Chapter 22

The next day, and the day after that, Seiki enjoyed hunting tanuki with Kuren, just as before.

The tanuki on the third floor were almost extinct.

Seiki hunted tanuki so fiercely that it made him worry about their extinction.

His level-up was moderate.

Since he was using a magic sword that wasn't very sharp, he wasn't gaining much experience.

But the purpose was to level up Kuren, so that was fine.

However, he felt the sword was becoming slightly sharper than when he first bought it.

At first, he could barely cut through the skin even with a strong strike, but now the skin would peel off with just a touch.

Perhaps his one-handed sword skill had leveled up?

He thought so, but when he checked, the skill level was still 1.

"Is the magic sword growing?"

That was a possibility.

But Suzune had said it was hard for it to grow...

Is the growth acceleration affecting the magic sword?

...That would be nice.

When a boss appeared on the third floor, he took the opportunity to defeat it and ended the day's hunt.

"I'm thinking of making tanuki soup. Do you want to eat it?"

"Yes, definitely!"

Since the meat from the first tanuki he hunted was about to go bad, Seiki decided to process it all at once.

One of the dishes he made was tanuki soup.

The ingredients were tanuki meat, onions, and potatoes.

It was like a tanuki version of miso soup.

There were no carrots, konnyaku, or ginger, but that couldn't be helped.

He threw the ingredients into the boiling pot one after another and generously added the precious miso.

Wouldn't it be nice if monsters like soybeans and koji appeared in the dungeon?

Then he could make miso...

Ah, and he wanted kelp and bonito too.

He almost mistook the dungeon for a place where he could harvest vegetables, but it was still just a dungeon.

Not a supermarket or a farm.

There was no way a monster like the one Seiki hoped for would appear.

Seiki and Kuren were the first to taste the tanuki soup.

"Mmm, it's wonderful!"

"..."

Seiki sipped the broth and ate the ingredients.

Although the broth lacked a bit of umami, the flavors of the ingredients were well-balanced.

Tanuki meat was apparently quite risky in the world of game cooking.

But the tanuki in the dungeon had almost no odor.

The diet of the tanuki probably affected the smell of their meat.

Seiki didn't know what the dungeon tanuki ate, but...

The meat and potatoes were tender and fell apart at the slightest touch.

The intense umami flavor spread in his mouth as soon as he bit into it, followed by the sweetness of the onions.

His stomach and brain were strongly demanding seconds.

Kuren probably felt the same way.

She was sipping the soup with tears in her eyes.

...Was she not eating well at the hotel?

He worried about her so much that she seemed desperate.

Her bowl was empty, and she looked dejected, like a retriever staring at an empty plate and whining sadly.

Seiki chuckled and offered her seconds.

When Seiki was a child, his father would always encourage him to eat more at restaurants.

He wondered why his father wanted him to eat so much back then.

But watching Kuren, he understood the reason.

Seeing someone enjoy their food can make you happy just by watching.

Especially if it's your own child.

In the end, Seiki had about ten seconds.

Kuren probably had seven.

His stomach was full, but the food was so delicious that he could have eaten more.

The tanuki soup was made in a large pot, so about half was left.

He decided to take the rest to Kito.

Kuren had reached a level where she could hunt on the third floor alone.

So the next day, they would finally challenge the fifth floor.

They would probably encounter stronger monsters.

But with the two of them, they should be able to handle it.

*

It happened suddenly.

He hadn't predicted it.

He hadn't anticipated it.

He hadn't imagined it.

He hadn't braced for it.

The day Seiki and the others decided to challenge the fifth floor.

A stampede occurred simultaneously in dungeons across Japan.

Seiki noticed it at 5:00 AM.

His heightened senses reacted to a slight vibration.

He woke up suddenly, and an unpleasant feeling hung in the air.

His body was drenched in sweat, making him feel uncomfortable.

Even in his bedroom, he felt surrounded by monsters.

He didn't know what was happening.

But he had a bad feeling.

Seiki immediately equipped his weapons and armor and rushed out of the house.

There was no change at the dungeon entrance.

...Or was there no change yet?

The vibration was still ongoing.

When he reached the dungeon, he heard a sound coming from the hole.

It was a sound that synchronized with the vibration, very similar to the sound when he encountered a Monster Parade.

"...This isn't good."

He felt as if monsters would burst out at any moment if he looked away for a second.

But what could he do alone?

A barricade was set up at the dungeon entrance.

Even if monsters burst out, it wouldn't cause immediate widespread damage.

