c41-c60 · 044-ch44

Chapter 44: Shin 4 n

"In my opinion, for explorers, being cool is more important than being strong. The value comes from being able to unleash incredible powers like magic and skills with a ba-ba-bam—stuff that was unimaginable just a generation ago."

"Hmm, but I still think being strong is more important. The fact that people couldn't use magic in the past is from before we were even born, and in the end, if you lose in battle, you die, right?"

"You guys have no sense. If I had to choose, I'd go with intelligence. Like the saying goes, 'to win without fighting'—using your head to navigate situations skillfully is what's most important for an explorer. Actually, we should ask a professional about this. Hey, mister explorer over there, what do you think?"

"Ah, m-my arm....”

Before the explorer's eyes lay what should have been his left arm just moments before. Fresh blood flowed from the gruesome severed stump, staining the dungeon floor red. The man who had lost his left arm was breathing heavily, his eyes bloodshot with terror. Thanks to the large amount of endorphins his brain had secreted, he couldn't feel the pain signals yet, but soon enough, excruciating pain would assault him.

The three people standing surrounding the man continued their casual conversation, paying no mind to his pained screams whatsoever.

"So... what does that mean?"

"That being an explorer means believing in your own arms, right?"

"Yeah, like how the experience you've cultivated is the key to escaping desperate situations... that makes sense, actually."

"I'll give you money! Please, I'm begging you, don't kill me...!"

"...Huh?"

"AHAHAHAHAHA!"

As the man, tears streaming down his ghastly face, desperately begged for his life, the three broke out in cheerful laughter. Since this was his last resort, staking everything on his survival, the man had no time to ponder the true meaning of their actions. All he felt was the sensation of his life's outer edge being gently traced by cold hands.

"Heeey, what's with that? With that way of talking, it sounds like we're the bad guys here."

"...Phew, rest assured, mister explorer. We're not particularly planning to kill you or anything."

He couldn't understand it. Suddenly attacked, he thought his arm had been cut off, but then they continued this pointless conversation right in front of him. And now they're telling him they won't kill him—how could he possibly trust them?

Something about them was fundamentally different as human beings. They were people he should never have gotten involved with.

Facing these three, whether out of primal instinct as a living being or emotion, the man's mind was beginning to snap.

"Th-then what are you!? What's the purpose of doing something like this!?"

Shouted at, the three just stood there blankly. They looked at each other and continued talking in the same tone as before.

"Purpose... what was that again? Do you remember?"

"If you don't know, there's no way I would."

"I remember. We were told to find bad people for now."

"That's right. Hey, mister explorer, are you a bad person?"

The man couldn't answer. Even though they spoke to him as if they were old acquaintances, it was too sudden for his brain to process.

"...Yes."

"Specifically, like stealing things from someone, or killing people..."

"Aah, I'm so tired from walking all day. I hope this explorer is one."

Sparked by those words the three let slip, the man found a path to survival. He could feel his brain slowly starting to work again. The three were looking for criminals. If he could make them understand he wasn't one, they would lose interest in him—or so he thought.

"...I haven't! I've never committed any kind of crime!"

Enduring the gradually returning pain in his left arm, the man shouted. Whether it was a lie or truth was something no one could prove. But in this situation, that didn't matter.

Perhaps it worked, as the three wore troubled expressions much more easily than the man had expected.

"I see, so you're not a bad person..."

"Jeez, searching this way is so inefficient. And catching another one would be such a hassle too."

"Oh, I just thought of something good. What if I get killed?"

"That's a great idea. If you're a murderer, you're definitely a bad person."

"For you, that's surprisingly clever."

Just as if deciding today's menu, the three made their decision and handed the man the sword that had fallen to the ground, placing it in his right hand. The man's brain, which had been working, stopped again. The man grasped the sword with a trembling hand. The pain in his arm was unbearably distracting. That was because he was forced to understand that this bizarre situation was, against his will, reality.

"If you're going to do it, make sure to aim properly at my neck. I don't mind the pain or anything, but if you go for the torso, it surprisingly takes a long time to die, you see."

"You can do it with just one hand?"

"It'll be fine, right? I mean, you're an explorer and all."

The neck offered so openly made him feel so abnormal it was nauseating. It wasn't that he couldn't understand—it was that he mustn't understand. His brain, his body, was rejecting the something before his eyes. And at the same time, his entire being told him he must kill this person here and now.

Swinging the sword with his mind blank was, in a sense, a normal reaction.

"Uwaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"

"Euh..."

"Agh..."

Having lost one arm and lacking the ability to think properly, there was no way he could swing a sword properly. Even though they should be within reach if he just extended his hand, the sword didn't reach them at all.

