Chapter 7
【Others Side】 A Scene at the
Dungeon Administration
【Others Side】
The dead of night at the Higashi-Nakano Dungeon Administration
was filled with a heavy atmosphere. Normally, it was a quiet time when the
scent of coffee drunk by the staff would drift through the air, but tonight,
the stench of blood and sweat, along with impatience, anxiety, and tension hung
in the air.
The on-duty Medical Officer, called in on an emergency, was
examining the condition of the injured near the Dungeon's transfer
circle. Lying there was a Hunter with heavily damaged equipment, wearing
an expression of agony. Furthermore, his companions and bored Security
Guards had gathered, creating a commotion. After a short while, the male Medical
Officer let out a breath of relief.
「For now, he
will be fine with this. However, while a Potion will heal his wounds, it will
not restore his stamina. I want to monitor his progress, so let's have him
sleep in the infirmary just in case until he wakes up. I will treat the other
injured as well, so anyone needing treatment, please come to the infirmary with
me. Or will you use a Potion?」
「No, we're
good on Potions. We already used up all four we had on hand and have no stock
left, and buying them would put us severely in the red. We'll take normal
treatment, please.」
A Potion is a magic medicine produced in a Dungeon that can
instantly heal injuries that would normally take up to three months to fully
recover from. Furthermore, magic medicines simply referred to as
"Potions" indicated those with effects and ranks capable of healing
that level of injury; there were also Potions with even higher effects or
effects other than healing injuries.
The trading price of a general Potion fluctuated slightly depending on
supply and demand, but the market price was roughly 200,000 yen per bottle.
This Hunter's party had used the four they had on hand and bought
another one from the Dungeon Administration, meaning they were forced
into an expenditure of approximately one million yen.
「Understood.
Let's go then.」
The unconscious Hunter was placed on a stretcher, and his
companions and the Medical Officer began to move. That was when the Dungeon
Administration receptionist, Tachibana, arrived.
「Hey, what
happened? You said you were going to your usual fifteenth floor today, right?
Someone please tell me what's going on.」
「Then I will.
I'm not that badly injured.」
「We're
counting on you. Tachibana-san, please listen to him first. Once we get
treated, we'll head over there.」
When Tachibana and the Hunter who volunteered to explain
moved to the lobby, the interrogation began there.
「What
happened? You should be used to the fifteenth floor.」
「Yeah, up
until halfway through. We were steadily advancing deeper while defeating Stone
Golems like always.」
「Then how did
you end up with such severely injured people?」
「A Golem
we'd never even seen before showed up. It was a black, gleaming, metallic Golem,
clearly different from a Stone Golem.」
「Black,
gleaming, and metallic?」
「That's
right. It was only slightly larger, but the intimidating magic power we felt
from it was on a completely different level.」
At the information about a monster she had never heard of, Tachibana's
brow furrowed. Tachibana was supposed to have thoroughly reviewed the
records of the Higashi-Nakano Dungeon, but there were no records of such
a monster on the fifteenth floor, let alone any other floor.
As a characteristic of the Higashi-Nakano Dungeon, starting from
the tenth floor onwards, only Golem-type monsters appear for a while. Golems
possess extremely high durability, and defeating them causes severe weapon
degradation, making them unpopular targets for hunting. This was one of the
reasons why the Higashi-Nakano Dungeon itself was unpopular, but
conversely, it was popular among a small number of Hunters who possessed
weapons and skills specialized against Golems.
「……So, you
mean it was a Rare Monster? But the Rare Monster on the fifteenth
floor shouldn't be a monster like that, right?」
「Yeah,
exactly. The Golems there are usually a whitish-gray, but the rare one
has a purplish tint and considerably high defense. But we can defeat it without
any issues. We'd never seen or heard of a black, metallic Golem like
that.」
「Then, does
that mean you encountered an Irregular Monster?」
Instances where extremely rare, special monsters appear are reported a
few times every year in Dungeons nationwide. Although an exceptionally
rare situation, she could accept it as that kind of phenomenon.
「But
something is really wrong. We thought the black Golem was a dangerous
monster, so we immediately ran away. However, that Golem was also
waiting where we fled to. And also where we fled after changing our route.
Those things were everywhere!」
The Hunter spoke in an excited manner, but realizing the volume
of his own voice, he took a deep breath to reset himself.
