Chapter 68

"Kazeno-kun, do you know this person?"

"Um, he's like my superior at the company where I work?"

As I tried to explain, Akaishi-san shook her head.

"No, in terms of position, Kazeno-san is my superior."

She corrected me.

Don't complicate the story.

It's obvious that both Mizuno-san and her family have question marks floating over their heads.

Let me explain the situation simply.

"Um, Kazeno-kun was favored by a wealthy young lady as an explorer, and she created a company and recruited him as a board member. The company is trying to recruit me. It's just a coincidence, hahaha---is that okay?"

"That's correct."

The final "hahaha" was a result of Mizuno-san accurately expressing my attempt to laugh it off.

But there's no other way to explain it.

It really is just a coincidence.

There is a god of coincidence.

"Then, why are you here, Kazeno-san?"

"I was asked to join as a friend and advisor because I know a bit about the dungeon, as I was asked to attend a meeting with the blacksmith."

"I see, so that's the situation."

Akaishi-san continued to speak calmly.

Meanwhile, Mizuno's mother (who looks a lot like Mizuno) placed the tea.

It's a proper teacup, not a pudding glass.

Then, Akaishi-san handed Mizuno a business card again.

"My name is Akaishi Shojo, and I am in charge of administration and recruitment at EPO Corporation Tenka Musou. Thank you very much for responding to our message this time."

"Nice to meet you. I was also happy to receive the message."

"Now, our company is an affiliate of the Oshino Resort Group—"

Akaishi-san prepared a proper pamphlet and explained the company's overview to Mizuno.

I should be the one giving the explanation, but instead, I was thinking, "Oh, so this is what the company is like," and "Employee benefits? What? I can get tickets to Oshino Group facilities? I didn't get that explanation. I can use them for free—"

The company offers comprehensive support for university entrance, such as free accommodation for students going to universities in Tokyo or other regions, the ability to take leave for necessary times like exams, and free use of Oshino Group tutors.

Additionally, regarding Mizuno's work schedule:

Twice a week, she would level up by slaying slimes in the Tenshiba Dungeon. The goal is to reach level 30 in the shortest possible time, which is about six years until she graduates from university.

It's a rather slow pace, but blacksmiths have very low defense and are in a dangerous status, so this speed is unavoidable.

The salary is 200,000 yen per month for working twice a week. There are bonus evaluations for working during long holidays like summer, winter, and spring breaks.

When skills develop, there will be corresponding raises.

One important point is that if Mizuno leaves the company, she cannot work as a blacksmith for another company for three years.

This does not apply if the company breaches the contract or if the board member gives permission.

It's to prevent the company from losing a blacksmith who has just developed a skill after providing thorough support for leveling up.

"That's all. Do you have any questions?"

"Um... Is the dungeon really dangerous?"

Akaishi-san's face became serious.

Then, she began to speak.

"Excluding the abnormal appearance of monsters that should not have appeared in places like the Expo Park Dungeon and Ishibutai Dungeon, which led to deaths, the safety margin system has made dungeon exploration safe. However, in the past five years, about 400 people have died, and most of these deaths do not make the news. About 200 of these deaths were caused by monsters."

What are the other causes of death? When asked, the answer is human conflict.

Explorers kill each other over rare items worth millions or tens of millions that appear when monsters are defeated, thinking that they can blame the monsters if something happens in the dungeon, where there are no security cameras.

Perhaps the 200 deaths attributed to monsters are actually fewer.

"Of the 200, 4 were blacksmiths."

"Only 4?"

"There are very few blacksmiths. Compared to all explorers, there are fewer than one in ten thousand. In terms of the risk of death, blacksmiths are 250 times more likely to die than ordinary explorers. Of course, we will provide thorough safety measures."

"---!"

Akaishi-san spoke honestly about everything.

I had heard that being a blacksmith was dangerous, but I didn't realize it was that dangerous.

"I'm against it."

Mizuno's father, who had been listening silently, said.

"Mai, you're excellent and have skilled hands. There's no need to risk your life to become a blacksmith."

