A short while after we resumed our exploration, Mika and Saori-chan’s coordination started to look quite respectable. While there were still some clumsy moments, they had begun to master the art of mutual support by staying conscious of each other's positioning and reach.
The rest would just be a matter of building proficiency through experience.
"Hah!"
"Yah!"
Coordinating their timing, Mika and Saori-chan thrust their spears almost simultaneously into their final enemy, a hound dog. The blades accurately pierced its neck and heart—the creature’s vital points. The hound dog spat a glob of blood as the light faded from its eyes. The moment Mika and Saori-chan pulled their spears back, its body slumped limply to the ground.
The two girls immediately widened the distance while keeping their spears leveled, warily monitoring the fallen hound dogs. Only after confirming that the corpses were beginning to break down into particles of light did they finally lower their guard and their weapons.
"......Phew."
"Good work, you two. That was a very solid move."
As Mika and Saori-chan finished the battle, I offered words of praise while giving a light clap. They turned back toward me, their eyes widening slightly with expressions of surprise.
"Ah, yeah. Thanks, Onii-chan."
"Thank you very much."
"Ever since you started paying attention to where you’re standing in relation to each other, your coordination has become much smoother. During that last joint attack, you even shifted your angles to make it harder for the enemy to dodge. You can't pull that off easily unless you have a good grasp of your partner's movements."
"......"
I continued to praise them while pointing out the strengths of the previous fight. Mika and Saori-chan looked a bit embarrassed to be complimented and averted their eyes.
As we were having that exchange, Yuji, who had been casually keeping watch on the surroundings, called out to them in a cheerful tone.
"Hey, you three. Wrap up the chatter and look at this. It looks like we got some pretty good drop items this time."
"“Eh!? Really!?”"
"Look."
Mika and Saori-chan reacted instantly to Yuji’s mention of "good items" and turned their gazes toward the spot where the hound dogs had fallen. Indeed, something other than Core Crystals or block meat was lying there.
Hm? Oh, that’s...
"Hey, Saori-chan? This is..."
"Is it... a recovery potion?"
Mika and Saori-chan picked up the drop items and stared at them with a mixture of hope and anxiety. The item that had appeared from the hound dog was a liquid inside a sealed container.
When I took a quick peek with my appraisal skill, I confirmed the item was a beginner recovery potion.
"......Hey, Onii-chan? Is this a recovery potion?"
When Mika asked me for confirmation, I almost nodded reflexively, but I stopped myself when I noticed the piercing gazes from Yuji and Hiiragi-san.
That was close. I’d nearly identified it as a recovery potion without waiting for an official Association appraisal.
"......Who knows? Judging by the shape of the container, it’s probably a recovery potion, but I can't say for sure until it’s been through appraisal."
"......I see."
At my reply, Mika and Saori-chan’s shoulders slumped, and they looked visibly dejected, but they immediately pulled themselves together and renewed their focus.
Ah, that’s right. I should say this now.
"Oh, you two. Just to be safe, don't use any medicine-type items that drop in the dungeon until they’ve been appraised, okay?"
"Eh? Why?"
"What do you mean 'why'...? What if the liquid inside that container is poison? If you drink poison in a place like this, you can't even get to a hospital; you’d definitely die. Besides, there are plenty of other items with dangerous possibilities, so don't touch them until the appraisal is finished."
"Y-Yeah. Understood."
When I gave the warning with a serious expression, Mika seemed a bit overwhelmed by my intensity and nodded repeatedly while backing away slightly.
"U-Um... may I ask something?"
"What is it, Saori-chan?"
Saori-chan, who had been watching the exchange, raised her right hand slightly.
"I read online that until recently, it was common for explorers to use things like skill scrolls inside the dungeon before getting them appraised by the Association... Was that okay?"
"Hmm. To put it simply, that wasn't exactly commendable behavior. In the old days, the Association's appraisal service wasn't as well-developed as it is now. If you sent a skill scroll for appraisal, it was common for it to take several weeks to get the results. Impatient explorers started using unappraised skill scrolls inside the dungeon. Of course, there were other reasons too."
"I see..."
"Naturally, since it was such a haphazard method, there were huge downsides to using unappraised skill scrolls."
"......What kind of downsides?"
Mika cut in from the side, her interest piqued.
"Let's see... one famous failure involved a high-class passive skill. Someone learned it at a low level, resulting in constant energy deficiency. They couldn't even benefit from the physical enhancement all explorers typically receive."
"“Ehh!?”"
"As a drop item, it’s a rare jackpot, but it’s not something a low-level explorer should use. Using a skill scroll when the contents are unknown means you might step on a landmine like that. That’s why the number of explorers who use skill scrolls without appraisal has decreased significantly lately."
Looking back, the explorers of that era were gamblers in every sense of the word. People used to use unappraised skill scrolls while leaving everything to luck just because they wanted to try using magic...
"I-Is that so..."
Mika and Saori-chan placed their hands on their chests with expressions of relief. They were probably remembering their previous exploration. Both of them had turned the skill scrolls they got last time into cash without much discussion because they were broke, but if they’d had money to spare, they might have tried using them inside the dungeon.
Of course, we would have stopped them if they tried.
"Anyway, don't use those drop items until they’ve been appraised."
"Y-Yeah."
"Yes."
After Mika and Saori-chan nodded in agreement, they tucked the recovery potions into their bags along with the other drop items.
Now then, shall we move on?
Standing before the stairs leading to the 7th floor, I checked the time on my watch.
"......Considering the time it'll take to get back, we should probably start heading up soon."
