arc3 · 176-ch176

Chapter 176: Each of Their Schemes

side Queens

"We have just received a request from the Dungeon Agency. It seems SS will be filming our exploration for us."

While the members of Queens were gathering information on SS, a single phone call came through to their leader, Jim. The caller was from Japan's Dungeon Association, and the contents were as follows: one week from now, SS would be filming a joint exploration with Kokushi Musou — the party Queens had sat down with for a goodwill exchange only recently.

"Huh. And here I thought Japan would keep SS hidden to the bitter end. Color me surprised."

It was Mikey who reacted to Jim's report.

"Could it not be a trap?"

Elsie, the most cautious member of the party, seemed suspicious that it might be some kind of trap.

"Even if it were a trap, I hardly think we would be the ones caught in it..."

Vivvi, however, was confident that with their strength, they could cut their way out of any trap imaginable.

"No doubt about that!"

Mikey, something of a thrill-seeker, agreed without a second thought.

"Hmm. Vivvi does have a point. So long as our one and only lead is this Soramine Sota, taking them up on this may be as good a move as any."

Of all the information they had gathered over the past several days, nothing had led to SS. The only thing they had managed to get their hands on was a vague piece of intel — that a certain university student Mikey had taken note of, one Soramine Sota, had shown rather high combat ability for someone without a Job.

Jim had begun to think that, rather than investigating Soramine Sota on the strength of that alone, actually getting to speak with SS directly would save them the wasted effort.

"And which dungeon will they be exploring?"

It was Elsie who asked, and Jim who answered.

"Tokyo Mouse Park Dungeon, so I hear. Apparently they wish to film the clear starting from its thirty-first floor."

"Starting from thirty-one means they want us down there within five days, yeah?"

"That it does."

At that exchange between Mikey and Jim, Elsie and Vivvi both fell quiet, thinking. They had watched Kokushi Musou's record-setting stream of Tokyo Mouse Park. The Lich and Terror's Symbol shown back then had been considerable threats even to the likes of them.

And yet, at the same time, each of them was thinking they could have brought those monsters down far more skillfully themselves. Besides which, a challenge into unknown territory had, it seemed, stirred the explorer's blood in them mightily.

Making contact with SS was an important objective — but no one on this earth could bind top rankers like them. Not even an order from the British government.

"Right, then — let's accept this commission. We dive into Tokyo Mouse Park Dungeon starting tomorrow. You've all seen that stream — have your preparations ready by tomorrow."

"Okay!"

"Understood."

"Roger that."

Mikey, Elsie, and Vivvi had all been raring to go long before Jim ever made the announcement.

"Say, Jim — what did Ian have to say about all this?"

Mikey asked, as though the thought had only just occurred to him.

"'Never heard of any such man,' or so he says."

A reply perfectly in character for Ian — the three of them exchanged glances and shrugged.

side Ouroboros

"Boss — there's movement on the Queens front."

The report had come in to Kuranohayashiin, executive of the criminal organization Ouroboros, from the subordinate assigned to surveil Queens. According to that subordinate, every member of Queens had abruptly begun making preparations to dive into a dungeon.

"The possibility of a trap?"

Boss Onodake's low voice filled the room. Every time Kuranohayashiin heard that voice, he felt a chill run down his spine.

"Per my subordinate's report, they began their preparations all at once — we infer that something unexpected has occurred."

At Kuranohayashiin's report, Onodake closed his eyes and fell deep into thought. For Kuranohayashiin, this was the most terrifying stretch of all.

"Depending on how this plays out, we may move as well. Gather more detailed intelligence. Also — the executives are all assembled, yes?"

The silence had lasted mere minutes, but to Kuranohayashiin it felt like tens of them.

"Understood. All the executives are accounted for — what would you have us do about Dokumamushi? He is currently seeing to the new recruit's training."

"Train him right up to the wire. If he turns out to be worth anything, bring him along too. I'll size him up myself."

