by Fujino Omori
I draw the blade of the baselard she’s given me.
The silver blade is thin on both sides. It’s very light, and not that much bigger than my dagger, so for someone like me who has never used a sword, it might be pretty useful…
“I wonder if it suits me. I’ve never used something like this before…”
“How about testing it on the way to the tenth level? The monsters down to the seventh level would be perfect for practice. If Lilly’s eyes aren’t playing tricks on her, Mr. Bell would do very well using a shortsword.”
Lilly’s been with many parties and seen many fighting styles; I can trust her on this. She’s been with me a while now; she knows what she’s talking about.
There is no reason to doubt her; I’ll take her word for it.
“Ah…I don’t have a belt for a sword…”
All I can do is hang it from my waist. I was a little slow to realize that the sheath would get in my way.
“Mr. Bell, Mr. Bell.”
“?”
“If Lilly remembers correctly, Mr. Bell’s protector can hold weapons about that size, right?”
Ah, forgot about that. I even told her that myself.
I take the Divine Knife out of the protector for a moment to see if the baselard will fit inside. Yep, no problem.
“You have an amazing memory, Lilly. I completely forgot.”
“Hee-hee, Lilly only just remembered now, too.”
Lilly puts her hands behind her head and shyly turns away for a moment.
I can’t help but laugh as I watch her, but soon I realize I have another problem: Where do I put the Divine Knife?
“……”
Suddenly, I hear the goddess’s words from last night in my head:
—Is this supporter worthy of your trust?
It’s almost like the Divine Knife in my hand speaks to me, as the goddess’s voice asks me the same question for a third time.
“…”
I quietly close my eyes, asking for forgiveness.
When I open them up again, I slip the knife into my leg holster.
It has slots big enough for potion tubes; the knife and its sheath fit securely.
“…”
Lilly watches me silently, giving a light nod.
“Well then, shall we go?”
Lilly raises her head at my invitation. Bobbing her head slightly, she smiles and says, “Yes.”
“I’m counting on you, Tulle. It may be an inspection, but don’t go overboard.”
“Yes, sir.”
Eina’s supervisor at the Guild saw her out the door as she stepped onto West Main.
She was assigned to go to Babel to inspect the shops renting space from the Guild. This was just a routine job—entering the shops themselves and making sure that none of the Familias were doing anything shady.
Slipping an official armband up her sleeve and wrapping a scarf around her neck, she set off into the early morning streets of Orario. This set identified her as an inspector from the Guild. There were other Guild employees assigned to Babel Tower, but Eina was a few minutes behind them.
I didn’t get a chance to talk with Bell after all…
The information she collected at Loki Familia yesterday had been churning in her head all night.
Loki’s warning was still fresh in her mind, and she was itching to tell Bell just how much danger he was in right now.
She regretted not trying to do more yesterday evening to see him; she should have stopped at nothing to tell him.
I’m overstepping my bounds…But since I’ll be there anyway, I should inform Goddess Hestia.
Eina was going to inspect Hephaistos Familia today. The face of the goddess who recently started working there in her mind, she decided talking to her was the best course of action. The serious, law-abiding Eina realized that doing this would be an abuse of power as well as mix her personal and professional lives. However, she kicked those thoughts out of her head with a “Think I don’t know that?!” and continued on her way.
“Ah.”
“……?”
It was when Eina had just entered Central Park from West Main that Aiz Wallenstein came into Central Park from North Main and walked toward her.
“…G-good morning, Miss Wallenstein.”
“……Good morning.”
Aiz gave a small head nod, greeting the stuttering Eina. Her long blond hair, sparkling as if it were filled with golden dust, shook lightly as her head dipped.
While Eina didn’t know how to proceed, she would feel guilty not saying more than “good morning” to someone she had formally met yesterday. So she said the first thing that came to mind:
“Miss Wallenstein, what are you doing today?”
“I was thinking about buying some items.”
“Umm…at Babel?”
Aiz nodded again as their conversation continued. It sounded as though she was planning to go into the Dungeon today as well.
Eina thought it was a little strange that Reveria used a different item shop, but looking at the fully equipped and battle-ready Aiz, she nodded to herself.
While it might be difficult to imagine just by looking at her, this beautiful girl was known by two other names. Her first nickname was “kenki”: sword princess, or lady of the sword. However, she wanted to be known as “senki”—lady of combat, or lady of the battlefield—by other adventurers.
…She still looks depressed.
Eina had seen Aiz’s condition the previous night at Loki Familia. She did her best to engage Aiz in conversation, despite the blond girl’s spiritless voice and constant downtrodden eyes.
It must have really been a shock to her, having a boy she liked run away.
Even as she wanted to see the guy who would run away from a girl as breathtaking as Aiz, Eina decided to do some meddling on the behalf of her favorite younger-brother figure.
“Miss Wallenstein, please allow me to express my gratitude for saving one of my adventurers.”
“……?”
