Autumn 19 is a do-it-yourself day for Raguna, as his monster allies are recovering from the rains of a few days ago. He decides against visiting Lute this week and snatches up the last of Selphy's regular books (Spear Studio) to complete his collection of weapon-making manuals. The only book Selphy has available now is a book on making Toys, and that won't be available until Tuesday. Just so that he has an excuse to continue visiting Iris, he plants some strawberries in a field near her house.
At the end of the day, he returns home to craft a katana, in order to protect him from the plants in the Lava Ruins that constantly bombard him with paralyzing spores. He also spends the next day doing more cooking, even trying out new dishes such as cheesecake and cheese fondue, foods that will hopefully give him the boost he needs to complete the Lava Ruins and get a much-deserved "big boost of confidence".
Raguna gets a survey from Melody in the mail, asking him what he thinks of the temperature of the bath house: too hot, too cold, or just right. Because Raguna is trying to maintain a decent Heart Level with Melody, he tells her that everything is "just right".
After loading up on potions, Raguna takes another stab at the Lava Ruins, taking his upgraded Katana (a Dancing Dicer) with him to prevent the paralyzing attacks from the plants on the 4th level. He doesn't have the proper equipment to guard against the stunning attacks of the minotaurs and giants/trolls, so he tries his best to fend them off. He successfully finds his way to the bottom of the dungeon with his health and sanity intact.
The familiar feeling of a foreboding foe finds our fighting farmer at a loss for words. What could be behind that gigantic door?
A swarm of...bees, perhaps?
These aren't your run-of-the-mill garden wasps...they're gold-tinted and primed to sting first and not bother asking questions (because bees can't talk, you see). His Luck Blade prevents them from poisoning him, so he is able to grin and bear all of their stingers as he cuts them down. They leave behind a bunch of glowing energy balls, which fuse together and morph into panther-like things that fire energy bolts (and completely fail at accuracy). They go down quickly as well, so the remaining energy balls merge again and transform into two giant trolls. Aside from a belly flop attack, they aren't that much tougher than the ones he's already faced earlier, and is able to hack them to death with little trouble. A third split produces golden golden slimes, and Raguna kills enough of them to receive a timely level-up recovery.
One more transformation later, and the energy balls combine into a slime with a big dopey smiley face. The slime's main method of attack are bursts of fire, and a very damaging belly flop attack, should Raguna stick around too long. He employs the usual dart-and-weave tactics that helped him beat the cockatrice in the Green Ruins, chugging on what's left of his food to keep his energy up, and washing them down with tasty potions to keep his health up. After some time, he defeats the vile beast, which sinks into the lava and gives up some jewels and a relic, which Raguna recalls seeing somewhere in the village. He returns to the surface to take his daily bath, and then examines the stone tablet outside the library. A large chunk of it is missing, and the relic he found from the slime monster looks to be just the same shape as the one of the missing hole. The entrance to the Snow Ruins has been discovered! He goes to the library to read a bit more on how this dungeon works, and then hurries off to bed, content that he's made Trampoli just a bit safer tonight.
