Chapter 85: [POV Change Included] Conspiracy in the Yokohama Dungeon ②
Yokohama Dungeon, 14th Floor.
I—Yokote Yuuka—loosed an arrow from the rear.
Thwack!
My arrow pierced the Werewolf 5 meters ahead.
Iyada-san clapped.
“Splendid-deSU. SaTE, with this, everyone has attacked, haven’t thEY. Then, let’s go for the finishing blOW. A-saN, if you pleaSE.”
“…”
Without a word, the A-Rank Explorer-san cut down the Werewolf.
The Werewolf collapsed to the ground, turned into black magic particles, and faded away.
“Hey, I’m already Level 11, man!”
“I’ve gotten stronger too. I’m glad I joined.”
“…”
In the end, we managed to reach the 14th floor without any particular problems.
No, it wasn’t just that there were no problems.
It was more like they catered to our every need; the service for the participants was excellent.
The A-Rank Explorer-san neutralized the monsters in an instant, creating openings for us participants to attack.
To be able to lead us this far without taking any damage, they must be incredibly skilled.
(It seems I was overthinking things…)
Iyada-san has been acting strangely the whole time, but maybe he’s always been like that.
If that’s the case, I feel a bit bad for judging him. Only in my mind, though.
And so, we pressed onward.
When we opened the door at the far end of the 14th floor, we found a room with nothing in it but a descending staircase.
Iyada-san stepped forward and addressed us.
“Minna-SAma, otsukare-sama-deSU. Next—the 15th floor is a boss floOR. With the subjugation of the boSS, this course will reach its halfway poiNT. Monsters do not appear in this roOM, so those who are feeling uneasy, please wait heRE.”
“I’m not uneasy at all!”
“A-san, we’re counting on you again!!”
“Explosive growth!!”
“…”
The participants’ excitement was at its peak.
That said, I couldn’t really talk.
(A boss subjugation party gets a good chunk of experience points…! I can get stronger too!)
The A-rank Explorer-san is someone trustworthy.
At least, his skills are undeniable.
If he’s judged it to be okay, then this course itself probably doesn’t have any problems.
“DEwa, mina-SAMA, it seems you’ll be GO-participating in the boss battle… Sore DEwa, there’s a refreshment from the organizer. You must be tired, I’m SHORE. Please gather over KOCHIRA.”
“Eh, what?”
“Food?”
(I wonder what it is…?)
Iyada-san first put something into his own mouth.
And then, the moment everyone except for the A-rank Explorer-san had gathered.
“—KOCHIRA is the refreshment, the Witch’s Paralysis Drug deSU.”
“—!!”
He slammed a small bag onto the ground.
“Ugh…”
Thud!
(It hurts…)
My body won’t move.
It seems the other participants are the same.
A group of fifteen people collapsed onto the red brick floor, groaning.
Among them, some were even bleeding from their heads.
Only Iyada-san and the A-rank Explorer-san remained standing there.
(Why…? How…?)
And then, a high-pitched kiiin sound came from overhead.
It’s a drone camera for dungeon streaming.
The A-rank-san came near us and then lay down, just like we had.
He didn’t collapse; that must be him pretending to have collapsed.
(Eh…? What’s… going on…?)
Iyada-san operated his terminal and started the stream.
Then, he began to speak by himself.
“To everyone at the Explorer Association who received the emergency signal. KOCHIRA is the 14th floor of the Yokohama Dungeon deSU. I have a demand. Coordinate with the Dungeon Management Bureau and dispatch the currently trending Explorer Natsume Kouichi-san to this location, kudaSAI.”
The text-to-speech software on the terminal converted comments into voice.
《【Official: Explorer Association】If this is an emergency, please explain the situation. If it’s a prank, we will disconnect.》
“This is no ITAZURA. I’m serious deSU. Please watch, kudaSAI.”
Iyada-san picked up a spear that had fallen on the ground.
And then, he thrust it into the leg of a male Explorer who was lying down.
“Ugh, Gwaaa…!”
A groan-like scream escaped from the paralyzed man.
“Agh, aaah…”
(N-No…)
His mind went blank from the sheer terror.
Iyada-san held his blood-soaked spear up to the drone camera.
“This is no joke. You are to dispatch Explorer Natsume within three hours. For every thirty minutes of delay, I shall kill one person.”
<<[Official: Explorer Association] What are you doing?! Stop!>>
“I have no intention of speaking with you all. Convey this to the Dungeon Management Bureau: Explorer Natsume is to be dispatched to the 14th floor of Yokohama Dungeon. Furthermore, there are conditions. One…”
☆★☆
“Haa… I ate too much…”
“Manamin, did you really want that Big Kuma Pon prize?”
“Huh? Of course I did! It’s my style to keep going until I win it, you know?”
“Though I was the one who ate the last plate…”
We—the three members of Team Secret Base who had stayed local—stepped out of the conveyor belt sushi chain restaurant.
Having eaten a mountain of sushi, urged on by Manamin, I was completely full.
Apparently, Manamin had desperately wanted the prize from the lottery you could enter based on how much sushi you ate at the conveyor belt place.
Just when I thought Manamin had uncharacteristically invited us out, to think she had such an ulterior motive…
“Haaah, what a great day!” Manamin declared.
“Honestly, Manamin… Besides, it’s not even 3 o’clock yet, you know?”
“Wanna head to the outlet mall then?” I suggested.
“Eh, really, Ko-chan?!” Manamin exclaimed, then immediately added, “Actually, I’d rather go home. I got my Big Kuma Pon and all…”
As we were talking about such things, my smartphone started ringing.
