Chapter 13: A New Party

—Dungeon Exam, Day 15

"Huh? My wound is gone! It doesn't hurt either! Look! Touch it!"

Misha rolled up her uniform, showing me her white, constricted waist.

Unlike Clarice or Ellie, who were developing remarkably fast for special reasons, describing a child of this age as having a "constricted waist" felt a bit strange, but it was the most fitting description.

However, just because she told me to touch it didn't mean I would.

"Oh. I guess beautiful girls really don't get scars left behind."

Misha seemed satisfied and started striking various poses for Sasha, asking, "Am I beautiful?"

"You don't seem very surprised. Even though that was definitely a wound that required several days of rest," Karen asked, probing everyone.

"N-No, that's not true. I just woke up, so my brain isn't working yet. But you don't seem very surprised either, Lady Karen?"

Careless of me again.

I knew it was healed, so I couldn't react much.

"Me? I am sufficiently surprised. But there are so many other shocking things. Being able to use all Four Great Magics, possessing bottomless MP, handling multiple spells at once... And on top of that, your swordsmanship is top-tier, and your movements are exactly those of a vanguard. Even if a Holy Mage appeared now, I wouldn't be surprised anymore."

Crap... Everything except the Holy Mage part was pointing directly at me.

Also, Karen knew that Minerva and Dominic's wounds were healed. She might be vaguely suspecting something.

While receiving looks of suspicion, we patrolled the fifth floor.

"The Golem didn't appear... Why only that time...?"

Karen tilted her head in confusion after getting out of the bath.

Just as Karen said, I searched thoroughly for traps with my Heavenly Eye and stepped on every trigger I could find, but no Golem appeared.

"True. Let's explore the fourth and fifth floors tomorrow as well. More importantly, do you think you can dive deeper? From what I've seen, you seem to have plenty of leeway?"

When Sasha asked everyone, Karen answered with an exasperated face.

"Leeway? My turn to act is practically nonexistent. It was like this last time too, so I ended up diving to the fifth floor and causing trouble for everyone."

Well, the monsters that appeared were Threat Level D to E. Ellie and Misha took care of most of them, and I finished off the rest with my left hand for swordsmanship practice and martial arts.

Since Misha's level was the lowest among us, there was also a consideration to let Misha defeat as many as possible.

"Based on Duke Regan's story, the Knights should be deployed soon. Once the Knights dive, I was thinking we could go to the sixth floor and challenge the Middle Boss Room. Is that alright?"

When Sasha said this, everyone's gaze, including Karen's, gathered on me.

This party's leader is Karen, so shouldn't they ask her...?

"If Lady Karen says we go, isn't that fine? By the way, could you tell us what kind of monsters appear in the Middle Boss Room?"

"Of course. The monsters that appear are Rock Lizards, plus a Fire-attribute Gremlin, a Water-attribute Sahagin, and an Earth-attribute Spantula, totaling three extras. There's talk that a rabbit monster called a Lakirabi appears, but even if it does, it's not much of a threat... Rather, you should consider yourself lucky if it's there."

A monster appearing makes us lucky? What does that mean?

Sasha, noticing my expression, added an explanation.

"A Lakirabi is a monster with an extremely low appearance rate. The first time I encountered one was with this child two years ago at the Horn-Rabbit Grasslands. Its characteristic is that it just runs away while clad in wind. Basically, it doesn't attack. They say Lakirabi brings luck along with the wind. The Gale Spear Misha is currently equipped with was dropped near where we defeated a Lakirabi."

Heh... a Lakirabi, huh... I'd like to meet one at least once.

"Putting the Lakirabi aside, the ones to watch out for are the Spantula and Gremlin combo. The Spantula is a large spider that constantly spews webbing. If you get tangled in that web, you can't move, so be careful. If the Gremlin's fire comes at you then, it's dangerous, so the standard tactic is to defeat the Spantula first."

That sounds troublesome. The vanguard is going to have a hard time. Sasha's explanation continued.

"The Sahagin is a monster that wields a spear and demonstrates unrivaled strength near water, but since there's no water in this dungeon, it's fine. Still, it firmly has the strength of Threat Level C, so be careful."

