"—Takeo-kun, sorry, did I keep you waiting?"
"No, I’m fine."
Once we were back on the surface, Hinata-san and I sold the magic stones at the Association, changed in the locker rooms, and met up in the lobby.
All that was left was to head home. We could have just parted ways after changing, but Hinata-san had asked if we could walk together for a bit. We were both getting on the train immediately, and our routes overlapped for a while.
By the way, the total for the magic stones came to over 3.29 million yen. That meant we’d each earned over 1.64 million yen today alone.
Of course, over 230,000 yen was immediately snatched away for withholding tax.
It was a shock. I never expected to have to pay 230,000 yen in taxes in a single day.
I’d assumed withholding tax was usually around ten percent, but the bite was suspiciously deep today. When I quietly asked Hinata-san why, she explained that the tax rate doubles for any amount exceeding one million yen. Terrifying stuff.
"Shall we go, then?"
"Sure."
Still reeling from the harsh reality of the tax system, I walked out of the Association with Hinata-san.
The exit led right into the heart of Shinjuku Station. It was around 7:30 PM, and the station was packed with a restless crowd of commuters.
We were about to merge into the flow of people heading toward the platforms when—
"—!"
"Hinata-san?"
Hinata-san suddenly grabbed my arm.
When I turned, I saw her face was stiff with tension. She was staring intently at a spot a short distance away.
I instinctively followed her gaze, but I couldn't tell what she was looking at. It looked like an ordinary crowd to me.
"What’s wrong?" I asked.
She snapped out of it and met my eyes, looking slightly panicked.
"Oh, uh, well... right! Takeo-kun, aren't you hungry?!"
"Hungry? Well, yeah. Starving, actually."
I wished she wouldn't underestimate the appetite of a guy who’d been a growing high schooler until just recently. I’d been eating massive lunches lately, but I was already famished. My stomach was, quite frankly, growling.
"In that case! How about we grab dinner together?! I made a lot of money today thanks to you, and I still feel like I owe you, so please let me treat you!"
"Hmm..."
I pretended to hesitate for a moment.
This is a personal rule of mine, but when a senior or an older person offers to treat me or give me something, I generally make it a point not to refuse. I figure it makes me seem more "adorable" as a junior. I was constantly aiming for that lovable protégé role, after all.
However, if it was another "repayment to my lifesaver" thing like she’d mentioned before, that was a bit too heavy for my tastes.
"Are you sure? I eat a lot, you know."
"Yes, of course! It’s totally fine! It’s a bit of a walk from the station, though. Is that okay? Or is there something specific you’d like to eat, Takeo-kun?"
"No, if you have a recommendation, Hinata-san, let's go with that."
"I see. Then let's go! This way!"
"Wait, Hinata-san?!"
Hinata-san grabbed my hand and started pulling me along.
Wait, wait...!! What’s gotten into her? She’s suddenly so assertive!
I mean, I wasn't going to complain about walking hand-in-hand with a beautiful older woman.
Regardless, that was how I ended up being treated to dinner by Hinata-san out of the blue. We ate together, and then she walked part of the way home with me.
...Things didn’t end up getting particularly "adult," though.
●◯●
A certain nightclub in Shibuya, Tokyo.
Deep in the back of the noisy underground dance floor lay a VIP room.
In that room, where the pounding up-tempo music and the roar of the crowd were reduced to a faint hum, the air was thick with tension.
Three men were inside.
One sat on a sofa, leaning his weight heavily against the backrest. He looked to be in his mid-twenties, with a body as well-built as a professional fighter. Large tattoos snaked across his arms, neck, and disappeared beneath his clothes over his chest and back.
This man, who radiated a violent aura of intimidation, spoke.
"You let the girl with Healing Magic get away? Are you idiots?"
He was addressing the other two men in the room.
They looked like typical frivolous punks, but all their usual slackness was gone. They were kneeling on the floor across a low table from the man on the sofa, drenched in cold sweat.
If Mashiro Hinata or the viewers of her channel had been there, they would have recognized these men instantly.
Matsuda and Aoyama.
The duo who had abandoned their party members, Goda and Hinata, to flee from the Goblin Knight.
"W-We’re sorry!!"
"B-But Kanzaki-san! It’s really hard to snatch someone in a place with so many witnesses...! Plus, she was with a really dangerous guy today. It would’ve been impossible to jump them..."
Kanzaki scowled at Matsuda’s excuse.
"Hah? A dangerous guy?"
"Y-Yes. Um... this kid."
Matsuda operated his phone and handed it to Kanzaki.
The phone played a clip from a certain video—the scene where Takeo Samejima had jumped in to save DungeonTuber Hinata from the Goblin Knight.
After watching it through, Kanzaki snorted and threw the phone back toward them with a violent flick of his wrist.
"Are you bastards seriously scared of a brat like this?"
"W-We’re sorry. But..."
"There is no 'but,' you morons."
Kanzaki slowly stood up, grabbed a bottle from the table, and walked around to stand over the kneeling pair.
He tilted the bottle, pouring champagne directly over Matsuda’s head.
The soaking-wet Matsuda didn't dare complain; he just sat there and took it.
"Even if this kid is stronger than you two pieces of trash, that’s only inside the dungeon. Outside, he’s just a brat, right? Hah? I don't care how pathetic you are—two of you should be able to handle one kid."
"Y-Yessir....Um, then, we'll try to jump him tomorrow."
