I, Yuhaka, am hungry!

For Yohaka, the idea of ​​a creature without internal organs and a brain running around like this was beyond his imagination. But just then, Yohaka's stomach suddenly started growling.

Yuhaka looked at his little belly and then at the strange creature running around, and said:

"Youyou, I'm hungry."

Then, to Riko's horrified gaze, the strange creature was turned into skewers by Yuhaka, and by the way, Riko thought it tasted pretty good.

…After daybreak…

"Strange creature?"

Maruluku, who was hanging clothes to dry, looked at Riko with a puzzled expression and said this. Riko nodded and said:

"Yes, that creature was able to run around even after its internal organs, lower body, and even head were removed. It was as if it didn't belong in this world."

Ma Lulu, standing to the side, waved her hand and said with a smile:

"Haha, come on, Miss Riko, there are no ghost rumors at the surveillance base!"

Regu, trembling and sweating profusely, looked at Riko and said:

"Yeah, Riko, such an unscientific... creature, no, it can't possibly exist, right? Is it something like a corpse or something..."

Rico said somewhat disappointedly:

"That kind of thing wasn't mentioned in Mom's letter...but..."

Riko hugged Yuhaka tightly, her eyes sparkling and drooling, and said:

"That stuff tastes really good when grilled!"

BBQ?

A large question mark could be seen appearing above the heads of Maruluk and Regu.

"You guys seem to be talking about something interesting."

Olsen walked over and said this to Riko and the others. Maruluk, who was standing to the side, greeted her master when she saw her arrive.

Good morning, Master.

Seeing Olsen arrive, Rico suddenly felt nervous and quickly greeted him, saying:

Good morning!

After looking at Riko in silence for a while, Olsen spoke:

"Oh, is that so? You didn't notice that neither the child nor Habkul let them know anything."

Hearing Olsen's words, Rico felt very confused and also sensed that there was something else behind his words.

"What are you referring to...?"

Instead of answering Rico's question directly, Olsen addressed Rico and the others, saying:

"If you want to know, come with me. If you don't come, you'll forget what you've seen."

With that, Olsen walked away on his own, leaving Yuhaka and the others standing there, completely bewildered.

Chapter 52 [The Test Begins]

At the staircase leading to the upper level of the surveillance base, Olsen, who was walking ahead of Yuhaka and the others, suddenly spoke up:

"Malulu told me most of your story this morning."

Orson turned to look at Rico and said to her:

"I want to confirm, you're trying to track down Lysa, right..."

Upon hearing Olsen's words, Rico immediately replied:

"Yes! My mom called me here!!"

What Olsen said next made Rico pause for a moment.

"Ryza is dead. Your journey to find your mother has come to an end."

Hearing Olsen's words, Riko was speechless for a moment, but after recovering, she looked at Olsen with a bit of anger and said:

"...Where did Miss Olsen find those flutes, envelopes, and stuff...?"

"In the cemetery."

Upon hearing Olsen's words, Riko gave an "Eh" look, and then Olsen continued speaking to himself:

"That was many days ago... Deep within the fourth layer, the [Giants' Cup], there was a place where the fragrance of a hundred-year-old plant grew. There was a tomb there, and those things were placed there. That place was one of Lysa's favorites."

"how come……"

Holding the note, Lico said, somewhat unable to accept it:

"But Mom is calling me..."

What Olsen said next shocked Rico.

"That's not Lysa's handwriting."

"Although I don't know why that kind of thing was mixed in there, even if Ryza were playing a prank, she wouldn't use words like that."

Then Olsen turned around, bent down, and looked at Rico, saying:

"Oh? What was your reason for going to the bottom of the abyss again?"

Despite feeling very unsettled by Olsen's words, Rico still spoke her mind.

"I...I want to...find out for myself..."

"That's a great idea. Even if it's a grave, we should dig it up, right?"

Rico, fighting back tears, lowered her head and said:

"And, the letter also mentioned that the [mysterious figure] and the [strange corpse] are also related to Regu and Yuu..."

"Hmph~ I see~"

Upon hearing Riko's reply, Olsen turned around and started walking upwards.

