Chapter 32

"Ouch, ouch, ouch!"

The day after our fierce battle with the Black Dragon, I woke up in the inn’s bed and decided to sleep in, which was unusual for me.

However, as I tried to turn over, a sharp pain shot through my entire body, and I was fully awake.

This intense pain is the result of yesterday’s battle.

Yes, I’m now suffering from full-body muscle soreness.

I activated [Pain Dullness] to ease the pain.

"This is the worst way to wake up..."

My head isn’t working properly yet, probably due to overusing magic yesterday.

I took a few raisins and threw them into my mouth.

When my head isn’t working, I eat raisins.

Actually, I feel that eating something sweet activates my brain.

Well, it might just be that I like sweet things and am deluding myself.

Anyway.

After returning to the inn yesterday, I fell into a deep sleep and don’t know what happened afterward.

Even though it was a corpse, the sudden appearance of the 92nd floor boss on the surface must have caused quite a commotion.

It would have been better if the corpse hadn’t remained at that moment...

I don’t know if it’s good luck or bad luck.

Just before we were suddenly transported to the surface, we were enveloped in a pale light.

It was the first time I saw this phenomenon, but given the situation, the guild must have used forced return.

I remember hearing that the Hero Party explored the 92nd floor yesterday.

They appeared right after we were transported to the surface.

The possibility that the Hero Party was involved in yesterday’s incident is very high.

"Maybe I should go to the guild first."

The place where information about the dungeon is gathered the fastest is the Explorer Guild.

They will probably come to talk to me as a party member, so I’ll ask about the cause of this irregularity and what happened after I returned.

◇

When I arrived at the guild, the people inside turned their gazes toward me.

The information must have already spread among the explorers. That’s quick.

"Welcome, Orun. I was waiting for you, thinking you’d come around this time."

A familiar voice rang out.

I turned to the source of the voice and saw Eleonora.

She is a guild staff member who has been helping me since I became an explorer.

She is also in charge of the Hero Party, so we used to see each other almost every day when I was part of the Hero Party.

"Eleonora, it’s been a while."

"Yes, it has. Hehe, it’s strange to feel nostalgic after only a week."

"Hehe, indeed. —So, if you were waiting for me, it’s about yesterday’s incident, right?"

"Yes, I was really waiting, but I’m surprised by the timing."

"Good timing, huh?"

"Hehe, will you follow me? Let’s talk there."

Eleonora led me to a conference room where several guild executives, including the guild master, and the Hero Party were gathered.

Among them, Oliver, Derrick, and Anneli were looking at me with expressions of frustration.

Next to Anneli was a woman I had never seen before.

She must be my successor, Philia Carpenter.

Poor her, to be involved in such a situation right after joining the party.

"Thank you for coming, Orun. I’m sorry to ask, but could you tell us about yesterday’s events?"

The guild master spoke to me with a gentle voice.

He’s still the same, always smiling.

The guild master has black hair with some white strands, and he has a kind appearance.

He’s a person who’s hard to figure out.

"That’s fine, but first, could you give me an overview of what happened? I only fought the Black Dragon that suddenly appeared. I didn’t participate in the aftermath, so the only thing I can tell you is the battle information."

"Understood. Luna, could you recount the events again?"

"…Sure."

Luna, responding to the guild master’s request, began to recount the events.

While exploring the 92nd floor, the Black Dragon suddenly appeared in an area that wasn’t the boss area.

During the battle, they realized they couldn’t win and used the [Whimsical Door].

Just as they were about to enter the distorted space, the Black Dragon interfered and ended up being trapped in the distorted space instead.

They immediately went to the guild and requested a forced return.

What the...?

I was surprisingly irritable.

"After the forced return, there was some confusion due to the Black Dragon’s corpse appearing on the surface, but with the guild’s cooperation, it was quickly resolved, and we are now here."

"Thank you, Luna. Orun, the Black Dragon passed through the [Whimsical Door] and moved to the 50th floor boss area. According to Selma of [Silver Hare of the Night Sky], you were there and defeated it alone. Is that true? ……Orun?"

