chapter04 · 112-ep112
Episode 109: The Strongest Old Lady and Her Rambunctious Grandson (or Something Like That)
"Ngh...!? Seriously, what the hell IS this bullshit wind-magic skill...?"
Late at night.
Kagerou sat breathing heavily in his living room.
He was struggling desperately, activating all sorts of skills as he attempted to escape the abnormal prison of wind that completely immobilized him and prevented even his voice from reaching the outside.
An impossible monster he'd encountered roughly a week earlier.
Ever since the silver-haired, dark-skinned girl caught him, Kagerou had remained trapped inside this wind prison.
Fortunately, just as the girl had declared, she properly saw to his meals. The inside of the wind was, frustratingly, comfortable to sleep in, and he had purification-magic diapers (not much demand for them) intended for explorers who needed to relieve themselves while conquering dungeons, so his health was in no danger.
At this rate, her promise to free him in less than two weeks didn't seem to be a lie, so there appeared little need to rush his escape attempts.
But—
"That damn monster...! She really tracked down my home, cooked gigantic hunks of meat in my kitchen, and did whatever the hell she wanted! I mean, yeah, that stuff was ridiculously good... but either way, I'm breakin' this restraint and knockin' her down a peg no matter what!"
Kagerou continued struggling with all his strength to break free.
He needed to tell the police that the monster girl was attempting to contact Karin.
Granted, more than a week had already passed since his confinement, so that probably meant nothing anymore... but at this point it was a matter of pride.
"This really is a bullshit magic skill...! I'm a little over level 1000 and can struggle all I want without makin' it budge, and one reapplication a day keeps the effect goin'? That's goddamn insane...! But spend a week trapped and you start seein' a way through...!"
Kagerou activated the detection skills he'd been training lately at full capacity.
The mana flowing through the wind that surrounded him became faintly visible.
And when he drove an attack skill into a location where that mana thinned for a few instants... the wind weakened slightly.
This binding wind spell was, in short, something like a puzzle built out of magic.
He needed to concentrate every nerve, but there was a route to dismantling it with detection and attack skills. Until yesterday he hadn't quite grasped the knack and had run out of time before the monster girl returned to reapply the restraint—but at today's pace...!
He drove what had to be his several-dozenth attack into a weak point in the wind cage—and in that instant, fwsh.
"...! I... did it...?"
The wind surrounding Kagerou abruptly vanished, dropping him onto the bed.
"All right...! I freakin' did it...! Eat shit, monster...!"
Kagerou raised a cheer at escaping his restraints.
But his voice was extremely weak.
He'd exhausted every last shred of strength escaping.
A remote-activation binding spell this strong is seriously complete bullshit, what the hell, he cursed again, but still curled his lips at having achieved his escape.
Yet he couldn't be satisfied with that.
It might already be too late, but either way, he needed to tell the police about that monster—just as Kagerou went to leave the room—
"Ohh, well done! I kept quiet because it looked as though you might finally dispel it this time, but you truly did. Your natural aptitude is not so poor after all."
"...!?!?!?"
His heart almost stopped.
The balcony, its curtains fluttering.
There stood the monster girl who had imprisoned him, starlight at her back.
"Y-you... when the hell did you...!?"
"Ah, yes. Sorry to tell you this after you tried so desperately to break free, but there is no longer any need to worry about Karin. Karin and I have officially become friends, ja!"
"...................................Hah?"
Kagerou stared dumbfounded at the monster girl as she smugly thrust out her chest.
Friends? What was that? Some sort of code word? While he was still wondering, she handed back the smartphone she'd confiscated and said, "Here, see for yourself." When he went online for the first time in a week as instructed—
"................................Huh?"
The entire internet was in an uproar.
Apparently this monster, Sharie, had fought Karin evenly(?) before hitting it off with her, conquered the deep layers like she was out for a stroll, and then declared their friendship before over twenty million concurrent viewers.
Was this the end of the world?
And wait, hitting it off? Then what the hell had all his suffering this past week been for...?
N-no, more importantly—
(Hold the hell on, what is this insane internet analysis...!? No way... but if she really fought that batshit ojou-sama... then is this brat seriously Africa's...!?)
While the flood of information pouring from his phone left Kagerou in complete confusion—
"Mm-hmm. You do seem to have grown rather nicely. Your detection skills in particular have improved. As I thought, people grow best under a moderate extreme situation."
"Huh...?"
Perhaps bored of watching Kagerou check the internet, the monster girl suddenly said something strange, and Kagerou gave her a suspicious look. Improved detection skills...? He nearly snapped, Mine wouldn't grow, and that's why I hit a wall and ended up meeting a monster like you in the first place, damn it—then froze.
He was exhausted and his head had been filled to bursting by the torrent of information, so until now he hadn't spared a thought for his own condition... but the force inside him did indeed feel sharper somehow.
Realizing the change, Kagerou hurriedly used an appraisal item kept at home... and there they were: greatly improved numbers for all his detection skills. Growth beyond anything a single week of dungeon challenges could ever have brought him.
Dumbfounded, Kagerou turned toward the monster girl.
"You... did this on purpose?"
"Nothing so grand. Your eyes belonged to one who wished to grow stronger. I happened to possess a suitable restraint skill, so I merely meddled a little in exchange for the inconvenience. Oh, and this was something I did of my own accord. My promise to grant you one request remains valid."
"..."
At the monster girl's mischievous smile, Kagerou fell silent.
Honestly, he wanted to sever ties with this dangerous freak and never see her again.
Apparently she had hit it off with Karin Yamada, so she didn't seem to be evil—but that didn't change the fact she was a monster to whom common sense did not apply.
But—
"Then make me stronger."
This was probably an opportunity beyond anything he could have hoped for.