I guess Ellie or I will handle the Sahagin.

"The more I hear, the higher the difficulty seems... To think Crimson Lotus cleared this on the twenty-fifth day of the exam, they really are monsters."

Karen sighed with her arms crossed.

"It was significant that Crimson Lotus had not just Glenn, but also the Golem Master. And they say Cyrus accompanied them too."

Golem Master? As expected of the continent's number one academy, talented individuals gather here.

After simulating what we would do when we dove into the Middle Boss Room, the women went to sleep first.

—Two Days Later, Dungeon Exam Day 17

The color of the walls in the Middle Boss Room was a yellow that seemed to warn intruders.

"Is everyone ready?"

Karen made the final confirmation in front of the door, and everyone nodded.

"Alright, Mars, if you please."

It was my role to open the door and enter the room first.

By the way, Karen asked Sasha and me not to participate in the attack as much as possible. The reason was that she wanted to measure their current strength and not get the wrong idea about their capabilities.

Slowly opening the door and entering carefully, we received a surprise attack from a small monster flying around the center of the room as if patrolling. The small creature inhaled, then breathed out a streak of fire.

"《Ice Wall》!"

From right behind me, Clarice manifested a wall of ice in front of us. Everyone rushed into the room, and the battle began.

"First is the Spantula!"

Karen pointed at the Spantula moving across the ceiling, spewing webs everywhere.

"Yeah! Leave it to me!"

From Misha's responding palm came a 《Wind Cutter》.

"Misha! Watch the other monsters too!"

However, Sasha's voice didn't seem to reach her. Misha was single-mindedly firing 《Wind Cutter》 after 《Wind Cutter》.

"Hey?! Misha! Can you hear me?!"

She checked again, but Misha was obsessed with the Spantula.

"Sasha-sensei. I'll keep an eye on Misha, so..."

"Yes... please do."

Sasha smiled wryly.

The Spantula spewed webs like a shield to block direct hits from Karen's Fire Magic and layered webs to weaken Misha's 《Wind Cutter》 while running away.

However, due to Karen's calm response, it gradually ran out of places to run without any time to counterattack.

Once Karen confirmed her Fire Magic was blocked by the web shield, she blocked the Spantula's escape route with fire, like driving fish into a net. Defeating the Spantula was only a matter of time.

While keeping Misha in my field of view, I shifted my gaze elsewhere.

Clarice had surrounded the fire-breathing Gremlin on all four sides with 《Ice Wall》, rendering it immobile. Every time the 《Ice Wall》 was melted by fire, she blocked it with another 《Ice Wall》.

As for the fish-man Sahagin, it held a trident and charged alongside the Rock Lizards, but Ellie drew their attention, keeping them away from Karen and Misha.

However, the Sahagin was a close-range type with Threat Level C. Ellie didn't have her usual leeway and was desperate just to dodge attacks.

But I, having sparred with her countless times, knew best that it was hard to catch Ellie when she fully committed to evasion. Added to her Beastman-specific battle sense were her flexibility and the speed of a Golden Lion. Even if the enemy overwhelmed her in stats, it was difficult to even touch her.

Clarice joined in, keeping the Gremlin sealed. Dealing steady damage with Magic Arrows while keeping the Gremlin trapped in 《Ice Wall》, Clarice was undoubtedly the key player in this battle.

As I was captivated by her figure, Misha suddenly jumped up in front of me.

"I did it! I beat the Threat Level C Spantula!"

There lay the Spantula, legs cut off and engulfed in flames.

"Nice one, Misha! Now grab your spear and go help Ellie!"

"Yeah! I'll get the next one too!"

Leaving the Gremlin—trapped and neutralized by 《Ice Wall》—for last, we concentrated our attacks on the Sahagin and Rock Lizards.

Misha, who had been fighting mainly with magic until now, immediately grabbed her spear and headed to Ellie.

Since they had been discussing and refining their coordination constantly recently, their teamwork was excellent. Although there were still rough spots compared to the Clarice and Ellie combo, these two lived together too, so they were on the same wavelength. To be able to do this much in just a few days was impressive.

