Chapter 84

**Comic Adaptation Decided!**

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【Shinjuku Station】Shinjuku Reclamation Command Room - 520th Building【Reclamation!】

890 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

It was truly the biggest operation in history.

891 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

The sight of over 10,000 adventurers pouring into Shinjuku Station was truly breathtaking.

892 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

Tashikani

That was seriously exciting!

It felt like a grand scene from a movie, a movie that bet on the dreams and hopes of humanity!

893 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

We succeeded in reclaiming Shinjuku Station,

But why wasn't the boss there?

The low-level monsters of the stampede also stopped appearing halfway through.

894 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

Maybe they fled.

It seems Masatsugu and his team are frantically searching for them now.

895 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

Hasn't the Ranker said anything?

896 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

It seems Masatsugu and his team will patrol the dungeon for a while.

Until then, other adventurers are advised not to enter Shinjuku Station.

897 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

Even if they told us to enter, I wouldn't want to, lol.

But it does feel like everything is over.

The gate was usable, after all...

So, where did the boss go in the end?

898 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

Well, who knows.

Maybe they were absorbed into the dungeon,

Or maybe they moved to another dungeon.

899 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

Stop saying scary things, lol.

If they returned to their local dungeon and we ran into them, that would be too scary, lol.

900 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

Yeah, sure.

But,

Everyone, you really did a great job!

901 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

Good job, everyone!!

902 Name: Honorable Anonymous who Succeeded in Shinjuku Reclamation

Nice work!!

* * *

Shizuka, with a resolve to die, burst out of the gate room on the 15th floor.

"You guys, now that I'm here, everything will be fine!"

Shizuka's voice, filled with determination, echoed across the silent grassland.

The plain was littered with fallen purple werewolves.

From Shizuka's vantage point, all the monsters in sight were no longer breathing.

The nauseating smell of blood and the silence created by the dead bodies made Shizuka's spine shudder.

Could it be that Seiki and the others had died?

Because I was late in coming...

As Shizuka's face turned pale, she heard a voice.

"...Hey"

A deep, low voice echoed.

This voice belonged to Kagemitsu.

Her expression brightened instantly, and Shizuka turned around.

There, she saw Kagemitsu, drenched in blood, and Hiren, who was tending to the unconscious Seiki.

Seeing this, Shizuka let out a sigh of relief.

I'm glad everyone is alive...

"What did you come here for?"

"What do you mean, being so rude? This Shizuka came to help!"

Shizuka stood with her hands on her hips, looking smug.

However,

"It's all over."

"...Huh?"

"I said, the rare species has been defeated."

"Um..."

"You're too late."

"No, no, no! Are you kidding? You, you must be joking!?"

"It's not a joke. What would you do if it were a joke?"

"Then... my... my turn?"

"......Useless"

"Ahaaahahaha!!"

At Kagemitsu's harsh tongue-click, Shizuka turned pale and burst into tears.

* * *

When Seiki woke up, he first learned that he, Hiren, and Kagemitsu were safe, and he felt relieved.

He thought he might not make it when he experienced a severe level-up hangover, but it seems Kagemitsu and Hiren managed to help him.

They are reliable adventurers.

The one who was completely unreliable was Shizuka.

She had boasted that having one more attacker would make a difference. Seiki thought she would participate in the deer werewolf battle, but she did not join the fight.

Of course, she didn't run away.

She just appeared too late.

She showed up after the battle was over.

Whether this was good timing or bad, it's debatable.

When Kagemitsu confronted Shizuka about this, she sniffled and was now dismantling the pile of purple werewolves by herself.

They were still inside the dungeon. The bodies of the monsters had not been moved outside.

If they didn't dismantle them quickly, the dungeon would absorb them.

Shouldn't I help too?

Just as he was about to ask, a new werewolf popped up in front of Seiki's eyes.

It was a regular werewolf, not a purple one.

