The group talks to Clara about their missing comrades. Clara comments that she hasn’t seen the two. The three begin to talk to the residents for possible hints or clues. They come to find that there have been occurrences of people disappearing, though it only happens rarely. They also mention that most of the people that disappear have supposedly been adventurers, and not once has it happened to the locals.

The locals also report that there have been sightings of mysterious entities roaming in the night, but they are unsure what it exactly is. They also recall hearing the sound of wailing coming from the lodging on some nights.

Hearing this, Sharon fears that she may end up next as a victim. At the same time, the group ponders why Victor and Tatsuo ended up missing instead, if not Sharon. Darren morbidly jests that perhaps that the two of them are goners. Having said that, Darren wonders if it was remotely possible for anything here to kill Tatsuo particularly.

Sharon asks Windie to survey the town whilst the rest of them search the lodging once more.

*Meanwhile, in a dark, musty space…

Victor lays unconscious deep inside a dusky cavern with small trickles of light beaming from above. His body gets shaken awake. Victor’s eyes open. He sits himself up, rubbing his eyes from feeling drowsy. His fatigue instantly disappears as he finds himself in an unfamiliar environment. A dark cave where the walls are made up of roots and entangling vines.

Victor’s body suddenly jolts in pain. He wonders why his body aches.

???: Yo. Finally awake huh.

A sudden voice speaks right next to Victor, startling him. He instantly turns and sees that it’s Tatasuo.

Victor: H-huh…?! Tatsuo…?!

The sudden surprise sends Victor’s body in pain again.

Tatsuo: You okay?

Victor: I don’t know…My body just feels sore for some reason…

Tatsuo: What were you doing here?

Victor: That’s what I want to know! Why the heck are YOU here?!

Tatsuo: I dunno. I was feeling hungry, but you know how Sharon has the marbles with her right? Well, I didn’t want to wake her up. She gets cranky when I do that. So I thought I’d raid the food pantry instead.

Victor: Hmmm…

Victor: Wait! Hold on! The food pantry?! Were you planning on stealing from the lodging??

Tatsuo: So then I was on my way, right? – He says, continuing on with his story.

Victor (thinking): …Did he just ignore me?

Tatsuo: And then I saw a mushroom.

Victor: A mushroom?

Tatsuo: Yeah. I was really hungry, so I just ate it. But suddenly I started getting drowsy. And then I fell asleep.

Tatsuo: Then I woke up here with you.

Victor: Gee, how very informative. – He responds in a sarcastic tone.

Tatsuo: But that’s all that really happened.

Victor: Well, at least you remembered what happened to you. I can’t remember what happened to me.

Victor takes a moment to try and backtrack what happened to him.

Victor: Errm…Hmmm…I think I woke up to use the toilet…But then Darren was using the one in our room, so I tried to look for another one to use…

Victor: Oh! That’s right!

Victor: I saw a slime that looked like the one we tried to catch for that quest! You know, the one we did in Pillberry?

Tatsuo: Yeah, I remember.

Victor: Yeah, a bunch of them suddenly grabbed onto me and dragged me outside the inn. I don’t remember anything after that though.

Victor: Maybe that’s why my body hurts so much. Might’ve been from the fall…

Tatsuo: If you actually tumbled all the way here from where we were, you seem to be doing surprisingly fine. From my experience, you humans aren’t that durable…

Victor: Oh actually…

Victor: Now that I thought about it…I’m not sure if I’m remembering it correctly or not…But I think I was also feeling tired when I was trying to look for the toilet and back to our room. I was having a hard time trying to stay awake.

Victor: Odd how the two of us ended up in this same place. You think it was a kidnapping?

Tatsuo: Possibly. Unless this is another one of your guys well done pranks for me instead…

Victor: No! No! No! This is legit! Also we don’t really prank you anyways. For safety reasons.

Victor: So where do you think we are? It kinda looks like we can be either inside the tree or underneath it.

Tatsuo: I think the same too.

Tatsuo: Anyways, if you’re ready, we can go see what’s waiting for us ahead on the other side of that passageway.

Victor: Huh? What do you mean? I mean, how do you know that?

Tatsuo: Well, I don’t know if it’s a person, but I hear somebody singing coming from over there.

Victor: I can never get enough of how ridiculous your senses are dude…

Victor: But shouldn’t you be able to kinda know what it is? Like, if it’s a person, it should…smell like a person, right?

