Is It Weird to Refine Spirits in Dungeons? Chapter 3

Holocure Spirit Refiner

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Chapter 3: Dun-geon Too Used to Dying

“So, Anya, what did you think?” I asked my current spirit companion.

Uninterested.

“Is that so…” I shrugged. “Oh well, thanks a lot for helping me out with this dungeon anyway.”

I got the feeling of a nod. Compared to Mumei or Fubuki, Anya didn’t talk much at all, or at least not to me. Forming a friendly working relationship with this keris spirit was going to take a lot more effort. On the other hand, when it came to Fubuki, Anya could be very chatty. That was the impression I had of their inter-spirit communication. 

While I couldn’t communicate well like that, taking Anya out on dungeon expeditions did help develop our bond, because it involved slaying monsters and gathering spirit shards to power her up further.

“Oouuuuhh…” The groan of another enemy alerted me to its presence, and I slowed my pace.

The moment I caught sight of its green skin and blue clothing, I thrusted my hand out, sending a pair of keris stabbing into its torso and knocking it back slightly. It took a second attack before it fell over backwards, disappearing into greenish-yellow orbs that I absorbed into my hand. 

A tinkling bell sound rang in my head, this world’s signal that I had gained enough to increase the level of Anya’s power.

“What will it be? Increasing your personal weapon again?”

Agreement.

“Got it.”

Despite the simple reply, when I tested the attack out and saw that the number of blades had increased, the small feeling of satisfaction that came through our link made me smile as well.

I continued onwards through the stone hallways of the current dungeon, seeking out the treasure that lay within.

It wasn’t necessary; this expedition was just one of those free and easy ones, with revival from death included, and allowed me to back out at any time without having to return to my starting point. All those advantages really made it seem like a game, not to mention the earlier level up notifier.

That was because this dungeon was set in a Minecraft world.

Everything was blocky, and I could actually hear background music as I explored the place. I didn’t have torches, but I picked up some of those I found and just reused them in my path.

If not for the feeling of Anya’s strength growing and the sensation of spending spirit energy for her attacks, I would have assumed that it was some kind of extra-realistic VR mode. Or maybe it was, and I was just deluding myself, but I’ve experienced enough to no longer bother pursuing that line of thinking.

Perhaps that was why I died in the end. The differences in setting and the feeling of the world had made me complacent about its dangers.

It started with entering a library area, and found a bunch of skeleton archers. I dodged their arrows and tried making use of the cover to get in close to kill them, mentally rebuking myself for not having a good ranged option. 

Then I heard it, just after ducking behind another bookshelf that thudded with arrows embedding into the other side.

A dangerous hissing sound.

Regret hit me with the force of a wrecking ball, taking Anya out of commission and leaving me in awful pain, with a smidgen of health left. I laid there in the wreckage of wood and stone, stunned by the explosion. 

It really hurt.

Then an arrow hit me in the chest and finished me off.

I sat upright in the bed, patting my chest and not finding any wounds. The sun showed that it was in the middle of the day, even though it should have been night time while I was down in the dungeon.

“Fucking Creeper,” I cursed.

Annoyed. Agreement.

It was a good thing that I made sure to rest in the bed before going down into the dungeon, making it a respawn point for me. This was the first time I died while venturing into a dungeon, and it was NOT a good experience.

Not at all.

I still went back into it anyway.

Dying should have lost me some experience levels, but some of it was retained in Anya’s weapons, so I didn’t have to level them up again. I considered building a mob spawner, but I discarded that idea because I didn’t have that much time to spare. Free and easy it might be, but there was still an imposed time limit on how long I could spend away from the house. 

Maybe because it involves the upkeep of the other spirits? Maybe I’ll ask Lauracie when I see her next, I thought as I made my way back to where I died previously. Everything I discover just creates more questions… and I don’t think I’ll ever get a satisfactory answer.

I soon found the stuff I dropped. There wasn’t any corpse or other clues to show that I had died there, just the bag that contained all the loot I collected up till then. That was another reality-defying trait of this world; there was an inventory system that I could access through a window, and I could carry weight beyond what was normally possible. Just like the game.

Okay, I think I ought to get out of here. Before I end up dying again. I’ll just get stronger before I come back again. “Anya, we’re leaving,” I said out loud.

Acknowledgment.

While I might not ever get a satisfactory answer to the questions I come across in this new life, I think I’ll enjoy the process of searching for one.

I mentally called up the window, and confirmed the end of this dungeon foray.

