Chapter 8

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"Then! When he appeared in front of me, he instantly defeated a group of orcs!"

After finishing our meal, we parted ways with Olun at the shop and are now heading to the headquarters of *Silver Hare of the Night Sky* where our rooms are. Sophia, who had been quiet while Olun was around, started talking non-stop about today's events as soon as he left. Sophia is usually shy and has trouble talking to people she meets for the first time, but once she opens up to someone, she's the type to take the initiative and push forward.

Still, it's been a while since I've seen Sophia this cheerful.

"Well, if it was him, the result would have been the same even if there were dozens of orcs."

"Of course! After all, he's an explorer who belonged to the Hero Party. It's no big deal for him!"

"…I can do it too. I can defeat a hundred orcs without a scratch!"

"I know. You're the best Enchanter in the world!"

I felt a mix of emotions. I know I'm called the best Enchanter on the continent, and until recently, I was proud of it. However, after seeing Olun's battle, my confidence was shattered. Moreover, my party hasn't been able to explore the deeper levels properly for the past year. If Olun joins our party, could he help change the current situation?

I try to boost my morale. I can't show such weakness in front of Sophia. I want to continue being the sister she respects.

"Yeah, of course. I'll continue to be the best Enchanter."

This is also a promise to myself. To get closer to the ideal figure I saw last month, I will continue to work hard.

"I'll do my best to become an explorer who can stand shoulder to shoulder with you as soon as possible!"

"But don't go to the dungeon alone without permission!"

"I know… I know…"

Still, what should I do to the party that abandoned Sophia? They are my clanmates and my dear little sister. If they abandoned her, they should be prepared for retaliation. I've already found out the names of the members, so I could act immediately, but I should focus on the upcoming teaching exploration for now.

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As we chatted, we quickly arrived at the clan headquarters.

"I have some business to attend to, so Sophia, go back to your room. You can go to bed if you want."

"Will you be late?"

"No, I don't think I'll be that late."

"Then I'll wait up! Good luck with your work!"

Sophia smiled and walked towards her room. Ah, my little sister is the cutest in the world!

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I walked through the headquarters and arrived at the door of the room I was heading to. After taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door.

"…Come in."

After confirming the voice from inside the room, I opened the door and entered.

"Excuse me. President, I'm sorry to bother you so late at night."

The room was set up like a study, with a desk in the center where a man was working on paperwork. His name is Vince Briares. He is in his thirties, with brown hair and black eyes. He is the leader of *Silver Hare of the Night Sky* and is called the President by the members. He became the leader last year and, with his excellent leadership, managed to stabilize the clan during its most chaotic period, earning the full trust of the members.

"Selma. Is something wrong?"

"There are two things I need to report."

"Hmm…"

The President stopped his work and shifted his gaze from the paperwork to me.

"The first is about the Hero Party. —!?"

When I mentioned the Hero Party, an unusual pressure emanated from the President, and I held my breath.

"Sorry. I didn't expect it to be about that party. Please continue."

"Yes, the Enchanter of the Hero Party, Olun Doura, has left the party."

"…I'm not doubting you, but is that true?"

The President's expression showed that he was not convinced. If I had heard it from a third party, I wouldn't have believed it either.

"It's true. I met him by chance earlier, and he told me himself."

"…If he said it, it's probably true. There's no reason to lie about something that can be easily verified."

I nodded in agreement and continued.

"This means the weakening of the Hero Party is certain. Without Olun, they wouldn't have reached the S-rank levels—let alone the deeper levels. This increases the possibility of *Silver Hare of the Night Sky* returning to the front lines."

The other members of the Hero Party were indeed skilled and had excellent teamwork. However, if asked whether they all had the strength of S-rank explorers, I couldn't confidently say yes. The Hero Party was elevated to a higher level by Olun's support magic, which is why they were able to achieve the feat of reaching the 94th floor.

"I heard about Olun Doura last month. But is it really true? No one else seems to rate him highly."

"Enchanters are hard to evaluate. Even in our clan, we have several excellent Enchanters, but I'm the only one who gets attention from the public. This proves the point."

"That's a painful thing to hear… We need to think more about how to promote Enchanters."

"No, I'm not blaming you. It's just a fact. I'm also thinking about how to promote Enchanters, but I haven't come up with a good idea yet."

"That's a task for the future. …But even if the Hero Party's progress in the Great Dungeon stalls, *Silver Hare of the Night Sky* reaching the 94th floor is impossible in our current state. We can't catch up."

"…You're right. That's why the second thing I need to report is that Olun will be joining us on the teaching exploration starting the day after tomorrow."

"…What did you offer him?"

"Nothing. It just happened by chance. We will pay him, but the amount won't be excessive. I couldn't discuss the details outside, so he will visit the clan headquarters tomorrow night to finalize everything. However, there's a possibility that he has grasped our clan's situation during our conversation."

"The sponsor issue?"

"Yes."

*Silver Hare of the Night Sky* receives a large amount of funding from noble sponsors. Although we are successful in various businesses, the sponsorship money still accounts for more than half of our clan's income. If the funding is cut off, it would be a tough situation.

Until a year ago, *Silver Hare of the Night Sky* was the party that had advanced the farthest among active explorers. However, we were overtaken by the Hero Party, and the departure of our absolute ace also contributed to us falling behind by two floors. The sponsors are also upset, and we are in a situation where we don't want to cause any trouble.

The upcoming teaching exploration is also a result of the sponsors' demand to obtain more resources from the middle floors. We reluctantly accepted this hasty plan because we didn't want to anger the sponsors further and because there were benefits for us as well.

"…Since he has already left the Hero Party, there's no need to be cautious, but just to be safe, I'll join the meeting tomorrow."

"Understood."

"Also, the purpose of the teaching exploration is to select members for the first squad. Are you considering adding Olun Doura as the fifth member of the first squad?"

The first squad is the party I lead. We have reached the 92nd floor. The ultimate goal of the first squad is, of course, to conquer the Great Southern Dungeon, which means defeating the floor boss on the 100th floor. *Silver Hare of the Night Sky* has many explorers and parties, which are classified into groups based on their ranks. The A-rank parties are called the second squad, and the B-rank parties are called the third squad.

"I'm considering it as an option."

"I understand that Olun Doura is an excellent explorer, but he is an Enchanter, right? We already have an excellent Enchanter in the first squad. Last year, we lost our absolute ace, a frontline attacker. Adding another Enchanter as a replacement doesn't seem to lead to a good outcome. Considering the party's balance, I can't approve it."

"You're right…"

The President's point is valid. If Olun joins as the fifth member, we would have four rear members and one front member, which wouldn't work for deep exploration.

It's more realistic to promote someone from the other leaders to the first squad, as originally planned. Besides, it's uncertain whether he will even join *Silver Hare of the Night Sky*. The possibility of him not joining is higher.

"Still, there's no problem with him joining the teaching exploration. He must have gone through many tough battles as a member of the Hero Party."

"Understood. That's all for my report. Excuse me."

I left the President's office.

…We're in a difficult situation.

Even though the Hero Party has self-destructed, we haven't made any progress since last year.

How can we break this deadlock…?

"Ah… For now, I just want to be healed by Sophia."

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