time, finding even one treasure chest meant these two were relatively lucky.

"… This is pretty normal pace, isn't it, Muzoh."

"It was partly because we were among the first to dive in, but [Cave of Desires] had treasure chests appearing pretty often, huh."

Considering the inn situation too, Uzoh thought that [Cave of Desires] really couldn't be compared to other dungeons in various ways.

"So, what's inside?"

"Hold on… Yep, no trap, I think. You want to check too, Uzoh?"

"Yeah. I've had enough of getting locked in rooms, Muzoh."

Ever since the [Greed Trap] room incident, Uzoh and Muzoh had both been training to deepen their understanding of traps. Having literally learned through life-and-death experiences while dungeon diving, not just Muzoh but Uzoh too had reached a level where he could work as a scout.

After carefully confirming there was no trap, they took some distance and used a pole to open the treasure chest.

… It appeared there really was no trap.

"So, what's inside?"

"Let's see… It's not a sword. A magic tool maybe? Want to take a look, Uzoh?"

Muzoh handed the magic tool in his hand to Uzoh.

In shape, it closely resembled a baseball. He couldn't figure out how to use it, but there was a slot for inserting a magic stone, making it immediately clear that it was a magic tool.

It might be an ice-making magic tool that this dungeon frequently produced. If so, selling it would bring in decent money.

"Hmm? What kind of magic tool is this? Depending on what it is, we might be able to sell it and buy a magic sword."

"The best thing would be to take it back to the guild for appraisal. Well, how about we call it a good haul for this trip? Uzoh."

"Yeah, even without the magic tool we got monster materials along the way, so let's head back."

Uzoh and Muzoh decided to turn back this time. It was colder than they'd expected, and they wanted to hurry back to town and drink some warm soup.

With that in mind, they retraced their steps at a quick pace.