"Forget it."
"Eh?"
"I said forget it."
"N-No way! Kanzaki-san! W-We can do it right this time!!"
Terrified that they were being discarded, Matsuda reached out to cling to Kanzaki.
Kanzaki kicked him away with a heavy thud.
"Gwah?!"
"Don't touch me. You'll get me wet."
Matsuda curled up, clutching his stomach, while Aoyama trembled beside him, his face pale.
Kanzaki looked down at them, his voice taking on a deceptively soft tone.
"Don't get it twisted. I’m not saying I’m getting rid of you. I actually appreciate your work, you know? Finding a gold mine like a girl with Healing Magic, even if it was by accident."
—Healing Magic.
While it was a skill that could be learned via a Skill Orb, it was by no means common.
To find a Healing Magic Skill Orb, one had to be capable of fighting on the deeper floors, and even then, the drop rate was abysmally low. They were rarely put up for sale, and even if one hit the market, the price was something only the ultra-wealthy could afford.
Therefore, even three years after the appearance of the dungeons, people with Healing Magic remained incredibly rare talents.
However, many people who weren't explorers didn't initially view healers as that precious for two reasons.
First, potions could often serve as a substitute. High-Grade Heal Potions or High-Grade Cure Potions could fix most injuries and illnesses and were relatively easy to find. The supply was steady enough to meet basic needs, even if the prices were astronomical. If you had the money, you could get them.
The second reason was that Healing Magic didn't work on the surface.
Magic could only be cast inside a dungeon. To be treated with magic, a patient had to be brought into the dungeon, which was often impractical for emergencies. Keeping a stock of potions was simply more convenient.
Because of these factors, the general public’s interest in Healing Magic had been relatively low.
But recently, the sharpest minds had begun to change their tune.
It started when one of Japan’s top explorers, "Saint Bellwood," successfully used Healing Magic to perform Limb Regeneration—restoring missing body parts, including organs removed due to cancer—and curing terminal illnesses.
The Heal Potions and Cure Potions discovered so far couldn't restore a lost limb or heal late-stage cancer.
But it had been proven that Healing Magic could.
And it wasn't just basic healing; it was a total restoration to a healthy state by regenerating lost or failing organs. For the upper class, who had endless money and a desperate desire for health, longevity, and youth, this was a world-shaking revelation.
Of course, achieving limb regeneration required a very high level. But if a group could secure a healer now, they could power-level them until they reached that stage.
Once that happened, Healing Magic would become a "big business."
Making money off the desperate—those with terminal illnesses or missing limbs that modern medicine couldn't touch—would be effortless.
Kanzaki’s quasi-gang had reached that conclusion and decided to seize Mashiro Hinata.
"Actually, I never expected a couple of runts like you to be able to bring her in anyway."
"Eh?"
At those mocking words, Matsuda looked up at Kanzaki.
"T-Then, what are you going to do...?"
"We'll hit them in the dungeon, obviously."
Matsuda felt a surge of doubt.
It wasn't a question of how they would do it given that explorers carried cameras—he knew that wasn't a deal-breaker.
"A-Attack them...? But, um, we can't kill Hinata-chan, right?"
"Don't state the obvious, you idiot. What good would killing her do? We wouldn't make a dime."
"I-I’m sorry...!"
"Alright, listen up, you morons," Kanzaki said.
To use Hinata to make money, they had to break her. They needed her to be a tool that would endure harsh leveling without complaint, never try to escape, and obey every command.
They would turn her into an absolutely submissive slave.
And he had a method.
"Getting people to listen is easy. Especially when it’s a girl. We just gang-rape her, take photos and videos to black-mail her, and we're set. Then we just get her hooked on drugs, and she’ll be a perfect little slave, won't she?"
"—!"
As Kanzaki grinned with sadistic delight, Matsuda and Aoyama nodded their heads in frantic agreement.
"So, here’s the plan. You two, find out when she’s heading back into the dungeon."
"Oh, about that..." Aoyama spoke up.
They had been monitoring Hinata’s channel to track her.
"In her stream today, she said she’d be diving again from tomorrow morning. Only... it looks like she’s party-ing with that dangerous kid I mentioned. He’ll be with her..."
"So what?"
"Ah, no! Nothing!"
"Do you seriously think I’d lose to some brat...?"
"No, no, no! Not at all! If you’re going yourself, Kanzaki-san, he won't stand a chance! It’ll be a total breeze!"
Aoyama and the others had seen Takeo fighting alone in the Monster Room on the stream. They had also seen his encounter with Headshot Yakuza, where Mito had made his level public.
That was exactly why they were certain that Kanzaki would crush Takeo.
After all, Kanzaki was Level 25.
His level was in a completely different league compared to Takeo’s.
The gap between Level 18 and Level 25 meant a difference of exactly "100" allocated Status Points. This disparity would only grow once the Fighting Spirit skill was factored in.
No matter what skills Takeo had, the raw difference in stats would be insurmountable.
And besides—
"Alright, we're hitting the dungeon tomorrow. Round up the rest of the guys. We’ll kill the brat in the dungeon and gang-rape the girl."
"Y-Yessir!!"
Kanzaki wasn't going alone.
While Kanzaki was the only one at such a high level, his quasi-gang had several others who had already reached Level 19.
Combined with their overwhelming numbers, there wasn't even a one-in-ten-thousand chance of failure.