The two instructors who had invited me to dinner were Anthem, the serious-looking young man who had sized me up on the first day, and Barnard, a man who seemed rather frivolous.
They took me to a place they recommended—a high-end restaurant that looked quite expensive.
Barnard entered through the door with a practiced air, and Anthem and I followed. As soon as we stepped inside, a waitress rushed over.
"Ah! Barnard, Anthem! Welcome back!"
They were clearly regulars here, just as their recommendation suggested.
"Hey there, Nia! I brought a special guest today. Ta-da! This is Orun, one of the people who reached the ninety-fourth floor of the Great Labyrinth!"
"The ninety-fourth floor...? Then, are you a Hero?! Wow! It’s an honor to meet you!"
She suddenly grabbed my hand and shook it vigorously. She was certainly friendly. Moreover, it seemed she hadn't seen the newspaper article that had been published earlier today.
"I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I’m not a Hero."
"Eh? But, a ninety-fourth floor reacher..."
The woman, Nia, looked bewildered by my correction.
"I have been to the ninety-fourth floor, but I’ve already left the party."
"I see, so that’s how it is. But you still made it to the ninety-fourth floor, right? Then it doesn’t matter! No one has reached that high in the twenty years since the last person hit the ninety-third floor. To reach the ninety-fourth... it's a feat never before achieved! You are truly a person worthy of being called a 'Brave Explorer'!"
"...You're quite well-informed."
I couldn't hide my bewilderment at her sudden, passionate speech.
"Ahaha... I used to be an explorer myself. Ah! I haven't even shown you to your seats yet! I’m sorry, I got a bit carried away."
She stuck her tongue out slightly, making a calculatedly cute face. "Is the usual private room alright?"
"That's fine," Barnard answered.
We were led to a private room spacious enough for about six people to relax in comfort.
"Right! We’re drinking the night away today! Tell me all about yourself, Orun. Oh, but only what you’re comfortable sharing, of course!"
Barnard made that declaration the moment we were all seated.
"No, drinking the night away is out of the question," I countered. "We have exploration tomorrow, too."
"Heh heh heh. I have the kind of constitution that never gets hangovers. No matter how much I drink, I'm fine!"
"Even so, a lack of sleep would be dangerous..."
"Orun is right," Anthem chimed in. "Even if we're just exploring the Middle Floors, we have to educate and protect the rookies. We should meet the day in perfect condition, just as we would for any other expedition."
"Tch. So Orun is a serious type just like Anthem. Fine, I get it. We'll stop at midnight! We disband at twenty-four o'clock sharp!"
From then on, the three of us savored the food and drink while talking. As expected of their recommendation, the cuisine was of a quality that could have been served to nobility without shame.
By the way, since one is considered an adult at fifteen in this country, I can drink alcohol normally at eighteen. Apparently, there are some countries where you can't drink until you're twenty.
"Being regulars at such a high-class place... I suppose the income of an A-Rank Explorer from the Silver Rabbit of the Night Sky must be quite substantial," I remarked.
Usually, I don't ask personal questions, but perhaps it was the alcohol or the influence of their open personalities that prompted the inquiry.
"Coming from someone who was in the Hero Party... I don't think we get nearly as much as you did," Anthem replied. "But as an explorer, you never know when you might die. That’s why I’ve decided to eat delicious food while I can—so I have no regrets."
"Exactly. What about you? Weren't you living a life of absolute luxury every day?" Barnard asked.
"I never did anything like that. I handled all the party's administrative tasks, so I had almost no time for play."
"Huh. Hey, to be blunt, did the members of the Hero Party actually get along? There are rumors floating around about discord."
He was certainly being direct.
Normally I wouldn't have answered, but I was still somewhat annoyed by this morning's article. I decided to share anything that wasn't strictly confidential.
"It's not that we didn't get along, but we acted quite separately in our private lives. Our hobbies and tastes were completely different, so we almost never had the chance to even eat dinner together."
"Whoa, is it okay for you to say stuff like that?" Anthem asked, looking concerned.
"I think it's fine. Since the party leader publicly declares himself to be pure and upright, it would be even worse if there were secrets we couldn't talk about."
"...That’s a rather loaded way of putting it. Ah, right, I wanted to ask—you were an Enchanter when you were in the Hero Party, right? But when we first met, you said you were a front-line attacker. Your demeanor certainly matches that of an attacker."
"His demeanor? You've got a sharp eye, Anthem. Orun hasn't even fought once yet."
"You're a Defender, Barnard. You should pay more attention to your allies' movements... Anyway, back to my question."
"Actually, I converted to a swordsman after leaving the party," I said.
Both of them widened their eyes. I suppose it was a shock to hear someone changed the role they’d held for years.
"...Can I ask why you converted?" Anthem asked, leaning in with curiosity.
"...I was originally a swordsman, even before the Hero Party. My grandfather was a former explorer. One day, a Magic Beast appeared in our village, and my grandfather defeated it with nothing but a single sword. Since seeing that, my longing to be a swordsman was greater than anyone else's. I picked up a sword without hesitation the moment I became an explorer. I thought leaving the Hero Party was a good opportunity to return to my roots."
"I see. But then, if you had such a strong longing, why were you acting as an Enchanter?"
"...Our progress slowed down once we entered the Lower Floors. From that point on, the size of each floor and the strength of the Magic Beasts jump up significantly. It was natural for our pace to drop, but back then, we didn't understand that because we lacked experience."
We had progressed smoothly through the Upper and Middle Floors, but we hit a wall for the first time in the Lower Floors. It wasn't anything strange—rather, our rapid progress until then had been the anomaly.
"Normally, we should have slowed down and built up our strength, but we felt we had to move forward quickly due to certain circumstances. We set our sights on the Enchanter role, which was starting to gain recognition at the time. Since I was a Jack of all Trades who could handle most things reasonably well, the choice fell on me. I was starting to vaguely see what was necessary to become my ideal swordsman, and since I was interested in magic, I accepted the role."
"So that was the reason. It's true that plenty of people convert roles because of party circumstances. Besides, you reached the ninety-fourth floor as a result. It worked out in the end, didn't it?"
"No, it was a misstep. Even if I became an Enchanter, we shouldn't have rushed the conquest. We should have focused on building our actual strength."
I certainly couldn't tell these two the real truth. That the possibility of the current Hero Party conquering anything beyond the ninety-fourth floor was zero.
"Hmm. So? What exactly is your 'ideal image' of a swordsman? It should be fine to talk about that, right?" Barnard asked, sensing the shift in my mood and changing the subject.
"My ideal image? There are many facets to it, but to put it simply—it is a swordsman capable of conquering even the Deep Floors alone."
The next morning, as I walked through the Stall District toward the meeting place, I heard people talking excitedly while they prepared their shops for the day.
"Hey! Did you hear? Apparently, the New Hero Party is going to dive into the Deep Floors today!"
"Is that true?! Then, at the earliest, they might become ninety-fifth floor reachers by tonight!?"
"No, I heard they're only diving to the ninety-second floor. Apparently, today's goal is just to check the coordination of the new members."
They were moving surprisingly fast. I thought they would take a bit more time to settle in. Even so, diving to the ninety-second floor just to check coordination?
It seemed they weren't foolish enough to try conquering the ninety-fourth floor right away, but if it was their first time working together, they should have at least started in the Lower Floors.
—Well, it doesn't concern me anymore.