My name is Haruto Tendou. I’m twenty-five years old.
I was born and raised in a small country called Kyokutou, located far to the east of Tsutrail. Through a series of events, I eventually drifted to this city and started working as an explorer.
More things happened after that, and before I knew it, I found myself serving as the leader of a clan called Copper Afterglow.
Copper Afterglow was built on the concept of a small, elite force. The clan consisted of only eleven people in total—four explorers and seven non-explorers.
Hey, don't look down on us just because our numbers are small, okay? After all, we’re an S-Rank party!
That said, our labyrinth exploration was almost exclusively limited to the Lower Floors; we had hardly ever set foot in the Deep Floors. We were aiming to be specialists in Lower Floor exploration. After all, who in their right mind would go to a dangerous place like the Deep Floors by choice?
Now, by this point, you're probably wondering why I’ve suddenly launched into a self-introduction. I’ll tell you why!
It’s because—I might be about to die!
I wanted to engrave the wonderful legacy of my life into my mind before I kicked the bucket. But looking back on my life like this, I realized I hadn't really accomplished much of anything...
Wait, who are you calling a half-baked loser?!
"Leader! Could you please stop fooling around at a time like this?!"
While I was monologuing in my heart to an imaginary audience, my party member Huey snapped at me.
Wait, why?
"Huh? I've had a serious expression on my face this whole time, haven't I?"
"Even if your face looks serious, if you suddenly start talking about weird stuff out loud, that's the definition of fooling around!"
"Wait, did I say that out loud? Ugh, how embarrassing."
"Just stop messing around and do something about this situation already!"
"No way, that’s impossible, realistically speaking. This is way beyond the scope of what someone like me can handle."
Surrounding the four of us, hemming us in from every side, were over forty various dragons—Fire Dragons, Earth Dragons, and Wyverns.
A single one or two of these would give a senior explorer a hard time, and there were forty of them. Death was a very standard expectation here.
"I mean, could you not vent your anger on me? The person responsible for this mess is right in front of you."
I shifted my gaze toward a girl standing nearby. Her raven-black hair fluttered in the wind, and she wore a modified version of the traditional kimono from our homeland, tailored for ease of movement.
Her name was Fuuka Shinonome. Seventeen years old.
She was the ace of our party—and the very person who had caused this situation. The rest of us were dragged along by her whims on a regular basis.
Since I’m going to die here, I guess this is the last time she’ll push me around...
Huh. For some reason, I didn't feel a shred of regret about that.
"But even if I talk to Fuuka-san, she just ignores me...!" Huey cried.
Don't make such a pathetic sound, man.
"Don't worry. Fuuka isn't ignoring you. She's just a woman of few words and isn't talking to you."
"Isn't that the same as being ignored?!"
"...True."
"Don't agree with me!"
"Wait, why are you two doing a comedy routine right now?!"
Even Katina—nicknamed Kati—who had been trembling behind us, finally snapped. Things were becoming truly chaotic.
"We aren't doing a comedy routine!"
"Then why are you shouting so loud?! Normally, in a situation like this, you're supposed to be too scared to even speak!"
"...Kati, your voice is pretty loud too, you know?"
"...Oh, you’re right."
Well, it was about time to get serious.
"Hey, Fuuka. Have you thought about what we’re going to do next?"
Ignoring the bickering between Huey and Kati, I spoke to Fuuka.
"...?"
Fuuka tilted her head slightly.
"No, I mean, I'm asking if you have a plan to subjugate these things."
"I'll just cut them. We need dragon scales, right?"
...Yeah. I knew it. I knew she had lured a massive horde of dragons here without giving it a second thought.
I mean, I suppose it was fine for Fuuka. Attacks wouldn't even graze her. But the rest of us were just ordinary people. Please try to understand the hardships of the mediocre, Miss Genius.
A nearby Fire Dragon let out a deafening roar.
"Shut up! I'm trying to figure out what to do with you guys right now! Pipe down, you moron!"
Impulsively, I slammed my fist into the Fire Dragon's face.
"Ah, crap..."
"Hey! Don't just start the fight on your own when we aren't even ready!"
The fragile balance we had maintained collapsed the moment I punched the dragon.
"...Magic incoming from two o'clock and nine o'clock. Handle it."
Fuuka stepped in front of Huey and Kati to shield them. She issued instructions as if she were reciting a prophecy.
All at once, the dragons lunged at us.
"So I'm fighting alone as usual... How lonely!"
Grumbling to myself, I slipped into a dragon's reach and punched its belly with everything I had. The dragon I hit sprayed blood from its entire body before dissolving into black mist.
This was a technique passed down through my clan. By weaving that technique into my strikes, I could deliver a shock to the target's interior, pulverizing them from the inside out.
A considerable number of dragons were also swarming the three behind me. Vicious claws, tails, and fangs assailed them from every angle.
—However, none of them could get within a certain distance of my teammates.
The katana held in Fuuka’s right hand sliced through everything that approached. In her presence, no attack could even function as an attack. To an uninformed observer, it would look as if the dragons were offering their own bodies to be cut.
Then again, her movements were so fast that I doubted most people could even follow them with their eyes.
A Fire Dragon spat a fireball, but the two behind her—already warned—easily intercepted it with magic. I stayed on point while Fuuka protected the two in the rearguard. This was our ironclad formation for when we were surrounded!
"Fuuka, help meeee!"
Ten minutes into the battle, I was screaming for help.
No, seriously, this was impossible! I was actually going to die! Who thinks it's a good idea to fight this many dragons at once?!
"I'm busy protecting these two," Fuuka muttered, her expression unreadable as always.
"Stop lying! There isn't a single enemy left near you! You’re literally radiating 'the battle is over' vibes!"
Fuuka had already slaughtered all thirty-plus dragons that had gone after the trio and was currently busy collecting magic stones and dropped materials. Meanwhile, I had only managed to take down six...
"It would be dangerous if something flew this way," she added.
"You'd be able to sense that coming a mile away! Besides, the other two are the ones doing the intercepting, not you!"
"............"
"Don't ignore me!"
"Leader, you seem pretty composed for someone surrounded by dragons," Huey chimed in.
"I'm not composed at all! That's why I'm begging for help!"
Despite my desperate pleas, I ended up having to face the remaining dragons all by myself. Why wouldn't she help me?!
I ducked under an Earth Dragon's sweep and punched it down.
"Alright! Only two left!"
I can finally see the finish line. Two more—I’m gonna blow them away with everything I’ve got!
Just as I renewed my resolve, the heads of the last two dragons dropped to the ground with a heavy thud.
............Wait, what?
Fuuka was suddenly standing near the two corpses, having moved there in the blink of an eye. She gave her blade a sharp flick to clear the blood.
"Subjugation complete."
"Now was not the time to jump in! Learn to read the room!!"