Chapter 1

Suppose a Kid from the Last Dungeon Boonies Entered a Starter Dungeon

The staff room at the Azami Military Academy.

Surrounded by busy instructors, a large man was hunched over a desk, working on something.

This was Chrome Molybdenum, a former royal guard and the teacher in charge of Lloyd’s class.

His big, square frame was squeezed tightly behind his desk, and his pen darted from one page to another—grading written exams. Occasionally, the man would grunt or mutter, “I taught you this!” and that just made him seem even more unapproachable. His students’ grades did not look promising.

The teachers around him were keeping their distance, watching him like forest creatures observing a bear emerging from hibernation.

Chrome’s battle with the answer sheets crested, and he paused to stretch. The sound of creaking bones echoed through the room, with the distinctive pops and snaps characteristic of action anime.

“Wazzup, Chrome? Bushed already?” asked a small brunette instructor. She was standing behind him, clutching a mountain of paperwork.

Choline Sterase was still quite young. At a glance, you might mistake her for a student. But despite the gap in years, they were both instructors here.

“Choline,” Chrome grumbled, turning wearily toward her. “I swear grading papers uses muscle groups I never exercise otherwise.”

Choline picked up one such answer sheet. “Aha,” she exclaimed meaningfully. “That is a string of made-up responses for ya. Gives you a headache, don’t it? I’ve been there.”

“Yeah… Maybe I should have just made the whole thing multiple choice.”

“That won’t do the students any favors, though. Gotta balance it out! Flexibility ain’t your strong suit, Chrome.”

Chrome frowned at this. “I flex plenty.”

“Not your muscles! I mean your mind. Gotta be more adaptable! Oh, here’s the notes from the meeting.”

Choline put some documents on his desk. The sheer quantity of them made Chrome’s eyes go wide.

“That’s…a lot. What did you discuss?”

Choline sat down at her own desk, took her shoes off, and flopped against the backrest. She seemed even more exhausted than Chrome was.

“Uh, it covered a bunch of stuff… First, reports of weird monsters in the dungeon outside Azami. Locals are frightened, so we discussed countermeasures.”

“Outside Azami? The low-level dungeon we used to use for exams?”

Choline nodded and pointed at a document summarizing info on the dungeon itself and another summarizing the results of the initial investigation.

“Also, we got reports of missing persons on the East Side. Those rumors spread to town with the dungeon ones, so now people think monsters are disguised as humans, kidnapping folk, and devouring them in the dungeon.”

“People going missing is never a good sign.” Chrome scowled, remembering similar incidents in the past.

“There were some weird stories circulating even before these reports came in. Some man wandering the backroads asking people what he looked like. Suspicious, right?”

“What he looked like? That sounds like an urban legend. Are we sure this isn’t a cover story being spread by the perp to distract us?”

Choline sat up, spreading out the documents and pointing to where the reports were collected.

“We got multiple reports of this actually happening. But the weird part is, none of the reports give the same physical description of the guy.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, other than his gender, we got everything from ‘rich man,’ to ‘delivery guy,’ to ‘tourist,’ and ages ranging from midthirties to over seventy.”

“There’s no chance its more than one person? We might wanna check the correlations here.”

Her explanation finished, Choline began massaging her feet. She’d been in that meeting a long time.

“We discussed all reports on this, exchanging strategies and opinions on how to narrow down the cause. We had government mages there, too… Even the king.”

Chrome looked surprised. “His Majesty was there? He’s back to active work? Did he look well?”

The king of Azami—Marie’s father—had spent several years possessed by Abaddon, the locust demon lord. He was saved by Lloyd (who remained unaware of his own feat), and the threat to the realm had been averted.

Unfortunately, years of possession had taken its toll on him, and it’d taken time for the king to recover.

Chrome was naturally concerned, but Choline just sighed dramatically.

“Not only was he fine, he was fired up about this. Sounds like he read one too many books while he was bedridden. He kept dropping fancy jargon on us. It was exhausting,” she said.

“Just make sure you don’t start doing it, too. Well, he was always very dedicated. If he thought it would help the realm, I imagine he studied diligently,” Chrome replied.

While it wasn’t manifesting in the most productive of ways, Chrome was glad to hear the king was back to his old self. Now his subordinates just had to perform the necessary follow-through.

Chrome smiled, scratching the side of his neck.

“He kept calling the schedule an itinerary,” Choline said.

“Hmm.”

“And then he called the agenda a docket. We sat down, and he started right in, saying the first item on the docket was the reports of missing persons, and none of us knew what he meant… Believe it or not, there’s actually a glossary page mixed in with those documents, so I guess we’ll all have to bone up on this new business-speak. I think the king said he ‘outsourced’ the creation of that, but he just meant he asked someone to type it up for him.”

“Yeah, maybe he’s trying a little too hard.”

Chrome had meant to keep that to himself, but it slipped out by accident. Deliberately trying to use difficult words was not a good sign. They already had perfectly good words for all these things, so what purpose did it serve to make up longer ones?

Choline gathered up the paperwork and tapped it on the desk to straighten stray pages before tucking the bundle away.

“Well, he was in good spirits, and it’s your job to ensure his enthusiasm leads to good things.”

“Why is it my job?” Chrome asked.

“We have to keep our eye on the East Side. People going missing? How’s a frail maiden supposed to sleep at night?!”

“Are you even listening?”

“Thank goodness our army has a working cog like you, willing to patrol the streets all night long.”

“I don’t even qualify as human now?”

Bored with teasing Chrome, Choline collapsed on her desk, sighing.

“Ugh… Looks like more meetings are in our future. All day tomorrow and the next day! I’m dreading it already. And we got orders to investigate the dungeon outside Azami pronto. That’s the bigger problem! It’s too much to handle! There’s only one of me!”

“If there were two of you, I’d just have to hear you grumble twice as much, and that would be too much for me to handle. But if they’re pulling you in on this, you’d think word would come my way, especially about the dungeon thing. That’s a much more pressing concern for us than the missing persons.”

As a new teacher, Chrome had his hands full grading exams. Scoping out a dungeon on top of that made it seem like the work would never end. The man buried his face in his hands.

““Hah.””

Just as the two of them let out a synchronized sigh, the staff room door swung open, and Lloyd stepped in, looking nervous.

“Excuse me… Oh, Colonel Chrome. Lloyd Belladonna, reporting as ordered.”

“Lloyd? Oh right, I asked you to stop by.”

“Did I mess up on my exams? Am I getting expelled for flunking?!”

I see Lloyd’s self-esteem hasn’t improved, Chrome thought.

“No, no, nothing like that,” he assured. Then he lowered his voice. “Just between the two of us, you were one of the top scorers, both practical and written. So have a little more confidence, okay?”

Lloyd brightened up immediately. “Thank goodness! I broke so many weapons during the practical exam, I was certain I’d failed.”

He sighed with relief.

Choline leaned over to whisper in Chrome’s ear. “How’s that possible? I thought you used pretty sturdy weapons for that test?”

“Yeah…we did…,” Chrome rasped.

“Sounds like you’re gonna need to ‘outsource’ a whole new set.” Choline winced. “Accounts aren’t gonna be pleased about that.”

“So what did you want to see me for?” Lloyd asked.

Chrome pushed the threat of accounting from his mind and focused on his request.

“So the people upstairs want us providing lunches for some upcoming meetings. Apparently, they heard good things about the cafeteria food and want to boast about it to the VIPs that’ll be attending.”

“Oh, that’s nice!” Choline said, drooling at the thought. “Sometimes, all we get is solidified grease and dry rice, and nobody wants that. Give us a nice hot meal! If Lloyd’s doing the cooking, these boring meetings will be worth sitting through!”

She slurped her lips like a kid waiting for dinner. Students did tend to treat her like a child for a reason.

Lloyd replied with a cheerful smile. “I’d be glad to! Ask me anytime. How many are we talking? I’ll need to put an order in with our suppliers.”

“Hmm, good question… How many were there today, Choline?”

Choline assumed the expression of a crafty strategist devising a brilliant plan. Ignoring Chrome’s question, she inched closer to Lloyd and planted her hand on his shoulder.

“Lloyd! I have a favor to ask.”

“Yes? Wh-what is it?” he stammered. Even he found the woman’s grin worrying.

Choline clapped her hands together, begging him. “Please,” she said, looking up at Lloyd. “Can I ask you to handle this dungeon investigation?”

“Wh-what?!”

“There’s this rumor some weird monsters showed up there, and the locals are getting really nervous.”

An uncertain look crossed Lloyd’s face. He didn’t exactly have great experiences with dungeons.

“M-monsters in a dungeon…,” he repeated, sounding scared.

Chrome leaned in, whispering, “Choline, you know Lloyd is convinced he can’t do anything right. Laying this job on him…”

“That’s what I mean when I say you aren’t flexible. All that matters here is the outcome,” Choline said back.

“Really not getting your point.”

“He doesn’t have the confidence to investigate a dungeon? No problem! This is what’ll give it to him. One step on the road to correcting his low self-esteem. What’s more, it’ll be good for Azami. A win-win.”

“Hmm,” Chrome grunted, unconvinced.

“And if this monster is legit dangerous, who better to take it on? And you know, there’s a lot of upperclassmen unhappy that we made an exception for Lloyd’s late admission.”

“Yeah… His appearance works against him, there. And the more attention his friends get, the more problems arise…”

Allan was an heir to a local lord and had the top brass pushing his name. Riho had won the sorcery tournament and was always on the lookout for her next score. And then there was Lloyd’s stalker, Selen…and the most recent addition to the group, the martial artist Phyllo. Their combined power had destroyed campus facilities three times this month alone, and Chrome remembered accounting sneering, Since when are doors consumables?

“So here’s a good chance to rack up a clear and obvious achievement! This dungeon investigation’s a must-have for him! A must-have!”

