“Why… why do you have such a high-quality magic crystal?”

“You think I’ve only been here a short while?”

Lin Jun didn’t know exactly how long he had been in this world. In the depths of the dungeon there was no day or night, no seasons, but he felt it had been at least two or three years.

Even just counting from when he established the Mushroom Garden, it hadn’t been a short time. With the whole wall as his personal mine, years of harvesting naturally yielded some high-grade crystals.

Not that he knew their true value—he collected the clearer ones simply because they looked nicer. Arranging them around his body made for good decoration while also drawing in more mana.

“With this, can you cast other spells faster?”

“You’re really letting me use it? Truly?”

Even without knowing her well, Lin Jun could tell: this girl had an undeniable love for crystals—or rather, for magic itself.

“Of course. I’d like to see more spells. Speaking of which, Inanna, I haven’t asked—what spells can you use?”

Lin Jun could see 【Light Magic LV4】 on her panel, but that only meant her strongest Light spell was Tier 4. It didn’t tell him which spells specifically she knew.

Each element had countless spells across multiple tiers, with plenty of variations. For example, Transformation Magic could branch into Transform Eagle, Transform Dog, Transform Pujis…

Inanna stood still for a moment, recalling them.

If she still had fingers, she would surely be counting them one by one.

“Let’s see… Water Serpent, Water Mirror Refraction, Ice Blade, Purification, Healing Light, Concealment, Illumination, Create Water, Energy Protection, Quagmire… um… that’s all.”

Quite a lot, actually.

“Then try casting Quagmire on that Pujis.”

One of the mining Pujis, busy bashing stone with its armored cap, was ordered into the cleared field where the last explosion had gone off. Another tendril emerged, binding the A-grade crystal to Inanna’s cap.

“Careful. This is the last tendril I have.”

“I’ll be careful.”

Mana surged from Inanna into the crystal. This time, unlike before, ambient mana flocked in instantly—the A-grade crystal like a whirlpool, devouring energy.

No wonder staffs embedded with these crystals were so powerful. With such a flood of amplification, any spell’s power would skyrocket.

“It worked!”

The mining Pujis sank slightly. The solid ground beneath it turned into sludge, trapping its stubby legs.

Normally, Quagmire only slowed movement. With the crystal’s boost, the effect should’ve expanded in range—but here, the Pujis was immobilized simply because its carapace was too heavy, and its strength too weak.

“Now try Ice Blade.”

“Huh? Won’t that—”

“Go ahead.”

After all, a Pujis dying in the Mushroom Garden was no real loss. It just returned as fertilizer.

“Then… here I go.”

In moments, an ice blade formed before her, and this time Inanna startled herself.

Unlike Quagmire, the change was direct: the Ice Blade, normally less than a meter long, now stretched over two meters.

It radiated chilling frost—the power clearly enhanced.

“Go!”

The blade struck the Pujis’ carapace. With a sharp crack, it cut through, biting three-quarters deep before stopping.

Even Lin Jun was impressed. That was a Level 4 Chitin Shell. His own Mushroom Artillery LV6 needed two shots

to pierce it—yet one boosted Ice Blade nearly did the job.

Was it the spell’s strength, or the A-grade crystal? Likely both.

Magic really is incredible. If only I could use it, those early days wouldn’t have been so miserable.

But better late than never. Even if he couldn’t, having someone who could cast spells meant he could finally consider plans for reaching higher levels of the dungeon.

Of course, not to fight the Flame Demon guarding the passage. He’d seen it once, through the sacrifice of scout Pujis. Its level, LV64, was so high the panel showed no details. Clearly, it was far beyond his reach.

But who said the only way up was through the Flame Demon’s lair?

“Inanna, want this crystal?”

“You’d give it to me?”

Wait… could this be a trap?

Still scarred by betrayal, Inanna couldn’t easily trust—even less so when the one offering was a monster with no clear body.

“Not for free. Help me hunt some monsters, and it’s yours.”

“Deal!”

Hearing there were conditions, Inanna felt more at ease. She really wanted the crystal, but if he just gifted it, she wouldn’t dare accept.

But monsters?

She’d nearly forgotten—this was the dungeon’s deep layers. The Mushroom Garden had so many oddities, it was easy to lose sight of that fact.

Yet mushrooms… hunting monsters?

“How? Using Pujis?”

“So… which monster are we hunting?”

“Earth Worms. You know them?”

Earth Worms? That name rang a bell…

“Yes—those massive creatures with stone-like hides, tunneling through the depths, feeding on ore?”

Lin Jun nodded. “That’s the one.”

“…The larva, right?”

“The adults.”

“Adults are at least LV45! Only a full gold-ranked adventurer party could safely handle them. Lin Jun, I’m only LV28!”

Her mind reeled. Me, hunt Earth Worms?

Even if she hadn’t been transformed, an Earth Worm would swallow her whole in one bite.

This mushroom had to be insane. Mushrooms hunting Earth Worms?

“You seem to be underestimating me…”

Seeing her disbelief, Lin Jun realized he had never shown her the Mushroom Garden’s borders. No wonder she doubted his strength.

He had long wanted to hunt Earth Worms. They possessed the skill High-Heat Burrow.

With it, they could heat rock until brittle, then grind it with their rotating mouthparts, swallowing the fragments and expelling the useless matter to reinforce tunnel walls.

If he could steal that skill, he could carve his own passage upward—without risking the Flame Demon’s lair.

The problem was, Earth Worms were expert burrowers. If they were losing, they just dug away. Combined with their bulk and endurance, finishing one off was a nightmare.

He had tried once before. The result: heavy losses, no reward.

But after seeing Inanna’s Quagmire… hope returned. Earth Worms wouldn’t burrow well if mired in sludge.

Still, before that, it was best to test coordination with his new partner.

“I don’t mean we’re going now. You still need practice using that crystal. So, let’s start with a little expedition team.”

“Expedition team?”