While we were resting and considering our next moves—specifically which items we should submit—I sensed an enemy approaching. We immediately stood up from our chairs.
Based on the speed of its approach, it was likely a weasel.
"Goodness, we can't even get a peaceful break."
"Well, we are inside a dungeon. It can't be helped."
"True. More importantly, get ready to intercept it. We don't have time to pack everything up, so let's meet it outside the defensive wall."
"Right."
Following Hiiragi-san's lead, we stepped outside our makeshift barricade to meet the monster. While the wooden wall could stop a squirrel's sniping, weasels could leap right over and invade the interior. I wasn't worried about losing, but I didn't want our table and chairs getting smashed during high-speed combat in a cramped space.
"From the sound... is it alone?"
"...It seems so. I don't sense any others lying in wait."
"Approaching from the front all by itself... if they have the numbers, they really should be setting up ambushes."
"I agree..."
While critiquing the monster's tactics, we kept a sharp eye on the direction of the sound while remaining alert to our surroundings. Even if nothing was above us, there was always the chance of something burrowing below.
After about ten seconds, a weasel emerged from the depths of the forest.
"Yep, it's a weasel."
"And it really is alone."
"At the very least, it should have formed a pack with its own kind to leverage its numbers..."
Watching the lone weasel with slightly disappointed looks, we moved to finish it off before it could strike. We simply positioned ourselves to block its escape routes and launched our assault.
First, Hiiragi-san fired off her Wind Magic as a feint, forcing the weasel to dodge. Yuji and I, waiting on either side of her, read its evasion path and struck while it was momentarily vulnerable mid-leap.
"Alright, it's over."
The weasel's head was taken clean off by a single stroke of my blade. It was over before anything resembling a real battle could even begin. I checked for any other hidden threats, but there truly weren't any.
After a short pause, the weasel began to undergo particleization, leaving a single scroll rolling on the ground. A scroll, huh? I wondered what it was.
"Daiki, what's the drop?"
"Wait a second. 'Appraisal Analysis'... alright. It's 'Agility Enhancement'."
"'Agility Enhancement'... So it increases speed?"
"Yeah. It feels more like it improves explosive power and reflexes than raw running speed."
Perhaps because it had dropped from a weasel, it was a speed-related skill. Since it was a passive skill scroll, its value would depend on the user. It would likely be a prized find for someone who used short-range weapons like knives.
As for us... well, maybe we should just sell it. I felt like we needed to get fully accustomed to our natural speed before trying to boost it with skills.
"Looks like something we can safely turn into cash."
"I think so, too. I'm fine with selling it. Hiiragi-san?"
"I don't mind. It's not a skill we particularly need right now."
"Then it's going to the exchange."
Since we had a lot of drop items currently hidden away in my Spatial Storage that we couldn't show anyone, items like this that we could sell openly were a big help. When it came to high-value items that didn't take up much space, scrolls and magic items were the best. With the influx of corporate explorers, the market was flooded with common items from the shallow floors, causing prices to crash; gathering those in bulk didn't yield much profit anymore.
However, while the supply of scrolls and magic items was also increasing, their prices hadn't collapsed nearly as much. Since the volume an explorer could carry back was limited, scrolls and magic items remained the most lucrative trade goods.
"Alright. Let's pack up and get moving. If we linger, another monster might show up."
"We've had enough of a rest, anyway."
"You're right. Let's take our next break somewhere that's easier to secure."
We dismantled our wooden wall and chairs and began our trek through the dungeon toward the surface once again.
At this rate, our next break would likely be somewhere in the 20th floor range.
We passed through the 30th floor range by taking the shortest route and avoiding combat as much as possible, reaching the 20th floor range about an hour later. We had moved smoothly so far without encountering other explorers, but from here on, we would likely run into corporate explorer teams, which would slow us down.
As I was thinking that, we passed through an empty plaza and opened the door to find a corporate explorer team setting up a base camp on the 29th floor—something that hadn't been there when we first arrived. We tried to just pass them by.
"Hello. Good work today."
"Ah, good work..."
I gave a casual greeting and tried to walk past the camp as if it were the most natural thing in the world, but...
"Wait—what? Just a second! H-Hey, wait!"
Tch, I wish he'd just let us pass. I clicked my tongue inwardly while keeping my expression neutral as I turned toward the male sentry, who was visibly flustered.
Because he'd called out, the other workers noticed us too. At this point, ignoring him would only cause more trouble.
"Yes? Is something the matter?"
"N-No, you guys... did you just come from back there?"
The man's voice shook with agitation as he pointed toward the door leading to the boss area where the ogre resided.
"Yes, that's right. Is there a problem?"
"Eh? Ah, well..."
"If you don't have any specific business, we'll be on our way."
"Ah, yes... take care."
When I replied in a flat, disinterested tone, the man couldn't find his next words, and his eyes darted around in confusion. To be fair, prying into another party's affairs was a breach of explorer etiquette. Seeing a small party of high school explorers like us emerge from that particular door must have shocked him into speaking without thinking.
Once he regained his composure and realized he was being rude, he likely felt too awkward to say anything else.
"Phew... did we manage to brush it off?"
"Did we? Well, it's already known in some circles that we've gone past the 30th floor. If those people get curious and do a little digging, they'll find out who we are soon enough."
