Chapter 118 - Chapter 118: Starting the Dungeon Attack with Tetsuo
Borrowing Tetsuo's power, we challenge the conquest of Floor 7.
With his Shazam power, a height of 100 meters should be no problem.
When I first met him, he came flying through the air, after all.
If he can fly, a certain height doesn't matter at all.
Thinking about it that way, if he can fly, he can cancel out all the monsters that pop up on the ground, right?
This is an incredible cheat.
The person who made this dungeon probably never dreamed in their wildest dreams that such a man would come.
There is a saying, "Only God knows," but if the one who made this dungeon was a god, it must have been an event beyond God's prediction.
How about it? Is there any sabotage coming from the dungeon itself?
Like, "We won't allow cheats?!" or something, firing off absolute-conquest-impossible traps or absolute-death traps one after another.
If they did that, we'd have no choice but to give up.
The Princess would understand that too.
We can't get dragged into a war between gods and gods.
And so, while secretly preparing for the conquest of Floor 7, I was sniffed out by Iroha and Sana.
"Cherry Princess! You were the one trying to leave us out, weren't you?!"
"This time, we're doing it alone."
"Guu..."
The two of them were glaring at each other.
"Daisuke-san is terrible too!"
Sana was hugging me and crying.
When a girl cries, an old man is weak, you know.
"Soo... maybe this time it could be quite dangerous."
"The dungeon is always dangerous, isn't it?"
"Well, that's true, but... I have a feeling something is different this time."
"Is it because that person is there?"
"There is the fact that we can't conquer it without borrowing Tetsuo's power, but that seems like it could cause big trouble."
It's just my intuition, after all.
"More importantly, Iroha. What are you going to do with your guild?"
"I've already told everyone properly."
"What if something happens to you?"
"I've also told the guild members properly about that."
Adventurers might not be able to return once they enter the dungeon.
Even in the shallow layers, if you let your guard down, you can die.
She says she tells her guild members to always be prepared for that.
While Iroha and the Princess were arguing, the door bell rang -- a customer.
"Yes~"
When I opened it, it was Tetsuo's face.
"The god said Sana-chan is here, right?"
"Yeah, she just arrived."
"I'll just interrupt for a bit."
Tetsuo entered the room.
"Is there any relation to this dungeon attack?"
"The god said to bring Sana-chan along."
"Can you talk to the god?"
"Haha, since my followers have increased, it seems I can exert power in this world in various ways."
Why did my followers increase?
That was -- the blue-eyed video streamer I met in the Special District before.
He seems to be a famous streamer in America.
I had heard that story from him, certainly --.
When I uploaded the video I shot in the Special District, it went massively viral with mixed reviews worldwide.
It turned out I succeeded in gaining new followers who were extremely interested in a god named Izal.
Well, if you perform a miracle right before their eyes, I guess I felt like, "Ah, that's how it is."
Since actually praying to Izal can grant power, other video streamers started praying to the god too.
The video streaming community was taking on the appearance of a competition to show off powers received from the god.
Well, it's that kind of trendy topic, isn't it?
It's probably the same as when lots of Mentos-Cola videos were uploaded in the early days of video sites.
The difference from that might be that miracles can actually be performed.
Of course, there are negative opinions too.
There are people who say "God is One!" -- but ordinary people can easily perform God's miracles, which only saints can usually cause.
To religious figures, they might be making faces like they've chewed on bitter grubs.
"Is it because Sana is Izal's Saintess?"
"Well, that's how it turns out. She can use High Heal and Area Heal, so she should be valuable as a combatant, right?"
"But this time it looks dangerous..."
"From the god's perspective, since he gave such great power, he's saying he needs us to work properly -- but..."
"I'll do it! I will do it! I'm going with Daisuke-san!"
Sana, who had been listening to our conversation, was pumping her fists and getting pumped up.
"Well, I'll ask you too."
When Tetsuo said that, well.
This attack is impossible without his cooperation.
"Are you the old man who's been talking about the god Sana heard about?"
"Tetsuo."
"Fishy! You look the furthest from a god or anything like that, you jerk~"
"Hahaha! That's exactly right."
"You're not denying that?"
He reacted to my words.
"I may have said this before, but I am aware that I am the human furthest from things like gods or faith. I even think myself that being an Apostle is some kind of joke."
I certainly feel like he said something like that before.
"His combat power is on par with high-level adventurers, so don't worry."
"Unfortunately, I didn't have the aptitude for being an adventurer."
"So you're okay with that?!"
