The Mysterious Child: An Adventure Tale Beginning with Numerology

Ruruk = Muuteru at 13 Years Old

------------------------

Author Notes:

  This is a simultaneous update of 2 chapters. 2/2

------------------------

■　■　■　■　■

~ At the 55th floor of the underground dungeon in the Stoania Kingdom ~

"This is bad! Bad, bad, bad!"

The A-rank adventurer party 【Dragon's Jaw】 had been conquering the dungeon with unstoppable momentum until now.

Attracting attention since their debut as adventurers right after becoming adults, they were praised in their homeland as a party with unparalleled combat power. Living up to that reputation, they completely conquered the dungeon near their country's capital for the first time in 200 years.

Having risen to A-rank and made a name for themselves as adventurers, they set their sights on conquering the underground labyrinth of the Stoania Kingdom as their next target.

They arrived in the Stoania Kingdom about half a year ago.

Still unknown in this country, they reached the 50th underground floor of the dungeon in just three months. This underground labyrinth, considered the deepest dungeon on land in the world, has currently been confirmed to have 108 underground floors. Reaching the 50th floor in just three months was clearly a remarkable achievement in anyone's eyes.

When they returned to the guild triumphantly after conquering the 50th underground floor, the guild staff and other adventurers welcomed them with open arms. The tavern turned into a feast, becoming as lively as a festival.

They were still in their teens, young, powerful, and accomplished.

They were convinced they could become the strongest party without a doubt.

It was while their leader was basking in this pleasant intoxication that he overheard some adventurers muttering:

"Well, but we'd still lose to them."

"Hey, cut it out. Of course we can't win against them."

...Them?

His inflated self-esteem was slightly wounded, but he knew that nearly 10 S-rank parties were staying in this country. Keeping in mind that their known world was still very small, he approached the adventurers to ask about it without getting angry.

Who were "them"?

Were they talking about S-rank parties?

"S-sorry, main character bro. We didn't mean to rain on your parade. Here, let me buy you a drink, don't worry about it."

"That's right! There are things in this world you're better off not knowing!"

They stubbornly refused to speak.

Even when he asked others, everyone just played dumb and avoided the topic.

Who exactly were "them"?

The leader of 【Dragon's Jaw】 learned—no, realized it three months later.

It was when they were conquering the 55th floor.

From the 51st floor, the level of monsters suddenly increased, and the labyrinth became more complex, making it difficult to break through floors.

Still, they steadily advanced and reached the 55th floor.

It was a field dungeon called the "Giant's Forest Garden."

A floor of vast forest where trees, grass, animals, and insects were all gigantic. They felt as if they had become tiny people lost in this place.

The first thing they encountered was supposed to be a C-rank monster, Great Boar—but its size was like a mountain. The boar, as large as A-rank giant monsters, attacked them with a speed that belied its massive body.

They tried to counterattack, but the difference in scale made their resistance insignificant.

Realizing their equipment was inadequate and they lacked knowledge and preparation, they decided to retreat to the entrance.

However, it wasn't going to let them escape so easily.

In their desperate flight, they were separated from their companions and got lost, unsure which way to go back. In this worst-case scenario, they were now attacked from the air by an owl monster—a C-rank magical bird called Stras. Of course, the Stras was also enlarged to the size of a house.

Grabbed by the owl's talons, he struggled desperately and managed to escape. However, by then he had already been lifted high into the air, and naturally, he fell, pulled by gravity.

He thought he was going to die, but it seemed his bad luck was strong. The trees absorbed the impact and reduced his momentum, and he landed on a soft, fluffy area.

Having narrowly escaped death, he breathed a sigh of relief.

But only for a moment.

"Bugooooo!"

At his feet was the Great Boar from earlier.

Thrown off, he tossed aside his weapon and ran at full speed.

Moreover, the Stras, angry at losing its prey, was now diving towards him with a furious expression.

"I'm gonna die, die, die, die!"

As he frantically pushed through the grass and ran, his vision cleared and—

"Huh?"

There was an unfamiliar person ahead.

The person was dressed in a black cloak, simple shirt and trousers, with only a pouch with a short dagger at the waist—an outfit that could belong to a novice adventurer. Moreover, they were holding a kitchen knife in hand, with a pot hanging over a campfire.

The one humming and cooking in this out-of-place setting was,

"A child!?"

It was a small boy who didn't seem to have reached adulthood yet.

And next to him, sitting in a green robe, was a white little girl with horns.

If it weren't for this situation, he would have been delighted to meet and shake hands with her—she was a rare and lovely sheep-folk girl.

"You guys, run away!"

While apologizing in his heart, he informed them that he had brought two ferocious monsters with him.

Monster baiting is clearly a breach of etiquette. Even if unintentional, it could be a serious offense that might result in the revocation of one's adventurer qualification in some cases.