Was this more lingo from that meeting? The compulsion to use all these new terms was the sinister side of such jargon. It was kind of obnoxious, and Chrome hoped Choline would get over it soon.

“I hate to ask when he’s clearly reluctant, but…you’re right, it might be for his own good.”

Chrome turned back to Lloyd, bowing his head.

“Sorry, Lloyd. Would you take care of this for us? Obviously, not by yourself. Bring anyone you like.”

“O-oh, well if I’m with the others… O-okay, I’ll see what I can do!”

Choline waved her hands, trying to ease the tension in the boy’s smile.

“Don’t stress it! They’re just rumors. Those lunches are a bigger deal.”

“Thanks for taking care of both problems, Lloyd.” Chrome bowed his head, which just made the kid all the more flustered.

“Don’t worry! I want to be the kind of soldier who can accept any request with a smile.”

As he often did, Lloyd flashed them a grin. Then he turned and left.

Clouds drifted past the peaceful landscape, the wind carrying the smells of grass and wildflowers into the clearing below the hills. This pastoral locale, not far from Azami, concealed the dungeon Lloyd and his group were to investigate.

It was beneath the ground. The well-tread corridors had long since had their treasures cleaned out, and the monsters on the early floors were more like slightly furrier animals.

The place was full of traps and other dungeon accoutrements, however, so the government had once used it as a beginner’s qualification test for adventurers and returners alike.

A girl was standing outside the entrance to that dungeon like she was waiting for her date.

Her soft hair was blond, and she was beautiful—but any charm she might’ve held was almost completely nullified by her sinister belt.

Selen Hemein. Some time ago, her face had been wrapped in an irremovable cursed belt, and she’d spent her childhood pitied and abhorred, mockingly referred to as the Cursed Belt Princess.

Thanks to Lloyd, though, not only had the curse been lifted, but she was now able to control the belt at will. It was made from the hide of Vritra, the guardian beast of Kunlun. Alka had originally used it as an apron and had accidentally sliced it up with Excalibur. Unsure what else to do with it, she’d added some metal bits, called it a cursed belt, and sold it to a merchant for dirt cheap. After learning the whole story, it was clear who really should’ve been cursed.

The upshot of it all was that Selen had become worryingly devoted to Lloyd and was now equally abhorred as an obsessed stalker… Curse or no curse, she was a pitiable girl.

Despite the growing file on her exploits down at the station, she was perfectly made-up and dressed to impress today, like she was on a date.

“Oh dear, I’m far too early. I just couldn’t wait for my date with Sir Lloyd!”

Clearly, she had the wrong idea. Well, the mysterious inner workings of her mind interpreted any invite from Lloyd as a date, so perhaps this shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Last week, she’d helped him hand out supplies to the class and said it was like they were slicing into the wedding cake together, much to the confusion of everyone around.

The belt bounced around happily as Selen basked in joy like an eager child as she awaited Lloyd’s arrival.

Next to Selen was a tall girl wearing clothes suited for vigorous activity, hair gathered in a sporty ponytail. She stood perfectly still, arms dangling like the limbs of a weeping willow—also waiting for the boy.

“…”

She waited patiently, her expression never changing, like a loyal dog.

Phyllo Quinone. She and her sister, Mena, had worked as mercenaries, calling themselves the Quinone Sisters. As a martial artist, she’d fallen in love with Lloyd’s strength, asked to become his disciple, and eventually enlisted in the academy alongside him.

“Deep in a dungeon, surrounded by darkness… Anything could happen! Oh, Sir Lloyd! Let’s take this back to my place!”

Once again, Selen seemed disinclined to do anything at less than full throttle.

“…It’s a dungeon…and I’m here…so this isn’t a date…,” Phyllo said, mincing no words.

“Oh?” Selen sounded annoyed. “What else could this be, then, Phyllo?”

“…A picnic. Fun for everyone.”

Neither of them seemed to understand the concept of a dungeon.

Phyllo pulled a deck of cards and some chips out of her pocket and held them up like a proud child.

Selen clicked her tongue. “You’re sadly misinformed, Phyllo.”

“I am?” she said, staring the other young woman right in the eyes.

“Yes,” Selen proclaimed. “All the magazines agree: Nothing makes you horny like mortal peril. They call it the suspension-bridge effect! We are about to enter a dungeon at great risk to life and limb…inevitably that means crossing a certain romantic line! By that logic, surely you can see that dungeon exploration is a form of dating.”

What logic?

“…I see.”

Don’t sound convinced! Suspension bridges certainly provide their thrills, but generally don’t arouse people.

“That said, Sir Lloyd’s such a shy boy—he couldn’t bring himself to invite just me and asked you along to hide his shame. Yet, I am always up for anything! He’s so cute when he gets flustered.”

Drool dribbled down Selen’s chin.

Having listened to her entire logic-bending spiel, Phyllo nodded gravely.

“…Ignoring your delusional comments… Peril makes you horny, huh… Very educational.”

Something like that wasn’t worth remembering, seriously.

While this idiocy was going on, a group of angry-looking people stormed in front of them. Like Selen and Phyllo, they’d donned military uniforms—the main difference being the armbands on their shoulders that marked them as upperclassmen.

“Oh?” the woman at the head of the pack sneered. “The troublemakers of the first-year class? Up to no good, I assume.”

She had a dynamite figure and bold lipstick, and she seemed used to wrapping men around her finger. Her uniform was very tight, and it looked like she could pop a button if she felt so inclined.

“Who are you?” Selen asked, frowning.

“Clearly, you have no idea how to speak to your superiors, much less take the time to learn who they are. I’m Micona Zol, head of the second-year class.”

She gave the two first-year students a withering look.

“And you’re the infamous stalker, Selen, and the walking force of destruction, Phyllo.”

“I’m not a stalker! My love is pure, if rather acrobatic.”

“…Destruction…? That’s not fair… That doorknob was just…worn out.”

Even Selen had trouble buying that one.

“Phyllo, that doorknob didn’t have time to get worn out! They’d just replaced it after you broke the previous one! What’s-your-name, feel free to correct your impressions of me alone.”

An extremely faint trace of displeasure appeared on Phyllo’s typically impassive face.

“…I don’t think your love is very pure,” she argued. “Last weekend…”

Selen was not about to let her finish that thought.

“Certainlyyyyy, I may have heard Sir Lloyd was going shopping for clothes, locked up the store staff, stole their uniforms, helped with fittings and alterations, and accompanied him intimately into the dressing rooms, but that’s entirely within the range of ordinary relationships.”

Her love may not have been “pure,” but her every action was 100 percent pure criminal behavior.

Between the collector of stalking incidents and the demolitionist who made accountants weep, Micona’s pack seemed genuinely horrified.

As if to encourage them, the leader called to them with grandiosity in her tone. “Your reputations precede you…and we’ve allowed you to get away with it for far too long. That ends today!”

Both Selen’s and Phyllo’s heads tilted. Neither had the slightest idea what was ending.

“What brings a bunch of upperclassmen out here anyway?”

“Heh-heh-heh…you see…”

Before Micona could explain any further, a big, confident man with a two-handed ax arrived.

Allan.

“Phyllo, Belt Princess, don’t go starting fights.”

“…I didn’t start this one.”

“We didn’t! They seem to be trying, though.”

The large man turned toward the upperclassmen.

The group was radiating hostility. They seemed to loathe him even more than the girls. Despite being faced with such angry glares, Allan just shrugged.

“Sheesh, looks like you’re telling the truth for once.”

“If it isn’t the famous Allan Toin Lidocaine. A rising star, receiving an unnatural degree of support from the top brass, guaranteed a promising future.”

Now understanding why the upperclassmen disliked him, Allan sighed softly, then aimed his most undauntable smile at Micona.

“Not like I wanted to be famous—it just worked out that way. But who exactly are you? I’m afraid I only remember those who’ve proven themselves worthy.”

“Oh? So you don’t have time for your upperclassmen, I see. But famous as you may be, it would behoove you to show respect to the head of the second-years, Micona Zol. That is, if you wish to graduate with your limbs intact or have any hope of promotions in the future.”

Micona let out a haughty laugh, and her minions joined her.

Allan’s grin never wavered.

“Promotions? Once I’d have jumped on that word. Not proud of it.”

“Are you implying it’s no longer a goal?” Micona said, clearly assuming he was bluffing.

Allan folded his arms, like he was chiding a pack of unruly children. He was taller than any of them and had the face of someone much older, so he definitely looked like a PE teacher…but let’s not tell him that.

“Listen, the world isn’t all about promotions or success. There are people out there who blow all that stuff out of the water. You meet one of them, and it’s like the first time you see the ocean, like the culture shock you get your first time overseas. They flip everything you thought you knew upside down. Make you realize how small you really are.”

He spoke with passion and a trace of self-mockery, describing events that had made a lasting impact on him. Micona’s response was icy cold. She clearly wasn’t interested, but Allan kept trying to chat her up.

“I see… And this culture shock would be the unhinged stalker and the thoughtless property destroyer? Did seeing them in action drive you mad?” She glanced briefly at Selen and Phyllo and then looked downright sorry for him. “You poor thing.”

Allan followed her gaze.

“She’s got a point there! You two gotta get it together. You’re ruining my cool speech!”

Very few things could survive proximity to these weirdos. They dragged everything down to their level.

Both girls looked confused. It went over their heads. Eyes as clear as the sky above… Their behavior wasn’t improving any time soon.

Micona seemed to think this was her moment. She snapped a finger at her minions, who handed her a magazine of some kind.

“You profess to a lack of interest in promotions, yet you are happily getting your photo snapped for army ads. Allan Toin Lidocaine, future star… Oh my, you’re flashing two peace signs.”

He was the featured player in the “promising rookies” section of this recruitment ad.

“I have no excuses…,” Allan croaked. He’d turned bright red.

