Having parted ways with the members of the Tenth Unit, I was now heading toward the First Unit’s strategy room with Selma.
It seemed the others had also managed to carve out some time from their schedules, so we had hurriedly arranged a meeting to compare notes.
"To think Sophia has actually awakened an Ability..." Selma muttered, her expression a complex mixture of joy and apprehension.
"Yeah, and it’s a highly versatile one, too. I suspect Sophie’s only going to get stronger from here on out. Are you not happy about it, Selma?"
"No, of course I am. It’s just... this increases Sophia’s 'value' in ways I’d hoped to avoid."
I see. Selma was worried about Sophie’s future.
An Ability was a power unique to a specific individual—something no one else could replicate. Until now, Sophie’s family hadn't treated her like a proper noble daughter. She had since left home, and her ties to the Claudel House had grown so thin they were practically non-existent.
However, now that she had awakened an Ability, the chance of her being treated as a mere pawn for a political marriage was high.
"...Understood. I’ll make sure to be careful on my end so word of Sophie’s Ability doesn't spread too far."
"I appreciate it. Thank you."
The Claudel House, huh? I hadn't heard any particularly scandalous rumors about them, and since they had almost no contact with Sophie, I hadn’t paid them much mind. Still, I should probably keep a closer eye on their movements from now on.
"It’s only natural, considering how much I care about her. Oh, that’s right. There was something I wanted to ask you, Selma."
While thinking about the sisters, I remembered something I needed to confirm.
"What is it?"
"Sophie’s clan uniform—did you give that to her?"
Even though Sophie was a rookie, her uniform's design differed from the standard issue. There was no strict rule saying rookies had to wear the rookie-specific design; in fact, there was no requirement to wear a clan uniform at all during labyrinth exploration.
However, the material used for our uniforms was Noxious Sheep wool, which offered excellent protection. Unless someone had a specific preference, the clan uniform was the most practical choice, so almost everyone wore one.
"Well, I suppose it was a gift. When Sophia told me she wanted to become an explorer, I gave her the uniform I used to wear. A hand-me-down, of sorts. Why do you ask?"
"Actually, I’m planning to have those three challenge the 30th Floor conquest again after the Thanksgiving Festival. I won't force them if they aren't up for it, of course, but since I’ll be accompanying them this time, I have a feeling they’ll jump at the chance. If they do, they’re almost certain to reach the 31st Floor."
"That’s likely. Even if Sophia hasn't mastered her Ability, she’s already acquired Parallel Construction. I also watched the other two during their mock battle with you, Orun; they have enough skill to break through the upper floors without much trouble. Conquering the 30th Floor should be well within their reach."
"Right. And once they hit the 31st, they’re no longer rookies. Estella told me the Exploration Management Department usually provides new uniforms for that milestone, but I’d like to gift them some myself. I just wanted to know if Sophie had a special attachment to the one she’s wearing now."
"I see. Like I said, it’s just my old hand-me-down. If Sophia wants to wear something else, I’ll respect her wishes."
"Got it. Then I’ll start the preparations on my end. Though, if she doesn't like my design, I guess she’ll just stick with yours..."
"Heh. I doubt that will be an issue."
◇
We reached the strategy room while we were talking. Though we were the first to arrive, it wasn't long before the entire team had gathered.
"Good to see you all again," I said, greeting the room.
"It really has been a while. Even excluding Selma, everyone’s been so busy. Has it been a week since we were all in the same room?" Rain remarked.
"It went by in a flash! I haven't had to deal with that many interviews in ages," Lucre added with a tired smile.
"Well, we’re only the third party to ever set foot on the 93rd Floor. People are going to talk. Still, I bet the busiest ones were Sister Selma and—Orun, right?"
At Will’s comment, a sudden tension filled the air.
"Yeah, things have been pretty hectic. You all want to hear about that incident, I assume? My report is probably going to be the longest, so I’ll go last."
"Fair enough," Selma agreed. "In that case, I’ll start. As you likely know, I’ve been attending to our sponsors in other territories. It was an endless cycle of travel and banquets every single day. Extremely tedious..."
This was perhaps the first time I’d ever seen Selma looking so genuinely exhausted. Given the circumstances, I imagined the sponsors who had been overbearing in the past were now falling all over themselves to be polite, but dealing with nobles was a chore regardless. Having to maintain perfect etiquette and watch every word to avoid a slip-of-the-tongue was a massive drain on one’s stamina.
"Good work. How were the sponsors reacting, overall?"
"Generally positive. This should, at the very least, reduce the number of unreasonable demands and orders for a while."
"So they’re still making them, then..." Lucre sighed.
"It can't be helped. Since they’re the ones providing the funds, we can’t simply ignore them."
"Even so, we’re currently prohibited from entering the labyrinth," Will pointed out. "What would you do if an unreasonable request came in right now? Like a 'send materials immediately' sort of thing?"
"I’m the one handling those negotiations," I answered in Selma's place. She only knew the broad strokes of the administrative side. "I’ve already notified the sponsors that we won't be exploring until after the Thanksgiving Festival. No requests have come in for the post-festival period yet, but if they do, we’ll handle what we can immediately. Anything requiring a labyrinth dive will have to wait until the festival is over. I’ve already made that clear. Also, for some reason, Lord Lazares has been quite cooperative. He’s been telling the other sponsors to refrain from making requests to us for the time being. It shouldn't be a major problem."
"Lord Lazares? I'll never understand that old man..." Will muttered.
"I know, right?" Lucre added. "I’ve met him a few times, but his eyes never smile. He’s a bit creepy."
