Chapter 4

The train arrived at Yotsu Kaido Station.

After getting off the train, I climbed the stairs from the platform, passed through the ticket gates, and went down the stairs at the south exit.

"It's cold..."

It was almost winter, so it was cold—

Moreover, how many years, or rather, how many decades had it been since I last attended a seminar? The last time I attended a seminar was when I went to renew the certification for the second-class electrician's license I had obtained out of inertia when I was young.

"Still..."

When I arrived at the south exit, all I could see was an original bento. I remember that Yotsu Kaido Station wasn't this desolate when I used it before. Well, I prefer quiet places, so it doesn't matter to me that it's desolate. In fact, it's even better.

I checked the time on my wristwatch.

"8:30... The seminar starts at 9:30, right?"

Muttering to myself, I sat down on a wooden chair placed next to the elevator. The chair was so cold that I had to struggle to stop myself from shivering. I waited for 20 minutes.

"Sakamoto-senpai, you're early!"

Sasaki, who had been looking around after coming down the stairs, spotted me and approached. For a moment, I wanted to point out that he was late, but I decided to respond like an adult.

"I just got here."

It wouldn't do any good to complain, and I don't have the obligation to teach college students about the rules of society. That's why I didn't say anything about him wearing a hoodie. Personally, I believe that whether it's a seminar or an interview, wearing a suit is a basic courtesy as a professional.

"Well—let's go."

I got up from the chair and looked towards the taxi stand, but—

"There are no taxis."

"…Yeah…that's right…"

It seems that due to the extreme depopulation, taxis no longer wait at Yotsu Kaido Station. I had thought that a quiet and desolate place was good, but now I realize that a certain level of human activity is necessary.

—Still…

I've used various inconvenient modes of transportation before. I've used the Chiba Urban Monorail, which is questionable in terms of profitability but has very high fares, and the Keiyo Line, which stops every time the weather changes. Even so, the trains and monorails always came on time! Now, I have to wait for a taxi that might never come.

What a mess...

Clearly, it's my fault. I should have called a taxi while waiting for Sasaki.

"Sakamoto-san, it seems that a bus to Toga Station will arrive in 10 minutes."

"—A bus!?"

Right...

There are buses in Japan.

It's easy to forget when you haven't used them in a long time. I used to take the bus a lot when I was young...

The bus arrived 10 minutes later.

As expected of Japan.

The punctuality is well-known. I've seen videos on the internet where buses in foreign countries are a day late. Let's not nitpick about that. If a bus is a day late, it just means the schedule is off by a day, but the bus still arrives on time.

Sasaki and I got on the bus and arrived at the bus stop in front of the JGSDF Shizitsu Barracks 20 minutes later, 10 minutes before the seminar started.

"Sakamoto-senpai, why are you in such a hurry?"

"As a professional, arriving 10 minutes early is the norm."

"Well, this is just a seminar—"

Sasaki has a point, but habits are hard to break. We finally saw the gate leading to the JGSDF grounds.

"…What is that…?"

At the entrance to the JGSDF Shizitsu Barracks, a large banner hung. It read, "Welcome to the JGSDF Shizitsu Barracks! All aspiring dungeon explorers are welcome!"

"Sakamoto-senpai, I heard that the current SDF is having a hard time securing personnel. That's why they're recruiting dungeon explorers, as I saw on social media."

"I see…"

Come to think of it, I haven't voted in a while. As we approached the entrance, a female SDF member approached Sasaki and asked, "Are you interested in the SDF?" She completely ignored me after a quick glance. Well, the SDF has age limits. It's natural that they wouldn't recruit someone over 40.

After watching the female SDF member's sales pitch and Sasaki's resistance for a while, I got bored.

"Excuse me, I'm here for the dungeon seminar."

I decided to ask a nearby male SDF member. I'm not exactly busy, but I'm not idle either.

"—Oh, I'm sorry. Are you here to become a dungeon explorer?"

"What else would I look like?"

I grabbed Sasaki's arm and followed the male SDF member, who said he would guide us. It seems the briefing will be held in the gymnasium. It was extremely cold, as the heating was barely on. The cold was intense for a middle-aged man like me. We were led to sit on the old school metal chairs.

"There are fewer people than I expected."

I counted the number of people gathered around, but I didn't say the numbers out loud. There were 18 people, including Sasaki and me.

"…S…S…Senpai…, it's so cold!"

Sasaki shivered and spoke to me. Hmm, it seems the cold is affecting the young as well. In my case, I have a lot of subcutaneous fat from middle-age weight gain, so I can tolerate it after getting used to it. Working in a call center is stressful, so I eat more and don't move much, which leads to weight gain. It's the way of the world! So, if I say I'm fat, it's not my fault; it's the fundamental nature of the world. I just want to clarify that.

"Sasaki, don't you know the proverb 'When the mind is calm, the fire is cool'?"

"That's for when it's hot, right?"

"Haha, you're right."

As Sasaki and I were talking, a screen descended on the stage. A video started playing, and a male SDF member walked up to us.

"Welcome to the 87th Dungeon Seminar. I am 2nd Lieutenant Yamane, and I will be your instructor for this session."

"2nd Lieutenant? Hey, Sasaki."

"What is it?"

"I don't know much about the SDF ranks, but what is a 2nd Lieutenant? Is it higher than a sergeant?"

"Beats me. I don't know either."

"Hmm…"

—I put my hand on my chin and thought.

In most seminars, especially in private companies, higher-ranking people rarely conduct them. In call centers, it's usually done by contract employees in management positions called SVs. This is a common practice based on my long experience as a professional. If we apply this logic, the answer becomes clear.

—In other words…

"He's probably equivalent to a sergeant or lower."

"Is that so?"

"Definitely. My judgment has rarely been wrong."

"Excuse me, is it okay?"

The 2nd Lieutenant Yamane approached us with a wry smile.

"I'm sorry."

This time, it was our fault. When you're in the wrong, apologizing is the right thing to do as a professional. I bowed my head.

"Y-You don't have to go that far!"

I seemed to have embarrassed him. However, Sasaki and I were talking in a low voice, so it's surprising that he heard us so clearly.

"Let me explain about the dungeons."

On the screen in front of us, a peanut field appeared. Yes, peanuts, the famous product of Chiba Prefecture. Peanuts are one of the few well-known products of Chiba Prefecture, alongside Chiba Makki Land. I recalled a social media post where someone received 10 kilograms of peanuts as a hometown tax donation, which went viral. But that's not important.

I wondered what they were trying to show with the peanut field. Suddenly, the field exploded. Without any warning, peanuts, still in their shells, flew into the air. Then, a large stone structure with stairs leading underground appeared in the peanut field.

"As you can see from the screen, dungeons appeared simultaneously around the world five years ago."

Five years ago...

That was around the time the immigration control law was established.

"The dungeons appeared simultaneously around the world, but there are 666 of them, and 600 are in Japan."

"—Huh?"

Did he just say that most of the dungeons are in Japan? I've never heard that in the news... Oh, right, I don't have a TV. I usually get my news from the internet.

"I will now provide a detailed explanation. Here are the materials."

Another male SDF member distributed pamphlets to all the participants. I received one as well, but the cover read, "Why not join the warm and welcoming SDF?" I came for the dungeon seminar, not because I'm interested in the SDF.

—More importantly, how desperate is the SDF for personnel...