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Tl: Sam

…

“So, are you alright?”
“……Yeah, no problem.”

　When I spoke to the rescued Mikami, he retorted with a sullen attitude.
　Whatever he was being stubborn about, he was an absolute pain to deal with.

「He’s probably sulking because getting beat up by Salamanders was streamed lol」
「Ehh… is he a kid?」
「Mikami-kun, that’s so uncool!」
「Make sure to properly say thank you, okay」
「Well, everyone has a phase like this」

　Most of the comments seemed sympathetic.
　Well, certainly, having what happened earlier broadcasted to the entire world would suck. He seemed to sell himself as a cool handsome guy, so his brand image was ruined. I felt a bit bad for him.

“I appreciate that you saved me. Thank… you.”

　Mikami offered his thanks, though it looked difficult for him to say.
　He just had a lot of pride; he wasn’t a bad guy deep down.

“However, even I could have defeated monsters of that caliber! I have soloed an A-rank monster before, you know!”
“Ah, yeah, yeah. Understood. For now, let’s treat your injuries.”
“Owwwww!”

　I forcefully rubbed recovery potion into his wounds.
　It stung, but this healed things fastest. He’d just have to bear it.

「Mikami-kun is hilarious lol」
「Is he a tsundere character?」
「A cool-type glasses tsundere character hits my kinks way too hard pant pant」
「People’s kinks really are broad, huh」
「Selling himself as the cool-type is completely impossible now lol」
「Corporate slave salaryman x cool tsundere glasses… my favorite dish」
「Another day of the internet being full of perverts」

“Alright, that should do for first aid. Shall we get moving soon? Ah, can you walk on your own?”
“……I appreciate you treating my wounds. However, I cannot leave together with you.”
“Hm… hm? Eh?”

　At his unexpected reply, I was momentarily baffled.
　Wh-What was that supposed to mean?

“I will return on my own. Piling on this many blunders and then being escorted back on top of it would ruin my honor. You would be able to return faster alone anyway. Please leave me alone.”

「Hey hey, is this guy for real?」
「No way your honor could drop any lower than it already has lol」
「This tsundere act has gone way too far」
「He’s so hopelessly twisted lol」

　Hearing Mikami’s words, I inwardly sighed.
　It was an excessively selfish and self-centered way of speaking; it had been a while since I felt this irritated. It might not fit the modern era, but… looks like he needed a little lecture.

“Why don’t you just hurry up and go? If you stream such a boring scene, won’t your viewers get tired of it? The concurrent viewer count will drop too…”
“Hey.”
“Eh?”
“Shut up for a second.”
“……Tsu!?”

　I directed just a tiny sliver of the “pressure” I usually used to intimidate monsters straight at Mikami.
　It seemed effective, as his expression instantly lost all composure.

「Eep」
「Way too scary」
「My heart skipped a beat」
「My heart is still thumping, what is this… love?」
「Isn’t that just arrhythmia?」
「Remembering getting lectured by my boss makes me want to throw up」

“I sat quietly listening, but… just what is your deal? Every time you open your mouth, it’s nothing but self-preservation. Do you even understand that this is an emergency?”
“I-I understand that much! But precisely because of that, shouldn’t you not be wasting time on me?”
“……In other words, you have no intention of saving your comrades, is that it? Even as we speak right now, your subordinates might be in danger in this dungeon, you know?”
“That’s…”

　Mikami faltered.
　Apparently, his thoughts hadn’t extended that far.

　He had only been obsessing over how to erase his blunder, completely failing to consider the safety of his comrades.

“Dungeon exploration isn’t a game; it’s a life-or-death job. If you’re doing it with half-baked resolve, you ought to quit.”

　The end of those who entered the explorer business with half-hearted feelings just because it made money was almost always tragic.
　Back while working, I saw the corpses of people like that more than once or twice.

　We explorers know that this job is harsh and terrifying.
　Those who don’t know are either those who died before understanding it, or those who got lucky and survived without realizing it. This guy was the latter.

“We never know when we might die. That is why explorers help each other out, to raise our chances of survival even a little.”

　Back when I was a kid, there were times I was saved by explorers I met by chance.
　Whenever I tried to thank them, they always said, “Don’t worry about me. If you find someone in trouble, just help them the same way.”

　Back then, I didn’t understand why they said that, but now I do.
　Passing along that kindness ultimately helps raise the survival rate of explorers as a whole. Those people didn’t just save me; they saved the people connected beyond me as well.

