On the way back to the Clan House with Team 2, Tsutomu said to Hannah,
“By the way... Seriously? Flame Attack? What the hell were you thinking?”
“Hehehe... Wasn’t that awesome, Teach!? NOW I finally feel like I’m a real Magic Fist successor!”
Hannah proudly puffed out her chest and started laughing ominously at her achievement... of shouting out a nonexistent skill’s name and ending a battle in a blaze of glory. Tsutomu, seeing that Hannah was eagerly waiting for him to say something, decided instead to turn to Leleia and Amira.N0v3lTr0ve served as the original host for this chapter's release on N0v3l--B1n.
“You two made good use of your Spirit contracts. Keep it up.”
“Tsutomu... the hell did you say to her?”
“Nothing much, really. Just reminded her of what she had set out to do.”
“...Yeah, you’re not fooling anyone. Why would she even start getting nice and cooperative all of a sudden?”
Amira, not satisfied with the non-committal answer she had gotten, pressed herself against Tsutomu and put an arm over his shoulder in an attempt to make him talk more. Leleia’s eyes as she observed the two grew colder and colder.
“Excuse me, would you mind keeping yourself away from her?”
“Teach! Why d’ya gotta ignore me like that!?”
And so Tsutomu was tormented further by Leleia and Hannah’s complaints on the rest of the way back to the Clan House.
Afterward, Tsutomu had Team 2 organize an evaluation meeting among themselves, and then he went out alone again. While his primary objective of the day was to watch Team 2’s Winter General battle, there was another thing he wanted to observe as well. Specifically, he was interested in the Light and Dark layers that Ealdred Crow was currently exploring.
[The monsters aren’t all that different from what I know. We might need some spellcasters, though...]
So far, the monsters seemed unchanged from the roster of the Dungeon’s counterpart in Live Dungeon, which was more or less what he had expected. In these Light and Darkness layers, there were ethereal-type monsters, against which magic-based Jobs were more effective.
Since there were times when the Dungeon was pitch dark, a reliable light source would likely be essential. And since monsters could exhibit behaviors that did not conform to the game’s typical patterns, Tsutomu kept a close watch on Ealdred Crow while they were being shown on Monitor #1.
[I knew it... They really are in a league of their own.]
In contrast to the time they had been stuck on the sixtieth layer with the Fire Dragon, Ealdred Crow was now recognized as the leading major Clan of Explorers. Tsutomu had anticipated this outcome because they were the major Clan that had invested the most resources, both of the human and material kind.
Until now, most major Clans had primarily consisted of unique skill holders. As the three-role team composition grew in prominence, however, the significance of unique skill holders had diminished. In God’s Dungeon, it was more effective to have five individuals who could perform their designated roles than to have a one-man army. Tsutomu was well aware of this fact.
[And the Silver Beast... looks like they’re still busy preparing for stuff.]
Silver Beast, which had been competing with Ealdred Crow on the Snow Field layers, originally had the structure of a mid-tier Clan, but they were now laying the foundation to become a major clan. Their main purpose was to raise funds to take in orphans, but now they were caught up in various marketing schemes due to the Ice Magic Stone, and Dungeon exploration was not their current focus. As such, as a Clan of Explorers, their progression appeared to be stagnating.
“As for Golden Tune and Scarlet Devil Squad... well, they’re probably nothing to worry about. Doesn’t look like they’ll catch up anytime soon.”
The two major Clans with unique skill holders did not show any signs of making it past the Winter General yet, though that did not necessarily mean they had been simply sitting idly by. In particular, Leon and Weiss, who were unique skill holders, seemed to be practicing evasion-based Tanking strategies, much like Hannah.
Since they were the core of their respective Clans, however, changing their fighting style would naturally take some time for their teams to readjust themselves into a cohesive unit again.
“Y-yes! I understand!”
Korinna, who had looked somewhat down upon seeing fellow Team 2 members flocking to another Healer, perked up upon hearing Tsutomu’s request. She then happily devoured the cheese doria that had been served to her for dinner and wore a contented expression.
Amy, who had been trying to encourage the gloomy Korinna, looked on as the girl ate, and when she noticed Korinna’s expression, she cracked a dry smile. At that moment, a spoonful of cheese doria was extended before Amy’s eyes.
“Say ‘ahh.'”
“...Uh, Dini, this looks pipin’ hot, you know.”
“Fuu~~”
It seemed that Diniel had misinterpreted Amy’s concern for Korinna as a desire to eat the cheese doria. After blowing on the hot spoonful, Diniel then presented it to Amy again.
After locking eyes with Diniel, Amy reluctantly took a bite, knowing it likely was still likely hot on the inside.
“AHH! It burns!”
“I knew.”
“You KNEW!?”
Amy, with her sensitive tongue of a cat, predictably writhed in discomfort after tasting the hot cheese doria, while Diniel proceeded to take a sip of water with a composed expression. After finally managing to swallow the cheese doria that had caused a minor disaster in her mouth, Amy playfully nudged Diniel’s shoulder in annoyance.
In the midst of their conversation, Xeno and Garm appeared to be discussing Daryl.
“It seems that Daryl might be getting a sponsorship request specifically for him. Isn’t that great?”
“...I’m not so sure. The more attention he gets, the more he withdraws. Can he handle it?”
“I’m sure he can — after all, he hasn’t been forced into acting. His genuine reactions are part of his appeal. In fact, issues might arise if and when he gets used to performing those reactions...”
So far, Daryl had received training from both of them, inheriting Garm’s strength and Xeno’s popularity. Their guidance was bearing fruit, with Daryl building himself up consistently in both aspects. In fact, he had recently gained a fan club, further increasing his influence.
“Changing the color of his <<Combat Cry>> seems to have been effective. It’s impressive enough to make him stand out as an individual. Perhaps you should try it as well, Garm.”
“...I don’t like the sound of doing that.”
“Come now, you do realize that there are things your apprentice can teach you, yes?”
Garm, with his arms crossed and a furrowed brow, was engaged in a thoughtful discussion with the cheerful Xeno, even while they were in the middle of a meal.
After dinner, while everyone was relaxing on their own, Tsutomu read the newspaper while letting the playful Gnome sit on his back. As he was lost in thought, wondering why the Gnome’s hair was so silky smooth even though it was made of clay, he heard a voice calling him from behind.
“Mister Tsutomu, may I have a moment?”
Ollie, who had finished cleaning up after dinner, approached Tsutomu with a letter in her hand. Tsutomu observed the formal seal on the letter and responded with a slightly furrowed brow.
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