After dropping Tatebayashi-san off at her house, we started walking toward Saori-chan’s place.
There were a few things I wanted to discuss with Mika and Saori-chan along the way.
"First off, good work today, you two. Thanks to your support, both Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san were able to complete that difficult milestone—their first monster kills—in very good spirits. If they hadn’t had such reliable mentors accompanying them, I think things would have been much more difficult."
"You and the others worked hard too, Onii-chan. You were on high alert the whole time we were in the dungeon, staying ready to back Asami-chan and the others up at a moment's notice."
"She’s right. Asami-chan and her friend didn’t notice, but you guys were in a full combat stance the entire time they were fighting those monsters. We were physically closer to them, but you were ready to intervene without them ever knowing if it looked like they were about to get hit, weren’t you, Onii-san?"
I scratched my head and gave a wry smile at Mika and Saori-chan’s observation. It seemed they had seen right through us.
It was true that the three of us had maintained a posture that allowed us to provide support at any second. Specifically, we’d constantly shifted our positions to ensure our lines of fire overlapped and covered all blind spots. I had been ready to use finger flicks to snipe with small steel ball bearings I’d bought at a home improvement store. At our explorer specs, the impact wouldn't have been fatal to a monster, but it would have been more than enough to distract it.
"Well, yeah. If they’d been injured during their very first exploration, they might have developed some deep-seated trauma. The mental load of a first kill is heavy enough as it is; it’s better to keep any unnecessary burdens to a minimum, right?"
"I guess so. That first kill really does take a lot out of you."
"Indeed," Saori-chan agreed. "If they had been injured on top of that, it wouldn’t be surprising if they developed a strong aversion to the dungeon. It’s one thing to get hurt after you’ve grown accustomed to the atmosphere and combat, but getting injured during your very first exploration would likely crush your motivation entirely."
As Saori-chan said, that was a real possibility. Once they reached a certain level of experience, it would actually be better for them to sustain minor injuries in combat a few times. It served as practice for managing pain and deciding whether to push through or retreat while hurting. If someone continues their conquest without ever knowing pain, they might fail to judge the severity of an injury and recklessly continue a fight... which could lead to a grim conclusion.
However, they didn’t need to experience that during their very first outing.
"Yeah, I wanted to avoid that. That’s why I was trying to support them in a way that wouldn’t be obvious. Unless you already knew about using steel balls with finger flicks, there’s no way those two would have noticed it while they were so tense. Well, thanks to the results of their training, I didn't actually need to use any of those tricks today."
"That’s true. I was actually pretty surprised," Mika said. "They were both so nervous before facing the monsters, but once they actually stood their ground, they suddenly calmed down and moved exactly as we’d practiced."
"Mhm, I was surprised by that too," Saori-chan added. "I thought, 'Oh, I'll definitely need to help them,' but then they suddenly composed themselves and started attacking with precision."
Mika and Saori-chan looked back on the combat scenes, their expressions a mix of surprise, bewilderment, and admiration. I suppose it is striking to see beginners stay that calm and move with such precision during their very first battle on their first dungeon attempt.
"I made sure their prior practice was thorough. I intended to train them to the point where they’d unconsciously enter a combat stance the moment they faced an opponent. Their actual strength hasn't caught up yet, so they’d still get easily overwhelmed by multiple enemies or higher-ranked ones, but they should be able to win against single targets or weaker opponents."
"Well, if we're doing that kind of practice against you guys, we have to be able to switch our mindsets like that," Mika noted. "Otherwise, it's over in a second, even when you're holding back."
"Exactly. If you let your focus drift for even a moment, you lose right then and there," Saori-chan said. "Once you get used to that training, you naturally learn to switch your consciousness to a combat footing the moment you recognize a confrontation. Besides, compared to the pressure you guys put on us during training, the intimidation from monsters on the 1st floor is practically non-existent."
Since we hadn't had much time before today's dive, I had put them through a fairly rigorous, intensive crash course. The goal was to give them the bare minimum of technical skill while ensuring they were mentally tough enough to endure the reality of battle.
Thanks to that, both of them had fought and defeated the monsters without hesitation. I’d say our training was a success.
"True. But even if we can train them to fight, whether they can overcome the mental hurdles is ultimately up to them. They seem fine for now, but please keep a close eye on them for a while."
"Got it, leave it to us," Mika said.
"Understood," Saori-chan replied.
The first hurdle a newcomer faces is something they have to clear themselves. Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san had a much better support system than most, so I figured they would be fine.
I decided to wrap up the talk about today’s exploration and move on to tomorrow’s plans.
"So, is tomorrow still good for the five of us to go on an exploration as planned?"
"Yeah, I'm good. No injuries or spent supplies today."
"I'm fine too," Saori-chan said. "If anything, all we did today was go into the dungeon and come right back, so I’m itching to do some proper exploring. It feels a bit like... unfinished business."
That was fair. Putting aside Mika, who had performed a demonstration, Saori-chan had basically just been walking. It was perfectly natural for her to feel unfulfilled. She had been helping with the training for a while now, so she probably had some pent-up energy to burn.
Opportunities for an explorer to move their body to their heart's content disappear as their level increases. The only places an explorer can really cut loose with their skills are inside a dungeon or at a public training facility provided by the Association.
