Chapter 26: [Livestream] Ota Dungeon On-Site Investigation
『This is Jonuma from the Gunma Prefecture Explorer Association. We will now conduct an on-site investigation of the Ota Dungeon, where an irregular incident occurred on March 10th.』
“Oh, it’s started.”
In my room, on my PC, I was watching the live stream of the Ota Dungeon investigation.
On the screen, Jonuma-san, who had been an examiner, was speaking in front of the stairs at the entrance/exit of the dungeon’s first floor.
“It makes me happy to see a place I know on screen…”
The night before last, I received a LINK message from Otama-chan.
Tamaki: Starting at 9 AM the day after tomorrow, the Explorer Associations of two prefectures will be conducting a full-scale investigation of Ota Dungeon.
Tamaki: For the past few days, the Gunma Prefecture Association has been investigating the lower floors, and it seems the goblins’ ferocity is calming down.
Tamaki: If this investigation confirms the dungeon is stable, we’ll be able to enter Ota Dungeon again.
Tamaki: When that happens, let’s go to Ota Dungeon together. We’ll have to stick to the lower floors and see how things are for a while, though.
Tamaki: As your senior, I’ll escort you.
(A sticker of a bear in a sharp suit)
Since it was a good opportunity, I decided to watch the live stream too.
It was partly to prepare for the dungeon I’ll be challenging soon, and more than anything, I wanted to see Otama-chan and Yamada-san in action.
Having received my General Explorer License (yellow band, C-rank) by registered mail yesterday evening, live streams of dungeon explorations are no longer something unrelated to me.
『This is Tatara from the Gunma Prefecture Explorer Association. I will be in charge of support magic. I look forward to working with you today.』
《Tatara-san!》
《Thanks for always buying our magic stones!》
《Your processing is fast, it’s a big help.》
《I want you to look down on me again saying, “My, what a tiny magic stone you have.”》
This stream also serves as a briefing on the dungeon’s current situation, so anyone can watch it.
The current viewer count is around 300, and judging by the comments, it seems many of them are local Explorers.
『This is Yamada from the Tochigi Prefecture Explorer Association. Today, we will be conducting a joint investigation with the Gunma Prefecture Explorer Association. To all Explorers, thank you for your cooperation with the dungeon entry restrictions. I’d like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude.』
《Yamada-san! It’s me! Marry me!》
《It’s been a while. Thank you for your hard work on the investigation.》
《Please be careful.》
《Yamada-san! It’s me! Marry me!》
《Yamada-san! It’s me! Marry me!》
《She’s married, as usual.》
『This is Omogawa from the Tochigi Prefecture Explorer Association. I look forward to working with you today.』
《Tama-chan! Don’t mind!》
《Don’t worry about it!》
《Something good will surely happen eventually!》
《Seriously be careful today.》
《[¥1,000] Please give Tama-chan a healing potion.》
『Wh-why?! I haven’t even done anything yet!』
『Thank you for the Super Chat. Omogawa-san, please do your best not to make everyone worry.』
『Ugh… Understood…』
『…And so, these four will be exploring. We plan to subjugate the boss on the 10th floor today, so we ask for your understanding.』
《If Jonuma-san is there, it should be fine, right?》
《A gorilla who can heal.》
《Couldn’t she solo it?》
With that, the four of them proceeded deeper into the dungeon.
A drone must be filming, as all of them are shown from behind.
Jonuma-san was in the lead, and Otama-chan was walking second from the front.
“Otama-chan looks so cool.”
Otama-chan was carrying a katana at her side.
It was properly adorned and looked quite expensive.
Yamada-san had a large staff, Jonuma-san a hammer, and Tatara-san a compact staff.
They looked just like a typical Explorer party.
『Jonuma-san, enemy shadow in the next room, two o’clock direction. Probably a goblin.』
『Understood. Little Miss Omogawa, can you take care of it?』
『Leave it to me!』
《How did she know where the enemy was without seeing it?》
《Yamada-san has the [Presence Detection] skill.》
《I want one for my household.》
《Go Tama-chan!》
《There really was a goblin.》
《It’s running over!》
《Is it a little agitated?》
『–Secret Sword: Harusame Blade!!』
Swish!!
《Ooh!》
《She sliced it cleanly in two.》
《Overkill.》
《Strong.》
《Looks like she could cut through a golem.》
『Little Miss Omogawa, not bad at all.』
『Hehe, it’s a combination of my [Water User] skill and [Swordsmanship]. It cuts like that legendary sword Yamada-san told me about, right?』
《Legendary sword?》
《Yamada-san is shaking her head.》
《Seems like something’s off.》
《Harusame?》
《Probably a mistake for Murasame. It’s a sword that produces water, and in Hakkenden, it’s said to originate from the Ashikaga clan, so it has deep ties to the southern Tochigi region. To be more precise, its origin is fiction, so it’s not legendary.》
《Analysis bro, thanks.》
《Tama-chan! Don’t mind!》
–And so, the four of them advanced through Ota Dungeon.