The werewolf quickly approached Shizuka, who was in the middle of dismantling.

"Watch out—"

"Phnuu!!"

With a burst of energy.

Despite the attack coming from a blind spot, Shizuka quickly struck the werewolf's neck with a weapon that looked like a tonfa.

With just one hit, Shizuka broke the werewolf's neck.

It was a precise and impressive strike to a vital point.

The werewolf, with its neck broken, died and fell to the ground.

To think she could take it down with just one hit...

Seiki's eyes widened at Shizuka's combat skills.

"...Huh!?"

She must have been so engrossed in dismantling.

The person who attacked her seemed to realize something and clutched her head when she saw the fallen werewolf.

"Aaaah!! I have to dismantle more werewolves now! I don't want to dismantle anymore!!"

And she burst into tears.

...It's pitiful.

"Shouldn't we help too?"

"She didn't participate in the battle. It's only fair to punish her a bit."

"Punish?"

Seiki and Shizuka are not team members.

It's not right to punish someone just because they didn't participate in the battle.

However, there is a wonderful phrase in the world: "right person, right place."

Shizuka, who works at a material shop, should be allowed to fully utilize her dismantling skills.

Seiki turned to Kagemitsu.

"Thank you, Kagemitsu. I really appreciate it."

"I was helped by 'Chikaho' too. It's like returning a favor."

Kagemitsu scratched his cheek, looking embarrassed.

"---By the way! Why did you go in alone!?"

"Eh?"

Seiki opened his mouth in surprise as Kagemitsu confronted him.

"Because Kagemitsu said to defeat it."

"Who said to defeat it!?"

"No, you said, 'Leave it to me'..."

Kagemitsu had a meaningful expression and said, "Leave it to me."

Seiki interpreted it as, "I'll handle the defense (of Hiren), you take care of the boss!"

"No one said that..."

Kagemitsu, looking like he was about to cry, clutched his head.

"Besides, if we had waited for the deer werewolves to run out of ammunition, we might have won without having to launch a dangerous attack..."

"......Ah."

Seiki thought so too.

He thought so but tried to hide his shock.

It's true that he made a mistake, but it worked out in the end.

There's no need to be afraid!

"Maybe there was no ammunition shortage?"

"Calm down. Your voice is cracking..."

Seeing the intense shock in the air, Kagemitsu scratched his head.

Really, did he have no plan at all? Seriously...

According to Kagemitsu's observations, the deer's combat ability was quite high.

Even though it was disoriented by lightning magic, it still had the strength of a 30th-floor monster in 'Chikaho'.

So why could Air, who had only reached the 15th floor, defeat it?

Despite seeing it with his own eyes, Kagemitsu still couldn't believe the result.

If we look at the result alone, Air is at a level where he can defeat even a lizardman alone.

And he was just an adventurer who had only reached the 10th floor a short while ago!

To grow so rapidly and be able to fight on par with a 30th-floor monster in just one month is unheard of.

In fact, as soon as Air defeated the deer monster, he lost consciousness due to a level-up hangover.

From this, it's clear that he is far from the appropriate level to hunt on the 30th floor.

So why could Air, with a dagger, defeat a monster that was twice his current level?

Why, why, why...

Kagemitsu's head was filled with questions.

(Maybe Air is already—)

The hypothesis Kagemitsu formed was unrealistic.

But there was no other explanation.

Here, Kagemitsu wanted to question Air thoroughly.

But it's a breach of etiquette to question someone's personal abilities.

Adventurers are both allies and competitors.

Just as large corporations keep their technology secret, adventurers keep their skills and abilities secret.

Kagemitsu couldn't ask about Air's abilities.

At least, not now...

"I really thought I was going to die. I was so worried."

"That... I'm really sorry."

"But to survive and even defeat the boss... I'm really impressed by you."

"Wow, praised by a Ranker!"

"I didn't praise you!"

Kagemitsu's large fist hit Seiki's chest.

