Dungeon, Floor 27—Great Azure Falls.
"Gospel!"
A terrifying shockwave blasted the ten-plus-meter twin-headed dragon, Amphisbaena, sending it skidding through the torrent.
In a black-and-white dress, The Silent stood calm as still water. Even with Amphisbaena boosted to Level 6 by the surrounding water, she treated it like nothing.
"Woaah…" Tsubaki, a greatsword slung over her shoulder, couldn't help the awed whistle. Staring at the silver-haired, all-too-familiar girl, she once again tasted how "abnormal" Tsunayoshi's power really was. "The Silent, huh? Your power is way out of line—you can even make something like her."
"Is that The Silent at her peak?"
Tsunayoshi shook his head.
Tsubaki's eyes widened. She looked at the nearly helpless Amphisbaena.
"This still isn't peak?"
A Level 6 floor boss was being beaten like street trash. And this still wasn't The Silent's strongest?
"Right now, she's only operating within a Level 6 frame—power inside what I imagine Level 6 can do," Tsunayoshi said.
"That's just…" Tsubaki clicked her tongue.
He had imagined a Level 6 and molded strength to fit that frame—without even reaching its perfect extreme.
"Three years ago, The Silent and Gluttony really were holding back," she muttered. Even in this era, stopping an invasion by The Silent and Gluttony would be almost impossible. Add everyone here and it still wouldn't change much.
"Tsubaki."
His voice snapped her back. She strode to the fallen Amphisbaena and, without a shred of hesitation, finished the job with a single clean cut.
A monster isn't truly dead until its magic stone is removed. Tsubaki was long used to that. On a floor boss's corpse, it wasn't so hard—if you knew where to start.
She found a patch of reverse scale, pried it open with her fingers, and drove the blade straight in.
Crack.
With a crisp shatter, Amphisbaena's body went chalk-white. In an instant, the sturdy carcass collapsed into a heap of ash, leaving behind a scatter of blue scales, razor fangs, a still-beating heart, and several crystals—blue and green.
"Ho! Luck's on our side this time."
Tsubaki's eyes shone at the sight of those rare parts. Money was never her problem. Rare materials were. Not just for her—Orario as a whole.
Anything dangerous in the Dungeon meant rare materials. But those monsters were few, strong, and their drop rates were miserly. Which meant even with cash, you might never get your hands on the right piece.
"A dragon's heart… now that is rare."
Excited, Tsubaki pressed both hands to the pounding heart. The strong, rhythmic thrum spilled abundant mana; proof of extraordinary value.
"That rare?" Tsunayoshi came over, curious. His question kicked Tsubaki's enthusiasm up another notch.
"Extremely rare. Off-the-charts rare. Most dragon hearts come from drakelings. Still precious, but drakelings aren't true dragons. Those hearts are tiny—and most are dead hearts."
"This one dropped from the floor boss Amphisbaena—and it's still beating, still gushing mana."
"This is prime stock for making a magic sword."
A dragon heart that produced mana by beating alone—few materials were better for weaponcraft.
"And the dragon blood inside? As a quench in forging, it's excellent—adds toughness to the weapon," she added. "Then there are the dragon teeth."
"Those are the sharpest material on a dragon. With a simple grind, you can make a dragon-tooth knife that'll pierce even Amphisbaena's own scales."
She snatched up a fang and slammed it through a shed scale lying nearby. It punched a neat hole as if the scale were paper.
The sheer penetrative force made one's scalp prickle—especially remembering those fangs used to sit in Amphisbaena's jaws. With a dragon's crushing bite behind them, one clamp could punch through armor and flesh alike.
Tsunayoshi let out a low whistle. There was a lot of depth to forging—and a lot of study in Dungeon drops. Like that game he'd once played, Monster Hunter… except this wasn't a game, and the lessons cost blood.
Which made materials an even bigger art. One glance at Tsubaki's grin told the story: these were the good things, and the hard-to-get ones.
Suddenly, a glint of green and blue on the ground caught Tsunayoshi's eye. He stooped and picked up both crystals.
"Tsubaki, what are these?"
Tsubaki barely needed a look.
"Power crystals from Amphisbaena's two heads," she said. "Each head breathes a different force, so crystals condensed on them accordingly. Also prime material for magic swords. Since they're condensed power, if we make them the main core, they can even increase the number of uses a magic sword can fire."
"Very rare drops, too."
She glanced over the haul. Aside from a scale or two, almost everything here was rare.
Which was odd.
"Why is it all rare stuff this time?" she murmured. "Normally it's hide, membranes, claws—ordinary materials."
Tsubaki had joined floor boss hunts before; this one usually dropped common, low-utility parts. Why so generous now?
As the thought formed, her gaze drifted, slow and certain, to Tsunayoshi.
Compared to the norm, this time she'd come with him.
So… did the drops have something to do with Tsunayoshi?
(End of Chapter)
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