As it turned out, the inventory system only worked in that world. All the stuff I carried in it dropped when I returned to the house. I ended up having to provide more spirit energy to my spirits to get them to help me move some of them into the ritual room.

“Boom?” Mumei asked me, pointing at one of the items I had found in a chest in Minecraft.

“Yes, Mumei,” I answered her, carefully picking it up and placing it in the circle, “That one goes boom.”

A look in her direction saw that Fubuki was with her, and they both wore the same open-mouthed smile as they stared at the red-white box. I shivered, and decided to hurry up and carry out the spirit weapon ritual, adding the flint as well and scattering the gray gunpowder around it.

Similar to the process of summoning a spirit, the reagents were consumed by a light that reformed into the final shape; the large red-white TNT block turned into a blue-white one with a fuse on top. This was the Holo Bomb, which dealt splash damage to all enemies nearby. In the game, it worked much like a mine, where the player character would drop it in her immediate proximity, and it would explode when an enemy drew close enough, dealing damage to all enemies in its blast radius.

“Boom.” Mumei repeated.

“Boom.” Fubuki echoed.

“Don’t you start too,” I told the foxgirl.

The spirit weapon was drawn into my hand, and just like the others, I could feel it waiting to be equipped onto whichever spirit I picked for the next dungeon foray. It was moments like these that made me feel like a cultivator, being able to manipulate spiritual energy and existences. A quick experiment in the Training Dungeon showed that using the Holo Bomb would place down a box-shaped spiritual construct. It couldn’t be shifted at all after being placed, but its structure broke down when exposed to foreign spirit signatures. The explosive result affected enemies and nothing else; physical enemies would just collapse as though their life had been blown out like a candle, while the spirit-based ones would be blasted apart.

I nodded to a waiting Mumei when I returned to the house, Fubuki sitting on my shoulder.

“Boom.” There’s just something about explosions that make them cool. Still… “There’s one more weapon I want to make.”

“Moom?”

I grabbed a cooked sausage, one with slices along its length that made it floppy, and stuck it onto a fork. 

Brandishing it in front of the spirits, I proudly declared, “This weapon shall be… legendary!”

The deadpan looks I got was painful. What happened to the pure innocence of these spirits?

In addition to expanding my armory options, I also took the opportunity to experience what Lauracie termed as ‘multiplayer’. The selections offered at the gate now had a description for ‘population’, ranging from none to dense. After some consideration, I picked one that was fairly populated. The reason for such was because I didn’t feel that confident in making conversation after only having the goddess as a conversation partner, and the spirits, while friendly and receptive, don’t exactly count. As before, I chose one without any clear conditions, so I could take my time to explore.

[Underground Island Dungeon.]

My insertion into that world went the same way as it always did, and I quickly realized that there was something messing with other people’s perception, so they wouldn’t notice. 

“Ah?” My current spirit whispered to me. Curiosity.

Having spent so long using the spirits’ attacks and abilities, I had developed a sense for such things, and could feel said perception blocker starting to fade. Rather than stand around waiting for it to end, I decided to explore the place.

The first thing I noticed was the setting; it was a medieval fantasy, so my modern clothes were slightly out of place, but not enough to be the center of attention. There were also various races wandering around. Humans were the most common, but I could see a few elves with their long ears, dwarves with their heavyset bodies, halflings that were like child-sized adults, and even some with animal features. Some wore robes like typical mages, others wore armor, ranging from minor pieces to full-body coverage, and their quality varied just as much. Most had Caucasian features, but I spotted a few Asian-like people as well.

Definitely magic at use here too, I thought as I observed some of the equipment that the mages in the crowd were carrying around, Those staffs give the same feel of my spirit weapons when leveled up, as though they’ve been used to channel spirit energy many times.

Those weren’t the only senses I was using to observe my surroundings. The sound of various conversations, the smell of unwashed people mixing in with the salty smell of the ocean, the subtle differences in the shape of the ears differentiating gnomes and half-foots, the common term for what I thought were halflings, among others. 

Mentions of a Lunatic Magician, a King named Delgal…

After an hour, I managed to assemble a good enough picture of this whole setting, and it was one I recognized. Lauracie’s dungeon guide did describe a few types of dungeons, and after experiencing the Minecraft one, I realized that some options were based on fiction. Not all of them were games, like the one I was currently in.

This world was that of Dungeon Meshi, which featured a bunch of adventurers experiencing what it was like to live off the monsters and plants that inhabited the dungeon while trying to rescue one of their fallen members. I hadn’t seen the main character party around, so I was unsure of where I was in the timeline, but I was fairly confident about my guess.

