Chapter 178: Ryoma’s True Calling Is the Sword
At the deepest reaches of the S-rank dungeon—the Great Land Beast Desert—
Atop the towering pyramid that loomed over its core, a lone figure sat.
“Why are Dragonkind wandering the surface, I wonder…? Well, whatever.”
The figure leaned forward slightly, peering into the distance with growing interest.
“Looking closer… there’s even a fire dragon flying around that seems to be their subordinate. In that case… my Behemoth will probably be killed instantly… how unfortunate…”
A pause.
Then—
“…Ahaha!! This is getting exciting for the first time in centuries!!”
It’s voice rose with genuine delight, eyes gleaming with anticipation.
“I’d better start making preparations myself!!”
With that, the mysterious figure leapt up—
And hurried into the depths of the pyramid, as if unable to contain their excitement.
◇◇◇
“Amane!! Put full defensive buffs on both Kaito and yourself!! Those things are about to burst out from beneath all of us!!”
“Got it!! …Wait—what about you?!”
“I’ll handle myself!!”
At that instant—
From beneath each of the heroes, massive B-rank Death Worms erupted from the sand, launching the three of them high into the air.
Their gaping maws opened wide, ready to crush and devour.
Hundreds of writhing fangs churned below, waiting.
Thanks to the defensive buffs, Kaito and Amane could withstand the attack without acting—
But Takeshi had no such luxury.
Using the jagged teeth as footholds, Takeshi kicked off and leapt again.
His blade flashed.
He tore through the massive worm midair and landed cleanly.
“Haaaaaa!!!”
The worm split cleanly in two upon impact with the ground, green blood splattering across the sand.
Without missing a beat, he charged toward the other two worms attacking his companions.
Meanwhile, Lily and the others simply watched from a distance.
“Takeshi’s really grown since that duel, hasn’t he? He never used to fight so recklessly. He used to take his time, fighting cleanly… which is why his growth slowed after reaching a certain level.”
(So Ryu was the trigger that made him break out of his shell. Mm, wonderful. Good job.)
“Aren’t you being a bit too relaxed? You’re supposed to be their guards, right?”
“We only step in if it’s a real emergency! We’re guards, not members of the hero party! Worst case, I can swoop in, retrieve them, and take down the Death Worms instantly—even from here. So this is how we always watch over them!”
“Fair enough. As expected of the fastest woman in humanity.”
“Ehehehe! That doesn’t make me happy at all!!”
“Ryu-san, Captain Lily has no experience with men… in fact, none at all. So you shouldn’t praise her so casually. She gets carried away and ends up embarrassing herself.”
“Hey, you!”
“Understood. I will never praise Lily again.”
“Waaaaah!! That’s way too harsh!!”
The wives seemed to accept Ryu and Lily’s friendship without complaint.
“Captain Lily is always so energetic.”
“Too energetic—it’s exhausting.”
“Haha. There’s no one like her in the Arden Viscount family.”
But Stingray watched them with a hint of envy.
(He never teases me like that… must be nice…)
Normally, she carried an aura of strict dominance as a commander—but with Ryu, she seemed unexpectedly passive.
“Stingray, aren’t you going to make a move on Ryu-sensei?”
“A-Alice-sama?! Why would you even—?!”
“I think Lena and Estelle would totally allow it. Right, Ryoma-sama?”
“I-I shall refrain from commenting…”
After defeating the Death Worms, the heroes collected materials and returned.
“Good work, heroes!!”
“Captain Lily, thank you… though it took us several minutes to defeat B-rank Death Worms. Ideally, we should have finished them instantly…”
“Even B-rank monsters can become much stronger depending on the environment! There’s nothing to be ashamed of! Besides, you came here to experience battles like this, right?”
“…Yes. Exactly. We’ll keep pushing forward.”
Ryu approached.
“So? …How was Daifuku-kun’s performance?”
“…That’s what you’re asking? But thanks to him, we were able to fight without being overwhelmed by the heat. In the desert, your body temperature rises too much. That’s why we retreated last time—but today, it was comfortable. I think Daifuku-kun adjusts the cold he emits in response to our body heat.”
“I thought so. Even during battle, we barely broke a sweat.”
It seemed Ryu had been testing that very thing.