"I'm fine."
"If Darling says so..."
Hearing Iroha's words, Tetsuo makes a lecherous face.
"Hey, hey, how many Darlings do you have?"
"Everyone calls me Darling. Even men call me Darling."
"Hahaha! You're loved, aren't you..."
"It's a relief to be called Darling by an old man like me."
It seems the Princess has given up on Iroha and Sana accompanying us, but it seems sending followers to a death trap isn't a problem for the god.
According to Tetsuo, from the god's perspective, we humans are like microorganisms.
Life and death might not matter --.
But I think they would be somewhat concerned about Apostles like Tetsuo or Saintess-class people like Sana.
And so, an attack with almost top-rankers was decided.
Iroha and Sana will participate as individuals, not through the guild.
Therefore, this time, we won't bring the mid-level mages who use support magic.
Well, I only have a bad feeling about this.
"Did we get dragged into Tetsuo's dungeon attack, or did we get dragged into the power struggle between gods...?"
"Probably the latter."
I sighed at Tetsuo's immediate answer.
"Really? Did we get skillfully set up?"
"Well, give up, hahaha! I'll cooperate as much as possible."
"I'm counting on you."
In preparation for the dungeon attack, I asked the mage Yuuki.
To put the Fix magic on ropes and rope ladders.
"I heard. You're attacking Floor 7, right?"
"I feel bad that I didn't invite you this time."
"If more guilds participate, the adjustments become difficult, you know."
"That's how it is."
"I also can't take time personally this time, so I think it's unavoidable, but regarding not inviting me, I'm a little resentful."
"Haha, sorry -- then why don't you crash in like Iroha?"
"Haa... If the leader does such a thing, it won't set a good example for the subordinates..."
He vents his dissatisfaction about Iroha's actions.
I understand what Yuuki wants to say too.
"..."
He seems to be thinking about something.
"What's wrong? Do you have something to worry about?"
"No, I watched the video. A man claiming to be the god's Apostle is at your place, right?"
"Not at my place -- but in the next room."
"...Actually, a child in our members has awakened to a mysterious power not derived from the dungeon."
"I see, that guy will be happy."
"Is the god real?"
"When I see his mysterious power, I feel like he really exists. After all, the dungeon itself is a existence beyond human intelligence, isn't it?"
"That is so."
Treating the dungeon like a mine, the world has started turning along with the mysterious power derived from the dungeon.
This is a kind of monoculture economy.
"You know that uniform systems have a high possibility of collapsing, right?"
"Yes."
"What if the dungeon suddenly disappears one day?"
"That would be... troubling."
"But the mysterious power granted to young adventurers will remain even if the dungeon disappears."
"Is that true?"
He makes a suspicious face.
Well, it's not surprising he can't believe it.
"He, who is God's Apostle, says so."
"Does that mean insurance is necessary for everything...?"
"Well, if you pray properly, you can sometimes receive power, so you won't lose out. Why not just try praying?"
"Unfortunately, I have never praised a god."
"Hahaha, 'believer' is written as 'profit'. Those who believe get tripped up."
"That's not good, is it..."
Anyway, I got the magic cast.
Now preparations are complete.
-- A few days after preparations for the dungeon attack were complete.
We met at the dungeon's automatic gate in the early morning.
-- Or rather, the people living in the hotel are together, and the rest is just Iroha.
From the hotel, Kirara and the others, as well as Tetsuo's companions Ichiro and Aoi, arrived.
The women were all wearing deep hoods.
Flashy combat equipment would make them stand out too much.
Besides, they would be immediately revealed as top-rankers.
"Sana, be careful."
"Thank you, Kirara-san."
"Big sister! Good luck!"
Mio-chan also came to see us off before going to school.
"Big Brother, please do your best too!"
"Idiot! I work my ass off every time! How many times do you think I've died?"
Ichiro's words, Tetsuo raised his voice unusually.
Did he really die?
Curious, I asked.
"In another world, is there resurrection magic or something?"
"No."
"Then is that also a miracle related to the god?"
"Well, something like that. I don't want to talk about it, so don't ask."
"Understood."
Usually, he is carefree, but he has a serious face, so it must be true.
Waiting, Iroha arrived with about ten young people.
Her younger sister Kagari was with her too.
"Good morning -- wait, you're not taking the young ones?"
"Don't worry, Darling. These guys are just seeing us off."
"You're loved."
"Well."
Girls swarmed around Iroha.
"Iroha-neesan, be careful!" "If anything happens to neesan, what should we do?"