Well, the only thing left to do is what I came here for in the first place. I moved along with the crowd, heading for the entrance to the dungeon. 

Compared to the surface, it was much more crowded, filled with both adventurers and merchants. The smell of food was prevalent there, with no lack of customers in the returning adventurers who survived off rations while they were venturing further below.

I caught a few people giving me weird looks as I walked past them, and the snatches of conversation my ears picked up indicated my lack of preparation as the reason why.

“Is… really… like that?”

“Weird…”

“Not even… beginner…”

“...just more money for the revivers.”

Oof, that lack of confidence hurts. I made a face as I continued further onwards and downwards.

Meh. 

I glanced at the tattoo on my hand, a trident surrounded by the jaws of a shark, the representation of Gawr Gura, or Gooba, as I nicknamed her. Compared to the others so far, even the reticent Anya, this one felt more simple-minded. 

Not that it mattered much, because her abilities were what mattered. Especially when I had gone to the trouble of unlocking some of the unique powers she had. Plus the contract with her was easy enough to fulfill, just by feeding her a handful of chum every day.

The issue with a realistic setting is having to aim more carefully. I darted forward and flung my hand out, aiming for the base of the plant trying to eat me. More reason to practice with my spirits in the future.

The stab was enough to dispatch it, and I made sure to avoid the vines as they thrashed around in death throes. Once it was still, I prepared to move on. Already, I could see the other plants ahead moving more slowly as Gura’s Whirlpool sapped away their vital energy.

“Hey, you shouldn’t just leave those there,” A gruff voice called out to me.

I turned around to look at who had spoken, and instantly recognized the person. He was a dwarf wearing a helmet with two bent horns on it, with a rather huge bushy beard that covered most of his torso.

“Oh sorry. I don’t really know how to put them to use.”

“You’re a newbie, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” I admitted, “So do you mind teaching me what you know?”

“Well, since you’re asking, and you’re willing to learn…” The dwarf beckoned to me, “Here, let me show you.”

He briefly introduced himself; his name was Senshi, which meant ‘Seeker’ in the dwarvish language, and used a large axe as his weapon. In addition to those, he carried a lot of other equipment meant for dungeon delving, though there was a clear inclination towards cooking tools.

All of that was confirmation that he really was the person I knew as one of the main characters in the story of this setting.

I think it might be some time before the actual canon events. Keeping my thoughts to myself, I listened attentively as Senshi showed me how to gather materials from the plants. Hmm, I think I can make use of this to get reagents for more complex rituals.

Later, I asked for permission, and was given it, to accompany him as he ventured deeper into the dungeon. The two of us continued on like that, making idle conversation along the way, that let us learn more about each other.

In return, I introduced myself; Ray, a Spirit Refiner who came to this dungeon to train his skills. Compared to him, I barely carried anything on me, which made him question just how I had made it down to this floor. When I tried bringing out Gura for Senshi to see, he admitted that he couldn’t see her at all, even though he could witness the effects of her attacks.

“A.” She made a sound before returning to my tattoo.

Just like a Stand, unable to be seen by the Muggles. 

Just like my memory of him, Senshi was a foodie savant, with a great deal of knowledge pertaining to consuming the creatures of the dungeon, and very little outside of it. From what I could observe, he moved along the myriad routes of the dungeon with strong familiarity. The few monsters we encountered were easily dispatched, with me slowing them down and him dealing the finishing blow.

While he had quite a bit of strength, I noticed that his overall stamina was on the low side. I ended up taking on some of the luggage he was carrying to make it easier on him. It was also a lucky coincidence that we took a bunch of breaks just so he could impart some of the knowledge he had accumulated.

It was quite an educational experience for me. While I was still absorbing spirit energy to enhance Gura and her spirit equipment, I was learning how it was like to be an adventurer living off the land, so to speak. What equipment I ought to bring along next time, what stuff to pay attention to, where to aim for when fighting monsters, and so on.

Eventually, Senshi decided that we should stop for the day, and led me over to an alcove where we got started on making camp. I obviously lacked a sleeping bag and any other stuff a normal adventurer would have, but I assured him that I would be fine. While the majority of the spirit energy went to the spirits, some of it spilled over to me, and just like any cultivator, my body grew stronger due to it. I could stay active longer than before, so one night in uncomfortable conditions wasn’t going to be any problem.

