After our initial exchange, Yuji and I stood ten meters apart, facing each other once more.
To high-level explorers like us, ten meters was a distance we could close in the blink of an eye if we both committed at the same time.
"Ha!"
"Fu!"
Lunging forward, we both unleashed light strikes that served as feelers. I aimed a knife-hand strike at Yuji's neck, while he ducked down and swung a horizontal kick toward my midsection.
Though they looked like casual strikes, I was fairly certain each one packed enough force to shatter a concrete wall.
We both chose to block rather than dodge. When our strikes connected with our guards, a heavy, reverberating sound like a shockwave echoed through the area. I wanted Mika and Saori-chan to understand exactly what happened when attacks between explorers landed. They wouldn't often get the chance to see high-level explorers clashing head-on like this.
It didn't sound—or look—like a collision between two human bodies, but I supposed it was just a natural phenomenon that occurred once explorers reached a high enough level.
"Ehh..."
"Ugh..."
Hearing the impact, Mika and Saori-chan let out groans of disbelief, their faces pale with shock. They had likely expected the combat to be intense, but the sheer sound of bare-handed blows clashing was clearly beyond their imagination.
"Wait, Onii-chan! Are you okay? That sounded terrifying!"
"Both of you hit each other’s vitals!"
With startled expressions, they hurriedly checked on us, their voices thick with concern. It was a natural reaction; anyone would worry after hearing a sound like that.
"I’m fine, I’m fine. Yuji, you're good to keep going, right?"
"Yeah. No pain, no numbness."
Yuji and I answered with perfectly composed expressions. In truth, while we felt the impact, there was no actual pain. We were truly blessed by the benefits of the level up.
"Are you really okay?"
"Yeah, it doesn't hurt at all. Now then, Yuji, shall we continue the mock battle?"
"Let's."
Judging that Mika and Saori-chan were satisfied for now, we resumed. We squared off again at a distance of ten meters. The girls watched with bated breath, their faces full of anxiety as they waited to see what would happen next.
"Ha!"
"Fu!"
This time, the clash was a flurry of blows—a rapid exchange of punches and kicks focused on evasion. We unleashed a series of attacks while simultaneously dodging, gradually increasing our speed while remaining conscious of a pace the girls could still follow with their eyes. The whistling wind of our strikes rang out continuously, and dust billowed from the ground beneath our feet.
After trading blows for a while, we pulled apart as if by a prearranged signal.
"Whew..."
Mika and Saori-chan let out deep sighs of relief the moment we stopped. To them, it must have looked like a breathless, life-or-death struggle.
However, up to this point, we had merely been brawling with our physical stats. It wasn't yet a true explorer-style mock battle that incorporated skills.
"Well, now that we're warmed up, let's start mixing in skills."
"Right."
Ignoring the girls' renewed looks of surprise, we dove back into the fray. This time, we integrated Wind Magic and Water Magic into the exchange.
We threw punches and kicks while predicting where the other would dodge to fire off magic, using spells to block physical strikes while weaving through the magic traps placed in our paths. We intercepted spells with spells while simultaneously trading blows.
"Whoa..."
Mika and Saori-chan watched the close-quarters combat with eyes full of amazement, yet they observed intently, as if trying to burn our every movement into their memories.
I didn't know if our hypothetical enemies, the assailants, would be capable of fighting at this level, but it was important for them to see what an explorer could do. Just watching while considering the possibilities was a vital part of their education.
"I think that's enough for a demonstration, right?"
"Yeah. I think that felt like a proper mock battle between explorers."
After clashing fists one last time, Yuji and I leaped back to create distance and relaxed our stances. We had shown them a general range of how to fight while weaving in skills, which I figured was sufficient.
"...That was incredible."
Sensing that the battle was over, Mika and Saori-chan muttered their impressions while letting out sighs of relief, looking as exhausted as if they had been the ones fighting. It had lasted less than five minutes, but for them, it might have felt like an eternity.
"Good work, you two. That was a rather impressive exchange," Hiiragi-san said, approaching us now that her role as a guard was no longer needed. "So, how was it? Having a mock battle while using your skills to your heart's content outside the dungeon with people watching?"
"We were just testing the waters, but it's pretty difficult. Did we manage to look like explorers?"
"I think you did quite well. However, since it was primarily martial arts, it felt like an extension of a normal fight, even if the speed was high. I think the image of typical explorers using skills usually involves long-range magic duels. The mock battle just now might have looked like a fighting game with special effects to an outside observer."
Now that she mentioned it, she was right. Our style was a bit removed from the general image of a skill-reliant explorer. Maybe we should have traded more spells. If we were going to perform for others, we might need to research a way of fighting that better fit the public's expectations.
"A fighting game... You mean like with those flashy effects?"
"Yes, exactly. It might actually appeal more to ordinary people if we leaned into that."
