14 – Dungeon practice – 2

 

As soon as Diana saw me she let out a strange sound, then she glanced at me from time to time. It seemed her reaction was a reflex brought on by seeing me.

 

If she had been so self-confident to step forward first only to fail to draw her sword properly and lose, it was natural for her to react that way. I’d be so embarrassed I couldn’t lift my head to look at others.

 

I inspected the other member. His face clearly showed his dissatisfaction. He seemed to be one of the people who did not approve of me, even after I displayed my skills. My luck with group members seemed crappy.

 

$Well, we have a while until we start. Should we introduce ourselves? We already know each other, so we can skip that part. How about you, the one with the chubby face over there?$

 

Diana flinched at the mention of knowing each other.

 

Although this role didn’t suit my character, all the dungeons’ locations and types of creatures that appear there were randomly assigned just before departure, so during the waiting time there wasn’t much to do.

 

So I was just trying to kill time, doing my best not to be awkward.

 

“Who do you think you are, acting like you’re the leader already?”

 

As soon as he confirmed that we were in the same group, the kid who had been making a face spat out the words as if he had chewed them.

 

Something seemed to have just come up.

 

“So you’re going to do it? On what grounds?”

 

He half-smiled at my retort.

 

“Surely you’re not going to bring up your family background, are you?”

 

He flinched. Bellium Academy wasn’t intent on preserving equality. There was a distinct class system among the students, and commoners couldn’t even breathe properly in front of the nobility.

 

But the priority here was not the prestige of the family, but the grades. Even a commoner, if they had higher grades, could hold their heads up high in front of the nobility.

 

So the nobility studied like crazy to avoid being outranked by the commoners, and the commoners studied like crazy to get on top of the nobility, creating a virtuous cycle.

 

If anyone attempted to receive preferential treatment by flaunting their low-ranking family in spite of lower grades, they would likely be scorned as dishonourable and foolish. This could be a fatal blow to the worth of a family name.

 

“……”

 

Seemingly lacking a solid argument against me, he shut his mouth. Given that this was strictly a merit-based entrance academy, he seemed to have some ability to judge the situation.

 

“I don’t care what you think of me, but if you have a brain, you should at least refrain from making comments like you just did, don’t you think?”

 

“……”

 

After giving him the final blow, I turned to look at the red-haired girl across from me.

 

“Let’s get back to the point. Just say your names and be done with it. After all, we won’t see each other much since we’re a temporary group. I’m Mira Crate.”

 

“…… Scarlet Dianna.”

 

“Warden Viking.”

 

He spat out his name in a broken voice. Viking was a remarkably unique surname. Judging by the calluses on his hand and the dual axes at his waist, it seemed like he shared traits with the Vikings of my imagination.

 

The nobility usually chose swords as a weapon, claiming that other weapons didn’t have form.

 

“What’s your specialty? I can handle both swordsmanship and magic.”

 

“…… The sword.”

 

“Axe.”

 

His weapon was as expected. His sullen attitude didn’t sit well with me, but he was still following my instructions. There was no need to provoke him if he didn’t intend to directly rebel.

 

“Number 7. It’s your turn. Come this way.”

 

Our number was called. The three of us, who had maintained a tense relationship, approached the makeshift portal. Jaina, holding the wand, glanced at us.

 

“You’ll be in Dungeon 7-1 and 7-2. Time will continue to pass until both dungeon cores are destroyed and you return here. Remember that it isn’t over until you return to this field. The deadline for my group is 8pm, with a one-point deduction for each five minutes you’re late. If you’re more than an hour late, you fail. Got it?”

 

Jaina saw us nod and gave a satisfied smile, tapping the portal. The portal began to spin, emitting a blue light.

 

From noble mtl dot com

 

“Alright. Get going. Do your best and don’t get hurt.”

 

We walked into the blue light. The surrounding scenery warped and the landscape changed from an open field with grass to a dense forest.

 

I couldn’t help but feel surprised by how thick and densely packed the trees were. Despite it being just after 2pm, it was dark all around. Creating a light source with magic was a basic skill, so that wouldn’t be a problem for anyone.

 

“What are the dungeon locations and types of monsters?”

 

At my question, Dianna, who had been checking the magical device she received, quickly answered.

 

“One dungeon is 3.7km to the southwest, the other is 4.1km to the east. We can expect to see trolls and an ogre in front of the dungeon core.”

 

It wouldn’t take long to cover those distances given there were no restrictions on using magic. Now what was left was the basic monster, the troll, and both Dianna and Warden seemed to take its existence for granted.

