As I was instructing Mika and Saori on how to carry themselves inside the dungeon, the intercom installed next to the entrance door let out a shrill, insistent ring. When I picked up the receiver, the voice on the other end informed me that we had five minutes left before our room’s time limit expired. I asked if we could extend our stay, but they told me it was impossible because they were fully booked for the day. Resigned, I told them we would vacate the premises on time and hung up.
I turned back to the other four and called an end to the practice session.
"...And that's that. Time's up, so our preliminary practice is over."
"Phew... haah... Thank you very much!"
"You're welcome. Now, the real dungeon dive starts after this, so take a minute to rest."
Mika and Saori-chan sat down, breathing heavily, and offered a small bow of gratitude to the three of us.
While we waited for the girls to catch their breath and began gathering the scattered remains of the plushies, there was a knock at the door. A voice announced they were here to clean and collect the debris. I gave them permission to enter, and the door opened to reveal a middle-aged female staff member pushing a cart loaded with cleaning supplies. Checking the clock and realizing we had less than two minutes left, we quickly gathered our belongings and prepared to leave.
Though, to be honest, we were already wearing most of our gear for the training anyway.
"I’m very sorry, but would you mind handling the cleanup for us?"
"Yes, that's no problem at all. Thank you for using our private rooms today."
"No, thank you. I'll leave the rest to you."
"Certainly."
With our time limit looming, we hurried out of the room, leaving the space a bit more cluttered than I would have liked. As the door swung shut, I offered a silent apology to the cleaning lady.
Sorry. Next time we use a room, I'll make sure to account for cleanup time... For today, please take care of it.
"All right. Let's take a quick break. Everyone, head to the lounge and wait for me. I'll go grab us some drinks."
I gave them a light wave and headed toward the vending machine corner.
I said I'd buy something "appropriate," but I already had a specific drink in mind.
A few minutes later, clutching an armful of plastic bottles, I approached the lounge sofa where everyone was waiting.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. I've got the drinks."
"Ah, sorry about that, Daiki. Making you play the gopher for us."
"It's fine. It wasn't much trouble."
I set the bottles down on the table in front of the sofa.
Mika immediately looked at the selection with a puzzled expression.
"Huh? Onii-chan, you bought the small ones? And they're all barley tea..."
She picked up a 280ml bottle and looked at me questioningly.
"We're about to head into a dungeon. Excessive hydration just means you'll need the bathroom sooner, right? I specifically bought barley tea because it’s low in caffeine and has a weak diuretic effect. Getting the urge to go inside a dungeon is a massive pain."
"Oh, that makes sense..."
Mika clapped her hands together as the realization hit her. Good grief, what do you think is the reason we're all wearing diapers, as much as we hate the idea? Well, since we only plan on touring the tutorial floor today, maybe we didn't need to worry about the bathroom situation quite that much.
Setting my explanation aside, Yuji and Hiiragi-san reached for their tea.
"I'll take one."
"I'll have one as well."
"Go ahead. Here, Mika, Saori-chan, you two drink up too."
I held the bottles out to the two girls, who were being a bit hesitant.
"Ah, thanks."
"Thank you very much. I'll have some."
Mika and Saori-chan accepted the tea. I grabbed the last bottle, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip.
Once I was sure everyone had finished their drinks and settled down, I brought up the plan for the rest of the day.
"All right. Regarding the schedule—the plan is to walk around the first floor and have you two experience one battle with a monster each. Does that sound good?"
"Yeah, that sounds like a solid plan. There’s no reason to push into the deeper floors right now."
"I agree. For your first dungeon exploration, it's best to avoid overextending yourselves."
The three of us reconfirmed our strategy.
However, Mika and Saori-chan seemed less than thrilled with our conservative approach.
"Wait, we're only doing the first floor? And only one fight each...?"
"What, you have a problem with that?"
"It’s not a 'problem' exactly, but... right, Saori-chan?"
"Yes. Personally, I was hoping to see how far we could actually go..."
Ah, I see.
Watching their hands tighten around their spears as they voiced their complaints, I could tell exactly what was going on in their heads. In short, because they had survived Juzo-san's training, they were riding a high—overconfidence was starting to take root.
Given what I saw during our practice session, it was true that they probably wouldn't struggle against low-level monsters. I could understand why they were feeling cocky, but still...
"I see. I understand where you're coming from..."
"Then...!"
Their faces lit up, thinking I had been swayed by their argument.
I shook my head, shutting them down immediately.
"But the answer is still no. For today, we're doing the first floor and one fight per person. That's it."
Ehhh...
They looked at me with tragic expressions, as if I were being unreasonably cruel.
"Don't give me those looks. It's for your own safety."
"He's right. It's not like Daiki is doing this just to be mean, you know?"
"Exactly. I'm sure you have your objections, but leave it at that for now."
Uuuh...
With Yuji and Hiiragi-san backing me up, the two girls fell silent, realizing that further protest was futile. Hmm. It looked like I wasn't going to be able to truly convince them at this stage.
Sigh, I guess it can't be helped.
"Look, you probably don't agree with the policy right now, but you'll understand once you actually fight a monster. So, after you've each had your first battle, I'll ask you both again: do we continue, or do we head back?"
"Then, if we say we want to keep going...?"
"If it looks like you're handling it well and not pushing your luck, I might consider letting us continue. Maybe."