"That's right, Mai. I've been thinking about what Akaishi-san said. Most people who awaken as blacksmiths don't become blacksmiths and live normal lives."

"But---don't you need money?"

"You're still a child. You don't need to worry about money."

"But I'm already eighteen! I'm an adult!"

"While you're in high school, you're still a child."

"Then I'll quit high school!"

As soon as she said that, Mizuno's father raised his hand---and hit his own face.

He hit himself seriously.

Blood was coming out of his nose.

Then, Mizuno's father bowed his head.

"Akaishi-san, thank you for coming all the way here. However, could you please leave today? We need to sort out our feelings."

It was a very deep bow.

Blood dripped onto the floor, forming a red circle.

"Understood. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. This is my personal email address. If you have any urgent matters, this will be the fastest way to reach me."

Akaishi-san wrote her email address on the back of the business card and left.

Mizuno's mother handed her father a pocket tissue with a financial company's advertisement and told him to wipe his nose.

"I'm sorry, Mai. I've caused you trouble because I'm not capable."

"Dad, I don't think it's a bother. I'll never think it's a bother."

Mizuno said with tears in her eyes.

But Mizuno's father shook his head.

"This is my ego. If you become a blacksmith and something irreversible happens, I won't be able to forgive myself."

"I feel the same way. Mai, you're probably afraid of fighting, right? If you weren't, you wouldn't have tried so hard to hide your silver hair."

"Mom, did you know I had awakened as a blacksmith before?"

"I'm your mother. Of course, I knew. Your father didn't know until recently."

Mizuno's father turned away, looking embarrassed.

"I was going to support you even if I knew it was dangerous if you really wanted to become a blacksmith. I even went against everyone's objections to marry your father. But if you want to become a blacksmith for our sake, I'll absolutely oppose it."

"Dad... Mom... I'm sorry. I don't really want to become a blacksmith."

Mizuno cried.

"I'm afraid of fighting monsters. I saw a live stream of explorers fighting monsters before, and the killing intent of the monsters that attacked them made me tremble for three days and nights..."

"Of course. It's abnormal to laugh when your life is at risk."

Mizuno's father said.

Mizuno's mother smiled and placed her hand on Mizuno's shoulder.

What a kind family.

"But I thought it would be interesting to make and maintain things as a blacksmith."

"Yeah, I saw you watching the blacksmith channel on my smartphone every day."

What a good family.

I feel very out of place.

I want to quietly disappear and go home to do something nice for my parents.

"Yeah. I wish I could level up without fighting---but there's no such convenient story, right?"

"There is a way to level up without fighting."

"“““Huh?””"

When I spoke, Mizuno and her parents' voices harmonized.

I wondered if it was okay for me to speak during such a touching scene, but I thought I should say it now before they forgot.

"Well, I've been thinking about it for a while. A way for Mizuno to become a full-fledged blacksmith without fighting. Using a substitute bracelet isn't 100% safe, so this is the only option."

I took out (pretending to take out from my bag, but actually from my inventory) an experience potion.

It's a small bottle the size of a nutritional drink.

"Drinking one of these will give you the experience of killing 1,000 slimes. Drinking seven will get you to level 10 without going into the dungeon."

Recently, they haven't been selling well at the right price, so I have a lot of inventory at home.

～A little bonus from the future～

In the safe zone of the dungeon.

Milk was preparing to make a meal and finally activated the broadcast crystal.

Today was the day Milk streamed cooking in the dungeon once a week.

"This is the 'Relaxed Dungeon Cooking' project by Makino Milk."

〔I've been waiting for this〕

〔I came to witness a miracle〕

〔Looking forward to Delta's cooking〕

"I'm going to try making a very relaxed avocado egg dish in the dungeon today! As you know, you can't bring gas stoves, burners, or lighters into the dungeon. Last time, I used magic, but I was criticized for not being able to replicate it, so today I'll start a fire using this flint and my knife. 《Hello》 (cute voice)"

〔She's going to eat that naturally〕

〔The title already smells like trouble... especially the Δ〕

〔Wait, the title is Δ《Delta》, not △《Triangle》〕

〔What a waste of a performance〕

"So, I'll start the fire... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...