It was definitely the kind of photo that felt mortifying in the cold air of the morning after. The feeling was akin to looking back at your yearbook and seeing signatures accompanied with lines from popular anime or manga back in the day or being the only one making a funny face in the class photo.

If he’d had a pillow with him, Allan would definitely have buried his face in it.

Selen and Phyllo weren’t gonna let him off the hook that easily, though.

“So this is why you got summoned by the office and had to miss class.”

“…You wanna be an idol? With that face?”

“Shut up!” Allan spluttered. “I can’t exactly tell the top brass, ‘No!’ And nobody said anything about this ‘future star’ crap.”

This just seemed to make the upperclassman all the more jealous. And who could’ve blamed them? It totally sounded like some kind of humblebrag.

Outside the dungeon, the tension in the air had grown so volatile that the pastoral vibe had been completely destroyed. A fight was likely to break out at any moment.

Fortunately, Chrome arrived.

“Mm? Why are there upperclassmen here?”

He’d come to check in on his students. After finally freeing himself of grading and escaping the drudgeries of office work, Chrome had visited only to find fresh trouble brewing. He rubbed his temples. His eyes were strained, his shoulders stiff… He probably should’ve stocked up on vitamins E and B12.

Chrome rolled his shoulder, and it crackled like a raffle wheel. Then he stepped between the two groups.

The appearance of a teacher instantly eased the tension. The power of a drill sergeant.

“What’s going on here? Do I have to increase your training regiments?”

Everyone fell silent. Micona spoke up first.

“No, Colonel Chrome. We were just having a few words with some unruly underclassmen. It’s our duty as their seniors—and mine as head of the second year.”

She made her case so smoothly and eloquently that the three younger students—none of whom were known for their debate skills—were left fidgeting uncomfortably.

As for Chrome’s response…

“Er…who are you, again?”

It was pretty—no, it was extremely brutal. Micona froze, smug grin stuck on her face.

“Oh…I get it.”

“So…in actual fact…”

Allan and Selen exchanged glances.

Phyllo, never the master of tact, just laid it on out there.

“…So you aren’t actually famous at all?”

Immediately, Micona’s companions both spun toward her.

“Hey! Don’t just say that to her face!”

“Uh-huh! And after I restrained myself from sneering, ‘Oh, I thought you were soooo important’?”

“…If you’re going to say it anyway, why stop yourself at all?”

Micona had definitely acted like she was famous and they ought to know who she was, but if even the teachers didn’t know her, it certainly came across as delusions of grandeur.

“Uh, sorry, I’m pretty new, so I don’t know all the students’ names yet,” Chrome explained, trying to make her feel better.

One of her followers stepped in. “Everyone knows Micona!”

“Just don’t!” Micona said. “I’m not… I’m…”

The supportive remarks fell on deaf ears, because her ego had instantly deflated, and she slumped over, looking pale. Not made of stern stuff, it seemed.

Now that the tense mood had given way to awkward comedy, a former mercenary with a mithril arm strolled up—Riho.

She frowned, seeing their investigation had gotten off to an odd start. A girl from a year above her was on her knees. It seemed nobody knew what to say to her. Selen and Allan had serious looks on their faces, and they were insisting that Phyllo apologize.

“Mornin’… What’s this? You bullying this poor girl?”

From their physical positions, it was easy to assume the entire pack was picking on her.

Her friends waved her over like they’d spotted their savior. Riho’s frown deepened.

“Mercenary! You know everything, right?”

“Riho! We need your intel network!”

“…Mm.”

“Please, Riho Flavin!” Chrome called out. “You know her, right? She’s famous, I think.”

“You, too, Chrome? What’s goin’ on here?”

Riho looked at the depressed girl and thumbed through her notebook.

“Geez…mm? She’s the head of the second year, Micona Zol, right? The second-years are all muscles for brains, but even in that group, she’s physically adept, and she can use magic, and she’s so fast they call her ‘Godspeed Micona’… Why is she depressed?”

When Riho rattled off a description as detailed as any Wikipedia entry, the crowd erupted in cheers. Completely baffled, she went with the flow and raised a fist in response.

As the cheers died down, Micona got to her feet.

“Thank you, Riho,” she said. “Honestly…why didn’t you get here sooner? You could’ve spared me this mental torment!”

“You always scold people while thanking them? How annoying.”

Riho scowled at Micona, but the second-year was back to acting as arrogant as when she’d arrived.

“Since I’m now proven to be well-known, do you really think it a wise decision to treat me with such disdain?”

“Famous or not… Why are you here? We’re here because our classmate asked us to help investigate this dungeon.”

This was a pretty reasonable position, but the second-years, Micona included, all sneered.

“We know,” she said. “And we know the neighbors have been complaining about weird monsters in this low-level dungeon. You’re here to investigate and, if need be, eliminate them.”

“Then what brings you—?”

But before Riho could finish, Micona held up a finger.

“We came to challenge you! Which of us is superior? Today, this matter will be settled for good!”

Micona seemed confident she knew the answer already, but the first-years replied with only blank expressions.

“The rules are simple! Whoever defeats the strange creatures first or reaches the lowest level of the dungeon and verifies its safety will emerge victorious!”

“It isn’t that simple!” Riho snarled. “You can’t just start a contest without prior approval.”

Chrome looked as appalled as his students.

“…Is there no end to the troubles? I need a break…”

Micona started laughing haughtily as Chrome rubbed his temples, like he was getting a headache. Vitamins alone weren’t going to cure his problems. He needed painkillers, stat.

Riho was clutching her head, too.

“This sounds like a huge mess… What if we just let you have Allan’s head on a platter instead?”

“Hey, wait! I need my head where it is!” Allan yelped. This was a universal truth. All humans needed to keep that in place.

“Exactly, Riho. Even if you gave it to them, there is nowhere they could possibly display it.”

“…The preservation costs alone…”

Some very grisly counterarguments.

“We don’t need that,” Micona emphasized. Then her voice dipped low into a fearsome growl. “No. Let us be very clear. You are all unfit for our military. They might inflate your accomplishments, Allan Toin Lidocaine, but there’s still one worse than you…”

There was a glint in Micona’s eye that was downright unnerving.

“Who are you speaking of?” Riho asked, searching.

The upperclassman opened her mouth to answer…and their surroundings grew dark. Everyone looked up at the sky.

“Hmm? Was it supposed to rain today?”

What had clouded the sun wasn’t a bunch of rainclouds—it was dust. A cloud of debris was rising from the distance.

“A smoke signal?” someone asked. Whatever it was, it was getting closer—looming like a thunderhead above the capital, blocking out the daylight.

There was a low rumble, like the earth itself was shaking.

All eyes turned from the sky to the road.

Like a stagecoach kicking up dust in its wake, a gentle-looking boy with an apologetic smile came flying toward them—at speeds that easily set a new record in this universe.

“Sorry!” Lloyd yelled, immediately apologizing. “I got caught up making food! I made enough for us to eat later, too!”

He held up a heap of lunch boxes. His friends immediately understood the reason for the dust cloud: Lloyd had clearly been running just that fast. By this point, that much was par for the course.

The second she saw him, Selen broke into a smile. The light faded from her eyes, and a stream of drool ran down her cheek. She raced toward Lloyd—moving at a fairly impressive clip herself.

“Oh, Sir Lloyd! I’ve been waiting so long! Come, let us explore this dungeon together! And in those dim chambers, we shall explore each other’s bodies and become true adventurers!”

“Selen, you oughtta be thrown into a dim cell.”

The word dungeon did originally mean prison, but perhaps it wasn’t necessary to bring that up here.

Meanwhile, Phyllo was wordlessly attempting to wipe the dust off Lloyd’s face.

“Oh, Phyllo, don’t worry about—mmph!”

“…Whoops, you were so adorable, I accidentally hugged you.”

Physically, Phyllo was definitely a match for Lloyd, making her the only person capable of putting him in a wrestling hold. According to her, this was actually because Lloyd chose to let her do so.

This fuss over his arrival was all too typical, but this time, it was happening under Micona’s baleful glare.

She looked ready to kill him, much to the alarm of those around her. Even her own minions looked rather spooked.

“…Lloyd…Belladonna…,” she growled, like he’d killed her parents, cheated on her, or eaten the last pudding in the fridge…

She inched closer, and Lloyd caught the look in her eyes. He looked gravely back up at her.

“Um… Yes?”

Micona’s glossy lips curled up mechanically, like she was doing her level best to act as if everything was ordinary—but this only proved the depths of her anger.

“You’re Lloyd Belladonna! I’ve heard the rumors…,” she said with a murderous civility. This attitude really didn’t blend well with their quaint surroundings. “An ordinary cadet, working in a cafeteria—but inexplicable things keep happening around you. Like your unusual admission to the academy.”

“That was because Lloyd helped me out of a jam, and I—,” Allan tried to explain.

Micona held up a palm, stopping him.

“That’s not all!” she exclaimed. “At the Student Sorcery Tournament, you made your first appearance in the finals and won your round by baiting your opponent into blowing herself up.”

Lloyd had won that round fair and square, but his spell had been so ridiculously powerful, the audience had assumed it was Mena’s summon backfiring. Unsurprisingly, Lloyd himself had thought the same thing…

“…My sister didn’t blow herself up,” Phyllo insisted.

Micona ignored this, too.

“And then your opponent’s sister, Phyllo Quinone, gets herself admitted late in an equally unorthodox fashion. Clearly, some sort of underhanded deal is going on behind the scenes.”

“What? You think Lloyd cheated somehow?” Riho asked.

“I do—and so do all the upperclassmen,” Micona said. “There’s something fishy going on here… That’s why he’s got Selen acting as his bodyguard around the clock.”

Selen denied this claim with her entire being. Her cursed belt formed a giant X in the air for emphasis.