Tatsuo: That’s the thing. It’s hard for me to make out since there’s a lot of things happening here, even though it looks empty. There seems to be a lot of things crawling around. I think they’re monsters.

Victor: Huh?! So we’re basically in a dungeon then?!

Tatsuo: Dungeon?

Victor: Errm…They’re basically places filled with monsters. We’re like inside their home, as far as I understand. Sharon might probably know more about the topic.

Tatsuo: Hmm, well based on that I guess this is a dungeon then…

It didn’t completely occur to him, but fear trickles into Victor upon slowly realizing the potential severity of their situation. However, he doesn’t feel as scared as he thinks he should be. Unaware of why, he feels a small sense of reassurance.

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Tatsuo: Well, let's get a move along. I’ll let you know if I sense something on our way.

Hearing that from Tatsuo, Victor then realizes where his bolstered confidence in the situation is coming from.

The two of them walk through the path safely, and they enter a bigger, brightly lit room. Compared to the walls of the previous room, this one is completely made up of giant, lushly colored green vines making the area feel more alive. The stark difference surprises the two.

At the center of the room is a large hot water spring, with a small waterfall stream that cascades downs into other pond sections. At the highest elevated pond where the two are located, they spot the source of the singing.

An old middle aged man with a disheveled bald male pattern hairstyle wearing a pale blue colored T-shirt, red shorts, and a towel draped around his neck over the shoulders. One of his eyes slightly bulges out more than the other. His potbelly is slightly exposed, popping out between his shirt and shorts. A flower can be seen popped out of the top of the man’s bald head. The man sings to himself as he scrubs the rim around the pond with a wooden hard-bristled broom.

Victor: Hey…Is that…A person…?

The man notices the two and he turns himself around.

Mysterious man: Oh? The two of you are finally awake?

Victor: Err…Sorry…But uh…Do you…Happen to know why we’re here…Or what you want from us…?

Mysterious man: Hmph! Like I know! I just happened to find the two of you and moved you to the other room. I’ll have you know, that moving you was a complete pain! – The man gestures his head at Tatsuo.

Mysterious man: For a boy of your size, you’re way too goddamn heavy! I had to get the slime boss to help me heave you in over with your friend! Whatever it is that you eat, you should stop! It surely can’t be healthy for you!

Tatsuo: Well…I don’t have a particular preference really. – He says off to the side in response to the mysterious man’s comment.

Victor: So, who are you?

Mysterious man: Me?

Mysterious man: I am Wolhart Springbottom, but you can call me Mr. Springbottom.

Victor pauses for a moment. Surely there was something about the name that disturbed him.

Victor: Hold on…Why does his name sound familiar…?

Tatsuo: He’s the inn owner’s husband.

Victor: AH! That’s right…!

Victor: Wait a minute! So you’re Mr. Springbottom??!! What a coincidence! Your wife has been looking for you ya know!?

Victor’s body sinks a bit in pain. He lets out a painful groan.

Mr. Springbottom: Hm? Are ya hurt boy?

Victor: Yeah…I think it may have been from when I dropped down here.

Mr. Springbottom nudges his head to signal the two to come on over to where he is.

Mr. Springbottom: Come. Have a dip in my hot spring.

The two undress themselves and they get into the hot spring. Immediately, Victor can feel his body rejuvenating.

Victor: Huh…?! That’s strange…! My body suddenly feels a lot better now! I feel light and refreshed!

Tatsuo: Uh-huh. I don’t think I’ll ever get out.

Mr. Springbottom: Don’t. Or else you’ll end up like many of my other visitors who nearly end up drowning or dying from heat stroke.

Mr. Springbottom: This hot spring seems to be special. Not only does it provide a relaxing experience, but it can also relieve pain and heal wounds faster.

Victor: Heh…So it’s basically a potion pond then.

Mr. Springbottom: Pretty much.

Mr. Springbottom: I am aware that my wife Clara has been looking for me. Once in a while, I would find people like the two of you who wind up in this place. Adventurers who tell me the same thing that you said. I take it that you two are also adventurers sent by my wife to search for me as well?

Victor: Actually, no. Me and him are from a guild instead.

Mr. Springbottom: Oh. Close enough I suppose. Anyways, most of the adventurers that arrive here end up being injured much like you. So I have them rest here with my hot spring service and I send them off afterwards. The same thing happened to me when I first discovered this place.

