ch341-ch360 · 354-ch354

Chapter 354: When 【Gate】 Gets Exposed

"Now then—let's continue the dream discussion."

December 31st.

After Tokyo Tower we wandered the city a little, but with it being New Year's Eve few shops were open, and we wrapped up early.

We couldn't find a decent restaurant either, so we settled for the Chiba branch's restaurant.

And then, right there, we rented a meeting room to talk about Floor 50.

"Floor 50...... I see......"

Kasumi-san said that what I saw while my memory was gone was a dream of Floor 50.

No—more precisely, she seems to have deduced it by linking my dream to the rumor that the Floor 50 boss is a Lich.

"Yes. The dream you saw, Haruki-san, was of Floor 50. It seems the boss there is a spectral Lich that ordinary physical attacks don't work on, alongside skeletons bearing your own equipment and jobs."

This time she says it plainly.

Despite it being just a rumor?

Not only that—earlier she somehow knew the originals the skeletons were copied from.

She even knew the true identity of the 'Sword Saint-chan skeleton'—which I, the dreamer himself, spent a while believing was Aikawa.

That's not right.

"You sound very sure. Do you have proof?"

"Someone else had the same dream."

Ah—I see.

"So you had the same dream too, Kasumi-san?"

That would add up.

"No, not me."

"Eh? Then who?"

She judged it's the Floor 50 boss from a dream someone ELSE had?

Then—Soushi or Aikawa?

Did something like that happen while I'd lost my memory?

Aikawa did say something about having bad dreams. Sounds like Aikawa, honestly.

"It is truly a bitter pill to swallow, but it was Hoshino Chiharu."

"'Sword Saint-chan'? Why her, of all people......"

Mmm-mmm-mmm—again Aikawa is passed over for 'Sword Saint-chan'......

Five skeletons appeared in the dream.

Kasumi-san, me, 'Blue Shadow,' Yukiya-san, and 'Sword Saint-chan.'

Which raises the question.

Why THOSE five skeletons?

"You remember that three members of 'Blue Ocean' came to recruit me, don't you?"

"Yes. I remember everything from while my memory was gone, too. As I recall, Uehara Asu—'san,' was it—said she isn't going to Floor 50. So with Kaito-san not going either, they're recruiting the two of you—Kasumi-san and Miko-san—that's what I remember."

Miko-san seems to have come to the Christmas party, so she should be back by now.

The recruitment offer may have reached her already.

"Mmm? Miko-san?...... As for why they would try to recruit me?"

"Because you're strong, no? And famous."

As far as I know, level-wise, Kasumi-san comes right after 'Blue Ocean.'

If her level hasn't changed since before, she's 43.

Getting that high on Floor 39 is no small feat.

Right now the only Quadruple adventurers are 'Blue Ocean,' so that puts her above every other Triple-Rank—Bear Ossan included.

'Sword Saint-chan' said you can tell someone's strength by facing them weapon to weapon.

Having crossed blades with her, there'd be no candidate but Kasumi-san, they'd figure.

"As I said before, the skeletons that appear on Floor 50 are said to become the party members' skeletons. In other words—they are recruiting me because they saw MY skeleton in the dream."

Eh? That's what this is?

I've heard some dungeon dreams are prophetic.

So in 'Sword Saint-chan''s Floor 50 dream, the party members were Kasumi-san and Miko-san......

Hm? Prophetic?

"Huh? But that's odd. Then the skeletons in MY dream should be Soushi and Aikawa, no? So mine isn't a prophetic dream?"

"You seem to have something mixed up—what 'Blue Ocean' is looking for isn't Miko-san. It's you, Haruki-san."

Hm? Why?

"Eh? Me? What do they want me for? We keep running into each other as it is, don't we?"

"That's exactly it—the fifth party member 'Blue Ocean' is searching for IS you, Haruki-san."

Mmm?

"No, no—they were looking for Miko-san. You were there too, weren't you, Kasumi-san?"

"That was THEIR mistake. It was convenient, so I let them keep on believing it. The fifth member's traits, as Hoshino Chiharu described them: uses a jumonji spear, can produce 'Gates.' Now—who besides you, Haruki-san, fits that?"

Mmm-mmm-mmm?

"Isn't Miko-san's special skill 【Gate】, though?"

"Of course not. There's no way people with a skill like that just pop up one after another."

Well, you and Mia-san have the same skill, so you'd think it could happen......

No, it can't, can it.

If it could, there'd be way more Floor 50 intel floating around by now.

"And why would I go to Floor 50 with 'Blue Ocean'?"

"That's my question, actually. If you go, I go. I have my reasons."

Shouldn't that be the other way around?

"I don't have a reason to go? If YOU'RE being recruited, I'd be tagging along, no?"