Soon, Olsen led Yuhaka and the others to a large gate located at the top level of the surveillance base. Regu, standing to the side, looked at the gate and said:

"Where is this place?"

Orson turned to look at Regu and the others and said:

"This is a private room. You came here because you wanted to know, right? Come in."

As he spoke, Olsen easily pushed open the heavy door and led Riko and the others into the room. Riko and the others looked around at the large number of books and tools used by cave explorers. The most eye-catching thing was the huge white cube placed in the center of the room.

Regu looked at the huge white cube with a strange expression and said:

"What is this thing? It's square..."

Yuhaka, standing to the side, tilted his little head and said, looking at the big cube:

"Tofu?"

Rico looked very seriously at the large white cube and said:

"Hmm... such intricate patterns... a relic of level two or higher? But it's not listed in the relic encyclopedia."

“That’s right, there’s no record of it. Lysa bought it before the auction, and I’m the one who moved it here.”

Olsen, who was behind Rico, said this. Rico, realizing what was happening, turned around and looked at Olsen, saying:

"Could it be the [Cage of Curse Removal]!?"

Olsen slightly curled the corners of his mouth and said:

"You guessed half right..."

As he spoke, Olsen picked up his flute and blew on it. Soon, the large white cube placed to the side bloomed like a rose.

"If you put creatures that can't cross layers inside and transport them from the deep layers to the top, they won't have to bear the upward load and won't die, so this thing has this name, but actually that's all wrong."

[They not only suffer from the curse but also die, yet "they are still able to move."]

Olsen stroked the [Cage of Curse Removal (Fake)] with his back to Riko and continued:

"I'm only able to understand how this thing works because of you, since you were stillborn..."

Amidst the incredulous expressions of Riko and the others, Olsen whispered in their ears like a demon from hell:

"I put you in there because you were in the way, but what I didn't expect was that you actually started moving."

"Yesterday, I suddenly felt nostalgic, so I put the meat I had reserved for dinner in it to try. Then that thing started darting around and ran away. Not long after, when it stopped moving, I cut it open. I didn't expect that the remaining half of its body could still move..."

Rico felt a chill run down her spine when she recalled the creature from the previous night, which was only half a body and had no head. However, the moment she remembered how Yuhaka had turned that creature into kebabs, Rico's fear vanished instantly.

Seeing Riko's pale face suddenly turn into a suppressed laugh, Olsen was filled with all sorts of questions. Originally, Olsen wanted to scare Riko and see her expression after learning that he was not much different from that piece of meat, to satisfy his own perverse sense of humor.

But how is she supposed to play in this situation?!

Olsen covered his face and said:

"As expected... I still really dislike you..."

After saying that, Olsen walked to the side, picked up his cave explorer's clothes and armor, and put them on. Then Olsen turned around and looked at Riko and Regu. Riko and Regu were so frightened by Olsen's overwhelming figure that they subconsciously took a step back.

"Alright, the exam is about to begin. Follow me..."

After saying that, Olsen left on his own. Riko and the others exchanged glances after hearing Olsen's words, then nodded and followed. Originally, Maruluk wanted to follow, but after Olsen turned back and told him to stay at the monitoring base, she was a little unwilling to stay.

Soon, Riko and the others followed Olsen to a rare open space. Olsen turned around and looked at Riko and the others, saying:

"The next test is simple. If you can survive as my subordinates for 15 minutes, you will pass. However, if all three of you fall, your journey will end here."

Hearing Olsen's words, Riko looked at him with a surprised expression and said:

"Huh?! Are we going to fight?"

Riko initially thought Olsen wanted to test their survival skills in the second level of the Abyss, but Olsen directly wanted to fight them...

Beneath his oversized hat, Olsen gave a strange smile and said to Riko and the others:

"That's right, I hate tricks to fool children. I'll be more serious in the upcoming battle..."

"Well... if you don't take this seriously, you'll die here anyway. You'll die in the Abyss if you're not qualified, right? Hehehehe..."

Chapter 53 [Osson: Do you think this is a puppy marking its territory?]