Mr. Springbottom points towards the top above them, showing the two the giant gaping hole where a beam of light shines above them.

Mr. Springbottom: Me and my wife had plans to expand the town to build houses onto the tree itself, much like the inn we built. One day during my inspection, I fell through this gaping hole. For a while, most of my body was paralyzed. But then this underground spring water saved me.

Victor: Wow~ How lucky.

Mr. Springbottom: Yes. In more ways than one.

Victor: But now that you’re totally fine, don’t you want to return to your wife?

Mr. Springbottom: How can I? As far as I know, that hole above us is the only exit out of here, and if you can’t tell, it’s too steep for anyone to realistically scale.

Tatsuo: I could scale it.

Mr. Springbottom: Don’t be foolish. Even some of the adventurers before you struggled to exit through that opening.

Victor (thinking): Well…If Tatsuo says he could, chances are, he can…But I don’t blame him (Mr. Springbottom) for thinking otherwise.

Victor: But wait. Why didn’t you just go with any of the adventurers you saved before. You even just said that some were able to make it out by climbing through the hole.

Mr. Springbottom: Indeed, most of them offered me the chance to escape with them. But I rejected them.

Mr. Springbottom: Before I used to admire adventurers, to the point of dreaming to become one myself. But ever since I encountered this place, I now have a new goal… – He says as he somberly looks up at the brightly lit ceiling.

Mr. Springbottom: And that is…To open up my own successful hot springs business!

Both Victor and Tatsuo look at Mr. Springbottom with a derped face: Huh?

Mr. Springbottom: Yes! A hot spring business where people from all over Irene can travel to calmly relax and enjoy! Don’t you think it’d be pleasant? It could become our number one tourist attraction!

Victor: I…I guess…?

Victor (thinking): Does this guy even want to return at all?

Mr. Springbottom: I even have everything prepared!

Mr. Springbottom swings his arm to present to the two what looks like a wooden lodging that’s identical to the inn.

Victor: Wait a minute, is that what I think it is…!?

Mr. Springbottom: Yes! I’ve already built this place’s very own lodging to collect and provide services for rooms and the hot spring!

Victor: How the hell did you even build that here?!

Mr. Springbottom: Oh, the slimes help collect stuff for me from the surface.

Victor: The slimes…? You mean like the light blue one I saw?

Mr. Springbottom: Yes, they actually helped nurse me back to health and are now my companions. I often tell them stories about myself. Perhaps that's why nearly all the people that wound up here are adventurers since I used to talk about them a lot.

Victor: Err…Yeah, I was dragged down here because of them. You should probably try do something about that…

Moving onto the next topic, Mr. Springbottom presents to them a small hollow tree trunk filled with a thick, chiefly bright blue liquid.

Mr. Springbottom: This right here is tree sap produced from the Ellen! Guests will be able to enjoy refreshments by drinking this!

Mr. Springbottom: The Ellen periodically fills in this tree trunk with its sap. With this, I was able to survive down here for all this time. And the slimes provided me with food they found from the surface.

Victor: Amazing. It all worked out for you in the end. I now understand what you meant earlier when you said you were really lucky.

Mr. Springbottom: Aye. With that said though…That’s as far as my luck reaches. Things are looking grim for me.

Tatsuo: Hm? What do you mean?

Mr. Springbottom: The business is terrible for some reason. I’m not getting any guests.

Victor: Obviously! Nobody even knows where we are! Of course you’re not getting any customers!!! WE don’t even know where we exactly are!!!

Tatsuo: Hmmm…Yeah, you’re right Henteko. It doesn’t really make sense.

Tatsuo quietly talking to himself catches Victor’s attention whilst Mr. Springbottom continues to enthusiastically ramble on about his bathhouse.

Victor: What doesn’t make sense?

Tatsuo: Oh nothing. It was just about the adventurers that supposedly left this place a while ago.

Victor: …The adventurers?

The mentions of the adventurers finally made Victor come to a realization as well.

Victor (thinking): Wait a minute…That’s right…If some adventurers have already left the place…Then…

Victor (thinking): Why is it that the wife still doesn’t know about her husband’s situation…? Or why hasn’t any of the adventurers returned to try to save him…? Sure the husband seems reluctant on going back, but you would think at least one of the adventurers would inform his wife what’s happening. Or send a proper search party to fetch him down here.

The more Victor thinks, the more uneasy he begins to feel. An eerie sensation begins to loom onto their predicament.