It was a merciless blow, loaded with his thoughts.

The last joke was unnecessary.

Seiki winced in pain and spoke.

"Changing the subject, but about what I saw in this battle—"

"Yeah, I get it."

Kagemitsu nodded seriously in response to Seiki's words.

He must have noticed how powerful Hiren's magic was.

He must have also noticed the potential danger due to its power.

In this battle, Seiki and the others revealed their strategies to Kagemitsu.

But Kagemitsu is not the type to take advantage of this and impose harsh conditions.

Seiki knew this from the 'Chikaho' incident.

He asked just to be safe, but the response was as expected, and Seiki felt relieved.

"But in return—"

Seiki tensed at Kagemitsu's serious tone.

What kind of condition would he impose?

Seiki tensed and swallowed hard.

"Don't tell anyone that this battle 'happened.' Not even that you defeated the rare deer."

"Even on the blog?"

"Even on the blog."

"Really?"

Seiki slumped.

Writing about the battle with a rare species he had never seen or heard of could have increased his blog's traffic.

It could have increased his presence as an adventurer!

Seiki's face turned sad as he looked at Kagemitsu.

"...Don't make that face. Besides, if you write about the blog's content, I'll be questioned too. You might slip up about the magic."

"Then, if I write about it without mentioning Kagemitsu's participation—"

"That's also no good. The risk management is to minimize the possibility of slipping up to zero."

"...Guh."

Kagemitsu's logic was correct.

Because it was correct, Seiki was plunged into deep sadness.

My path to increased presence...

Seiki's shoulders slumped as he watched his ideal future fade away.

They took a break until Shizuka finished dismantling, and once she was done, they returned to the surface to sort the materials.

All the werewolf materials obtained this time were unidentifiable.

The cause was the rare deer.

The deer's special skill caused the werewolves to turn purple.

The purple color did not revert even after dismantling.

The performance of the materials, if any, was unknown due to the color change.

"Neither the deer nor the werewolves are in Ichiboshi's records. So, they can't be identified. It's impossible to determine their value."

Shizuka, closing the thick records, shrugged and said.

"To buy these at a fair price, we need a detailed appraisal."

"Hmm. Can't you buy them as they are?"

"You can, but if the price is far below the fair value, you'll suffer a big loss."

Seiki sighed as he looked at the pile of materials Shizuka had dismantled.

A detailed appraisal costs nearly 100,000 yen per item.

But Seiki had to pay Kagemitsu for the mission and Shizuka for the dismantling work.

"Well, I'll make a profit, so it's fine—"

"Understood, I'll request a detailed appraisal."

"...Useless"

The werewolf materials, if undamaged, are worth 10,000 to 50,000 yen each. Depending on how many there are, a detailed appraisal should still yield a profit.

To recoup some of the costs, Seiki decided to request a detailed appraisal.

It will take about a month for the detailed appraisal to be completed.

In other words, it will be at least a month before the profit is confirmed.

Until then, he will have to endure a lean period.

Seiki had no intention of selling the boss materials to Shizuka.

This is because the deer's hide is extremely hard, and using it, he could create armor far superior to the werewolf armor he currently wears.

Seiki intended to use it as material for his next set of equipment.

However, neither Seiki nor Hiren were at a level where they could equip the deer armor.

Until they reached that level, Shizuka would keep it for them.

There was another useful material from the deer.

The antlers.

"From the looks of it, they don't seem to have the hardness to be used as weapon material."

That can't be.

Seiki furrowed his brow.

The antlers had not a single scratch after coming into contact with the werewolf dagger.

They couldn't be soft.

Seiki thought so, but when he examined them, he couldn't feel the characteristic "density" that weapon materials have.

He lightly touched the two antlers together, but they made a dry, wooden sound.

They were not suitable for weapons.

"That's strange. They were definitely hard during the battle..."

"Their hardness changed. It's not uncommon for materials to