Seiki returned home and picked up the phone.

He called the town hall, but the line was busy.

That made sense.

It was 5:00 AM, and no one was at work.

He tried calling 110 and 119, but the lines were still busy.

As soon as he hung up, a "beep" sound came from the speaker.

"...Is the call being restricted?"

But could that really happen?

His bad feeling grew even stronger.

He didn't have time to think.

Seiki searched for the local police station's phone number on the internet.

When he called the number, he heard a dial tone.

Even though nothing had happened yet, he felt a sigh of relief.

"Yes, this is K-town Police Station."

"There's something unusual happening at the dungeon that appeared near my house. Please respond immediately."

On the other end, the police officer he spoke to gasped.

"Understood. We'll send the local defense force right away. By the way, are you—"

"I'm Seiki Sorahoshi, an adventurer."

"...I see. As a precaution, please follow the emergency provisions."

"Understood."

He put down the phone and took a deep breath.

He had expected this to happen someday.

But he never thought it would happen today.

Emergency provisions.

If a stampede occurs from a dungeon, adventurers must follow these provisions and participate in the defense of the area.

Seiki picked up the phone again and called the town's hotel.

"Yes, this is K-town Hot Springs, Grand Paradise Hills Hotel."

The cheerful voice from the receptionist made his thoughts a bit clearer, contrasting with his own mood.

It was always an interesting name.

A small, rural hot spring inn with a name like "Grand Paradise Hills"...

And it was on flat ground.

Tourists who believed the name would probably be disappointed when they saw the building.

The name was misleading.

His mood, which had been prickly, was slightly soothed.

"Please connect me to Kuren Kurosaki, who is staying in room XXX."

He knew this from Kuren, who had started staying at the hotel.

Of course, it wasn't because she said, "I'm staying in room XXX, so come anytime."

Seiki had told Kuren to "monitor the dungeon."

It was a way of saying that if anything happened, she should call him.

"Mo mo... Kuren...?"

Kuren's speech was slurred.

It seemed she wasn't in a good state after just waking up.

"It's Seiki. A stampede seems to be about to happen. Get ready and come here quickly."

"...! R-right, I understand!"

Her voice carried a sense of tension, but her speech was still terrible.

After hanging up, Seiki quickly took action.

He turned on his computer, grabbed a tablet he hadn't used in a long time, and left the house.

He kept an eye on the dungeon entrance while opening "Narou" on his tablet.

The connection to the computer, which had become a Wi-Fi router, was established, but the homepage was very slow.

Probably because adventurers across the country were accessing it simultaneously.

For "Narou" to be slow, which could handle a million users... The situation must be quite serious.

As Seiki had predicted, the bulletin board was chaotic.

Various information was being posted rapidly, making it hard to grasp the situation.

But by piecing together the fragments, the overall picture became clear.

A stampede was happening simultaneously in dungeons across Japan.

Monsters were emerging from dungeons in some areas, but the nature of the anomaly was the same everywhere.

Even in dungeons where nothing was happening yet, the possibility of a stampede was very high.

He closed the bulletin board and checked the "stampede" entry on the WIKI.

The page took a long time to load due to the high traffic.

"...Yeah, as expected."

Seiki confirmed the end conditions for a stampede.

A stampede is like a Monster Parade where monsters come out.

One end condition is to eliminate all the monsters participating in the parade.

Whether it's a thousand or ten thousand, it's unknown.

But from the previous stampede, about 90% ended with the elimination of all monsters.

The other condition is to eliminate the boss that is causing the stampede.

There were few confirmed cases, so it was marked as "needs verification."

Those were the only end conditions listed.

By the time he finished checking the conditions, he noticed a woman walking towards the dungeon.

"...Is that Suzune?"

"Yes, it's me, Suzune. What's wrong, getting up so early? Already hunting?"

"It's early for both of us. Are you preparing for the store?"

"Of course. I'm a legendary, skilled store employee, you know?"

I don't know.

And don't say it yourself.

"So I come to the store early in the morning to prepare and stock up."

"Is there anything to stock up on?"

"The medicine I ordered should have arrived today, so I'm checking it."

"I see. Perfect timing!"

Today was the day the medicine he ordered was supposed to arrive.

It was indeed a good timing.

"What about the delivered medicine?"

"Um, yeah, it's there."

She opened the key to the delivery box at the store entrance and took out a cardboard box.

"Please sell all the medicine immediately."

"Sure, but... Did someone get hurt?"

"Maybe."

Seiki glared at the dungeon and said,

"Probably, a stampede is about to happen."

