ch181-ch200 · 185-ch185

Chapter 185: Kasumi-san Comes Calling

"Sorry for the intrusion."

Tuesday arrived, and Kasumi-san finally came to our house.

No intrusion at all, I assure you?

"Well hello there! Welcome, welcome—I've been waiting. Come on up, dear."

My mother greeted her in her most dolled-up state.

"Thank you for having me. Ah—the refrigerator has already been moved out, I see..."

The old refrigerator had already been carried out of the kitchen.

"That's right. We even cleaned in there."

"It would have been better if I had come a little sooner. I'm sorry for my thoughtlessness."

She came early BECAUSE Kasumi-san was coming—arriving even earlier would just make things finish earlier.

"It's fine, it's fine. Having you here is a gift in itself. Now, tell me about Sunday. This boy of mine only ever says 'I went and came back'... Did my idiot son do anything rude to your parents?"

"Heaven's no. Your husband and wife both took a liking to Haruki-san and told him to bring him along next time as well. And Haruki-san is no idiot son. He stood between my father and me and brought us back together. He is a wonderful person of deeply respectable character."

Fufun. Did you hear that? You idiot parents?

She says I'm a wonderful person.

"You're the only one who says such things about him, Kasumi-san... Thank you. He may well be a good person at heart, at that..."

My mother, getting misty-eyed.

Well, thanks to my being undervalued at home, her humble deference toward Kasumi-san works out fine.

It'll go better as long as she doesn't get high-handed and start saying I'm too good for her son.

Fine, I'll keep playing the idiot son, so just respect Kasumi-san more.

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"I see—the place is quite tidy."

The new refrigerator was successfully installed, and for lunch, going head-to-head with the sushi, we had a top-grade unaju (eel over rice).

Kasumi-san had to hurry back to the branch for her afternoon shift, but she agreed to take a brief look at my room first.

Good thing I'd cleaned it up, huh...

No, no, there's nothing in there I'd mind showing anyone, you know?

"I'd like you to tutor me in here, though..."

Please be my home tutor!

"I'm afraid I have some unfortunate news... An inspection is coming from headquarters, and it seems they are still looking into the people around me. So I really cannot visit here frequently. Your studies will be in the dungeon, then."

"Aww..."

Kasumi-san apparently kept glancing behind her the whole way here today, too.

But I got her verbal agreement to tutor me in the dungeon!

Still, the Association is relentless.

They seem to think she was hiding a high-rank job—but she'd only just cleared Floor 30 at the time.

What exactly is the problem?

"This girl in the photo with me... she's in this photo too, I see..."

Kasumi-san, who had been looking at the junior high graduation album my mother brought out with the tea, murmured this.

That's true.

I don't even remember her name, though...

We were just in the same class, that's all.

No problem there.

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"I want to check the fridge, but going up to the second floor would be bad, huh..."

I came to the dungeon, but there's nobody in the warehouse.

A fridge should have been delivered here too, but entering the warehouse's second floor alone—already turned into Aikawa's room—feels like a problem.

Her uniform is in there, and everything...

I had plans today, so I sent the two of them shopping.

They went to buy the things Aikawa needs for living here.

I handed Soushi the money, so funds shouldn't be an issue.

There was a chance he'd balk at accepting it, so it's officially "wages for making parfaits for Shiraishi-san over summer break."

I also asked them to buy parfait ingredients while they were at it.

Aikawa spent all yesterday defeating orcs, so she should have money of her own too...

Yesterday we made it as far as the 'Gate to Floor 14' on Floor 13, and both of them are now Level 14.

Soushi's MP ran dry and the second half looked rough, but every time the orcs let up, Aikawa and I did the box step and somehow pulled through.

Aikawa also struggled with refreshing her buffs mid-combat.

Against orcs, when the buff timer ran out, it was faster to just kill the enemy in front of you than to dance in its face.

"Alright, let's head out. 【Gate】."

Gear on, I bring out the 'Right Gate'.

Both their Jobs are settled now, so it's about time to start the power leveling.

As preparation for that, I want to move the 'Left Gate' to Floor 31.

I'm alone right now, so I'll zip over and back.

I dive into the 'Right Gate', slip from the shadow of the hill to the 'Gate to Floor 14'.

Using 【Presence Concealment】, I jog smoothly along to the 'Gate to Floor 15'—and there I notice something strange.

(Lots of people.)

The area in front of the 'Gate to Floor 15' on Floor 14 is a campsite, but even though it's just past midday, it's bustling with people.

Summer break, maybe?

Floor 15 has people here and there enjoying grilled orc too.

Most of them I've never seen before.

Honestly, this is the first time I've seen this many people inside a dungeon.

Triple-Rank adventurers chasing after Kasumi-san get shooed off at Floor 1, so they wouldn't come this far.

Students again? No, none of them look that young...

"Oh? You alone? You've got strange tastes. Alone means a day trip, huh. Stay safe out there."

While I was watching the orc-grilling crowd, one of them called out to me.

"There do seem to be a lot of people—is something going on?"

"Hm? You came without knowing? And alone? So you're a Chiba adventurer... Hey, humor me. You see, there's a rumor an otherworlder showed up..."

An otherworlder?

What's that?

"...A blonde, naked little girl? Never seen anything like that, no?"

Of course I haven't?

Turns out a rumor's been going around that an otherworlder appeared in the Chiba Dungeon, and everyone here came looking for this "otherworlder."

And incredibly, the otherworlder in question is supposedly a blonde little girl who wanders the dungeon fully naked...

The sightings were apparently around Floor 15, so this area is especially crowded.

"Let me know if you figure anything out, yeah?"

"Okay~. See you~."

The story was so entertaining that I ran 【Presence Detection】 and searched a bit more thoroughly than planned, which cost me time.

Disqualified as an RTA runner.

I'll have to make the trip to Floor 31 alone again tomorrow, won't I.

Maybe I'll send Soushi and the others on another date tomorrow too?

Oh, and I didn't spot any shadows that looked like an otherworlder.

A shame.