After returning from the dungeon, the first place I headed to was the laboratory in the basement of the mansion.

Since it’s also connected to the underground passage of the Adventurers’ Guild, I wouldn’t run into outsiders.

The adventurers know that some sort of experiment is taking place, and while it’s not exactly a top-secret mission, if word gets out to the merchants, some might start pressuring adventurers to explore faster.

Well… that probably wouldn’t really change the pace of exploration, but it would still add unnecessary hassle.

If I can do it quietly, that’s the better option.

◇

“Hello!”

When I arrived at the lab and stepped inside, the room was, as usual, filled with mysterious equipment running, potion mixtures being brewed, and people drafting diagrams—everyone seemed busy working.

Seasons don’t seem to matter in this place.

Except for the days surrounding the festival, there’s always someone working here.

And among them…

“Vice-Captain Sera! Thank you for your hard work.”

“Oh, Monica. Studying here today?”

“Yes!”

Monica responded energetically to my words.

She had been assigned here via Fiora and had recently been studying large-scale magic devices.

She’ll probably end up helping with maintenance around spring.

Of course, she’ll still have duties outside as well… but this work seems more critical.

I’ll likely see her here more often from now on.

And then…

While I was talking with Monica, Fiora emerged from the back.

“Good work. How did things go today?”

Fiora, skipping the pleasantries, got straight to asking for results. Very like her.

“Yeah, perfect! I tried it on other things besides the Giant Apes, and it worked just fine. I think others besides me could probably use it without any issues now.”

Hearing that, Fiora nodded with satisfaction, and the other magic users cheered with joy.

Were they involved too?

“Um…”

Perhaps feeling out of place amid the excitement, Monica quietly approached to ask a question.

It seemed she knew only a little about the explosive orb.

Well, since she doesn’t enter dungeons, it’s understandable.

Since Fiora was busy elsewhere, I decided to explain.

“Do you know about the first version of this?”

“Yes… a little. I heard it was too powerful?”

She seemed puzzled about why something being too powerful would be a problem, given it’s for combat.

“That’s right. This thing activates when it hits a monster, but hitting a moving monster from several dozen meters away is tough, right? So you have to get closer to throw it, but that means you risk blowing yourself and those around you up too. Dungeons have a no-death policy, right? So things that might harm others are a no-go.”

There’s also the risk of being tackled by a monster, but I’ll skip that for now.

Anyway, she seemed to get the idea of what was wrong with the initial version.

“After steadily improving it bit by bit, we finally developed this. It still activates when it hits a monster, but the effect is different. From the moment you enter the dungeon, it absorbs a certain amount of the dungeon’s mana. When activated, that mana reacts with the orb’s contents and detonates. The sound and shockwave stun the monsters. Its power is weaker than the original, but it’s strong enough to take out a goblin in one hit.”

In the end, since it still activates upon contact with a monster, the risk of getting hit in return hasn’t changed. However, unlike the initial version, this one only produces a shockwave, so unless you’re hit in a particularly bad spot, injuries shouldn’t be fatal.

At the very least, it should prevent situations where bodies vanish.

“Oh, I can solve that problem too.”

“Huh?”

Apparently done with her work, Fiora joined the conversation.

“Even if it’s contact-based, as long as the dungeon monster’s mana doesn’t flow into it, it won’t activate. So, we can prepare a mana-blocking pouch. Since this is something that only works in this dungeon anyway, the materials are abundant.”

I’m not sure what materials she’s talking about, but from her tone, it sounds like they’re sourced from dungeon monsters.

“…I see. In that case, we could supply them at reception and collect them when adventurers return from the dungeon.”

“Yes. That way, we can track usage frequency too. That sounds like interesting data to gather. Thanks for your cooperation, Sera. I’ll always have an early version ready for you, so let me know whenever you need one.”

Fiora seemed to be in a great mood, enough to make Monica take a slight step back.

…Maybe this was just the perfect way for her to kill time until Zighart returned?

Well, as long as I’m careful when using the early version of the explosive orb, it shouldn’t be a problem.

Even if it vaporizes the monster’s core, being able to take down something like a Giant Ape in one hit is quite appealing.

Whether I use it or not, having it could expand my exploration range in the dungeon.

Honestly, I’m getting bored of that big hall near the entrance anyway…

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

Sera ・【Hideout】+1 【Prayer】 【Mira’s Blessing】 【Wind’s Garment】 ・【Floating Orb】+1 【Shadow Sword】 【Scarlet Bee Needle】 【Fairy’s Eye】 【Dragon’s Lung】 【Amber Sword】 【Danrem’s Thread】 【Serpent’s Tail】 【Ankle Bracelet】 【Amber Shield】 【Purple Wings】 【Red Sword】 ・29 cards

Seriana ・【Area Identification】 ・【】 ・38 cards

Elena ・【】 ・【Green Fang】 【Amber Sword】 ・4 cards

Alec ・【Strong Strike】 ・【Red Shield】 【Fierce Horned Trumpet】 ・9 cards