Today, I happened to run into Miguel at the guild’s main hall. It’d been a while since I’d last seen him. I usually went to the dungeon in the afternoons, and he in the mornings, so sometimes there were long stretches when we didn’t see each other at all.
Miguel was his same old self. He had fluffy blond hair, a handsome face, and droopy eyes. He was also wearing bulky shoulder armor that made him look like he was ready for a dive anytime.
As soon as he saw me, he raised his hand and said, “Oh, hey, Kudo.”
“What’s up, Miguel?” I asked. “By yourself today?”
“Yep. Everyone else has plans today, so I’m just killing time.”
“I see.”
We chatted casually like usual and updated each other on what we’d been up to and where we’d been to in our dives. We decided to go on a walk for a bit—in the dungeon, the Forest, to be exact. Some people might think we were crazy for going on a walk in the dungeon, but the Great Forest Ruins at depth level 5 was so easy that it might as well be a park. That sentiment applied to anyone who was high-level, not just us.
Walking through the Forest felt nice. Although it was a low-depth-level floor, we were still in the dungeon, so we had to remember not to let our guard down completely. On this floor was a forest area that had been moderately thinned out and a spacious grassland area. The forest was denser deep into the floor, but the area near the entrance was perfect for a stroll. There wasn’t any real danger here as long as we kept an eye out for monsters. In my case, I had to beware the danger of having my hat stolen by Walker Rabbits.
“So, yeah, about Reverie...”
“Come on, Miguel, enough about your love life. You’re gonna make me puke,” I complained.
“But you haven’t puked yet, so we’re still good,” he said.
“I do feel kind of sick—sick of listening to your crap.”
“Heh heh. Jealous?” he asked.
“Yes. Get smushed like a frog and die.”
No matter how much I cursed him with my words, Miguel just laughed it off, completely unaffected. Guys who could get girls seemed to be protected with a powerful blessing that warded off curses with ease.
As we continued talking, we were met with a strange sight: a group of Walker Rabbits stampeding through the meadows. They were running so hard they left a huge cloud of dust in their wake. It was a bizarre and possibly dangerous spectacle.
I tugged on Miguel’s sleeve and asked, “Hey, Miguel. What’s going on over there?”
“Huh? Oh, that. Some idiot must’ve messed with the rabbits. They’re rounding up their friends to settle their score.”
“Whoa, they’re retaliating with that big group? Scary.”
We weren’t just talking about twenty or thirty of them; I could tell at a glance that there were nearly a hundred rabbits. I had no idea where they’d all come from, but this was pretty scary. They must’ve called in their entire squad to get some payback on some poor fool.
“Man, it’s been a while since I’ve seen this happen, but it sure is something,” said Miguel.
“So, this has happened before...?”
I was shocked to hear him say that as if it wasn’t a rare sight. The rabbits were weak individually, but even I wouldn’t be able to deal with a horde that big. They were super resilient, and with their huge frames, they could cause quite some damage with their tackles. Not to mention, they were really heavy; they could easily crush a human if they piled on top of them like a ball of honeybees.
Divers generally followed the Bunny Conservation Rule set by the guild, so it was highly likely that whoever set off the rabbits was a beginner—which meant their level would be low, and even rabbits could pose a threat to them. I could imagine there being some ancient saying about never messing with rabbits or that the wrath of the rabbits was like the wrath of the land itself. It would’ve been perfect if their eyes glowed red. Himalayan rabbits did have red eyes, but I digress.
“Oh yeah, what about that unauthorized conservation group? Do they do anything at times like these?” I asked.
“You mean the Bunny Lovers Club? Probably nothing, unless someone makes a report,” said Miguel.
“Really? I thought they’d be hiding in the dungeon and keeping an eye on the rabbits, but I guess not.”
“I don’t think so...” said Miguel, averting his eyes.
Why do you sound so unsure?
The Bunny Lovers Club was a strange organization of this world. Presumably, it was a group about watching and admiring Walker Rabbits, but the truth about it was shrouded in mystery. It kind of gave me cultish vibes though. Eldrid was a member, so maybe I’d ask her about it next time. Though, I was afraid she’d take me to a café and say something like “I know someone who can tell you more about it,” and a club official would show up and take me to one of their branches, trapping me in a room that I can’t leave until I become a member. That wouldn’t happen...would it?
Suddenly, Miguel winced as he noticed something. “Yikes, there’s a black one too. What did they do?”
“Oh, you’re right. What’s special about the black ones?” I asked.
“Normal rabbits are weak, but those ones are strong. They go around hunting heads.”
“What, are they like a certain vorpal kind of bunny that appears in dungeons or something?”
“What are you talking about?” asked Miguel.
“Never mind. I guess head-hunting rabbits are a thing everywhere.”
Rabbits in dungeons seemed to be strong no matter what world they were in. Besides, the ones I was thinking of were white instead of black, and they were the size of normal rabbits.
“The black rabbits are more docile, and they rarely ever come out unless their friends are in danger. I heard decapitated hunter heads were everywhere back when hunting rabbits was popular for a while,” explained Miguel.
“Sheesh.”
That sounded terrifying. Maybe the guild’s conservation rule was there to protect Divers instead of the rabbits. This world could be incredibly savage out of nowhere sometimes. How did the topic of decapitated heads come up when we were just taking a leisurely stroll?
“I guess there’s a lot we still don’t know about the dungeon,” I said.
“You’re right about that,” agreed Miguel.
“Yeah, like secret routes and that new floor with the hot springs.”
“What new floor with the hot springs?” he asked.
“Sensei took me there a while ago. I haven’t reported it to my receptionist, by the way.”
“What are you doing, man? You have a duty to report these things.”
“I caaan’t heeear youuu,” I said with my hands over my ears.
Miguel sighed. “Does such a place really even exist?”
“Yep. You can go there directly from the Forest. The trek there is kind of rough though,” I said.
“It must be pretty bad if you think it’s rough.”
“Yeah. It’s a pretty high-level floor too. Do you wanna go check it out?” I asked.
“Sounds good, let’s go.”
“The monsters there are super strong, so be careful.”
“They are? Are they stronger than the Four-Armed Goat we fought?” asked Miguel.
“Honestly, I was able to solo the goat, so these monsters are probably easier.”
“Using you as the baseline doesn’t really help.”
“What else am I supposed to do?” I asked.
We chatted for a while longer as we headed toward the Paradise Hot Springs.
After passing through the Misty Border, Miguel looked around with a straight face. “No way... It really exists.”
“I thought the same thing when I first got here. This place isn’t even on the rumored secret routes, is it?” I said.
“No, it isn’t. It isn’t even on route seven or eight.”
More routes I’d never heard of before. The so-called secret routes really did seem to exist. It made me realize I really was still a novice.
Miguel looked around and said, “Seeing a weird forest like this reminds me of the Forest Sharks.”
“‘Forest Sharks’?” I asked.
This time, it was a monster I’d never heard of before. I mean, I could more or less guess what kind of creature it was, but I had to ask.
“Yeah, it’s a type of monster that appears on the secret routes,” explained Miguel. “They roam around a forest looking for prey.”
What? Do they have feet or something?
“So, are sharks that swim in water called Water Sharks, then?” I asked.
“Huh? What are you talking about? Why would a shark be able to swim?” asked Miguel.
“What?” I couldn’t hide my surprise at his question. “Um, Miguel, what do you mean by that? Elaborate.”
“I mean, sharks are flying creatures. Haven’t you seen the Sky Sharks in the Submerged City?”
“Well, yeah, I have, but...”