The students were visibly growing more exhausted.
The number of battles was increasing.
The hardest part was not knowing where we were.
We had climbed one staircase after another, so we were definitely getting closer to the surface.
But we still had no idea what floor we were on.
It felt like being stranded in the middle of the ocean with nothing but the horizon in sight.
「The line’s getting too stretched out. We should take a break」
Aoki said.
When I looked back, Shizuka-san, who was at the very end of the group, seemed surprisingly far away.
Aoki was right. We probably needed to rest.
I contacted Shizuka-san through Telepathy, and we took a break in a small room off a side passage.
I had lost count of how many breaks we’d taken.
Still, seven hours had passed since we entered the dungeon.
It was probably evening by now.
Ayame and Hime had already reached the unregistered dungeon and begun searching.
As for Milk, she had spoken with Danpon, and all we’d learned was that he didn’t know anything either.
However, after realizing how serious the situation was, Danpon had apparently contacted Danpol, someone he considered both a sworn enemy and a bitter rival. Together, they were investigating the unregistered dungeon through Dungeon Academy’s resources.
Even after resting and moving on, the line kept stretching farther apart.
Then the incident happened.
Just as we crossed a four-way intersection, an Iron Horse monster attacked.
Its position was almost perfect for cutting our long formation in half.
To make matters worse, monsters also approached from the front at the same time, which meant I couldn’t leave my position.
I heard my classmates scream.
The ones who saved them were Tuna and Mizuno-san.
Tuna used magic to keep the monster in check, while Mizuno-san, who had always claimed she was terrified of fighting, kicked the monster away.
I hadn’t seen it myself, but apparently it was a one-hit kill.
「Isn’t Mizuno-san stronger than me?」
Aoki asked after hearing what had happened.
I recalled her status.
――――――――――――――――――
Mizuno Mai: Level 160 (Rank D)
Exchange Value: 0 D (Ranking: -)
HP: 603
MP: 80
Attack: 5,554
Defense: 301
Dexterity: 4,625
Agility: 1,341
Luck: 93
Skills: Development, Sleepless
Abilities: Smithing, Repair, Magic Tool Crafting, Attribute Imbuing, Efficiency Tech, Finishing, Mass Production Mode, Telepathy, The Craftsman’s Pride, Weapon Enhancement, Puppet Creation, Blacksmith’s Foolish Power, Puppet Enhancement, Divine Oni Ax Crafting
――――――――――――――――――
She was an awakened blacksmith with a level of 160.
Incredibly powerful.
Her raw attack stat easily surpassed mine.
The problem was her defense.
It was only about a tenth of mine and barely half that of rearguards like Milk and Ayame.
Worse, it hadn’t increased much at all lately.
Because of that, relying on her too heavily would be dangerous.
The good news and the bad news arrived at the same time.
「This appears to be the thirteenth floor. I recognize it」
Shizuka-san said.
In other words, if we climbed thirteen more floors, we’d reach the surface.
Figuring out where we were was a huge breakthrough.
「This is bad. We’re only halfway there」
Aoki muttered.
And he was right.
We were only halfway.
We had just finished climbing thirteen floors.
Apparently, we’d been sent to the twenty-sixth floor.
The monsters in this dungeon had been fairly strong even from the first floor, and there wasn’t much variation between floors.
Shizuka-san, the city officials, and the police officers were discussing what to do.
Now that they knew our location, we’d passed the information along through Telepathy.
The question was whether we should wait for rescue here or keep moving.
Yoshioka-sensei was practically being ignored among the adults, but that was understandable.
He was a complete amateur when it came to dungeons.
「…!?」
A chill ran down my spine.
I immediately headed over to Shizuka-san and the others.
「We need to leave」
「Ichino-kun, we’ve just discussed it and decided to wait for rescue here――」
「No. It’s dangerous」
「Stairways are considered safe zones within dungeons. There shouldn’t be anywhere safer than――」
「No, let’s trust his judgment」
Shizuka-san cut in.
Then she continued, seeking my confirmation.