However, the boy, while keeping the Great Boar behind him in view, nonchalantly returned to his cooking.

Does he want to die!?

As he thought this, he heard a conversation without any sense of tension.

"This is perfect timing. Elen, please cook it to your liking."

"Mm."

The one who stood up was the sheep-folk little girl.

"'Flare Purge'"

The ground exploded.

An intense heat beam rained down from the sky above the Great Boar, piercing through its body and into the ground. The moisture in the soil instantly evaporated and exploded.

"Whoa!"

The impact from behind threw him forward.

Rolling on the ground and covered in dirt, he managed to regain his balance and looked back.

There lay the charred corpse of the super-giant boar.

"Mm, it's done."

"As expected."

He was about to be dumbfounded by the two casually conversing, but then he suddenly remembered.

"Wait! There's still the Stras!"

In the sky above, the Stras that had evaded the earlier magic was flapping its wings. It was watching them with sharp eyes, waiting for an opening.

"Oh, you're right. Elen, do you want bird meat?"

"Mm. Want to eat it tonight."

"Got it. Then I'll take care of that one."

Saying this, the boy pointed his index finger at the sky.

It was the pose of the so-called "finger gun," but in this world without the concept of firearms, it only looked like he was aiming magic.

However, no matter how powerful the magic, at this distance, its power would greatly diminish. The sheep-folk child's magic earlier was incredibly powerful, but surely not enough to reach a monster in the sky effectively.

What is he planning to do?

As he watched with bated breath, the boy muttered just one word.

"'Split Bullet'"

At that moment, the Stras lost its balance.

It fell limply and hit the ground with a thud.

Looking closer, the Stras was dead, with a hole larger than a fist in its brow.

...What just happened?

Ignoring his bewildered presence, the children continued:

"Well then, Elen, cut as much of the boar as you want for the stew. I'm good without meat."

"Mm."

The little girl chanted wind magic, cutting out a huge chunk of meat from the Great Boar, then further dicing it and adding it to the pot. And all this without using her hands, just with magic.

The boy, pretending not to notice such a godly skill, ladled what looked like white soup into a bowl and handed it to the little girl once the meat was cooked.

Then he poured some into his own bowl and put his hands together.

"Let's eat."

"Mm, eating."

Still dumbfounded, he watched as the boy and the little girl continued their meal without a care in the world—

□　□　□　□　□

"—the hell is going on here!"

Whoa.

Some dirt-covered guy suddenly started yelling.

I flinched while savoring my stew.

He seems quite angry. We used the Great Boar he brought for our meal without even asking, when we needed meat. Maybe that was wrong.

Should I properly entertain him?

"Um... would you like to eat too?"

"I'll take it! Thanks for saving me!"

He seems angry but willing to eat.

I handed him some stew and a spoon, and he started gulping down the soup while glaring at us. It's hot, so it's dangerous to eat so quickly—ah, see, he burned himself. I told you so.

"Are you okay? Here, have some water."

"It'th hoth!"

Looks like he burned his tongue. But I'm not giving you a potion for that, you know?

When I told him to eat slowly, he took a deep breath and finally seemed to calm down, sitting up straight.

After that, he silently ate until the pot of stew was empty.

Stew is really nice, isn't it? It warms you up.

"Mm, dessert."

"Okay, okay. Is pudding alright?"

"Mm."

I take out the pudding I made this morning and kept cool in a bag with refrigeration magic.

Man, as expected of a city that trades with three major countries. You can get all kinds of ingredients, which expands the range of dishes you can make.

As Elen happily ate her pudding with relaxed cheeks, the adventurer-like person put down his dishes and bowed his head.

"...It was delicious, thank you. I'm sorry I don't have anything to give you in return."

"No, meeting here must be some kind of fate, so don't worry about it."

"By the way, boy... what are you doing here?"

He said that while glaring at me.

What else would we be doing in a dungeon but conquering it?

But his eyes say that's not what he's asking about.

I'll give a safe answer.

"Having lunch, of course."

"That's why! Why are you cooking in such a dangerous place!"

Ah, I see.

Most adventurers usually make do with portable rations. They're fairly nutritious and save time. They're essential items for dungeon conquering.

But portable rations taste bad.

"Cooking is warmer and helps with mental recovery too, and my kid here prefers it. Right, Elen?"

"Mm."

"I-I see... If it's for a sheep-folk's request, then it can't be helped, I guess."

Huh, he suddenly lost his momentum.

Sheep-folk really are incredibly popular. It seems to make anyone lose their will to be angry.

"So, boy, it seems you're conquering this floor, but have you seen my companions? They're from the A-rank party 【Dragon's Jaw】. There are two female magic users about the same age as me and one female swordswoman, we got separated earlier."

"Ah, you mean the women I met earlier? They asked for directions to the entrance, so I told them."