“Hold it right there, lady! I’m no bodyguard! I’m Sir Lloyd’s partner-for-life—”

“Cut the act, Selen. This is the only reasonable explanation for your perverse behavior.”

“I’m not acting! This is from the heart! Pure, unabashed, unadulterated—”

Phyllo reached out and physically restrained her.

“…Selen is out of touch with common sense.”

“Let go of me, Phyllo! You’re the last person who should be talking about that! I saw you taking advantage of the confusion to give Sir Lloyd a hug—augh, I can smell his scent on you!”

“…Stop sniffing me.”

Micona let out a dramatic sigh. “The way you insist on maintaining your bizarre pretense…is almost admirable. But you’re the reason the reputation of all our cadets is plummeting. And that I cannot accept.”

Allan and Riho both looked equally grim—a mix of I wish she was acting, and You’ve got us there.

Micona took this to mean she’d hit the nail on the head, however, and she only grew more bold.

“As a result, the top brass are trying to restore the academy’s reputation by turning Allan into some sort of idol—given he actually possesses some degree of talent. However, after determining his looks were an…acquired taste, they quickly brought Lloyd in to be the new face of their PR campaign…”

Tears welled up in Allan’s eyes at this brutal evaluation. They streamed down his unappreciated face.

“And this blatant promotion really rankles… After all, they’ve paid no attention to us. The time has come to prove if you’re worthy of joining our ranks. No matter how you look at it, you’ve been hired purely because of your looks. I couldn’t see them through the dust storm, but I assume you had the cavalry escort you? That’s the only explanation for all that rumbling and debris.”

“Hmm, you would think that,” Riho muttered.

Who in their right mind would’ve ever suspected Lloyd caused all that by running?

Despite having legs like a horse, Lloyd winced when he heard he was just a pretty face. It was completely unfounded, but his upbringing had left him with debilitatingly low self-esteem.

“You can’t do anything alone—but the army is no place for a man who needs to be carried by those around him.”

“I—I know…” Lloyd hung his head.

Chrome gave him a comforting rub. “None of this is true, Lloyd. Look at your friends.”

Lloyd looked around.

Selen’s sunbeam smile, Riho’s reassuring nod, Allan’s confident smirk, and Phyllo’s barely perceptible grin were all on display. Between their warmth and that of the sunlight, he could feel himself coming back out of his shell.

Feeling much better, Lloyd smiled and nodded.

As if that settled things, Riho turned toward the older students, advancing on them.

“Very well. My friends may be lacking in good looks and common sense, but they have what it takes to be good soldiers—and you’re gonna eat those words.”

“Why’d you look at me when you said ‘good looks’?” Allan demanded.

“…Mm.”

“I don’t need your sympathetic pats on my shoulder!”

As more bickering began, Micona ran her fingers through her pixie cut, looking irritated.

“Does that mean you accept our challenge?” she asked.

“What challenge?” Lloyd inquired, lost. Riho quickly filled him in.

When she was done, he turned back to their leader.

“Okay!” he said firmly. “I can’t speak for myself, but I’m sure we can prove the others are worthy of being military cadets for Azami!”

He’d left himself out. That just made Micona’s voice dip into another low growl.

“Riding on their coattails? Well, this will be the last time you can sit back and let them carry you.”

Riho clapped her hands, grinning wickedly.

“Then let’s put it this way. If you achieve your stated conditions for victory, you can tell the whole school of our defeat. Maybe that’ll change who the top brass choose to support. But if we win, you promise not to come after us anymore. Deal?”

“Deal.”

“Hear that, Chrome?” Riho grinned like it was all settled.

She was really good at this sort of thing. The rest of the group wasn’t exactly comprised of skilled negotiators…

“As a teacher, I should probably stop you…but it’s a good chance to see what you all can accomplish. Hopefully this conflict leads to peace in the future.”

Chrome had clearly decided Lloyd proving his strength would settle everything. He scratched his head a moment, then stepped in like a referee.

“Right, I’ll be monitoring this contest. Reach the end of the dungeon and prove it’s safe, or locate and dispatch the weird creatures within. Remember, our objective is to quell the fears of the local citizens, so no true soldier would dare make a false report.”

With this seal of approval, the second-years roared enthusiastically.

“Hell yeah!” “Let’s do this!” “You’re on!” “Ready for this?”

…Um, muscles for brains. They were exactly the kind of meatheads that’d get rounded up at the first hint of oncoming war.

The dungeon battle between first- and second-year students began.

However…

“…Lloyd…Belladonna!”

The murderous rage in Micona’s eyes suggested envy far beyond anything she’d voiced aloud.

The entrance of the dungeon looked less like a cave and more like an edifice in a foreign country shrouded in boulders.

From the brick walls and the hardwood floors, down to the mud path that led to a space with ornate little details, each section had its distinct flair, none of which looked cohesive. Scholars argued over their working theories as to why, which ranged from differences in design sensibilities between the gods to a visual display of their collective history.

…While the place possibly carried historic significance, the adventurers were concerned about other things. This dungeon was very low level, meaning it had been searched inside and out. In fact, travelers used it as a landmark that indicated Azami was close.

As a result of the dungeon being seemingly guileless, neighboring residents and eyewitnesses of the weird creatures had kicked the rumors up a notch, gossiping among themselves that pirates had started to occupy the place or that someone was experimenting on monsters native to the dungeon.

At the entrance, Micona sat down near the remnants of an old firepit, which must have been set up by camping adventurers in the past.

“All right… Time to get them to atone.”

“Micona, shouldn’t we get a move on? The first-years have already started exploring,” said her right-hand student.

Micona straightened her spine, straining the buttons on her tight shirt.

“I already have a map of this place—marking monsters, traps, and a little shortcut through it. We’ll get to the destination in no time.”

In her hands was clutched an outline of the dungeon…which even included minuscule details of the various pitfalls. The other students gaped at her.

“How did you get that?”

“The dungeon used to serve as the site for the recruitment exams. I guess maps were sold to prospective students looking to get a leg up… None of the bookstores had one, so I had to hit up an antique shop…and paid top dollar for it.”

“Geez, you’re prepared…”

Micona filled them in on her plan. “It won’t mean anything if we just win. We’re going to weaponize the traps and do them in—so they never treat us with disrespect again.”

She pointed to the spots in question and assigned tasks to the other students: shoving them into pits, setting up snares on one of the moving floor platforms… Borderline criminal offenses.

Why was she going so far? Her minions weren’t the biggest fans of Selen and Allan, but Micona seemed to have something…more that was motivating her.

She tousled her pixie cut, daring them to speak up against her.

“Anyway, we need to make sure Lloyd Belladonna never dreams of becoming a soldier again and hurt him enough to send him back to the boonies… If we can do that, then…”

Micona trailed off, instead turning to execute her plan.

Meanwhile, Lloyd’s team was getting a strategy briefing from Riho.

“Our plan is to put Lloyd in front and charge ahead. That’s it!” She didn’t bat an eye.

That wasn’t technically a plan. If this was soccer, it would be like saying, “Just try to pass the ball forward.” Which could be surprisingly effective…

Put the strongest party member in the front and have him pull them all along. The plan made sense, but Allan seemed dissatisfied.

“I get it, but…that doesn’t leave anything for us to do.”

“I don’t approve of putting Lloyd in danger!” Selen protested. “But…you heard how they mocked him. I think it’s time they got a taste of his capabilities.”

“Yeah, this isn’t about taking it easy ourselves.”

“I feel like it definitely is for you, mercenary…,” Allan said, rubbing his temples.

Phyllo spoke up next.

“…Dungeons like this have lots of blind spots in corners. There might be attacks from behind or traps deliberately activated to take out your opponents. The back of the formation is as critical as the front. So don’t sulk.”

Riho clapped her hands, cackling.

“Heh-heh-heh, I see! They’re letting us go first, hoping we get injured so badly we can’t graduate. If they make it look like an accident, they’re off the hook—but two can play at that game.”

Riho couldn’t wait to see the looks on their faces, and that glee soon spread to Allan and Selen.

“Then there’s work for the rear guard! Heh-heh, we’ll show them not to insult a man’s looks.”

“Heh-heh-heh, we’ll teach them a thing or two about my future husband!”

Who were the bad guys here again?

Lloyd had lost track of the conversation ages ago. He was just looking from one person to the other, confused.

“Um…so you’re sure you want me in the lead? I’ve never been deeper than the first floor of any dungeon.”

What Lloyd referred to as the “first floor” was actually the final one. When Alka took him with her, she always used the shortcut to warp straight to the bottom. She sold the rare items found there to help the village cash flow—most real treasures around the world had Alka’s fingerprints on them.

“…Don’t worry, you’re very strong,” Phyllo assured.

Lloyd just scratched his cheek. “Ah-ha-ha, joking to relieve the tension… Thanks, I’ll do my best.”

Would he ever figure out she wasn’t kidding?

One of Micona’s minions was standing at the bottom of a gentle slope in a spacious room of the dungeon, looking disgruntled.

I like Lloyd’s cafeteria food! I don’t want him getting hurt…

Sure, Lloyd’s late admission made no sense, and his friends were getting all the wrong kind of attention, but this? The second-year might’ve been Micona’s follower, but he didn’t think it was right to do anything that risked killing Lloyd.

Still, going up against Micona never ends well… Sorry, Lloyd.

The second-year was hiding behind a rock, waiting for Lloyd to appear.

Before long, the group appeared, chatting and laughing—with no trace of any tension at all. As far as anyone could see, they’d completely forgotten they were in the middle of a competition. That, or they were certain of their victory. Probably both, to be honest.

Lloyd took in the sinister pattern on the tiles that dotted the roomier chamber. “It really opens up here…and it’s kinda creepy.”

His worried voice echoed through the room.

The hidden student gulped.

He’s here… I’ve gotta do this.

Breathing quietly so as to avoid detection, he strained his ears, trying to hear what the rival group was saying.

