Ihoujin, Dungeon ni Moguru

Translator: Solo

「………………Yes, please」

My heart ached when I saw Rana close to tears. The two of them were on the same wavelength when it came to using magic, but it seemed that being pulled along by Frey was humiliating for Rana. For a prideful elf, especially one like her who had unparalleled confidence in her skill in magic, it was hard to bear.

I’m sorry, Rana.

Just this once, bear with it just this once. Also, my name is not Nutria!

「Souya-sama, Lazarissa is very sorry for the trouble」

「Really~, I’m sorry things are like this~」

Her two attendants, who understood the situation, apologized to me. Rana grabbed my poncho and waved it about.

「Well then, Evetta-san, please register me and Frey-sama as a joint party」

「Understood」

Evetta-san wrote our names down on a document in her binder.

「Then please go to the back of the line. If you cut in line or do anything to disrupt it, I’ll crush you」

Scary.

Since her true strength was unfathomable, I lined up obediently.

But,

Approximately three or more groups had gone in, but none of them have come back. Is the opponent easy to defeat, I wonder? Or are the previous three groups really strong? The second group had seemed overwhelmingly weaker than us though, so that’s something to be relieved about, I suppose.

「Umm, let’s discuss some simple arrangements……」

「Fufu, we don’t need to do something like that. I’ll burn everything up with my magic」

「Ojou-sama, please shut up for a moment」

「Ugu」

Brushed aside(kicked) by Lazarissa, Frey clung to Shuna. Shuna didn’t seem altogether displeased and his face had turned red.

「Shuna, it’s fine if you’re just going to play around with her and then throw her away, but Onii-san forbids you from having a serious relationship with that woman, got it?」

「What the heck are you saying?」

At Shuna’s calm reply, I came back to my senses.

I’m sorry, I thought that a weird bug had clung to you(you’re keeping bad company), so I couldn’t help myself.

「Souya-sama, Lazarissa and Gashuraku will take charge of being vanguards. Is that alright?」

Things were not proceeding, so the maid proceeded.

That’s a much appreciated suggestion, but……

「Yes, I’m counting on the two of you to be the front-line vanguards. Is it okay if Shuna is positioned immediately behind you both?」

「Yes, that’s fine. But poor coordination will lead to confusion. Shuna-sama will go to the front only when Lazarissa and Gashuraku are defeated. Is such a promise alright?」

「Shuna, is that alright?」

「Yeah, got it」

Shuna and Lazarissa had sparred against each other.

Results-wise, Lazarissa had won with one punch. The loss could certainly be attributed to Shuna’s pride of not using swords against women. However, he obeyed her meekly, perhaps because he had felt the difference in strength.

「And Lys, you're next to me. Protect Frey-sama and Rana」

「………………」

Alright, there was no reply. I grabbed Lys’ cheeks, and then squeezed and rubbed them.

「Where's your reply?」

「Shup ut, stot ip」

「Your reply?」

I pinched them lightly. I forced her expressionless face into a smile. She smacked my hands away.

「Troublesome」

「If you don't obey, your next adventuring meal is only dry bread and dried potatoes」

「Tch………got it」

Alright. For the time being, we had sorted out our defense.

「Onii-chan, what about me?」

「Ea, be on standby at the very back in case of unexpected situations. Depending on the situation, you may shoot freely. It goes without saying, but be careful of the line of fire of both enemies and allies, alright?」

「Yeah, I want to ascertain the performance of this bow」

Ea’s bow was the only bow of its kind in the alternate world.

It was a compound bow, the so-called modern bow.

Pulleys were attached to both ends of the bow to assist in pulling the string, which was crossed and pulled taut. Moreover, the power needed to hold the bow drawn had been lowered considerably. It was also made of lightweight carbon.

I had broken the traditional elven composite bow that she had previously, so this was its replacement.

It should be different in various ways from what she was used to, but my sister had mastered it without any trouble.

