Grooooar…

Grooooar…

Is it… sleeping?

It’s sleeping, right?

I found myself frozen in place, unable to move even a step, as I stared at the massive dragon lying before me. Its eyes were closed, its chin resting on the ground, snoring loud enough to reverberate throughout this ridiculously large room.

About five meters away from me, the Velociraptor was equally paralyzed.

This… is a dragon… It looks exactly like the ones in fantasy anime.

Scary… There’s not even a sliver of me that wants to try fighting this thing. With a body this huge… it’s basically an unbeatable creature!

The dragon’s body stretched to at least 40 meters, covered in thick, black, gleaming scales. Massive, sharp claws as big as my body, and from its snoring mouth lined with razor-sharp fangs, flames come out.

Even standing over 100 meters away, I was paralyzed by fear. Why did I end up in a place so close to death?

How did I even get here…?

No, I need to calm down… I learned the importance of staying calm in battle with that goblin. Stay calm. First, assess the situation. Breathe and remember what led me here.

Phew…

If I recall… I was just about to have a deathmatch with the Velociraptor when I felt something beneath my feet. There was a feeling, a sound. Then, the floor glowed…

Was it a teleportation trap? The kind that transports you to another level or a monster den, like in novels or anime?

But on the very first level?

Well, considering this dungeon threw powerful monsters at me right from the first floor, and even ambushed me, it is a pretty nasty place.

So it’s possible here. I remember reading novel that teleport traps could transport randomly in some novel. It might sound silly, but seeing as this dungeon has magic, and a dragon that looks straight out of fiction, maybe someone once got summoned to another world and came back to write a novel about it.

Unbelievable… all this time, I’ve been reading nonfiction.

But of all places, I ended up teleported to the dragon’s lair on the first floor… My luck is terrible. Teleporting to another floor would’ve been better for survival… or maybe not.

Whether on the fifth basement floor or before this dragon, it doesn’t change much for someone as weak as me. At least, since the dragon’s asleep, I might have a few minutes to live…

Huh? The Velociraptor is slowly moving along the wall toward the front of the dragon? What’s it doing…?

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

I couldn’t figure out the Velociraptor’s intentions, so I carefully looked around.

The faintly glowing walls and the flames from the dragon’s mouth made the area surprisingly bright.

The Velociraptor and I were right beside the dragon. The room was so vast that I could barely gauge its dimensions, but I could see a large door about 300 meters behind the dragon with a bit of light leaking from it. Around 500 meters in front of the dragon, there seemed to be an opening in the wall.

The ceiling was too high to discern, but I could tell it was high enough for the dragon to fly.

Is the Velociraptor heading toward that opening?

Oh! That must be the exit!

Of course, it’s right in front of the dragon… so it’s lying in wait to notice any intruders.

But then, why hasn’t it noticed us?

I think they mentioned monster detection abilities in my studies… Wasn’t it something about smell, sound, and…?

Oh, right! Magic. Monsters detect human movements through magic or magical energy flow.

But if that’s the case, it should at least have sensed the C-rank Velociraptor… unless it’s ignoring us because our magic is too weak?

Grooaar…

Gasp…

As I pondered why the dragon hadn’t noticed us, the Velociraptor, now close to the exit, suddenly broke into a sprint. Just then, the dragon shot a massive fireball, large enough to engulf a human, at the Velociraptor, reducing it to ash.

Wait! It was awake!? Or was that an unconscious reflex!?

After incinerating the Velociraptor, the dragon resumed snoring as if nothing had happened.

Think… why didn’t the dragon attack while the Velociraptor was moving slowly?

Could it have sensed the magic, but dismissed it as insignificant until it suddenly moved, then swatted it away like a fly?

If the Velociraptor was a fly, then I’m probably a mosquito.

I’m definitely in swatting range.

What do I do? Try walking slowly toward the exit, passing right in front of the dragon?

…No way. This room is too wide open; it’s terrifying.

Then, what? If the exit is too risky…

Maybe I should head for the door behind it? If there’s a dragon here, it might be the boss. If this isn’t the boss, then I can only imagine a Demon King awaits.

Typically, there’s a teleportation circle to the outside behind the final boss… I hope.

Either way, if the dragon wakes up while I’m here, I’ll be toast.

The sooner I move, the better. I can’t stay here forever, or… I might wet myself.

Well, actually, too late. That already happened the moment I saw the dragon.

With my body trembling, I crouched down and, clutching my injured shoulder, started crawling along the wall toward the door behind the dragon.

It’s fine; I’m not the only one. Everyone would react like this. Wetting myself at 29 is normal. It’s fine; no one’s watching.

Reassuring myself, I crawled forward on all fours, holding my breath.

What… are those? Human bones…

After crawling for a while, I encountered two skeletons leaning against the wall.

Did they challenge this dragon? Or were they adventurers from another world?

Their clothes looked strange… medieval? Could they be from another world?

The broken sword looks high-quality and sturdy.

And is that a woman? Both skeletons had several necklaces, rings, and bracelets. Magic items, maybe?

One skeleton, holding a broken sword, wore ragged clothing resembling that of a medieval knight, likely deteriorated over time.

Beside it was another, seemingly a woman, draped in attire that appeared more preserved, clutching a bag in her lap.

Strangely, her bag and jewelry looked untouched by time, almost new even in the dim light.

They must be magical item. I remember reading about magic bags found in dungeons that held much more than they seemed.

I clasped my hands together in a silent prayer and gingerly took the bag and jewelry from the skeletons.

After ten minutes of gathering the items, I placed four rings, two bracelets, and two necklaces on my fingers and wrists. They adjusted to fit me perfectly, confirming they were magical.

A year ago, I read about self-adjusting accessories found in dungeons.

However, I don’t have the appraisal skill, so I can’t tell what effects they have.

Still, they were owned by someone challenging a dragon, so they must be valuable.

When I searched the bag, the inside was indeed more spacious than it looked. Following online advice, I prayed a potion to appear.

I felt a bottle and pulled out a small vial containing a black liquid.

Oh… of course, it’s spoiled.

Fearing it might be dangerous, I left the potions beside the skeletons and continued on all fours toward the giant door.

Finally, with the massive door in sight, I took a deep breath. The shoulder pain seemed to dull, allowing me to pick up speed.

Huh? The burn on my face, my side, even my leg pain… all seemed to be fading.

I touched my burned cheek, and sure enough, the pain was gone, and my skin felt smooth.

Wait, is this accessory healing or regenerating me?

No time to check; reaching that door is all that matters. I just need a way out. Please let this door lead to safety.

Slowly, to avoid the Velociraptor’s mistake, I approached the partially open door.

Inside, it looked bright. I hope there aren’t any monsters…

I peeked inside the room beyond the gap large enough for three people to enter side by side.