“…Our voices are echoing. The floor underneath…is hollow.”

“If we don’t follow the right order or the right pattern, I bet there’s pit traps.”

Well spotted.

The second-year student glanced down at the map in his hand, impressed.

The entire floor was a pit trap. Not adhering to the proper sequence would cause all the tiles to flip over. There were cushions below, placed there during the old soldier selection exams to prevent serious injuries, but falling at a bad angle could still mess them up.

By pushing a switch in the back, you could disable the trap holes for a set amount of time.

“I bet there’s a switch at the back that disables this temporarily. Go hit that for us, Lloyd.”

“Got it! I’ll see what I can do!”

Lloyd bravely stepped onto the floor. Hiding in the shadows, the second-year student got a pebble ready.

When the time’s right, I’ll toss this stone, trigger the trap, and flip the entire floor… Sorry.

He was feeling worse about this by the minute. He watched as Lloyd made ready to attempt the crossing.

“Um…well, if this pattern is numbers…”

Lloyd began slowly picking his way across, one tile at a time.

When he reached the center of the floor, the older student threw the rock at an incorrect tile.

Tink… Clink!

“Huh?”

The floor flipped, catching Lloyd off guard. He let out a yelp and fell.

“L-Lloyd!” Selen shrieked, running to the edge. She peered down into the darkness below.

Sorry, kid…

But before the older student could feel any guiltier…

“Oof.”

Lloyd came bounding out of the pit, moving every bit as fast as he’d fallen—like a video playing backward. The second-year couldn’t believe his eyes.

Lloyd’s jump carried him right to the other side of the tiles.

No ordinary person could’ve cleared a distance like that. If the person who’d designed the trap saw such a feat, they’d have nightmares.

Lloyd had just completely invalidated all the craft that went into the design. His own friends appeared every bit as stunned as their opponent.

Without even breaking a sweat, Lloyd pressed the switch at the back of the room and then called to his friends.

“They really got me there! Never occurred to me that the pattern was a fake and the right solution was to fall in once! There I was, all afraid of the pitfall, but it was super shallow! That was only, like, the depth of a five-story house!”

Had Lloyd been an ordinary person, such a fall would’ve broken more than a few bones.

“Uh, right…”

“But there were some soft cushions down there, which made it pretty hard to jump up! They were kind of dusty, too, so if you’ve got a sore throat, I wouldn’t recommend it. Maybe I should swing by and wash them all later?”

Concerned by the sanitary conditions of the safety measures, Lloyd demonstrated both his incredible physical talents and his best-wife mind-set—and just like that, the group cleared this floor.

As they ventured deeper into the dungeon, the older student watched them, eyes bugging out of his head.

“…Maybe we were all wrong about him. Maybe he really did earn that admission…”

“…Mm,” someone grunted from beside him.

The second-year jumped and turned…to find Phyllo staring at him.

“Yikes! When did you get here?”

“…Tell Mico-whatsit how strong my master is…and tell her to make it harder for him.”

She retreated as silently as she’d approached.

“H-harder?!” he shrieked.

“…If his life isn’t in danger…he won’t get horny…”

This confused the upperclassman completely. Terrified, he began backing away.

“G-got it! I’ll tell her… You and Lloyd are both really—”

There was a clunk, and the floor flipped. The temporary stop had ended.

“…Ah.”

The older student had backed up too far and triggered a tile. He plunged down.

“…Hang in there,” Phyllo encouraged and briefly put her hands together.

Then she bounded over to the exit, jumping just like Lloyd had.

“I’ll tell her…you’re really dangerous…”

The older student lay buried in cushions, lips mouthing the same words over and over in terror.

On the floor below the one with the trap holes, another second-year student saw Lloyd’s group approaching.

“Tch, he blew it? Fine. You gotta get a little rough to teach their ilk a lesson.”

This new guy really seemed to have it in for Lloyd’s group. With a cruel sneer on his face, he licked his lips.

Once he spotted them, he put a sign up against the wall—one he’d made himself. Given his face, his handwriting was surprisingly cute, but let’s ignore that.

Riho noticed the sign and pointed to it.

“Mm, this way, Lloyd! Awfully cute handwriting…”

“Lloyd! Looks like we go this way!” Allan said. “So nice of them… Something this adorable couldn’t possibly be a lie!”

Never suspecting a thing, Lloyd led his party down the gentle slope.

Heh…fools. They have no idea that path leads to a dead end!

The devious upperclassman watched them leave, then turned his gaze toward the pile at the side of the passageway—logs and other materials for repairing the dungeon, leftovers from when they’d held recruitment exams here.

The timbers had been secured by ropes. Those bindings were the only things keeping them from rolling downhill.

“Just as they reach the dead end, these logs will come tumbling toward them! They’ll have no way to escape serious injury!”

The second-year picked out the thickest log, waiting for his moment.

“Nothing down here.”

“Hngg, a dead end? I thought that sign was a bit too nice!”

They seemed super chill about it.

This was the moment the upperclassman had been waiting for. He cut the rope with his knife.

“Heh-heh! Dodge this!”

With a rumble, the logs began tumbling down the slope toward the first-years.

“Bwa-ha-ha! That’s what you get for trying to outshine your elders!” the upperclassman cackled, certain that victory was his.

A moment later, however, shards of what had been giant logs came flying back in his direction, like he was standing next to a wood chipper.

Amid the cloud of wood chips…

“…Mm.”

Phyllo came walking back up the hill, a timber in one hand.

It looked for all the world like she was taking out the trash—or had just finished a drink and was about to toss the empty can in the recycling. She placed the huge log back where it had been.

“H-how…?!”

Unable to comprehend what he was seeing, the poor upperclassman found himself pinned underneath it.

“…Takes me back. I used to train by punching rolling boulders to pieces.”

Was she reminiscing?! Her total lack of expression made the whole thing even more terrifying.

The rest of the party came up the slope after her. Riho was awkwardly scratching her cheek. “Should have known it was a trap!” she said. “This is your fault, Allan. Never believe a sign in a dungeon.”

Allan looked hurt. “Wait, what? You said we should go this way before I did!”

The older student was too busy trying to escape from under an enormous piece of wood to hear the exchange.

“Ugh, Allan made us waste so much time! Let’s hurry before he screws up again.”

“Stop right there! It’s not gonna become my fault just because you say so as loud as you can! I ain’t standing for it! Are you even listening?! You messed up first!”

But Allan had already cost them enough time, so they hurried on down the other passage.

All the while, the heavy log continued to slowly crush him. He struggled in vain to extract himself.

“Ow…owww…”

Barely able to breathe, he let out an agonized groan…and suddenly he was free.

How? Did he die? Then he saw Lloyd’s smiling face pulling the log off him…one-handed. Lloyd propped the thing against the nearby wall.

“Are you okay?” he asked. “Sorry, looks like you got hit by the trap we set off.”

Since the upperclassman was the one who set off the trap, he thought Lloyd was being sarcastic, but the boy’s smile was so genuine, he immediately abandoned that idea.

“I-I’m okay.”

Lloyd looked relieved and quickly stacked up the rest of the logs…one-handed. Each one had to have weighed over two hundred pounds each—definitely not something any ordinary human could’ve lifted. Most people would’ve failed even with both hands. Except maybe on Christmas Eve—when at least one person was wishing they could fling around a fir, cursing everyone who had a date.

“Lloyd! Come ooon!”

“Oh, right behind you!”

He bowed once to the upperclassman and darted off.

“…Were we the ones wrong about him?”

That strength—of body and character—might’ve made Lloyd even more impressive than Allan and Phyllo. The older student staggered to his feet, staring after the group as they moved on.

* * *

Things continued like that until an hour into the dungeon exploration. A group of second-year students were gathered in a safe zone in the center, looking exhausted.

All of them had tried to spring traps on Lloyd’s party, but their plans had backfired.

“So…what went wrong? Why are they still doing fine?” Micona demanded.

Her minions awkwardly tried to explain.

“I dropped him in a pit…but he just jumped out.”

“I tried to bury them in logs, but they smashed them all.”

“I made the moving floor platforms take them in circles, but they just seemed to enjoy the ride.”

“I tried to scare them by saying, ‘Turn baaack!’ in a spooky voice, but they just laughed and critiqued my high pitch.”

The second-years’ efforts to obstruct progress had been treated like attractions at an amusement park.

“Micona, it’s time to change tactics. Instead of crushing them, let’s find these weird creatures and take them out first. We stand a way better chance that way.”

“Damn you, Lloyd Belladonna…”

Micona’s personal grudge was only getting worse, however.

“Fine, change of plans. Get to the bottom of the dungeon, clear out these weird creatures…but if you get the chance, make sure Lloyd Belladonna doesn’t leave here in one piece.”

“M-Micona, why are you so…?”

Sensing their lack of morale, she decided to rouse their flagging enthusiasm.

“All of us were accepted at the military academy to prepare for an oncoming war with Jiou. To that end, many of us had our slates wiped clean, a blind eye turned toward past mistakes—all to improve our military’s combat potential.”

No matter what their reputations, no matter how meatheaded they were, they’d become cadets because war was on the horizon.

But the king’s change of heart—in actuality, it was just him no longer being possessed by a demon lord—had turned the winds against the second-years. The deeds of their successors were the final straw—their treatment grew worse and worse, and the resentment it engendered had finally been unleashed.

This reminder got Micona’s minions worked up again. All except for those who’d witnessed Lloyd’s power firsthand, anyhow.

“Yeah, we can’t let them do as they please!”

“That Lloyd kid is super weak, but the teachers are always fussing over him! I know why you’ve got it in for him, Micona!”

They “fussed over” him because there was no telling what crazy stuff he’d accidentally do if they gave him free rein…

But seeing her minions all fired up again, Micona kept her speech going.

