My proposal sparked a bit of a disagreement, but with the reality that we’d be bled dry without some kind of income, we eventually decided to head down to the 3rd floor and beyond.
Heck, nothing's happened so far. Going a little deeper shouldn't be an issue.
"Alright, shall we go?"
"Yeah! (Okay.)"
With that, we left the 3rd floor staircase plaza and joined the flow of veteran-looking explorers heading for the 4th floor. On the 1st and 2nd floors, the crowd had been full of beginners just like us—people making their debut today. By the time we reached the 3rd floor, however, the number of total novices had dropped significantly. Most rookie parties had probably gotten fed up with the crowds and gone home. Honestly, I envied people with that kind of leeway; if we didn't at least earn enough to cover our travel expenses, we were going to be stuck...
After moving with the flow for a while, we decided to check out the 3rd floor just in case. If we could encounter a monster here, we wouldn't have to go down to the 4th floor. But...
"None here."
"Yeah, none....Actually, things aren't any different here."
The population density felt like it had decreased slightly, but the situation on the 3rd floor was largely the same; there wasn't a hide or hair of a monster to be seen.
Furthermore, while the number of explorers wearing pristine, scratch-less equipment like ours had dwindled, there were senior beginner parties who carried the air of having survived several life-and-death situations, and they were keeping a sharp eye out. They didn't say a word, but their glares screamed that this was their territory and that outsiders should get lost.
"……"
The piercing, cautionary stares made it a difficult place to linger. While empathizing with the irritation that came from being unable to find monsters due to the overcrowding, we left that area and returned to the flow of explorers heading for the 4th floor. We tried exploring other branching paths away from the main flow, but it was the same story everywhere. If anything, because the total novices were gone, the territorial sense was even stronger.
Since the number of appearing monsters was limited, I suppose "sharing nicely" wasn't really an option.
"In the end, we couldn't find a single monster on this floor either..."
"I mean, there's no way we could search for monsters under those kinds of glares. What was with that, anyway? That 'don't let outsiders butt in' look!"
"Now, now, those people were probably just that desperate to find monsters themselves. Though I do wonder about the attitude."
They hadn't laid a hand on us, but their eyes spoke volumes. The areas with a high probability of monster spawns, in particular, were thick with a bloodthirsty tension.
"That doesn't mean it's okay to intimidate people who are clearly beginners. Besides, dungeons are public spaces, right? You shouldn't be allowed to claim a corner of a dungeon as your own territory just because of some selfish whim!"
"You're probably right, but with the dungeon in this state... I can't say I don't understand the feeling of wanting to secure a spot for your own party where monsters are likely to appear."
Fujino's argument wasn't wrong, but being "right" didn't always carry the day. Especially inside the dungeon, where there was an unspoken atmosphere similar to the law of the jungle. We didn't feel that kind of contemptuous or belittling gaze from most of the parties heading for the lower floors, but we’d received it plenty from the senior rookie parties on the first three floors.
So, while soothing Fujino’s anger toward the senior parties, we finally arrived at the 4th floor staircase plaza.
We took a break at the 4th floor staircase plaza to perform a final check before we started exploring.
"Alright, we're going to start exploring the 4th floor now, so everyone be extra careful."
"Yeah. Based on what I looked up online, it sounds like traps are set from this floor onward."
"If we walk around as carelessly as we have been, we'll definitely get caught."
"I really think it's too early for us to dive this deep without having fought a single monster..."
"It’ll be fine. I mean, even if there are traps, they're simpler than the ones we dealt with during the qualification exam, right? As long as we look where we're going, we'll be okay!"
Fujino, who had been the most reluctant to descend to the 4th floor, spoke in a small, anxious voice, wondering if we should reconsider. However, since we had already come this far, she eventually fell silent, swept along by the enthusiasm of the rest of us.
After taking a sufficient rest, we finally stepped out onto the 4th floor. Well, initially, we just stayed with the flow of traffic.
"...It doesn't really feel that different."
"True."
I’d been psyching myself up, thinking that this was where the main event really began, but as long as we were moving with the flow of other explorers, it wasn't much different from the previous floors. Occasionally, the party walking ahead of us would shift from the center of the passage to the sides; I didn't know the specifics, but there was likely some kind of trap set in those spots. Looking closely afterward, there were indeed places where the texture or color of the ground was slightly different. I was impressed that they could distinguish it so instantly in this dim, murky environment.
