arc3 · 156-ch156

Chapter 156: Astonishment ①

side Arihara

Today is the day of SS's — no, Soramine-san's — Explorer Exam. Ever since we first met, Soramine-san had said he wanted to become an explorer. At first I assumed it was for the tax exemption, but even after his contributions were recognized and his taxes were waived, that wish never changed.

Which is why I hope, from the bottom of my heart, that he passes today. Of course, he has no intention of cheating, and given that he dealt damage to that Terror's Symbol, I believe he'll be fine.

"First — please take this katana."

I handed Soramine-san the katana I had prepared as camouflage, and was surprised by how cleanly he swung it. Could it be that even without his drones, he could defeat something on the level of a goblin?

He himself had also said he wanted to try defeating a goblin without using his drones first, so I gave permission on the condition that he follow my instructions. I was confident that as long as his spirit held, he could defeat one without any trouble.

"Are you all right?"

When we entered the dungeon, I caught sight of Soramine-san shivering, and the question slipped out before I knew it.

But the answer that came back was "a warrior's shiver." Well, of course. He's been diving into dungeons alongside parties like Kokushi Musou and Hyakka Ryouran — no way he'd be nervous at a time like this.

To keep him away from the other examinees, I guided him to a dead-end room a little ways off. Two goblins spawn here, but since it's a dead end, explorers hardly ever come this way.

There was a fair distance to our destination, so we walked along making small talk. In the course of it, Soramine-san asked, so I told him a little about my skill. Up until now, the knowing had been all one way — I knew about him while he knew nothing of me — and that had felt a little unfair, tucked away in a corner of my heart. Soramine-san didn't seem bothered by it, but it felt like a good opportunity, so I went ahead and told him.

I too often dove into dungeons with companions when I was young, so the memories came back unbidden and brought a wry smile to my face. We did some fairly foolish things back then. But thinking about how that experience serves me even now, it didn't go to waste after all.

Now then — the reason goblins are designated as the monsters to defeat in the practical exam is to gauge the examinee's aversion by having them kill a humanoid monster first. Anyone who can't get past that will have a hard time making a living as an explorer. Would Soramine-san be all right?

Sure enough, two goblins were inside the room, so as planned, I took responsibility for one. No matter how good his movements were, two goblins at once for a first attempt would be asking a lot. Perhaps to shake off his nerves, Soramine-san took a single deep breath and dove into the room after me.

It had been a while since my last real fight, so I'll admit I was being a little careful. Even so, a mere goblin was hardly a match for me — two or three exchanges of blades and it was down. I immediately checked on Soramine-san. Ready to help if need be.

But there was no need at all. What met my eyes instead was a goblin with its head and body lying apart — and Soramine-san quietly wiping his katana.

"Um... when your goblin falls before mine does... I can't exactly grade the exam..."

The sheer speed of it made my honest thoughts slip out. Well — there's no mistaking that Soramine-san defeated it, so the exam is a pass.

After that, since Soramine-san had said there was something he wanted to verify, I agreed to help. He didn't say exactly what, but since he mentioned the Transfer Stone room, the two of us headed back to the entrance.

In the Transfer Stone room, the blue of the stone, seen after so long, felt somehow nostalgic.

"Well then — let's find out..."

While I was lost in reminiscence, Soramine-san suddenly reached his hand toward the stone. This was his first dive into a dungeon, so I assumed touching the Transfer Stone would do nothing —

"It's showing the tenth floor. Looks like I share my records with my drones."

"Huh!?"

Soramine-san was saying something unbelievable. What did he say? Sharing records with his drones? Then that would mean this man could use a Transfer Stone without ever entering the dungeon!?

The words caught in my throat, but this was enormous. And dangerous as well.

"Soramine-san, please listen carefully. At your current strength, the deeper floors are still far too soon. Please don't use the Transfer Stones carelessly — I must ask you not to head into the depths."

Thanks to Kokushi Musou's cooperation, Soramine-san has floors twenty and thirty registered in the dungeons around here. I hammered the point home in advance so that idle curiosity wouldn't carry him off to floor thirty and into danger.

"Don't worry, I won't do anything like that! More importantly, let's jump to floor ten. You can transfer too, right, Arihara-san? Hayate and Shiden are waiting there, so I'll show you how we fight with drones as well!"

That's right. Today I was to be shown Soramine-san's drones actually fighting. The shock had made me forget.

"Of course — today I get to watch Hayate and Shiden fight. I can't wait!"

The thought of finally seeing drone combat made my voice rise without my meaning it to.

"Then I'll guide you to a place with no one around, so please follow me."

With that, Soramine-san set off at a brisk pace.

"Wait a moment!? We're on floor eleven!? I need you to be a little more careful!"

I hurried to stop Soramine-san as he strolled along as if walking around the neighborhood, but...

"Ah, don't worry — I had Hayate take out every monster on this route ahead of time."

Good heavens — he'd cleared the monsters out in advance. Typical Soramine-san; he sees several steps ahead. Even so, monsters can spawn without warning, so we headed carefully to where the drones were hidden.

"I hid them here."

After ten-odd minutes of walking in the direction opposite the descending staircase, two drones emerged without a sound from behind a rather large rock.

Hayate with his black body, and Shiden in deep purple. Though I was used to seeing them on the Dungeon Agency's rooftop, seeing Hayate and Shiden inside a dungeon made them look truly dependable.

"Then let's see it — Hayate and Shiden's combat power."

"Yes, leave it to me!"

With a face full of confidence, Soramine-san led the two drones and set off into the depths of floor eleven.