“Yaya, what about me?”
“Éa, I want you bringing up the rear. Be ready to tackle anything unexpected. You’re free to shoot at will if the situation calls for it.”
“Sure. I want to see what she can do,” Éa agreed, holding up a bow unlike any other in this dimension. A so-called compound bow, it had pulleys attached to each limb to help retract the heavy, crossed cables. The lightweight, carbon-fiber weapon’s mechanisms also made it a lot easier to keep the bowstring drawn. We’d made it to replace the previous traditional elven compound bow, which I’d had Agaccion destroy before the whole incident with the Dark Lord, and while it should have required quite a bit of adjusting, my little archer sister had already mastered it with ease. With it, her arrows carried more destructive power than ever before at a lower cost in terms of energy output. The only drawbacks were that it was harder to maintain and that the increased number of parts diminished its durability.
“Oh my, what an extraordinary bow you have there.” Lazalisa’s discerning eyes drank in the weapon.
“Heh-heh-heh ♪, isn’t it, though? My brother and Yukikaze made it for me. There’s only one in the whole world like it, and it’s mine!”
A few others in line turned to check the bow out, too. Ah, I guess another downside was it drew too much attention. Not many adventurers carried bows themselves, but everyone kept an eye out for unusual weapons. I had considered using some sort of cover to disguise it but abandoned the idea once Éa complained it made rapid, continuous fire impossible.
“Darling, what about me?”
“Uhhh, yeah. I’ll make you something eventually.” Looked like the bow could also make the elder elven sister jealous, too!
Still— “Lord Souya, have you noticed?”
“I have indeed.” I nodded in reply to Lazalisa’s question. Something was definitely off. Not a single party had come back from those doors. I’d watched them swing open several times already, but all I’d seen were long corridors stretching out past their thresholds. What was going on? I refused to believe every party had managed to pass the test with flying colors. No gatekeeper could be that easy to defeat. Maybe there was a separate exit that took you back to the first floor even if you failed? Or maybe the Guild employees escorted you out? That would be weird in and of itself. Why would they go to that trouble?
Before I knew it, we were next. Should we back out this time and come back again with a more solid strategy?
“Nutria, you’re getting cold feet, aren’t you?”
“Huh? I, um……yes.” Freyja was the last person I’d have expected to see through my poker face.
“Then rest assured, for you walk with yours truly, a veritable Champion of Light, to illuminate the way, not to mention Lalananna, who is certainly as equally talented. With both of us on your side, there’s no way we’ll lose.”
The two were undoubtedly exceptional mages, but you’d need more than that to survive in this dungeon. We’d learned that the hard way once.
“Lord Souya, in this matter alone, I agree with Lady Freyja. Even in the worst possible scenario, I shall carry you all and run to safety. I’ve been through more than my fair share of milady’s reckless scuffles and can assure you I have great confidence in my ability to flee.”
After that much support from the ladies in the group, I couldn’t give in to fear and still call myself a man. Adventurers constantly battled the unknown. I’d lost sight of that fact, but only those with the courage to stand in the face of uncertainty could claim that title.
“I appreciate that, Lazalisa……but I do need you to give Agaccion back.”
“Must I?”
“You must.” The reptilian maid had hidden my sword under her skirt ever so surreptitiously. “Return,” I commanded the enchanted blade, which slipped out of her hand and back into my sheath. Honestly, I didn’t worry much about it getting stolen; it’d come back as soon as I called it.
“You may proceed, Souya; each party goes through a separate door. Follow these paths, and they will converge again shortly.”
Our turn had come. Evetta opened the doors for us; my party stepped through the right, and Freyja’s through the left. We made our way down the long corridors, unable to see what came ahead, walking at what felt like abreast to Freyja and her companions. In front, Shuna led our party, Lis after him, then me, Lana, and Éa.
“Yukikaze, activate your pulse detector and run a scan. Oh, Éa, get ready for your ears to ring.”
“Okaaay,” Éa chirped, then put on her earplugs. With their large ears, I’d thought all elves had enhanced auditory capabilities, but many like Lana couldn’t hear much more than a heim.
“Affirmative, pulse scan activating. Countdown to five, four, three, two, one.”
Hanging at my side, the AI bot disguised as a lantern began to emit a low sonar beam to explore the area with echolocation. Soon after, a map appeared on my glasses’ display screen; it showed that the tunnel led straight to a large space with several smaller rooms branching off.
This sonar mapping came in handy, but the rays it sent out unfortunately also attracted enemies. Plus, it heavily drained the mini kettle’s battery. If I relied on it too much, the kettle’s artificial aqueous cerebrum would enter sleep mode and cease all operational support functions like organism detection or party management. Finding that optimal moment to bust it out was never easy. It was just my luck that we’d lost the portable spare batteries, but you couldn’t expect everything to go as planned.
“No enemies detected within a thirty-meter radius.”
“Hmm?” That had to include the large opening up ahead. Screw it, I couldn’t afford to waste time and hesitate. I had to be ready to defeat whatever came our way, to just bite that bullet. Adventurers didn’t have the luxury of planning things out; we did everything we could in the moment. Swayed by a wave of fear, I’d forgotten this fundamental truth.
Farther down in the darkness, I spotted a door. It didn’t matter what awaited us on the other side; we’d crush any obstacle just the same. We got to the entrance. Shuna laid his hand on it but turned to me before opening it. One last time, I surveyed each of my party members, making sure we were all ready. I nodded, and Shuna pushed the door open.
Before us rose a small mound of rusted armor piled on crumbling weapons. A white, red-eyed creature stood atop the crest. Another door next to us opened; Freyja’s party had arrived.
““Huh?”” All of us stood there, stupefied. Everyone knew those creatures had wings in this dimension, but there were none on this one—it was just a normal rabbit. For what it was worth, Lazalisa and Gaslark went to stand on the front line as planned.
“Ummm.”
The situation had left even Freyja at a loss for words. Honestly, I had no idea what to do about this rodent, either. Following Éa’s lead, I nocked an arrow, but man, I really didn’t like the thought of shooting the little guy. What should I do? I bet he just wandered in here accidentally; he couldn’t possibly be hostile.
“Milady, tonight, we dine on braised rabbit.”
Lazalisa, in tandem with Gaslark, took a step closer to the hare when—it vanished into thin air. The next second, both vanguards’ heads went flying. It all happened so fast my brain couldn’t keep up.
“Whaaa—?” I heard myself sputter idiotically. In that same instant, a terrifying shiver ran down my spine.
“Shuna!” was all I managed to scream. Before my order to retreat could reach him, the rabbit decapitated my redheaded friend. I saw his head soar through the air and felt desperation and virulent anger boil within me. Dodging both my arrow and Éa’s, the creature then made for Freyja, who continued calmly chanting her spell until the very moment her body was relieved of its crown. Fresh blood soaked her scarlet dress, staining it an even darker shade of red. In the span of mere seconds, we’d lost four people forever.