Winter break had ended, and the school was holding the opening ceremony for the third term.
Under a freezing sky where the winter wind howled, students were huddled in the drafty gym while the principal gave a long, "valuable" speech. Everyone shivered, enduring the cold while counting down the minutes until he finally stopped talking. I was no exception.
"...That is all."
The principal finally finished. I was honestly impressed that someone could talk for fifteen minutes straight like that.
As the principal stepped down from the podium, the vice-principal took over to move the ceremony along. I was chilled to the bone and just wanted to get back to my classroom. Fifteen minutes later, the program concluded, and we were dismissed.
Once we were back in the room, we turned on the air conditioner to thaw out and started homeroom. Standing at the lectern, our homeroom teacher looked around the room and let out a heavy sigh as his opening remark.
"Now then... why are there so many of you wrapped in bandages?"
Just as he said, nearly half of my classmates were wearing bandages of various sizes. Even some of those who weren't bandaged looked away toward the horizon the moment the teacher spoke.
"...You lot went into the dungeons, didn't you?"
Silence fell over the classroom.
Before winter break began—during the closing ceremony for the second term—we had been warned not to go into the dungeons.
"I mean, it’s true that it isn't explicitly forbidden, but still... don't go getting yourselves injured."
The teacher shook his head and pressed a hand to his forehead as if he had a migraine. From a teacher's perspective, seeing half his class show up looking like mummies must be a total nightmare.
"I'll check just in case, but none of you have sustained injuries that will leave permanent aftereffects, right?"
In response to his question, the bandaged students all nodded in unison. The teacher let out a long breath of relief.
"I see. Phew... fine. I won't press the matter any further. But you lot—you did finish your winter break homework, didn't you?"
The bandage group collectively avoided his gaze. So they hadn't done it.
Since I hadn't gone to the dungeon during the break and had instead spent my time helping Mika with her entrance exam studies, I had finished everything. It seemed to be the same for Yuji and Hiiragi-san; their homework was all accounted for.
Expecting this reaction, the teacher sighed again as he collected the few assignments that were actually finished.
"The final deadline for homework is the beginning of next week. Make sure you turn it in by then. It'll affect your school reports."
After collecting the meager pile, the teacher used the threat of grades as a final warning. A few students looked pale at the mention of their reports, but most of them maintained a strangely optimistic air.
Taking in the scene, the teacher said nothing more and moved to wrap things up.
"Since today is just the opening ceremony, that's all for now. The third term starts in earnest tomorrow. Don't let your 'vacation brain' make you late."
The hallway suddenly became noisy with voices and footsteps. It sounded like the other classes had already finished their homerooms.
"Alright, day monitor. Give the command."
"Yes. Stand... Bow."
We all bowed to the teacher, and homeroom was officially over. After gathering the few submitted assignments, the teacher quickly left the room.
Once he was gone, the classroom became a hive of activity.
Some quickly packed their bags to head home, others checked plans for club activities or met up with friends from other classes, and some stayed behind to gossip. I met up with Yuji and Hiiragi-san to discuss our plans for the day.
"So, now that the ceremony's over, what's the plan? Should we just head straight to your place, Yuji?"
"I'm fine with that."
"But it's still morning," Hiiragi-san pointed out. "Wouldn't it be better to head over after we've had lunch? Besides, I'd like to go home once and drop off my bags."
"Good point. Then, Yuji, is it okay if we disperse for now and meet up at your place in the afternoon?"
"That works."
"Then it's settled. It's a little past 11:00 now... how about we meet at Yuji's around 14:00?"
"Sounds good to me."
"I'm fine with that too."
"Do you have a moment, Kokonoe-kun, Hirose-kun, Hiiragi-san?"
Just as our plans were coming together, someone called out to us from the side.
I turned toward the voice and saw a gentle-looking male student with a bandage on his right hand. His name was Noguchi... I think?
"Do you need something?" I asked.
"Yeah. There's something I wanted to ask the three of you."
"Ask us?"
We hadn't spoken much before, so I had no idea what he wanted. While we were puzzled, Noguchi cut to the chase.
"Are you three interested in diving into a dungeon?"
"Huh?"
Dungeon? Why? As far as the class was concerned, the three of us were supposed to be the "anti-dungeon" faction.
"Dungeon? Us? Why are you asking?"
For a split second, I thought our secret dives had been leaked, but from Noguchi's tone, it didn't seem like it. As we stood there confused, Noguchi began to explain.
"Actually, a few of us classmates formed a party and have been diving into the dungeon. But during our explorations over winter break, one of our members got injured. We're looking for a replacement now."
"So you're asking us to act as substitutes for that injured member?"
"Yeah."
He said it so casually.
If he were asking someone who was interested in dungeons but didn't know the reality, they might have jumped at the chance. But I didn't feel like I could simply accept. Honestly, the whole thing was too suspicious.
If one were to apply for an Explorer Card now, the issuance exam and paperwork would take nearly two weeks. That meant his teammate had sustained an injury serious enough to keep them out of action for at least that long. Since the guy was still attending school and not hospitalized, it was probably a bone fracture.