The power was increased and the burden on the archer was reduced. If there were any problems, it would be how difficult it was to maintain and a decrease in durability due to the increased number of parts.

「Oh, that’s an unusual bow, isn’t it?」

Lazarissa, who had a keen eye for weapons, took a strong interest in the bow.

「Isn’t it an excellent bow? Onii-chan and Yukikaze made it for me. This is the only bow in the world that’s just for me」

The other parties were also eyeing Ea’s bow.

Yeah, the fact that it’s eye-catching is also a problem, I suppose.

There weren’t many adventurers who used bows, but rare objects drew the eyes of everyone. I had also thought about disguising it with a cover, but my sister had hated it as that made it impossible for her to shoot quickly, so I didn’t.

「Dear, what about me?」

「Oh, yup. I’ll make something for you one of these days」

The fact that it makes her elder sister jealous is also a problem, I suppose.

But,

「Did you notice, Souya-sama?」

「Yeah」

I nodded at Lazarissa’s question.

None of the parties had come back.

As could be expected, this was abnormal.

I had watched the moment the doors opened several times, but it was not like they fought the guardian right away. The only thing I could see was a long passageway.

What’s going on? It’s highly improbable that everyone won without any problems and proceeded on. It’s impossible for the guardian to be something this easy.

Before I realized, it was our turn next.

It’s prudent to withdraw for the time being and work out a plan.

「Nutria-san, you're afraid, aren’t you?」

「Huh, that's...……Yes」

I had tried to put on a poker face as best as I could, but I was seen through by Frey, of all people.

「In that case, put your mind at ease. You’re together with this Frey. Moreover, Rarananna-san, who is in no way inferior to me, is here too. It’s impossible for us to lose」

Certainly, both of them are great magicians, but the dungeon isn't so easy that we can advance with that alone.

We had already experienced that once.

「Souya-sama, just this once, it’s exactly as Ojou-sama said. In the worst case, Lazarissa will carry everyone and run away. Lazarissa is confident in Lazarissa’s escape techniques because Lazarissa has stuck with Ojou-sama throughout all of her reckless battles」

When a women said that much, as a man, I can't be shaking in my boots.

An adventurer is essentially a person who fights the unknown. The ones who have the courage to confront that are adventurers. I had forgotten that.

「Thank you, Lazarissa………………But give Agathion back」

「Does Lazarissa have to?」

「Yes, Lazarissa has to」

With natural movements, Lazarissa tried to put Agathion into a leather sheath.

「Come back」

The magic sword flew away from her hand and sheathed itself in my quiver.

It's no use as it’ll come back if I call it like this, alright?

「Souya, please proceed. Each party must use a separate door」

Our turn had come.

Evetta-san opened both doors. Our party went through the right door and Frey’s went through the left one. It was a long passageway and I couldn’t see its end. Feeling muddled, I matched Frey's party’s pace and walked through the door.

We moved in a formation that we had decided on beforehand, with Shuna at the head of the line, followed by Lys, me, Rana, and then Ea.

「Yukikaze, start the pulse and scan the topography. Oh, Ea, your ears are going to ring」

「Okay~」

My sister put on earplugs. I had thought that elves, with their big ears, all had sharp hearing, but there were many of them, like Rana, whose hearing was no different from a Hemu’s.

『Pulse, understood. Counting down, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1』

The A.I. that was disguised as a lantern at my waist performed a scan using sound waves. The map was displayed on my glasses-type device.

There was a wide space at the end of the straight passageway.

There were several small rooms along the perimeter of that wide space.

Mapping using the pulse is convenient, but the sound waves had attracted enemies before. Besides, it consumes a substantial amount of the mini-pod’s power. If I overuse it badly, the pseudo aqueous brain will go into a dormant state, and support such as proximity detection and party management will stop. Choosing when to use it is difficult. I wish that I hadn't lost my portable battery, but things don’t always conveniently turn out as planned.

『No hostiles detected within a radius of 30 meters』

「Hmm?」

That means that there are no enemies in the wide space as well.