"Really! That's a relief..."

He sighed deeply in relief.

He seems to care about his companions. Since they made it this far, they must be quite capable, and he's giving off a definite aura of being a good person, so they must be a good team.

But a harem party, huh... Well, I can't honestly be happy about that. May all normies explode.

"That's right, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Agito. As our party name suggests, I serve as the party leader. Usually, I'm a swordsman, but I dropped my weapon earlier. Now I'm just a lowly magic user."

"I'm Ruruk. This is Elenora. We're both B-rank adventurers."

"I see. Where are your other party members? Are they exploring?"

"No, we operate as a duo. Since it's just the two of us, we don't have a party name."

"...Huh? Just the two of you?"

"Yes, just us two. I'm technically the vanguard, and she's the rear guard."

He was looking at us with an extremely doubtful gaze.

Well, I'm still a minor, so it can't be helped.

My voice hasn't even changed yet.

"Vanguard? Not rear guard?"

"That's right."

"I-I see... But, still..."

Agito had an unconvinced expression on his face.

Well, that spell earlier was a long-range attack. It's understandable that he's having trouble accepting it.

"...Well, never mind. Elenora-san, that magic earlier was incredible. It seemed beyond B-rank. So it's true that sheep-folk excel at magic."

"Yes. Elen is amazing."

"Mphh~"

Elen puffed out her chest proudly.

Well, let's not brag about our kid too much. It's not good to attract too much interest.

Anyway, while he seems to be highly skilled as an A-rank adventurer, losing his weapon is quite dangerous. Let's at least escort him back to the entrance of this floor.

"Agito-san, shall we head back to the entrance together? I'm sure your companions are still waiting there."

"Ah, yes, that was our agreement if we got separated. Please."

We immediately set off towards the entrance of the 55th floor with Agito.

Elen had already drained the blood from the giant Great Boar and giant Stras we defeated earlier and stored them in her item box. Since we're planning to use the Stras meat as the main dish for dinner, I should think about the menu now.

We made it back near the entrance without encountering any monsters.

He seemed to suddenly question how we walked straight back without getting lost.

"Ruruk-kun, do you know the way?"

"Yes. We've been here many times."

"Many times? Why?"

Oh, he's picking up on that.

It's a bit embarrassing, but there's no need to hide it.

"Well, field floors don't automatically drop materials, you know. And as you can see, everything here has the giant characteristic, so we can get meat in abundance. It's perfect as a hunting ground, isn't it?"

"......"

Agito's jaw dropped.

I mean, one kill provides enough meat for half a month. Plus, giant materials sell for high prices, so it's good income. The giant monsters are harder to defeat, but it's no problem for Elen and me.

It's best to efficiently use these hot spots. In games, you had good stages or bosses for farming experience, right? It's like the isekai version of that.

"B-by the way, Ruruk-kun."

"Yes?"

"How many floors have you conquered?"

"Right now? We're at the 98th floor now."

"Ni-...!"

To be precise, we've cleared up to the 99th floor.

But Roze unreasonably declared that we can't go to the 100th floor boss until he defeats all 98th floor bosses solo, so we're staying there and training.

By the way, Roze can instantly kill the 98th floor bosses in less than a second. When she demonstrated, I was speechless... She's really too much of a cheat. The difference in ability is so huge, it's disheartening.

"Ah, we've arrived. It looks like all your companions are here. We'll take our leave now. We need to get back to the 98th floor."

"Ah... yeah. Thank you, Ruruk-kun."

Agito looked quite tired, but seemed relieved to see his companions at the entrance.

Elen and I, having finished our lunch and food procurement, hurried back before Roze could get angry.

Currently, I, Ruruk = Muuteru, had turned 13 years old.

It was about 4 years since we came to the Stoania Kingdom.

------------------------

Author Notes:

Afterword Tips ~ Ruruk's Status ~

――――――――――

[Name] Ruruk = Muuteru

[Race] Human

[Level] 48

[Health] 460 (+2020)

[Mana] 0 (+0)

[Strength] 420 (+1980)

[Endurance] 340 (+1760)

[Agility] 520 (+2180)

[Intelligence] 470 (+2040)

[Luck] 101

[Reasoning Proficiency] 680

[Magic Proficiency] 0

[Mystic Arts Proficiency] 6350

[Possessed Skills]

≪Automatic Type≫

"Numerology 7: Self-Regulation"

"Calm and Collected"

"Incapacitation Nullification"

"Adversity Breakthrough"

≪Active Type≫

"Spirit Summoning"

"Familiar Summoning"

"Equipment Summoning"

"Transcription"

"Color Change"

"Synthesis"

"Blade Conversion"

"Split Bullet"

"Landmine"

"Threshold Compilation"

"Relative Transfer"

"Illusion"

"Word Soul"

"Legend Manifestation"

――――――――――