Still, we could easily notice it now because we were following the movements of other parties, but it would be bad if we weren't more careful when we were acting on our own. And so...
"Alright, let's break away from the flow at that junction and head down a different path."
"Yeah, here we go."
"The difference between the floor and the traps is surprisingly hard to see, so let's move slowly."
"...Please, really, be careful."
"It's fine, it's fine! We know from the start that there are traps, so it's not like we're just going to go and trip one."
Tadao puffed out his chest with groundless confidence in response to the still-anxious Fujino.
We diverted from the flow of traffic and entered a path that no one else was taking. After walking for a while, the reality of the 4th floor began to reveal itself.
"The distance between meeting people is getting wider."
"Yeah, there are clearly fewer people than up there."
"I mean, there's still a decent number. But with this..."
"Compared to the upper floors, the chances of encountering a monster have gone way up. Wait, Tadao, look down!?"
"Huh? Whoa!?"
While walking and talking about how low the population density was, Tadao had neglected to watch his feet and had nearly stepped on a discolored section of the floor—a trap switch.
Hey, hey... don't be the first one to almost trigger a trap after being the one saying it would be fine.
"What are you doing, Tadao?! You know there are traps here unlike the floors above, so don't get careless with your footing."
"My bad, my bad. I got caught up in the conversation."
Despite having almost triggered a trap through his lack of attention, Tadao’s apology was lighthearted, and I couldn't help but get irritated. My voice naturally became sharper.
"You say 'my bad,' but... we don't know what kind of traps are set. There might even be the kind of trap that wipes out a whole party in one shot!"
"Yeah, and I'm saying I'm sorry! I'll be more careful from now on!"
"! Hey, Tadao, what's with that tone...!"
I was about to lose my temper at Tadao’s attitude, but Tatsuji and Eishun, sensing the bad air, stepped in between us to stop it.
"Whoa, stop! That's enough, Haruki. Save the rest for after we get out of here."
"That goes for you too, Tadao. If you're sorry, then just make sure you don't almost trip any more traps."
……
"You two?"
...Fine.
Neither Tadao nor I tried to hide our displeasure as we muttered short replies and looked away from each other. Normally it wouldn't have been a big deal, but perhaps because the frustration of the unsuccessful exploration had been building up, this small incident caused the resentment to boil over. Thanks to them mediating, things didn't escalate, but Tadao and I were left feeling awkward.
While this small but significant event hung over us, we continued down the passage, avoiding several traps, until we suddenly found ourselves in a space where no other explorer parties were nearby.
"...It’s strangely quiet."
"That’s because there aren't any other parties around. Isn't this the first time since we got here?"
Up until now, there had always been other parties within sight, so suddenly having no one around caused my anxiety to spike. The soundless, eerily quiet space; the dim lighting reminiscent of a night road; the air that felt stagnant and windless... looking around again, I realized that the space was designed to incite an indescribable unease.
...That’s right. We're in a dungeon.
"……"
Realizing that there was no one else here but our own party, it finally sank in that we were in a dungeon where monsters roamed and dangerous traps were laid out everywhere. Emotions that we’d been able to ignore while our spirits were high started to burst forth.
Specifically, feelings of anxiety and fear.
"H-hey? This is a bit late to ask, but we're gonna be okay, right?"
"W-why are you asking that now? We should be fine, I think..."
"Y-yeah! We've got all our equipment ready, and the fact that we made it down this far safely is proof of that, isn't it...?"
"Hey, it's late to say this, but let's go back to the upper floors before something happens. This place is still too early for us."
"……"
Once the floodgates of anxiety were opened, new worries began to surface one after another. Everyone had anxious expressions, speaking in trembling tones, and they began to fidget restlessly as if they’d lost their composure.
Only after they were the only ones present did they truly realize, in a real sense, that they had gone too deep for their first dungeon exploration.
"……"
"Hey, hey guys? Just a suggestion, but..."
With an anxious expression and a slightly high-pitched voice, I tried to propose a retreat.
But it was already too late... way too late.
"!? W-what!?"
Just as I opened my mouth to suggest we withdraw, the end of the dim passage glowed faintly, and I felt the presence of something appearing. In daily life, saying you "felt a presence" would be dismissed as nonsense, but in this place, I certainly felt something that could only be described as a presence.
The emergence of some entity that was clearly directing its hostility toward us.
