Only the dwarves are capable enough to repair the gun. Given that they are categorized as monsters, they do not have the ability to tame other beasts or monsters. If they do, then they would have long since wiped out the demons underground and mined all the resources available.
Since they are telling me to fetch the metal to be used for the repair myself, it’s the same as saying that the dwarves, whose bodies could withstand the impact of the gun’s recoil, couldn’t ensure their personal safety in the said underground area.
“So this is the place?”
We descended a shaft through a more primitive version of an elevator, with fences covering the lift all over. After reaching the bottom, only a wide and dark cave welcomed us.
“Yes. The ores should look like this. We only need about 20 kilograms of raw ore, so it shouldn’t take that long.”
The accompanying dwarf, the one who was being held down by the others before, said this with a frown. It seems that he still feels wronged by how I replied to his insult from before.
In his hands was a black clump of shiny metal. It was covered with pieces of gray stone here and there. It looks pretty unique, so it’s not that hard to identify one when I see one.
“Got it. Thanks.”
I said my thanks before the three of us disembarked. The dwarf closed the gates of the lift and quickly returned to the higher floors. It seems that they would only return to fetch us after 3 hours. There’s an emergency button to summon the lift, though, so we’re not afraid of getting stuck in this dark place.
“Fang, keep watch of the surroundings. Immediately notify us if any demons approach.”
“Got it, Leader!”
Fang replied before she dipped into the shadows that covered the whole place. It was the best place to monitor the presence of other beings. ｂｎ𝚘ｖ𝚕．𝚘𝚛𝚐
“Ember, as we discussed earlier, make a clone and morph it into the one I told you before.”
Mining isn’t easy. When I saw the pickaxe that the dwarves were about to lend me, I quickly decided not to mine it in the normal way.
“Okay, Master. Here.”
Ember passed one of the clones to me. It quickly morphed into a conical shape with thread-like trenches around it. At the tip, like a crown, spikes were formed. It was the most effective shape for digging through rocks. It was nothing other than a drill.
“Great. This should do. Now keep watch for the ore in case I miss it.”
With Fang keeping an eye out for the alleged demon’s presence and Ember watching out for the pieces of ore, we quickly started working.
The slime drill was working great. Although it can’t be used continuously, it’s still faster than using a pickaxe to mine. An hour quickly passed, but we only found about half of what was requested of us.
“Leader, I detect presences approaching!”
Fang quickly notified us through the special link. I quickly stopped digging and returned to a wider space, preparing for the incoming fight.
“Ember, watch my back. Fang, where is it coming from?”
“Wait, I can’t pinpoint its location… Oh no! It’s right under your feet!”
Fang’s warning came too late. The ground right underneath my feet swelled as I was sent flying. A large worm with four claw-like beaks appeared. Even though it was still halfway buried in the ground, it was already as tall as a house. Its girth was enough to fit three adults side-by-side.
“… This is bad…”
I quickly tried to back away. However, another one appeared right behind us, blocking the path toward the elevator.
“These are demon rock worms, equivalent to a 5th-level beast! They have skins as tough as bedrock!”
I shouted as Ember quickly approached and placed me behind her. All her clones were already out and prepared to attack at any moment. However, despair was quickly approaching.
“It’s not just those two, Leader! More are coming!”
With Fang’s prompt, she jumped out of the shadow dimension and covered my other side. The two girls were having cold sweats as they kept their vigilance.
Soon after, more and more worms popped up from the ground. In just a few moments, we were completely surrounded by hundreds of those rock worms.
“Wait, look at that!”
I quickly pointed to one of the rock worms. Along its hard skin, pieces of shiny black ore could be seen.
“They were eating the ores we needed!”
Fang shouted in surprise. It was no wonder that it was hard to find some even after an hour of digging. It was these guys’ fault.
“Wait, maybe I could collect the remaining half we need from them?”
If we leave now without the right amount of ores, we would just end up wasting a trip and would need to return here once more. Luckily, the rock worms had stiff bodies. If we could just swipe some from their skins, then we could easily reach the required 20 kilograms of ore.
“Ember, try to pick up some of the ores on their skin! Fang, keep the others away as long as possible.”
Right now, I am powerless. The gun, which was about to be repaired, was left with Biran the dwarf chief’s care. I could only hide behind the two girls.
“Ready? On the count of three, we’ll start. One, two…”
“””THREE!”””
The three of us shouted at the same time as we moved simultaneously.
Fang used her dark energy to create a blinding field, making the worms lose their sense of distance and direction. Rather than a skill, it was more of a direct application of her energy.
Ember and her seven clones busily darted around, picking up random pieces of the ore from the rock worms’ skin. It didn’t take long before we reached the needed amount.
“Okay! Retreat!”
After I received the ores and placed them in the storage ring, the worms finally managed to snap out of the blinding field. Seemingly angered by our actions, they rampaged around, causing the whole cave system to rumble and shake.
“M-Master!”
Ember approached and protected me from the falling stalactites. Fang was busy using her claws to tear the thick skin of a nearby worm, only to leave thin scratch marks on it.
“Urgh!”
Fang, unable to dodge an attack from behind, got blown away in our direction. The attack was extremely heavy, as seen by how it almost broke her arms.
“This is hopeless!”
I cursed as I tried to think of a way for us to survive.
*crack* *crack*
Suddenly, my ears picked up mysterious cracking sounds. I quickly tried to find where it came from, only to realize that it was right below us.
“Shi-!”
The ground beneath our feet caved in from all the vibrations, sending us a level deeper. We fell quite far, but luckily, we didn’t have any broken bones yet. I quickly wiped the blood flowing down my forehead as I looked around.
“Ha ha…”
I laughed as I stared at the thousands of demon worms surrounding us from all sides.
“We’re dead.”