Chapter 19, Are You Seriously Saying You Want To Explore Together?

Translator: Lizz

 

Rika’s addition alone had been more than enough for the party’s fighting strength, and with Masato learning new skills, their ability to battle monsters on the lower floors had become almost excessive. They no longer fought on the 2nd floor, and once Masato finished testing his skills, they moved their hunting grounds to the 4th floor, spending their days fighting groups of orcs.

 

An orc’s magic stone was worth 3,000 yen each. In three hours of exploration, they obtained at least ten. On day trips, they often wrapped up exploration after six hours, so even when splitting the earnings between the two, each still had 30,000 yen.

 

On top of that, both of their bodies were enhanced as they absorbed mana. It was fair to say they had been growing steadily as explorers.

 

Still, unexpected trouble inevitably occurred inside the dungeon.

 

Sometimes they encountered powerful enemies, sometimes they were surrounded by monsters due to traps appearing in deeper floors, and sometimes they were teleported to unknown places. When explorers went missing, it was usually because they had run into such misfortunes.

 

Masato and Rika had survived those troubles by luck, which was why they always stayed alert for unforeseen situations.

 

Even though their strength was sufficient, they did not think of advancing recklessly.

 

“Challenging the 5th-floor boss, huh…”

 

After returning home from exploration, Masato listened to Seiji’s request in the living room. Rekka was also present. It was, in effect, a family meeting.

 

Masato had already checked with Rika over chat and even learned about the boy she had spoken with at the dungeon shop. Since she had said ‘I’m fine either way’ and left the decision to him, everything depended on Masato’s word.

 

“Is the boss strong?”

 

“It’s an ogre. It uses a greatsword, heals itself, and the orc minions are troublesome.”

 

Masato passed on the information Rika had given him in response to Rekka’s question. When it came to gathering intel, Rika was better suited thanks to her personality, so he left it to her. Of course, he didn’t take everything as it is; he did enough to confirm the truth, but he was grateful that he didn’t have to go through the trouble of investigating from scratch.

 

“Hm. So you can’t beat it now, aniki?”

 

“No, it’s fine. We can win.”

 

“Then there’s no problem turning down the invitation.”

 

The recommended Level for breaking through the 5th floor was 1. The suggested party size was about five. Masato’s party was smaller than that, but if there was even one person on Level 2, they could fight with ease. The gap between Level 1 and Level 2 was that significant.

 

But that was only if the situation matched the advance information.

 

Just like when they fought the giant skeleton, unexpected events could happen. It wasn’t like a game where things were always the same. In the past, a party of ten had challenged the ogre and been wiped out. Since no one returned with information, no one knew what had happened, and the ogre was not an opponent to be underestimated. Considering safety, Seiji’s proposal had its merits even for Masato.

 

“I can refuse, but there’s no reason to.”

 

“Nii-san, are you going to accept the proposal?”

 

At Haru’s question, Masato folded his arms and let out a small groan.

 

“Hmm… Honestly, I’m torn.”

 

Of course, joint parties had their downsides. Especially in boss fights, where whether the members were trustworthy mattered. They had to be someone like Rika, who would help. If their abilities were weaker than hers, they would just be a burden. Without coordination, they couldn’t fight effectively, so he wanted companions of similar strength.

 

“Rekka, Seiji-kun was trained by senior explorers, right?”

 

“He bragged about it in class, so that’s definitely true. Apparently he had experience up to the 3rd floor.”

 

“Then his ability shouldn’t be that far behind.”

 

Part-time explorers or those who just wanted thrills usually stopped at the 2nd floor. The orcs’ massive bodies were intimidating, and without proper resolve and skill, few dared to go further. Considering he had been recognized as capable of standing on his own, it was hard to think Seiji was weaker than Rika.

 

He couldn’t be expected to match Masato’s Level 2 strength, but performance similar to Rika’s was reasonable to expect.

 

That left personality as the remaining concern.

 

“Do you think Seiji-kun can be trusted?”

 

“A guy who surrounds himself with women isn’t trustworthy.”

 

“I get how you feel.”

 

Masato gave a wry smile at Rekka’s openly jealous attitude and turned to Haru.

 

“What about you, Haru? How did you feel?”

 

Rekka’s judgment was too subjective, but Haru often observed from a step back, and his evaluations of people were well regarded.

 

“I think it’s true he wants to defeat the boss and set a new record. He’s the type who cares about how others see him, so I don’t think he’d suddenly betray you. And since there are already two women on their side, the gender balance makes things safer. Nii-san, I don’t think acting together would cause major problems. But…”

 

When a single woman was among men, trouble between genders was more likely. In this case, with more women in the party, that worry wasn’t necessary.

 

Still, Haru couldn’t bring himself to trust Seiji completely.

 

“I just feel uneasy. It seems like his goal isn’t only about breaking the record.”

 

That was the sense of unease Haru felt. At first it had been faint, but over time it took shape in words.

 

“Why did he approach us? If he wanted to form an explorer party, he could have spoken directly to nii-san.”

 

His actions were too roundabout.

 

If Seiji’s goal had been setting a new record, he should have hurried, yet what he did was the opposite. He had been circling from the outside, speaking to others first.

 

“He must have known that even if he talked to me or Rekka, the decision would ultimately be made after consulting you. Wasting so much time feels strange…”

 

“I see. I get your point, Haru. But couldn’t it be that he’s just being cautious, since choosing comrades for a boss fight is important?”

 

“Of course, that’s possible. But if it were me, I wouldn’t ask someone I didn’t get along with to mediate.”

 

“True enough…”

 

“Rekka, his reputation in class isn’t bad, right?”

 

“Annoyingly good. He’s handsome, his grades are high, he gets along well with people, and teachers think highly of him. He’s the kind of guy who seems to have everything.”

 

“If that evaluation is accurate, then it would be faster to form a party with him a few times, explore the dungeon together, and build understanding that way.”

 

“Then—”

 

“For now, let’s form a temporary joint party. We’ll act together on the 4th floor, and if there are no problems, we’ll officially aim to break through the 5th floor.”

 

The worst-case scenario Masato wanted to avoid was Seiji using him as bait in front of the ogre and running away. From the school’s and Haru’s assessment, that risk seemed low. Whatever ulterior motives Seiji might have had, if his goal was still to break through the 5th floor, then fighting together was possible.