Chapter: 71
“Seems like the kids are really interested in you.”
The area around the dungeon entrance was bustling with people.
Some were there to enter, but most seemed to have come to watch the showdown between me and Arthur.
There’s no way those wanting to enter would come empty-handed, right?
‘How many of them actually want me to win, I wonder?’
[Do they even exist?]
‘Grandpa.’
This is the moment for some hopeful words.
What would it mean if a knight and hero said such pessimistic things?
Of course, I didn’t truly believe there wouldn’t be anyone, but one can’t be too sure.
[Ah, there might be a few. Among the gamblers, some chase a big win rather than the odds, you know.]
Indeed. Is the spirit of underdogs resting on my shoulders?
Got it. I’ll show everyone just how the money of the lucky fools is going up in flames today.
It’s a real shame there’s no huge river around Soul Academy.
If there was, it could have doubled as a water park today.
As I made my way to the dungeon entrance with Karl, I spotted Visi, the flunky lady, standing around anxiously and Frey, who was yawning while holding onto her sword.
So, I’m all set, just waiting for Arthur to show up.
“Lucy Alrn.”
And there he was, showing up just as I said that.
‘Hello there.’
“Nice to meet you, Poor Prince.”
Even though I purposely didn’t call his name, he still got ‘Poor Prince’ as a label.
Why am I dealing with such unnecessary sincerity from a Mesugaki skill?
Arthur merely blinked when I called him ‘Poor Prince,’ as if he had grown accustomed to it, but showed no other reaction.
“Do you have confidence in winning?”
‘Not sure, but I did prepare my best.’
“I’ve prepped enough to easily beat the Poor Prince.”
Well, that was a pretty humble way of a Mesugaki to speak, but judging by Arthur’s blank expression, it didn’t seem so humble after all.
Ah well. Since I’ll explode with all my karma when I lose anyway, might as well pile it up to the heavens.
“Let’s see just how far that arrogance reaches.”
‘The Prince won’t tear it down.’
“You say that without the skill to topple arrogance? Isn’t it actually you, Poor Prince, who’s being arrogant?”
“Tsick.”
Arthur clicked his tongue, clearly irritated, then shifted the topic.
“Let’s confirm the rules. Entering the dungeon starts at exactly 10 AM. Exiting is at 8 PM. You can give up midway, but if you do, you lose. Only three first-years can challenge the dungeon together, and any current students or professors cannot interfere. The winner is the one who climbs higher within the time limit. Any objections?”
‘Nope, none.’
“No.”
“The moment it strikes ten, let’s begin the duel.”
With that, he turned his back and walked away to his party.
Let’s see.
The members are as I’d heard.
Arthur. Jackal. Matthew.
Arthur and Matthew are solid characters, like a hearty bowl of soup from Soul Academy, and Jackal isn’t too shabby either, despite being overshadowed by other top characters.
With a lineup like that, they should perform better than newbies and first-timers in dungeon raiding.
But who’s their guide?
You have to take a current student or a professor into the dungeon, right?
As I was wondering about that, someone emerged from the crowd.
“Am I late?”
It was Professor Luca of Combat Studies.
A madman who pushes his students into danger with the single-minded goal of crafting a masterpiece.
What on earth is he doing here? Don’t tell me—
As I watched him approach Arthur, I couldn’t believe it.
Did he choose that guy as their guide?!
I thought it was insane, but others reacted differently.
They nodded, saying Arthur made a solid choice.
Are these people out of their minds?
How could taking a maniac like Luca be a wise choice?
Then it hit me just how little they knew about Luca’s true nature.
People still weren’t aware of just how crazy he was.
To the world, he seemed like a young, brilliant teacher who produced excellent students.
What do I do? Is there any way to chase that guy away?
Or maybe…
[Lucy. What’s wrong?]
Hearing Grandpa’s voice snapped me back to reality.
Phew. Calm down.
He’s nuts, but he’s still a rational nut.
He wouldn’t pull anything in a space filled with such attention.
Even if he did go crazy, Arthur’s team could handle him well enough.
There’s no need to worry about them.
Right. Why should I be worrying about others when I barely have my own issues sorted out?
‘Frey…’
“Hey, pathetic knight. Remember what I said yesterday?”
“I’m not an idiot.”
Frey shrugged off my words, but honestly, she didn’t seem reliable at all.
She would follow my directions for the duel, right? I trust you?
The other party member, flunky lady, was anxiously fidgeting with her hands.
‘You okay there, Flunky Lady?’
“Hey, flunky. What’s your name again?”
“…You didn’t know?! It’s Visi. Visi Bell.”
Visi, huh.
That’s an easy name to remember, I thought, nodding in acknowledgment, but Visi was looking at me with an expecting gaze.
Could it be she wants me to call her by her name?
Sorry, I wish I could.
‘Got it. Visi.’
“I understand. Flunky Lady. I’ll remember.”
With how I call people by their nickname, the Mesugaki skill isn’t really for using proper names.
