chapter04 · 103-ep103
Episode 100: Hitting It Off
"Wait, wait, wait, wait! Do you even understand what the pit is, girl!?"
The African Unification Dungeon Queen—who had approached Karin through all sorts of roundabout methods in hopes of finding an equal friend who wouldn't fear her, and had even held a little mock battle within the rookie-training stream—was frantically objecting as Karin skipped straight past the "equal friend" stage and started saying something insane.
The pit.
It was the genuine article: a realm humanity had never conquered, said to lie beyond the abyssal layers.
Information about its interior was essentially zero.
After all, dungeons possessing a pit were extremely rare, and not a single person had ever returned alive from that realm. Not on the surface, and—as far as the Queen knew—not even one in the underworld.
Actually, before anyone could return alive, hardly anyone could even attempt the pit in the first place.
Country-toppling explorers, precisely because of their caution, almost always kept their own information secret.
In other words, they had zero lateral connections, and teaming up with an equal to challenge a dungeon was simply out of the question.
So to challenge the pit, one would have to conquer the abyssal layers and then push into that unknown territory under conditions practically equivalent to solo. Even for those level-4000+ freaks who balanced madness and caution, it was nothing short of "suicide." With no challengers, information was inevitably zero.
As for information concerning the pit, the best there was amounted to a dubious rumor that a legendary great who had once solo-conquered the abyss cut off all contact without leaving so much as a scream on their communicator—there was virtually no information at all about what strength of monsters lurked there, or how many.
A realm regarded as too dangerous even by the explorers called country-toppling, purely because it was unknown.
And here was Karin, all of sixteen, cheerfully saying "Let's challenge it together!" about that place. Well, if the girl teamed up with us, it wouldn't necessarily be impossible... the Queen thought, while naturally firing back her retort.
But when the Queen asked whether she even knew what the pit was, Karin replied—
"Why yes, of course I am well aware, desu wa! It is the most dangerous realm within all the dungeons. And it is the place I, aspiring to be an ojou-sama explorer like Setsuna-sama, someday hope to conquer with my fists alone, Elegantly, on stream!"
Her eyes sparkling, Karin returned an enthusiastic answer to the Queen's question.
"However, to that end, I must first conquer it once using full equipment and everything else... I have been told that if I attempt it solo, I will be killed for real this time... Besides, even Setsuna-sama struggled in the pit at first despite powerful magical equipment. Hence I intended to exercise caution and challenge it properly with a party the first time! Fufu, to think that immediately after Setsuna-sama honored me with such gracious words, I would have an encounter like this—it must be destiny, desu wa!"
Ah, this one understands absolutely nothing.
The screws in her head—about ten of them—have flown out and her brain is scattered everywhere.
The Queen was now certain.
And of course, the Queen was not the only one utterly bewildered by Karin being Karin.
【Ojou-sama, what are you saying!?】
¥5,000
Uh... let me tell you exactly what just happened! I thought Karin ojou-sama got sent flying, and then she invited the 14-year-old (?) who sent her flying to conquer the pit... You probably have no idea what I'm talking about, but seriously, what is this insane ojou-sama saying...