When Karen joined in, the tide turned immediately.

The Sahagin pressed Ellie until the end, but after being pierced by Clarice's Magic Arrow, it couldn't move as it wanted and was finished. Finally, it was burned by Karen's 《Fireball》.

The only one left was the Gremlin.

Clarice, Ellie, and Misha took attack positions, and the 《Ice Wall》 was released.

The Gremlin must have been trying to melt the 《Ice Wall》 on the opposite side from us, because the moment the wall was released, the Gremlin's flames flared up against the far wall.

In that instant, a small animal with its tail on fire scrambled out from near the wall, fleeing all over the room.

"It's a Lakirabi!"

Misha got excited at the rabbit, but Sasha snapped sharply.

"Leave the Lakirabi for later! It can't escape from here, so Gremlin first!"

Indeed, the Lakirabi seemed to be running around the room trying to extinguish the fire on its body. It must have been hiding somehow, but was forced out by the Gremlin's fire.

Seeing that, the three followed Sasha's instructions and concentrated their attacks on the Gremlin.

Mainly using Clarice's Magic Arrow, Misha used Water magic to weaken the Gremlin's fire attacks, and Ellie ran around the perimeter to break the Gremlin's concentration.

Under the concentrated fire of the three, the Gremlin's HP was whittled down before our eyes.

And just as Clarice was about to deliver the finishing blow...

The Lakirabi approached Clarice at breakneck speed.

Even if they say it doesn't attack, the Lakirabi is a monster. There's always a chance.

But I didn't want to interfere and ruin things now that they had come this far.

With that thought, I activated Future Vision.

"Eh—?"

An unexpected future jumped into my eyes.

At the same moment Clarice released the finishing shot at the Gremlin, the Lakirabi passed close by her, clad in its so-called winds of fortune.

Then, her skirt danced up along with her priestly robes, and I caught a glimpse of a divine pink and purple ribbon.

When I made perfect eye contact with Clarice, who reflexively held down her skirt, her face was instantly dyed as red as fireworks.

"D-Did you see?"

"Eh? Ah? Yeah..."

An awkward atmosphere flowed for a split second, but a cheerful voice loud enough to clear the air echoed through the Middle Boss Room.

"I did iiiiit! I beat the Lakirabi!"

Misha, having skewered the fleeing Lakirabi with a single thrust, showed it off to everyone with a beaming smile. Clarice's expression changed completely. We all exploded with joy at clearing the Middle Boss Room.

Phew... It happened so suddenly I couldn't look away, but I'll be careful next time. I guess I should apologize later.

As I tried to join everyone's circle of joy, another treasure caught my eye.

"Hu-Huh? Isn't that a treasure chest?"

"""Eh?!"""

Karen, Misha, and Sasha all turned their gazes to where I pointed in unison.

"Aaaaaahhh!!! It's reaaaal!"

While Misha frolicked in delight, Karen blinked her eyes.

"I-It's the first time I've seen one... They really exist..."

"I haven't seen one in years either."

Years? I was actually more surprised by Sasha's words.

"Hey? What do we do? Who's gonna open it?"

Misha's face clearly said she wanted to open it.

"We-Well... I don't really know about these things either... What should we do?"

Karen's voice pitched up.

"In our case, it was always Mars's role to open them..."

Clarice, whose cheeks were still slightly red, looked at me.

"Ah... but here, I'll leave it to Lady Karen. No matter what comes out, nothing can surpass the emotion I feel right now..."

Ha?! What am I saying?!

As I panicked and tried to explain to Clarice—

"...Idiot."

—she muttered shyly.

"Th-Then perhaps I shall open it."

Trembling with tension, Karen asked everyone.

"Yup! Go ahead~"

Even though she looked like she wanted to open it so badly, Misha agreed readily.

"Here I go..."

Karen slowly opened it. Inside were three gold ingots.

As Karen dropped her shoulders in disappointment, Sasha encouraged her.

"This is actually good, you know? Most of the time it's just Potions or Magic Potions."

