Episode 249 – Koppranickel Ore Vein

TL: The characters used for koppranickel ore are 魔銅, which is the character for demon/magic plus the character for copper/bronze. Demon Copper sounds weird so I wasn’t sure how to translate it, but there’s apparently an item from the Final Fantasy franchise (XI and XIV) called koppranickel ore that uses the same Japanese characters, so I’m going to stick with that name for now even though it doesn’t fit that well in a literal sense.

“It’s been a while since we’ve cleared a new layer! That feeling of being on edge you get beyond the 20th layer sure is nostalgic.” (Rosalie)

“If we continue through the 21st and 22nd layers, we’ll eventually run into a boss battle. I think we’ll be fine since we’ve rested, but let’s not lose focus on our way there.” (Lewin)

“Mhm. I’m not tired.” (Aruna)

It was the next day after we’d safely cleared our way down to the 20th layer and stayed the night. With the aim of defeating the Boss on the 23rd layer, we set foot into an unfamiliar layer for the first time in a while.

The 21st and the 22nd layers were still canyon areas, but since there weren’t any changes in the type of monsters that appeared, there shouldn’t be any problems. This meant that our biggest problem was the boss fight itself, but… we’d made careful preparations. Plus, based on what I had seen from the projections, the Peak Gorilla and the Canyon Monkeys were more troublesome.

Stretching my body by rolling each shoulder, I got myself warmed up and gave my cheeks a slap to get my head in the game. With that, we set foot into the uncharted territory of the 21st layer at last.

Putting my senses to the maximum, I checked my surroundings to make sure we wouldn’t get preyed on the moment we stepped off of the staircase, but I couldn’t see any monsters around us. Looking at the surrounding area, it gave off the same vibe as the 19th layer.

“Hmm.. As far as I can see, it looks just like another canyon area in the end.” (Lewin)

“Well, the area above it is a Safe Area, so it’s far better than getting attacked from above and below like on the 17th and 18th floors, right? Also, I remember that the monsters’ numbers were less on the 21st layer.” (Rosalie)

“I’ve been tracking the enemies, but the presence of monsters on this layer is definitely much thinner.” (Aruna)

As if backing up Rosalie’s words, Aruna had reported her own observations. If it’s anything like the 16th layer, we might be able to get through without a battle.

“If that’s how it is, do you think we can get through without encountering any monsters?” (Lewin)

“I don’t know about zero monsters, but we should be able to reduce the number we encounter by a lot.” (Aruna)

….Perhaps Ahmed was also capable of doing something similar, but then again, she was also the kind of person who would charge in of her own accord as soon as she saw monsters.

I had been imagining what Ahmed would do as we continued through the Dungeon, when I suddenly caught sight of a large, shiny ore vein in the gap between two rocks. If I’m not mistaken, that’s an ore deposit that you can mine for material to make weapons.

“Look! Isn’t that an ore vein?” (Lewin)

“Ah, it really is! Doesn’t it look like a koppranickel ore vein?” (Rosalie)

“Koppranickel…! That’s a type of magical metal! Should we go collect some?” (Lewin)

“I’m fine with whatever, but there are several monster presences in that area. Probably Ore Lizards.” (Aruna)

There was a rumor that in the past that there was once a party of S-class adventurers who had gotten completely wiped out by an Ore Lizard who had eaten a legendary ore called Scarletite Ore1.

“I guess I’ll have to refrain. Ore Lizards are monsters whose strength can’t be estimated. Plus, I think it would be tough for us to fight the Boss with ore in our bags.” (Lewin)

“All things considered, it’s a shame to miss out on magic metal, but… it’s certainly very likely that the Ore Lizard is eating that koppranickel ore. Wuuu… we could have made koppranickel gear with it too.” (Rosalie)

“Good choice. Let’s go.” (Aruna)

While Rosalie and I were feeling regretful about not being able to collect it, we followed reluctantly after Aruna. Just like that, we were forced to part ways with our very first vein of magical ore. To be honest, considering its value, we could have shifted our purpose to collecting ore, but it wasn’t good to lose sight of our purpose so easily. As we had originally intended, it was best for us to only focus on the boss battle on the 23rd layer this time around.

Well, at least that’s what I’ll say to try and persuade myself to forget about having to pass up the koppranickel ore. After that, we succeeded in reaching the stairs without a single encounter. Although Aruna had said it was impossible, she had still managed to guide us to the staircase without encountering a single enemy.

“Looks like we managed to clear the 21st layer with our stamina entirely unaffected. As expected of Aruna-san.” (Lewin)