“That was Satsuki-chan’s voice!”
The scream had come from deeper in the dungeon—the direction she had gone.
Before I knew it, I had already turned on my heel. I sprinted full speed in the opposite direction of the exit, charging straight into the depths of the dungeon.
> That’s dangerous, Mister!
> You shouldn’t go!
> If Satsuki’s screaming, something is seriously wrong!
> What the hell is going on in this dungeon?!
Like hell I could just ignore it!
There’s no way I could pretend I didn’t hear the scream of a beautiful girl who had just healed some random middle-aged guy like me. Something serious—something really bad—had to be happening deeper inside.
I have to hurry!
Bursting out of the domed chamber, I ran through the passage beyond it. My footsteps rang sharply against the stone floor as I sprinted forward, gasping for breath.
After several dozen meters, another exit came into view ahead—light spilling through the opening.
Satsuki-chan had to be somewhere past there.
Either way, there was only one option.
I had to go.
“Uooooooooh!!”
“Shaaaa!!”
“Whoa—! That was close!”
The moment I burst out of the corridor, I instantly recognized the space beyond. It was identical to the plaza where I had fought the slime and the orc earlier.
And at that exact moment—
I was attacked.
A skeletal monster suddenly slashed at me. My body lurched instinctively, my knees buckling as I stumbled forward, and by sheer luck the blade missed its mark.
But the relief lasted only a moment.
“Shaaa!!”
The skeletal monster was already moving in for a follow-up attack. Its sword rose high overhead, perfectly poised to split me in two.
“Shit! I can’t get up….!”
My knees were shaking so badly I couldn’t stand. I pushed my body too hard running all the way here with barely any stamina left. Now it simply refused to obey me.
Crap. This is bad. I’m done for.
“Haaah!!”
“—Bffu!”
The skeleton suddenly split vertically in two from the unexpected strike from behind it. Its two halves slid apart and collapsed to both sides. Standing there, having felled the monster in a single blow, was Satsuki-chan.
“Are you alright, Mister?”
“Th-thanks….”
“Seriously! Why did you come here?!”
“Well…. I heard you scream. Before I knew it, I was already running this way.”
“Ah… Sorry. That was probably my fault, wasn’t it?”
“N-no, not at all….”
“I just got a little startled. I never expected to run into a monster house in a place like this.”
A monster house?
> For real?
> So that’s why it’s crawling with monsters.
> No way…. this is insane.
> A monster house this early in the dungeon? That’s just cruel.
Even after saving me, Satsuki-chan hadn’t let her guard down.
She faced the monsters head-on. She’s standing between the monsters and my kneeling, wobbly self. Thankfully, the wall behind me meant I didn’t have to worry about a sneak attack from behind.
Still, true to the name, the room I had stumbled into was absolutely swarming with monsters—everywhere I looked, there were countless hostile forms.
“If I were alone, this wouldn’t be much of a problem…”
Satsuki-chan muttered. I heard it and I shakily rose to my feet.
Yeah, I get it. I can handle myself.
Could you not treat me like some kind of useless obstacle, please?
“You don’t have to worry about me. Just do whatever you need to do.”
“Just focus on protecting yourself. You already managed to take down an orc, so handling yourself should be fine, right?”
“P-Probably….”
“I’ll try to finish this as quickly as I can. If it looks like you’re about to die, just call out, okay?”
With that, Satsuki-chan honed her focus on the swarming mass of monsters—skeletons, slimes, goblins—easily numbering fifty or more.
At first glance, none of them looked particularly strong. Well, that is from the perspective of an S-rank adventurer of course. If I hadn’t shown up here, she probably would have cleared them all in no time and moved on to the next area.
> Try not to get surrounded.
> Just burn them all with [Cremation].
> Or maybe use [Requiem]?
> Oh, that might work on the skeletons.
> Yes, yes.
Thinking it’s someone else’s problem….
I’m still not used to combat, you know. This isn’t like a game stream.
Still… I can’t deny I’m curious about that [Requiem] skill.
Skeletons are, by all normal logic, undead-type creatures. If I combined it with [Cremation], I might actually be able to handle protecting myself.
I’m starting to feel a bit confident.
Alright! Let’s give this a shot!
“Okay, let’s go!”
With that shout, Satsuki-chan lunged at the enemies ahead. A sweeping strike wreathed in flames instantly obliterated three monsters in a single blow.
That’s [Fire Blade], huh? So cool!
Oops, this is not the time to get distracted. I have to activate my own skill.
“.….”
But how the hell am I supposed to imagine [Requiem]?
Chanting a sutra? Saying a prayer?
Nope. I have no idea at all.
Fine! It’s called purification, right? Then light—light it is!
I visualize the light. Picturing a gentle radiance pouring down from the heavens.
“Shaaaa!!”
Whoa! Here it comes! A skeleton!
Please let the light shine down! Banish this evil spirit!!!
Paaaahhhh!
“Eh?”
“Shwoah….”
With a sound like a trickle of water, the skeleton was bathed in soft light, dissipating into mist as it drifted upward toward the sky.
And not just that—
Shwoah…
Shwoah…
Shoo, shwoah…
The gentle glow of [Requiem] filled the dim monster house, and every single one of the twenty or so skeletons vanished in an instant, carried away into the light.
“No way….”
Satsuki-chan, already having struck down a few monsters with her own attacks, stared up at the ceiling, utterly speechless. The sudden burst of brightness and the complete disappearance of the skeletons left her frozen, unable to believe what she was witnessing.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.
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