A premonition washes over me, as if something significant is happening just beyond my awareness, something I shouldn’t have missed…
“Is it just my imagination?”
“Huh? What’s wrong, Jiro? Did you find something weird?”
“No, I just had a bad feeling.”
A sudden sense of unease made me scan my surroundings, but all I saw was the Dungeon Core we’d been observing. There was nothing out of the ordinary. Of course, it’s the most important facility in the Dungeon, though it’s become so commonplace to me that I barely notice it anymore. Still, there’s no anomaly. But starting this morning, when unusual things happen, I find myself wondering if they’ll trigger a chain reaction of other events. Is that just a occupational hazard? I’m overthinking things.
“It seems it was just my imagination.”
Perhaps sensing my odd behavior, or maybe excited by the prospect of something happening, they ask, but unfortunately, I have nothing to report. All I see are the girls observing the Dungeon Core, a stark contrast to Instructor Kio and me. Saml and Yaml are busily working around the Dungeon Core. And Sister Sanari watches quietly, her initial delinquent-like demeanor completely gone.
While it’s impossible to call the Dungeon Core, the heart of the Dungeon, ordinary, the scenery certainly appears normal.
“What the heck, you started looking around all of a sudden. I thought enemies were attacking,” someone grumbles.
“Then why do you look so happy? Normally, you’d have a sour face, right?”
“Because I’m an Oni.”
“It’s taken a while, but my heart can finally accept that explanation.”
“Glad to hear it. That’s proof you’re starting to grow on us.”
Please, don’t be so obviously disappointed by my reasoning. When the instructor says something like that, it feels as though even unlikely events might actually happen, like a prophecy fulfilled. I understand and accept that his love for battle is due to his race, his Oni bloodlust.
However, it’s also a fact that I can’t tolerate having incidents caused by such reasons. Last year and this year alone, I’ve already experienced enough incidents to last me roughly ten years. I’m far beyond full; I’m starting to get heartburn.
“It’s all thanks to the guidance of a certain two.”
“Gahahaha! We should be grateful to them!”
Instructor Kio laughs heartily, as if my feelings are none of his concern. I suppose I have to accept it; he’s an Oni. I’ve grown accustomed to this response. Rather than growing on them, I’ve been assimilated. It’s undeniable that common sense has shifted to such an extent that I’ve given up trying to resist.
Given that, it’s much easier mentally and less stressful to just embrace it. It might be a harsh assertion, but whoever can enjoy any situation is the strongest.
“Hey, hey! What are you laughing so happily about! I’m working here!”
Instructor Kio’s laughter is loud. Even in this vast cavern, his voice carries well. It must not be very pleasant for someone working to hear laughter nearby, I suppose.
“Alright, alright! I’ll spar with you twice!”
“You promise!”
However.
“Isn’t that girl secretly an Oni?”
“No, she’s definitely not one of our kind.”
She really does love to fight. Even Kaido hesitates for a moment before fighting the instructors, but she readily accepts with a smile, without a second thought. That’s not the kind of request one expects from a child in her innocent appearance. Even when I fight the instructors, I do it not for enjoyment, but for practicality, to gain combat experience, accepting it as a necessary burden.
“…There are all sorts of people in the world, aren’t there?”
“In my eyes, you’re the strangest one. I don’t know anyone else who’d try to become a dragon by taking in dragon blood to stop being human.”
“I was lucky. Though it feels like more of a bad luck.”
“No doubt.”
While we’re having this exchange, I gaze at the Dungeon Core. The more I look, the stranger it appears. It looks like just a large magic stone, yet it contains a living creature. I’ve heard of insects trapped in amber, but how does this actually work? As I ponder this in my mind, I realize I’m essentially just sightseeing at work, and I inwardly chuckle at what I’m doing during work hours.
Though it was a leisurely time, there was one thing that bothered me. I followed the instructions more out of habit.
“Instructor.”
“What is it?”
“I have a question, but why am I in full gear?”
Up to this point, I thought we’d be fighting something, but there’s been zero combat. I thought I might have to fight Saml again, but she seems to be fighting the instructor. So why? It’s only natural to wonder.
“Ah, it’ll be a while before we have free time. Shall we take care of that first?”
I was starting to think he’d just ordered it on a whim, but it seems there was a proper reason. Glad to hear it. Still, being told to come prepared for combat means I’m already half resigned to it; I know we’re going to fight. Ah, I’m used to it.
The real problem is who the opponent is. Fighting in front of the Dungeon Core, an item that’s beyond precious – it’s practically a national treasure. Who could the opponent be?
“Hey! Sister!”
“Yes.”
“Sister?”
I was sure it wasn’t the President. That’s why I thought it might be the instructor’s relative. Maybe his son, or perhaps his youngest, battle-crazy daughter? But it was the Sister who was called by the instructor.
“It seems it will take some time to adjust, so can we take care of this first?”
“…As you say. It’s better than wasting time.”
Called by the instructor, after a brief glance at the two at work, Sister Sanari nodded to Saml and Yaml, who looked envious and worried respectively. She then walked over and stood before the instructor. It seems they had already discussed this. I was the only one unaware. The flow suggests I’ll be fighting the Sister next.
Her loose monastic habit doesn’t reveal her musculature, but her movements were swift when she lectured Saml and Yaml. At the very least, she’s not clumsy. A front-liner disguised as a healer. Or perhaps a versatile type who can fight on the front lines as well as heal. These are my predictions.
“Then, Mr. Jiro Tanaka. If you’ll permit me, please make your move.”
“Understood.”
