Although a rank 5 monster, the Troll, was practically synonymous with regeneration, it could be killed by destroying its heart or head like any other. However, I spent all the energy of my team to cut off his hand.

"Gaaaa!"

Finally, I grabbed the remaining arm and made it incapacitated. In other words, conditions were created for Misha to be able to inflict damage without risking herself.

*Buck*

Misha, who was afraid of the Troll's long arms and tried to keep her distance, made the first jump. Landing on my shoulder, she plunged her twin swords into the Troll's eyeballs.

*Blow!*

No matter how high the Physical Resistance, there will always be a weak point.

"Gaargh!"

As the blade, soaked in acid blood, pierced the Troll's fragile eyes, his struggle intensified.

Damn it, what a power...

"B-Bjorn?"

"Don't worry about me, just keep stabbing!" I shouted, squeezing his hand with all my strength.

Realizing that this was not a situation in which he could relax, Mike focused on the movement of the blades instead of answering.

Then the first unexpected situation occurred.

*Удар, удар, удар - тук! Тук!*

As Mike plunged the sword into his eye over and over again, there was a sound as if the blade had struck something. This was to be expected. Humans also have bones behind their eyeballs.

"B-Bjorn...?" It's too hard to pierce!

The problem was the strength of the bone. I thought that since it wasn't a thick bone like in a hand or anything like that, it should be enough to pierce a brain, but he didn't want to die so easily.

"Go on."

"Good!"

Soon Mike grabbed the Snake Fang with a reverse grip and continued to strike at the eyelids. Then a second unexpected situation occurred.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

Time passed, the Troll began to rage. After losing his eyesight, he even gave up trying to throw me off and used his only free limbs, his legs, to strike at one point.

"Dvalki!" He aims at Dvalki.

Somehow, the eyeless bastard ran straight to where Dvalki was.

"Gaaaa!"

Rothmiller grabbed Dvalki and continued to try to avoid him, but the Troll pursued them furiously as if he saw the way.

"Mana!" He must feel his mana! Hikurod shouted.

Even I didn't know about this phenomenon. Could it be that he really felt mana and followed it instinctively, as the dwarf had said?

Whore.

Whatever the reason, as soon as I thought everything was going according to plan, the situation instantly turned to shit. In just 10 seconds, Dvalki and Rothmiller were cornered. It was natural. Maybe if he had chased after Misha, it wouldn't have happened, but Rothmiller didn't have enough Constitution to carry another person while fleeing from a rank 5 monster.

"Gaaaa!"

In the end, the Troll rushed to the cornered people. The dwarf tried to stop him, but to no avail.

*Bach!*

The troll kicked Hikuroda like a soccer ball, and he crashed into the wall, just as the [Weight Balance] effect kicked in and his MP ended.

Heck, it was supposed to happen at this time.

"B-Bjorn?"

"Focus only on killing him!"

"Good!"

Taking advantage of the second gap that Hikuroda earned, Rothmiller broke free from the corner. That was enough to buy some time. Maybe 3 seconds?

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

The troll caught up with Rothmiller, who was running in the opposite direction and rolled on the ground to avoid the impact. Now, from my position, I couldn't see the situation below.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

In this state, the Troll kicked down.

"Eek!"

I didn't hear any sounds of people being trampled, but if it went on a little longer, someone would die: Dvalki, Rothmiller, maybe both.

*Boom!*

I was at a crossroads. Misha was completely unaware of what was happening below, as she was diligently stabbing the monster with her sword. All decisions depended on me.

*Boom!*

If I had let go of the grip and gone down, I would have been able to protect Dvalki and Rothmiller. But in the end, this choice would lead to our destruction. If I had removed the grip, the Troll would have attacked Misha with his free hand, and there would have been no other possibility.

Bloody hell.

I closed my eyes, and involuntarily a thought came to me:

Isn't that something I'll have to experience someday anyway?

*Boom!*

Dungeon & Stone was not a game full of adventure, dreams and hopes. As the game progressed, the death of a teammate became inevitable, but as long as the protagonist survived, the adventure continued. That was the game.

This fucking game...

*Crunch!*

At that moment, I heard a sound similar to the one I had heard countless times since I woke up in this world—the sound of flesh and bones being crushed. Sensing that something was wrong, Mike stopped her sword. But it was only for a very short moment.

