Volume 2 Chapter 58 Stampede
"Hm? What's wrong, Omega?"
"......Something's coming from behind. And... a lot of them."
"What?"
"I think they're monsters... but not Talking Monsters. They don't seem that strong."
"Hm... maybe they're just the native monsters of this Ryukyu dungeon... wait, no way!"
"Huh? What?"
"This might be a 'Stampede (Stampede).'"
"Huh? You mean that thing that happened in an American dungeon ten years ago...?"
"Exactly. Back then, Talking Monsters had swarmed the depths of the American dungeon, forcing the native monsters up to the higher Floors."
"Ah, right. Now that you mention it, the same thing happened in a dungeon over there."
"Think about it—there have been a ton of Talking Monster sightings in this Ryukyu dungeon, yet none showed up on the 29th Floor where you fought."
"Ah, yeah. Just a bit-san mentioned that too."
"Just a bit-san? Oh, you mean Carlos Strong?"
"Yeah. Also, the first time I fought a Talking Monster in this Ryukyu dungeon wasn't here. It was way higher... the deepest part of the Upper Floors, the 9th Floor."
"WHAT?! They appeared even in the Upper Floors' deepest part?!"
"Yeah. By the way, Just a bit-san was super shocked about it too."
"Of course he was! That's never happened before!"
"I see. Before the stampede happened over there, I had this premonition—like, stronger Deep Floor monsters were randomly showing up in shallower Floors. And now, this kinda feels the same..."
"Yeah, I totally get that. The Talking Monster showing up in the Upper and Middle Floors? Definitely a bad sign..."
"Right. Personally, though, I think it's fine."
"What?"
"I mean, if normal monsters pop up, the others can handle it, right? And if the Valkyrie get stronger from it, that's a win-win. Leveling up and combat experience? Two birds, one stone."
"...I see."
"Besides, even if a Talking Monster appears, it won't just be me fighting. There are plenty of strong people here."
"Oh?"
"That said... if an even stronger one shows up, who knows how the others will manage? But if it gets bad, I'll step in, and from there—boom!—'Japan's Seeker is incredible, right?!' and the internet goes wild."
"...Hehe, I see. But don't go overboard, alright? I mean it. No messing around!"
"If you keep saying it like that, it just sounds like a joke..."
"Got it? (pressure)"
"! Y-yes..."
Yikes.
* * *
After that, I explained the situation to everyone.
"So, I'll head ahead now—"
"""""I'M GOING FIRST────!!!!"""""
Before I could even finish, everyone took off running.
"From here, I'm going all out!"
"I gotta flex a little, right?"
"Revenge for my arm getting chopped off..."
"WHOAAAA!!!"
Overwhelmed by everyone's energy, I followed from behind. And just as expected—
A massive wave of monsters rushed toward us.
"Here we gooooo!!"
"Come on, come on, come on!!"
Up front, Just a bit-san led the underpopulated dungeon Tsukkomi Squad and the Valkyrie, battling—no, bulldozing—their way through with sheer force.
"I wonder if they're venting their frustration over the Talking Monster."
As we tore through the Floor, I checked D-Vision.
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: Amazing! Amazing! They're just steamrolling everything, haha!
: Even aside from Omega-sama, these guys actually have good strategies.
: 'Just a bit strong' is a straight-up beast, LOLLLL
: Wait, is this guy a skill maniac or something?!
──────────────────
Yeah... even among this team, Just a bit-san stands out for using his muscles more than his skills.
Or so you'd think—
"Skill: Shukuchi!"
—until he suddenly blitzed forward and decked a monster into the floor.
"Well, the skill is impressive... but it's still just brute force."
As we go deeper, the native monsters will only get tougher. So eventually, we'll have to pull out every skill we've got.
"Alright! As a Just a bit-san watcher, I gotta keep up! Let's go!!"
Casually following behind him, I braced myself—
The stampede was just beginning.
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