Maybe she was disappointed to be called Flunky Lady again.
Visi’s shoulders slumped.
Sorry. But at least loosen up a bit, right?
“It’s 10 o’clock. Young Lady Alrn.”
As Karl announced the start time, the chit-chat came to an end.
‘Got it. Everyone. Let’s go.’
“Okay. Pile of losers, let’s roll out.”
Alright, time to strut my stuff as a veteran.
As we stepped beyond the dungeon door, the scenery shifted.
A cave with luminous stones embedded in its walls.
It took months to get here.
Back when I played this as a game, I used to see this sight every single day.
With the glowing stones, I can tell this is one of the starting points.
Good. I’ve got the map in my head now.
‘As I told you yesterday…’
“Losers, as I said before, let me repeat. We’re going to avoid all battles except for breaking into the boss room.”
Because it’s a speed run challenge, right?
The key to a good speedrun is avoiding every event we can.
*
When Visi first heard Lucy Alrn’s strategy, she thought Lucy had to be insane.
To think they’d navigate a dungeon while avoiding all battles.
That just couldn’t be possible, right?
Dungeon raiding means facing randomly generated monsters and overcoming traps to find your way forward.
It’s not a place where you can choose not to fight when you don’t want to.
As Visi pondered, she was swayed by Lucy’s examples and explanations.
‘When you enter the first floor of the first semester dungeon and turn the corner, two weak goblins will jump out…’
Lucy explained how to conquer the dungeon with a calmness akin to a chess master overseeing the board.
From the first floor, second floor, third floor, all the way up to the tenth.
Lucy mapped out how to ascend without engaging in a single battle.
Her explanation was so detailed, it was as if a playwright was unfolding a story, allowing even Visi, who had never set foot in the academy dungeon, to visualize it.
‘Do you really think everything will unfold exactly as you’ve described?’
After hearing all her explanations, Visi asked Lucy, who simply responded with a condescending laugh.
‘Of course. Unlike useless people like you, I’m blessed by the gods.’
Normally, I would have found that laugh annoying, but for some reason, it felt trustworthy.
Had it been someone mediocre, Visi might have brushed off the explanation as mere delusion.
But Lucy had ranked first in the academy entrance exam.
If Lucy aced the dungeon challenges not due to any favor from the academy, but because of her innate talent…
With that line of thought, Visi decided to place her trust in Lucy.
And today.
The moment of truth, where we see if Lucy’s plans will come to fruition.
Astoundingly, the dungeon raid was progressing exactly as Lucy Alrn had described.
“When you turn the corner, two weak goblins will show up…”
Two goblins indeed appeared.
Lucy charged in with her shield, knocking them down and skillfully avoiding combat, pushing forward.
“If you go right, there’s a trap set by an idiot…”
And sure enough, there was a trap.
Lucy utilized it to take down the goblin horde blocking the path and advanced further.
“Keep going, and there’ll be a stinky pig. Don’t get scared like a loser…”
And lo and behold, there was an orc blocking the way.
But the orc was slow, unable to catch Lucy and her group as they dashed past.
Everything.
Every single event in the dungeon unfolded exactly as Lucy Alrn had said it would.
The path through the dungeon.
The monsters that appeared.
The traps.
All of it fell within Lucy Alrn’s control.
“Losers, are you still not tired?”
The time taken to conquer the first floor of the academy dungeon was just 10 minutes.
That’s including me dragging Visi along, not running at full speed.
Visi, panting, looked up at the next set of stairs leading up.
Lucy Alrn’s relentless pace was becoming somewhat taxing for Visi, who was a necromancer.
And we have to keep this going until 8 PM?
Could I… possibly endure this?
“Hmm, I’m just not sure.”
Lucy Alrn, clearly dissatisfied with something, shot a glance at Visi and positioned herself in front of her.
“Flunky.”
“Yeah?”
“With such pathetic stamina and legs, how on earth did you get accepted into the academy? Did you look dumb but turn out to be smart?”
At Lucy’s comment, Visi hung her head.
It was undeniable; I had been a burden during our first-floor breakthrough.
If those two had gone at their normal pace, they could have reached here much faster.
But you’re the one who insisted on bringing me along!
I didn’t want to join this raid in the first place!
Visi grumbled internally, but on the outside, she trembled in fear.
It was clear who held the power in this relationship.
No way around it.
I’d have to keep running until I drop.
“Hop on.”
Visi jumped at the unexpected order and looked up in surprise.
Lucy looked at her like she was an idiot and then said again.
“Flunky. Are you really that slow? Hop on.”
“No? But…”
“Ha.”
With a sigh, Lucy walked right up to Visi, grabbed her waist, and flung her over her shoulder as if Visi was just a sack.
“We’re going like this, Flunky. Any complaints?”
“…Nope, none.”
Visi nodded without hesitation; she didn’t want to be on the receiving end of Lucy’s sharp tongue again.
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