Kays Translations

Chapter 183

Deciding it wasn’t worth using the gangway, a figure leapt down from the ship.

Landing right in front of Melt and me was a petite woman with indigo, shoulder-length hair fluttering in the wind — Rivana, the leader of Killcrawler’s First Assault Squad.

“Shizuma, long time no see.”
“It’s been a while, Rivana. About four months, I think.”
“Hey, Rivana-chan, good job with the investigation!”
“Melt, it’s been a while.”

Melt happily took her hand, and though Rivana’s expression barely changed, she gave a faint shake in return — a subtle gesture of shared joy.
They must have gotten close; if I looked carefully, I could see a small smile in Rivana’s eyes.

“You came to meet us, huh? It’s been a while, Shizuma. We’re truly grateful that you answered our request this time.”

“Good to see you too, Gark. I’ve always been interested in natural dungeons, so this was a perfect opportunity.”

A serious-looking man approached us from among those disembarking down the gangway — Gark, the vice-leader of the First Assault Squad.
He bowed politely, expressing his thanks.
I shouldn’t say it, but honestly, he feels more like the leader than Rivana does.

“Also, this time our expedition will be led by the clan master himself. I wanted to introduce you properly.”

“I was hoping to greet him as well, since I’ll be under his command.”

The one who then approached was Killcrawler’s leader — and one of the Thirteen Knights — Araza Mīr.
He was a large man, hard to read but not cold or distant, giving off a calm, composed impression.

“It’s an honor to meet you. My name is Shizuma. I’m deeply grateful to be allowed to join your exploration party.”

“No need to be so formal. We’re the ones asking for your cooperation, after all. Still, I won’t deny that seeing you in person is… a bit surprising. You’re much younger than I expected.”

“I get that a lot. I just turned seventeen not long ago.”

“I’ve heard a fair bit about you. I don’t doubt your ability. But… you’re more than I imagined. You truly seem like one of the ‘killers.’ That’s why I can trust you.”

“…Your insight honors me.”

Did he feel something from me?
This was our first meeting, yet he immediately recognized that I had taken lives before.

“Though I was taught that all those from other worlds are ‘rough and rude,’ it seems that’s not always the case. Your manners and speech are refined — surprisingly so.”

Hmm… ‘Was taught’?
Does that mean he’s met others from Earth?

“Well, people come in all kinds, even in my world. Those rude and rough ones… could they be from another nation’s summoning, perhaps?”

“Indeed. I have an acquaintance from a continent far from here who told me as much. Ah, forgive me — I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Araza Mīr.”

“Haha, no worries. I steered the conversation off course. But I see — summoning happens in other nations too, then?”

“Yes. My acquaintance is an elf from the continent Eledia, which lies even farther east beyond Riseark. I don’t know how long ago it was — decades, maybe more — but apparently there was once a ‘wild, brash hero with an eccentric hairstyle and high pride.’”

“I see… an elf, huh? Then maybe it really was someone summoned from my world long ago, perhaps during our age of war.”

“Oh? A time of war in your world? I’d love to hear more about that someday.”

Araza’s eyes seemed to glimmer slightly — perhaps he was genuinely curious about other worlds’ histories.

“Well, let’s not keep standing around. Let’s head to the camp. Our base from the previous expedition should still be intact. If I recall, Bhasker was left in charge of maintaining it.”

“Understood — Bhasker, right? He’s someone I worked with in the artificial dungeon.”

“Is that so? All the better. Let’s go together. I was hoping to exchange information about the current state of the artificial dungeons anyway. …Rivana! Time to move out!”

Araza looked around — realizing Rivana and Melt were missing.
When he called out, I followed his gaze and saw the two of them sitting together on the breakwater, happily eating fruit skewers.

…Well. Looks like Melt’s made a good friend.
I couldn’t help but smile at the sight.

As we walked through the camp alongside the Killcrawler members, the atmosphere was charged — whispers and murmurs echoing from all directions.

“They’re back… Killcrawler’s elite squad.”
“Both the First and Second Units are here… they’re serious this time.”
“Wait, those two? Are they part of the group now?”
“…Looks like the dungeon’s rest period won’t last much longer.”

It seemed everyone felt a mix of awe and tension toward these elite members — and were equally surprised to see Melt and me among them, given our recent rise in reputation.

“Shizuma, you’re famous now.”
“Maybe. I caused a bit of trouble yesterday.”
“…Meh.”
“I didn’t do anything bad, though?”
“…Okay then.”

Rivana-san… I still can’t quite get a read on her character…!

No, I do think she’s cute — she just acts a little airheaded at times.

“Rivana-chan? You see, yesterday Shizuma got into a fight with a bad person here and ended up defeating him. It was a bit intense and scary, so everyone’s still kind of shocked.”

“Really? Shizuma, you killed him?”
“…Yes. It was necessary. If we let people look down on us, it’s over — we’re still young, after all.”
“Well done.”

…Wait, I got praised instead of scolded!?

Apparently, things like that aren’t unusual here, because no one seemed inclined to blame me at all.
And so, under the curious stares and murmurs of the crowd, Melt and I finally arrived at Killcrawler’s base camp.

“Everyone, good work!”

When we reached the camp, we were greeted by Bhasker, who had apparently been maintaining this large outpost all by himself.

Come to think of it, since coming to this island as Same, I hadn’t stopped by to say hello even once.
That… might’ve been kind of rude of me.