"Then I would be the one without a reason...... No—I suppose I do have one, if you insist...... Haruki-san, if we leave them be, they will die. Dungeon dreams are warnings. Left alone, those three will challenge Floor 50 and never come back."

Hmm.

If the enemy's a Lich, even 'Sword Saint-chan' might be helpless?

No—with the silver sword she'd probably manage......

"All things considered, I'd like to at least give them the information......"

Just in case, too.

Besides, 'Sword Saint-chan survives, the rest die' is a bad ending to picture.

That 【Dimension Slash】 cannot be defended against.

Even my 'Charge Shield' gets split clean in two.

Dodging is the only option—but the opponent is a 【Sword Saint】.

By the time you notice, the swing is already finished.

Its weakness is that it can only be fired twice—but 'two of them died to it' is too cruel an outcome.

If the skeletons are the party members', I'd almost rather tell them: leave 'Sword Saint-chan' behind.

"For a while 'Blue Ocean' will be busy with the new-dungeon survey, but Miko-san's side will realize the mistake soon. Just remember this: they are looking for you, Haruki-san. And that part of 【Gate】's capabilities is known to them, too......"

"Between that and everything else, I'm in no hurry to come forward."

There's also the question of how much they know.

The 'helmet warrior' attacked from behind, warped in behind me—against me, that's about all the 【Gate】 use it showed.

If that's the extent of it, I could just lie—'only short range, same floor only.'

Still—who knew the day 【Gate】 got exposed would come like THIS......

Getting exposed via a dream? Isn't that just mean?

"'Blue Ocean' will be busy conquering the new dungeons for a while—myself included. I won't be able to show my face at the branch much through January. Haruki-san, focus on your exam studying. And absolutely no mountain climbing or scaling castle walls, you hear? Also—keep refraining from skill use, as before. Anything else on your mind?"

"One thing about the dream: the boss is a Wraith—no, sorry, a Lich, and only the Lich. I woke up when I beat it, so I'd say the skeletons were its retinue."

At that point I'd only beaten the helmet warrior—the black armor hadn't taken its finishing blow yet.

If I finished it, the 'Sword Saint-chan skeleton' would appear right away, so once I took the spear I left it in place, golem-style, to buy time with 'Charge Spear.'

"You BEAT it...... Come to think of it, you did say that earlier...... Which means you, Haruki-san, could conquer Floor 50 solo?"

"I suppose that follows."

With the copy skeletons still around, an ordinary person would struggle just to get out—but once the Lich is down, I can just 【Gate】 back to the warehouse.

The 'Eye Gates' can even do short-range transfer now, so I could move to the 'Gate to Floor 51' and flee to the next floor.

And whether it's the copy skeletons or the Lich—as long as I can return to the warehouse, there are endless ways to handle it.

The only question is whether to teach any of it to someone else. That's all.

"That 'Sword Saint' said she still hasn't beaten it...... Just as I thought—you were BORN to defeat the 【Sword Saint】, Haruki-san!"

Not to clear Floor 50, though?

"Ah—there's one more thing I'm troubled about......"

"Troubled?"

Actually two—but only one is for consulting Kasumi-san about.

"Yes. It's about Miko-san and Fuyumi-san."

"Mmm-mmm-mmm-mmm-mmm-mmm. Miko-san? Now that you mention it, she was visiting that shrine constantly—even when Hiramatsu-san was on the job. Was she summoning you? A dangerous person after all!"

Some baseless suspicion, again......

"No, I hardly ever see Miko-san at the shrine—lately she's been hunting all over for Umemoto-san...... And it seems Umemoto-san is in the Hokkaido branch dungeon. So—who should I tell? Miko-san or Fuyumi-san?"

"Mmm-mmm-mmm? Umemoto? Hokkaido...... inside a dungeon, no less? Umemoto shouldn't be able to enter a dungeon, should he?"

"Didn't Dr. Amamiya arrange something? She went to Hokkaido recently, after all. Well, thinking of that, there's also the option of staying quiet for Dr. Amamiya's sake. But Fuyumi-san came all this way to cast 'Heal' despite being busy—so if I tell anyone, it should be Fuyumi-san? What do you think?"

"Mmm. Miko-san. Let's have her go to Hokkaido for a while. No—Hiramatsu-san has looked after us day in, day out; consider it repaying that debt. I'll contact Miko-san at once."

Counting in Hiramatsu-san's share, Miko-san does make sense.

Hiramatsu-san himself probably won't be thrilled about it, though.

But Miko-san came back for the new dungeon, right?

Her application was filed with Chiba, so she couldn't enter the new dungeon in Hokkaido anyway.

And the shrine in the dungeon.

She should have been preparing to receive New Year's shrine visitors once the break ended......

Even so, will she go looking for Umemoto-san?