Wh-wh-whaaaaaat…?
What is thiiiiis?!
I have no idea what's going on!
What the heck is this?!
This can't be real, right?!
This can't be happening, right?!
You've gotta be kidding me, right?!
Why is there magma?!
Why is there magma flowing inside a Dungeon?!
Oh wait — it's a Dungeon, so I guess that's fine.
No no no.
It's NOT fine!
It's hot!
This isn't just "hot" anymore — this is scorching!
Wait — my HP dropped by 1?!
So that means the heat is dealing damage to me?
Wow, terrain damage zones are no joke at all.
And while I was busy panicking, my HP dropped again.
There is technically a path that avoids the magma.
But is it even possible to advance through here?
Even from this spot, far from the magma, I'm still taking damage. If I get anywhere near the stuff, my HP is probably going to plummet.
This is happening from far away — so if I were careless enough to actually touch the magma…
No thanks.
So this is what greets me after finally escaping the Lower Layer?
There's no way I can get through this area, right?
Hm?
I spot a Monster in the distance.
Vision Enhancement is doing quiet work as usual.
Wait, that Monster is casually swimming through the magma.
I'm a little scared to look, but Appraisal results, please!
『Erlo Generash — Lv7 Status HP: 167/167 (Green) MP: 145/158 (Blue) SP: 155/155 (Yellow) …156/165 (Red) Average Attack: 85 Average Defense: 83 Average Magic: 81 Average Resistance: 79 Average Speed: 89 Status Appraisal failed』
Huh?
Mr. Appraisal?
Am I seeing things?
It looks like there's additional Status information now?
Oh — ohh!
Mr. Appraisal, you're incredible!
Before, it only showed HP and stuff, but now it's displaying Attack and everything else too!
I don't think the success rate is 100%, but this means I can figure out an opponent's exact strength now!
This is insane.
This is seriously insane.
Being able to see your opponent's strength — that's a massive advantage!
And thinking about the order of what's been revealed, the next thing to show up should be Skills, right?
If I can see their Skills too, the opponent's information is practically laid bare!
I can win!
I can win with this!
Ah — I really want to level up soon.
Anyway, I've seen enough of Mr. Appraisal's greatness. As for that Monster — it's not actually that strong, huh.
It looks like a seahorse with arms and legs, but it's swimming through the magma like it owns the place.
Unbelievable.
And I say "not that strong," but its Stats are actually more well-balanced than mine.
I can't use magic, so my Magic stats are dead weight, and my physical stats besides Speed are all pretty low.
And even Speed — I figured out that my Burst isn't great enough, so I can't keep running for long.
When I run, the Yellow gauge drains steadily, and when it hits zero, I'm out of breath and in pain.
Yeah, if it came to a straight-up fight, I'd definitely be at a disadvantage.
Well then — let's do a Double Appraisal to dig deeper.
『Erlo Generash: A lower dragon-type Monster inhabiting the Middle Layer of the Great Ello Dungeon. It commands fire and is protected by flames.』
Here we go!
The Great Ello Dungeon Middle Layer!
『Great Ello Dungeon — Middle Layer: An area situated between the Upper Layer and Lower Layer of the Great Ello Dungeon. The entire area is a scorching terrain where magma flows, and many Monsters with fire resistance inhabit it.』
…You're kidding me.
Wowww.
No way.
The entire Middle Layer is like this?!
And I have to get through this to reach the Upper Layer?!
That's impossible!
A terrain that damages you just by being there.
Rivers and pools of magma that kill you in one hit if you fall in.
And the Monsters living here have fire resistance — which means it's only natural they'd use fire attacks, right?
You know what my Spider Silk is weak against?
Fire!!!
Hold on a second.
If you take away my Spider Silk, what do I even have left?
Poison and Speed.
Well, I guess that's better than nothing, but losing my biggest weapon is a huge problem.
Besides — I won't even be able to use my poison threads!
I was so looking forward to using them — what is this?!
Oh — my HP has dropped quite a bit.
I should retreat for now.
Phew.
Back down the slope to the Lower Layer again.
It's hot here too, but at least my HP isn't decreasing.
If I rest a bit, the auto-recovery effect should heal me to full.
Speaking of which — I do have auto-recovery, huh.
Even with it, damage still accumulates.
No matter how hard I try, this is impossible, isn't it?
If I actually wanted to clear this, I'd need recovery potions or a cooling drink, wouldn't I?
I don't have anything like that.
Would getting fire resistance help at all?
But honestly, I think it's not just my threads — my actual body looks weak to fire too.
I noticed when looking through my Skill list that there was no fire resistance skill.
Which means — with 200 Points, I can't get fire resistance, right?
I have other resistances, but no fire resistance.
My guess is that because I personally am weak to fire, it's harder to acquire fire resistance.
《Proficiency has reached a certain level. Skill "Prediction Lv4" has become "Prediction Lv5".》 Oh, sure.
You level up crazy fast, don't you.
I guess that's the effect of Pride.
Anyway — putting that aside.
What am I actually supposed to do?
To get to the Upper Layer, I have to clear the Middle Layer.
But there's no way I can clear the Middle Layer.
So then — look for another way?
One confirmed route back is climbing up the bees' vertical shaft.
Go back to where the Earth Dragon is? Again?
No.
Impossible.
Absolutely not.
Then find a different vertical shaft?
Is there really another shaft just waiting for me?
It's not impossible.
When I was in the Upper Layer before, I saw bees caught in webs — so there could be a similar shaft in a different location, with bees building a nest there the same way.
But that's still just speculation.
Clear the Middle Layer.
Or search for a shaft I'm not even sure exists, and explore the Lower Layer some more.
Yeah… what am I supposed to do?