“Don’t tell me you have forgotten? A short time ago, you slew a rampaging minotaur on the fifth level just in time to save him.”
“………A minotaur.”
“Yes. The adventurer’s name is Bell Cranell. He’s extremely grateful to you…”
The instant Aiz heard Bell’s name, her neck twisted to an almost shocking degree. Eina was trying to let her know how Bell felt about her, but took a step back in stunned silence.
They stood there quietly beneath Babel Tower for a few moments. Aiz then looked at Eina with a hint of sadness in her eyes and nervously opened her mouth to speak.
“…He’s not afraid of me?”
“Wha…Huh?”
Eina was so confused, only a few sounds escaped her mouth in response.
“—?”
Just then, Eina happened to catch a glimpse of something.
Four adventurers had gathered under a tree with wide leaves just inside her line of sight.
Three of them had an emblem with a crescent moon over a glass of wine on their armor…Soma Familia’s symbol.
Almost out of reflex, Eina did what she could to lip-read their conversation from afar.
“—just as planned—make a mistake—”
“—know that—Erde needs to—”
There was quite a distance between them, but Eina’s emerald eyes were able to pick up those words from their conversation.
While they didn’t mention Bell’s name directly, they said the name of his supporter.
The group then broke up, but all of them made their way toward Babel. Eina was almost certain they were heading for the Dungeon.
“…Is something wrong?”
Aiz must have sensed something wrong with Eina. She raised her head as she spoke.
Eina’s expression was much more intense than usual, her eyes shaking. Eina stood silently for a few heartbeats before lowering her head in a crisp bow and releasing all of her anxiety at once.
�
�I know this is incredibly rude of me, but I have to ask. Please, help my subordinate. Save Bell Cranell.”
“……”
“I might just be overthinking it, but I have reason to believe he is in a very dangerous situation. I realize I’m asking a lot from you, but I beg you, come to his aid.”
“Is that yesterday’s…?”
Aiz had heard the conversation in Loki Familia’s reception room the night before and instantly connected the dots. The still-bowing Eina nodded and proceeded to tell Aiz everything in detail, from the beginning up to the party of Soma Familia adventurers that was now headed for the Dungeon.
Aiz listened quietly to every word. She nodded back and, when Eina finished, said, “I understand.”
“Are you sure this is okay?”
“Yes…I haven’t gotten a chance to apologize to him properly yet.”
While Eina was a little confused about the meaning of Aiz’s words, she stepped aside to let the girl pass.
Eina was just going to see her off, but watching her golden blond hair go into the distance, she had an urge to yell out one more thing.
“Um, Miss Wallenstein!”
“……?”
“Bell is…Bell Cranell really is extremely grateful to you for saving his life!”
Eina’s words brought a new level of focus and clarity to Aiz’s face—as well as a bit of softness around her eyes and the very slightest of smiles to her lips.
The layout and interior of the Dungeon change dramatically on levels eight and nine.
First of all, the number of rooms increases and they become much wider. The corridors connecting the rooms are all very short. Next, the ceiling that had been three or four meters above my head before is now about ten meters high.
The walls in these levels are yellow and covered in moss. Since the floor is covered with short grass, these levels look like a vast prairie. The light above is concentrated into one spot, like the sun over a massive plain. It feels like I’ve stepped into the countryside.
The monsters that show up here are like a review of previous floors—rather than new ones roaming the floors, stronger versions of goblins and kobolds show up. As long as adventurers don’t underestimate their strength, all of the techniques they’ve learned fighting these monsters on the upper levels will work here, too. Conquering levels eight and nine should be relatively easy.
As proof of that, Lilly and I have come down here many times in the past few days.
Now, our main destination: the tenth level.
This floor is…
“Fog…”
It’s not that bad, but there’s a cloud of mist hovering in this floor that’s thick enough to make it hard to see the other end of the room.
The look and pattern of the tenth level is more or less the same as eight and nine. However, the bright “sun” shining down from above is gone. Instead, it looks like a morning fog just before sunrise in here.
This is the first time that visibility has been an issue in the Dungeon.
“Lilly, stick close to me.”
“…Yes.”
I don’t know how many times I’ve said that to her, but I say it one more.
Of course I’m worried about getting separated and losing her in the mist, but I’m also keeping a sharp eye out for that male adventurer. Who knows when he’ll strike. I’ve been on the verge of pestering Lilly to stay by my side long before we got down to the tenth level, so it wouldn’t surprise me if she’s sick of it by now.
In any case…this thing isn’t half bad.
Keeping Lilly in my line of sight, I take a look at the baselard in my right hand.
It’s been very useful. I’ve never used a blade longer than my dagger, so it felt a bit awkward in my hand at first. But I think I’ll be giving it my seal of approval. It turns killer ants into mincemeat.
The baselard’s longer reach is like a breath of fresh air. I never knew how it felt to launch strike after strike from a safe distance.
It doesn’t have the cutting power that the Divine Knife has, but I can’t complain.
“……!”
