Original subtitles

Dungeons are said to be alternate dimensions cut off from reality.

A place where the laws of nature don't apply.

Which is why a meadow smack dab in the middle of a dungeon isn't weird at-

No, it's definitely weird!

How can there be a meadow inside a cave?!

And like, are you kidding me with that ginormous bull- sorry, wild ox?!

Let us at it! We could go pssh-pssh and scare it away no problem!

Pssh! Pssh-Pssh!

Uh, yeah... I'm sure you could...

Got 'em!

Thank goodness!

I guess anything can happen in a dungeon...

Wild ox rump! T-bone steaks!

The perfect balance of lean meat and marbling!

If I didn't know any better, I'd think it was beef!

Hey! Hey!

Is that meat for us? Is it ours?

It's for everyone to share. I'm prepping it now so it'll taste great later. Be patient, okay?

We're a good kitty! We'll wait!

Man, the fact that it drops meat already aged to perfection? Talk about a lucky break!

If it were still whole, I'd have zero confidence in my ability to butcher it properly.

I could handle the butchering part, if need be.

Just the butchering part, though.

Whoever said you get used to a pretty face in three days was crazy!

Try saying that after you've had a hot elf man wink at you!

Water's ready.

Wait, were you being serious just now?

Where did you learn how to do that?

I'm an elf, otherwise known as a "guardian of the forest."

Hunting is an essential life skill where I come from.

That makes sense.

Hold on a sec...

If you know how to butcher an animal, then by extension, shouldn't you be able to cook it?

Don't go there.

You're speaking to the elf who created a very special "blackened rare steak."

It was burnt and raw...?

That's an oxymoron if I've ever heard one...

Ed, Aria, and Mr. Nonchalant over there have also managed to burn raw meat in the past.

A-Ah...

Raw meat is good, too! We'll eat it no problem!

Of course you can eat it if we scrape off the burnt bits, Gomamiso, but they can't.

What are you talking about, Rin?

We did the same thing. Scraped off the burnt bits and ate it anyway.

You ate... raw meat?

What type of meat?!

It's dangerous to do that with certain types!

G-Got it. We'll be more careful.

Well, no need to worry now that Rin's here!

That's right!

We can rest easy knowing her cooking is safe!

- This party's history with food is even darker than I thought...

- She really is a godsend.

Hey, guys!

Welcome back!

I hope your dungeon crawling went well!

Wow, that's a ton of loot!

Uh-huh!

It's been a while since our last date. We were having a blast and totally lost track of time!

But we brought back souvenirs!

We found lots of tasty treats!

Voila!

No sampling the goods.

You'll get in trouble with Rin.

You two must've fought quite a few monsters.

You aren't injured, are you?

Nah, we're fine.

But I appreciate the concern, Rin-chan.

I'm glad.

That said, Vil...

The monsters on this floor are similar to the firebear, just like we thought.

All bark and no bite, huh.

There's no way Aria and I could've bagged this many otherwise.

Yeah, good point.

It does beg the question as to why these monsters are unnaturally weak.

I only wish we knew what's causing it...

I can't get over how big this place is.

Makes me forget we're inside of a cave...

Actually... I think it's smaller than it looks.

I get the sense that there's illusion and spatial magic at play here.

This is all... an illusion?

But we can touch everything.

It looks pretty real to me...

My guess is... the illusion magic materializes our immediate surroundings

while the spatial magic puts us in an infinite loop... or something like that.

Under ordinary circumstances, this room would be like a sheet of paper,

but by attaching the two ends together, it becomes like a ring or a sphere.

It seems that's what's happening.

Hmm... So, we can walk forever and ever but we'll always end up back where we started?

Luckily we've got Aria to make sure we never get lost,

but a novice adventurer might have a hard time.

Aria, do you sense any magical hotspots?

Hmm...

Yes, there are several... so I think targeting them would be our best bet.

We'll find the stairs to the floor below if we blast it in all the right spots, I'm assuming?

Like in an RPG.

Magical hotspot right over there.

Rin, make sure your skill is ready to go so that you can duck inside if something goes wrong.

Roger that!

Miso!

Whoa-!

Oh crap! Run!

Dammit!

Magic automatons, eh? The dungeon went out of its way to make us feel welcome!