 

It looked like they thought two of them were enough to take it down, so I thought I could leave that side of things to them.

 

“We’ll split and take on each one, right?”

 

“Of course, that’s the most logical way. It’ll be a waste of time to stick together.”

 

At Dianna’s words, Warden immediately agreed. This was a time-honored trick in dungeon training. Splitting into two groups to simultaneously attack both sides. If we could finish in around three hours, it was almost always advantageous.

 

What used to be a commonplace practice became less prevalent after the professors initiated a system that increased the number of monsters in dungeons if fewer than three people entered.

 

While this wasn’t so severe that it was impossible to clear the dungeons, the fewer people who attempted a dungeon, the stronger the monsters became. However, these practices didn’t disappear entirely because overcoming more challenging dungeons was proof of superior abilities. After all, the names of those who entered were meticulously recorded for each dungeon, virtually making blindness or ignorance an impossible excuse.

 

“Looks like it’s settled. You two will head to dungeon 7-1 while I take the other.”

 

Intentionally, I chose a dungeon further away that was closer to the location I needed to examine.

 

“… Well, it is most advantageous if you go alone. After all, among us, you’re the strongest.”

 

Diana grumbled agreeably.

 

The fewer the adventurers, the more monsters appear, especially when entering alone. In comparison to groups of three, solitary adventurers had to contend with a formidable fourfold increase in monsters.

 

Unless one had an extraordinary level of abilities, challenging the dungeon alone, out of unwarranted arrogance, could mean failure and a grade penalty barely short of failing marking the entire team, creating a challenging situation.

 

“I worry more about you two, actually.”

 

“Are you mocking us?”

 

“Then prove your abilities. Surely you’re not so senseless that, upon feeling ridiculed, you rashly charge towards the core, right? If that’s the case, tell me in advance. I’m open to switching.”

 

Annoyed by my provocation, Worden gritted his teeth. Regardless of his feelings, he would have to sync with Diana to proceed.

 

My mockery would come to his mind each time he felt like charging headfirst into the monsters and the core due to his flared temper.

 

‘Typical luck with guys.’

 

Grumbling, Worden followed the redhead woman. He had disliked the man from the day of the Entrance Ceremony. He didn’t appreciate the fact that he was able to make such a statement because of his advanced abilities.

 

He knew very well the nature of this emotion:

 

Inferiority.

 

But Worden was not so daft as to openly resist or disobey orders to serve his petty vanity.

 

Any disorder here could fatally harm his honor. It was crucial to get good grades and protect his family’s honor rather than appeasing momentary feelings of insufficiency through futile resistance.

 

If he were the type to blindly charge ahead out of emotion, he would not have been admitted here in the first place.

 

“We’ve just arrived. This is the place.”

 

“Got it. Let’s prepare.”

 

The pair readied their weapons in front of the dungeon, Diana drawing her sword and Worden dual-wielding his axes. They stepped back slightly, ensuring adequate distance as both of them needed to participate in close combat.

 

“…Wait.”

 

“What is it?”

 

Diana, who was about to head in, paused and pointed to a wall near the entrance. There was a strange purple stain there.

 

On closer inspection, it was not just on that spot. The dungeon walls were smudged purple all over. An uneasy Worden muttered.

 

“What is this?”

 

“I’m not sure…Mold?”

 

“Mold can’t possibly form in an artificial dungeon.”

 

Unsure of the stain’s nature, both were hesitant to proceed.

 

While Professor Jaina had given them examples and urged them to detonate a magic tool if they witnessed any abnormal phenomena, she hadn’t mentioned anything about purple stains covering the dungeon entrance.

 

“If what we found isn’t anomalous and we detonate the tool…”

 

“We might have points deducted.”

 

That would be a dreadful outcome.

 

“…Ah. Could this be part of the concept? They say dungeons long left unattended are wrapped in a purple haze. It could be one such concept dungeon.”

 

After some stifled grunts, Diana proposed her opinion as if a good idea had dawned upon her. Worden carefully observed the interior once more. It was a plausible deduction.

 

Their last dungeon practical was just yesterday in this very forest. Meaning, not even 24 hours had passed since the professors had repaired this place, so it was highly unlikely that any problems had occurred in such a brief period.

 

“That makes sense. If they’re emulating an ancient, deserted dungeon, we’d have to be extra careful, remember?”

 

Both of them were convinced that this violet stain was the professors’ work, and they stepped inside.

 

Because of this, they also assumed that the stain spreading out was part of the condition that had been preset.