"I see. Sorry for making you hold back. Tomorrow is an exploration where you two are the main focus, so you can go all out."
"Yay!"
"Yes!"
"Of course, you have to prioritize safety. No reckless exploring, okay?"
"We know!"
"Yes, sir."
By now, both Mika and Saori-chan had leveled up steadily and grown enough to be considered mid-level explorers. That was exactly why I had to remind them that overconfidence could lead to painful—or even fatal—failures. There are so many people who fail because they think they can go "just a bit further."
The more smoothly things are going, the more careful you have to be, otherwise the rug will be pulled out from under you.
"For now, the plan is to dive as deep as we can while still making it back the same day, but I’ll let you two decide exactly how far that is. Keep what I just said in mind while you discuss the details."
"Don't worry, we've already talked about it. Right, Saori-chan?"
"Yes. Since you and the others are coming with us tomorrow, Mika-chan and I decided to set the 20th floor as our goal. Having you guys with us is the safest time to measure whether the two of us can handle reaching the 20th floor on our own."
When I poked around to see how deep they intended to go, they mentioned the 20th floor. That’s where minotaurs appear, but with Mika and Saori-chan’s current skills, it shouldn’t be impossible for them to win without taking a scratch.
That is, assuming the two of them could surround a single minotaur. If they had to face multiple at once, it might be tough to get through unscathed.
"I’ll be going with you, but I’m not going to step in unless there’s a dangerous monster or a group that’s too much for you to handle, okay? If you’re counting on us as part of your combat strength, I won’t approve such a reckless plan."
"Yeah, we’re fully aware of that," Mika said. "We plan to proceed without needing your help, but we’d actually like you to help us out as porters."
"Porters?" I tilted my head, curious.
"Yeah. See, explorers make a profit by bringing back drop items and cashing them in, right? How much money we make is directly tied to how much we can carry, so we want to take as much as possible, but..."
"Carrying capacity is limited. And you can't fill your bags to the absolute limit if you want to be able to fight on the way back," I finished for her.
"Right. That’s why I want to test how much we can safely carry back from the 20th floor while you guys are there. Normally we’d have to leave the extra stuff behind, but if you’re with us, we can bring back the surplus."
"Also," Saori-chan added, "if we can clearly define the limit of what we can bring back, we won't have to stay in the dungeon longer than necessary. We want to find those limits tomorrow."
I see; that was indeed a vital issue. You can’t increase your earnings without bringing back lots of drop items, but bringing back too many increases the danger on the return trip. Gauging the safe range for how much you can carry is difficult.
Actually trying it out is the fastest way to learn, but doing that in a dungeon where monsters could attack at any time is a high-risk move. If there was an opportunity to test it with a safety net, it was only natural to want to take it.
"I see, so that’s why you want porters. In that case, I can help."
"Thanks, Onii-chan! Also, we want to see how many drop items we can get if we push ourselves until our maximum stay time is almost up..."
"That’s fine too. If you want to get good drops, you have to put in the numbers."
Whether you get good items or not depends on an explorer's luck with the "gacha." Since there's a limit to what you can carry, the only option is to improve the quality of what you take back by being selective. To do that, they’d need to spend their full time collecting as many items as possible.
"Thanks, Onii-chan. We’re going to collect as much as we can, so let's use everything we can’t carry back ourselves for the after-party budget."
"Oh, how generous. Well, to raise the rank of the after-party venue, I guess I'll have to work you like horses."
"Gah, I walked right into that one!"
"If we collect enough from around the 20th floor," I teased, "we could have the after-party at one of those stiff, expensive restaurants."
If they collected enough from the 20th floor to be overloaded, they’d earn enough to afford a meal for five easily. Even though buyout prices have dropped a bit, if they focused on minotaur meat, the total would easily exceed several hundred thousand yen.
Personally, I don't actually feel like going to a formal place like that for an after-party. If we’re going to get together and have a rowdy time, the place we went today or a slightly upscale family restaurant is more than enough.
"The food might be good, but an after-party at a place like that is a bit much for me..." Mika murmured.
"I’d also prefer a place where we can eat more casually," Saori-chan agreed.
"Haha, it was a joke. But let’s work hard enough that we could have an after-party at a place like that."
"O-Okay."
"Y-Yes."
Mika and Saori-chan gave me somewhat complicated looks. It seemed they both disliked stiff, formal settings.
As we walked and talked about tomorrow’s schedule, we arrived at Saori-chan’s house before I knew it. Time really does fly when you’re chatting.
"Well then, Saori-chan, good work today. See you tomorrow."
"See ya, Saori-chan!"
"Yes, I’ll be in your care again tomorrow. See you tomorrow, Mika-chan."
Mika and I waved as we said our goodbyes, watching Saori-chan give a small bow before disappearing through her front door.
"Right, let’s head home then."
"Yeah! We’re exploring the dungeon again tomorrow, so let’s get home and rest up."
"Good plan. Though I didn’t really do anything tiring today."
"I did! Even if it was only one fight..."
Well, I did have Mika fight as a demonstration for the rookies, but I hadn’t been training her so poorly that she’d be exhausted after just that. If she’s tired from that when she’s aiming for the 20th floor tomorrow, she’ll definitely need some re-training.
Sharing that kind of banter, Mika and I made our way home.