However, the sword did indeed cut. Not the person offering their neck, but the two surrounding them.

Perhaps because the limiter had come off due to this crisis situation, the human bodies were easily bisected like split bamboo.

The flying heads and the two bodies that fell limply. The splattering red liquid was the same color as what the man had shed.

"Ah, not me, but the two got killed. Well, I guess killing two is worse than just one, so that's fine, right?"

Even though two should have died, the remaining one muttered emotionlessly as before. There were no emotional waves in his voice, nothing more and nothing less—just the facts were in his words.

It was then that the man finally realized. And he trembled. Because he had seen just what he had cut.

"What are you... what in the world are you guys!?"

"That, could it be me... I? Ah, me. Are you asking for my name?"

The face smiling cheerfully had the exact same face as the two heads lying around haphazardly.

"My name is Chiffon. Chiffon, descendant of the Fool. And with that said, mister bad guy, I came here because I have business with you."

◇◇◇

[Thread About Dungeon Streamers part624]

415 Explorer Name is Anonymous

The uncle is the strongest

Negomin can call that uncle

Which means Negomin is the strongest

416 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Here comes the Negomin Summoner theory

417 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Was the uncle a legendary hero summoned from another world...?

418 Explorer Name is Anonymous

What! He's a dungeon cleaner

419 Explorer Name is Anonymous

I still can't accept that

420 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Accept it or not, he himself said he's from Shibasaki Cleaning

421 Explorer Name is Anonymous

That's just what he said himself

422 Explorer Name is Anonymous

>>421 What a flawless, perfect theory...!

423 Explorer Name is Anonymous

For real, that part's suspicious though

When I looked up Shibasaki Cleaning, not much information came out, and when I called the number on their homepage, nobody answered at all

424 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Maybe they just can't answer because everyone's calling...?

425 Shibuya's Clean Freak

Today after work, I asked my boss about Shibasaki Cleaning

All he said was "Don't get involved"

426 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Sooooooo scary

427 Explorer Name is Anonymous

>>425 Hiii!!

428 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Sandai-sama, who was moving so spectacularly, apparently left Shinjuku right away, and there are all sorts of suspicious things going on~

429 Shinjuku-Exclusive Dungeonist

We were talking about how that uncle might be the infamous assassin of Shinjuku

430 Explorer Name is Anonymous

What's that about

431 Shinjuku-Exclusive Dungeonist

In about this last month, the amount of troublesome explorers has suddenly decreased

Everyone's saying someone must be targeting and killing only those kinds of people behind the scenes

432 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Something that serious is happening in Shinjuku?

433 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Shinjuku's public safety is seriously good lately

The number of times I get bothered has actually decreased

434 Shinjuku Loner

It's definitely that uncle lol

435 Explorer Name is Anonymous

The legendary sweeper living in Shinjuku, so cool

436 Explorer Name is Anonymous

The fact that we can joke about things like assassins now makes me feel the flow of time

Back in the day, that wasn't something you could joke about

437 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Is that so?

438 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Crime clans used to exist everywhere. If you didn't investigate and take countermeasures yourself, you'd just become their prey

They gradually decreased in number with the major reforms, though

439 Explorer Name is Anonymous

There really was an era where scummy explorers openly shared good targets and hunting grounds on the net

440 Explorer Name is Anonymous

There was even a rumor that back then, the causes of death for explorers were half monsters and half people

441 Shinjuku Loner

We really live in a good age now (gazes into distance)

I don't even know the names of any crime clans

442 Explorer Name is Anonymous

All the famous ones are gone by now, right? Besides, it's better not to know about stuff like that

443 Explorer Name is Anonymous

They manage entry properly too, and these days, if you try anything, you get exposed and it's instant game over

444 Dark Chaos

I'll kill that trash named Shibasaki Ichiro

445 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Eh

446 Shinjuku Loner

There are scary people here too

447 Explorer Name is Anonymous

I've seen this guy in other places too. I'll report him

448 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Mister assassinnn. There's a target here~

449 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Just ignore him

450 Explorer Name is Anonymous

I'm going to Shinjuku tomorrow because a friend invited me, but I'm starting to get scared

451 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Don't worry

Leaving aside the assassin talk, there are seriously few weirdos like that nowadays

452 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Besides, there aren't any crime clans thinking of causing trouble these days!

453 Explorer Name is Anonymous

As long as that uncle is around, Shinjuku Dungeon will be safe, I bet

454 Explorer Name is Anonymous

Sooo gratefulll

With this, I won't be able to sleep facing Shibasaki-san for a while

455 Explorer Name is Anonymous

For real, I was born in a good era with little crime