Here, I should remain calm and answer the guild master’s question rationally.

—But I can’t control my emotions.

"I didn’t expect you to be this foolish. Oliver, I’m thoroughly disappointed in you."

Ignoring the guild master’s question, I said to Oliver.

"What? Why are you saying such things to someone who just got lucky and defeated the Black Dragon with the help of Oliver and Anneli’s attacks!"

"I didn’t tell you. Outsiders, be quiet."

I said to Oliver, but Derrick responded.

I have no intention of having a proper conversation with this guy, so I dismissed him.

"Outsiders! I’m the Hero P—"

"Can’t you understand? I told you to be quiet. Shut your mouth."

I glared at Derrick, who was still barking, and he flinched and shut up.

He should have done that from the start.

"I understand that there was an irregularity. It’s natural that you didn’t expect the floor boss to appear outside its area. But, why did you bring a newly joined enchanter deep into the dungeon so soon? Luna must have opposed it. What was the reason for ignoring her and going deep into the dungeon? Did you think it would be easy because you’ve been there many times?"

Oliver only made a bitter face and didn’t argue.

"Hit the nail on the head, huh? I’ve told you many times that we only managed to clear the 92nd and 93rd floors because of luck. I also said that with our current strength, the possibility of advancing further is very low. In fact, we were often in situations where one wrong step could have led to our deaths after entering the deeper levels."

"…! That’s why I replaced the enchanter! I thought that if someone who could use better support magic joined, we could still advance further…"

Oliver, who was responding to my comments, gradually became weaker in his voice.

"You made the decision, and the majority of the members agreed to kick me out. I’m not angry about that. In fact, I was just getting by with my superficial skills. There are many enchanters better than me. Being kicked out was sad, but you are the leader of the Hero Party. You have the duty to clear the Great Dungeon. I don’t deny that. What made me angry is—how you look down on enchanters!!"

"I don’t look down on them! I replaced them because I understood their importance!"

Oliver strongly denied it.

He really seems to believe that.

"…Do you understand how much stress an enchanter goes through during dungeon exploration? A first-time collaboration in the deeper levels? Ha, that’s impossible! You guys probably expected her to be at my level from the start, without any handover. That’s impossible! A B-rank party would know that such a party would fall apart!"

"What do you mean by the stress of an enchanter? Enchanters just recast buffs when the time comes and give orders from a safe place! It’s easy! Anyone who can use support magic can do it!"

"…Are you serious?"

I was speechless.

"That’s the fact, whether you’re serious or not!"

It was at this moment that I finally understood.

—When anger reaches its peak, you become calm.

"…Do you know what 61 seconds for Oliver, 134 seconds for Anneli, 186 seconds for Derrick, and 140 seconds for Luna mean?"

Oliver was confused by my sudden question.

He tried to think of an answer, but he couldn’t come up with one.

"That’s the time when your buffs expire. Generally, an enchanter casts an average of three buffs during combat. Moreover, the timing of casting magic isn’t always the same. You have to keep track of all 12 effect times during combat and also give orders to the party as the command center. Oliver, can you do that?"

"Ha, it’s just parallel construction. I can do it with practice!"

"You’re a genius. You might be able to do it. But, no one tells you those seconds. You guys probably started the battle right after entering the deeper levels, saying something about confirming the collaboration. Even though Philia didn’t know the effect times. I think it’s also strange that she didn’t say anything. She must have been desperately trying to figure it out during the battle, thinking that if the buffs expired, you guys might die. How can you call that easy!!"

Oliver’s eyes widened.

It seems he finally understood the stress an enchanter goes through.

Enchanters are always under time pressure.

The feeling of helplessness when a buff expires is not something you get used to.

If that happens during combat, it can create a fatal gap.

Monsters aren’t kind enough to overlook such gaps.

If a buff expires during combat, it can lead to the death of a party member. I’m not exaggerating.

"You guys survived this time because of luck and because she is an excellent enchanter. You should be grateful to her."

With those words, the conference room fell into silence.

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