The news that the party on the front line of the dungeon, Guardian Sword, lost some of its members in it spread throughout Majolica very fast.
There was news about damage to large clans before the allied clan was formed, but it’s still shocking.
In fact, the news spreads so fast, that we just sell the materials and magic stones in the adventurer guild, but by the time we come home, Elsa and Alto already know.
We’re a little taken aback, because the moment we come in, they run and hug us.
“They were pretty worried after they heard a lot of people died in the dungeon.”
Come to think of it, their parents…
We might have worried them a lot, come to think of it.
“And of course they were. That party that was destroyed… Well, it didn’t go that far, but the party that suffered a lot of damage was a big one, right?
It makes sense to be worried when you’re out there with so few members.”
Shizune is right.
“I think they cried themselves to sleep.”
Says Mia after checking up on them.
“Well, I could help, but it’d be a big pa… It’d take me a lot of time to catch up.”
Was she about to say it’d be a pain?
I stare at her, and she starts whistling without actually making a sound.
“…So we’re going to Guardian’s Sword’s headquarters tomorrow, right?”
I talked about this with Siphon too when we were keeping watch.
I think we could reach the fiftieth floor if we kept going, but the problem is the boss room. Also, I think this will help Elsa and Alto worry less.
None of this would be a problem if we just stopped exploring the dungeon, but we promised Eliana.
“Let’s see if they agree.”
Says Siphon with an awkward smile.
◇ ◇ ◇
“…It’s fine by us, but are you sure?”
I tilt my head, unsure of what Jake means, and Ash explains, seemingly a little exasperated.
“What the commander means, is that you made it to the forty-eighth floor with the members you have now, right? You could probably keep going by yourselves, so that’s what he’s asking, if you’re sure you want to go with us.”
We don’t want fame and fortune, we just want to stay safe.
Also, up until now, we probably wouldn’t have gotten a favorable response if we approached them, but to be blunt, Guardian Sword is weakened right now. We’re basically taking advantage of an opportunity to invite them to explore the dungeon with us.
By the way, it’s just Jake and Ash of Guardian Sword here, and me and Siphon.
The others came with us too, but they’re in the training area doing mock battles.
“Siphon, right? You’re a pure adventurer, so what do you think? Conquering the dungeon with fewer members means more glory, and being hired by nobles, right?”
“That glory might just be a bother, and I guess ties to nobles too. I could just raise my adventurer rank if I wanted that anyway. And all I want is enough money for my partners to live how they want.”
Unlike large clans, smaller parties get a bigger share of the spoils in the dungeon… Meaning I’m doing well.
Siphon hasn’t been drinking that much, so Yuno is also happy about their savings.
“And none of that would matter if we died anyway. I have no reason to object.”
Jake and Ash nod.
“How about we go there once and see how we fight? We’ll need good coordination, and it’s hard to trust people when we don’t know how strong they are.”
Jake probably doesn’t doubt how strong we are. I can see it in his eyes.
I assume he’s saying that so the other members can see it. They’re both strong, so they’re not opposed to our proposal, but they don’t know what the others will think.
We did save them, but in the end, it was just disarming a trap. Ash says there’s bound to be a lot of members of their clan who see it that way.
If it wasn’t for the fact that the trap spawned monsters endlessly, Guardian Sword wouldn’t have suffered so much.
“All right. Then where are we going?”
“How about the forty-sixth floor? That way we can go back any time.”
Jake says, and we nod.
I wouldn’t mind going to the forty-eighth floor, but then we’d need to use return stones to get back.
“You need to see how strong we are too, we’re going to have to cut a few people when we go to the boss room, so we need to think about a good balance.”
It sounds like Jake is saying they adjust their numbers when they face a boss.
Then we agree on a date when we can go to the forty-sixth floor together to show our strength.
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Thanks for the treat.