Deep Mine

The cave was dark and damp, and it smelled a bit like shorts that had been soaking in water overnight in the middle of summer.

The smell went straight to his Skull.

"...Whew! That's really something."

For a moment, Caelan wanted to turn back.

But then he thought, since he was already here.

He might as well take a look first.

There were some spare torches and fire starters hanging on the wall, probably left by previous miners.

Greg said this was the only known mine nearby, and all the miners from the Town were here, but he didn't know if they had stopped work after the monsters appeared in the mine.

As he went deeper into the mine, it wasn't long before a light appeared ahead—it looked like a type of glowing crystal, with one embedded in the wall every so often, providing a faint illumination.

Although the Fire Sprite Caelan summoned glowed on its own, it couldn't illuminate far distances, and seeing the dark, cavernous expanse ahead still made him a bit nervous, but now it was much better.

However, as he went further in, the passage suddenly became shorter, and the Stone troll couldn't continue, so Caelan had to recall it into the Tome for now.

Speaking of which, if he encountered a Skeleton Crawler here...

He glanced at the Tome; although the Skull was brought out, it was hard to say if its combat power would be enough.

The newly acquired Iron Head could be used here; the Iron Head's height was estimated to be just over 1.6 meters...and its width was also about 1.6 meters.

To be safe, Caelan's hand was already on the cover of the Tome, ready to release the Iron Head immediately if anything seemed wrong.

And after only a few steps, passing through an opening, the space ahead suddenly became wide.

This place looked more like a mine; it was probably a natural cave originally, and later miners extracted ore here.

The excavated mine shafts and the constructed stairs and iron frames spiraled downwards around the edge of this large pit, layer by layer.

Caelan bravely stood on the edge and looked down...it was bottomless, as if it went straight to the center of the earth.

"If I fell down there, it would be terrible..."

Caelan shook his head and withdrew his gaze.

Right now, finding those Skeleton Crawlers was more important.

But looking at the pitch-black atmosphere of this place, it wouldn't be strange for anything to appear, let alone Skeleton Crawlers.

The problem was, in such a large empty space, where would the monsters be?

Just as he was getting a headache, he suddenly saw some firelight not far away that didn't look like crystal light.

"There are still people here...that dedicated?"

Caelan quickly walked towards the source of the firelight and soon saw clearly that it was a cluster of small houses built on the edge of the large pit.

It seemed to be a resting place for miners.

Since there were people, it would be easier to handle.

Caelan walked to a room with lights on and knocked on the door.

"...Is anyone there?"

"...Anyone there?"

"...There?"

"...?"

"...?"

Caelan's voice echoed in the mine, but no one responded.

Just as Caelan was wondering if someone had left without turning off the lights, he heard movement from inside the room.

It sounded like someone pushing a chair, dragging their feet, and walking towards the door.

Then, with a creaking sound, the door opened.

Through the crack in the door, an old man's head appeared, his face wrinkled all over, his beard scraggly, and his hair unusually messy.

"Hello, I heard there are monsters here..."

The old man, with eyes that looked like he'd been up for a week straight, scrutinized Caelan from head to toe, then grinned, revealing a set of yellow, black, and very crooked teeth.

"...Oh, that's right...then come in first...the timing is just right...we can have a simple meal...hehehe..."

Caelan: "..."

Which branch of the Soul Palace are you from?

He ultimately didn't say that, but since the other party was so insistent, Caelan decided to go in and see.

As soon as he entered, he heard a "gurgle gurgle" boiling sound from the pot in the center of the room, and an indescribable smell wafted into his nostrils.

The old man, hunched over, walked deeper into the room, saying as he went, "...Hehehe...make yourself at home...the bowls are nearby...just treat it like your own place..."

Caelan curiously leaned his head towards the pot to look, and it was a mistake to look; his entire face wrinkled up like an old man looking at his phone on the subway.

"Ugh!"

A thick, yellow-green mixed soup, unidentifiable, was bubbling with strange, viscous bubbles.

"Is this 'simple meal' of yours actually 'simple'...it looks like original soup made from original food?"

Caelan's words received no response; the old man appeared silently behind Caelan, an iron pickaxe raised high in his hand—

Then he swung it down forcefully!

Clang!

...With a sound, the iron pickaxe in the old man's hand flew away.

The Stone troll Iron Head, shaped like a stone ball, appeared between the old man and Caelan.

That pickaxe blow had struck its head, only leaving a tiny white mark and a shower of sparks.

"I was going to ask if he'd seen any Skeleton Crawlers...never mind."

Caelan sighed, stood up, and waved his hand towards the old man.

"Iron Head, use Crushing Fist!"

The Stone troll also raised its fist at that moment, landing an uppercut on the old man's face.

Bang!