Prologue 1
There is a small tunnel where only a child could fit through, as the clothes rubbed against the rough surfaces of the wall. Miners called it the “Racoon hole”.
I was sitting down, taking a break and drinking water from my water bottle as my tattered backpack sat by my side when I heard a loud voice from the Racoon hole.
「I found a skill orb!」
「That should do it for today’s quota!」I got up and called back into the depths of the Racoon hole.
The depths of the Raccoon hole is not pitch black as it may sound. The walls emit a pale light due to a mysterious force. This seems to be a similar feature of places called “dungeons”, where monsters appear. But the dungeon where I and Lark were was a little different from the rest. It is one of the only eight places in the world where you can discover skill orbs.
「What’s wrong, Lark?」
I didn’t get any replies, so I stuck my head into the Racoon hole and called out to her. Lark is 3 years older than me, and she was the youngest person in this mine before I was sold here 3 years ago.
So she always acts like my “big sister”.
But… that isn’t too bad. Before I came here, I was miserably poor and weak, and what little food I had was often stolen from me. So I am grateful I have “big sister” Lark to look out for me now. After all, not only was I not given any food but a name either.
Lark usually takes the lead during our work. And being the ”big sister” she is, she also shares a small portion of her own bread with me and tells me I should eat more to grow bigger. Well, it is true that I am quite short due to being undernourished.
Anyway, Lark should have come out of the Raccoon hole as soon as our imposed excavation quota of “10 skill orbs per day” was completed.
However, she hasn’t come out.
「Oh crap, did a monster get her?!」
Chills ran down my spine.
This is a mine where skill orbs are excavated. As such, only a limited number of adventurers and mining slaves are allowed access to enter. But we’re not the only ones down here. There are monsters, too.
Children like us have to take the initiative to excavate skill orbs in Racoon holes. The reason is not only due to physical limitations of an adult, but also because monsters are less likely to appear.
However, “less likely” does not mean never. In the past, there seems to have been a case where a slug monster attacked and melted a child in a Racoon hole with dead ends.
「I-I’m coming for you!」
When I remembered that story, I immediately grabbed the chisel hanging from my waist and slid my upper body into the Raccoon hole. I crammed my body through the tunnel.
We, mining slaves, are allowed to carry weapons. There seems to be no problem with slaves carrying weapons, because it is said that we absolutely cannot rebel due to slave magic. Even so, the weapon given to children like us was a single chipped knife. And “big sister” Lark most definitely wasn’t going to give it to me.
Thus, all I had was a chisel. However, even a chisel can be used as a weapon. It is able to cut rocks, so it should be able to gouge out the eye of a goblin at the very least. Though I have never seen a goblin before.
**Ground Rumbling**
Suddenly, I heard tremors from the ground below. At that moment, my heart was in my throat.
But I can’t leave Lark behind.
「I’m coming to help you– huh?!」
As I crawled through the tunnel on my forearms and knees, a damp, soft, clothed surface met my face.
「Hey! What are you doing in here?!」
「Ahwscmingtsavy…(I was coming to save you)」
My face was buried in Lark’s ass.
「D-Don’t move, you idiot. It tickles… Ya-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!」
Lark started laughing due to the ticklish feeling and threw out her leg wildly. Her leg caught me in the jaw causing my head to bang against the ceiling of the Racoon hole.