No, I don’t need this hesitation. What I need is the grit to defeat whatever appears before us.

I strengthened my resolve.

With adventurers, playing things by ear is the norm. I had lost my nerve and forgot about that.

Ahead in the darkness, I saw a door.

No matter what’s beyond that door, I’ll defeat it utterly.

Our party reached the door.

Shuna put his hand on the door, but before opening it, he looked at me. I looked around at everyone in the party to confirm for the last time that there were no problems. With a nod, I had Shuna open the door.

Beyond the door was a wide space with a high ceiling.

At the same time, Frey and her party emerged from the door next to the one we had stepped through.

Before our eyes was a small mound of rusted weapons and armor that had been heaped up. Atop it was a small white creature with red eyes.

『?』

Question marks appeared over everyone’s heads.

In the alternate world, it was natural for it to have wings. However, that "rabbit" had no wings. In other words, it was exactly the same as a rabbit from the modern world.

For the time being, just as we had arranged, Lazarissa and Gashuraku-san went out in front.

「Umm」

Frey was justifiably bewildered. I was also at a loss over what to do with a mere rabbit. When I saw Ea nocking an arrow, I followed suit and nocked an arrow too, but I felt a reluctance to kill the rabbit.

I had been feeding winged rabbits in the camp as well. They ate the weeds and pests in the kitchen garden. Once in a while, they got removed by the golem managing the garden for eating the seedlings though.

What should I do? In all likelihood, this isn’t the enemy. It seems to me like this guy had wandered in here from somewhere else.

「Ojou-sama, let's have it for dinner」

Lazarissa stepped forward together with Gashuraku-san.

The rabbit vanished.

The heads of the two vanguards went flying.

My brain wasn’t keeping up because it had happened so quickly.

「Huh?」

A stupid-sounding voice escaped my mouth.

At the same time, intense fear shot through my body.

「SHUNA!」

Shouting his name was all I could do.

Before I could voice the word “retreat”, the rabbit lopped off Shuna’s head. Seeing his head tumble to the ground, despair and anger boiled up at the same time. The rabbit slipped past the arrows that Ea and I had released simultaneously and clung to Frey.

Until the very moment her head was wrenched off, she hadn’t stopped chanting calmly.

Her red dress was dyed even redder by the fresh blood. We had lost four people in just a few moments. The rabbit weaved its way past Lys' shield and went for my sister next.

A soundless scream escaped me.

I gave the magic sword an order, but it was all too late. I saw an explosion of blood. At the head-crushing-like shock, I averted my eyes from the sight before me.

The magic sword and Lys' sword closed in on the rabbit.

The magic sword was shattered and Lys was decapitated. Yukikaze was saying something. I didn’t hear what she said. There was something that took precedence over her words.

Thinking that I would at least lay my life down for her, I drew my hunting knife and stood between Rana and the rabbit.

This isn’t about whether I have it or not.

The distinction is whether I do them or not.

Actions that I’m sure are useless.

On a wing and a prayer, I swung the hunting knife.

The moment was fleeting.

The blade wasn’t even close.

I heard the sound of something falling from behind me.

From between my legs rolled Rana’s head. I met her seemingly sad eyes.

「ah」

The dam on my emotions broke inside me.

I know it's too late. But I’ll at least kill you.

Staring at those red eyes and chanting the words of calamity, I――

――was knocked to the ground and had my mouth covered.

There was a pungent smell in my nose. The view was distorted. I could hear the cries and screams of someone.

I was being held down by a woman. She had two horns and silver hair. I had been knocked down by Evetta-san, who was covering my mouth with a piece of cloth.

The ones in the same situation as me were Shuna, Ea, Lazarissa, and Gashuraku-san. Frey's situation was especially terrible and it was taking three people to hold her down.

Only Lys and Rana were standing there normally.

I looked at everyone's faces. I looked at their necks. Their heads were attached.

The ones holding us down were all people of the Adventurers’ Guild.

Why are they here? What is this?