“If we blow this chance, we’ll all be stationed in the boonies or relegated to monster culling. We’ll have no opportunities to get promoted! This is a fight for our honor! We need to show the top brass who we are! Prove that looking after themselves will just get them hurt! We need to crush this upstart Lloyd Belladonna!”

Before anyone could object, Micona began spitting specific instructions.

Only when her minions had all left the safe zone did her lips twist.

“Yes,” she muttered. “This is a battle to get back my—”

With that loaded statement, Micona departed for her final battle with Lloyd’s party.

Meanwhile, the members of Lloyd’s party were basically having a picnic. Between Lloyd’s and Phyllo’s physical capabilities, the dungeon and the upperclassmen presented no challenge at all. They were just here on a pleasure jaunt.

“Man,” Riho said. “Having Lloyd along makes dungeons so easy… We oughtta try a top-level dungeon next.”

“Really, Riho?” Selen pounced. “Trying to steal a leg up on him?”

“Ha! No way. We’re talking dungeons. Not dates.”

Phyllo was instantly right beside her.

“…Entering high-level dungeons incurs a lot of expenses. Like dates.”

“What exactly is your definition of a date?! Fine.” Riho gave up. “I won’t ask him!”

Selen and Phyllo exchanged a high five. There was nothing quite so passionate as rivals teaming up to defeat a common enemy.

“So, Sir Lloyd, how about we take a rest in the shadows, just the two of us?”

“…Can we train together somewhere? Perhaps in those shadows.”

Both Selen and Phyllo immediately started trying to steal a leg up on Lloyd themselves. Completely unable to detect ulterior motives, Lloyd just turned around. “Huh? Why?”

Seeing his befuddlement, Allan stepped in like a protective manager.

“No attempts at tempting Lloyd! Geez, can’t you think of anything else? Remember where we are, girls.”

“Don’t lump me in with them!” Riho complained.

Allan simply ignored the comment.

Before Riho had a chance to whine about that, however, the group reached another open area.

A mysterious structure loomed in the center. Nothing else about the chamber was remarkable in any way, and there were no signs of a door or stairs leading farther down. Perhaps this was the end of the dungeon.

“Is that an altar? Don’t see anything else here,” Allan said, on guard with his ax at the ready.

“Oooh, this is so scary, Sir Lloyd!” Selen chose this moment to get clingy. She was not a good actress.

“Hey now, you’re not getting away with that, m’lady! There ain’t nothing here. Guess those strange creatures were just rumors.”

Sparks flew between Selen and Riho, and Lloyd tried in vain to soothe them. Selen was sticking her tongue out whenever Lloyd wasn’t looking, which only served to further annoy Riho.

“Geez… Let’s head on back. Chrome owes us dinner for all this work,” Phyllo declared.

Suddenly, the martial artist’s grim expression grew grimmer, and she braced for combat.

“Phyllo?”

“…Mm.”

Keeping her center of gravity low, she moved toward the patch of bare ground at the center of the floor—and the mysterious structure.

The construct’s reddish surface was giving off a dull light. Curiously, the whole area was covered in a thick layer of grime, except for that strange thing in the center.

As everyone realized how odd this was, Phyllo took a deep breath…

“Hah!”

And unleashed a powerful middle blow. The earth shook. Dust fell from the ceiling. The force of her punch shook the air around her.

“Phyllo! What’s—uhhhh?”

Even as Lloyd spoke, the mysterious structure began to move. What had been a looming sort of pillar seemed to unwind, slithering and revealing its true form.

“Hiss…”

A giant snake. Its body was covered in dark-red scales the color of scabs. It was so big, so thick, that no one had realized what it was at a glance.

From across the room, the thing had looked like a pillar, and from even farther away, you would’ve assumed it to be a funny-shaped cloud.

“Is this…the creature? Uhh…”

Allan wasn’t quite over his fear of fighting non-humanoid monsters and instinctively took a half step back.

The snake’s eyes opened. It glared down at Phyllo.

There was a strange pause.

Then the snake closed its eyes and went back to sleep.

“…Mm?”

When Phyllo looked surprised, Riho went into full mom mode.

“Come on, Phyllo! You can’t just punch snakes! You’ve given us a fright!”

“…Sorry,” Phyllo said, then looked down at her fist, puzzled.

“What’s wrong?”

“…It feels like I barely fazed it…but that was my full strength…”

This time, Riho stepped up, her mithril arm glittering with magic power.

“Probably just one of those null physical damage types. They’re pretty much always weak to magic. Step back.”

Then she held up her mithril arm, and a blazing inferno blanketed the creature.

Fooom.

The flames made their cheeks sting. The snake monster was clearly barbecue—or maybe not.

“You’re kidding?! That did nothing?!”

It didn’t even budge. The creature was still fast asleep.

Selen shot Riho a gleeful smirk.

“Always weak to…what, again?”

“Shut up! Geez, I give up!”

Both fists and magic proved ineffective. There was nothing left that an ordinary adventurer could do.

“…Master, this one’s all yours.”

“Huh? Mine?” Lloyd looked alarmed.

Everyone stared at him expectantly. He was from Kunlun. They were sure he could handle this.

“Ohhh, you’re so cute when you’re flustered!”

Well, one of them was less expectant than enraptured, but ignore her.

“Please, Lloyd!” Allan begged, legs quivering like a newborn deer. “If you can’t handle it, we’re outta options! Give it a shot!”

“Ah-ha-ha, this is no time for jokes. I really don’t think I can do anything here, but…it can’t hurt to try!”

After all, the request to handle this monster had come directly to him. It was his responsibility to at least try to exterminate it. Even so, his mind was racing.

If Phyllo couldn’t do it, and Riho’s fire failed…then my wind spell might work…or should we sneak out while it’s sleeping and fetch Chrome?

Then Lloyd heard footsteps from behind.

“Having trouble there, first-years?” called an all-too-familiar haughty voice. Micona and her pack of minions stepped out from the passage.

“For all your arrogance, you sure took your time getting here!” Riho said. “Too busy playing cheap tricks along the way?”

She had spotted several familiar faces behind Micona.

Immediately, those second-years who’d tried to set traps looked very shifty, but their leader was clearly trying to plaster this over with confidence. “No, we simply gave you the first shot at everything. Doesn’t seem like you got anywhere.”

Allan muttered angrily under his breath but let Micona’s needling comments slide.

“I suppose this means it’s up to us now? We’ll handle this strange creature for you.”

“Hey! You think you can just hog all the limelight?”

“…Not fair.”

Selen and Phyllo objected strenuously. Waiting until your opponents had worn the enemy down and then swooping in to finish it off was clearly foul play—if this were a game.

Before the argument could get any more heated, however, Lloyd stepped in.

“Go ahead! Our main goal is to exterminate it, after all.”

“L-Lloyd?!”

“And defeating it together is a good opportunity to show some respect for each other’s abilities! That happens all the time in novels. Ah-ha-ha.”

Caught completely off guard, Selen clearly didn’t know what to think.

Even more surprisingly, Riho said, “I agree with Lloyd. Let’s see what our second-years can do.”

Everyone looked shocked by this. Normally she’d be the first to object. She pulled Selen and Phyllo in for a huddle.

“Let them try,” she whispered. “There’s no way they stand a chance against this thing, so let’s let them take a shot at it and see if we can spot its weakness.”

“…Clever.”

With Riho’s intentions clear, the party agreed to let the upperclassmen exterminate the giant snake.

Micona clearly hadn’t expected them to step aside without a fight, but she assumed they were just underestimating her and gave them a nasty glare.

“…You think you can treat me with disrespect? Fine. I’ll show you why I’m famed as Godspeed Micona! You’ll see why I’m so very, very famous!”

The events before the dungeon incursion had clearly become a deep-seated trauma for Micona. Between the double verys and the way she’d worked variants of famous into the dialogue, her desire to communicate this point seemed to be having a detrimental effect on her vocabulary. At best, she just sounded desperate.

Despite the goofy vibe, the sigils she wove enveloped her entire group, the light of her magic casting a soft glow around the dungeon interior.

Her minions’ bodies blurred, each of them vibrating like an engine.

As they throbbed, Riho sounded impressed.

“So that’s the source of the Godspeed…a physical buff spell.”

Micona flashed them a single proud smirk, then raised her hand, pointing at the snake. Her team moved to surround it.

“An all-out attack by trained warriors with their physical attributes enhanced… We’re a match for any foe! Just you watch.”

Micona swung her arm down, and every one of her fellow students became a blur, rocketing forward.

“““Rahhhhhhh!”””

Their bellows echoed through the chamber.

A few minutes later…

“How…how is it unharmed?!”

Dozens of blows from swords and axes, and the creature had not even bothered to wake up. Micona was down on one knee, stunned.

“Micona! Are you okay?”

“I—I can’t believe our assault did nothing!”

“Don’t give up! We can win this!”

Supported by minions on all sides, Micona managed to get to her feet. Oh, by the way, all this happened very fast, with everyone moving like blurs. A serious scene was totally undermined because, to Lloyd’s friends, it looked like they were watching it on fast-forward.

“This just looks silly,” Riho commented.

Micona shot her a glare…so fast her face looked like a smear.

“Shut up!” she yelped. “We’ll show you how good we are! We just…need a weakness! Find it!”

Another few minutes passed.

“…No luck?” Phyllo muttered, growing impatient.

“Oh, be quiet! You had your chance. Now it’s ours! Wait your turn!”

“I think it really should be our turn again by now…”

“Silence! Not yet! Just a little longer! Defer to your elders!”

“Sounds more like abuse of power,” Riho muttered, but the second-years clearly didn’t care. They were poking at every inch of the snake like they were surveying road repairs.

What happened next?

“And I’m out with a pair of eights.”

“Arghhh, I’ve lost again!” Allan cried.

