"Phew... I managed to pull through somehow."
As the lingering euphoria of the level-up faded, I slumped back, letting out a long, weary breath.
I looked down at my arms. They were screaming in pain, feeling like I had the worst case of muscle soreness imaginable. They twitched and spasmed rhythmically, sending jolts of agony through me with every movement. I couldn't put any strength into them at all. It didn't feel like the bones were broken, but they were definitely out of commission for a while.
Besides, my sword was shattered anyway. I didn't have much choice but to call it a day and head home.
Just as that thought crossed my mind, something clattered onto the floor.
"Hm?"
I turned toward the sound.
Something was lying on the ground in front of the wall where the Holy Knight had been embedded. The monster itself had already dissolved into countless particles of light and vanished.
"Is that... a magic stone? And a sword?"
I approached the wall. Lying there was a magic stone—presumably a drop from the Holy Knight—and a longsword housed in a decorative scabbard. It was likely the same blade the knight had been wielding.
With my aching arms, I managed to lift the sword and draw it from its sheath. As I expected, a beautiful, silver-white blade revealed itself.
"I nearly died back there, but... I guess you could call this a lucky break."
I wouldn't know its exact properties until I submitted an appraisal request at the Association, but it was almost certainly several tiers above the steel longsword I'd been using. I’d been worried about having to buy a second replacement sword in such a short time, but this looked like it would serve me well.
"Alright... I'll rest here for a couple of hours. If my arms feel better, I'll resume the farm."
The bones were intact, and it didn't feel like I'd torn any muscles or tendons. Given that natural healing is boosted inside a dungeon, a short break should get me back in fighting shape.
I grabbed the magic stone, hauled myself over to where my backpack sat against the wall, and settled in for a rest. Since the timing was right, I decided to eat lunch too.
I was munching on rice balls, sandwiches, and pastries I’d picked up at a convenience store before entering, watching videos on my phone, when—
"Whoa!?"
The phone suddenly started ringing, nearly making me jump out of my skin.
The screen showed a number I didn't recognize. I frowned at the digits.
"Sketchy... Better ignore it."
Without a second thought, I let it ring. Scams were rampant these days, and getting a call from a random number was just creepy. As a rule, I never answered unknown callers.
"...Man, this person is persistent."
The potential scammer wouldn't give up. The phone rang for over a minute straight. Just as I was about to cut the call and block the number, it finally stopped.
I breathed a sigh of relief and tried to get back to my Yo!Tube video, but the phone immediately started blaring again.
"—!!"
This time, however, it wasn't the "scam call (temp)." It was a contact from my phonebook. The screen displayed "Headshot Yakuza."
I swiped to answer instantly.
"Yes! Hello! It’s Takeo!"
『...And why didn't you answer my call the first time?』
"Wait—huh?"
The voice on the other end wasn't the Headshot Yakuza's deep, cool voice. It was a woman, and she sounded distinctly annoyed. It took my brain a few seconds to match the voice to a face.
"......Mito-san?"
『None other.』
"Wait, so that call just now was..."
『Yes, that was me.』
"Ah, right... I’m sorry about that. It was an unregistered number, so I got spooked and ignored it."
I gave her a sincere apology.
『Haa... Fine. Let’s move on,』 Mito-san sighed, letting me off the hook.
Still, why was Mito-san calling me? What could she possibly want?
『By the way, Samejima-kun.』
"Yes?"
『Where are you right now?』
"In the dungeon."
『Specifically, inside the Monster Room on Floor 4 of the Shinjuku Dungeon?』
"Wait, that's creepy... How do you know?"
『Woman's intuition.』
Terrifying.
『Tell me, did anything unusual happen inside that Monster Room?』
"Unusual...?"
I paused to think. Then I answered.
"No, nothing in particular."
『...Are you sure? Think back very carefully. Surely something was out of the ordinary?』
"Hmm... No, I wouldn't call it an anomaly, exactly."
『Ngh... Didn't a monster appear that was different from the usual ones?』
"Oh! Yeah! How did you know? Something like that did show up."
『...Why were you trying to hide it?』
"Hide it? You mean the weird monster?"
『Yes.』
"It's not that I was trying to hide it... I just didn't think it was an anomaly."
『...Are you serious? Are you actually insane? If that wasn't an anomaly, what on earth did you think it was?』
"I figured it was a Secret Monster."
『...A what?』
"You know, a rare monster that spawns when you meet certain conditions? Like in video games. I thought it was something like that."
『............』
"............"