「His skill is Sixth Sense. The fact that we’ve made it this far in almost a straight line proves how reliable it is」
「Sixth Sense…? I thought it was just a skill that pointed toward the exit. I’d heard it was little more than a psychological comfort――」
「My Luck stat is abnormally high, so the accuracy seems to be close to one hundred percent」
Which meant staying here was one hundred percent dangerous.
And if that was true, then there was only one conclusion.
「The stampede will begin before the rescue team gets here. In the stampedes previously recorded in this dungeon, monsters have been confirmed moving between floors」
The stampede was close.
We learned just how close when we reached the twelfth floor.
The number of monsters finally became absurd, and we were forced to barricade ourselves inside a small room.
Fortunately, there was only one entrance.
I would hold it.
That was all there was to it.
Well, except for the fact that the entrance was about as wide as a soccer goal.
Thank goodness we hadn’t stayed near the stairs.
If monsters attacked from both directions, there would have been no way to protect everyone.
Tuna, Shizuka-san, and Kizurikamikita-kun took the lead in dealing with any monsters that slipped past my guard.
Mizuno-san’s defense stat was too low for us to let her fight recklessly.
Just when I started thinking things were getting seriously dangerous, Aoki suddenly awakened.
He transformed into an angel.
And in his hands was the Valkyrie’s Spear.
「Taira, sorry to keep you waiting! I can fight too now」
「Where the hell did that spear come from? And why are you bleeding from the nose?」
「It just appeared out of nowhere. No idea about the nosebleed either」
What was he talking about?
As I searched my memory, it suddenly clicked.
Right, the Binding effect!
The Archmage equipment series that Ayame possessed all shared two Binding effects.
The first was that no one except the owner could equip them.
The second was that by consuming 20 MP, the equipment could be summoned and equipped instantly.
Apparently, Aoki’s Valkyrie’s Spear had the same ability.
He usually left it at the dungeon reception desk, but I never imagined it could summon equipment that wasn’t even in his possession.
The nosebleed might have been a side effect of forcibly calling it to him.
「Even transformed, you’re still no match for the monsters on this floor!」
「Relax, Ichino! This is what I can do! Release: 《Valkyrie’s Battle Song (Valhalla Song)》」
Aoki cast a spell.
At first, nothing seemed to change.
Then, in the next moment, Aoki started singing.
It was an anime song from the Macross series he loved so much.
「Is this really the time for that!?」
Kondou’s voice echoed through the room.
But…
The effect was immediate.
My body felt lighter.
「Power is surging through me?」
「…My magic power has increased」
It wasn’t just me.
Shizuka-san and Tuna were affected as well.
Aoki was too busy singing to explain, but I understood.
His songs were applying buffs to everyone.
This was straight out of an anime.
Thinking that, I silently thanked him.
-0-
The battle continued.
There was no point holding back anymore, so I had Kuro help in his true form as a giant wolf.
I thought everyone might be frightened by him, but Mizuno-san explained things, and they understood he was an ally.
Aoki’s anime-song medley was still going strong.
Either he had run out of songs or gotten tired of thinking of new ones, because I was pretty sure he had started repeating tracks.
「This is bad…」
The number of magic stones and dropped items scattered at our feet told the story of how many monsters we’d defeated.
I was used to taking down huge numbers of monsters in PDs.
Even so, this was bad.
More and more monsters were getting past me.
One bat-like monster flew over my head.
Unfortunately, Tuna and Shizuka-san were tied up fighting other monsters at the time, so it charged straight toward Aoki.
The officers from the Nara Prefectural Police managed to deal with the bat before anything happened, but if this kept up, we were in trouble.
And yet, I was smiling.
Not because I was some lunatic who enjoyed fighting.
No.
「Another monster from above!」
Someone shouted from behind me.
But they were wrong.
It wasn’t a monster.
What had passed over my head was a single sheet of paper.
A single paper talisman.
In other words…
It was one of Ayame’s shikigami.
And if it had reached us, that meant…
「Taira, sorry to keep you waiting!」
Hime had arrived.
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