"I've told you before. Adventurers can die at any time, it's not strange."
"T-that's true, but..."
Kagari came to my place.
"Darling-san, please take care of neechan."
"Leave it to me -- I can't make a rash promise, but don't worry."
"Okay."
It wasn't a final farewell, but seeing everyone off, we plunged into the dungeon.
"This time too, we'll use the railway up to Floor 5."
The leader is always the Princess, just like usual.
Everyone came to the dungeon railway platform.
"Wow, a locomotive really runs inside the dungeon."
He looked up at the black iron boar spewing steam.
"Electricity and fire can't be used here, so it runs by boiling the boiler with magic."
"I thought it would be interesting, but isn't it surprisingly not crowded?"
"Floor 1 to Floor 2 have many users."
"Then let's go with Shazam."
"Is that okay? I'd be troubled if you ran out of mana later..."
"Haha, it's fine, it's fine."
For everyone, it's better than being jostled by other adventurers in the crowd.
If they find out we're top-rankers, it'll cause a commotion.
"Then, I'm counting on you."
"Alright! Shazam!"
A pitch-black liquid-like substance crawled out from nowhere.
It was as if darkness itself had taken form, wrapping itself in a sticky, viscous texture, spreading out along the ground.
It formed the shape of a giant hand, as if melting into the dungeon's darkness.
"Whoa?! What is this?!"
Iroha was amazed by the sudden appearance of the black thing.
"This is a part of Tetsuo's ability."
"..."
She was speechless.
"Hahaha! This is the god's miracle."
"Is it for real? Not magic?"
"Real, real."
The words of the old men harmonized.
"Haa..."
She seems to be stunned.
Did she believe it, or was she just stunned?
"Wow, it's soft."
She touched Shazam's body, checking the squishiness.
"Come on, get on."
Part of Shazam's body became step-like, so running up it, we landed on the giant palm.
"U-um, are you going to fly through the air?"
Iroha's voice was trembling.
Even though her head tried to understand the event happening right before her eyes, her heart couldn't catch up.
In that sensation where reality felt distant, the words slipped out unintentionally.
I was the first to see Shazam flying.
Seeing that, I intended to make Tetsuo a companion.
"That's right."
"Amazing!"
"I made him a companion betting on this kind of ability."
"With this, that entrance on Floor 7 should be a breeze, right?!"
At first, Iroha doubted Tetsuo's ability, but seeing Shazam, it seems she changed her mind.
"That's right."
"If you hate 'god's miracle', just calling it a cheat is fine too, hahaha."
I also sat on Shazam, confirming the texture with my hand.
"It's soft, so your butt won't hurt."
Touching it with my hand, it was squishy and slightly warm.
If it were cold, it would drain stamina just by that, so this is a relief.
"You can wear whatever you want. It's okay to lie down."
"Wow, that's great!"
Immediately, Iroha lay down on the black bed.
"Alright! Let's go!"
With Tetsuo's voice, the black creature silently began to race through the darkness.
It feels like it's going quite fast.
"We're really flying in the air! Is this really not magic?"
Iroha leaned forward and looked down.
"Iroha, it's dangerous?"
"It's fine, Darling."
"This isn't magic. It's like a combo move of Shazam and my ability."
"Amazing."
She is impressed by Tetsuo's ability.
"Oga! Your equipment recovers stamina while running, right? Just keep running and follow us."
"If I run, I'll get hungry too!"
Iroha retorted to the Princess's sarcasm.
Well, even if stamina automatically recovers, if you get hungry, you'll eventually be unable to move.
"Tetsuo, can you see in the darkness?"
"Yeah, I received that blessing from the god."
"Being told that, abilities received from the dungeon seem similar to blessings..."
"Well, nine times out of ten, they're the same thing."
"Do you have some certainty?"
"If it's not me, or rather, if it's not so, there's no meaning for my god to insist on this place."
The Princess joined the conversation between Tetsuo and me.
"How fast can this black thing go?"
"I think it can reach about 100 km/h, but the wind is tough."
"I see."
Just being hit by the wind is quite tiring.
It's like riding a motorcycle on a highway.
"Well, if you absolutely need to rush like a super express, you can enter Shazam's body or make a partition."
"We're not in a rush, let's go slowly, ahaha. This is comfortable~"
As Iroha said.
"He's someone without tension."
The Princess grumbled, but Iroha lying on the black bed was completely relaxed.
This isn't an RTA (Real Time Attack) where not pushing here destroys the world or something like that.