A room opens up in front of us as we exit the corridor.
It’s another room of open savanna. The fog is still hanging in the air, but I can make out the dimensions of the room.
There are leafless, limbless dead trees scattered all around.
“……”
They stand eerily still within the haze. I frown as we set foot inside. For now, the best plan is to get away from the wall before a monster is born.
We approach a small group of the dead trees. Each stands somewhere between one and two meters tall. Abnormally thick bark covers a wide base, but the trunk becomes thinner and thinner the taller the tree grows. Very strange indeed…
—Ah, this must be them.
After giving the dead trees a once-over, I turn to talk to Lilly.
“What do you think? Should we cut these down?”
“No, we don’t have time for that.”
Lilly’s voice jumps in surprise as she stares past me.
I feel a wave of dread run down my back as I turn around to see what startled her.
A large silhouette is moving through the fog. Not only can I hear its gigantic feet hit the floor as it walks, I feel the vibrations of the impacts through my boots. My whole body is shaking.
I put up my arms defensively, with my face cramping up as I clench my jaw, hard.
“Ughaaaaaaa……”
The orc—a monster solidly in the Large category—appears through the fog with a low growl.
It has brown skin and a boar’s head. With old hide wrapped around its waist, it looks like it’s wearing some kind of beat-up old skirt. I think it’s about three meters tall—just a bit taller than the Minotaur.
However, compared to the thickly muscled Minotaur, the orc is round—squat and hugely fat.
“Well, they really are large…”
“You mustn’t run away, Mr. Bell!”
Lilly always says that escape never leads to the way forward. I swallow and nod.
She’s right. If I can’t slay this orc, then I’ll never be able to take down other large-category monsters later on…like the Minotaur.
I can’t let it scare me just because it towers over me.
I take a deep breath and make up my mind.
“Gahhh, ungahhh…!!”
The orc catches Lilly and me in its beady yellow eyes.
Locking onto its prey, the orc quickens its pace and the floor shakes even more. It makes its way through the group of dead trees, holding out its arm.
Grabbing onto one of the trees with its meaty hand, the orc pulls it out of the floor.
What was once just natural scenery inside the Dungeon has become a crude club in the monster’s hands.
A landform—the Dungeon’s own armory.
Yet another one of the Dungeon’s troublesome characteristics.
The living Dungeon itself provides natural weapons to the monsters that roam around inside it.
Landforms first appear on level ten and give the monsters here that much more power.
The Dungeon’s support has given one or two extra stones to monsters that could be taken down if unarmed.
“Lousy timing…”
Landforms can be destroyed, but since they are part of the living Dungeon, they grow back after a certain amount of time. It’s the same as the monsters themselves. However, I’ve heard that these dead trees grow back almost instantly.
Normally, adventurers would cut down the landforms before monsters arrived to prevent them from being used as weapons. The timing here couldn’t have been worse.
Now I have to confront a fully armed orc with almost no room to spare.
“……”
The orc’s heavy breathing is getting closer.
Its eyes are sparkling, like it could jump at me any second.
This will be my first battle with a large-category monster. I couldn’t be tenser.
>
My chest feels like it’s going to explode. Trying to get a handle on my beating heart, I take a deep breath and relax my shoulders.
That’s when the orc roars with all its might.
“GUOOOUUUHHHHHHHHHHH!!”
The starting bell. It’s time for battle.
Hearing the signal, I charge.
I can’t take a hit!
The difference in size is just too great. There’s no way I can block an attack.
If I’m hit, I’ll go flying. The protector on my arm isn’t going to stop anything.
On the other hand, if I’m on the attack…
First target: the lower body. Especially the feet planted firmly on the ground.
Just because it’s big doesn’t mean it’s invincible. Sure, I’ve been scared of its size from the start, but just like all big monsters, it has weaknesses.
When the enemy is big, it can’t hit a smaller, nimble target very well.
This is particularly true for the slow and sluggish orc. Its body is so heavy that it loses its balance very easily.
One hit.
Just one hit.
If I can avoid the first hit, it’ll be wide open to a counterattack.
The orc is getting closer, charging right for me!
“UGHOOOOOOOOOO!”
The orc builds up a head of steam, raising its club as it comes barreling forward.
The dead tree’s roots are round, making it look like a big hammer or club. The orc swings it around over its head, lining me up for its first strike.
Over its head…That means—!
“!”
I shoot forward with no hesitation.
It’s much easier to dodge an overhead arcing strike than a sideways sweep. If I can just figure out where the weapon will land, I can get out of the way. Once the club hits the ground, I don’t have to worry about a follow-up attack.
And the orc can’t defend itself until it raises the club again, so that’s my chance.
I’ll hit with everything I’ve got!
“GHOUUUU!”
“Gotcha!”
“—Gwouhhh?”
I handily dodge the falling club.
I use that momentum to get close to the orc’s right side and thrust the baselard into the beast just below its ribs.
The orc lets out a piercing scream as greenish liquid squirts out of its wound.