I guess I really am lucky. Unless it was a monster house, it was almost always equipment... Well, the worst thing was the Golden Treasure Sword, but that was presented to the King of Barcus, so from Zeke's perspective, it was a jackpot.

While comforting Karen, we opened the door opposite the entrance to find a shining white space. Immediately next to the Middle Boss Room was a Safe Zone.

"Now then, we'll spend two or three days here starting today. We don't plan to dive to the seventh floor, so we'll use this as a base to patrol the sixth floor. Is that alright?"

Sasha put down her luggage and immediately started preparing camp.

Until now, we had been sleeping in rooms or corridors where monsters appeared, so we had to be careful about depleting our MP, but in a Safe Zone, we didn't have to think about that. We also set up a watch just in case, but even that wasn't strictly necessary.

As I started setting up the camping set as usual, Ellie put in a request.

"Mars, Clarice, me... together... Almeria..."

I see. She means she wants to sleep close together like in the Almeria Dungeon.

When we slept in the Safe Zone on the third floor of the Almeria Dungeon, we separated ourselves with partitions but slept right next to each other. Ellie excelled at sensing presences more than anyone, so she said she could sleep soundly if I was nearby.

"Got it. Then Clarice, Ellie, and I will sleep nearby."

"Yeah!"

Ellie showed a dazzling smile.

"I-I don't mind being nearby either, you know?"

"Me too! Me too! I trust you!"

Karen and Misha said so, but being close to Karen would be bad for Baron, and in Misha's case, Sasha would be anxious... actually, Sasha herself might feel threatened.

I politely declined, made sleeping areas in two locations, and spent the remaining time exploring the sixth floor.

Basically, the monsters on the sixth floor consisted of Rock Lizards plus one of the Threat Level C monsters that appeared in the Middle Boss Room, so we limited ourselves to checking a few rooms that day.

—Dungeon Exam, Day 18, 3:00 AM

Fufufu. Finally, the awaited moment has arrived.

I’ve been... I’ve been holding back for so long.

Beyond this door... they are... I can't hold back anymore.

Unable to suppress my feelings, I threw the door open with force, and everyone's gaze gathered on me.

But that didn't matter!

The first one I'm attacking is you!

I leaped at my target, and the opponent accepted me as if they had been waiting too.

I parried the spear extending from its right hand with the Salamander Sword in my left hand—that was the signal for battle.

Led by the Sahagin, the Rock Lizards, the Gremlin, and the Spantula all charged at me!

Yes, the door I opened was the door to the Middle Boss Room.

Even though there were things I wanted to try, I hesitated to do them in front of Karen and the others. But if I acted alone, training and effort were free!

I wanted to test if I could use 《Sylphid》, a stone sword created with Earth Magic in my right hand, the Salamander Sword in my left, Future Vision, and chantingless Wind Magic—all five simultaneously!

The result: I can do it.

However, even if I could handle a sword with my left hand, holding a sword in each hand made it feel more like I was smashing rather than cutting. It seems wielding swords with both hands simultaneously isn't that simple.

Anyway, right now I need experience.

I continued to parry the Sahagin and Rock Lizard attacks relentlessly, deflected the Gremlin's fire with 《Wind》, and dodged the Spantula's webbing with Future Vision.

Monsters get tired too, huh.

The sharpness of the Sahagin's spear thrusts was lost, and the power of the Gremlin's fire had clearly dropped. The Spantula just kept spitting webs from the ceiling without any ingenuity, and the Rock Lizards had low stats to begin with.

It became unsatisfying, so I annihilated them with just swords and returned to the Safe Zone.

Fresh monsters should repop in an hour. Until then, I'll patrol the sixth floor.

The sixth floor of the Arahan Dungeon had a lower level than the third floor of the Almeria Dungeon. Almeria's third floor only spawned Threat Level C monsters, after all.

Compared to that, this was lacking, but it was sufficient for left-hand training.

After running through the sixth floor, I went back to the Middle Boss Room.

I finished the battle before everyone woke up, returned to the Safe Zone, and took a bath. I hadn't sweated that much, but etiquette is important. Especially since the party accompanying me was full of women. I couldn't embarrass Clarice and the others.