...What?
『...Normally, people call that an anomaly.』
"Oh! I see. Good to know."
It felt a little weird being lectured on common sense by a high-level Explorer like Mito-san.
『Phew... Fine. Listen to me. There is always a reason for monsters like that appearing. Usually, it's because of some action that deviates from the norm....You have an idea of what caused it, don't you?』
"An idea... Oh!"
She was talking about the spawn conditions for the Secret Monster. I definitely had a theory. I’d been pondering it even while I was watching videos.
"I'm guessing it's because I was farming so much? I figure if you clear the Monster Room several hundred times in a short window, it triggers a special spawn."
『Wrong.』
"Wait, really?"
『You have another idea, don't you?』
"No, that's pretty much it."
『............The magic stones.』
"Huh?"
『The magic stones—were you picking them up? Or were you just leaving them there?』
"O-Oh...!! How did you know? Were you watching me?"
I scanned the Monster Room frantically, but there was no sign of Mito-san.
『I wasn't watching. Woman's intuition.』
Seriously? That's not intuition; that's a psychic power.
『Listen to me, Samejima-kun.』
"Yes."
『If you leave magic stones in a Monster Room and let the dungeon absorb them, special monsters like the one you just fought can be born.』
"Whoa! Really!?"
That was a shock. To think the culprit was my neglected loot. But wait—if that was the case, did that mean if I left the stones again, I could fight the Holy Knight once more?
Not that I really wanted to. The experience points were great, but it was way more efficient to hunt a bunch of moderately strong monsters than to struggle against one massive boss.
I'd gained 40,000 experience points from the Holy Knight. Since Goblin Genocider should have doubled it, the base value was likely 20,000. It was a massive amount, but considering the sheer effort and risk required to kill it, the math didn't really check out for efficient leveling.
I’d rather skip the rematch... although if I kept farming, I might end up in one anyway. I figured I’d be able to win much easier the second time around, though.
As I was deep in thought, Mito-san’s voice sharpened.
『Are you listening? Because of this, you are not to leave magic stones behind from now on.』
"Eh?"
『And don't even think about trying to force a rematch.』
"............"
『The type and strength of those monsters aren't fixed. You might have lucked out this time, but there's no guarantee you'll win the next. Don't get arrogant. Do you understand?』
"...Yes, I understand."
Was she serious? No more leaving stones? That was going to kill my farming efficiency.
...Well, it's not like she'd actually know if I kept doing it...
『By the way, I'll know if you leave them again. If you break my instructions and abandon a large quantity of magic stones... there will be consequences. Do you understand?』
Eep! A cold shiver ran down my spine.
"...Can I ask how you'd know?"
『Woman's intuition.』
Is "Woman's Intuition" a skill? No, that can't be right.
『Haa... Listen. I don't care if you ignore my advice and get yourself killed. But what do you think would happen if a special monster spawned by your negligence wandered out of the Monster Room?』
"...Those things can leave the room?"
『They can. That's why I'm telling you this.』
"I see... I get it. I won't leave the stones anymore. I promise."
I nodded firmly. My efficiency would take a hit, but I couldn't let my own selfishness put other Explorers in danger. That would be completely irresponsible.
『I'm glad you understand.』
"No, thank you for the warning."
I had so many questions—like how she knew about the Holy Knight (temp) in the first place—but I had a feeling she wouldn't give me a straight answer.
『Regardless, Samejima-kun, we need to issue a warning to other Explorers about this.』
"To make sure no one else does what I did?"
『Exactly. So, I want you to return to the surface now and report the incident to the Association. They'll probably ask you to release your video data; don't refuse them. I'll send a message to the Shinjuku Branch ahead of time.』
Right now? That meant my leveling for the day was over. I suppressed a sigh so she wouldn't hear me and gave my consent. For some reason, Mito-san seemed particularly irritable today, and she was scary when she was like this. It was better to just play along.
"Understood. I'll head back to the surface now."
『Good. I'm counting on you. Goodbye.』
With that, I ended my run for the day and headed back.
When I passed through the gate, a staff member from the Association was already waiting for me—Mito-san must have called ahead. I followed them and spent some time explaining everything and answering their questions.
While I was there, they prioritized the appraisal of the longsword I’d gotten from the Holy Knight since it was part of the incident. The result caused a minor uproar at the Shinjuku Branch.
I mean, sure, it was a special monster, but who would have guessed a creature on Floor 4 would drop a "Mithril Holy Sword"? I was as shocked as they were!