Hanakawa and Sora progressed smoothly through the Prison Area. After defeating the dragon, the rest of the enemies on the floor were quite weak. It seemed that every few floors would have a boss monster of some sort, so they could expect things to be easy for a time. Even Hanakawa could handily dispatch the zombies and goblins that were attacking them now. Sora herself didn’t seem to have much in the way of combat ability, so dealing with the small fry was left to him.
Well...if Sora’s fans were to begin appearing to deal with enemies as weak as these, that would be problematic in its own way!
While they were certainly strong enough to defeat the enemies they now faced, there was no need to rely on suicide attacks now.
However...there is still one other problem...
At some point, Hanakawa’s outfit had changed. On top of his usual kung fu outfit, he now wore a happi emblazoned with Sora’s name, the kind of flashy coat often worn to idol concerts back in Japan.
“Sora?”
“What is it?”
“Er, would you perhaps know anything about this thing I am now wearing?”
“Isn’t it something you made?”
“Uhh...never mind.” There was no way an idol would make outfits for her fans designed to cheer her on. Sora must have assumed Hanakawa had made the clothes himself to support her.
Does this mean that Sora’s Fanatic Fans ability might activate at some point and summon me to her side? Am I going to self-destruct to help her at some point?
So far, he still had full control of his body. However, as much as he had chosen to fight the enemies before them of his own accord, he couldn’t say for sure that Sora’s abilities hadn’t influenced that decision.
“Ah, there are more.” Sora pointed.
“Leave them to me!” As a pig-headed beastkin came around the corner in front of them, Hanakawa held out his right arm. A ball of energy fired from his clenched fist, blowing away the pig monster. For enemies this weak, he didn’t need to waste time gathering energy. The amount floating around him naturally was more than enough.
The battle was effortless, but it still introduced a new problem: he was now holding a glow stick in his right hand. The multicolored, glowing stick looked exactly like one you might see at a concert.
“Well, umm...I suppose should we find a dark place, it could come in handy...and it is not like it cost me anything.”
Though it was becoming quite clear that Sora’s powers were affecting him, Hanakawa decided to ignore it for now. If he were to leave Sora and encounter another boss, he’d be in quite a bit of trouble. Acting like one of her fans for a while was much safer.
Turning the corner where the beastkin had emerged, they found the gate they were looking for. Passing through the gate, they ascended to the next level. They emerged into a new corridor stretching off in a single direction. Hanakawa tensed up as he noticed three figures ahead of them.
“Oh, it’s Akino!”
The trio turned to look at them. It was Ryouko, Carol, and Celestina, the concierge from the hotel.
“Hello,” Sora greeted her two classmates. “I see you two made it here as well.”
“Yeah, we figured we needed to join the hunt or else we’d get left behind,” Carol explained.
“Could you at least pretend to be the least bit apologetic?! Your abandonment of me was as cruel as it gets!”
“Oh, sorry!” Carol replied instantly.
“So flippant! No substance at all! If Sora had not arrived, I would have certainly died!”
“No one lives forever, you know?” Carol answered.
“Uhh...you’re really getting into it with that outfit, aren’t you, Hanakawa?” Ryouko commented, apparently unable to think of anything meaningful to say.
It seemed these two really couldn’t care less about him, so instead of pressing the issue and hurting his own feelings more, he gave up and changed the subject.
“I see you managed to unite with Miss Celestina.”
“Yes. I was progressing alone through the pyramid, so I requested to travel with them,” the concierge replied.
“Celestina is super strong!” Carol exclaimed. “She’s cutting through enemies like a hot knife through butter!”
“Then, perhaps the five of us should proceed together?”
“I don’t really mind, but what about you, Celestina?” Despite Hanakawa’s expectations, it seemed Carol had some reservations about joining back up with him.
“Wait, you actually have objections to us joining you?!”
“Of course you may travel with us,” Celestina replied. “You are all still guests of the hotel.” Celestina didn’t hesitate to accept them. The fact they had visited her hotel once should have been entirely irrelevant at this point, but it still seemed important to her.
“You use thread as a weapon, correct?” Hanakawa asked.
“Correct. It has been effective against all of the enemies I have encountered so far, so please rest assured.” As she spoke, a monster in the distance was sliced to pieces.
“Will it work against dragons?” Hanakawa pressed.
“Yes, the dragon was no issue. And I presume you had no difficulties with Gorbagion’s Four Heavenly Kings?”
“Four Heavenly Kings? I cannot say we encountered any such fellows. I cannot imagine forgetting an encounter with such a dim-witted-sounding individual.”
According to Celestina, a number of people claiming to be subordinates of the Demon Lord Gorbagion had been hunting other adventurers.
“I see. I suppose different gates lead to different routes, then,” Celestina concluded. “That said, it is quite likely we will encounter them again, so please remain on guard.”
“Even if we do, I have full faith in you, Celestina!” Hanakawa said. She had saved him immediately before his arrival in Cavern Quest. He had witnessed how strong her thread was, so he had full confidence in her abilities. Ryouko and Carol clearly couldn’t care less about him, and Sora seemed to recognize him only as one of her fans. It seemed Celestina, in her desire to protect the guests of her hotel, was the friendliest face here.
“Then let us proceed. The next gate appears to be in this direction.” With the aid of the Philosopher’s Stone to tell her where the next gate was, Celestina could then use her threads to scout the path ahead. With her help, escaping the Prison Area should have been easy.
The moment he thought that, Hanakawa suddenly lost consciousness.