R-Robots?!

Th-Th... that was a close one!

What the hell was that?!

I'd be dead meat if that thing had actually hit me!

You okay, Gomamiso? Are you hurt?

N-N-Nope! They can't get rid of a tough kitty like us that easy!

Yeah, I know.

You're too tough for the likes of them...

Bastard!

How dare you threaten our chef like that?!

I'll make you regret that.

You're gonna pay with your life!

Vil, focus your efforts on the white one.

Its joints are its weak spots.

Ed, Aria. Trap the red one with your webs and zap it with lightning magic.

Those who stand between us and the promise of our dining table get their just deserts!

Yeah!

Vil... He's wielding that thing with one hand, but isn't it a two-handed sword?

Aria's webbing... Well, I'd call it more of a cocoon at this point.

Ed's casting powerful lightning magic, but has he taken the proper high voltage

and extra high voltage electrical safety training course for that?!

Xenon... He's smiling, but am I imagining the bluish-white aura of pure wrath around him?!

In conclusion? Don't mess with a person's food.

Rin! Are you hurt?

No, all good! I ducked inside just in time.

You must've been scared.

Yeah, when those things showed up and started shooting, it totally caught me off guard.

A beautiful man offering me his hand?!

Thank you, world! Thank you, universe!

Rin! Were you safe in there?!

I'm sorry I didn't spot them sooner!

Mmph, mmff mpphh!

Uh... listen, Aria. We don't want to smoosh Rin-chan, so let's give her some room to breathe.

Rin. I should have erred on the side of caution.

I apologize for causing you distress.

Really, it's okay! I made it out alive and unharmed, so all's well that ends well!

If anything,

I'm grateful that you're willing to protect a total amateur while conquering a dungeon!

Hmm, what can I do to lighten the mood...?

Well, um... if you snuffed out the magical hotspot, then that means this area's safe, right?

How 'bout we have a bite to eat?

I'll pour my heart and soul into it, so let's refresh and reset!

Yay, food!

We're in!

Foodies can't resist a delicious treat! One in the win column for the Food Demon!

T-bone steaks and roast beef, courtesy of our friend the wild ox!

Today, we're having a meat fest!

Thank you for blessing me yet another day with my daily bread.

Time to dig in!

So tender!

And it's been cooked to perfection.

The outside is pleasantly crispy, but the inside is soft and moist.

I thought grilling the tenderloin wouldn't do anything except dry it out.

And yet somehow it's still so moist!

It soaks up the richness of the butter!

The sirloin is to die for, too!

That sweet fattiness melts on my tongue!

According to Aria,

she doesn't like to open her mouth when she's eating because "the yummy vibes will escape,"

so that's why she's quiet!

I think she also said that she hates having her food stolen while she's busy talking, right?

Didn't she also say that time wasted chatting would be better spent scarfing down food?

Hey, that's not true!

Rin, I love you and your cooking.

Thanks for coming with us!

Of course! I appreciate all of you for welcoming me into your party!

Oh, the roast beef is tasty, too!

So moist 'n' juicy!

Nothing beats the sensation of chewing through several thin slices at once!

My preferred method is taking a kinda thick slice, rolling it up so it's even thicker,

and then chowin' down on it!

Good choice!

There! Just one left.

Everything around us looks way different than it did before.

It's all jumbly!

The illusion probably can't maintain itself since we're destroying all its magical hotspots.

That way.

Wow, we're already on the last one...

Our party really is a powerhouse!

We're gettin' sleepy...

Someone's enjoying her little spa retreat.

Aria, how far is it from here to the last hotspot?

About an hour's walk.

Assuming we don't take a wrong turn, yes?

Teleporters can be a nuisance, even if I do understand how they work to some extent.

It doesn't feel like we're being moved...

They warp you to another location in the blink of an eye, right?

Yeah. Real annoying traps.

When stuff like that happens in video games, it's usually followed by some sort of ambush...

Eugh, gaming trauma...

Are you alright, Rin?

You're looking pale all of a sudden.

Huh? Oh, I-I'm fine!

I just, uh, imagined something a little scary...

I already picked up the trail, so relax, okay?

She's right!

Doesn't seem like we're gonna run into any mega strong monsters, either.

You say that, but pride goes before a fall.

