"Did we... make it?" Anneri whispered.
"How can you say that in this situation?! This is a disaster!" Luna snapped, instantly shutting her down. "The Black Dragon was warped to some random boss area by the 'Door of Caprice.' What happens if it landed on the 10th Floor!?"
Most Explorers challenging the 10th Floor boss were rookies. Some might have only been Explorers for a few days.
And now, those rookies would suddenly find themselves facing a boss from the Deep Floors.
I could see it all too clearly—clueless rookies being trampled, their faces twisted in terror as the Black Dragon tore through them. The atmosphere between us grew even heavier.
"To think the 'Door of Caprice' would affect a Floor Boss... I should have realized the possibility the moment we found it outside its territory," Luna said, her voice laced with regret. She quickly shook it off and made a new proposal. "For now, we need to return to the surface immediately and request the Guild to initiate a Forced Evacuation."
Guild Cards had another function besides registering at the teleportation crystals on each floor: Forced Evacuation.
It was a procedure where the Guild could forcibly pull people out of the Labyrinth. However, it was strictly reserved for emergencies or when criminals fled into the maze; the Guild couldn't just use it whenever they wanted.
This was, without a doubt, an emergency.
We didn't know which boss area the dragon had vanished into, but I doubted there were any Explorers currently in the Labyrinth who could actually kill it.
"Right," I agreed. "We'll probably be slapped with a penalty, but we don't have time to worry about that."
Derrick and Anneri looked disgruntled, but neither of them argued.
"After that, we’ll swap Philly-san for Orun-san and make the rounds to every boss room," Luna continued. "He should be diving with the 'Silver Rabbit of the Night Sky' rookies today. Once the Forced Evacuation brings him out, we’ll grab him—"
"W-Wait a minute!" Derrick cut in.
It was a proposal that practically begged for an interruption, but Derrick had a bad habit of never letting people finish.
"...Injured people should stay quiet and focus on healing," Luna said coldly. "We’re going to be running from here on out."
"Why are you bringing Orun back?! We don't need him! We're just in a slump. Adding that incompetent—"
"The healing is finished. Time is precious, so let's talk while we move."
"Don't cut me off!!"
Derrick, you can yell all you want, but no one is going to agree with you.
"Philly-san, could you cast 【Agility Up】 on everyone?" Luna asked, ignoring him entirely.
"Understood..." Philly replied.
With our movement speed boosted, we broke into a sprint toward the entrance of the 92nd Floor.
"About what I was saying earlier—about you being in a slump," Luna began while we ran. She picked up the thread that had been severed when the Black Dragon appeared. "The truth is, none of you have changed at all."
"But our stats are clearly lower," I countered. "Even my Heavenly Flash... it couldn't even leave a scratch on that thing."
Frustration welled up as I spoke. Why had my strongest technique failed so miserably?
"The answer is simple. It's because Orun-san isn't here. That Heavenly Flash you just used—the one where you barely bothered with Mana Convergence—that was its original strength."
Barely bothered with convergence?
It was true that I’d been spending less time on it lately. But that was because my proficiency with 【Mana Convergence】 had improved, allowing me to reach my full power faster than before. Or so I thought.
"Orun-san was using original magic to supplement Oliver-san's attacks, Derrick-san's defense, and Anneri-san's spells. Before we get into the details, I want to confirm the basics. You all know the standard effects of Support Magic, right?"
Derrick and Anneri both looked sour. Apparently, they didn't.
"The buff's strength is determined by the caster, and the duration depends on the target's resistance, right?" I answered for them. "The average duration is three minutes. That’s why Enchanters have to refresh them every three minutes."
I looked at Philly, the professional, to see if I was right.
"Yes, that's more or less correct," Philly said. "However, this party—and Oliver-san in particular—has such high Magic Resistance that I have to refresh the buffs every single minute. Oliver-san has a body that is a total nightmare for an Enchanter...!"
"Don't put it like that! Regardless, if that's the case, Philly’s buffs provide a higher stat increase than Orun’s. That makes her the superior Enchanter. There’s no reason to switch back."
"Oliver-san, your logic is sound," Luna replied. "But that's only if Orun-san were a normal Enchanter. Don't misunderstand—I think Philly-san is excellent. In terms of pure Support Magic value, she rivals even Selma-san of the 'Silver Rabbit of the Night Sky.'"
"Then that Jack of all Trades really is unneces—"
"I said if he were a normal Enchanter. Derrick-san, be quiet. You're holding us up."
"Wh—! —! —!!"
Luna must have cast something, because Derrick was clearly shouting, but no sound was coming out.
Only Luna and I possessed Abilities in this party. Between her natural talent and her mysterious Ability, her magic was often incomprehensible. I had asked her about it once, but I hadn't understood half of her explanation.
"Orun-san knew that if he played by the rules, he would be inferior to other Enchanters," Luna continued. "To catch up and differentiate himself, he developed several original spells to compensate for his shortcomings. One of them is a spell that increases the effectiveness of a buff by fifty times."
"That's impossible!!" Philly cried out in denial. "Something like that... if that were even possible..."
"Even Selma-san, the 'Continent's Greatest Enchanter,' is said to have a maximum multiplier of ten. Orun-san used a spell that boosted effectiveness fifty-fold, even if it only lasted for a fraction of a second—a single instant."
My heart skipped a beat. What?
Wasn't his Support Magic supposed to be weak?
"You're starting to understand. Oliver-san, your Heavenly Flash and your critical strikes—Anneri-san, your spells—they were all benefiting from that fifty-fold boost. You became complacent because of Orun-san’s support and started cutting corners on your convergence time. If you had converged your mana properly, you would have had more than enough power to damage those wings."
My Heavenly Flash was only possible because of Orun?
No. That had to be a lie.
"Anneri-san, you also mistook the power of Orun-san's magic for your own, didn't you? You wouldn't listen even when Orun-san or I tried to warn you. As a result, you’ve picked up the habit of firing off weak spells just to be fast. Since even intermediate magic worked with Orun-san's support, I doubt you can even cast special-grade magic anymore, can you?"
"If that's the case, then he shouldn't have just used words!" Anneri shouted. "He should have stopped using the buff and let me feel the difference! Why didn't he do that!?"
"By the time you joined, we were already on the 86th Floor," Luna reminded her. "That wasn't a place where he could afford to let us slack off. I’m sure it was an agonizing decision for him. But with his support, your casting speed was a huge asset. Besides, Orun-san did try to take you to the Middle Floors to practice, but didn't you refuse because you said it was 'too much trouble'?"
"...Was my defense supported by him, too?" Derrick’s voice (now audible again) was quiet.
"Yes. The duration is instantaneous, but for that one heartbeat, your stats were immense. Furthermore, because that magic targets the equipment or the spell itself, you don't feel the sudden 'heaviness' when the buff wears off. This is why I was against Orun-san's dismissal. I've been telling you this all along... Do you finally understand?"
I understood. I had no choice but to understand.
The proof was undeniable: we had been utterly helpless against a Black Dragon we had defeated once before.
Was this party really just a facade built on Orun’s support?
No one spoke after that. The only sound was the rhythmic thud of our boots hitting the floor.
Twenty minutes after the dragon vanished, we finally reached the entrance of the Great Labyrinth. Philly was drenched in sweat and gasping for air; she had been forced to recast 【Agility Up】 on all of us every single minute while sprinting.
Crowds of people were waiting near the entrance, and they erupted into cheers the moment they saw us.
Ignoring the applause, we headed straight for the Explorer Guild.