Having reconfirmed the absolute greatness of my max-leveled Danger Sense, we decided to spend just one hour looping the Floor 14 monster room.
This time, rather than engaging in close quarters, I went about the loop by performing a "normal" bombardment using my Explosive Blade.
Thanks to the Orcs numbering only sixteen—fewer than in the Floor 10 monster room—I was able to annihilate them with just two swings of my sword.
My only concern was the possibility of the Noble surviving via Blue Blood, but the explosions from the Explosive Blade didn't just vanish instantly. The lingering heat effortlessly finished him off right after his subordinates were wiped out, so no further follow-up was necessary.
And so, after completing about twenty loops of the Floor 14 monster room in roughly an hour, my earned experience points for this hour alone surpassed 200 million. At this pace, it would be possible to gain a level every single day if I focused on the grind.
Wonderful.
I was already looking forward to the marathon starting the day after tomorrow.
By the way, there were no issues regarding Hinata-san’s MP depletion. For an hour-long session, her MP could just barely hold out with a single Intermediate Mana Potion, and luckily, four of them dropped in total, including the one from the first battle.
Various other useful items dropped as well.
I obtained a total of three Intermediate Heal Potions from the Orc Rangers, and an Orc Gunner dropped an "Orc Gunner's Aura Gun."
Since I had always admired Headshot Yakuza, I had a lingering interest in magic guns. While an Aura Gun wasn't technically called a magic gun, it was considered a subtype of one. Fighting with an Aura Gun would eventually unlock the skills required to use proper magic guns.
Two Aura Guns dropped during the twenty loops, and I decided to take one of them home for my collection rather than selling it.
However, even though it couldn't be used on the surface, it was still classified as a weapon. I would have to go through the tedious procedures of owner registration and keep it under strict management.
That said, for people like Hinata-san and me who could "activate" our status on the surface, it was actually possible to use Aura Guns and magic guns above ground. Their power would drop considerably compared to when they were used inside a dungeon, though.
Perhaps because various nations intended to have their militaries use them inside dungeons, there was high demand for Aura Guns everywhere, and they sold for a decent price. There were even rumors that the Self-Defense Forces were stockpiling them in Japan.
There were quite a few other varieties of drops as well.
For instance, the "equipment series" that were familiar even from Goblins.
The weapons and armor equipped by the Orcs dropped with a certain probability. Various things appeared, such as the morning star used by the Orc Knights and the "Noble Sword," a decorative sword used by the Noble. There wasn't anything particularly worth taking back, though.
Actually, once you reached Floor 14, even these equipment sets had excellent performance. Despite being a decorative blade, the Noble Sword was a far superior weapon than the Steel Sword I had used before I obtained my Holy Sword.
If I brought back the armor, such as the shields and plate, they would sell for a decent price—but their main weakness was that they were heavy and bulky.
Compared to hauling those pieces of equipment, it was much more cost-effective to bring back as many magic stones as possible.
So, unfortunately, I left the Orc equipment behind. However, since the Aura Gun had a slightly higher buyback price, I decided to keep it.
And besides equipment and potions, there were other excellent drop items.
The Noble dropped a single bottle of "Noble Blood." This was a red liquid in a small vial, just like a potion—or rather, as the name implied, it was likely the actual blood of an Orc Noble.
It had no effect on its own, but it was a type of alchemy material and apparently served as one of the ingredients for high-grade potions or better. Because of that, it sold for a very high price.
To obtain high-grade potions naturally, one had to advance past Floor 20, so the circulation of such items was incredibly low and they were absurdly expensive. It seemed that among the few high-grade potions currently on the market, more were created via the Alchemy skill than were found by explorers.
Besides rare drops like Noble Blood, useful items were also falling as common drops. The energy bars that started dropping below Floor 10 were a standard find from the Rangers, Gunners, and Knights.
And the Orcs, regardless of their type, occasionally dropped one particular item.
On the twentieth loop—the final run of the day—it dropped again.
"Hah!? It came out again...! Hinata-san, what should we do? There's room in the backpack, should we take it?"
『No matter how many times I see it, it's massive lol.』 『Fueee, it's so big...!』 『Lmao it's the size of a human head.』 『What a specimen!!』 『I guess that explains the legendary stamina they have in manga lol.』 『Those are worth a lot, don't waste 'em!』
Up until now, I had been prioritizing magic stones and leaving them behind, but since we were heading home and had some extra space in our spatial-expansion backpacks, I asked Hinata-san for her opinion.
I mean, even though any Orc, including the Normal Orcs, could drop this, they sold for a premium.