"Really!?"
"Yeah. As long as you don't look like you're overdoing it."
Though, honestly, I doubted they'd want to continue.
Understanding my true intentions, Yuji and Hiiragi-san cast pitying looks at Mika and Saori-chan, who were now celebrating their "victory." Then they shot me sharp, questioning glares, clearly wondering why I was making such a suggestion.
It was a calculated move. If I didn't give them some sort of compromise, their frustration would have led to a sloppy mistake later on.
"Now that we've settled on a plan, we should probably get moving."
I stood up to deflect their glares and change the subject. We had been resting for about fifteen minutes, which was plenty for a short break.
Everyone had finished their tea, anyway.
"True. Shall we?"
"Yes. If we sit around too long, our bodies will cool down after all that warming up."
Yuji and Hiiragi-san grabbed their gear and stood up from the sofa.
"Mika, Saori-chan. You two ready?"
"Yup! All set!"
"Yes, I'm ready too."
Responding with newfound enthusiasm, Mika and Saori-chan stood up and grabbed their bags.
"All right. Let's head into the dungeon."
Yeah!
After disposing of our empty bottles, we left the lounge and headed toward the building that housed the dungeon entrance.
The moment we stepped inside the entrance hall, we were met with a sea of blue and red belt partitions. They were set up to organize the flow of people; blue for those entering, red for those leaving.
As expected, there was a massive crowd, with a long line snaking through the blue partitions.
"We're a bit late, but the line actually looks shorter than usual today."
"Yeah. I'd say... maybe a hundred people ahead of us?"
"I think so. We should be through in about thirty minutes."
We estimated the wait time as we looked at the familiar sight of explorers waiting for their turn.
For a Sunday, a thirty-minute wait was actually pretty good.
"Hm? What's wrong, Mika?"
"Eh? Oh, uh, nothing..."
I looked back to see Mika and Saori-chan standing frozen, looking utterly overwhelmed.
Following their gaze, I realized what they were looking at.
"Oh, right. This is the first time you've seen the crowd, isn't it?"
A massive line of people armed with all sorts of weapons, clad in heavy tactical gear and armor... I was so used to it that I didn't think twice, but for a pair of novices, the sight of so many armed professionals was bound to be intimidating.
I spoke as gently as I could to put them at ease.
"Don't worry, you two. Everyone's just standing in line. There's nothing to be afraid of."
"Ah, right. Yeah..."
"Y-yes, of course. They're just waiting their turn..."
"That's the spirit. Take a deep breath and relax."
They followed my lead, taking a few deep breaths to calm their nerves. After a few repetitions, the visible tension began to drain from their faces.
"Better?"
"U-huh."
"Sorry for making you worry."
"Don't be. Seeing this for the first time is a lot to take in. It's not exactly something you see in everyday life."
In fact, if you saw a crowd like this anywhere else, it would be a national emergency.
"Now, if you're both ready, let's join the queue. We won't get inside by just standing here."
"Okay."
"Right."
We stepped between the blue partitions and joined the back of the line. I made sure to keep about a meter of space between us and the group in front. If you crowd people, weapons and gear tend to bump into each other, and it's better to avoid any unnecessary friction before even entering the dungeon.
The line moved steadily, and before long, we were near the front.
"Almost our turn. You both ready for this?"
"Yeah!"
"Yes!"
When I did the final check, they both gave me firm, energetic responses.
They still looked a bit stiff from the nerves, but they weren't shrinking back, so I figured they'd be fine.
"Looks like they're good to go..."
I confirmed their resolve and then shared a look with Yuji and Hiiragi-san.
"Well, let's just see how it goes for now."
"Right. At least they haven't lost their nerve."
The two of them agreed that the girls seemed ready enough.
"Then we'd better get serious about our guard duty."
"Yeah. Time to show the results of surviving Genya-san's hellish training."
"Exactly. If we let Mika-chan or Saori-chan get hurt here, we'll never be able to look Genya-san in the eye again."
Watching the girls' nervous excitement, the three of us steeled ourselves.
It had been a while since our last dive, but more importantly, we were responsible for Mika and Saori. Things that were trivial to us could be life-threatening to them. We had to stay sharp and ensure we didn't miss a single thing.
"Next group, please step forward."
Just as we were psyching ourselves up, the staff member at the gate called us forward. Our turn had finally arrived.
"Please tap your Explorer Cards on the reader in order."
"Right."
Yuji went first, tapping his card and passing through the gate, followed immediately by Hiiragi-san.
"Okay, Mika, you're up."
"U-huh."
Mika approached the reader with a slight hesitation and tapped her card. A soft electronic beep confirmed the authentication, and she walked through the gate.
Once she was on the other side, she was greeted by Hiiragi-san, and I saw her let out a long breath of relief.
"Next is Saori-chan."
"Y-yes!"
With movements as stiff as a board, Saori-chan gripped her card and approached the reader. She tapped it with a bit too much force, but the machine accepted it, and she successfully passed through as well.
As I took my card out and stepped toward the gate, the male staff member spoke to me.
"Are you the guide for these two?"
"Yes. It's their first time today."
"I see. Well, make sure they stay safe and don't get hurt, all right?"
"Thank you. We'll be careful."
I shared a brief, wry smile with the man and stepped through the gate.
All right. The real work begins now!