Episode 30: 【Dungeon Management Bureau】 The Case of Childhood Friend Sasarabashi Shiho
Near Manseibashi in Akihabara, where Japan’s oldest dungeon exists—
The Dungeon Management Bureau was located on the upper floors of a high-rise building.
“Explorer Officer Sasarabashi, how is Natsume-san doing?”
Nagashima-san, Manager of the Industrial Division of the Dungeon Management Bureau, asked, a can of coffee in his hand.
“Yes, sir. Soon after entering the 12th floor, he was capturing spiders with that insect net of his. I believe it’s related, but he’s been frequently using skills involving Thread on the 12th floor.”
On the large monitor in the conference room, Natsume-kun was shown tying up a Goblin General’s legs with Thread, while Ms. Omogawa was slashing its upper body.
“Hmm… Does this mean he’s gained another skill?”
“Yes. That’s most likely the case.”
“Thank you for the report. The 【Spatial Transfer】 skill is truly precious, after all. Please continue to coordinate with the Explorer Association for the rescue. Here, a little something for you. You liked these, right?”
Manager Nagashima offered me a four-pack of egg bolo biscuits.
“…Thank you very much.”
Perhaps because I’m only 145cm tall and have a baby face, I often receive sweets.
I have some reservations, but I accept them gracefully.
Just then, Assistant Manager Inaba from the Explorer Support Division, which I belong to, arrived.
“May I listen in as well? Do you have their status information?”
“Yes. Here are the Dungeon Aptitude test results and Explorer License information I retrieved from the Explorer Net.”
“Thank you. Sasarabashi-san, you’re truly excellent.”
“I’m not that special, really.”
“No need for such modesty. Let’s see… Huh?! What is this!”
Assistant Manager Inaba exclaimed upon seeing Natsume-kun’s National Dungeon Aptitude Test results.
“Natsume-kun didn’t have a single talent, did he! His basic stats were all 1s, and he was incompetent, with only that trash skill 【Childlike Heart】, just a string of characters. This is…”
“Assistant Manager, that’s rude to Natsume-kun. Please retract that.”
Having my childhood friend insulted like that, my words unintentionally became harsh.
“Ah, ah, sorry. But that’s all in the past, right? Now, for the Explorer information… Eh?!”
This time, he looked at the Explorer License information and raised his voice again.
“From a Green License to C-Rank in less than a month?! And his stats and skills have increased this much?! What’s going on…? His growth is too fast…!”
“According to the jurisdictional association, it’s not an illegal exploration.”
“I see… However, even so, the combination of skills is peculiar. There are skills I don’t know, like 【Butterfly Dance】, but also many minor skills like 【Water Resistance (Small)】 and 【Slashing Power Boost (Small)】. And the crucial 【Spatial Transfer】 wasn’t there when he applied for the Explorer Exam, was it?”
“No, sir. It’s believed to be a skill he awakened afterwards.”
“I see… Does this mean Natsume-kun’s talent, which wasn’t visible in the Dungeon Aptitude test, has blossomed? Sasarabashi-san, what do you think?”
I voiced a vague premonition.
“This is just my speculation… but I believe that incredible growth is likely the effect of his 【Childlike Heart】 skill.”
“【Childlike Heart】? Just looking at the characters, it doesn’t seem to have any effect.”
“—’Children must be allowed to jump, run about, and shout to their heart’s content.’
—’All their movements stem from the need of their physical constitution to grow stronger.'”
“…What’s that?”
“It’s a passage from Rousseau’s ‘Emile’.”
“As expected of Sasarabashi-san. You’ve read a lot, haven’t you?”
“…Please try to remember. Children, through play, come into contact with various things like nature and living creatures, learn, and grow. To be amazed by the world, to enjoy it to the fullest—that’s how one becomes stronger. Isn’t that the true value of the 【Childlike Heart】 skill?”
Natsume-kun, wielding an insect net in the dungeon, was surely enjoying himself.
—Come to think of it.
Back then, too, Natsume-kun was shining.
Looking back now, his motor skills and reflexes were average at best, probably even below ordinary.
But Natsume-kun would get absorbed in anything, and while repeatedly failing, he increased the things he could do.