"Good morning."

Everyone woke up around the time I got out of the bath.

"Oh? Mars, you look awfully refreshed. Did something happen?"

Sasha questioned me right away.

Since I was able to fight with full power for the first time in a while, my pent-up stress had cleared.

"Yes. I did a little exercise and it felt great!"

"Hmmm. Exercise, huh... Keep it in moderation, okay?"

Sasha's gaze went back and forth between Clarice and me.

She might think I was diving with Clarice. Solo action in a dungeon is dangerous.

There were no abnormalities on the sixth floor that day either. Judging the sixth floor to be safe, we decided to return to the surface in two days.

—Dungeon Exam, Day 20

Today was the last morning activity of the dungeon exam, and my second time in the Middle Boss Room today.

I won't be able to see these guys for a while... Feeling a bit sentimental, I entered the Middle Boss Room, and someone sneaked up behind me.

"I knew you were coming here."

When I turned around, Clarice was there.

"Yeah. There was something I wanted to try."

As I continued the conversation while toying with the Sahagins as usual, Clarice seemed to notice immediately.

"Eh? Dual wielding?"

"That's right. As a countermeasure for Cyrus-sensei and to increase training efficiency, I was swinging a sword with my left hand, and I thought maybe I could do dual wielding too."

"Sorry. If Mars participates in combat, it doesn't become training for us."

"That's not true. Just watching allows me to check coordination and visualize things. Besides, staying nearby means I don't have to worry about anything strange happening."

When I'm away from Clarice, the worries never end. And more than anything, I want to be with Clarice myself.

I need to defeat them soon or I'll run out of bath time.

Thinking that, I defeated the Threat Level C monsters, and just when I delivered the finishing blow to the last Rock Lizard...

The rabbit that calls fortune appeared again.

"Clarice! Your feet!"

"Eh?"

I have to look away! I thought, but my honest body wouldn't react.

Immediately after Clarice defeated the Lakirabi with an 《Ice Arrow》, the divine wind blew again.

Pink with white frills.

Clarice's face turned red rapidly.

"S-Sorry... Including the one before, I hadn't apologized yet."

"D-Don't apologize. It's my carelessness that caused it..."

It seemed she forgave me.

I'm glad she doesn't hate me... It might have been a lucky wind, but it could have destroyed our relationship.

Just as I was thinking it didn't need to come out anymore, something caught my eye.

"Clarice?! It appeared again!"

Clarice reflexively held down her skirt.

"N-Not that! A treasure chest!"

"Eh?! You're right!"

We walked up to the treasure chest, and Clarice came closer, our hands naturally overlapping.

I appraised the chest thoroughly, confirmed there were no traps, and opened it.

Inside was a pendant with a crystal that shone like ice in the center, beautifully decorated with pale blue and white.

[Name] Snow Ice Necklace
[Special] —
[Value]
[Details] Water Attribute Attack UP, Water Attribute Resistance UP, Minor Fatigue Recovery

"Lovely... It's delicate and mysterious craftsmanship..."

Clarice sighed in admiration at the contents of the chest, but I was captivated by Clarice herself.

"This is definitely perfect for you, Clarice."

I took out the pendant and tried to hand it to her.

"Eh? This is for me too? I feel bad!"

The pendant immediately returned to my hand.

"This is an accessory for Water Mages, you know? Besides, it looks like it would suit you, Clarice."

"R-Really...? Thank you. Then... put it on me."

"U-Understood. But it's my first time, so I don't know if I can do it well..."

When I panicked at her unexpected words—

"It's okay. It's my first time too."

Clarice swept up her glossy silver hair with her hand, revealing the nape of her white, slender neck.

While feeling bewildered, I carefully tried to place the pendant around Clarice's neck, but every time my fingertips touched her, my heart beat like a warning bell.

Clarice's breath and floral scent accelerated my heartbeat even further.

Awkwardly, I managed to secure the pendant around her neck.

"Thank you. It's kind of embarrassing."

She showed a shy expression, different from before.

"Yeah. But it felt comfortable. Shall we go?"