They didn't have shrimp.
The innkeeper looked at me, confused. Marin, eager to translate my "desires," thinks that "shrimp" was a rare potion ingredient.
"It must be an ingredient for a water-based mana potion," she said, pacing in front of us later that evening.
I just wanted a familiar, floating snack. I gave up and ate the loaf of bread Katze offered me. It was dense, chewy, and unsatisfying. I missed the way flakes would drift waiting to be gently vacuumed into my mouth. Eating was now a series of complex jaw motions and the constant risk of choking.
[ Quest Updated: The Labyrinth of Tears ]
[ Objective: Descend into the dungeon and clear the central chamber. ]
[ Reward: 50,000 Gold, Unknown Artifact, [Title: Labyrinth Walker] ]
The blue screen hung in my vision during breakfast. I tried to swat it away. It flickered, but remained. Another annoyance. In my tank, the only notifications were the slow dimming of the overhead light or the ominous shadow of the cat.
"We will follow your lead," Ernst said, his voice a low rumble. He was already in full armor, a wall of polished steel. "Your strategy for the raid?"
I took a slow sip of water from a wooden cup, trying to replicate the hydration of my past life. It didn't work. "Strategy," I repeated. The word felt weird.
"Indeed!" Marin chimed in, her staff glowing. "Shall we employ a standard split advance? Or perhaps a more straightforward, utilizing your power to cleave our way into the dungeon's heart?"
I looked from their eager faces to the quest notification. The "Sunken Labyrinth of Tears." What a cliche name. It sounded... damp. That was the only point of interest.
"Wet," I declared, standing up. "We will go. It will be wet."
A look of awe passed between them. Katze nodded. "Of course! You knew it would be wet! You must have scouted out the area beforehand. A focus on the hydrological nature of the environment. A brilliant tactical assessment. When we heard a hunter was joining our party for this raid, I didn't expect you to have such a great battle IQ!"
I had no idea what she just said.
The dungeon entrance was a hole in the side of a cliff, weeping constant, cold water. A stream flowed out over our boots. It was, indeed, wet. I felt a flicker of appreciation.
The interior was worse. It was a cramped, twisting corridor of stone, the air thick with a clammy mist. The ceiling dripped. Plink. Plink. Plink. It was maddening. My old tank's filter had been nearly silent. This was torture.
We hadn't gone more than fifty meters in when the first monsters emerged from the shallow water flowing along the floor. They were gross, frog-like things with big, unblinking eyes and wide, slobbering mouths.
The blue screen popped up again.
[ Frochling ]
[ A small creature commonly found in dungeons. Potentially dangerous if in high numbers, but easy to take care of in one. Commonly found in groups as well. Explodes into toxic slime when killed. ]
"Ah, the common dungeon pest!" Ernst boomed, hefting his massive shield. "Fear not. I shall hold the line! Marin, a concussive blast, if you would! Katze, be ready with anti-venom!"
They moved. Ernst's shield slammed down, creating a barrier. Marin began chanting, gathering crackling energy at the tip of her staff. Katze uncorked a vial, the medicinal scent cutting through the air.
The Frochlings let out a wet croak and lunged.
I watched them. Their movement was clumsy. It was… messy. They were making so many splashes, disturbing the water, creating noise and chaos. It was irritating.
As one launched itself at Ernst's shield, I didn't think. I reacted.
My body moved with power. My hand shot out, not with a blade of water, but with a pull. A tendril of water popped out from the wet floor, wrapped around the Frochling's ankle mid-leap, and yanked it. It slammed into the wall with a sickening thwack into toxic slime.
[ Skill Learned: Whiplash (Water Manipulation Variant) ]
Another one hopped towards Marin. I flicked my fingers. A single, high-pressure droplet of water, no larger than a fish egg, shot through the air and struck it directly in one of its eyes. It popped with a wet squelch. The creature shrieked and stumbled blindly into a wall.
[ Skill Upgraded: Precision Spit ]
The third, seeing the others taken care of with such ease, froze in confusion. I simply pointed at the water around its feet. The water instantly stilled and hardened. The Frochling's feet was stuck under it, and it landed hard on its face, where it was promptly stabbed by one of Ernst's thrown daggers.
The fight was over in six to seven seconds.
The party stood in silence. Marin's spell fizzled out. Ernst immediately ran to go get his dagger. Katze just stared, her anti-venom vial slipped out of her hand and shattered on her feet.
Ernst began, his voice stammering. "That… that was not any combat form I have ever witnessed. It was…"
"Annoying," I finished for him, wiping dungeon water from my face. "They were splashing. It was messy."
I looked down the dark corridor. The constant plink, plink, plink echoed in the silence. This entire place was messy. It was a poorly maintained, leaky tank filled with noisy creatures.
I wanted to go back to my clean, quiet old home. And for the first time, a true, human thought formed, clear and simple.
I was going to clear this dungeon. Not for the gold, not for the title, not for some quest a blue screen gave me.
But for the peace and quiet, and to get this party, the one where the original owner of my new body joined, to leave me alone.