Climbing trees, catching cicadas, crossing stepping stones in the river—it was all like that.
True, he’d get scrapes, get peed on by cicadas, or get his clothes soaking wet.
But he’d quickly forget such things and grow, one step at a time.
If that brilliance of his became a skill as is—
If he could grow like that while playing in the dungeon—
—Eventually, Natsume-kun could become invincible.
I have such a premonition.
“Hmm… Well, I’ll accept it as a romantic theory. Well then, maybe Natsume-kun will end up learning things like 【Resurrection】 or 【Time Manipulation】 in the future.”
“Yes. I believe there’s a good chance of that.”
“I see… In any case, as a country, we’d like to make contact with Natsume-kun sooner rather than later. Sasarabashi-san, once he safely exits the dungeon, I’d like you to go meet him.”
“…Understood.”
Without mentioning that Natsume-kun was my former childhood friend, I simply nodded.
“Well then, thank you. This was helpful. Here, a little something for you.”
Assistant Manager Inaba also offered me a four-pack of egg bolo biscuits.
“…Everyone keeps giving me these, don’t they? Do I seem that childish?”
“No, no, it’s not that. You’re working hard, so I thought you might want some sugar!”
“In that case, I humbly accept. Thank you very much.”
Assistant Manager Inaba returned to his office.
…I’ve gotten good at pretending to be an adult, but it seems the core of who I am just can’t change.
I still love sweets, and I can still enjoy sparkly things like magic stones and kaleidoscopes as if in a dream.
And also…
『Ko-chan! I told you to leave this floor to me, didn’t I! Why’d you defeat it?!』
『One monster is fine, isn’t it? I found out I could hang from the ceiling with 《Thread》, so I wanted to try it out.』
『I’ll defeat the next one, okay? Even I can fly a bit with my Water User skill!』
『Hey, Ms. Omogawa! Please don’t compete unnecessarily!!』
—I wanted to explore that dungeon with them too.
It’s inappropriate, I know, but seeing how much fun they’re having makes me feel envious.
“Natsume-kun, Tama-chan… Manamin.”
Since moving to Tokyo, I feel like I haven’t had any truly fun experiences.
I was forced to study an unbearable amount every day, and conversations with family and friends were always about entrance exams.
I managed to get into what’s called a top-tier middle school, but after studying so much, it felt only natural, and there was no joy or surprise.
There was never anything that made me laugh from the bottom of my heart, like when Natsume-kun fell in the river.
And so, I just kept tackling one task after another, and eventually, I was hired by the Dungeon Management Bureau as a specialist.
『Ko-chan! Again!』
『Haha, my bad. Turns out I can pull back a thrown dagger. 《Thread》 is pretty useful.』
“I want to play with everyone again…”
…I learned about it from a letter Manamin sent me a while ago.
That after I moved to Tokyo, they started going to that Secret Base less often, and the remaining three began to drift apart.
…I am at fault.
I was the one who triggered the destruction of that paradise.
Therefore…
“If there’s anything I can do, I’ll do it.”
I have to ensure those two return safely and atone for my sin.
For someone like me, who doesn’t have out-of-this-world skills like Natsume-kun, what I can do is limited.
All I can do is diligently make arrangements over and over.
Like, temporarily securing hospital beds nearby, so if they’re badly injured after clearing the dungeon, I can arrange their transfer.
Right now, I’m far too powerless, though.
“I want to see them again…”
To reunite with those two, I’ll give it my all.
And, if possible, I want the four of us, including Manamin, to play together again…
===============
[Supplementary Note 1: Source]
Iwanami Bunko, Emile (Volume 1) [E-book Edition] Author: Rousseau, Translator: Kazuo Konno
[Supplementary Note 2: Capture Information]
Encyclopedia No. 25/251
Name: Dungeon Spider
Rarity: 0
Capture Skill: Thread (Lv1)
Capture EXP: 10
Drop Item: Magic Stone (Minute)
Description: A spider that inhabits dungeons. It consumes mana and uses mana to spin thread. The thread can be recovered if not broken. Can be captured by a 【Childlike Heart】 skill wielder using a Monster Capture Net.