Chapter 30

"If it's just this guy coming out, then—"

"Don't say such scary things! That kind of talk can become a flag and actually come true!"

At that moment, Lilia's voice echoed.

Another magic circle appeared in the place where the golden Living Armor had appeared earlier.

"See!? I told you so!"

"...But nothing's appearing, right?"

As Lina said, only the magic circle had appeared. I approached the magic circle.

"Hmm. Could this be used to return to the surface?"

Despite defeating the boss, this room had not changed at all. There was no door to get out.

"Is it really safe...?"

"If you don't like it, I'll leave you behind."

"I don't want that!"

"Me too!"

The three of them hurried over.

We all entered the magic circle at once. Swallowed by the light, we found ourselves in a familiar place.

"The first floor of the dungeon."

"...We're back?"

The three of them collapsed, relieved.

We decided to leave the dungeon and return to our base. By the way, we also brought the young man who had lured us into the trap as an important witness.

Incidentally, he was still bald on top. From now on, I'll call him "Top Bald."

"Top Bald"

"I have a proper name, it's Deal!"

After shouting, he suddenly became respectful,

"Yes, sir!"

"...Sir?"

"I owe my life to you! Please let me call you sir!"

Top Bald suddenly became very humble and said this.

"But I refuse."

"Why!?"

"Besides, I'm younger than you."

"Age doesn't matter! In this city, the strongest swordsmen are the most respected! In that sense, you are the most respected person in this city! Being able to become your disciple is a stroke of luck in the midst of misfortune! No, the previous misfortune is completely erased!"

I never said I would take you as a disciple.

"By the way, what rank are you, Deal?"

"I'm a B-rank swordsman! I'm a 'Gladiator,' an advanced class, and I'm one of the top swordsmen in the 'Wars' guild! It's a small guild, though!"

"I'll take you as a disciple!"

"Really!?"

"In return, joining Dragon Fang is a condition."

"Of course I'll join!"

Wait a minute.

"Then please submit your resignation to your current guild immediately!"

"Got it!"

Top Bald saluted and ran off at full speed.

"Lilia, don't make decisions on your own."

"Now we have one more member! And if two of us participate in the Sword God Cup, we'll definitely get more applicants! Ah! But before that, we need to publicize the defeat of the boss monster! Hahaha... Finally, after a long and painful period of dormancy, Dragon Fang will once again become the dominant force in this city!"

Lina wasn't listening to me at all.

"〈Infinite—"

"Stop! Why are you trying to use a killer skill like it's a joke!? Besides, that's the Sword God's skill!? We'll die!"

When we returned to the base, we heard voices arguing.

"What do you mean, my daughter won't come back from the dungeon!? Did you do something!?"

"No, I swear I didn't do anything! One of our members just happened to see them fall into a transfer trap. It was purely by chance. And it's the worst kind of trap; no one has ever returned after being transferred. Even our A-rank swordsmen have tried and failed to return. There might even be a boss monster waiting for them."

It was Lilia's father, the former guild leader, and the Black Blade guild leader, Ge... Ge... Ge something.

"Don't mess with me! If something happens to Lilia—Lilia?"

The man noticed us and his eyes widened. Ge something turned around and opened his eyes wide.

"What... why are you here...? You were supposed to be sent away by the trap...!?"

Someone must have confirmed the moment we fell into the trap and reported it to him.

"Yes, that's right! Thanks to you, we almost died, but we successfully defeated the boss monster and returned!"

"B-But wasn't the one there the golden Living Armor...!"

"It was indeed golden and the Sword God's Living Armor!"

"What...? If that's the case, it shouldn't have been possible to defeat it..."

"I thought the same thing! But you should have seen it! Alar overwhelming the Sword God's Living Armor!"

Ge something looked at me in shock.

"O-Overwhelming the Sword God...?"

However, while it's true that the Sword God's skills could be used, to be honest, it was more like a degraded version.

In fact, this was true not just for that, but for the Living Armor itself.

They lacked the cunning, judgment, and combat sense that a seasoned human swordsman would have. Therefore, I was able to easily see the moment to use the killer skill, 〈Infinite Break〉.

"Also, the man who trapped us has been safely captured and confessed! He said you paid him a large sum of money to do it! Attempted murder by the Black Blade guild leader! This will surely be big news! It might even make it difficult for you to participate in the Sword God Cup!"

Lilia continued to press her advantage.

Without even taking a breath,

"But! I would love to see you lose miserably in front of a large audience against Alar! If you don't participate, that won't happen! Oh, right! Then, please participate in the main event and we'll make this public afterward!"

She is indeed a nasty woman.

◇ ◇ ◇

Black Blade Guild Headquarters.

"Damn brats..."

Georg, who had returned to his castle, spat out these words as soon as he entered his office. However, his face was pale, almost like a corpse.

"If I leave them be... I will lose everything I've built up..."

He clenched his teeth so hard they made a sound. He couldn't let them destroy his status and reputation.

"...No, it must be a mistake. It's impossible for an 'Unemployed' to defeat the Sword God's Living Armor. If I win the Sword God Cup again, even if this incident comes to light, I can somehow cover it up."

He tried to convince himself, but his instincts as a swordsman were not convinced. They were telling him not to fight that boy.

At that moment, his eyes fell on the door to a room at the back of the office. Georg headed towards it.

When he opened the door, he saw countless swords lined up. It was a collection of swords from all over the world, including magical and cursed swords.

"...Right... If the worst comes to the worst, I can use these... Even if I lose my reputation, at least I can maintain my position as the top swordsman..."

Georg muttered to himself. His eyes fell on a box that looked like a coffin.

As if drawn to it, he opened the lid of the box, revealing a single sword.

'Use me.'

It felt as if the sword was speaking to him, and Georg picked it up.