A mid-grade recovery potion would heal a simple fracture almost instantly, but they were still scarce and fairly expensive. The fact that they hadn't used one suggested that Noguchi and his group weren't earning much. Had they been forcing their way into floors they weren't ready for?
Feeling suspicious, I used Appraisal Analysis on him.
Name: Yasushi Noguchi Age: 16 Gender: Male Job: Student Level: 7 HP: 85/85 EP: 45/45
Whoa, that’s low. Or wait, is that normal?
In the current climate, I guess this is about average for most people. But with these stats, as long as you weren't being reckless, I didn't think you'd sustain such major injuries on the first or second floors...
I glanced at the bandage on Noguchi's hand.
"Of course, we'll split the rewards," he continued. "Our party fights a lot of monsters, so we get plenty of drop items. We make a decent amount, you know?"
"Hmm."
"Huh? You three don't seem interested at all."
"Well, honestly, we're not."
When I declined, Yuji and Hiiragi-san both nodded in agreement.
"I see. You can earn a fair bit in a short amount of time compared to a regular part-time job, though..."
Noguchi scratched his head, looking troubled as he tried to figure out how to persuade us.
Fighting many monsters and securing many drop items meant they had to be pushing into lower floors, especially since the upper floors were currently overcrowded with explorers. They were definitely overextending themselves.
These guys are going to get wiped out one day because they don't know when to pull back... Well, seeing as they won't give up on dungeon conquest even after getting injured, they probably wouldn't listen to a warning anyway.
"Well, if you're not interested, it can't be helped. Sorry for taking up your time."
Noguchi gave up surprisingly easily. He waved and went to call out to other classmates still in the room. As he turned away, I thought I heard him click his tongue—I hoped it was just my imagination. He was wearing a refreshing smile, but I wondered if he was actually two-faced.
Once Noguchi was out of earshot, we quickly left the classroom.
We changed our shoes at the entrance and headed outside, discussing the encounter.
"What do you two think about what Noguchi said?" I asked.
"Turning him down was the right call," Yuji said immediately.
"I agree," Hiiragi-san added. "I suspect they're being far too reckless with their dungeon dives."
It seemed neither of them had any complaints about how I'd handled it.
"I think you could say that for everyone wearing bandages today," I remarked.
I never would have expected nearly half the class to show up injured. I can only imagine what kind of "dungeon attacks" they were attempting.
Unlike a game, you can't just pay a penalty and respawn. I'm amazed people can take such high risks where they might actually get hurt. No matter how high my level gets, I could never treat it so lightly.
"You'd think once they actually fought a monster, they'd realize it's not a game," Yuji said.
He was right. Even now, I remember the sensation of the first time I cut a monster with Shiranui. There was no way I could mistake that feeling for something from a game.
"But I didn't get that sense at all from Noguchi-kun's tone," Hiiragi-san observed. "If anything, he sounded like he was just enjoying a game."
"True."
It was as if he were talking about a trip to a new theme park attraction. There wasn't even a hint of the feeling that he’d been doing something life-threatening. One mistake and he could have been killed by a monster or a trap.
"But that isn't just Noguchi," Yuji pointed out. "Most explorers diving into dungeons right now probably have a game-like mentality."
"Yes," Hiiragi-san said. "If they didn't, then regardless of the social pressure, it wouldn't have become such a massive boom."
"I guess so."
When you defeat monsters, you get items; when you gain EXP, you level up. I suppose it’s inevitable that people start treating it like a game.
Thinking about it made me let out a sigh.
"Anyway, let's stop talking about this for now. No changes to the plan, right? We'll disperse and meet at Yuji's at 14:00."
We had reached the crossroads while talking, so I checked with them one last time.
"Yeah."
"Yes."
"Alright, see you later."
I parted ways with them and headed home.
The talk with Noguchi had been a bit of a downer, but I was going to get training from Juzo-san for the first time in a while. I needed to get my head in the game.
On the way, I met up with Mika, who had also finished her opening ceremony, and we walked home together. After eating lunch prepared by my mother, I took a break, got my gear ready, and headed over to Yuji's house.
When I arrived with Hiiragi-san at the scheduled time, we went straight to the dojo to give Juzo-san our late New Year's greetings.
"It's a bit late, but Happy New Year."
"Happy New Year."
"Happy New Year to you both. Kokonoe boy, Hiiragi girl—it’s been a while. You haven’t been slacking on your practice, have you?"
"No, sir. It was only practice swings, but I did them every day," I replied.
"I did as well."
"I see, I see."
Juzo-san seemed pleased with our answers. He picked up a bamboo sword resting nearby and stood up.
"Well then, shall we have a match right away? Kokonoe boy."
"Yes, sir!"
"Take your stance."
"Yes!"
I stood up, grabbed a bamboo sword from the wall rack, and faced off against him.
"Come at me from wherever you like."
"Here I come!"
It was good to start with such spirit, but the very first practice of the year ended just like all the others: with me being thoroughly beaten down by Juzo-san.
Sigh. I wonder when I'll ever be able to land a single hit on him. I stood there catching my breath alongside Hiiragi-san—who had been beaten just as badly—and watched as Yuji at least managed to hold his own for a bit.