【A hit landed on Karin ojou-sama!? Or so I thought, but then she just came back unharmed and started saying insane stuff and my emotions can't keep up!】
【Where am I even supposed to start tsukkomi-ing in this situation, I wonder...?】
【The government's stomachs are already in tatters】
【The developments are coming so fast I can't keep up with the tsukkomis, but first off, does the pit seriously exist, desu no!?】
【I thought a monster on Karin ojou-sama's level just sprouted out of nowhere, and then a sudden pit-challenge recruitment arc began, de gozaru】
【The world's leader-class ojou-samas must all have their hearts going ba-dump ba-dump right now...】
【I'm just a commoner ojou-sama and my heart is going ba-dump ba-dump too】
【Karin ojou-sama!? Please remember what you yourself said at the start of the training!?】
【Didn't you say to distinguish reality from fiction in dungeons and be careful!? Oh noooo!?】
【What's everyone on about? Karin ojou-sama is trying to challenge it with a party, not solo, right? That's the height of caution】
【↑ Head ojou-sama】
【↑ Th-that's hate speech...!】
【But more fundamentally, why is she skipping straight past abyssal conquest to the words "pit challenge" in the first place (trembling voice)】
【Why, you ask? Well...】
【The suspicion that Karin ojou-sama is a regular abyssal solo conqueror keeps growing more certain with every passing phrase—this is straight-up mystery-horror context】
【And wait, ojou-sama came out unharmed from that insane magic—is WHAT!?】
【It was already suspected back when she delivered that insane headbutt to the dungeon wall unharmed... but could it be that ojou-sama doesn't just have insane evasion, her defenses are also beyond reason...?】
【Super evasion plus super defense combo...】
【S H I T B O S S !】
【And wait, the dress sleeve seems to have repaired itself at some point...?】
【Oi, don't tell me this dress has even <Venom Jelly> regeneration built in...】
Centered on the pit-challenge declaration, the comment section was in maximum chaos from viewers rattled by all the developments that had unfolded in these dozen-odd seconds.
And the Dungeon Queen too, freshly dumbfounded by Karin's words and deeds, was lost for words alongside the viewers—(She simply never had a chance to obtain information about the pit, but to think she was this seriously conflating anime with reality...)—
But then,
"...Ku."
For several seconds the Queen stood dumbfounded at Karin's absurd behavior.
Then that small body shook with kukuku laughter, and—
"Kuku, kukukuhahahahahahahahaha!"
She laughed from the bottom of her heart, utterly delighted.
What filled her breast was joy beyond all hope.
(This girl is truly, truly the best! After fighting me that intensely, she doesn't fear me in the slightest—on the contrary, she's inviting me to a party with sparkling eyes!)
Well, the real thing was about ten times more insane than she'd imagined... but that was precisely why the girl had gained this abnormal strength, and could now stand before the Queen without a shred of fear.
(Actually, hold on—she didn't bring out additional equipment earlier not because I pressed her with that fierce barrage, but because she thought it was training, ja!? In that case, even factoring in that I haven't used my unique skill yet, is it possible she's already stronger than me!? ...Hah, my, my. If so, it is I who have been the utter fool of a clown, ja.)
At that deduction, the Queen's smile deepened further.
Far from relieving her boredom, far from merely living up to her hopes—Karin had leaped lightly over all of that and come charging forward. The Queen thought, from the bottom of her heart:
I want to become close with this ojou-sama!
I want to play together more!
The pit business was, well, genuinely dangerous, Karin's own life included, so she would fudge that aside for now... but she wanted a pretext to deepen their friendship.
So the Queen, wiping the tears that had gathered at the corners of her eyes from laughing too hard, turned once more to face Karin.
"What a fool you are, girl—you can't just up and challenge the pit!"
【Ah, thank goodness... this child seems to have more common sense than the ojou-sama!】
【Has common sense (by Karin ojou-sama standards)】
【Th-thank goodness... there was no senseless minor duo challenging the pit (one of them only suspected)...】
"If you mean to form a party and head into such unknown territory, would it not be best to first run dungeon conquests together many times in danger-free deep layers, confirming your compatibility and deepening your coordination!"
"Haah...! Th-that is indeed true, desu wa! I was simply so elated to meet someone of my own generation who is ever so strong...! Inviting someone younger to the pit right away was not Elegant of me either... You are quite right, desu wa!"
【No, that's not it】
【"Confirm coordination in danger-free deep layers" ←is that really Japanese?】
【Is the brown-skinned girl still studying Japanese, I wonder? (hoping)】
【Please stop using the contradiction-in-terms "danger-free deep layers" like it's perfectly normal...】
【For these two, it probably contains not a single contradiction...】
【As I suspected, this silver-haired girl is also an insane child, desu no!!】
【We already knew that from that incomprehensible fight earlier!】
【Karin ojou-sama making an "I see!" face is seriously LMAO (dead eyes)】
【A light coordination check in the deep layers...?】
【That's like saying "let's practice swimming in a flooded river"】
【Is she a kappa?】
【Younger...? Is she younger, I wonder...? Perhaps...】
【Listening to these two talk will drive you insane】
【Watching Karin ojou-sama's streams alone was already doing that...】
The viewers remained stunned by the otherworldly exchange, but the two monsters, each giddy over meeting an equal for the first time, could not be stopped.
