episode_0013

Kugugung

“Indeed, there is a dungeon….”

Following Vess’s lead through the city’s alleyways, they arrived at the entrance of the dungeon.

As they entered, Sophia murmured.

In the previous episode, we couldn’t explore the dungeon.

Vess had never entered the dungeon near the academy in the previous episode.

But how did Vess know about this dungeon?

Sophia recalled the princess she had met a few days ago.

…That woman seemed to have memories of Vess as well.

Am I in the same situation?

If the princess and I spent the previous episode with Vess, and Vess saw those memories through a dream, then this dungeon… perhaps she explored it with that woman.

Vess’s unknown past.

And being with that woman.

I don’t like it.

But if I am in this place that she was in with that woman….

I might like that.

Sophia smiled eerily.

Vess simply entered the dungeon based on knowledge from a novel, but Sophia, unaware of this, mistakenly believed that she learned about it from a future where she was with the princess.

“…Dungeon.”

A dungeon hidden in an alley near the academy.

It’s unlikely that a first-year student who just entered the academy would know of its existence.

Even if it’s her beloved prince!

That knowledge must have been gained from a dream involving another woman!

Even though he had dreams related to those barbaric women of the republic, he hadn’t dreamt of heavenly dreams involving himself.

Yesterday’s dream was related to that woman, so he thought today he would surely dream something related to himself!

He worried that he might unnecessarily recall his bond with her and go to another woman.

Artoria became anxious.

For different reasons, Vess was tense around the two women.

It was his first real battle.

He had never experienced a real battle before.

Even though he knew that he wouldn’t be in danger with Sophia and Artoria by his side, he couldn’t help but feel nervous.

This dungeon was created by a madman who graduated from the academy.

There were no traps, but there existed hostile defensive structures like golems created by a gloomy magician.

Dangerous, but an opponent from whom one could gain practical experience.

The reward at the end was also an essential item for him now.

“Growl.”

“Intruders. Exclude them.”

As the three moved forward, a huge pile of rocks rose up to block their path.

“A golem.”

“It’s a golem.”

It was a sophisticated high-level golem that could inflict damage on anything below a certain level, but the two women faced it with calm expressions.

“Ves. Let me handle that first…”

“Can I try once?”

Shing

Ves drew her sword and stepped forward.

“I just wanted to test my strength. Will you help me if I’m in danger?”

“…Yes.”

Ves relies on me completely. She’s so cute.

It’s really hard to bear.

Sophia couldn’t even guess what Ves was thinking.

Iron Golem.

It doesn’t take damage from attacks below a certain level.

It’s a formidable enemy that even restores sustained damage if it can’t be destroyed.

How far can I go with my current abilities?

Ves recalled the image of herself as a hero she had seen in her dreams.

That tremendous power that could change the course of the battlefield single-handedly.

If the hypothesis that I inherited that power is correct,

It means I can cause such havoc as well.

Ves’s sword emitted magical energy.

The clear manifestation of her mastery as a sword expert.

“Here I go!”

Kwung

“Irreparable… Emergency system shu…tdown.”

The broken golem collapsed as it was.

Shring

Watching that, Ves sheathed her sword again.

Ves remembered the sensation during the battle with the golem.

Her body moving instinctively.

Dodging the golem’s attacks and moving the sword along the optimal path to sever the golem’s limbs.

And then, it took less than a minute to destroy the core.

They call it muscle memory.

It felt like it was moving freely, as if it had calculated the optimal path that the body could take.

…Maybe I’m stronger than I thought?

At this rate, can’t I clear this place alone without the help of Artoria and Sophia?

Verceus, who had completely lost confidence due to consecutive defeats since coming to this world.

It was the first time he had started to gain confidence thanks to a proper victory (he didn’t realize it at the time of the duel with Nabell) he tasted.

Clap clap clap

When Verceus turned around at the sound of applause, two women were approaching him.

“That was an impressive swordsmanship, Verceus. It’s like seeing you in your prime. Soon, you’ll be able to regain the power of the previous round.”

“It was like watching the prince leading angels and defeating demons! I feel like I’m falling for you! …I’ve already fallen for you, hehe.”

“Good. Let’s keep going!”

Encouraged by the praise of the two women, Verceus strode forward.

After passing through a long corridor, a huge hall appeared.

“I never thought such a space would be hidden behind an alley.”

“It’s more like an underground city than a dungeon.”

To be precise, there is a background setting that after the owner of the dungeon went crazy, they built a city underground to compete with the academy city on the surface, but there’s no need to explain that.

It’s hard to explain how we knew.

The three companions passed through the hall.

A huge door on the opposite side of the hall.

In front of it was a switch in a shape that could be pulled by a child.

“This switch is probably a device to move to the next area.”

Although Verceus already knew all the gimmicks of this dungeon, he approached the switch as if he were making a reasonable inference.

Clunk

As Verceus pulled the switch, the sound of gears turning began.

And the huge door in front slowly opened.

Thud thud thud

But at the same time, dozens of golems were deployed from the ceiling of the hall.

“Activate annihilation mode.”

Golems with glaring eyes focused on the three companions.

“For now, everyone don’t move.”

A trial of desire and patience.

Like most dungeon creators, the creator of this dungeon was quite twisted.

He intended to test those who attempt to conquer this dungeon.

As soon as the door opened and the golems appeared, the conquerors would rush inside.

What the creator wanted was for the group to join forces and fight against the golems.

If someone were to abandon their comrades and flee into the room, the golems waiting inside would tear the traitor apart.

Conversely, if one stood with their comrades and fought the golems, the golems would stop after a while.

In the novel “Eclipse,” it was also used as a device to strengthen the bond among the main characters.

While the golems would stop when fought, there was still a certain level of risk involved in enduring until that time, so I brought Artoria and Sophia.

With these two, enduring until then shouldn’t be a problem.

“The door behind us is a trap. It’s meant to lure us into fleeing inside to escape the golems.”

“Indeed, that seems to be the case. Dungeons have tested people in this manner before.”

“I did find it strange that the golems only came out after the door opened. It was a trap.”

“Fight them.”

“Agreed.”

“Good to hear.”

“Extermination begins.”

The golems charged, and the battle began.

A little later

“S-s-s-s-s-system…”

“I-impossible to recover…”

The shattered remains of dozens of golems were scattered in all directions.

So heavily damaged that their forms were unrecognizable, only two golems remained with their heads intact. Even they couldn’t be considered completely whole.

Golems that should have remained intact and in good condition had all been completely destroyed.

“It feels refreshing to stretch my body after so long.”

“That was fun.”

Ves looked blankly at the two women.

What was that?

I thought I had become stronger…

Sophia swept away the golems with her sword.

Artoria unleashed holy magic, heralding the day of judgment.

It felt like watching the final battle in a fantasy movie.

…It might be better to just cling to them, whether it’s destruction or whatever.

It was Versace, who lost confidence once again.