In the depths of a dripping, dark, and deep cave, on a cold ice wall, appeared the “doors” that Will had seen countless times in this dungeon.
One door was so translucent that it seemed possible to vaguely see the world beyond—but in reality, it was just the shadow of this side of the ice door.
There were…
Two doors.
There was usually only one door leading to the next layer.
There had never been a situation with two doors.
Or rather… why would there be two doors to the next layer?
The atmosphere of the adventuring team, which had already become serious and strange due to the “disappearing mass-produced monsters,” grew even more somber.
Everyone looked left and right, not only at their teammates but also carefully observing the situation on this layer.
Specifically…
The area between the two doors was the focal point of everyone’s serious observation.
Although no one had spoken yet, everyone seemed to be locked in a strange “terror.”
Except for…
Shuna.
“Hoh. Interesting.”
Shuna snapped her fingers, breaking the silent atmosphere.
She approached the two doors, walked from left to right, and repeatedly looked at the position between the two doors.
Only she was calm and composed, which made her seem even more terrifying.
Her nodding, frowning, and finger-stroking chin, in Will’s eyes, seemed like an indication that “something is wrong here.”
“Hmm… Little Will, this situation seems like some kind of ghost story. You’ve heard of it, right?”
“…I’ve heard of it.”
When Will used to hang out in the library, he had the fortune—or misfortune—to read a collection of “Dungeon Ghost Stories.”
The collection mentioned that while exploring a dungeon, a certain layer was discovered to have two doors leading to the next level, causing the explorers to…
The two doors were identical, with no visible disguise in their appearance.
The adventuring team that tried to clear it, like the foolish people in every ghost story and supernatural tale, were very confident, believing they would not only break through these two doors but also definitely reach the final layer.
And so…
To prevent one of the two doors from being “fake,” they split into two groups and entered both doors simultaneously.
Of course…
As it turned out, perhaps this was the only optimal solution.
As Will was explaining this, he was interrupted by the Shield Saint of the team—
“Th-th-then… then we absolutely cannot go through both doors! We must stay together!”
“The story might not be true. But… a dungeon cannot be without an ‘exit’—that’s the fundamental rule of the lowest layer, so at least one door will lead to the exit. Of course, conversely, if one door already leads to the exit… is it possible the other leads to a dead end?”
For some reason…
Will felt that the more dangerous and unprecedented the situation became, the more excited Shuna got.
She now had her arms crossed. It was a shame she couldn’t be in two places at once, or Will felt she would have wanted to try walking through both doors.
However, Shuna did have a point.
If this was a fork in the road on a certain dungeon layer, according to the rules, they should act together on one path, then take another path at the fork.
But…
It was different when it was “doors.”
The fundamental rule of the lowest layer of a dungeon was that for the adventurers entering, if the dungeon had no way to return to the path they came from, there would definitely be an “exit” ahead.
But if these two doors were linked, it was very possible that one door could be considered the exit and the other a “dead end” trap—like exploiting a game bug.
In the original work, Will hadn’t encountered such a situation. However… given the maliciousness of some of the dungeon creators in the original work, they truly exploited bugs.
Moreover, this was a dungeon that seemed to hold a great secret.
Just…
Will hugged his arms tighter.
Why did he feel that things weren’t as he thought?
Will, whose senses were usually dull, felt a “gaze.”
The two doors, separated by a small distance.
In Will’s eyes, they were like a pair of giant eyes.
Constantly watching them.
Forcing them to make a choice.
But something was wrong…
Will was standing on the far right of the team.
But the two doors on the wall seemed to be at an angle—no, at least they weren’t at an angle just now, did they… did they change their orientation?
By changing their orientation and position…
Creating a feeling…
That it was watching him.
Constantly.
Were these doors aimed at him?
“These two doors essentially mean splitting up. To prevent all of us from being trapped, and possibly unable to send out a signal for rescue.”
Shuna made a definitive statement.
“This way, Will and Shield Saint, with me. The remaining three of you go through the other door.”
Then, without giving anyone time to think, she assigned the groups.
“Vice-captain! Aren’t you going too far? You and the captain go together—the strongest fighter and the only priest together, are you planning for the other side to just wait for death?!”
The swordsman uncle reacted the fastest, perhaps due to his richer experience.
“Yeah, that’s not reasonable!”
“You’re crazy.”
The other three people left behind directly protested.
In such an atmosphere, a ghost-story-like aura spread.
The string in everyone’s mind was stretched taut, and their will to survive was pushed to the extreme.
“Anyway, if you still want to run away with the captain and leave the other three to die, you might as well not open these two doors! Let’s call for rescue right now, we don’t need the dungeon clear points!”
He even stood in front of the doors and blocked them with his hand.
Will looked at Shuna.
Something was wrong…
Why would Shuna want to bind him and herself together? If they had to split up, the priest and the strongest fighter shouldn’t be together.
Otherwise, the weaker other side, with a significant disparity in strength, would be a certain death.
Shuna smiled and looked at Will.
She…
Seemed to be intentionally creating an opportunity for him to “choose”…
An opportunity to choose in a life-or-death situation with a strange atmosphere.
It was like…
Personally choosing his own fate.
“So, our dear Priest Captain. What do you want to do? Come with me… or take two of them?”
“Without a doubt…”
Will believed in himself…
He wouldn’t die before the famous scene a year later where he was killed by a slime!
“I’ll go with Shield Saint and the Swordsman Uncle!”
“Not bad.” Shuna crossed her arms, seemingly satisfied with Will’s choice. “Then I’ll leave it to you, Captain Will~ You choose which side first.”
Will walked up to the doors.
Behind him were two well-built teammates.
No matter which door he chose, it should be…
Very safe.
Very secure.
Foolproof.
Right?
He looked at the two doors, always feeling that their gaze seemed to negate the answer in his heart.
The strangeness that had begun in the morning seemed to reach its peak the moment he reached for the doorknob.
“No matter what, let’s go!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Heh~”
“As expected, Classmate Will.”
“You would definitely choose this.”
“During experiments, every time I watched which test tube you would choose first.”
“It’s your habit.”
“It’s something I’ve seen…”
“It’s the little things… between us that cannot be broken…”
“Leading you to my side.”
“Will.”