「Alright, these guys are the last group for today. Let’s get moving」

A boy with small wings was giving orders to the Guild employees. He had the rabbit under his arm.

Supported and carried by the Guild employees, the party members and I moved.

Urged on by them, we went into a separate room. It was a simple room that only had chairs in it.

I could hear the screams of women and the angry shouts of men coming from the next room. They were probably the adventurers who had entered before us.

「Is there anyone who is experiencing abnormalities with their mind or body due to the psychological trauma?」

The boy, the President of the Adventurers’ Guild, surveyed all of us.

I felt like vomiting. Perhaps I looked terrible as well, but Evetta-san was thoughtfully patting my back. Frey was vomiting into a leather bag that had been prepared by her person-in-charge.

「Urk」

I was almost influenced by her too. I managed to endure it somehow.

「First, you guys. Look at your own pale-faced leaders over there」

At the Guild President’s words, everyone turned their attention towards me and Frey, who were in a miserable state.

Shuna and Ea also looked dreadful.

Lazarissa was expressionless, but was trembling a little bit. Because of his helmet, I couldn’t tell how Gashuraku-san was faring. Only Rana and Lys looked as they usually did.

「That's the face of your leader when you guys die. And, the two leaders. The faces that are looking at you now are the faces of your party members when you die」

Huh? What do you mean?

「Isn’t this rabbit cute? It’s a rare breed that doesn’t have wings, and it has been alive for at least 500 years. Back in the day, there were many victims of internal strife because of this guy. Right now, it’s under the care of and being used by the Guild」

「Guild President, in the end, what exactly is the 14th floor’s guardian?」

Did we lose?

Do we have to start over from the 10th floor again?

「It’s this guy, but strictly speaking, it’s not this guy. Your bonds are this floor’s guardian. Souya, what did you see?」

Images of what happened earlier came to my mind.

I had the feeling that they were going to appear in my dreams for some time.

「The death of everyone present, except for me」

「Frey, what about you?」

「I also, saw the same, blerrghh」

Frey vomited again.

「This rabbit, in exchange for having no fighting capabilities, makes others see illusions of “death”. It makes them see the deaths of the people they care about and the people they think they want to protect. The reason why we made you form joint parties is to let you distinguish between the deaths. Though it appears that it was pointless for the two of you. I have qualms about both of you as individuals, but as leaders, both of you pass.

And I’m saying this to the party members, but these two leaders think too lightly of their own lives. They’re the type that dies before anyone else.

That’s an admirable sense of responsibility, but don't forget. That it’ll lead to the annihilation of the party. Moreover, for those people with straight faces, you understand, right? ………That’s how it is」

The Guild President put a villainous-looking, pretty smile on his face.

With regards to Lys, I understood. That isn’t Bel’s true feelings. But Rana too………?

「I have a resistance against things like that」

「A, as expected from my partner in crime from Hohens」

That was how Rana answered my gaze.

The Guild President wagged his finger and instructed us to pay attention again.

「I’ll say it once more. Your bonds are this floor’s guardian. And, the adventures that you’ll have from now on will invariably be accompanied by the kind of unreasonable deaths that you’ve just experienced. The job of adventurer is, when all is said and done, this kind of thing. Think hard. Discuss often. Recall well the faces of your current party members. Is your relationship one that’s suitable for entrusting your lives to each other? Consider that carefully. That is this floor’s guardian」

That’s all, said the Guild President, who urged us to disperse.

Accompanied by our respective persons-in-charge, everyone started moving.

We descended from the 14th floor and validated the portal that was located immediately on the 15th floor. We returned through it. freℯ𝓌e𝚋𝐧𝘰vℯl.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Bonds, huh?

In some cases, that becomes the nastiest guardian. For some parties, they may disband or even form new parties here. Parties that only have a shared interest or are cemented together using lies end here.

It’s probably impossible to proceed beyond this point except with party members who have, in the truest sense, entrusted their lives to one another.

It seems that the time has come for us to talk about the matter that had been put on hold.