The place had a conveniently-placed spring which provided water for us to use, and Senshi quickly started cooking. I assisted where I could, but mostly observed as he cut up ingredients and placed them into the pot. It was some kind of hotpot dish.

“So that’s how you make a living down here,” I said to the dwarf sitting across the fire from me. “So you’ve been continuing like this for years already?”

He nodded, his eyes locked on the food cooking on the flames. “Over ten years now, I’d say.”

“And you’ve been researching monster cooking all that time?” 

“Yes, that’s right.” He stirred the pot with the ladle once more, before lifting it up to examine the result. “All done.”

“It looks and smells good.”

Senshi dished up some of it into a bowl, which he handed to me. “Here.”

“Thanks for the food.” I scooped up a bit with the spoon and tasted it. “It’s good.”

Want. The feeling shot through me, making my hand pause.

“What’s wrong?” Senshi asked.

“Could I have a second bowl?” I requested.

“But you haven’t finished your first.” He pointed out.

“My spirit wants it.” I placed the bowl down on the floor in front of me and put my hand over it, feeling the steam condensing on my palm. “Go ahead, Gura.”

I felt a sensation like a sudden suction, followed by a chomp and a gulp. When I moved my hand away, the bowl was empty.

Happy. Gura let me know with a satisfied burp.

“That’s something I’ve never seen before.” Senshi commented, holding his hand out for the bowl. 

I passed it to him, and he refilled it from the pot. “You could say I’m unique.”

We ate quietly for a while. I had no idea what sort of meat went into this since it was preserved stock, but the vegetables were fresh. He did a good job with the spices, which he had apparently restocked from the marketplace earlier, which was how our paths had crossed there.

“You don’t seem to like magic, do you?” I asked Senshi.

“They make things too easy. Relying too much on magic will just result in a bad end eventually.”

“Well, I believe that everyone has their own specialty. That’s why people party up, so that they can cover for each other, in the areas where the other person lacks.”

“Mmhmm.” He grunted non committedly.

I changed the subject to ask more about the food itself, which energized the conversation more. Senshi had strong opinions on getting proper nutrition while adventuring in a dungeon. That also included regulating one’s rhythm and proper exercise.

After finishing our meals, we did a bit of washing up, before turning in to sleep. 

It didn’t come easily for me. I could feel the attention of something being directed towards me.

When Senshi woke up, he prepared a breakfast of fruits we harvested the day before, before we parted ways. I wanted to head back up to the surface, since that was the requirement to be able to return back to the house. Senshi had other stuff he wanted to do further down below. We shook hands and went in separate directions.

Then I died.

I forgot about traps, and stepped on a pressure switch.

The spikes just went straight through me, taking out Gura first. Before I realized it, I triggered another one that hit me with poison, and everything faded to black.

“Filthy invader. Die like you should.” I seemed to hear.

Well shit, so now I’m a ghost? Everything feels weird though. Oh wait, someone’s coming.

“Another dead body… should… revivers?”

“...can handle… just wait.”

Suddenly, sensation came rushing back, and I was blinking up at the ceiling. Turning my gaze to the side, I saw a narrow-eyed woman with a gentle face looking at me. Her hand was on my forehead.

“Oh hello, how are you feeling?”

“Uhh… alive, I think?”

She nodded, smiling. “You’re alive for sure. I revived you after you died.”

“You died to a trap, didn’t you? You’ve got to be careful!” A man with similar features to her spoke up.

Guess fate really does play a part. I thought as I looked at the pair of siblings. I wasn’t expecting to encounter these two like this.

The male was Laios, while his sister’s name was Falin. They both had sandy blond hair, and were on the tall side, though from the looks of things, they didn’t get enough to eat. Furthermore, it was just the two of them, with no signs of the other party members I knew from the manga. Laios himself wasn’t even wearing the plate armor that he was shown to have.

I was definitely before the canon timeline.

“Are you going back up? We can go together, if that’s the case.”

“I am. By the way, how much do I owe you for the revival?” I knew that was a thing from my meta-knowledge and the stuff I overheard earlier.

“Well…” Laios pondered it, but his sister interrupted then.

“Oh, you don’t have to pay us, I just did it because I wanted to. Although…”

“Yes?”

“Could you tell me more about that spirit in your hand?”

“Oh, you can see her?” 

“Her? There’s a spirit? What does she look like?” Laios interrupted to ask, his curiosity taking over.

I couldn’t help it. I laughed.