Lloyd’s party members were happily playing cards. Phyllo had brought some with her, and they were being put to good use. They’d already finished their lunches, and only snacks were left.

Sick of getting last place in the card game, Allan glanced over at the second-years, who were looking about ready to cry. “Come on, find that weak point already! I’ll be stuck buying lunch for them all week long! Oh, wait! I got a good card, finally! Never mind, Micona! Take your time. Heh-heh, just you wait, Allan’s about to domin—”

“…Revolution,” Phyllo said.

This reversed the value of all cards in play.

“Please, hurry uuuuuuuuuup! You’re killing meeeee!”

At this rate, Allan was likely to be treating the rest of his group for a month.

Whether in response to his cries or not, one of the older students let out a yelp of joy.

“Micona! We found it! There are signs of scales being peeled off on its back!”

“Nicely done!”

She ran around to see it herself, and Lloyd’s group trailed after her.

They found a strange, rectangular scar, clearly left by something sharp. The scales there were a totally different color.

“That’s clearly the weak point! Everyone, hit—”

Before they could swing, Riho jumped in front of them, grinning.

“Right, right, time’s up! It’s our turn!”

“W-wait, you can’t just swipe it from us now!”

Micona’s hand clamped down hard on Riho’s shoulder, but the girl just smiled pleasantly back at her.

“We aren’t!” she said, eyes sparkling. “Only you could’ve found the weak point. I respect your hustle! You fought very well.”

“But we’ll lose the battle! You can’t trick us with compliments!”

Riho let the sparkles in her expression fade. In their place arose a sinister smile.

“Tch, not that easy, huh?”

“Of course not! And you running a con on everyone all the time is why we’ve got it out for you! Just the other day, you were over by the school store, selling watered-down potions, telling people they were for charity.”

“They were! All profits went to charity. The charity in question just happened to be my empty wallet! And it’s their fault for buying something so obviously suspicious.”

“They tasted terrible!”

“…Sorry.”

Face-to-face with an idiot, Riho felt a brief pang of guilt.

Allan joined in the diplomacy, still shaking like a fawn around the monster.

“What are you doing, mercenary? You can’t shake down other cadets! Have you no pride as a soldier of Azami?”

“…Given how bad those knees are rattling, I don’t think you should be talking about pride.”

Riho glared at Allan, and Micona began angrily mussing her own hair, grinding her teeth in rage.

“Fine, let’s show you what being a soldier is all about! Assemble!”

Both Lloyd’s team and Micona’s own minions gave her a look of horror, like a baseball team when some dipshit alumni decided to start barking orders. Here they were, bottom of a dungeon, the target monster right in front of them, and she was doing this? Totally backward. This was like showing up to work late to “dress for the job you want.”

“I said assemble! Can’t you hear me?! Do it, now!”

“Uh…sure.”

“What’s with that attitude? That’s why you first-years are…”

“Silence!”

A stern voice echoed across the dungeon.

Everyone looked around, searching for the source of this voice.

It…came from the snake. He (?) had raised his head and looked down with narrowed eyes.

“…Uh?”

“What is your problem? I’m trying to sleep here, but you’re not even trying to keep your voices down! Just squabbling, playing games…!”

This silenced Micona completely. The monster was scolding them like an irate boss.

The monster let out an annoyed sigh. Coming from a body that large, it was like a warm breeze rushing past their cheeks.

“Sigh… I suppose I can’t blame you for attacking me in this form. Oh, sorry, not to change the subject, but that attack earlier, on my back? It really hit the spot. You’re very good.”

“…Mm.”

The monster’s tone changed to that of a boss praising his subordinates, which certainly caught Phyllo off guard.

“Blows like that just glance off me, though, ha-ha-ha!”

The mood briefly lightened, but the snake’s harsh glare caused everyone to stiffen back up again. It seemed like it was ready to get to the point. This monster was good at lecturing people. It knew how to make them hang on every word.

“But the rest was just unacceptable. Here I was, pretending to sleep until you went away, but one group of you surround me and start rubbing me all over while the rest of you sat down and started playing cards?”

“Uh…,” Micona floundered.

Paying her no heed, the large snake continued to drone on.

“And finally, you find the sensitive spot and gather round, gleefully staring at it…pointing directly at it and laughing among yourselves!”

It wasn’t nice to mock people’s distinguishing features, was it? Even between friends and family. Wait until they bring it up themselves, kids.

None of the cadets had the slightest clue how to process the concept of a snake monster being sensitive about the scar on its back.

“““…”””

“Nothing to say for yourselves? I should point out that using your position to dole out orders is technically an abuse of power. Did nobody teach you this? Keep that attitude up and you’ll find yourself without a single person following you for any worthwhile reason. You should really stop grinding your teeth, too! It destroys them! And builds weird muscles, making you square-jawed. Plus, it can give you headaches!”

Apparently, Micona had reached the limit on how many lectures she was prepared to endure from a monster. The teeth-grinding was clearly a sore spot for her.

“Shut up! You’re just a monster! Blah-blah-blah-blah-blah!”

She held a hand up, issuing directions to her minions. This finally snapped the other second-years out of their surprise, and they surrounded the snake again.

“Hmm. You certainly are disciplined; I’ll give you that…”

Micona yelled over the monster again, casting her Godspeed spell on her followers.

“…Geez Louise, I see I’m going to have to give you a piece of my mind.”

“We know your weak point, so this fight is ours!”

Leaving a blurry afterimage in its wake, Micona’s hand dropped.

At that signal, the upperclassmen charged, focusing their attacks on the monster’s scar, one blow after another.

“““Rahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”””

The snake sighed, flicking its tongue.

Then it grunted once, smacking the ground with its tail. A fissure ran across the floor, and the shock wave that followed hit the second-years and Lloyd’s party.

“““Aughhhhh!”””

Everyone staggered. Godspeed meant little if you could barely stay upright.

“If I know where you’re hitting me, it’s easy to compensate.”

Before anyone could recover, the snake raised its tail again.

“Good night.”

And thumped it down.

The tail was bigger than most trees. No one could survive being crushed beneath it.

The second-years stared death in the face…until someone shot in front of them, moving like a bullet.

“Look out!” Lloyd cried.

He tackled the tail, changing its trajectory.

“Wh-whaaaat?!”

Knocked onto their knees, Micona and the other upperclassmen couldn’t believe their eyes. Lloyd had just batted aside a blow so powerful, it could crack a dungeon floor, after all.

He and the monster hardly noticed the others’ surprise as they were too focused on each other, though.

“Mm! That’s more like it!” the beast said, observing the tingling in its tail. “Let’s see how you handle this!”

It swept the tail sideways, scraping along the surface of the ground. Lloyd blocked it bodily.

“Yes! Lloyd can handle any monster!” Riho hooted, pumping her fist like they’d already won.

“Th-that’s real heavy…”

Lloyd dug his feet into the ground…but it was pushing him back.

“…Is my master…losing…?”

“Seriously?!”

“Lloyd!”

This was the first time any of them had ever seen him struggle.

“…! Hnggg!”

With a grimace, Lloyd managed to push the tail back.

“Oh! You held it off? One more!” the serpent declared, raising its tail again.

“C-come at me!” the boy said, bracing himself.

“Don’t mind if I do!”

But before the snake could swing again, it suddenly flinched, shifting its coils.

There was a thunk as a weapon hit home.

“You were shaking like a leaf a moment ago—but that wasn’t half-bad!”

“Y-yeah! I come through in a pinch!”

The sound had been that of Allan’s ax. He’d forced his quivering legs forward and landed a blow right on the snake’s weak spot.

“…Right.”

With the snake’s attention on Allan, Phyllo started grabbing upperclassmen by the napes of their necks, tossing them toward the floor entrance.

When she’d finished throwing them all, she dusted her hands off, looking pleased with herself.

“…They got away.”

With no one left to protect, Lloyd brightened up. He pulled his feet out of the holes in the ground.

“Thanks, Phyllo!”

“Hit me with your best shot!” the snake roared, catching the boy’s punch with its head.

“Ugh, that didn’t work.”

“No, no, that was pretty good! Nicely done!”

“Thanks for the compliment, monster.”

“You’re quick on your feet, but…you’re an emotional wreck! No confidence! Such a shame.”

Once more, the tail lanced forward.

It sent Lloyd flying.

“Aughhhhh!”

Just before Lloyd hit the wall, Selen’s cursed belt formed a cushion to catch him.

“A-are you okay, Sir Lloyd?”

Selen was normally one to take advantage of the chaos and try to rub her cheek against him, but seeing him struggle seemed to banish those thoughts from her mind.

“…Owww…been a while since I broke anything…”

Lloyd staggered to his feet, rubbing his chest.

No trace of confidence anywhere. He looked like a child on their first trip to the store alone.

He had no idea what to do next.

The snake, however, was staring at the cursed belt, surprised.

“I see… I thought you had a pretty skilled group assembled here. That woman send you?”

What woman? Everyone looked at one another, confused.

But whatever conclusions the monster had reached, it nodded to itself and slithered toward the back wall.

Then it flicked a rocky protrusion and glanced back at Lloyd’s party.

“I believe apologies should be done in person, not via proxy. Tell her she needs to come herself.”

The beast pulled the lump down. There was a sound like millstones grinding and an immense vibration.

“Wh-what’s going on?”

A moment later, a huge chunk of wall disintegrated to sand. Beyond it lay darkness, and beyond that—the sounds of mechanical grinding and something writhing in the shadows.

“…Machinery?”

“Tell her…I’ll be waiting. In the real bottom of this dungeon.”

“W-wait!”

While they stood aghast at the spectacle, the snake bowed its head and slithered off into the darkness.

Both the sights and Lloyd’s strength had left Micona reeling, but she recovered and began barking orders.

“A-after it! Don’t just stand there!”

“““Roger that!”””

The second-years charged boldly after the monster. She watched them go, grinning triumphantly.