"......Then, I'm going home."

"Wait a moment."

Seiki quickly grabbed the collar of Suzune, who was trying to run away.

"Ahaaah! Let go! I don't know anything, so let go!"

"Don't run, don't cry, calm down..."

For a rogue adventurer who could beat up troublemakers, to be afraid of a stampede...

She must have some trauma.

"Talk! I hate trouble!"

It seemed she was running away because she found it troublesome.

In that case, no need to hold back. Seiki pulled her close and whispered in her ear.

"Is it okay if your store is destroyed?"

"Ah! You! What are you going to do to my store?!"

"I won't do anything. But if a stampede happens right in front of your store, what do you think will happen? You're smart, you'll understand immediately."

"But... There's almost nothing in the store, so even if it's destroyed by monsters—"

"Rebuilding, lost sales, repair costs, huge expenses."

"Ugh!"

She groaned.

Even if it was a prefabricated building, rebuilding would cost money.

Naturally, the budget for rebuilding and repairs would be allocated based on the store's sales.

If the budget was insufficient, she would have to continue operating in a dilapidated state.

It might be fine in summer.

But in winter, it would be certain death.

When Seiki threatened her, Suzune seemed to give up and let her body go limp.

"...Besides, you're an adventurer, right? Even if you run away, you'll be called up."

"I haven't transferred my residence, so I might be okay if I don't respond to the call-up."

"..."

This girl really has a good personality.

She'll get a terrible backlash someday.

...Or maybe that's why she's here.

"Anyway, give me the items first. If a stampede happens, you'll definitely need medicine."

"Fine. Of course, you'll pay, right?"

She didn't seem greedy.

Even in a crisis, there was no law or right to force a company to provide goods for free.

He swiped his IC card on the terminal and completed the payment.

Ten cases of ointment-type medicine, 3,000 yen each, totaling 300,000 yen.

He didn't think it was a waste.

If he didn't pay, he might face even worse consequences.

While he was doing this, Kuren, fully equipped, arrived.

She must have rushed out of the hotel after hearing from Seiki. Her hair was still messy.

"I heard about the stampede, but the monsters haven't come out yet, right?"

"Yeah. A stampede is happening in various places, but the timing of the monsters' appearance varies."

Seiki told Kuren the information he had read on the "Narou" bulletin board.

The sound of a siren could be heard from somewhere.

The defense force would probably arrive soon.

Before that happened, Seiki took action.

"Kuren, when the defense force arrives, explain the situation and help defend here."

"What about you, Sorahoshi?"

"I'm going to look for the boss."

"No, that's too dangerous!"

As Seiki tried to move forward, Kuren grabbed his arm and held him back.

"It's okay. I can handle a Black Raccoon, even in a Monster Parade. If a stronger monster appears, I'll run."

"But wouldn't it be safer to join the defense here?"

"That's true, but..."

Seiki put his hand on his chin, thinking.

If he entered the dungeon, he would encounter a Monster Parade.

But he still wanted to enter the dungeon.

Entering the dungeon during a stampede.

This might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

He was sure it would be an interesting experience, and he couldn't let it slip away.

—If he said that, Kuren would definitely get angry.

"If I can find out what kind of monsters are coming, we can take some precautions. Also, according to the 'Narou' WIKI, there's a possibility that eliminating the boss can stop the stampede. I'll scout and try to take down the boss if I find one. I think this is a better way to protect the town than just fighting monsters endlessly."

"...Then, I'll go with you!"

"No, Kuren, you need to help with the defense."

"Why!?"

"Because you'd be a hindrance."

"..."

Kuren's face turned pale, and she gasped.

Before she could say anything, Seiki took off his mask and consciously suppressed his presence.

"I'm good at blending in. I can move without being noticed by monsters. If Kuren is with me, we'll be spotted. ...Do you understand?"

He moved slightly, and Kuren lost sight of Seiki.

Normally, she would feel frustrated, but now she was grateful.

"...Yeah, I understand. I get it."

She probably didn't fully agree, but after experiencing Seiki's presence, Kuren nodded without arguing.

"But don't take any unnecessary risks."

"Of course."

He handed most of the medicine he had just bought to Kuren, put on his backpack, and headed towards the dungeon.

He couldn't tell Kuren, even if his mouth was torn open.

He was actually excited about the stampede.

He must be crazy.

But it was fun, so he couldn't help it.

Because he could see a future where the town wasn't ravaged by monsters and no one died.

He didn't know if the success rate was 1% or 0