Yuji held the plate he’d received at the reception up to the reader by the entrance. The lock clicked, and he pushed the door open. The unlit room was dim; I could only tell it was a wide, open space.
"Light switch is... Ah, there we go."
Yuji stepped inside, fumbled along the wall by the door, and flipped the switch. The ceiling lights flickered on, revealing the full extent of the room. It had wooden flooring and was about the size of a standard classroom, completely devoid of furniture.
"Heh, so this is what it looks like inside."
"There’s nothing here at all..."
"Well, it's a space for warm-ups and independent practice. Furniture would just be in the way. Ready to start our exercises?"
"Yeah."
"Yes!"
We piled our weapons and backpacks in the corner and formed a circle in the center of the room to begin our warm-up. I started some music on my MP3 player, and we began with radio gymnastics. Naturally, everyone kept their protectors on.
"One, two, three, four... two, two, three, four. How’s the feel? It’s harder to move than you expected with the gear on, right?"
"Y-Yeah. When I move, it feels like my muscles are being squeezed every now and then," Mika replied.
"That’s because the Velcro straps are tightened to keep the plates from shifting. You’ll get used to the sensation eventually. Anything else?"
While we went through the motions, I kept my eyes on Mika and Saori-chan, asking for more feedback.
"Let’s see... Surprisingly, the different pieces of the protector don't bang into each other," Saori-chan noted.
"The ones you and Mika are wearing are lightweight, low-profile, form-fitting types. I heard they were specifically designed to minimize interference between the joints."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah. We managed to snag those as like-new second-hand items for a bargain, but if you bought them at retail, you’d be looking at a six-figure price tag. We got really lucky."
'Lucky' was an understatement. No one else had bid on them, so we’d won nearly brand-new gear for about ten thousand yen.
By contrast, the armor Yuji and I wore was cheap, making it much heavier and bulkier than the girls' set. The joints interfered with each other so much that we’d actually had to shave down and modify the plates ourselves just to get a decent range of motion.
"Six figures... You mean they cost over a hundred thousand yen?"
Saori-chan’s eyes went wide. Mika, standing beside her, looked just as shocked. Come to think of it, Mika only knew the auction price, not the original list price.
"Yuji... do you remember the retail price on those?"
"Let’s see... I don't remember the exact number, but when we were looking through the official shop before, weren't they listed for around two or three hundred thousand?"
"That sounds right," Hiiragi-san added. "I recall them being in that ballpark."
"Two or three hundred thousand..."
Mika and Saori-chan stared blankly at their own gear, stunned. I suppose hearing that the original price was dozens of times what we paid would be quite a shock.
"Anyway, price aside, do you feel anything else off?"
"Nothing so far. Right, Saori-chan?"
"U-Uh-huh."
It seemed there were no major issues.
We spent the next ten minutes meticulously checking our range of motion and finishing our warm-up when a knock sounded at the door.
"Yes! Who is it?" I called out.
"Staff from the reception desk. I've brought the items you requested. May I come in?"
I walked toward the door. "Yes, thank you. Please, come in."
"Excuse me."
The door opened, and a Female Staff Member in uniform entered, pushing a cart loaded with boxes.
"I’ve delivered the dummy targets."
"Thank you very much."
"The order was for two each of small, medium, and large, for a total of six. Is that correct?"
"Yes, that’s right."
"Then, here you are."
I took the boxes from the cart, and the staff member gave a polite bow before leaving with the empty trolley. I set the boxes down near our luggage in the corner.
"Alright, now that the gear is here, let’s wrap up the gymnastics and move on to weapon practice."
"Okay!"
"Yes!"
The girls responded energetically to my suggestion.
"Now, gear up fully. There’s no point in practicing if we aren't in the exact same kit we’ll be wearing inside the dungeon."
We suited up completely: helmets with lights, backpacks, pouches, and Kaiken at our waists. Finally, everyone took up their primary weapons.
"Looks like we're ready. Let's start with some practice swings."
"Got it."
"Yes."
"Yuji, Hiiragi-san. Keep an eye on them and point out anything that looks off."
"You got it," Yuji said.
"I’ll help too," Hiiragi-san agreed.
"Alright, you two, spread out so you don't hit each other."
Following my lead, Mika and Saori-chan gave themselves plenty of space. Yuji and Hiiragi-san stood by the opposite wall to observe, while I moved to the wall behind the girls to watch from the rear.
"Okay, go ahead."
Yes!
At my signal, they began their spear forms.
They started with mid-grip thrusts, followed by sweeps and slashes. They moved through various transitions, shifting their grip to change their reach and using the butt end of the spear for leg sweeps. Since we were indoors, they skipped the throwing techniques.
Once they finished their routine, the critiques began.
"Mika-chan, your tip is wavering when you use a long grip for the thrust. If you don't drive it in straight, the monster’s hide might deflect it, so be careful."
"My note for Saori-chan is about the slashing motions," Hiiragi-san added. "Your blade alignment is off. You aren't used to the weight of that spear yet, but at that angle, you’ll fail to cut through your target."
Both girls looked a bit dejected at the feedback. Still, these were issues of weapon proficiency; they would resolve themselves with practice.
"My observation is your footwork," I said. "This is the first time either of you has done these forms in boots, right? Between the shoes and the weight of the backpacks, your center of gravity was shifting, and you weren't stepping cleanly."
When they trained with Juzo-san, they were usually in light clothing and barefoot. It was only natural that having weight on their backs and boots laced up to their calves would change their balance.
"So, what are your thoughts after swinging your weapons in full kit?"
Mika was the first to answer my question.
"I noticed the things you guys pointed out. When I held the spear long, I could feel the weight pulling the tip out of alignment."