"Go on!"

At my scream, Misha resumed her blows.

"Kakak, kakak, kakak!"

Gritting my teeth, I directed all my strength to restrain the Troll's remaining hand.

*Smack!*

Dvalki came into view, kicked and thrown back by the Troll. His spine seemed to be broken, and his body bent at a deformed angle.

Then I realized one thing: This was not what I wanted to know.

The first sound had to come from Rothmiller.

Did she see Dvalka's body when it rose to our eye level? Mike shuddered for a moment, then continued to strike with her sword with an expression as if she could burst into tears at any moment.

— Умри! Умри! Умри! Ты, монстр! Просто умри!!!

As we watched our teammates suffer, the situation got worse and worse. With the hit on Dvalka, the cursed state of the Troll was removed. The effect of the [Super Regeneration] was applied as normal, and the arm began to regenerate rapidly.

[Misha Karlstein cast [Ice Shatter]].

[Misha Karlstein cast [Ice Shatter]].

[Misha Karlstein cast [Ice Shatter]].

Perhaps, knowing that there was no time, Misha struck with all her strength with her sword. It was a moment when every minute and second seemed endless.

*In here! Here, here... Crunch!*

With a refreshing sound of cracking, the Troll's body, which I had been holding on to with all my might, disappeared.

[You killed the Troll. Experience +5]

***

That bastard was finally dead.

The body of the dead Troll melted in the light and disappeared, and Misha and I fell to the ground. Normally, we would have balanced in the middle of the fall and landed on both feet, but neither of us had the strength to do so.

*Bach!*

As I lay sprawled on the floor, staring blankly at the ceiling, a fist-sized mana stone fell next to my head.

*Tuk-tuk...*

That was all the loot. No essence.

Suddenly, I realized that the situation was real. Yes, it was not a dream. The choice I had just made, and the sight of Dvalka flying away in such a miserable state because of that choice...

"Rothmiller!" Dvalki!

Giving up the desire to rest, I forced myself to get up.

Mike was already running after his fallen comrade.

"Rothmiller!" Wake up!

"N-no... shake...!

"P-I'm sorry!"

Surprisingly, Rothmiller was alive. One leg was broken and crushed, but it was not a life-threatening injury. It was literally help from heaven. If his head or upper body had been trampled underfoot, that would have been the end.

"Not me... D-Dvalki first...

"S-Good!"

As Misha ran towards Dvalki, I turned to check on the dwarf. He had no serious injuries.

I think he just hit his head against the wall and lost consciousness.

The problem was in Dvalki.

"B-Bjorn!" What should I do? D-Dvalki is not breathing...

"Stand back."

Pushing Mike away, I checked Dvalka's pulse. His breathing stopped, but his heart was still beating weakly. Recovery is still possible.

*Chhhhhhh!*

First, I took out a high-quality potion and poured it into Dvalka's mouth. I knew that this was only a temporary measure. His spine was folded in half, and his legs were broken from the impact of the fall. In addition, blood continued to flow from his nose and mouth, as if the internal organs were also damaged. Dvalki was an ordinary man, one of the mages, whose bodies were famous for being made of papier-mâché.

Deuce.

I pursed my lips. Not only was it unclear whether a high-grade potion would be able to heal such an injury even if he survived, it would surely come with serious consequences.

"Dvalki!" Be patient a little longer! Now that you've drunk the potion, you'll recover soon!"

If I had known that this would happen, I wouldn't have used an advanced potion back then.

"A potion...

I turned my head to Rothmiller's voice, which he uttered with difficulty. At first, I thought he was asking for a potion for himself.

"Use... This is.

Rothmiller, still shuddering with pain, held out a vial of the potion in his hand.

"Advanced... potion.

A what? An advanced potion? Have you had that?

"I bought it... Just in case. Use it... on it.

Before I could answer, Mike quickly ran to snatch the potion from him. I didn't let her pour it into his mouth right away.

"If you give him this while he's in this state, he'll never be able to walk again."

"What?"

Potions were not omnipotent. If you give him a potion without setting the bones, the consequences will be even greater.

"Slowly pour it into his mouth."