“As expected of Daifuku-kun. Such a considerate child. Good, good…” pat pat
“…………” boing
At that moment—
“Gyaau.”
(Ryu-sama~ A massive sandstorm is approaching from the left~)
“Understood. Everyone—a sandstorm has appeared a few kilometers to the left.”
Everyone froze.
Even the heroes had never experienced a sandstorm before.
“So, we’ll ignore it and continue forward at full speed.”
Lily nearly fell over.
“Wait, what?! I thought you’d say something like ‘take cover behind rocks’ or ‘retreat to a safe area’!”
“It’s fine. As long as Ryoma is here, storms aren’t a problem. Right, Ryoma?”
“Indeed. Leave it to me.”
“I-I see… if Ryoma says so…”
They continued forward at full speed—
And just as Homura predicted, the sandstorm approached from the left.
Even Takeshi looked shaken.
“Can that really be handled by a person?”
“Don’t underestimate our Ryoma.”
“…Is he going to cut it?”
“Of course not. You’ve misunderstood something—Ryoma is…”
Ryoma raised his palm, forming a tiny whirlwind.
He released it toward the storm.
“Go—Idaten.”
At first, it seemed far too small.
But in moments—
It grew.
And grew.
ROOOOOOOAR!!!
Soon, it had become a storm equal in scale to the sandstorm itself.
The two collided—
And the whirlwind swallowed it whole, dispersing it into nothing.
The desert fell silent once more.
“When it comes to wind magic, there’s no one better than Ryoma.”
Everyone except Ryu and Estelle stared in stunned silence.
Proudly, Ryu added:
“This is our ace. And on top of that, he’s the strongest swordsman.”
“My true calling is the sword…” Ryoma muttered modestly.
They continued onward, with the heroes leading—
Before they knew it, the sun was beginning to set.
The heroes were utterly exhausted.
“““Haa… haa… wheeze…”””
“Fighting high-rank monsters all day is rough…”
“I’m completely out of mana. If Estelle hadn’t been here, we’d have run out of potions today.”
“I’ve fired so many arrows, my right hand is wrecked…”
“Thanks to you, we made great progress today. As a reward, I’ll prepare a special place for you to sleep.”
Ryu pulled out—
A completely ordinary carriage.
“…I appreciate the thought, but isn’t that way too cramped?”
“I refuse to sleep next to Kaito. He smells like sweat.”
“Wait—I smell?!”
Lily also looked unconvinced.
“Ryu… that’s pushing it a bit…”
“You think I’d do something that mean? Honestly, people who’ve never had a boyfriend…”
“That has nothing to do with it!! Stop bringing that up!!”
Ignoring them, Estelle and the others casually stepped inside.
Ryu followed.
“Come on, get in already.”
Reluctantly, the heroes and Lily approached.
They peeked inside—
““““““!!!!!!!!!!””””””
Inside was a vast, luxurious space—
Comparable even to a noble’s mansion.
“R-Ryu?! What is this carriage?!”
“Just something I picked up. Now get in.”
“That’s obviously a lie!! Stop giving random answers!!”
All six entered.
“…………”
“There are rooms for everyone. Take turns showering and changing—especially you, heroes.”
“O-Okay…”
“But I have questions—”
“I’m taking the first shower—”
“Oh, and by the way.”
Ryu pressed a button near the door.
“When you press this, the carriage becomes invisible and untouchable. So relax.”
“…That’s advanced spatial magic, isn’t it?”
“Probably. Anyway, rest until dinner.”
Ryu then turned to Lena and Estelle.
“Alright—after this, the three of us are showering together and scrubbing each other down.”
“Kyaa!! Oni-sama, you pervert!!”
“Kakaka! You’re already showing signs of becoming a dirty old man!”
““““““…………””””””
From the very first day in the dungeon—
The heroes and Lily were utterly overwhelmed by how abnormal Ryu’s group was.
◇◇◇
“Ahahaha! Now those dragons will be mine~♪ The dragons I’ve wanted for thousands of years~♪ And there are two of them~♪”
“…Hm? Their magical signatures disappeared? No… this must be some kind of spatial magic. As long as they haven’t left the dungeon, it’s fine.”
A grin spread slowly.
“More importantly… I can’t wait. Dragonkind!!!”