"I lost track of the blade's angle during the slashes too," Saori-chan admitted.
They were at least aware of their own mistakes.
"And for the balance and footwork Onii-chan mentioned... I knew what was happening, but when I tried to rotate, the weight of the gear kept pulling me off course," Mika said.
"Stabbing and slashing in a static stance is one thing, but moving is hard..."
"Hmm."
I suppose it’s just something they have to get used to. Since the gear is going to pull at their bodies regardless, they need to learn to move while accounting for that momentum.
We had them repeat their forms for a while until they seemed more comfortable moving in their equipment. Once the initial kinks were ironed out, I decided to move on to something more practical. I grabbed the boxes the staff member had brought.
"Alright, let's try some mock combat."
"Mock combat?"
"We’re using these."
I pulled a dummy target out of the box. It was a simple plush toy shaped like a generic animal, made of plain white cloth. It was stuffed with cotton and felt quite soft, but the stitching was incredibly low-quality.
"These are roughly the same size as the small monsters you'll see on the early floors."
Probably about the size of a horn rabbit.
"How are we supposed to practice with those?"
"Simple. You’re going to destroy them with your weapons."
"Those? Destroy them?"
While they looked at the toys with confusion, I called out to Yuji, who was standing a short distance away, and tossed one to him. It was about the speed of a child's dodgeball throw.
"Is a horn rabbit's charge about this fast?"
"A bit faster, maybe? Like this."
Yuji threw it back at me with significantly more zip.
"Yeah, that feels more like it."
When I looked back at Mika and Saori-chan, they were wearing expressions of mild shock.
"As you just saw, monsters will charge you with a fair amount of speed. We're going to throw these at you to teach you some basic countermeasures. Pay attention."
"O-Okay!"
"Yes!"
"Mika, you first. Move to the center of the room. Saori-chan, step back over here so you don't get hit."
Mika moved to the center and readied her spear. We stood against the wall in front of her.
"I’m going to throw this at you. I want you to spear it."
"Wait, you want me to stab it out of the air?"
"Right. No slashing, no sweeping—just a thrust. Nothing else allowed. Ready? Here it comes..."
"Wait, Onii-chan! T-That's impossible! Stabbing something moving that fast with just a thrust is...!"
"Starting the count. Three, two..."
Ignoring her protests, I began the countdown. Seeing I wasn't going to stop, Mika steeled herself. She dropped into a slight crouch, tightened her grip, and focused entirely on the plushie in my hand.
"One, zero!"
On zero, I whipped the plushie straight at Mika’s chest.
"Yah!"
With a sharp exhale, Mika thrust her spear with a short grip. The point drove straight into the flying target, skewering it through the center.
"I did it!"
"Mika-chan, that was amazing!" Saori-chan cheered.
I let out a long sigh. "Mika..."
"Look, Onii-chan! I got it on the first try!"
"Yeah, you ran it through perfectly."
"Right!?"
"So, what do you do now?"
"...Eh?"
Mika finally noticed the grim expressions on the faces of the three of us. Saori-chan, who had been celebrating with her, noticed too.
"By skewering it, the monster’s corpse is now stuck on your spear. If you're only fighting one, that's fine. But if you're facing a group, your weapon is now effectively sealed."
I remembered Hiiragi-san getting into a similar predicament once and panicking. She’d managed to survive by swinging the spear with the monster still attached like a macabre club, but Mika and Saori-chan didn't have the raw strength to pull off something that reckless.
"Then what was I supposed to do? You said I could only thrust!"
"I did."
"Then how..."
Mika looked at me, her expression fraught with uncertainty.
"Hold on, Mika. Giving you the answer is easy, but I want Saori-chan to try the same exercise first. I’ll explain once I see how she handles it."
"Wait, me?"
"Yes. In the dungeon, thinking for yourself is a survival skill. You saw what happened with Mika. Think of a better way."
"...Okay. I'll try."
Mika swapped places with her friend, and I pulled a fresh dummy target from the box. A dejected Mika stood beside me, handing over the remains of the first plushie.
"Mika, watch her and think about what you could have done differently, okay?"
"...Yeah."
"Don't look so down. It’s a simple answer once you think about it. Besides, your aim was incredible. Spearing a moving target in mid-air is no small feat."
"...Really?" Mika’s gloomy face brightened into a smile. I had to make sure she didn't lose her confidence; aftercare is important.
"Alright, Saori-chan, ready?"
"Yes! I’m ready!"
"Coming at you. Three, two, one, zero."
I threw the plushie at her chest just like before. Saori-chan held her spear steady, tracking the object with her eyes without moving an inch.
Then, at the last second—
"Ha!"
She sidestepped. The plushie flew past her, bounced off the wall, and fell to the floor.
"There!"
The moment it hit the ground, Saori-chan lunged and drove her spear into the fallen target. The tip pierced the center of the plushie's torso—a clearly fatal blow.
"How was that, Onii-san? Is that the right answer?"
"Yeah, that’s exactly it."
"Wait, that counts?" Mika asked.
"Yep. You don't need to pull off high-difficulty stunts like skewering a charging monster in mid-air. That changes if it’s a monster that can maneuver in flight, but generally, you want to minimize risk. Let it pass, then kill it when it’s vulnerable."
"Oh... I see..." Mika murmured, nodding as the logic clicked.
"Now, we’ll use the rest of these to go over some other techniques you'll need. Pay attention."
Yes!
We spent the rest of our allotted time drilling them on the lessons we’d learned the hard way. We couldn't teach them everything in one go, but it would be enough to handle the monsters they’d encounter on the tutorial floor.
With our gear checks and basic combat drills complete, we were finally ready to begin our dungeon exploration.