"True. Between the fatigue and the time needed for the exchange procedures, this is a good point to turn back."
"I suppose so. But before that..."
Our gazes shifted toward Mika and Saori-chan, who were staring down the stairs with tense faces, their knuckles white on their spear shafts.
Well, here we go.
"......Are you two okay?"
"Y-Yeah. I'm fine..."
"Y-Yes. I'm okay."
No, you're definitely not okay... both of your voices are cracking with tension.
"Hey now, if you're that tense, your movements will be sluggish and you'll get hurt. Come on, take some deep breaths and calm your nerves."
"“Y-Yeah. Sss... haaa... sss... haaa...”"
Following my instructions, Mika and Saori-chan focused on their breathing. After several repetitions, the look of tension began to fade, and after about ten breaths, they had both regained their composure.
"Looks like you've calmed down?"
"Y-Yeah."
"Y-Yes."
"Then, as originally planned, we’re going down to the 7th floor now to have you fight a humanoid monster... Are you ready?"
"“......”"
When I pressed them for confirmation, Mika and Saori-chan looked at each other and nodded silently. Then they turned back to me, looking me straight in the eye.
"Yeah, I'm okay! Let's go!"
"Yes!"
With eyes full of determination, they replied loudly, as if to psych themselves up. I didn't know what would happen when they actually faced one, but for now, they didn't seem to be cowering, which was a good sign.
I gave them a light nod and exchanged a glance with Yuji and Hiiragi-san, indicating that they were ready to proceed. They both nodded silently in agreement.
"Shall we go, then?"
"Yeah!"
"Yes!"
Once I heard their replies, I started down the stairs. On the way, I gave them one final warning.
"Just to be safe, don't hesitate when you face a humanoid monster. Even if you hesitate to attack, the opponent will come at you without mercy, just like any other monster."
"......Yeah."
"......Yes."
I didn't look back at Mika and Saori-chan, who replied in thin, strained voices, and continued down the stairs. The most common reason for injury during a first battle with a humanoid monster is hesitation. Generally speaking, for an explorer who has reached this floor properly, a single humanoid monster like a goblin is an opponent they can defeat without taking a scratch.
However, no matter how much weaker the enemy is, if you underestimate them or hesitate to strike, you’ll leave yourself open to a counterattack.
"Well, if it comes down to it, we'll follow up, but we won't interfere until the last possible second. You have to overcome this yourselves. Like I said at the entrance, if you can't get past this hurdle, it'll be difficult to continue as an explorer."
"Yeah..."
"Yes..."
Mika and Saori-chan seemed a bit dejected after hearing that, but we soon reached the bottom and stepped onto the 7th floor. There were a few explorers resting in the plaza near the stairs, but we slipped past them and headed deeper into the level.
After following the passage for a while, the creature made its appearance.
"......There it is."
"“......”"
At the edge of the light stood a small humanoid monster with hairless green skin, wearing a loincloth and clutching a wooden club. A goblin.
"......I'll do it."
With those words, Mika stepped forward. Reacting to her movement, the goblin raised its club and began to scream in intimidation. It seemed the monster had recognized us as enemies.
"Gyah!"
"......"
The goblin had a frantic, feral expression on its face as it rushed toward Mika with bloodshot eyes. The sight of it charging with a roar and brandishing its club was quite intense, and Mika seemed to flinch for a moment. But she immediately regained her spirit and tightened her grip on her spear.
And then...
"Hah!"
Mika let out a sharp breath and lunged forward with a spirited step, thrusting her spear at the goblin.
However...
"Gyahhh!!"
"!"
The spear, which had likely been aimed at the chest, missed its mark and pierced the goblin’s right shoulder. Mika seemed surprised by her own miss, but she quickly snapped back to reality, pulled the spear out, and jumped back to reset her distance.
The goblin, its shoulder skewered, let out a piercing scream and dropped its club, rolling on the ground while clutching the wound with its left hand.
"Gya-gyah..."
"A-Ah..."
Mika stood frozen, watching the humanoid creature crouch on the ground, bleeding and wailing. Her hands began to tremble as she held her spear.
I had to step in.
"Mika! Finish it! The battle isn't over yet!"
"! Y-Yeah!"
My sharp, commanding tone seemed to snap her out of it. Mika leveled her spear again. She pointed the tip at the blood-covered goblin on the ground, and after a split-second of hesitation, she thrust the spear into the creature's neck.
This time, her aim was true.
"Gi!?"
The moment the spear pierced its throat, the goblin’s body convulsed before falling still. Mika remained in her thrusting posture for a while, only pulling her spear back once the goblin’s body began to turn into particles of light.
Hmm, the shock might have been a bit much for her.
"Hey, you okay, Mika?"
I called out as I approached her. She turned around with slow, mechanical movements. Her face was dazed, her eyes were unfocused, and it was clear she was deeply shaken.
"......Yeah, I'm okay."
"......I see. Anyway, well done, Mika. Take a little rest."
"......Yeah."
"Hiiragi-san, please."
"I’ve got her."
I left Hiiragi-san to look after the shaken Mika and turned to Saori-chan, who was pale and breathing heavily.
"Saori-chan. I'm going to have you face the next one... can you do it?"
"......Yes. I'll do it."
"I see... then, shall we move on?"
"......Yes."
After confirming Saori-chan’s resolve, I called out to Yuji, Hiiragi-san, and Mika.
"Alright, everyone, let's keep going."
"Yeah."
"Leave things here to me."
"......Yeah."
We shifted our formation slightly. With Yuji and me keeping watch on the front and rear, we began walking deeper into the dungeon.