『UOOOOOOOH!!』
CRASH!!
《She can hit a lizardman moving at that speed with a hammer.》
《As expected of Jonuma-san.》
『Omogawa-san, please be careful of your footing there.』
『My footing? You mean here?』
Click!!
Thwip, Clang!!
『…It’s an arrow trap. If you hadn’t ducked, you would have been hit.』
《How did she know?》
《Yamada-san has the [Spatial Awareness] skill. She can spot even small protrusions immediately.》
《I want one for my household.》
《I wanted to marry her.》
《Tama-chan! Shake it off and move on!》
『–Paralyze.』
Bzzzt!
Swish!
『Thanks for the support, Kaede-chan.』
『Tamaki-san, please don’t take it! This was for Jonuma-san…』
『It’s a joint operation, so get along, alright!』
《Tatara-san is quite versatile.》
《She can apply buffs/debuffs and status ailments.》
《I want to see an episode where she explores with just Tama-chan.》
And so, the four of them reached just before the boss floor of the 9th stratum.
The time was just before 11 AM.
They were thoroughly investigating each floor, so it was taking quite a bit of time.
『Alright, we’re heading to the 10th floor boss area now. The Ota Dungeon boss is a Giant Serpent, or to put it simply, a giant snake.』
《We know.》
《We know.》
『We will now subjugate the boss, and then exit using the return gate that appears afterward. That will conclude today’s investigation. I don’t think there have been any particular abnormalities so far… Yamada-san, what do you think?』
『Yes, I agree. I’ve checked everything, and no abnormalities were found within the dungeon. Perhaps something like a stagnation of mana occurred temporarily during the Explorer Exam.』
《Knew it.》
《Knew it.》
《Stagnation… I felt it.》
《Liar lol.》
『In any case, if the boss is as usual, we can conclude that there are no abnormalities in Ota Dungeon. Well, shall we go?』
『Understood.』
『Understood!』
When the four descended the stairs, they found themselves in a large room, and in the center was a black snake, 10 to 20 meters in length.
『KISHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!』
《Poison mist as an opening move?!》
《First time seeing this pattern.》
《There’s no way to dodge that, right?!》
『Breath Counter!!』
《Yamada-san?!》
《She repelled the poison mist!》
《What was that?!》
《Yamada-san can use [Wind Magic], so she can blow away breaths.》
《That’s too convenient.》
『Offense Up!!』
『Nuuuuh, Full Power Stamp!!』
GAKOOOOOOON!!
《The head!!》
《A direct hit.》
《Its head is reeling.》
『Secret Sword: Summer Rain Blade!!』
《Something’s different lol.》
《That cut pretty deep.》
《She crushed the pit organ on one side.》
《Tama-chan, nice!》
『Omogawa-san, that was a splendid strike. Please keep it up.』
『Yes! Leave it to me!』
《She got praised!》
《That’s rare!》
《It was certainly good.》
《That was nice.》
…And so.
Without any trouble, the four of them subjugated the boss.
The black snake gradually turned into a purple mist and disappeared.
『We did it!』
《Otsu!》
《Otsu!》
《Congrats!》
《The finishing blow was also Summer Rain Blade, huh.》
《Tama-chan’s episode.》
《Good work, everyone. This was very informative.》
『Alright… Anyone who has cleared a dungeon before should know this, but when you defeat the final floor boss, a gate appears that can teleport you to the dungeon entrance. Once we confirm it’s working, we will lift the entry ban on Ota Dungeon.』
《We’ve been waiting!》
《That’s a great help.》
《The Sankenzakai Dungeon was too difficult, so I couldn’t go. Ota is just about right.》
《That place is too chaotic. The goblins from the Tochigi and Gunma sides are at war, right? Saitama is just watching from the sidelines.》
《What are the drop items this time?》
《It’d be great if some equipment drops.》
《By the way, the return gate isn’t appearing.》
『Ah, a magic stone came out from inside the snake. I’ll go get it.』
『Omogawa-san, thank you very much. If you please… Ah! Omogawa-san, stop!!』
『Eh…? Kyaa!!』
《A pitfall trap?!》
《It’s a pitfall.》
《I get caught in those a lot too lol. Lately, I’ve been trying to think positively, like it saves me the trouble of going down the stairs lol.》
《It’s less like a hole and more like a pass-through hula hoop, huh?》
《Tama-chan, don’t worry about it! lol》
《Once it’s triggered, the hole disappears, so the only way to follow is by the stairs.》
《Hurry up and go save her!》
《Hold on a sec… Is there even a floor below?》
《There are no stairs in the boss room!》
《Huh?》
《In the first place, Ota Dungeon only has 10 floors.》
《Tama-chan, where did you fall???》