Volume 4 Chapter 27 The Exam Begins
The next morning, Sandra and I stood in front of the dungeon fully equipped.
Yesterday, we spent our free time preparing. We bought necessary supplies from Alex and focused on devising a strategy to descend as quickly as possible.
Although it was quite a costly purchase, Alex said, "You don't have to pay now. Instead, look forward to the spoils of war." It was also considered an investment.
Now, there were no other adventurers around us. It was just Sandra, me, and the supervisor Mudi.
"It's about time. It's about time for the sun to rise."
Mudi said, looking up at the still dark night. Then, he raised three fingers.
"――――Three."
I took a deep breath and exhaled. Sandra did the same. Mudi broke one finger.
"Two."
I quickly checked if my iron lump sword, gauntlets, and backpack were in order. Sandra dusted off the key parts of her lighter armor more meticulously than I did.
"One."
I leaned forward, getting into position. Sandra did the same. We prepared ourselves to start running at any moment.
"Zero. Alright, let's start running!"
Mudi goaded us on. Sandra and I dashed straight into the dungeon.
"Sandra! Let's stick to yesterday's plan!"
"Roger."
I activated the artifact with mapping function I received from Alex yesterday. First, I memorized the shortest route of just descending the stairs for 20 floors.
"Over here!"
While running, I rubbed the torch against the wall to ignite it through friction. I kept running without stopping.
Non-stop from the 1st floor to the 2nd floor. I found the stairs and descended. 3rd floor. There, enemies appeared.
"Kii!"
The cries of several goblins pointing towards us. In yesterday's strategy meeting, it was decided that the one in the lead would take care of the enemies.
"Object Point Shift, Object Weight Increase."
I swung my right hand without the torch to the side. In response, the goblins were all slammed against the wall simultaneously, lifeless. The goblins crushed by their own weight turned into particles of light.
"So swift."
"Goblins are nothing."
While lightly bantering, we kept running without stopping. 4th floor, 5th floor, 6th floor. At this pace, we could advance without getting out of breath even with full sprint.
"Manticore."
I spotted a manticore wandering ahead. A creature with a lion's face. I recalled the time when I struggled against such monsters.
"Weight Reduce."
I decreased my weight and instantly closed in. By the time the manticore noticed, it was too late. My fist thrust like a spear gouged the manticore's torso.
I pierced through. It's so soft. Just like an animal's belly. Thinking such things, I delved my arm even deeper and grabbed its heart beneath the ribs.
I pulled it out. Blood spurted out belatedly. However, it soon ended. The manticore died without even realizing it was dead, dispersing into particles.
"Brilliant."
"It was weaker than I thought. It would have been quicker to crush its head in one blow."
I realized that memories of past struggles were slightly hindering me. But it was just a minor setback.
In this routine, we continued running. 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th... We didn't stop.
However, Sandra's pace began to slow down.
"Sandra, shall we switch?"
"...Let's."
We both agreed.
"Weight Reduce."
"Thunder Speed."
My entire body felt lighter. Sandra transformed her whole body into lightning and started running.
Sandra took the lead. I followed her. It was a prearranged plan.
If we were running based on physical ability alone, I would be faster, but if using magic to move, Sandra was quicker. So, we alternated between using magic or not when we got tired.
Sandra, now lightning, was truly fast. Even with my weight reduced to almost nothing, I couldn't keep up.
"Argh, Sandra is really fast!"
"It's mutual."
I sometimes run along walls, relentlessly chasing after Sandra. Even when encountering monsters, it doesn't matter. It's safer to knock them down if we collide while running, but at this speed, it's faster to just pass them by.
And so, we pass by monsters like goblins, giant rats, and giant spiders once again as we advance through the 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, and 15th floors.
The color of the monsters' fur begins to change.
"Ohinkkkk!"
A horde of orcs approaches us, wielding clubs. It's a group of enemies that didn't appear in our previous exploration.
"I'll wipe them out."
Sandra increases her speed even more. She jumps into the midst of the orc horde and then detonates her magic.
"Spark!"
A flash bursts out.
The orcs are wiped out in an instant. I catch up with a half-smile.
"Seems like your power has increased, right?"
"Maybe. I somehow learned a new magic in the middle of 'Samyama.'"
"Seriously? Sometimes you learn new magic at crucial moments, and other times you learn it when you least expect it."
"Battle is good. Getting stronger is fun. Especially in dungeons, it's thrilling."
"I get it."
Sandra and I fist bump for no particular reason and then move forward.
"But it feels like there are a lot of enemies."
"Well, yeah. But it feels like we're being faced with stronger monsters overall."
"The malice of the dungeon, huh?"
"But it's futile."
Sandra laughs. I nod in agreement.
And we reach the 20th floor. A chimera is stationed in front of the stairs.
"...Come to think of it, it was quite impressive to encounter and defeat a super strong enemy on the 20th floor back on the 5th floor."
"The 5th floor... during your trainee days?"
"Yeah, about 3 or 4 months ago."
"Wade was Wade from the beginning, huh?"
"What do you mean?"
"You were amazing even before you met me."
Sandra smiles at me, and just that makes me speechless.
"...Alright, let's defeat the chimera and keep moving forward smoothly."
We step into the large hall in front of the stairs. The chimera notices us, stands up, and roars.
"It took us 5 hours to get here."
"Not bad. By simple calculation, we can clear it in just over a day."
"Well, the wholesaler won't be pleased, but let's move forward as quickly as possible."
It's been a while since I've fought a chimera. I ready my iron lump sword and say,
"It'll take 10 seconds. I'll finish it in 10 seconds."
"Got it."
I take a deep breath. I tense my legs. And then, I smile.
"Point Shift. Weight Increase."
A flash runs through. The chimera's body is torn apart.
"Grr...!?"
"I won't let you get away."
In an instant, Sandra closes in on the wound. She releases static electricity. It's a prelude to a lightning strike.
"Thunderbolt."
The spear of lightning pierces through the chimera's insides.
"Groooarrr!"
The chimera, not understanding what happened, lets out a roar and then collapses, turning into particles. Sandra and I cheer, "Alright, next is the Fairy Forest floor," and descend the stairs confidently.
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