“Well? See how quick they adapt? This is the advantage that a year’s experience brings!”

“Geez, you don’t even scout the hidden passage first? Don’t blame me if anything happens,” Riho said, shaking her head.

“Ha! Decisiveness makes all the difference! Caution when planning, daring in practice! The key principles of life.”

“…I feel like you were daring from start to finish.”

Phyllo’s remark annoyed Micona all the more.

“Shut up! Just watch! We will be the ones who roar with triumph—”

At that point, a roar echoed in the depths, from the direction her minions had boldly charged.

“See?!” Micona said. “It seems they’ve already won. All we needed was the weak point! That snake took pity on Lloyd Belladonna and went easy on him, but a well-trained unit of upperclassmen with the super-famous Micona Zol’s Godspeed spell can take care of anything! That’s why it had to go all out on us!”

The lengths to which Micona’s mind worked to rearrange facts proved exhausting for those around her. She really didn’t want to admit Lloyd was actually good. And she wasn’t about to stop insisting she was famous, either…

“We’ve won this contest al—”

But…

““Aaaaaaah!””

The cadets’ voices were coming back this way, and the sound was clearly less a roar of triumph and more shrieks of horror. Micona’s grin faded.

As the screams of the second-years reached a fever pitch, they burst back into the room, weapons abandoned, both hands up in surrender.

“What? What happened?!”

“Micona, look out! There’s—”

A horrendous, earsplitting howl drowned their voices out.

A moment later, a reptilian body covered in thick brown scales burst out of the hole in the wall—a dragon.

“A d-dragoooooon?!” Micona shrieked. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined such a high-level monster would be here.

The beast was thrashing around wildly, like they’d just opened its cage and let it free.

Huffing and puffing, it loomed over them. Some second-years were still trying to fight back, but it wasn’t going well. Getting a few hits in was the most they could muster before they got knocked away hard, flung back with their weapons in hand.

“Micona, we’ve gotta run! We don’t stand a chance!” someone shrieked.

Face twisting like a demon, Micona stared the dissenter down.

“Don’t be stupid! Victory is in our grasp! One more step, and we can get Lloyd Belladonna kicked out!”

Not even trying to hide her grudge, Micona turned her glare toward the ferocious beast.

Casting Godspeed once more on herself, she strode forward to face it.

“Yo, yo, yo! Not a good idea!” Riho yelled. “That’s a dragon…and can your body even take any more?”

Her concerns were valid. Buffs like Godspeed could enhance physical capabilities, but the spell effects took a severe toll on the body, and it was common knowledge that such things should always be used in moderation.

This was especially true when someone with physical strength used the spell—the greater their predisposition to the magic, the greater the backlash. It could cause lasting damage to eyes and internal organs.

On top of that, Micona had cast Godspeed several times already. Her body was vibrating, giving her all the power it could muster.

Micona leaped forward onto the dragon’s back. She wedged her sword under its scales, prying one off.

The beast was shaking with anger and pain. It leaned forward, flexing all the muscles on its back.

Then it roared, charging at Micona.

She dodged like a matador, grinning at the dragon as it passed—then sprinted after it, aiming for the peeled patch.

“All right! I’m gonna sink my blade in the gap in its scales!”

Launching off a crumbling wall, Micona bounded onto the dragon’s back again, took a firm grip on one scale so it couldn’t buck her off, and raised her blade in the other. Using all the elevated strength of her enhancement spell, she thrust downward.

“Gotcha!”

With victory in her grasp, Micona had let her guard down.

When a second dragon lunged out of the darkness, she noticed a moment too late.

“! Another one?!”

It had never occurred to her that there would be multiple monsters. Startled, she let go of the scale as the dragon flung her away.

She managed to land safely and get back on her feet, but in the worst location—she was flanked by the dragons.

Micona swore under her breath, eyes bloodshot, looking from one monster to the other.

The dragon in front of her inhaled, readying a breath attack. At this distance, there wasn’t going to be anything left of Micona but ash. Fearing for her life, she took a desperate leap toward the gap between the two monsters.

“Gah… Ugh!”

Pained grunts escaped Micona’s lips. Her buffed legs had carried her through multiple feints and sudden turns. The toll on her stomach, lungs, and organs was growing, but she managed to slip between them.

Even so, she barely avoided the breath attack. The g-forces of her sudden turns had left her grimacing, blood pouring from her nose.

Relief at avoiding the fire let blood go down the wrong pipe, and she started coughing.

“Koff, koff… Oh crap.”

The beasts had closed the gap, and Micona found herself with her back against the wall.

She had no time for self-recrimination. The dragon with the missing scale was rearing back, angered…about to breathe fire. A quiver ran up its body, and a red light flashed around its jaws.

“…I’m not losing here,” Micona yelled. “You’re nothing but a dragon! Nothing but a stepping stone in my way!”

She raised her sword, like being bathed in flame was nothing to be afraid of…and charged toward the dragon.

A desperate attack tantamount to suicide.

But a moment later…

“Hup!”

A soft cry—from someone literally using the dragon as a stepping stone.

“L-Lloyd Belladonna!”

Yep, it was Lloyd. He’d planted a foot on the monster’s head just before it unleashed its fiery breath. Then he’d kicked it in the jaw.

That forcefully clamped the maw shut, making the dragon’s own attack explode inside its mouth. It toppled over, smoke billowing from its mouth.

Lloyd immediately closed the distance on the other dragon and unleashed a powerful punch to its underbelly.

His frail-looking arm visibly dented the monster’s guts…and the impact of the blow, far stronger than the visuals alone, cracked the floor around his feet.

The dragon let out a wail. It bathed the roof of the dungeon in fire, and the entire floor took on a reddish hue.

“…Huh? A single blow?”

Lloyd had jumped farther than Micona could’ve at max buff. On top of that, he had gone up against dragons barehanded, which wasn’t something any mere mortal was capable of. The sword slipped out of Micona’s hands, clattering to the floor. Even she couldn’t dismiss this as “the enemy went easy on him,” and her mind was left reeling in confusion.

Of course, Lloyd was completely unaware of what he had just accomplished. He picked up the beasts’ tails, moving them out of the way, and then dusted off his hands like he’d just finished moving a rather heavy desk.

“Hmm…dragons? I see two big lizards… Why did everyone run away?”

He thought about it for a moment, then tapped a fist to his palm, as if he’d figured it out.

“Right! City people aren’t used to lizards. I never see them out here! I imagine you would be surprised when a bunch of them come rushing out!”

In his mind, these beasts were like worms in the fields or bugs under any old rock.

Lloyd hadn’t even broken a sweat, and his friends all acted like that was normal.

“Geez, he even thinks dragons are lizards?”

“That’s my master!” Allan hooted.

“…No…he’s my master…and…you should maybe stop letting your legs shake like that…”

While everyone gathered round Lloyd to praise him, Selen approached Micona, grinning triumphantly.

“Soooo, Micona? He may have let that snake slip away, but it’ll take you dozens of reincarnations before you’ll stand a chance against my Lloyd!”

She’d lost. Abject defeat. All Micona could do was hang her head.

“He’s a monster… I was up against a true beast… I have to become one myself. This can’t be real… This isn’t right…”

Lloyd walked over to Micona as well, and she braced herself, afraid he might be looking for retribution.

However, he never even noticed the look in her eyes, instead flashing her a happy smile.

“Are you okay? Got a phobia of lizards? Is that why you’re all crouched over?”

Micona’s legs had collapsed under her, but Lloyd managed to put a positive spin on that. With a gentle grin, he held out a hand.

“Ugh!”

Micona slapped it away hard enough that the crack echoed through the chamber.

Now he looked upset. Had he said something wrong?

Micona stood up, collected her sword, and pointed the blade at Lloyd.

“…You act like you’re above me! From your movements, I bet you’re cheating somehow! You aren’t capable of doing anything by yourself! How dare you act like this!”

“Uh… I—I don’t…”

Being told he couldn’t do anything by himself really got to Lloyd.

And then…came more roaring from the depths of the hole in the wall—indicating the presence of at least several more monsters.

“More of them?! How many dragons are there?!”

“No, Selen, those are just liz—”

Before Lloyd could finish, Micona staggered to her feet, aiming the tip of her sword at the oncoming creatures and trying to step toward them.

Her Godspeed had worn off. Her eyes empty, she was muttering under her breath.

Only sheer force of will had her on her feet at all.

Riho rubbed her temples, appalled.

“We’d better get her out of here. Otherwise, she’s gonna keep going until it kills her!”

Allan pushed his quivering legs into action, scooping Micona up in his arms.

“Micona, I apologize for manhandling you! Phyllo, grab her legs.”

“…Heave-ho!”

Micona tried to struggle, but the two of them carried her away at top speed.

“L-let go!”

The entire dungeon began to tremble. Loud crashes boomed from all around, like someone putting together a gigantic puzzle.

More dragon howls echoed in the distance…

“Yikes! Is the ground moving?”

“Wh-what now?”

“Get out! Before this place comes apart!” Riho screamed, taking charge. “Don’t leave any wounded behind! Anyone left here is monster chow!”

As vibrations shook the place apart and cries grew closer, everyone broke into a desperate run.

Riho’s group was in the lead.

Behind them, Lloyd gathered a dozen injured cadets on his back, muttering to himself all the while.

“I can’t do anything alone…”

This faint whisper was drowned out by the roars of the pursuing beasts.

Their investigation had ended in chaos—the lower reaches of the dungeon instantly turning into a place filled with high-level monsters. The military command quickly upgraded the dungeon rating from low to advanced and barred entry to the place.

They’d let the mysterious monster get away, and this made the king go into overdrive, coming up with all sorts of plans that drove Chrome and Choline batty.

The fallout of that would eventually reach Lloyd, Micona, and Marie…but at the time, they were none the wiser…