“If you die from your own arrogance, I couldn’t care less. It’s your own fault. But when someone acts selfishly, others suffer for it. This time, a huge number of people were put in danger because of your guild… and you plan to run away without even wiping your own ass?”
“B-But that was my subordinates acting on their own…”
“No buts!”

　I slapped Mikami’s cheek with all my might.
　Taking that open-handed slap unleashed from diagonally above, Mikami let out a sound like a squashed frog with a “Bobue!?” and planted into the ground.

「Mikami-kun!?」
「Can’t blame him for that one」
「He’s surprisingly athletic-club minded, huh」
「Well, Mikami-kun is definitely in the wrong here」
「After all, Tanakaaa held back his desire to go see Yui-chan quickly just to help him」
「Ah, Mikami-kun pulled his face out of the ground」
「His face is swollen up lol」
「It looks like a cream pan lolol」
「That should’ve injected some fighting spirit into him」

“I-It hurfts…”

　Slumped on the ground, Mikami rubbed his cheek with teary eyes.
　Maybe I hit him a bit too hard. I should reflect on that.

“Mikami, why did you become an explorer in the first place? Being that desperate for results, what is it you want to become? Is that goal something worth endangering others to achieve?”
“I…”

　Mikami cast his eyes downward and hesitated.
　And after being silent for a moment, he slowly began to speak.

“Back when I was a child… I was attacked by a monster, and an explorer saved me back then. The way that person gallantly defeated the monster was so cool, they looked like a hero to me.”

　Being attacked by a monster as a kid probably meant during the Great Imperial Palace Monster Disaster.
　You couldn’t enter a dungeon without a permit, and the only time a child could be attacked by a monster outside was back then.
　In that case, was this guy in Tokyo back then too? At that time, I was also mopping up monsters together with my master. Perhaps we had even passed each other somewhere.

“That’s why I wanted to become an amazing explorer just like that person. And I thought if I became famous, maybe I could meet them once more… Well, it was only for an instant back then, so I don’t really remember their face, though.”

「Mikami-kun had a past like that too, huh」
「I thought he just liked money」
「He has a cute side to him」
「My opinion of him went up a bit」
「Then why did he turn out like this… cries」
「True that」

“I see… I understand your reason for becoming an explorer. I think it’s a good reason. But doing things the way you are now, do you really think you can become like that person?”
“Th-That’s…”

　Mikami trailed off awkwardly.
　He probably realized it himself. That his actions were far removed from what the person he admired had done.
　But that was the only way he knew to climb to the top. That was why, before he knew it, he had become tainted by a results-first explorer mentality.

“This is the turning point. What will you do? Keep going as you are now, or become a true explorer? You decide.”

　I extended a hand to the seated Mikami.
　Mikami showed slight hesitation for just a moment, but soon took my hand with a resolute expression.

“Even from now… can I change?”
“Of course. Even a corporate slave like me managed to change, after all.”

「That’s true lol」
「Having the guy who changed the most right in front of him makes it so convincing」
「Good luck, Mikami-kun!」
「What a heartwarming story」
「M O V I E A D A P T A T I O N G R E E N L I T」
「Guess we gotta keep an eye on Iron Stag」

“Now then, we’ve burned some time, so let’s hurry along.”
“Ah, um, Tanaka-san. Actually, there’s something I haven’t mentioned yet…”
“Hm? What is it?”
“Umm, actually, I saw a dangerous-looking monster further up. Given its size and appearance, I think it’s probably the EX-rank monster ‘Kagutsuchi.’ I escaped from it and ended up all the way down here.”
“Yo…! You should’ve said that sooner!”
“Hii! I’m sorry!”

　Are you kidding me? That means the Lava Dragon I defeated wasn’t the boss monster after all.
　Boss monsters rarely move from the lowest floor, but… triggering the teleportation trap might have activated it to eliminate intruders.
　Hoshino and Yuki-san are strong, but whether they can beat an EX-rank monster is another story. Looks like I’d better hurry.

　I hoisted Mikami up by force, slung him over my shoulder like a sack of rice, and bolted forward in a flash.

“It’s gonna shake a bit. Don’t throw up on me.”
“Eh, w-wait… urp, gasp, blargh”
“Hey, I literally just told you not to throw up!”

　Having learned of the EX monster’s existence, I sprinted through the dungeon in a hurry.

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