Still unsettled, I go along with the flow. I figure I should put some distance between myself and the Dungeon Core and try to gain some space.
“Don’t worry about the Dungeon Core. I’ll deflect everything.”
Hearing that, I realize I don’t need to take any unnecessary distance. It’s a favor from someone who is, in a way, the most reliable presence. I’ll gladly accept it. The instructor moves away from his spot and stands before the Dungeon Core. Majestic. He exudes an aura of absolute defense.
In a way, that means I’m ready to fight. It might sound callous, but while I’m wary of the Sister, I don’t feel any sense of danger. I sense something is up, but not that it’s dangerous. If I fight her in my current state, I’ll definitely win. I even feel like our abilities are that far apart. Then why am I fighting? I wonder, but the answer comes sooner than I can think.
“Then, Mr. Jiro, I recommend you fight seriously.”
The one with the least tension is not me, but Sister Sanari. There is trust and reassurance there. With a smile unfitting for someone about to fight, she issues a warning.
“Wha—!?”
Zizri! At last, a sense of danger runs down my spine.
“Partner!”
“O-”
Before I know it, my hand grips the hilt of the Ore Tree, and I draw my sword. I intend to swiftly attack with a single step, to rush forward with all my might. But before that. She recites a prayer.
“Lord, I offer myself.”
Just one sentence. That’s all it took to utter. But because that one sentence was spoken before my first step, I was forced to unleash my attack with full power, stopping just short of a full swing.
“Seriously?”
I swing with all my might, holding nothing back. There is no hesitation in that single stroke. Nevertheless, my partner’s blade barely scratches her skin. It stops on the small, white palm of a girl. I’m not astonished, but my eyes widen. In that instant, before my brain can even register the fact, my body instinctively moves to counter the received attack. Using my footwork, I carry the momentum into a consecutive attack and follow up with my signature Tsubame-gaeshi. While my sword glinted in a downward diagonal slash, I switch foot positions, twist my wrist, involve my shoulder, and aim for the other side of her body—
“To the right!”
Before I can react, Sister’s fist comes flying towards my abdomen. Her movements are fast. If my partner hadn’t warned me, I would have taken it, but thankfully, I’m used to this kind of attack.
“I hesitate to disrespect a woman’s hand, but this is a fight!!”
It’s too late to dodge. But my instinct tells me I can’t take this punch. However, both my hands are holding the Ore Tree, so I can’t parry or deflect it. Therefore, I must use my foot. Using my stepping foot as a pivot, I instantly channel magic into the sole of my foot to create an explosion, generating temporary acceleration, to meet the incoming fist. I position my foot between her fist and myself, taking the punch with the sole of my foot. Naturally, if I took it directly, I’d injure my left leg, so to avoid that, I deliberately lift my right leg, which was my pivot foot, into the air and let the impact carry me. In form, it’s a somersault using her fist as a stepping stone. However, the impact on the sole of my left foot, which is reinforced with a metal plate for defense and is specially designed to withstand impact and slashes from spells, is more intense than I imagined. As I complete a spin and land, there’s no follow-up, but if she had pressed her advantage, I would have been in trouble.
“Partner, that form is…”
“Ah, no doubt.”
While feeling this sense of crisis, I begin circulating magic with my partner, who extends roots from its handle without my command, understanding my intentions. I observe Sister Sanari standing before me. Her aura has changed. The quality of her leaking magic has changed. Most importantly, the quality of her soul has changed.
“Things I don’t want to remember…”
“Then, you’re saying she’s on par with the Hero?”
“If this isn’t a prank.”
Most of all, her eyes look down on me with a cold, detached gaze. Those silver eyes… they’re the same as the God I encountered during the recent incident. My stance remains cautious, and I glance briefly at the instructor. He stands with his arms crossed, looking displeased, as if he has no intention of intervening. This means this situation has been accounted for.
“That possibility is also gone. That Oni will likely observe this battle.”
“Though he seems unhappy about it.”
Then, this isn’t the will of the temple that Evia mentioned, but the will of God. In a way, the supreme authority has appeared. And to be noticed and challenged by such a God… did I do something? Reflecting on my past actions, I ponder what to do next. If it were that Sun God, I’d have no mercy and no restraint, and would summon Valse-san to attack with all my might. But the opponent is the Moon God, whom I’ve never met. It seems he wishes to spar, so I suppose I should fight…
“I don’t understand the purpose.”
I can’t read his motives. Because he’s inorganic, I can’t read his expression or emotions. He stands still, not saying a word. If I were a simple fool or a battle enthusiast, I’d fight without overthinking things, but this is… difficult.
“…”
As if sensing my thoughts, he assumes what looks like a stance for the first time, as if to say, “I’ll go first.” Concluding that he wants to see my abilities, I slightly increase my magic rotation to meet him.
“Yes-”
At that moment, the being that has descended into the Sister, presumably the God Luina, speaks for the first time. I grow cautious of the words, or the incantation, that begin with “I”.
“Yes Lolita! No touchy!!”
“Don’t punch me with a catchphrase like that—!!”
However, despite her agile and precise movements, the anticlimactic words made me retort with all my might. With the Ore Tree.
Today’s quote:
The usefulness of “reporting, communicating, and consulting” is hard to see.
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*The first volume of the novel is published by Hayakawa Bunko JA. It was released on October 18, 2018. The e-book version was released on October 31 of the same year. The second volume was released on December 19. The third volume was released on February 20, 2019. The content includes revisions and additions to the material posted on Shōsetsuka ni Narō, with the addition of unpublished interlude chapters. Please also look forward to the new releases!
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