"Like a finishing move unleashed after a mysterious glowing effect? I guess we could do that if we had the right skills," I mused.
Of course, unless we were putting on a hero show, we didn't really need that kind of presentation. For those seriously aiming to be explorers, the mock battle we just performed was more than enough, judging by the girls' reactions.
"I don't really want to go that far; I'm not looking to become a spectacle," I said.
"I'd like to pass on that too," Yuji added.
"Indeed. Setting aside whether I could even do it, I have no desire to try," Hiiragi-san agreed.
Imagining ourselves performing a mock hero show, the three of us were in total agreement. While we were talking, Mika and Saori-chan approached us with somewhat hesitant steps, having finally recovered from the shock.
"Um... good work?"
"Hmm? Oh, thanks. But we didn't move all that much, so we aren't really tired."
"...After that?"
Mika and Saori-chan looked back and forth between Yuji and me with expressions of utter disbelief.
"Yeah. A high-level explorer should be able to maintain that pace for at least thirty minutes. Depending on the level and number of monsters you're fighting, you have to be able to keep it up," I explained.
"It's true," Yuji chimed in. "If your movements slow down just because you're tired when multiple monsters appear, you'll be lucky to get away with just a bad injury instead of a fatal one. We once stepped into a monster trap room and had to fight dozens of them all at once. Back then, there was no info on where the deadly traps were. Even if you were an unseasoned explorer, you just had to handle the main event without any prep."
"We did have those moments, didn't we?" Hiiragi-san recalled. "Back then, we lacked the awareness to fight with party coordination, so we just haphazardly cut down whatever was in front of us. I remember getting drenched in blood... I feel sick just thinking about it now."
Recalling those days, we emphasized the necessity of endurance to the girls. Nowadays, information about traps on explored floors is relatively well-known, but when we started, such data was either non-existent or completely unreliable. I'd heard stories of many explorers who got hurt because they put too much faith in unverified rumors.
"So that really happened..."
"Now that you mention it, I remember the notices at the dungeon reception about dangerous traps... and the Danger Information Corner on the bulletin board," Saori-chan said.
"Those didn't exist in the beginning. The Dungeon Association couldn't put out information that hadn't been confirmed, after all."
Back then, our primary sources were rumors or questionable experiences posted online. It was common to find that the reality was nothing like the reports. Being able to get verified information in advance nowadays is a huge luxury.
"That's why moving like we just did—which was holding back, mind you—doesn't really tire us out. Of course, I'm not asking you two to fight like that for long periods yet. You just need to find a pace and a style that lets you endure combat within your own capabilities. If you go all out, you'll burn out too fast, but if you hold back too much, you'll just end up in a war of attrition."
"Finding that balance is the hard part, though," Yuji said. "You just have to learn it through mock battles and actual combat."
"It'll be okay, you two. If you keep working as explorers, you'll pick it up naturally," Hiiragi-san added reassuringly.
Mika and Saori-chan still looked uneasy, but that was why we were here.
"Well then, now that the demonstration is over, shall we start your training? We can't stay too late, considering the trip back."
At my declaration, they both straightened their backs, their faces twitching slightly with tension. Now, the real training was beginning.
We set up a pop-up tent to serve as a changing room and took turns putting on our training wear. The tracksuits we bought yesterday were getting put to use immediately. Once we were all changed and warmed up, the session began.
"First, let's start with some light sparring. I want to see how much you can move right now. We'll start bare-handed, just like the demo."
"I'll take Mika, and Saori-chan will work with Hiiragi-san," I directed.
"Nice to meet you, Saori-chan," Hiiragi-san said with a polite nod.
We split into two pairs for simultaneous sparring, with Yuji acting as the referee.
"All right, Mika, come at me however you like. I won't strike back unless you leave a massive opening."
"Got it! I'm going in with everything I've got, so be ready, Onii-chan!"
"Saori-chan, you don't need to hold back either, okay?"
"Yes! Please guide me!"
Both girls were fired up. Since their opponents were Hiiragi-san and me, they clearly felt there was no need for restraint. They were determined to land a hit.
Of course, given the massive gap in skill, the odds of them landing a clean blow were slim to none unless they did something truly exceptional.
"Good energy. All right, then... Begin!"
Yuji raised his hand and chopped it down to signal the start.
"Yaah!"
"Ei!"
They both lunged forward, swinging their arms with all their might to strike us. But charging straight in without a single feint against a clearly superior opponent was a mistake.
The response from Hiiragi-san and me was instantaneous.
"Ow!?"
"Ouch!?"
We both vanished from their line of sight, evading their fists by a hair's breadth. Before they could even realize they had missed, we delivered light, open-palmed slaps to their defenseless backs.
The sound was sharp and clean. It was the first lesson of many.