While Misha was gradually pouring the potion, I was adjusting his bent legs and spine into place. All I could do was rudely bring it back to normal, but I was sure that the potion would do the rest. An advanced potion can even restore a severed hand, right?

"Phew...

Watching Dvalki amidst the intense tension, I let out a long exhale. His breathing was restored. It would take some more time for him to recover, but his pale complexion had improved significantly.

— ... That's nice.

The rest could be dealt with with a high-quality potion. Of course, there was no time to sit and rest.

"Don't stand still, help.

"S-Okay. What can I do?

"Bring Hikuroda and lay him next to Dvalki." Just in case, give him a bottle of low-quality potion.

While Misha was following my instructions, I examined Rothmiller's leg, which had been injured for some time.

"Dvalki... How is he? Rothmiller asked.

"Don't worry. Thanks to you, he will live. So why don't you worry about yourself first?

"This... faithfully. Hahaha.

"It's going to hurt quite a bit."

"Oh... Wow! Argh!

Soon Rothmiller, having drunk the potion and suffered, lost consciousness. All the measures that could be taken at that moment were taken. It seemed that it was from Misha's side too.

"Bjorn...

Mike looked at me with eyes that seemed to be looking for confirmation.

I smiled and answered:

"Yes, they all survived.

"I'm glad... very, very...

Mike drooped, as if her body had lost its strength. Only when she heard my answer did she understand this, whereas for me it was not yet a reality.

Just think... After all, no one died.

Not that I wanted to. No, I was more than happy that everyone survived. However, there were too many moments that I couldn't be happy about. Because I did a good job and we planned everything in advance, we handled every unexpected situation well, but that wasn't the reason the crisis passed.

We were just lucky...

Having admitted this, I also understood what it means to be an explorer in this cursed world. Today, like in the movies, everyone has survived.

But next time it won't be like that...

I knew this better than anyone else. It couldn't be that a guy like me was as lucky as I was today.

***

Time passed, they came to their senses one by one. Hikurod was the first to wake up.

— ... So, we all survived.

After confirming the news that everyone had survived, the dwarf did not smile heartily as usual. He simply repeated my words.

— Я рад. Да... я очень рад...

If you've been a researcher for a few years, you'd probably experience it a few times. The death of a comrade was practically the lot of researchers.

After him, Rothmiller woke up.

"To think that everyone is safe even after meeting the Troll. I guess I should at least make an offering to the temple when I get back...

I hesitantly approached and poured out apologies mixed with excuses.

"I'm sorry. I didn't expect the Troll to behave like this, being blind.

— ... How could it be your fault? We have to thank you. Without you, none of us would have survived.

"But-...

"Your judgment was correct, so don't beat yourself up.

Rothmiller seemed to already know about my decision to risk his and Dvalka's lives. How could he not know when I kept shouting about it?

"Ugh... phew...

After a while, he groaned and opened Dvalka's eyes.

"Don't move. The wound has not healed yet.

"That's it... in good trim...?

"Yes!" So don't worry!

"Ah... Miss Karlštejn... I'm glad you're okay.

"You're an idiot!" It's not for you to say that!

"This...!" He coughed. "Y-you're right... Hahaha.

When Dvalki, who was in the worst condition, woke up, the atmosphere, which was infinitely heavy, became lighter.

"Haha, the five of us killed the Troll. I can't even boast of it. No one will believe me! Hikurod began to joke as usual with Mike.

"Ugh, at least the essence should have fallen out!" So unfair. After all this, we didn't get anything.

"At least we survived.

"Rothmiller, your problem is that you're not greedy enough.

"Yes, I heard you used an advanced potion this time?" Oh, don't worry. We will collect the money all together and pay.

"It's easier for me," I said.

"Ah, but Bjorn. What are we going to do now? Mike asked. "You're not going to go any further, are you?"

"Wow... Who do you think I am? Obviously, I'm going to sit out here.

"Misha, why are you asking Bjorn about this?" Am I not the leader of the team?

"Oh... faithfully.

Ignoring the dwarf's question, no one objected to my suggestion to stay on this floor until the maze closed. We were not in a position to continue research. At the place where we had a fierce battle with the Troll, we took a break to calm our tired bodies and minds.

***

[The labyrinth is closed].

[You're transported to Rafdonia.]

***

A week passed in this way, and my 6th expedition came to an end.