Tennoji and the others exited the cave entrance and ascended to the sixty-second floor, hurrying towards the Seeker awaiting them.
The ‘Red Dungeon’ offered no shelter from the sun.
The waiting Seekers had set up simple awnings and tents to shield themselves from the direct sunlight.
In the sweltering heat, they noticed the returning members of Roar of the Raijuu. However, the number was ten—the same as when they had departed.
What happened to Aqua Blade? The Seekers frowned.
“What’s wrong, Tennoji? Did something happen?”
The one who called out was Osaka, the leader of the Farmer Company Seeker Clan, ‘Rosario.’
Tennoji, along with the other Seekers who had gone to the sixty-third floor, all looked down, their faces pale as if they had lost their vitality.
Osaka wondered what had happened.
“…Everyone was killed.”
“What!? Aqua Blade?”
Osaka was shocked by Tennoji’s words, his eyes widening.
“What do you mean, Tennoji?”
“There was a mutated monster. An unusually strong one… and the number of Hell Garm and Goblins was higher than reported. No… perhaps there are still more!”
Other Seeker Clans began to gather, forming a circle around Tennoji.
“What do we do? Do we fight them here?”
Tennoji shook his head in response to Osaka’s question.
“No… let’s return to the fiftieth floor and reorganize.”
◇◇◇
Tennoji and the others returned to the lodging facility on the fiftieth floor. They put the supply trucks into the iron door warehouse and discussed the situation with the leaders of the waiting Seeker Clans.
“Are you saying we’re going to fight here?”
“We can’t handle Hell Garm and Ogres with just us!”
Voices of discontent naturally leaked from the Mid-Tier Company Seekers.
“Of course, we will handle the Abyssal Monsters. Besides, it’s not yet decided whether we will fight here.”
Tennoji had placed several Seekers with wireless radios between the sixtieth and fiftieth floors as liaisons.
It was unknown whether the monsters would ascend the floors, and even if they did, the number was uncertain. If only a portion of the monsters came up, they would be crushed on the fiftieth floor.
That was Tennoji’s idea, but—
“…All the monsters are coming up?”
Tennoji’s shoulders dropped at the report from the Seeker. He had expected it, but it was the worst-case scenario.
“Yes, and their numbers are increasing. Ten Hell Garm have been confirmed, and over a hundred Goblins, including Orcs.”
“Orcs…”
Tennoji grimaced. They were not Abyssal Monsters, but humanoid monsters with pig heads that resided in fairly deep floors. If there were enough of them, even B-rank Seekers might struggle.
“And… that Red Ogre is at the center of the group.”
“I knew it would come.”
A mutated Ogre. The monster that had defeated the top-tier Seeker Clan, Aqua Blade.
Tennoji didn’t think he would lose. But considering the other monsters, many Seekers would likely be sacrificed.
Thinking that, Tennoji raised his head and looked around at his gathered comrades.
“Let’s go up. We don’t know how far they’ll come up… but the higher we go, the thinner the Mana concentration becomes, which should be disadvantageous to the monsters. In the worst case, we should consider fighting on the surface.”
“Wait a minute, Tennoji! This Dungeon is leaking Mana right now! Going up might not make much of a difference.”
It was Ishikawa who raised the objection. Many agreed with his opinion, and they were negative about Tennoji’s idea.
“Of course, I understand. But even so, it doesn’t change the fact that we’ll be at an advantage.”
“What do you mean?”
Rosario’s Osaka asked, looking unconvinced.
“Above this Dungeon is Seeker’s Town. There are many Seekers waiting there. Most of them are low-ranked, but if we cooperate with the mid-tier Seekers, we can handle the Goblins and Orcs. In the meantime, we top-tier Seeker Clans will defeat the Hell Garm and Ogres!”
“But what if they escape to the surface! Have you forgotten the uproar when we let one Hell Garm escape!?”
Ishikawa said as if shouting, but Tennoji laughed confidently, “We won’t let them escape.”
“Honda-san is up there. She’ll come up with a perfect plan. I’ve already sent one of the Seekers ahead, so we can focus on defeating the Abyssal Monsters.”
Ishikawa and Osaka fell silent at Tennoji’s words. But this time, Kurashiki, the leader of the Kagurazaka Pharmaceuticals Clan, Ashura, opened his mouth.
“Conversely, if the Mana on the surface is thin, won’t it be harder to use magic, putting us at a disadvantage? In fact, I heard that when we let the Hell Garm escape last time, the Seekers on guard couldn’t perform to their full potential!”
Kurashiki glanced at Ishikawa.
“In that case, wouldn’t monsters with high physical abilities be more advantageous?”
It was a reasonable opinion, but Tennoji denied it.
“That’s okay too. If it’s an environment where magic is difficult to use, the monsters’ power will also weaken. In that case, the Self-Defense Forces’ guns will show their power. They seem to have prepared more powerful weapons than last time. Our advantage is still unshakable.”
Everyone fell silent. Tennoji took it as agreement.
“Then let’s begin. We will advance to the upper floors in accordance with the monsters’ progress!”
◇◇◇
Five hours later—in the time zone when the sun had completely set, Honda received an unexpected report.
“What!? A mutated Ogre? And Aqua Blade was killed by that monster?”
Honda, who had heard the story in her office in the Central Center Building, frowned in disbelief.
She leaned back in her chair, closed her eyelids, and clasped her fingers together.
After pondering in silence for a while, she opened her eyelids and looked at the Seeker who had come to report with a serious expression.
“So… what does Tennoji plan to do?”
“Yes, he said that he would leave the supplies on the fiftieth floor and ascend the floors while confirming the monsters’ movements.”
“I see…”
–So, he wants me to buy time while he reorganizes. Geez, he’s as demanding as ever.
“Understood. I’ll prepare things here. You may rest.”
“Yes.”
As the Seeker who had come to report left the room, Honda let out a deep sigh.
–A mutated Ogre… Could it be…?