“Chlorel, Sofia, follow me. I’ll take you to a good place.”
The blonde loli who had been missing for nearly a day finally appeared, grabbing both Chlorel’s and Sofia’s hands without a word.
Strange, Su Yao’s swordsmanship was so good, yet her palms were completely smooth—no calluses at all. So soft, so comfortable.
…What was she thinking about?
It seemed like every part of this loli’s body was soft…
No, what was going on? Since yesterday, she’d been acting weird.
Although she used to tease Su Yao occasionally, it was always just a little bit, nothing serious.
She wasn’t sure what happened yesterday, but it was as if she’d had some kind of thrilling dream—one where her relationship with Su Yao went beyond just exchanging kisses.
Thinking of that, Chlorel stole a glance at the blonde loli walking ahead.
She looked as happy as usual, and Chlorel had no idea what she was so delighted about.
Only she herself cared so much—it was just so foolish.
Why had things turned out like this? Maybe it was because Su Yao had changed into a new outfit?
That’s right! Even though she was just a loli, she was dressed so provocatively. No matter how she thought about it, it was her own fault.
It was all because of her that she had such a strange dream, and now she couldn’t look at Su Yao straight on.
“We’re here! Right here!”
“This is? So beautiful!”
Sofia’s exclamation brought Chlorel back to reality.
She shook her head, pushing aside the silly loli’s sweet voice from her dream for now.
Before her was a breathtaking scene she had never seen before.
A giant mushroom the size of a castle emitted a dreamy glow of pale blue and white.
Delicate glowing threads dangled from its cap, swaying gently with the breeze.
The huge cavern’s ceiling was covered with stalactites, and between their gaps shimmered flowing lights like stars.
They seemed to be on an island in the middle of a lake. Around the giant mushroom grew oddly shaped rocks and plants.
The rocks glowed faintly yellow, and the plants twisted and tangled together, forming a strange kind of beauty that was hard to describe.
Nearby, countless “fireflies” flickered in and out, their light dots dancing in the air.
Such a breathtaking sight, usually only seen in the summer or autumn fields, unbelievably appeared here.
Perhaps influenced by the giant glowing mushroom, these fireflies’ lights seemed to have a slight bluish tint.
Since they arrived, Chlorel could hear the sound of flowing water—“whoosh, whoosh.”
Following the source, she saw waterfalls of varying sizes pouring from small holes in the left stone wall.
As they merged into the lake, a white mist of spray rose up.
“Is this really a dungeon?”
She felt that this place was more like a lake island under a starry sky than a dungeon.
The magnificent waterfalls and flying fireflies decorated it like a fairyland.
“That’s not all. Look underwater.”
The blonde loli said proudly.
Normally, if she showed this expression, Chlorel would be tempted to tease her a bit, but for now, she decided to follow her lead.
“What’s this?”
The shimmering water surface flickered with some kind of light. It wasn’t just reflections of the cavern ceiling’s starlight; looking closer, she realized there were light sources in the clear lake water itself.
“These are Crystal Mantis Shrimp—freshwater aquatic monsters that are very rare. When they curl up, they look like glowing white crystals.”
She had never even heard of such monsters before, let alone seen them with her own eyes. Truly amazing!
But besides these beautiful crystals, the lake also held many other creatures, like the slowly moving “coral” over there.
Nobles from the southern coastal cities would annually offer “coral” decorations as tribute to the Royal Family. She never expected to see them in a lake.
Wait, “coral” can move? She thought these creatures were supposed to be fixed on reefs.
“How is it? Isn’t this kind of place perfect for confessions?”
“Huh? Um.”
Wait, why was she suddenly talking about confessions?
Could it be that Su Yao had created this scenery inside the dungeon just to confess to her?
Honestly, if someone confessed to her in a place like this, she’d probably faint from happiness.
Ugh, how was she supposed to refuse that?
“I plan to develop this into a spot similar to the ‘Confession Tree,’ where adventurers escort those wanting to confess here. How about it? Don’t you think it could be profitable?”
Chlorel: “……”
Yeah, that’s right. It probably would make a lot of money.
No way. This is a dungeon, okay? Who would have time to come here just to confess?
As expected of Su Yao. If this iron loli knew how to express her feelings, the sun would probably rise from the west.
Nearby, her childhood friend covered her mouth, laughing quietly. Ha, even if she didn’t confess, having already exchanged first kisses, no knight could easily get between them.
“By the way, do you want to see somewhere higher up?”
Somewhere higher? How would they get up without wind magic? Ride the Griffin?
That Griffin didn’t seem to like living in the dungeon. No one knew which forest it hid in. It only reluctantly showed up at the dungeon entrance late at night when begging for food.
Chlorel glanced around but didn’t see the Griffin.
Since Su Yao asked, she must have a way to get up there. She just needed to nod.
“Here!”
The blonde loli stepped onto a flat-topped green mushroom and leapt up with effort.
Chlorel accidentally caught sight of something—black…
She’d definitely have to give her a good scolding later!
“Sofia, come up too?”
Her childhood friend nodded and stepped up alongside her.
Judging by the way she adjusted her skirt, she must have seen the little “service” Su Yao had just shown.
Tch, what a silly loli.
“Wow, we’re flying! Sofia, why are you holding me?”
“Sorry, Chlorel, I think I’m a bit afraid of heights…”
She hadn’t expected the graceful, all-around childhood friend to have this weakness. What a surprise.
“You actually stood up here. Su Yao, what are you thinking?”
“Nothing much. I was just thinking about how to set up a ‘treasure chest’ that only appears when two people jump off the mushroom together.”
Was she sane? What was the point of setting up that kind of chest?
Well, if she wanted to do it, there must be a reason. Just like before, Chlorel didn’t understand why she insisted on placing treasure chests in the dungeon.
But looking at the results, the Maze Tavern’s popularity proved her design was right.
She had no idea how Su Yao’s brain worked to plan so far ahead.
Sometimes being with her made Chlorel feel defeated. She worked so hard to become an outstanding princess, yet in many ways, she couldn’t match Su Yao’s quick wit.
Forget it. She didn’t want to think about this now. It was rare to admire such beautiful scenery.
But come to think of it, the view up here wasn’t unexpectedly beautiful. Although more spectacular, it wasn’t as dreamy as gazing up at the giant mushroom from below.
“By the way, how do we get down?”