The words spilled from Kagerou's lips almost by reflex.
The monster girl grinned broadly.
"Fufufu, I knew you would say that. Very well. I have just secured a long-term stay in Japan, and I will have time to spare whenever I am not playing with Karin. I shall train you occasionally. So let us begin tomorrow, as soon as your stamina recovers, by tossing you into the abyssal layers or somewhere similar."
"No, hold on a second."
He couldn't stop himself from cutting her off.
Had he misheard? Or was that magic translation item or whatever malfunctioning? Kagerou genuinely wondered. But—
"Which abyss would be best, I wonder? Well, I know little of Japan's dungeons, and we should begin somewhere gentle. That Okutama Dungeon Karin streamed from had a grassy stage that looked easy to fight in, so it should do. Ah, but I hear it is somewhat far away. Well, if necessary, we can fly through the stratosphere and avoid discovery even in daylight—"
"I said hold the hell on! The abyss!? Don't give me that bullshit!"
He hadn't misheard anything.
Kagerou raised his voice at the monster genuinely planning to throw him straight into the abyssal layers.
Sure, he understood that a trial was necessary to break through his wall.
But there was an order to things. An order.
Kagerou desperately made that case, but—
"It is fine, it is fine. With me there, you have perhaps an eight or nine in ten chance of survival."
"That's a ten or twenty percent chance I DIE, you goddamn idiot!"
Kagerou roared again at the monster's carefree absurdity.
Some might think him a coward for balking at ten or twenty percent.
But that caution was the trick to surviving dungeons, and by extension, living long enough to become strong. If you died, leveling up meant jack shit. Thus Kagerou desperately argued his case—
"And that is why you do not grow. The same goes for this country's average explorer. You place too much weight on the risk of losing your lives."
"...!?"
At the girl's voice shifting smoothly into that of a monster, Kagerou caught his breath.
"Well, there are advantages and disadvantages. Countries called dungeon-advanced tend to possess many reckless fools who take risks lightly, and it is commonplace for children to be thrown into dungeons from a young age. Consequently, their casualty figures are far beyond the norm. In Africa's past, everyone dove into dungeons, died in great numbers, raised levels in great numbers, and waged war in great numbers, sending the population plummeting. That was not cultivation, but selection."
But, the girl continued, narrowing her eyes further.
"And therefore the absolute number of powerful people tends to grow. In this dungeon society, where quality has gained importance over quantity, that inefficient 'selection' has ended up working relatively to their advantage. Still, selection too carries all manner of risks. Japan's method—establishing solid societal foundations, increasing the pool of explorers who survive, and reliably securing large numbers of them—is likewise rational. To begin with, this country appears quite shrewd behind the scenes, Public Security foremost among them... But we have strayed from the topic."
The monster girl cleared her throat once.
"My point is that one cannot grow strong without staking one's life. All the more so without exceptional talent. Naturally, dying defeats the purpose, so alongside the madness to wager one's life, caution is also necessary... but the 'caution' you carry has a rather different character, does it not?"
"Ngh."
"I looked into you a little. I hear that when you once advanced into the deep layers, you had the misfortune to encounter a powerful monster and immediately fled. Have you not grown a little too cautious in your dungeon conquests ever since?"
"..."
Kagerou fell silent.
Honestly, he had never been particularly conscious of it... but despite being capable of streaming the lower layers solo, he had unconsciously avoided challenging the deep layers ever since. The monster girl's accusation rang true. Once he thought about it, the cause of his stalled growth was all too obvious.
"Therefore, for now, feel greater fear and the threat of monsters firsthand. The terror of monsters filled with genuine murderous intent, unlike me, who would never actually kill you after all is said and done. Then you will no longer be cowed in the deep layers. You will be able to calmly, cautiously wager your life on training. Make habitual the grit and recklessness you displayed when you risked your life to keep that information from me—and learn to keep your body from freezing even amid fear. Naturally, I will not demand that you defeat an abyssal monster right away. If I drive one to the brink and merely let you finish it, you will gain little experience besides. Therefore, so you yourself may fight fully in the deep layers, we must begin by going into the abyss and acclimating you to fear. Do you understand?"
"...Yeah, yeah, I get it."
Kagerou muttered sullenly after the monster girl's explanation.
"So for tomorrow, as a compromise, let's warm up with one of the strongest normal deep-layer monsters—"
"Good! Then tomorrow, we head into Okutama Dungeon's abyssal layers! The abyssal floor 1 boss, the floor 1 boss! I shall support you from the rear while you cross blades with an abyssal boss! You might suffer mental collapse from its fear before magic aftershocks can kill you—but you managed to keep playing dumb before me with your life on the line despite being afraid to retry the deep layers! It will be fine, it will be fine! You have the makings of it, so you can do it! This much should transform the cowardly spirit that still speaks of half measures even now into that of a warrior within a single day!"
"Screw you, the fear hurdle's even higher than before! I'm not doin' this, I'm out—hey, cut out the restraint spell! AAAAAAAAAAAAH! I never should've asked this monster to train meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
Kagerou, caught in the binding spell again as he tried to flee, screamed.
"If you survive tomorrow unharmed, you shall call me Master!" declared the monster girl. Wondering whether this was in fact a contract with a demon, he was consumed by wholehearted regret.
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Incidentally, Sharifa-sama will probably be staying at a luxury hotel or apartment arranged by Public Security! (She was practically a wild child to begin with and even now spends long stretches inside dungeons, so she'd be perfectly happy living in a run-down apartment too, desu wa.)
※And next time is a forum episode, but I want to get back to a Karin ojou-sama-focused story soon, so I'll update the forum episode tomorrow and get on with the next part on Sunday, desu wa~!