“Ko-chan, what’s wrong?” Manamin asked.
“Nah, it’s a call from my parents. Wonder if they’re going to ask me to buy something… You guys can go ahead and get in the car.”
I unlocked the car and answered the call.
“Kouichi!! Have you seen the TV?!”
“TV? Why? I’m out right now, so I haven’t seen it.”
“It looks like some criminal is calling for you! You don’t need to go, you hear me?!”
“Huh…?”
I hung up the phone for the time being and decided to check the situation.
As I got into the car, I started the engine and turned on the radio.
“What’s wrong, Ko-chan?”
“Well, I’m not really sure, but it seems like some criminal is calling for me…?”
“…This must be it.”
Manamin displayed an Explorer stream on her smartphone.
And then…
『REGARDING MY DEMANDS, ENSURE THEY ARE REPORTED SO AS TO REACH EXPLORER NATSUME. I REPEAT, I SIMPLY WISH TO SPEAK WITH EXPLORER NATSUME. I DO NOT WISH TO NEEDLESSLY KILL THE HOSTAGES.』
“Huh…? Iyada…?”
Why is that guy…?!
And what’s more, why is he in a dungeon?
“Ko-chan, you know him?”
“Well…”
Though I never wanted to have anything to do with him again.
“He was… a colleague from work. I’ve blocked him on LINK now.”
“For Ko-chan to go that far, he must be a really awful guy. Why would he do something like this…?”
“…I have no idea at all.”
While I was still trying to grasp the situation and listening to the emergency news on the radio, this time I got a call from Shi-chan.
『Hello, Natsume-kun? Are you watching the news about the Yokohama Dungeon?』
“Yeah. But I just saw the stream. I haven’t quite grasped the situation yet.”
『Okay, then I’ll explain it briefly.』
“Thanks. Otama-chan and Manamin are here too, so I’ll put you on speakerphone.”
The criminal’s demands were as follows:
- Dispatch Natsume Kouichi to the Yokohama Dungeon by 17:45.
- Bring a woman from the Tochigi Explorer Association who is a 【Sword Arts】 user as an escort.
- From the 1st floor onwards, conduct a dungeon stream and publicly broadcast the exploration. The video must be linked with this account and screen-shared. If sharing is not confirmed by 17:45, one hostage will be killed.
- The 【Spatial Transfer】 skill must not be used until the 14th floor. Furthermore, upon reaching the 14th floor, enough energy must be reserved to use 【Spatial Transfer】. If these conditions are not met, a hostage will be killed.
- Ensure that no general Explorers enter the Yokohama Dungeon. Anyone who interferes will be killed.
- Making this stream private is not permitted.
“So I’m being called for too…”
“Natsume-kun, do you know that culprit?”
“Well…”
I told Shi-chan about Iyada too.
That he was a colleague from work.
That he probably only recently started working as an Explorer.
That he was acting a little strange.
Then, Shi-chan said,
“Just as I thought…”
“Did you figure something out?”
“Yeah. I think he’s probably being brainwashed. There’s a mastermind behind this, trying to lure Natsume-kun into a trap.”
“A mastermind?”
“Yeah, I think it’s one of the people who are down.”
“I see…”
Looking behind Iyada, about fifteen people were down.
It seemed like none of them could move.
I recognized the woman who had fallen at the very front and was crying.
She was, if I recall correctly, the one who shook hands with me in the Shinjuku Dungeon—
“Natsume-kun, I think the Dungeon Management Minister will call you in a few minutes.”
“The Minister? The one who’s on TV a lot, right?”
“Yeah, it seems the Minister intends to request your help with a rescue. It looks like the Minister thinks dispatching Natsume-kun is the optimal solution.”
“…Does that mean Ko-chan has to do something about this?”
『…Well, the Minister considers Natsume-kun to be the next top Explorer, so…』
“Even though he might get brainwashed?”
『Yeah… That’s why I was thinking of telling Natsume-kun that it’s okay to refuse…』
“………”
I look at the broadcast screen.
A man bleeding from his leg.
A man who’s hit his head.
A crying woman.
They’re all strangers, but still.
—If someone dies because I ran away, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life.
Besides, Iyada…
As long as he’s around, I have to be the one to put an end to this.
I don’t have any basis for it, but that’s what I thought.
“Shi-chan. I think I want to handle this. But I don’t want to drag Otama-chan into it. Negotiate so that Otama-chan doesn’t have to come with me—”
“—That’s no good, you know.”
“Eh…”
Otama-chan squeezed my hand tightly.
“I won’t let Ko-chan go alone. I want to protect Ko-chan too, you know.”
“But…”
I can’t let Otama-chan face danger…
“Keke, isn’t that nice? Being so chummy.”
“Manamin, this isn’t the time to be joking around…”
“Hey…”
Manamin suddenly put on a serious face.
“…Ko-chin, do you know why Tamama is being called by the culprit? Do you know what the culprit is afraid of?”
“The reason Otama-chan was called?”
Honestly, I don’t know.
Otama-chan isn’t weak either.
It would probably be easier for them to deal with just me, so why make Otama-chan accompany me?
Then, Manamin said.
“—I get it. This culprit is making too many demands. That’s why I also figured out a way to outsmart them.”
“Outsmart them…?”
Shi-chan, on the other end of the phone, continued.
『I also understand what the culprit is wary of, but… can we really outsmart them?』
Manamin grinned.
“Yeah, we can. If it’s our party. It’ll be a gamble, but our chances of winning should be higher than with Big Kuma Pon.”