Chapter 118
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While Ash goes to inform the hero party about resuming the exploration, I efficiently pack up the tent.
Ash seems to have been in deep conversation with the girls, but she returns after a while.
「They asked if we could let them go ahead. They said it wasn’t because they wanted to complete the dungeon conquest before us, but they pleaded with me, bowing their heads and saying it was a request…」
「That’s fine.」
「I went ahead and told them without consulting you guys first—wait, what?!」
「I don’t mind. They must have their own reasons. I don’t know what those reasons are, but I’m sure they have something in mind.」
I can’t blindly trust them—that’s something I’m incapable of. But there are things I can believe in.
Their abilities.
Although they struggled during the boss fight, it’s obvious to anyone that the skills of those three girls are exceptional.
However, that’s not the only reason I agreed to let them go first.
Above all, it was Ash who nodded to the proposal to let them take the lead. She must have seen something in them that warranted trust. Even if that turns out to be a mistake and the three of them turn their blades against us, I won’t regret it.
After this exchange, the three members of the hero party descend to the fourth floor ahead of us.
A while later, we follow them down to the fourth floor, and we find ourselves walking endlessly through the unchanging scenery of the dungeon. Of course, we don’t neglect our Search and Destroy routine.
We continue walking mindlessly, but I’m getting sick of this dungeon where we keep defeating small fry monsters without end.
At that moment, a thought crosses my mind—I wonder if those three girls who went ahead are okay.
But if I, who’s disliked to the point where they probably want to ask, 「Did I kill your family or something?」, were to call out, 「Hey, you guys alright? How are you holding up? Are you hungry? Here, have some candy,」 I’d surely be met with insults harsh enough to shatter my heart.
As I’m brooding over this, Sensei lets out a sigh beside me, like the air being let out of a deflating pool float, looking thoroughly fed up.
「Omi, you can’t let your guard down in a place like this. Even a moment of carelessness can be fatal.」
「Wha-?! Sorry!!」
Ash’s words are absolutely right, but I also understand Sensei’s feelings completely. How many hours have passed since we started walking? My sense of time has long since disappeared, and without a clock-type magical tool, I wouldn’t even know what time it is. In this situation, I’m about to yawn carelessly.
Oh no! Ash will get angry at me!
As I’m desperately trying to stifle my yawn and feeling on edge for a long time, I have an idea.
That’s right!! At times like this, the best thing to do is to talk!!
「Sensei.」
「Hyaaaa—」
Sensei’s eyes were sharp, but it seems she was also trying to hold back a yawn, just like me.
「Sensei… well, that’s fine, but have you ever met any other transferred individuals besides me?」
Since Ash already understands that I’m the fourth Holy Knight, a transferred individual, I’ve stopped being vague about it.
「Oh, I don’t know any transferred individuals from this era besides you, but I’ve met a few in the past.」
「Oh really! So there are others! What were they like?」
「Every single one of them had exceptional combat abilities. Especially the transferred heroes, they had an incredible number of skills. If it weren’t for them, this world would have perished many times over.」
Sensei’s eyes take on a distant look.
Her expression seems to be reminiscing about something.
「There were all sorts of people. The one who named the Guardian Sword Refaia was also a transferred individual. Among those I met, there was one who had a rare skill called ‘Stage’, which was particularly unusual.」
A skill called ‘Stage’? It seems like something many people might have… If it’s the people who were doing stage performances in the hero party, it wouldn’t be strange for them to have it.
「What’s with that puzzled look, son-in-law? Listen to the whole story. The important part is yet to come. You see, when that person was transferred to this world, there was no such thing as a stage here.」
「You mean… he had a skill related to a concept that didn’t exist in this world?」
「That’s right. Exactly. So, you see, that person said that being summoned to this world with the ‘Stage’ skill in a world without stages must be a mission given to him to establish the culture of stage performances in this world. Of course, his fighting prowess was incredible, but he put more effort into recreating the stage performances from his world and spreading that concept than defeating monsters.」
I’ve seen it too.
Although it’s an unpleasant memory because I was extremely bored, purely as a stage performance, it was very good.
「I’ve seen it too. The staging using magic was well thought out and impressive.」
It was a good staging that directly appealed to the visual and auditory senses, using various magic, especially light magic.
「Most of the stage staging that exist now were created by him. He was always saying, ‘I’ll show you the fusion of the stage from the other world and magic.’」
Suddenly, a question crosses my mind.
Did that hero with the ‘Stage’ skill return to Earth? Or—
「We’ve arrived.」
The presence of the three who went ahead has stopped.
It’s the same as before. They’ve reached the boss room of this floor.
We hurried to their location.
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「We’ve just discussed it among the three of us. We’ve concluded that it doesn’t matter who completes the Sealed Dungeon, as long as it’s possible to do so.」
That was the reason they were waiting for us.
Saint Mika was the one who announced this.
I thought it was a roundabout proposal—they could just say 「Let’s open the door together」 directly.
While thinking this, I stared intently at Saint Mika.
How long has it been since I’ve looked her in the face like this?
She didn’t flinch and didn’t avert her gaze from me.
When I turned my eyes to Angie, she hid her eyes with the brim of her hat and nodded deeply.
And Eris kept her head down, not looking up at all.
「What do you two think?」
I asked Ash and Sensei, but I knew the answer without hearing it.
As if understanding even my feelings, the two of them simply nodded.
「I’d like to agree with your opinion. Once the preparations are complete, let’s enter the door together.」
That’s how I responded to the three of them.
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I swallowed the various emotions swirling inside me.
And we completed the preparations for the boss attack, including a quick meal, and then—
「Let’s go.」
I pushed the door with both hands and stepped into the room.
The room was in complete darkness.
「Hey! Everyone! Be careful!」
I called out a warning to everyone and used light magic to create light, but—
「Sensei! Ash!」
There was no response from anyone, and after a while, I saw an intense light far ahead.
While worrying about the other members who didn’t respond to my call, I had no choice but to move forward.
And as I reached the source of the light, I closed my eyes until the strong light subsided, and then fearfully opened my eyelids—
「Ah! Just as I thought! Damn it!」
The area was illuminated by moonlight and a starry sky.
What spread out before my eyes was an endless wasteland—moreover, a wasteland with countless swords thrust into it.
Not only were Sensei and Ash not here, but Mika and the others weren’t either. But just as I thought, 「Well, at least Sensei is on the other side of this separation, so that’s reassuring—」 I sensed a presence behind me.
In an instant, I drew Gram and pointed it at the presence behind me.
「…Holy Knight Yamada.」
The one who spoke with Gram pointed at their throat was, for some inexplicable reason, the Sword Saint Eris herself.
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She felt the potential for conquering the Sealed Dungeon, having made it this far without even using her full power.
Learning from her previous failure, she had grown and succeeded in spreading a direct countermeasure.
It was a simple countermeasure called Search and Destroy, but if one didn’t know that this was the most crucial measure to defeat the Sealed Domain, they would have undoubtedly taken a more leisurely approach, and by now, the Fog would have multiplied, resulting in a repeat of the previous Sealed Domain.
And just like the previous boss room, she was prepared to handle this boss battle alone if worst came to worst.
「Don’t worry, I’m here, so you all don’t need to be tense.」
She called out as she passed through the door, but she immediately noticed that the presence of the other members had vanished from her surroundings. To secure her vision, she reluctantly summoned a ball of light and began walking towards the intense light at the edge of her vision.
「What… is this…」
There, she trembled and let out a voice.
She—Sensei—had arrived at a place far from the fourth floor boss room, at what was unmistakably the entrance to the Sealed Dungeon.
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