Chapter 72
I made a giant pot.
I wanted some stew, and while I was at it, I made frying pans in various sizes.
I tried making small pots too, then felt satisfied after putting together all the cooking utensils I'd seen at home.
Spoons and forks, as well as a large ladle.
I wrapped silver ore around the handles to prevent burns.
I also made a giant grill and griddle for barbecues.
I finally collected the red- and blue-glowing ores that had made Fluffy so happy—the ones I'd put off until later.
In the processing room, I tried infusing them with magic and storing it in them... The results were unknown.
They were just pretty-colored ores.
Once processed, they stopped glowing, but I supposed it wasn't anything to worry about.
They were translucent too, so I made them into bottles.
I made the lids from silver ore.
These came in various sizes too, and I'm currently looking for transparent ore.
Did everyone around me recoil when I showed them the bottles?
Fluffy had frozen for some reason.
I also collected interesting rocks and ores from the other caves and holes.
I laid out the rocks and ores side by side.
...To me, grayish things were rocks, while things that looked beautiful were ores.
Since I couldn't tell the difference between rocks and ores, I used my own system.
I had never come into contact with rocks or ores in Japan to begin with, so they were incomprehensible things to me.
I only gave names to the rocks that were useful.
I called the iron-like rock "iron."
I called the rock used to make the house and as a substitute for charcoal "all-purpose rock."
I wanted names that were easy to understand when I heard them.
For now, I was using these two rocks.
There were four kinds of ore for now, and I distinguished them by color.
The easier to understand, the better!
Among the rocks I'd collected were some with something blue mixed in, along with some indescribable rocks streaked with reddish black.
I didn't need them for now, so I left them alone.
I'd investigate them when I had time.
...
Adventure!
The word alone made me feel excited.
I decided to give the maze-like cave I'd found another try.
Core and Chai walked ahead of me into the cave.
Above us were two baby spiders... Had they changed?
They were hanging from the ceiling on strands of silk.
I was surprised.
Big Boss-san and the baby spiders weren't the sort to spin silk.
Big Boss-san's running speed was incredible—fast enough to rival Core running at full speed.
It leaped from tree to tree at that speed... It was a little frightening.
The prey being chased wore an absolutely terrified expression.
That really was scary.
I was surprised because I'd always assumed spiders all spun silk.
This time, I was surprised to see them using it.
I had no idea whether this was evolution or just a change.
But the baby spiders were growing too.
Their bodies, larger than the span of my outstretched arms, dangled from the ceiling.
I worried that the threads might snap.
It seemed to be fine, so we proceeded deeper into the cave.
This cave had a slightly different atmosphere from the others. It felt stagnant.
From the cave entrance, the path descended slightly before continuing into a maze-like passage.
...Since there were baby spiders on the ceiling, I asked them to lead the way.
Having them guide us deeper without any trouble was convenient.
There were traps along the way: flying spears, a wall that closed in, and a pitfall.
The baby spiders caught the spears in midair, Core pulverized the wall, and we walked through the air over the pit using wind magic.
I learned for the first time that Chai could use wind magic.
My first aerial walk scared me.
I was cowering, but there was no problem. Absolutely.
The group pressed deeper without wasting any time.
...I just walked behind everyone.
Incidentally, Shion and Sami were behind me, and a squirrel was perched on my shoulder.
I did nothing but walk.
This was a little different from the adventure I'd imagined.