arc1 · 032-ch32

Episode 32: Meanwhile, at the University

The day after I sent the video to Kokushi Musou, I was at the university from the morning. I'd found a lecture that would give you credit as long as you attended the rest of it, even if you joined partway through. The lecture was called "Dungeon Monster Studies," and as the name implied, it covered the types and characteristics of monsters that appear in dungeons.

Since I obviously didn't have any friends, I sat in a corner seat in the lecture hall to avoid standing out. I was pretty sure this lecture didn't have that many students enrolled, so why was it being held in the main hall today? And clearly, far more students were streaming into the lecture hall than had been told about this in advance.

"Hey, hey, you again?! Give it up already! Geez, way to ruin a perfectly good mood."

Among the throng of students, there was Ohsaki Satoru—the guy who'd hassled me yesterday. He was making a big show of raising his voice to provoke me. His lackeys followed suit with their crude laughter.

I decided that responding would mean he'd won, so I committed to ignoring him. But seriously, why were so many students gathered here?

As I was wondering about that, the professor appeared on stage. An immediate roar of cheers erupted. Was this professor really that popular?

A gentle-looking professor in his fifties took the microphone and began to speak. Behind him, a screen was lowering.

"Ahh, testing—today's lecture will be a special one. We'll be watching a dungeon conquest video and explaining the monsters that appear in it. It's a video from a very popular party, so I've made it a special open lecture that anyone can attend, not just enrolled students. That said, this is still a lecture, so if you cause any disruption, you will be asked to leave."

The students erupted at the professor's words. Some of them were even whistling. Why was everyone so excited?

"Professor! Could it be that video is—?"

One student shouted out the question.

"Of course. It's the Kokushi Musou Yatsugatake Dungeon conquest video that you've all been wanting to see."

"Yes! The professor's the best!"

I couldn't help but let out a laugh at that exchange. So that's why all these students were gathered—they knew the video was going up today. I had no idea.

"Now then, once the video is uploaded, I'll project it on this screen. You're free to watch the non-combat parts however you like, but when monsters appear, I'll be providing commentary, so please keep it quiet."

I see—watching that video on this huge screen would be pretty incredible. The students around me seemed to be in the mood of people who'd come to see a blockbuster movie.

"Hey, hey, who's your favorite?"

"Gaia-sama, obviously! The gap between his cute everyday face and his serious battle face is just irresistible!"

The two girls sitting next to me were talking about the Kokushi Musou members. So those guys really were popular, huh. The other students were all buzzing about Kokushi Musou too. Everyone was practically bouncing in their seats waiting for the video to go up.

And then the moment arrived.

"The video's been uploaded. Now then, everyone—please remember your promise and watch properly."

The lecture hall lights went dark, and footage immediately started playing on the screen. The opening was a shot from the front as they passed through the gate.

"A frontal close-up right off the bat!? Haah, Gaia-sama is way too cool!"

The Shinonome fan girl next to me was already in full maiden mode, eyes sparkling with excitement.

The early part should have been edited to cut out the stretches where they didn't encounter any monsters at all. The first monster they ran into was... a Wing Eagle, if I remembered right.

"Oh, there it is already. Does anyone know the name of this monster?"

About half the students raised their hands. The professor called on one of them.

"It's a Wing Eagle."

"Correct. Wing Eagles are—"

The professor started explaining the characteristics of Wing Eagle, but the moment Shinonome-san began chanting a spell, the students got so fired up that nobody seemed to be listening. He was actually saying some pretty good stuff.

"Oh, nice angle!"

"This thing actually gets proper close-ups of the monsters too, right?"

"Perfect for monster studies class."

As the video progressed, people started showing up who were complimenting my work. They probably never in a million years dreamed that the person filming this video was sitting right here. The more I thought about it, the more fun this became.

"When I start diving dungeons, I'm gonna have this guy film me!"

Suddenly, I heard a loud voice—and that Ohsaki was saying something ridiculous. Are you an idiot? Who the hell would agree to film you?!

His lackeys were backing him up, but sorry—your wish is never coming true, not in a million years. Serves you right.

Feeling a bit refreshed and in a good mood again, I turned my attention back to the screen and the professor's commentary.

The next monster to appear was the Horn Deer, but that one should have run away immediately.

"Hoh hoh hoh, next up is the Horn Deer. It may look like a deer, but don't underestimate it. It's D-rank, after all."

Right as the professor said that, the Horn Deer bolted. Combined with Nishikyo-san's pathetic line, the entire lecture hall was swallowed by laughter.

Like that, the ninety-minute lecture flew by in the blink of an eye. Just when I thought it was over, it turned out this lecture was being treated as a double session, so they were going to watch the whole thing. None of the students were leaving either. Well, of course. Watching it on this massive screen with everyone was way more fun than watching it alone on a tiny laptop.

I'd stayed because I wanted to hear the professor's commentary, but I ended up listening to praise for Kokushi Musou that rivaled—or even exceeded—what they got from their own fans, and I spent the remaining ninety minutes squirming in embarrassment.