"Yes — I'll pass that along to Dokumamushi."

With that, Onodake too left the room to make his own preparations.

(If Queens are on the move, it is SS-related nine times out of ten. If things go well, taking them hostage may win us the release of even more of our comrades. But they will not be easy to handle — not by a long shot. Depending on how this goes, I may need to give some thought to how I carry myself. After all, I cannot afford to be caught — not until my brother is free.)

Kuranohayashiin's younger brother, Fūto, was being held in the Special Prison. He had killed a member of his own party in an accident, and with no room left to plead his case, he was convicted. In shock over having killed a comrade, Fūto had accepted his guilt without offering so much as a proper defense.

His older brother Raito, at first, tried to prove his innocence through proper channels. But accidents inside dungeons were notoriously difficult to prove, and Fūto himself had admitted his guilt — which made it all but impossible. So the next plan Raito conceived was this: enter the Special Prison himself, and break out of it together with his brother.

To get himself sent there, Raito massacred every member of the temporary party he had been running with at the time. He felt no regret over it — those members had been the sort who preyed on newbies themselves. And so he succeeded in entering the Special Prison exactly as intended. The miscalculation was that he was incarcerated in a different prison from his brother.

What was more, surveillance at the Special Prison proved stricter than he had imagined, and no chance to escape ever came. He wanted to save his brother, and could do nothing. Those days tormented Raito — until Onodake raided the Special Prison, and everything changed.

Onodake gathered up the escaped Awakened and built a criminal organization. Raito was among them. Kuranohayashiin, formerly B-rank, was recognized by Onodake and made an executive of Ouroboros. And by leveling up in an unreported dungeon that Ouroboros members had chanced upon, he had already acquired A-rank strength. Even so, he did not believe he could beat Onodake — which meant Onodake might well possess S-rank-equivalent power.

Ouroboros had six executives. The S-rank-equivalent Onodake, two A-ranks, and three B-ranks. Against Queens — an S-rank leader with three A-rank members — that was a near-even match. And then SS, with combat abilities unknown, was about to enter the picture. To guarantee victory, the timing of their intervention would be everything.

Sensing that a difficult battle lay ahead, Kuranohayashiin let out one long, deep sigh, and left the empty room behind.

side Sieg Howard

"Master Sieg, the landing clearance for Haneda Airport tomorrow has been arranged."

This was a room inside a villa in the Hamptons, just outside New York. The master of that villa was none other than the man renowned as the world's No. 1 explorer — Sieg Howard himself. He had ordered one of the servants here to secure a runway for his private jet's flight to Japan.

"Ohh, thank you, Honey! And like I've been saying — you ought to take a week or two off yourself!"

Bright blond hair, a sweet face, and a powerfully built body — this man was Sieg Howard, holder of the Destruction King Job, said to be the strongest explorer in the world. This time, he had decided to visit Japan to receive the Blue Sapphire he had won at auction.

"But does Master Sieg truly need to go in person? However costly the item may be, there are any number of perfectly safe ways to have it transported."

The servant, however, seemed less than convinced about Sieg going to Japan.

"Now, now — picking the thing up is just on the way. The real purpose of this trip is going to see an old friend!"

"Even so, are you certain you should go alone? Would it not be safer to bring the other members along?"

Whether worried about Sieg traveling solo or not, the servant pressed the point further.

"Hahaha — where in this world is there anyone who could hurt me? If such a being actually exists, I'd rather you go fetch them and bring them to me! Besides, I've already given the others their time off. By now they're all off enjoying their holidays as they please!"

But Sieg waved the suggestion aside without a moment's hesitation. Faced with a reply like that, the servant had no way to argue back. That is simply how strong Sieg is.

"Then please, do take every care on your journey."

Fielding the servant's very best attempt at sarcasm with a smile, Sieg Howard went cheerfully about his preparations for Japan.