However—
"Let's just leave that behind, okay?"
Hinata-san, who had kept her distance from the dropped item, spoke with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. Her tone was firm.
"I see..."
Though I felt a little disappointed, I did as Hinata-san said. Even if it was valuable, it wasn't worth bringing back if it sours her mood. For some reason, a "what a waste" chant broke out among the viewers.
●◯●
"—Fire Lance!"
"Gobu-tarooooooooooooooooo!!?"
After leaving the Floor 14 monster room, we returned to the entrance of the floor and used the teleportation circle in the Staircase Plaza to return to Floor 1.
At that point, after a sad parting with Gobu-taro II, the DungeonTube stream came to an end.
From there, we teleported to the surface, climbed the long stairs, and returned to the Japan Explorer Association. We passed through the gate-like Dungeon Gate and were about to head to the lobby to sell the loot we'd collected when—
"I've been waiting for you two!"
"—Guh, geck!?"
"U-Urara-san!?"
Seeing Urara-san waiting on the other side of the Dungeon Gate, I let out a startled yelp.
Urara-san, who looked like a primary schooler trying to look intimidating as she stood with her arms crossed, gave us a dubious look.
"Mumu. What’s with that reaction? It’s almost like you’re hiding something guilty."
We panicked.
Hiding something guilty—there was no doubt about that. It wasn't about the matter of slaughtering Oishi-san and his group... no, it was about my title "Pleasure Killer," which had its seal released during that fight.
Regarding the Oishi-san matter, I’d already given an excuse to the Association, and as for leaving the dungeon via Mito-san’s teleportation afterward, she had likely provided some kind of follow-up. I wasn't worried about that.
However, "Pleasure Killer" was a problem.
If Urara-san saw my status now, she would definitely find out about that title.
Special Crisis Case Explorers were obligated to report their status once a month, so it was only a matter of time... but I had planned to consult with Hinata-san and decide what to do before the end-of-month report.
Specifically, if I could obtain a means of hiding it, I would; if not, I would go crying to Mito-san for help. That was the plan.
However, right now, I hadn't started on either, and I wasn't mentally prepared.
"T-T-T-T-There's no way that's the case!"
Caught off guard by Urara-san, I stammered while trying to talk my way out of it. However, it seemed to have the opposite effect.
Urara-san's gaze became increasingly suspicious.
I decided to change the subject.
"M-More importantly! W-Why are you here, Urara-san!?"
"Muu... You're definitely trying to hide something."
"More importantly! Why are you here!?"
"...Well, fine."
Phew. Did I manage to dodge it!?
"The reason I’m here is that I saw your stream ended, so I figured you’d be coming back soon. I’ve been waiting."
"I-I see...! By the way, why were you looking for us...?"
What on earth did she want?
I swallowed hard, waiting for her answer.
"You even defeated a special variant Slime in the Minato Ward Dungeon, and Takeo-kun and Mashiro-chan are growing at an incredible pace, aren't you? As your coordinator, it makes me so proud."
"T-Thank you... S-So...?"
"So, I’ve judged that there must be considerable changes since the status reports you submitted at the end of last month. Because of that, even though it’s not the end of the month yet, I need to check your statuses again. It’s a coordinator's duty to keep track of a Special Crisis Case Explorer's accurate status, so let's get to it, okay?"
"—!!?"
I knew it. What I feared most had happened!
This was bad. This was an extremely bad development.
In a desperate attempt to slip through this predicament, I protested.
"Objection! We submitted our status information at the end of last month! There shouldn't be any obligation to submit it again until the end of this month!"
"Too bad for you, Takeo-kun! Submissions aren't strictly limited to the end of the month! If a coordinator determines it’s necessary, a Special Crisis Case Explorer has the obligation to disclose their status information as many times as requested! This is clearly stated in the contract!"
"W-What!? I didn't know that! This is a scam!"
"It's not a scam. You would know if you had read the contract properly!"
I hurriedly looked at Hinata-san. She nodded with a regretful expression.
"It’s true, it is written in the contract, Takeo-kun."
!? What a disaster...!!
Dammit! What should I do!?
While I was desperately thinking of a way out, Urara-san puffed out her slight chest with a triumphant "Hmph!" as if she’d caught a master criminal.
"Now then, Takeo-kun, Mashiro-chan! Both of you, open your status windows quickly! If you have nothing to hide, there shouldn't be any problem, right?"
"............!!?"
D-Dammit!! What do I do!? What can I do!?
I can't afford to get caught like this!