「In the end,
we somehow managed to flee into the transfer circle, but we ended up having to
clash with it once before that, and it resulted in that mess. That wasn't the
strength of a mid-layer monster. We're the ones who want to be told what on
earth is going on here.」
「We will
investigate this. Before that, please tell me everything you know about that
black Golem, as much as possible.」
The other Hunters who had finished having their injuries treated
began to join them, and Tachibana carefully conducted hearings with
multiple people.
After seeing the Hunters off, Tachibana confirmed their
footsteps fading away before picking up her cell phone. Looking at the clock,
it was past 3:00 AM, but without hesitation, she dialed the Director's
number and gave her report.
「――Understood.
Are there currently any Hunters inside the Dungeon?」
「There are
none.」
Tachibana answered immediately.
「However,
what should we do about the Irregular Monster situation?」
「We will deal
with it immediately. It would be preferable to have it handled by morning.」
The Director's voice possessed a resolute strength. Furthermore,
the Director continued.
「Actually,
this is good timing. The guys from 『Star of the Heavenly Sword』 are in the city.」
「Eh!」
At the unexpected news, Tachibana's voice cracked involuntarily.
「That 『Star of the Heavenly Sword』?」
Hearing the name of a Clan whose strength ranked among the top
five in Japan, Tachibana swallowed her breath. Even among the Clans,
which were gatherings of Hunters, 『Star of the Heavenly Sword』 was an exceptional existence. Just
speaking its name seemed to generate a sense of tension.
「I believe
it's that 『Star of the Heavenly Sword』. I don't know any other Clan by that name, at
least.」 「Umm, does it
seem like they would be willing to make a move for us?」
「I hear about
three of them have time on their hands. If it's them, they should be able to
clean up this irregular too.」
Conviction could be felt from the Director's voice. This brought Tachibana
a sense of relief. Although sudden emergencies rarely occurred in the Higashi-Nakano
Dungeon, there had never been a time when she had reason to doubt the Director's
judgment.
「I'll have
them head over there in a huge hurry. Tachibana-san, stand by as you
are. Even if other Hunters arrive, entry is prohibited tonight. I'll be
heading to the scene shortly as well.」
「Yes. By the
way...」
Tachibana continued, carefully choosing her words.
「What kind of
relationship do you have with the people from that Clan, Director?」
「They are old
acquaintances. From when both they and I were still young.」
The Director's voice softened.
「When you do
this job for a long time, those kinds of connections naturally grow.」
There were several strict conditions for founding a Clan, but in
exchange, they received generous support from the government. Rather than Hunters
acting individually, encouraging organized activities as a Clan and
having them polish their skills through friendly rivalry could allow them to
contribute greatly to the acquisition of Dungeon resources. A Clan
was one such system designed to achieve this. It stemmed from the judgment that
organized activities by Hunters were essential for the stable securing
of Dungeon resources.
「Is there
anything else on your mind?」
「Ah, that's
right.」
Tachibana made her voice bounce excitedly while checking the
records at hand.
「A female
rookie Hunter debuted today, but all the soul stones this girl brought
back were high quality.」
「Wait a
moment.」
The Director interrupted quietly.
「A rookie, a
female, and solo. And nothing but high-quality soul stones?」
「Yes. It
seems to be the effect of a skill, though.」
「Tachibana-san.」
The Director's voice suddenly took on a serious tone.
「Do not speak
of that matter to anyone as much as possible. I will hear the details later.」
「Y-Yes.」
At the sudden change in tone, Tachibana instinctively
straightened her posture. Silence returned once more to the administration
office after ending the call. However, this time, it wasn't just the quietness
of the dead of night. A heavy, oppressive wait for the arrival of 『Star of the
Heavenly Sword』 was about
to begin.
Author’s note:
The story will fundamentally progress from the perspective of the protagonist, Aoi, but there will occasionally be times when the story is reinforced from another perspective like this. If 【Others Side】 is written in the subtitle and at the beginning, it's a perspective other than Aoi's. Easy to understand, right! The frequency of these alternate perspectives isn't planned to be high, but I think they will consist of things that Aoi couldn't possibly know at that point in time, or slightly intriguing stories of what was happening behind the scenes. Also, I hadn't planned to update this work on weekends, but I will update it just for this early stage. I just want you all to read the continuation sooner—that kind of very pure spirit. Please treat me well.
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