While talking, the endpoint of Floor 1 came into view.
Going straight down the connecting passage, we arrived at Floor 2.
We raced through the shallow layers, flying over the heads of many adventurers.
Since there was no sound of flying, it seems everyone didn't notice we were above them.
They would never dream that someone was flying over their heads.
"Is it okay to go straight through?"
"Yeah, non-stop to Floor 5."
"Okay!"
The black carpet carrying us, flying through the sky, rushed over the heads of the adventurers.
The pitch-black fabric melted into the darkness, indistinguishable from the darkness itself.
Flexibly undulating, it cut through the air silently.
Its movement was like a shadow tearing through the night's silence.
One of the adventurers who suddenly looked up noticed that figure passing by with a faint air pressure, but in the next moment, it had already melted into the darkness.
On Floor 2, there are bat monsters that fly in the air, but it seems they can't catch up to Shazam.
Since there are no other monsters in the air, this is a safe zone.
"This is a real cheat."
"Indeed, as Darling said!"
Hearing my voice, Iroha agreed loudly.
"Shall I get some drinks?"
I rummaged through the Item Box.
"Good idea! Give me food!"
"Oga, show some restraint!"
"It's fine. We're Darling and me."
"My Darling!"
I gave everyone drinks, and onigiri for Iroha.
"I'm treating you~"
Tetsuo was drinking canned coffee.
"Coffee in another world?"
"There are similar drinks. Besides, coffee sometimes comes out of the gate."
"Anything comes out."
"In another world, they can't produce glass or plastic, so they rely on what comes out of there. It's treated exactly like a mine."
"In that case, it's the same as the dungeons in the current world."
"Well."
While talking with Tetsuo, I was suddenly hugged from behind and a large object was pressed against me.
This way of disappearing of the presence must be Kaorulko.
"What? Are you using me as a windbreak?"
"Yes."
"You could block the wind with Protection, but you'd consume mana."
"If it's cold, I'll make a partition."
With Tetsuo's signal, a protrusion appeared in front of Shazam.
"Just having a small protrusion makes a big difference."
"The air flows upward."
Kaorulko is using me as a windbreak, so I'm warm, but I'm also warm being pressed against her body.
Then Sana came.
"Then, I'll be your windbreak, Daisuke-san."
Saying that, she also pressed a large object against my chest from the front.
Squeezed sandwiched by soft things from front and back.
This is truly a man's romance.
Certainly, it's very warm.
"Darling!"
"If you go behind Kaorulko, the Princess will be warm too."
"That's not it!"
While doing such things, Shazam passed through Floor 2 and headed to Floor 3.
Since there are no monsters in the air here either, we gracefully skipped past.
"This is too comfortable!"
"If it's like this every time, the conquest will progress nicely."
As Kaorulko said.
"For now, I'll stick around until I finish the god's errand."
"That's reliable."
Continuing to fly through the air, we arrived at Floor 4.
"Daisuke-san, we're already at Floor 4."
Sana was a little excited.
"If Sana gets deeper involved with the god, won't she get something like Shazam?"
Tetsuo reacted to my question.
"Well, I'm not sure about that. This one is a bit special."
"Then, was there no magic to fly in the air in the other world?"
"There wasn't, but I've seen magic to slow down falling. Dwarves used it."
"Oh, Dwarves! You said there were Elves, so Dwarves exist too? Are they still on bad terms?"
"When I went to the other world, I didn't have that knowledge, but is that a famous story?"
"Well, yes."
In most fantasy works, it's a cliché that Elves and Dwarves are on bad terms.
Still, falling control magic.
Just that is quite amazing.
You won't die even if you fall from the sky or a cliff.
Stories from the other world might give some hints about unknown magic.
In fact, from his story, I learned that there are magic items -- magical tools, etc.
While talking with Tetsuo, a cry was heard from the darkness.
"Gya! Gya!" "Gyaa!"
"Oh, them. Since they're on something different from usual, they might be confused. Hey! Over here."
"Gya!" "Gya!"
Two wings appeared, tearing through the silence of the darkness.
Their figures, melting into the pitch-black night, flew on parallel with us silently.
"It's different from usual, but it's okay!"
"Gya!" "Gya!"
When they adjusted their relative speed, they flew to me.
I gently caught them.
My fingers sank into warm, soft feathers.
When the relative speed is zero, you can do things like this.
Tetsuo doesn't seem surprised by the monsters that suddenly appeared either.
Were these monsters common in the other world where he existed?