"True. Knowing him, he likely has some ulterior motive, but there’s no point dwelling on it now," Selma said. "Orun, thank you for handling the coordination."
"Don't mention it. The Grandmaster and I were the ones who decided on the ban, so it was my responsibility to handle the fallout."
"Orun-kun, you were just dragged into that mess, weren't you?" Rain interjected. "Please don't try to shoulder everything yourself. We want you to rely on us, too."
Rain’s point hit home. I realized I had been trying to carry the burden alone. I wasn't in the Hero Party anymore; I needed to learn to trust my teammates. I’ll keep that in mind.
"Thank you. If I feel like I'm hitting a wall, I'll definitely reach out."
"Good. You're very welcome. Now then, I’ll give my report next."
◇
Rain, Lucre, and Will then gave their status reports in turn.
In addition to the newspaper interviews, Rain had been focusing on coordinating with the Exploration Management Department. Acting as Selma’s deputy while I handled external affairs, she had been managing our internal operations, such as finalizing the activity policies for all the clan's parties until the end of the festival.
Lucre, between her own interviews, had been assisting the Magic Development Department with the final adjustments for the spells we were debuting at the festival, including Object Float. Every year, the Silver Rabbit of the Night Sky revealed new or improved magic at the Thanksgiving Festival, and it was consistently our most anticipated event.
Will had been helping develop equipment using the Black Dragon materials we’d secured. In our clan, materials gathered during exploration were generally shared, but the party that found them had the first right of refusal. Currently, the First Unit didn't have any immediate plans for the dragon parts, so they had been moved into the general clan stock. However, materials from a Deep Floor Boss were so rare that their properties and potential uses had to be figured out through trial and error—a task that required immense patience.
With their reports finished, it was finally my turn.
"Alright, last is me. My time was mostly taken up by interviews and paperwork... and five days ago, I engaged in combat with Amunzaas."
The room went deathly silent.
"I heard you’d fought them," Selma said, "but I don't know the details. I heard the Tenth Unit—the rookies—were the ones targeted. Why did that happen?"
"This is just a guess, but I think I was the real target. They said they attacked the rookies to lure me out. I’ve apparently become a nuisance to them since we defeated the Black Dragon."
"...Bastards," Selma hissed, her voice low with suppressed rage.
"I killed them, so I'm not exactly in a position to take the moral high ground."
I didn't think killing them had been a mistake. If I’d let them live, there was no telling what they would have done. But part of me still wondered if there had been a better way.
"But they attacked the rookies!" Lucre cried. "It’s not your fault, Orun-kun! People might say killing is going too far, but if I saw my friends about to be murdered, I wouldn't forgive the attackers either. You didn't do anything wrong!"
"Thanks, Lucre. From our perspective, you're right. But I can't help but think that from their perspective, I’m the villain."
"What do you mean by that?" Will asked.
"They mentioned they were 'buying time.' And that 'our existence is ultimately bringing the world closer to destruction.' I think they had their own brand of justice. Not that I have any intention of forgiving them for what they did."
"I don't get it," Will grunted. "I don't think I'll ever understand how terrorists think. But more importantly, why kill all of them? I know you were probably seeing red, but we should have captured at least one for interrogation."
Wait. Kill all of them?
Ah, I see. The Grandmaster must be controlling the flow of information. It was embarrassing to admit, but I was the clan’s ace. If news got out that I had been defeated, it would cause unnecessary panic among the members. The Grandmaster had likely suppressed the details of the outcome.
"Actually, there’s a misunderstanding. I... I lost to Amunzaas."
"What?! Lost?! But you're standing right here!"
"Yeah. If we’re being generous, you could call it a mutual stalemate. Viewed more cynically, they simply let me go. If the fight had continued, the odds of me winning were extremely low."
The shock on their faces was palpable. It seemed none of them had even considered the possibility of my defeat. It was a strange feeling—a mix of being flattered by their faith in me and feeling guilty for failing.
"You're joking... Are they really stronger than you, even after you soloed a Floor Boss?" Rain asked, her voice trembling.
"I hate to even ask this, but you weren't holding back, were you?" Will added.
"I was going all out. At first, I tried to take them alive, but once I realized how dangerous they were, I fought to kill. I actually thought I had killed one of them at one point. But for some reason, the opponent remained completely unscathed."
"I thought the exploration ban was a bit excessive," Lucre whispered, "but if there’s someone out there even Orun-kun can't beat, then the ban makes total sense. The idea that they might still be in the Great Labyrinth is terrifying..."
"We need to stay vigilant even after the festival ends and the ban is lifted," I warned. "We are likely Amunzaas’s primary targets now. Under no circumstances should any of you enter the labyrinth alone."
"Agreed," Rain said. "We all used to do solo dives occasionally, but we’ll put a stop to that for the foreseeable future."
I then proceeded to share everything I knew about the silver-haired woman.
"Understood," Selma said. "It’s unlikely we'll be targeted within the city, but we must maintain a high level of awareness even on the streets. Now then, the mood has turned quite grim, but we need to confirm the Thanksgiving Festival schedule. As far as I know, I’ll be handling general coordination; Rain and Lucre will assist with the magic presentation; Will is on city patrol for the first half and the Martial Arts Tournament for the second; and Orun will handle coordination with me for the first half and the tournament for the second. Are there any changes?"
No one raised any objections.
"Very well. Then, from tomorrow on, you’re all essentially free. If anything happens, contact me and I’ll notify the rest of the team. Dismissed."
With that, our first full-unit meeting in a week came to a close.
Tomorrow would mark exactly three weeks until the start of the Thanksgiving Festival. The clan's preparations were about to begin in earnest.