Laios couldn’t see Gura either, but Falin did help to describe what she looked like. The two of them seemed to get along well, while Laios continued to bug me with all sorts of questions. I managed to distract him by mentioning some of the knowledge Senshi taught me, doing my best to pass on those lessons.

“Remember though, you don’t want to take all of it, just what you need,” I finished.

Falin nodded. “We will remember that.”

Similarly, I picked up a bit of stuff from Falin, who tried to teach me a bit of magic. I was amazed I managed to understand a little of her descriptions of going ‘bwaah’ and ‘zoom zoom zoom~’ with the whole manipulation of mana. I also learned that my spirits had an innate purification trait, due to the whole Holocure lore about curing the fans of the evil force mindcontrolling them.

We eventually arrived at the first floor, where we went our separate ways. 

Perhaps in the future, I might come back to this place again, and have another meal of dungeon food.

Ah, dungeon food.

“Welcome back, sire,” Sappy greeted me. “You’ve been gone quite a while. What’s that you have there?”

“I brought a bag of soil extracted from a dungeon, do you think it could work for that item we got last time?”

“Let me see.” The spirit examined the item in question. “Well, this soil is certainly of exceptional quality! I think I can put it to good use in the garden.”

“Um, that’s not what I was asking.”

“Oh, pardon me. Hmm… Why yes, I believe it can!”

“Then I’ll get to it right away.”

“I expect to hear the good news soon then!”

There was something else I had to do first, and that was to use my gathered spirit energy to empower my spirits again. Gura was too much of a glass cannon, even with her dodging ability, so I poured the energy towards improving her life and defenses. 

I retained a larger quantity than usual for my next task, which was to summon a new spirit. The ritual for this one called for high quality mana-infused soil, and a few other nature-related items. Normally I would have to gather a lot more of the latter, but the golden apple I had found in a Minecraft chest would provide enough energy to offset that requirement. That was something to take note of for future rituals; high value reagents were worth more than multiples of the latter, and ones that were more related to the spirit even more so.

Seeing the results of pouring the dirt out onto the stone platform, I made a face. Good thing the ritual absorbs all of it. Alright, let’s get this over with.

The ritual went off without any problems, and I gained a new spirit. The tattoo representing her was a leafy branch over an apple.

“Uuu~” The spirit greeted me when she came out of the tattoo.

“Nice to meet you, Fauna.”

Just like her namesake, Fauna had green hair and a white overcoat covering a blue dress. There were leafy branches growing out of her head, similar to a deer’s antlers, and she had a golden apple floating over one of her hands.

From my experience with the game, Fauna was one of the tankiest playable characters, with her skills contributing to healing and self-buffing, as well as an offensive one that triggered every time she healed. If I were to go into a dungeon where danger came from every angle, she would definitely be one of my top picks.

I needed to grind a lot to unlock those though.

“I look forward to working with you,” I told her.

She bowed back politely, a small smile on her face.

Even then, I still ended up dying a few times in the revival-permitted dungeons I visited. None of them were pleasant experiences.

Monsters with abilities that were an instant-kill, traps that I didn’t expect, disadvantages in numbers and strength that my weapons couldn’t compensate for. I almost felt like Natsuki Subaru from Re:Zero sometimes, considering the brutality of some of them.

“That is an expected danger of delving into dungeons,” Lauracie told me when I reported it to her, “The more dangerous ones don’t let you come back at all.”

I touched my throat, having felt what it was like to receive an arrow through there in my most recent death.

“Better to bleed in training than to die in war, huh?”

The goddess nodded. “I have been keeping track of your progress ever since the beginning, and I can tell you honestly, that you have been improving constantly. Keep it up.”

I eyed her suspiciously. “That’s not all you came to say, is it?”

“You are right, it’s not.” She made a gesture, opening a message window in front of me. Your spirit refining is progressing well, but you need the occasional challenge. That is what I’m here to provide.”

Scanning through the text, I saw that it was a notification of several imposed quests. I had to clear a number of dungeons where revival wasn’t included. With what I knew of the options available, that didn’t just mean killing a lot of monsters, but gathering materials and leveling the spirits to their current limits. Difficult, but still doable.

“What do you think?” Lauracie asked me, leaning forward in her armchair with her elbows on her knees.

I dismissed the window and slapped my hand on my own thigh. Around me, my spirits had manifested and were looking at her as well.

“Bring it on. I’ll clear this hurdle.”

Afterword: So where am I going with this story? I don’t know, but I’m enjoying myself with this writing, and that adventure in itself is what drives it!