"……"
Perhaps everyone else had sensed it too; they stared down the passage in silence, unconsciously swallowing hard. Each of them tightened their grip on their weapons, and though they were recoiling, they turned their bodies toward whatever was in the passage.
They weren't quite bracing their weapons or forming a formation; from a veteran explorer's perspective, it couldn't possibly be called a combat stance, but they were preparing the best reception they could manage.
"H-hey? Is it... is it coming out?"
"Y-yeah. This m-might be it..."
"I-it might be. I don't know what it is, but I feel something that makes my spine tingle coming from over there."
"...H-hey? W-what are we going to do now?"
"What do you mean 'what'... we either fight or run."
Because our energy had already bottomed out once, we were panicked and overwhelmed by the monster encounter we’d finally found. If this had been thirty minutes ago, we probably would have fought with spirited momentum. But encountering it the moment we had decided to prioritize retreat... the timing was terrible.
We glanced at each other and reached a conclusion.
"Let's retreat. We really were getting ahead of ourselves."
"Y-yeah. We should gain experience on the upper floors first, even if it takes time."
"Y-yeah, you're right. This floor was still premature for us."
"T-then let's pull back quickly. If we just go back a bit, there should be other explorer parties nearby."
"It's a shame to let another party take the monster we finally found, though."
Keeping our bodies facing the passage where something was, we began to retreat, shuffling backward before whatever it was could make a move. However, this retreat was a failure. What went wrong? Amateurs who had encountered a monster and developed tunnel vision from panicking were moving backward through a passage where traps were set.
The result... well, you can probably guess, can't you?
Whoa!?
"!? Tatsuji! Eishun!"
Because they were moving backward, both Tatsuji and Eishun had fallen into a pit trap that triggered when they unknowingly stepped on a switch in the ground.
"!?"
"!? H-hey, Tatsuji!? Dammit... did you twist your leg?"
"Are you okay, Tatsuji, Eishun!? If you're okay, get out of that hole quick!"
"Sorry, looks like Tatsuji sprained his ankle. It'll be hard to get out right away."
Fortunately, the pitfall was shallow—about one meter deep—and there were no follow-up traps inside, but Tatsuji was clutching his ankle and groaning in pain.
And the situation only continued to worsen...
"Haruki, three monsters showed up...!"
"Shit! Why now of all times!?"
"Hey, hey, what are we gonna do!? Can we even handle this many monsters all at once!? Besides, with Tatsuji injured, we can't even retreat..."
The monsters that appeared were hound dogs. We’d learned in the workshop that they were monsters that approached explorers with quick movements and attacked with fangs and claws. Of all things, fast monsters had to appear—and three of them!? I wanted to help Tatsuji and Eishun out of the pit, but I couldn't ignore the monsters closing in. With one unexpected event after another, we were cornered.
In a situation that could be called a total impasse, I desperately worked my brain to come up with a solution. One idea crossed my mind, and I executed it immediately.
"What should I... right! Someone, please help us!"
"H-Haruki!? What's gotten into you all of a sudden!?"
Fujino looked at me with a face full of shock and confusion when I suddenly shouted for help while the monsters were right in front of us.
"If we can't handle it ourselves, then we have no choice but to ask for help! If they hear us, a nearby explorer party should come running!"
"! Y-you're right. There were so many people around, so if they hear us, a party nearby might help!"
"Exactly! Someone, please help us!"
Clinging to a sliver of hope, I shouted for help once more.
However, help doesn't arrive instantly just because you ask for it. The hound dogs that had been closing in were momentarily confused by the first shout and stopped moving, but they seemed to lose their patience with the second one. They growled and barked, intimidating us. And then...
"Shit! Tadao, Fujino! We have to buy time until help arrives!"
"Ugh! Fine, if it's come to this, let's do it!"
"Ah, geez! Forget it, I'm going for broke! Come on, I'll take you down!"
Suppressing our hands and feet, which were shaking from the monsters' bloodlust, with whatever scrap of pride we had left, the three of us stood against the attacking monsters.
And then, just as they were about to pounce, something long and thin flashed through the air, and the hound dogs let out cries of agony.
"Yipe!?"
"...Eh?"
"Um, I assume you're the ones who were calling for help just now?"
"Are you alright?"
What appeared before us—just as we’d steeled ourselves for a desperate stand—was a pair of girls with spears, wearing expressions that were a mix of confusion and exasperation.