“Goto-senpai, are you still investigating?”
“I don’t have any solid evidence, but I still feel something is off. Though, I don’t think it’s anything to worry about…”
Several hours after Kageichi and the “Numbers” had their little run-in, Goto, the section chief of the Labyrinth Agency’s Public Safety Division, visited the collapse site in the “Nagi Plains,” frowning as he touched the rubble.
The Magical Power that people possess has individual differences, like fingerprints.
It’s not yet a formally researched result in Dungeon Studies, but the unique scent, texture, and feel of Magical Power—all have individual differences, as is known through experience.
That’s what he’s investigating…
“Come to think of it, Senpai’s Magical Power does feel rugged, like a rock.”
“Whereas Torako’s Magical Power has a certain charm. Though it feels unnatural to describe the word ‘charm’ with sensation.”
“Flattery won’t get you anywhere, you know? So, Senpai, did you find the Magical Power residue you were looking for?”
“No. Enough time has passed that the Magical Power has already dissipated. In the end, I still don’t know the reason.”
What he’s investigating is the cause of the dungeon wall’s collapse itself.
According to Hazaki Tsutomu, one of the Numbers who was arrested, the collapse was caused by a Trap set by Kageichi Futsuu.
However, the specific details are unknown… or rather, it seems even they don’t understand it.
“Isn’t that just an excuse? To frame Kageichi-san, who cornered them, as the culprit?”
“I thought so too, but then there’s no explanation for why the dungeon wall collapsed.”
The walls of the Labyrinth are extremely sturdy.
Aside from areas with gimmicks that make them prone to collapse, like “caves,” destroying the high hedgerow-like labyrinth walls in the “Plains” stage would require considerable output.
Even Goto himself doubts he could break them.
“But Senpai, it’s strange to think that Kageichi-san, that Hunter, broke it. …Isn’t he Hunter Rank B? No offense, but he seems pretty ordinary.”
“Yes. …However, there’s some information that’s bothering me. According to the Labyrinth Agency’s records, his success rate as a Cleaner is extremely high.”
Dungeon cleaning is fraught with trouble.
Cases of misidentified difficulty levels, where a dungeon applied for as Difficulty D turns out to be upper B-rank upon entry.
Encounters with dungeons that have depths clearly different from what was expected, or the sudden collapse of a dungeon during exploration—it’s a job full of danger.
Naturally, succeeding in all of them is extremely difficult.
But… Kageichi Futsuu’s clear rate for the dungeons he’s been involved with is an astonishing 100.0%.
This is an abnormal number.
It would be nice if it could be explained away as him being a diligent man, but…
“I can’t quite put it into words… but there’s something off about that man.”
“But when we checked his Magical Power the other day, it was perfectly normal, wasn’t it? The high school girl next door was an amateur too. Though it was funny when she tried to pick a fight with me.”
As his junior says, Kageichi Futsuu is a perfectly ordinary Hunter.
Average, someone you could find anywhere… his wearing a suit is unusual, but if he says it’s to give clients a sense of cleanliness, it’s understandable.
Yes, truly ordinary—but.
(Is this feeling of unease just my imagination…?)
When he saw him, Goto’s intuition whispered.
…If I fought this man, could I win?
It’s a question that should naturally be answered with yes, but he can’t be sure.
Goto, who holds a respectable position in the Labyrinth Agency’s Public Safety Division and has reached Level 50—one of the few S-Rank Hunters in Japan—intuitively can’t see a chance of victory—no, let’s be clear.
He sees a vision where it wouldn’t even be a match if they fought.
It might just be his imagination, but…
“Senpai, sorry to interrupt your work, but there’s a Monster.”
Turning to Torako’s voice, he sees the usual Grassland Golem. It must be a survivor from the previous extermination operation.
The Golem takes a heavy step, running with the rabbits.
Goto draws back his fist, slightly lowering his stance. At that moment,
“Don’t move!”
Torako’s command echoes, and the rabbits’ feet become sluggish, as if bound by chains.
Torako’s role is debuffer.
A support Skill that places debuffs on enemies by imbuing her voice with Magical Power—the effect isn’t high, but its true essence lies in its versatility.
The Skill “Voice of Subjugation,” which turns any language into Magical Power and places restraints on opponents, has an abnormally rich variety and is the perfect Skill for confusing enemies.
“Get dizzy!”
Torako shouts in quick succession, plunging the enemy group into a state of “confusion” following the speed reduction.
Rabbits have low resistance to status ailments, and they staggered on the spot as if drunk.
In that gap, Goto rushes towards the Golem, takes a deep breath, and,
“—Katsu!”
He exhales, delivering a full-force straight punch.
A pure, normal attack.
That blow, which could be called reckless against the giant body protected by grass and rock—shakes the air, pierces through, and uses the Magical Power on his fist to create a hole in the Golem’s body.
The giant body wavers from the impact, and falls.
In that gap, Goto leaps high into the air, slamming his fist into the Golem’s core, its head, once again.
Pure. Single-minded. Like a rock.
Whether others are amazed or laugh at him, the way of fighting that crushes enemies without any tricks is the most suitable for Goto—and Torako’s role is to cover for his inflexibility.
The rabbits trembled at the fall of the Golem.
Not missing that opportunity, Goto rushes in like the wind, mowing down the rabbits one after another.
As things settled down, Torako called out, saying, “Good work.”
“Senpai, you’re strong as always. I can only ever support.”
“No. I’m always saved thanks to Torako.”
“Really? But Senpai, when you get serious, you can pretty much do anything by yourself, right?”
That’s not true.
Goto could defeat them alone, but in a dungeon, there’s always the possibility of something unexpected happening.
How reassuring it is to have her around at such times.
“I could defeat them alone. But it’s helpful to have someone I can trust to watch my back.”
“Eh. Ah, …i-is that so…?”
The response he got was ambiguous.
Looking, Torako was scratching her cheek for some reason, looking away as if to escape Goto’s gaze—
“What’s wrong, Torako—”
“Um. P-please don’t look.”
Suddenly, a haze ran through Goto’s vision.
Surprised by the sudden activation of a Skill, Torako muttered in a muffled voice.
“I was just a little happy just now. …My face got a little red.”
“…I see.”
This adjutant is excellent, but sometimes she says things that can be misleading.
Goto wonders if he should caution her as her superior, but he also considers that interfering with personal preferences would be a violation of compliance, and he falls silent with a small groan.
*
“Please don’t look.”
Seeing the noise run through the binoculars along with the Skill declaration—Kageichi frowned for once.
(Was the surveillance discovered…? Or was it a coincidence?)
There’s no sign that he was noticed.
However, the fact that they’re investigating the collapse of the labyrinth wall means there’s a high possibility that he’s suspected of being the culprit.
He resolves to be a little more careful in the future, and then stretches, thinking, “Well then.”
The Labyrinth Agency-led extermination operation with Kiraboshi was just a prelude.
“Shall we get to the main subject soon?” Kageichi disappears from the spot without a sound.