"Probably. But I don't think they'll interfere with us. Even if they do, it'll likely just be a scout, so it shouldn't be a big deal."
That was likely true. There was no benefit for them to pick a fight with explorers capable of diving this deep.
Then again, there were always those who thought they could gain something by picking a fight.
"Regardless, seeing a base camp there means the corporations have started operating in earnest now that the Obon break is over."
"Most likely. The end of the holiday was probably the designated milestone. The other companies are probably moving their base camps deeper too."
"If that's the case, it might take us longer to get back to the surface. If the corporations are moving, the travel routes will be as congested as ever."
Hiiragi-san was right. I'd factored in some extra time for our return, but it might take even longer than I'd anticipated.
"Since people are watching, we can't move too recklessly..."
"A bit of a brisk pace shouldn't be a problem, but moving at our full speed would definitely look suspicious."
"And we won't even be able to walk fast once we hit the main flow of traffic."
We could probably move fairly smoothly until we reached the 20th floor range, but once we hit the 10th floor range, the number of people would skyrocket. Even on the shortest routes, we'd have to move with the crowd, which always ate up time.
It really was a stroke of luck that there were so few people when we entered. Otherwise, we never would have been able to change our plans and aim for the 50th floor.
"Well, there's only one exit, so we have to go through it regardless of how many people are there."
"True. No point standing around worrying. Shall we?"
"Yes, let's go."
With that, we began moving through the dungeon at a brisk pace—which, for us, was essentially on par with an ordinary person's full sprint.
From around the 23rd floor, the number of non-corporate explorer parties began to increase, and moving even a single floor started taking more time.
I'd allowed plenty of extra time, so we were still fine, but depending on the congestion, we might end up reaching the surface right at the limit of our schedule.
"It's really starting to get crowded."
"Yeah. And I'm starting to see student explorer parties here and there too. They're probably trying to reach new floors before summer break ends."
"Summer break is the only time students can really focus on exploring. During the school year, they can only dive for short periods, and the crowds make it hard to reach the deeper floors or level up."
"I suppose so... I just hope the crowds start to disperse soon."
It was only natural for student explorers to challenge deeper floors as they leveled up. Hopefully, that would mean fewer people were stuck grinding in the 10th floor range, which might eventually ease the congestion on the main routes... but it would take a while before we saw that benefit.
It certainly wasn't going to help us today.
"Assuming it'll be packed ahead, should we take one last break around the 20th floor and then push for the exit in one go?"
"Yes, that's probably for the best. Once you join the flow of movement, stepping out in the middle is just a waste of time."
"True. Leaving the line is easy, but getting back into it can be a hassle."
The lines of traffic in the dungeon usually had set gaps between parties so that everyone had room to fight if a monster attacked. Because of that, while cutting into the line wasn't physically difficult, it required a lot of social effort—making sure you weren't cutting off too many people at once or waiting for a signal to merge.
It was much less stressful to just get in the flow and stay there until you hit the surface.
"Alright, first stop: the 20th floor."
"Got it."
"Okay."
We hurried toward the 20th floor, skillfully navigating around the explorers coming the other way. People were a bit startled as we brushed past them, but we didn't stop.
About thirty minutes later, we reached the 20th floor plaza.
"There are even more people here than I expected..."
"Yeah. But the fact that it's so crowded here might mean the other floors are relatively clear... I hope."
"I hope so too. Though it's just as likely the total number of explorers has simply increased."
Hiiragi-san's suggestion was the worst-case scenario. If that were true, moving between floors would become even more of a nightmare. It might even become difficult to reach the 30th floor on a standard day trip.
I'll just try to believe things will settle down once summer break is over.
"Well, let's take a break for now. Is there any open space...?"
"...Over by the entrance side. The stairs side looks completely packed."
"I suppose that's to be expected. Everyone wants to be as close to safety as possible while they rest."
"Haha, true. Then... let's head over there."
We found a spot with a decent amount of space near the entrance and sat down for our final rest.
Phew... now, I wonder how long it'll take to actually reach the surface?
Two hours after our break on the 20th floor, we finally made it back to the 1st floor. I hadn't expected the climb to go as quickly as the descent, but somehow we'd managed to make it in just two hours. Perhaps the dispersal of the student explorers was already having an effect, or maybe we just got lucky with the timing.
Either way, we were back earlier than planned, so I wasn't going to complain.
"Man, that felt like a long walk..."
"True. But we still made much better time than we expected."
"Yes, we should have been at least another hour according to the original estimate."
"Thinking of it that way, it was a very smooth trip."
While engaging in some lighthearted complaining, I stretched to loosen my stiff muscles. Yuji and Hiiragi-san were right to remind me that I was being greedy since we were ahead of schedule, but after spending more than a full day in the dungeon, I felt entitled to at least one grumble.
We were almost to the surface and I felt like relaxing, but I didn't want to get injured by being careless at the very end, so I kept my guard up.
"Ah, the exit is just ahead."
As we turned a corner in the passage, the light from outside flooded our vision. It seemed our long, eventful exploration was finally coming to an end.
It really had been a long journey. All that was left was the exchange process... I just hoped we could get through that without any further drama.