arc3 · 189-ch189

Chapter 189: Kokushi Musou & Queens ①

Two days have passed since the email telling me the detached house was complete. Since then, my level has gone up three more, putting me at 38. Ever since Shiden became summonable, my leveling has been going quite smoothly.

That said, it's gradually getting harder to level up, as you'd expect. The higher the level, the more EXP it takes to level up, presumably. There's nothing to be done about that, so I'll just keep grinding patiently, however long it takes.

Anyway — today is the day I film the joint exploration by Kokushi Musou and Queens. Queens, being the world rank-3 as their reputation promised, had reached floor thirty of Tokyo Mouse Park Dungeon in four days. Untouched, of course.

I have worries about what Queens might have to say to me, but seeing that ability of theirs firsthand is something to look forward to. What's more, this stream was decided to be — of all things — a live broadcast.

After the results of Kokushi Musou's last livestream, it was apparently judged safe to go live for the general public. Yesterday, after the Dungeon Agency made the surprise announcement, the whole town was buzzing.

Most people were overjoyed that they'd get to watch Kokushi Musou and Queens explore in real time, but there did seem to be a few dissenting voices too — "a live stream is impossible," or "what happens if something that mustn't be shown gets shown" — though they were such a small minority they got buried under the majority's opinion.

The governments of various countries also seem interested in this livestream — inquiries to the Japanese government have been nonstop since yesterday, Arihara-san told me. Well, I'll leave everything on that front entirely to Arihara-san.

I sent Asahi off toward Tokyo Mouse Park Dungeon. Honestly, whether to bring Asahi along at all was a question that didn't get settled even when I discussed it with Arihara-san and President Yamamoto. Clearing from floor thirty-one of Tokyo Mouse Park Dungeon onward, there's a good chance Hayate or Shiden could get wiped out. They may well end up used as decoys.

And when that happens, if Asahi isn't nearby, they can't be resummoned. If both got erased, I'd be unable to film at all. And even if I say I'm dedicating myself to filming, the moment things get dangerous, I'll absolutely join the fight.

But for now, you could say Asahi is my weak point. If the connection to Asahi were cut completely, Hayate and Shiden would vanish as well. The question was whether I could afford to expose that weakness in front of Queens.

President Yamamoto said he didn't think Asahi — reinforced with mithril — would go down so easily. And with Kokushi Musou there, the worst case should at least allow a retreat. Arihara-san showed understanding of that view too, but given his position, he seemed to be thinking of every contingency.

In the end, the decision was left to me, and after much agonizing, I decided to bring Asahi along. I chose to put my faith in President Yamamoto's words, in the members of Kokushi Musou, and above all in my own strength.

And so, I sent Asahi toward Tokyo Mouse Park Dungeon. Gekkou is on babysitting duty at Yamamoto Electronics. A dozen-odd minutes later, Asahi arrived at Tokyo Mouse Park Dungeon.

▽▽▽

"SS-san, it's been a while!"

By the time Asahi arrived, the Kokushi Musou members were already assembled. Nearby, a party of four foreigners was staring at us, as if sizing us up. Michael's there too, so that must be Queens.

I set Asahi down in front of Shinonome-san and summoned Hayate.

"It's been a while, Shinonome-san. And Nishikyo-san, Kitora-san, Kannami-san — you all look to be in fine form as well."

Shinonome-san had offered the greeting on everyone's behalf, but the other three were right behind him, so I called out to them as well.

"SS-han! Give my heroic self a proper showin' on camera today too!"

"We're counting on you."

"SS-san, it has been some time. We're in your care today as well."

All three of them called out to me in turn. Being able to have exchanges like this, I feel like I've grown closer to the Kokushi Musou members.

While I was trading greetings with the Kokushi Musou members through Hayate, one man came walking over.

"So you are SS. My name is James Robert Austin. I lead Queens. Call me Jim. We're in your hands today."

So this man in silver armor is Queens' leader, is it. At first glance he looked cold and hard — but his speech was courteous, so maybe he's quite the earnest sort.

"Forgive me for speaking through a drone. I am SS. The pleasure is mine."

He'd greeted me politely, so I gave a proper reply of my own.

"Allow me to introduce the members. The blond fellow over there is Mikey, with the Scout Job. The woman holding a spare bow is Vivvi, our Archer. And the woman in white robes is Elsie, our Priest."

Hmm. Michael I know, but an Archer named Vivvi and a Priest named Elsie, then. Their leader Jim had the rare-job Knight, as I recall. World rank-3 indeed — quite a well-balanced party.

Although — for a guy who said only people he'd personally approved were allowed to call him Mikey, Michael got introduced as plain old "Mikey." Is that really okay?

"Now then, since the introductions appear to be finished, let us enter the dungeon right away."

In terms of rank, Queens are the higher, but this is a Japanese dungeon, and they're participating strictly as support. So the one taking command this time is Shinonome-san of Kokushi Musou. Jim and the rest of the Queens members followed his instructions without complaint, trailing along behind Kokushi Musou.

I transferred Asahi and Hayate ahead and stationed them in the floor-thirty Transfer Stone room to wait for the other members. Oh, right — today is a live broadcast. I put the feed from Hayate on the air with a delay.

"It's here! Been waiting for this — can't wait for the world's first live stream!"

"WHOOOAA! It's actually live! You're unreal, SS!"

"They're transferring in one after the other! Uho! The Queens lot's really here!"

The moment the stream went live, the viewers started climbing at a frightening rate. They said they'd beefed up the servers for today, but is this going to hold?

"Is this really live, though? It's not secretly pre-recorded, is it?"

"A joint Kokushi Musou and Queens exploration!? My heart can't take this!"

"Ahh, too many famous faces — I can't decide who to root for, desuwa."

The viewers were already fired up, but I'd better be careful not to get too distracted by that side of things.

"Is everyone ready?"

Once everyone had transferred over, Shinonome-san called out to the group.

"Ready and rarin' over here!"

Nishikyo-san answered right away, while Kitora-san and Kannami-san gave quiet nods.

"No problems on our end."

Jim answered on Queens' behalf.

And so began the joint exploration of Kokushi Musou and Queens.