"Then once this rookie-training work is finished, let us head to the deep layers at once, desu wa! I believe I have heard that for these training jobs, the clan members who donate their time are also given a venue for discovering rookies, so surely no one will object, desu no!"
"Good, decided, ja! Oh, and one more thing—let us do it while streaming! I am, in truth, a fan who fell in love at first sight with your streams, girl. I joined this training precisely because I wished so much to play together with you!"
"Why, is that so, desu no! Ehehe, that sort of thing makes me terribly happy and flustered, desu wa! Then let us make this a collab... or rather, a conquest stream with a guest invited, desu wa!"
"Yaay, ja! Ah, yes, yes. I will say this up front."
And with that, mid-sentence, the Queen turned her gaze from Karin toward the floating camera, and—
"Surely there is no one who would dare obstruct our dungeon conquest or attempt to stop our stream... is there?"
A complete change from the innocent cheering of moments before.
Smile still on her lips alone, eyes narrowing smoothly, the Queen addressed the entire world.
"In the two of us, Karin and I, entering a dungeon together, there will surely be many who feel reassured having a camera watched by many eyes, ensuring I do nothing strange... and there will be even more of those who wish to grasp, even a little, the power of one who has stepped out into the open like this, no?"
【Eek...】
【J-just now she was seriously giving off scary-mom energy...】
【O-oi, this kid really is wrong somehow! And not just in strength—in all sorts of ways!】
【Sh-she is clearly, deliberately positioning herself with full awareness of her international influence and standing...】
【"I am applying no pressure, you understand? I merely say this would be to your benefit as well, you understand?" ←just who exactly is this 14-year-old who can deliver this line with total confidence on a stream past ten million concurrents...】
【It's not just her strength, that poise is absolutely not 14 years old, desu wa!?】
【Karin ojou-sama doesn't have the brain of a 16-year-old outside combat, so they're contrasting opposites and a perfect match, desu wa!?!?】
【H-hey... Egyptian features, wide-area annihilation magic skills, and this aura... this girl, no way, I mean...】
And so, even as the viewers were driven to unease by a bad premonition, and Karin tilted her head at the suddenly suspicious Queen with "Whatever is the matter, desu no? Is this what they call that sensitive age, desu no?", the deep-layer stream plans barreled ever forward.
But amid all that—
"Wai—Karin ojou-sama!? Are you seriously planning to dive into the deep layers with that girl!?"
A stop was put in, as was only natural.
Mitsuki, who had been carried far away by the wind along with the other training participants, was the first to return, and she stopped Karin—about to dive into the deep layers with the abnormal-combat-power girl who had, by any reasonable reading, faked her identity to sneak into this training event.
And furthermore—
"Karin, hold on! Are you really planning to start a deep-layer conquest just like that!?"
Mafuyu, who had held off contacting her until the fighting ended, cut in by phone between the giddy Karin and the Queen.
"That age-fudging girl is probably from the African Federation's... n-no, regardless, you should avoid diving into a dungeon alone with someone you've only just met, even if their strength is comparable."
"Eh? Ahh, well, I have heard that, yes... But this person is a very, very good girl, desu no?"
Mafuyu hedged her words, trying to stop her, but Karin answered breezily.
"Despite wielding those magic skills, she fought with precise control and not a scratch of damage to her surroundings; there was such care in every single attack, desu no. If she intended any harm, she would have done it long ago. And above all... fufu, she says she is my fan! It is fine, quite fine, desu wa!"
"Ngh..."
Setting aside the fan business... at Karin's argument, for once, Mafuyu fell silent.