Keep your eyes peeled for enemies and traps as we push forward.

Sounds like a plan.

It almost hurts how considerate they are!

I'm sorry my brain always cooks up the weirdest things!

I can't fight, but what I can do is...

turn every monster that crosses our path into the best damn meal they've ever had!

Goblin soldiers and a goblin mage?!

Another race straight out of a fantasty world!

So about the whole "turning them into the best damn meal they've ever had" thing...

Well, I guess they aren't edible anyway.

Take 'em down!

Get away from there!

Let us do what we came here to do!

This should be the last magical hotspot.

Whoa, it's huge!

Wait, it was this empty the entire time?!

Now that the illusion's broken, this is it.

In a space this large, even a single lap around the perimeter would cover a good distance.

We sure did a lot of walking... Not enough to stop and rest, though.

If the first floor was a cave and the second floor was a fake, indoor meadow...

I wonder what the next floor's going to be?

We'll see.

To tell you the truth, dungeons with rooms that change at random are uncommon.

They're difficult to predict.

This place is throwin' me for a loop.

It's like one annoying gimmick after the next, and yet the enemies aren't all that strong.

Is it safe to assume... that killing us isn't the priority here?

What's wrong, Miso?

It's kinda cold!

Cold...?

Be careful on the way down.

Whoa, so much snow!

Look, a building.

She's right.

Should we head that direction?

Cold...

Really? But you feel all warm and toasty to me.

The wind probably feels colder to her because she's warm.

That makes sense.

Cats do love curling up under kotatsu heaters.

Aria?!

Aria! Are you okay, Aria?!

F-Freezing...

Let's take a quick break inside Campy!

Aria. I'm going to touch your hands, okay?

Oh my gosh, her skin's like ice!

Your hands are warm...

Well, in my case, I happen to be built like a furnace.

But that also means my hands aren't the right temperature for making scones or pie crusts.

Still, when you massage my skin like that...

It's relaxing.

Thanks a bunch, Rin-chan.

Aria's always been sensitive to the cold, but I never thought this would happen...

No worries!

I'm glad I get to put my skills as a former acupuncturist to good use!

That said, something about this just doesn't seem normal.

I hope I'm not being horribly biased, but they say insects are vulnerable to cold temperatures,

so does that mean arachnae are too?

There's no sign of the snow letting up.

For now, we wait and see.

In that case, I have an idea! Can I borrow a few minutes of your time?

Let's make a hot compress!

What is that?

Black mugwort!

I picked it back when we were in the forest.

Figured I could use it to make some moxa!

And what exactly is this "moxa"?

You might say it's a medicinal herb for warming the body.

It's a material used in moxibustion.

Interesting...

That's a term I've never heard before, neither in the elven villages nor in the city.

Elves live a long time, but even Xenon doesn't know about it...

Huh. Maybe moxa doesn't exist in this world.

Y'see these fluffy hairs? You make it by collecting just the soft, downy parts.

Just the hairs...?

Yup. It takes a lot of practice to completely filter out all the extra stuff, though.

Wow, a brand new medicinal herb! Color me very intrigued!

If you don't mind, why not lend me a hand?

I think we can at least manage a hot compress!

First, we grind up the leaves.

Then, we toss it in a strainer... and sort out the unusable bits.

Gather it all in a cloth...

...and it's done!

Hm, so this is moxa...

I'm surprised that's all we get out of that giant heap of black mugwort.

Yeah, not much bang for our buck.

We'll add rock salt and orange peels... and mix in some other wild herbs.

Then we heat it in the microwave!

Hot-Hot-Hot!

And once we wrap it in a thick cloth...

That oughtta do it!

It's best to warm the areas near your pressure points.

Oh, it's warm! And it smells nice!

So cozy...

I feel like new!

Thank goodness!

Aria!

Eddy... You're overreacting.

Can you blame me?!

Oh, I was worried sick!

Okay, one more thing before we head out!

Hot caramel milk!

Smells tasty!

We'll warm up from the inside out and chase the cold away!

I can barely see!

Try not to get separated.

Roger!

What is this building supposed to be...?

A temple, perhaps?

It's impressive for sure, but on the other hand... it's kinda eerie seeing it in the snow.

This place has some majorly sketchy vibes.

Watch your step on the way in.