Menu no.33 - Found it!

I was half-running, half-slipping through the damp soil as I stared at the so-called devil fruits hanging everywhere.

People called them cursed. Poisonous. Fruits of demons.

But to me, they were something else entirely.

Coffee cherries.

Bright red, glossy, clustered along thin branches—hidden treasures growing freely inside the Dungeon itself. My heart pounded with excitement as I reached out, plucking one after another.

“Unbelievable…” I muttered. “There are so many devil fruits here.”

Erina stood beside me, carefully picking cherries and placing them into the bag strapped to her back. Her tail swayed happily despite the tension.

“With this many,” I continued, unable to hide my grin, “we can supply coffee beans far beyond our usual stock.”

This land wasn’t just fertile.

It was perfect.

Rich soil. Constant moisture. Stable temperature from the crystal light above. If someone ever cultivated this place properly, it could become a full-scale coffee plantation.

A dangerous one—but still.

I kept picking alongside Erina, completely absorbed.

Too absorbed.

“Eh?” Erina suddenly stopped. “This bean feels… different.”

She reached into a bush slightly deeper than the others and tugged at something larger.

“This fruit—why is it so hard to pull out?”

I leaned closer. The shape was wrong. Bigger. Thicker. The skin wasn’t smooth like a coffee cherry—it was rough, almost scaled.

“Erina…” I said slowly. “That’s not—”

The bushes shook violently.

Then—

A massive head burst out from the greenery.

Scales glistened like frozen steel. Two glowing eyes locked onto us.

“Erina…” my voice trembled. “That’s not a coffee fruit…”

The dragon roared.

“GROOOAAARRR!!!”

The sound ripped through the forest, sending birds scattering and leaves raining down.

“RUN!” I shouted.

Erina screamed and grabbed my arm as we sprinted backward. The ground shook as the dragon lunged after us, snapping its massive jaws just inches from my back.

Cold mist blasted from its mouth, freezing the ground behind us.

“TIARA!” I yelled.

Tiara came charging toward us, her face pale but determined.

The dragon’s jaws snapped again—too close.

Suddenly, Erina yanked me hard and threw me forward.

“NYAAAN!” she cried.

I tumbled across the ground, barely stopping myself from face-planting.

Tiara slammed her greatsword into the dragon’s lower jaw, forcing it back.

“MOVE!” she shouted.

Erina and I scrambled behind Tiara as the dragon recoiled, snarling furiously.

Kazuha’s voice cut through the chaos.

“Asuna! Prepare your spell—now!”

This was the first time I’d seen Kazuha’s party fight seriously.

And it was terrifying.

“In—this dragon…” Tiara gritted her teeth. “It’s the same one from the seventh floor!”

Kazuha narrowed his eyes. “So its nest is on the fifth floor after all.”

He moved with frightening speed.

“Tiara, front line. I’ll draw its attention. Asuna—prepare explosive magic. This dragon is weak to fire!”

They moved instantly, without hesitation.

Kazuha vanished into the shadows like an assassin, reappearing near the dragon’s flank. He hurled knives and fired arrows, forcing the dragon to turn toward him.

Tiara quietly repositioned, circling behind the beast.

Asuna raised her staff, chanting rapidly. Magic circles glowed beneath her feet, pulsing brighter with every word.

I stood frozen, heart pounding.

Is this the dragon that ruined the expedition yesterday…?

If so—

Could they really defeat it on their own?

The dragon exhaled a massive breath of ice, freezing entire trees solid.

Kazuha barely avoided it, sliding across the ground.

“TIARA! NOW!” he shouted.

Tiara charged.

Her footsteps thundered as she raised her greatsword and sprinted toward the dragon’s exposed back—

But the dragon noticed.

Its tail whipped around violently.

“TIARA!” I screamed.

A wall of fire erupted between them.

Asuna’s spell deflected the tail just enough.

Tiara rolled aside, narrowly avoiding death.

She didn’t stop.

Her blade sliced deep into the dragon’s hind leg.

The beast howled and collapsed onto one knee.

“Asuna!” Kazuha yelled.

Flames rained from above.

The dragon roared again and slammed its claws into the ground, freezing the air around it into thick ice armor.

Kazuha leapt forward, knives flashing.

He aimed for its mouth.

Steel struck flesh.

The dragon screeched and thrashed wildly, running through the forest in blind fury, tearing trees apart.

It was monstrous.

Uncontrollable.

Then—

It turned toward me.

My blood ran cold.

Erina screamed and clung to me.

“H-Hey! Why are you hugging me now?! We need to run!” I shouted.

But my legs wouldn’t move.

The dragon charged.

Every instinct screamed death.

Then—

It slowed.

Its steps faltered.

The dragon’s glowing eyes widened, staring straight at me.

Confusion.

Fear?

Recognition?

In that frozen moment—

Tiara appeared in front of me.

With a roar of her own, she drove her blade straight into the dragon’s chest.

The sword pierced its heart.

The dragon collapsed.

Silence followed.

The forest trembled once… twice… then stilled.

I felt my knees give out.

The world spun.

The last thing I saw was Erina crying my name—

Then darkness swallowed me whole.

.

.

.

When I woke up, everything felt… wrong.

Warm.

Too warm.

I heard voices, distant and echoing.

“…He’s breathing.”

“…Pulse is stable.”

“…That reaction again…”

A faint smell filled my nose.

Bitter.

Familiar.

Coffee.

But beneath it—

Something darker.

Something ancient.

The Dungeon whispered.

And somewhere deep inside me, something answered back.