True, this silver-haired girl had committed all manner of problematic acts (frankly, identity fraud and illegal entry were already confirmed), but in everything else, this high-tier aramitama who tended to force her way through with power was, in her own chaotic way, keeping to a certain logic. Even to Mafuyu's ex-Public Security eyes, no intent to harm Karin could be detected.
Besides, having already shown her face to the camera, there was no point in deliberately luring Karin into a dungeon. If she intended to harm Karin, fighting aboveground would actually be advantageous against an opponent whose movements would be restrained by trying to limit collateral damage.
Set aside the international ramifications and the mental state of various national leaderships, and, as Karin said, there seemed to be no problem with the deep-layer stream. If anything, in Mafuyu's mind the ratio of reasons to stop Karin had reached roughly 30 percent caution, 70 percent jealousy.
And then—
"Eh..."
Mafuyu hastily covered the mouthpiece, eyes wide.
Instructions had just arrived from the top brass through Public Security channels.
To wit: "If she seems to pose no harm to Karin ojou-sama, let her do as she pleases for now. Should harm seem likely, we will take every measure we can—but at this point, rather than stopping the stream, it will be safer to let the presumed Dungeon Queen accomplish what she is intending, make it known through the stream that the two have become friendly, and thoroughly deter all onlookers" (liberally paraphrased).
And so, with all that settled—
"Now then, let us promptly resume the work, desu wa!"
"Right, then I shall prepare to send the chicks apology gifts through the Dungeon Bureau, ja! It was supposed to be a training stream, yet I monopolized Karin a tad too much at the end! I shall have them sent armor (the pride of my nation) that remains usable even after their levels rise! (...And my apology to the government can come later, ja). Ah, and I nearly forgot—call me 'Sharie' for the time being, if you would!"
Karin and the Queen, together with the terrified Dungeon Bureau staff, properly finished their closing greetings and cleanup, completing the training event's work as scheduled.
"It's all thanks to Mitsuki-sama introducing me to this job that I had an amaaazing encounter, desu wa~!" "?!?!?!??" —after hugging Mitsuki into a knockout, Karin moved on, together with the Queen, nonstop into the deep-layer conquest stream.
——Incidentally, as for the middle schoolers who, though carried far away by the wind, had witnessed Karin and the Queen's clash firsthand—
"S-so awesome...! What even WAS that...!"
"I saw something insane in person...!"
"That level is definitely impossible, but someday I wanna fight with movements like that!"
"So THAT'S what's out there in the world...!"
"But that was definitely not our age, right!? There's no way!"
"She showed us that kind of battle AND she's giving us armor? What an incredibly good person! But she's definitely not 14, and not a naturalized second-gen either—that person's head is messed up on a totally different axis from Karin ojou-sama!"
【LMAO】
【Middle schoolers these days are so mentally strong I'm LMAO】
【Kids with hearts of steel or what...!?】
【Well, anyone who came for that ojou-sama's training is a gathering of top-tier mentalities...】
【These are the top explorers of the future, no doubt】
—and so, despite being terrified out of their minds by the world's highest-peak battle, they were captivated by a fight that had shown not the slightest sign of harming them, and thrilled to the core.
With motivation MAXed, they set about putting what Karin had taught them into practice at once—the moment the training event ended, diving into dungeons of suitably matched difficulty for each of them, just as Karin and the others did.
―――――――――――――――――――――――――
Thanks to all of you (side stories aside), we've reached episode 100, desu wa~!
Furthermore, that's second place overall for the year, only seven months after serialization began, desu no! Thank you so very much, desu wa!
And so, next time we'll first have a forum episode (+ a new enemy I really should have introduced earlier, whom I've been reflecting on not writing in before the Queen's visit to Japan—they'll be showing up in full force!), and after that begins the laid-back dungeon-streaming arc for the two girls (?)! The ins and outs of the international business will come after all that wraps up, desu wa.
※By the way, the collapsed and unconscious Mitsuki-sama was collected by the Dungeon Bureau staff, desu wa