“Thank you for maintaining the base. I appreciate it, Busker,”

Araza’s words of acknowledgment made Busker’s face light up with excitement. He then moved toward the other group that had arrived with us — unfamiliar faces, likely members of the Second Assault Squad.

“Bhasker, you’ll be joining us as well. We’re going to review the findings from the artificial dungeon investigation and decide on our course of action for the coming days.”

Everyone gave a short, sharp response — and that disciplined coordination carried a distinct military precision that gave off a certain commanding elegance.

“Everyone’s so… efficient.”
“Yeah. I guess this is what it’s like to operate as a full clan.”

We moved to a particularly large tent, gathering around a long table set up inside.
There was even a blackboard prepared, though it seemed we wouldn’t need it this time.

Taking the seat at the head, Araza looked around at all of us before beginning to speak.

“Now then. We’ve already completed our field survey, and I’d like to share the findings with Shizuma, Melt, and Bhasker. But first, let me give you the main conclusion: the Lindblum Nest has been officially recognized as a new high-difficulty dungeon.”

—! So it’s no longer a beginner-level dungeon…!

“However, its artificial dungeon features — the magic circles that allow you to resume exploration mid-way, and the system that partially records and visualizes combat data — are still functioning. In other words, it’s entered a state very similar to the ‘runaway condition’ previously encountered by the First Squad. Shizuma, you’re probably most familiar with that.”

“I see… yes, I’ve already reported to the Guild the types of monsters that appeared up to floor fifty during that runaway state.”

“Exactly. The same kinds of monsters have shown up again this time. From the 30th floor onward, all of them are formidable — creatures that only emerald or ruby-ranked adventurers can hope to defeat. That said… it’s a bit crass to say, but the profits are considerable.”

Araza’s lips curved faintly in amusement, and a low murmur of excitement rippled among the others — probably for the same reason.

“Not only have we confirmed that stronger monsters appear deeper in, but we’ve also found powerful species not native to this continent. Defeating them yields valuable materials — which, as it turns out, fetch a high price. The kingdom plans to officially announce the current artificial dungeon as a new independent dungeon.”

“I see. So, were you able to reach the lowest floor?”

“No, we decided to pull out midway. It seems that, unlike before, the dungeon doesn’t end at floor fifty. We confirmed at least seventy-one floors. Even with the ability to resume from checkpoints, further exploration would have turned into a long-term expedition. However, judging by the monsters’ patterns… I got the impression that the structure resets to match previous layers — both in layout and atmosphere.”

“I see… so there’s a possibility it loops infinitely — an endless dungeon, then.”

“Exactly. That’s why we stopped our investigation. Normally, a dungeon is another realm entirely — yet artificial dungeons never affected real geography. It might have now evolved into an infinite training ground — one where we can both hone our skills and earn income indefinitely.”

That’s… actually a really good development, isn’t it?

As a tourist attraction, as a source of materials and treasure, and as a training ground for adventurers — this might be the perfect dungeon.

Even though the difficulty has increased, if explorers can still exit at set intervals and resume from where they left off, it’s bound to become popular.

Unlike the last “runaway” incident, now that it’s officially recognized and announced as a high-difficulty dungeon, most problems can be avoided.
The lower floors could even be used for training.

I shared that thought aloud.

“Indeed, the kingdom plans to temporarily open the dungeon to skilled adventurers. If no irregularities occur during that trial period, they’ll then make a full public announcement.”

“I see. Understood about the Lindblum Nest, then. Thank you for sharing the information, Araza-san.”

“Not at all. You’re sharp — you just voiced the same plan the kingdom itself is considering. No wonder Rivana and Gark wanted you on their team.”

“I’m honored. Then… shall we move on to discussing tomorrow’s main operation — the expedition into the ‘Dead Sea that Devours the Earth’?”

Up to this point, it had mostly been debriefing.
The real discussion was supposed to begin now — or so I thought, straightening my posture and asking Araza.

But—

“No… first, it’s mealtime. Rivana may have filled her stomach with fruit already, but the rest of us have been traveling nonstop, without food or drink. Forgive us, but let’s eat first.”

“Ah, of course. Then shall we head out to the food stalls? We can buy plenty and eat here together.”

“Agreed. Shizuma, Melt, come on.”

Apparently, everyone was starving.
Could it be that they’d rushed their journey here just to avoid keeping me waiting…? If so, I feel a little bad about that.

“Come on, Rivana-chan! Let’s go get my recommendations!”
“Melt, what do you like?”
“I love shrimp!”
“I see. I like squid.”
“Really! Squid is great — Shizuma grilled these huge tentacles for us once, they were so good!”

Yes, that would be the unlucky boss monster we fought — and yes, it was delicious.
With no soy sauce available, I grilled it with salt and garlic sauce until it was perfectly golden.

Led by Rivana, we headed out toward the camp market just as the sun began to set.

“Shizuma, hurry.”
“We’ll leave you behind~.”
“Ha ha, sorry everyone, I’ll catch up!”
“No worries — our Rivana tends to rush ahead. We’ll join you shortly.”

Somehow, I felt certain — with this clan, we really could conquer the dungeon.

I couldn’t explain why, but I just knew it.

“Shizuma. Dungeons always come with irregularities. Don’t let your guard down.”
“Understood. You’re right — I’ll make sure to prepare properly.”
“Why do irregularities even occur, I wonder?”
“Who knows, really~?”

Maybe it’s the malice of the Dungeon Master… or something else entirely.

Either way, since it’s a natural dungeon, there must be a Dungeon Master behind it.

I’d have to be ready — and plan carefully for that possibility.

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