When the dungeon and its picturesque forest scenes were touched by a hint of red, Yuri was steadily crushing one floor after another.
“That makes—three hundred!!”
He sliced through the windpipe of a mid-sized monster, taking a breather only after confirming it no longer drew breath. Haring moved in to calmly dispose of it, cutting it apart and collecting the individual materials.
This same process had simply repeated, on and on, and they had now reached the twentieth floor.
“Hah...! We’ve come quite a long way!”
“...Yeah. But the herbs you’re lookin’ for grow in the deeper levels. After you get there and collect your due, you’re spendin’ the rest of the week trainin’ in the depths.”
“Yes! I’ll do my best!!” Despite the waterfall of sweat on his brow, Yuri returned a delightful smile.
Haring took only a glance at him before returning to work. From Haring’s point of view, Yuri was trampling the dungeon at a fearsome rate. Even an experienced explorer could often only proceed ten floors—give or take—per day. That was because death was always one’s companion in the dungeon, and not only could a lethal wound lead to real death, even the most minor of injuries could lead to future incidents.
Though it was possible to warp back to the duel city with the Proof’s special dungeon feature, it was not so simple to erase the fear. Yes, even if one knew they could go back at any time, the moment they perceived a possibility of death, they would proceed with the utmost caution.
Yuri had absolutely none of that. He didn’t even think to take detours around dangerous beasts to get through floors safely. He slew whatever was in his path to take the absolute shortest route, rushing straight ahead without any rest or meals.
While he was showing signs of fatigue, his movements were no worse than they had been that morning, and if Haring told him to keep going, he would quite likely continue charging on with a smile.
Which was why Haring decided to bark an order as soon as he was done collecting.
“Oi, brat. We’re campin’ on this floor.”
“Hmm? I can still go on.”
“You might be fine, but I’m gettin’ tired here.”
“Eeh...but you’re not fighting, Mr. Haring. You don’t even look that tired.”
“It takes more time for me to take apart monsters than it does for you to murder them, goddammit. Anyways, that’s it for today. Prepare to rest.”
Operating his Proof to produce the tools, Haring prepared to set up camp like a veteran in the field. He gathered the scattered fallen leaves and branches, and using a fire charm to ignite them, he lightly roasted the preserved foods he’d packed over the flame.
“See? That’s the stuff. Now you get preparin’ to eat and sleep.”
“Err, I didn’t bring anything with me.”
“.........What?”
“Ms. Mirka told me not to bring anything apart from my weapon, so I didn’t!”
“Are you thick!? How do you plan to survive a week without any tools!?”
In dungeon diving, camping and food supplies were an absolute necessity. It was possible to instantaneously transfer back with a Proof, but it often took several days to reach the target floor, and in such cases, they would have to pass the night inside.
“No, wait, if you came empty-handed does that mean you don’t even have any food—”
“Of course, I didn’t bring any with me!”
“The hell!? Is this some new form of suicide!?”
“Don’t worry! If I need a tool, my sword is more than enough!”
Brandishing his black sword, Yuri briskly gathered vines and branches and began putting together something which he strung along the surrounding trees.
“What are you doin’?”
“It’s a trap to let us know if a monster is approaching. That one I just beat had this area boss sorta feeling, so I cut out the bladder and sprinkled it around. That should ward off the smaller and weaker ones.”
“Just how used to survival are you...”
“This one time, my master shoved me into a danger zone for a month. I only had a normal knife back then, so compared to that, this should be a piece of cake!”
“That’s one hell of a master.”
His black sword, practically his partner, in hand, Yuri began whittling away bit by bit at branches and bark. Since it was supposed to be a duelist’s weapon, it was somewhat pitiful to see it being used for something so mundane.
“Aight, I get that you know how to survive, but...what are you gonna do about a week’s worth of food? To be clear, I only brought enough for myself. Don’t plan on sharin’.”
In the first place, when he accepted the guide request from Mirka, he was placed under a strict order not to lend a hand to Yuri no matter what happened. That, of course, applied to food as well.
But Yuri didn’t seem to mind this in the slightest. He raised up an impromptu sack folded from a large leaf.
“I’m fine on food! I managed to gather some when you were busy dismantling, so at the very least, I’ll have a feast today!”
“Yeah...well, we’re in a forest and all. I’m sure there’s plenty’a fruit growin’ around.”
As a matter of fact, Haring had filled his stomach with wild plants and fruit a number of times when he was troubled for food. He would use the dungeon to stave off his hunger whenever he was running short on cash.
“Oh, no, fruits are good as a source of moisture. You need to achieve a good balance with your meals, and you won’t be able to move right without the right calories!” Yuri said as he unfurled the leaf bag on the spot.
Its contents consisted of—bugs. No matter how Haring looked at it, they were bugs. Adults and larvae alike, the live insects wriggled and squirmed over the leaf. The moment he saw this, Haring went pale at the face.