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"Does anyone need a helping hand?"
The girl, sporting white tail and fox-like ears, prompted. I threw all thoughts aside, and immediately gave a furious nod.
"Y-Yes, me!"
"'Kay. I really thought for a moment it's my lucky day to stumble on Monster House on the 2nd floor, but was bummed to see it was already occupied. Good thing I forced in just in case. Hehe, it's money making time. —«Ignis Fatuus»!"
The girl explained, and grinned as she conjured several fireballs the size of softball around her.
"Alright, Mister, you might wanna duck unless you don't mind bumping into not-so-friendly fire!"
"Woah!"
She warned, but before I could even reply, let alone act, she immediately began blasting the floating fireballs against the goblins.
I hurriedly crouched, and patiently waited for the time to pass. I think it had been some odd tens of seconds when all the explosions and goblin's screams ceased. Curious, I raised my head, and saw an empty room. All the goblins that had surrounded me were nowhere to be seen, instead the floor was littered with several magic stones.
"...It took me so long just to defeat a few of them, and she defeated 40 of them in mere seconds......"
I was thoroughly dumbfounded at the girl's sheer firepower. In the meanwhile, the person herself walked over to me.
"You alright? And, how would you like to split magic sto—ah. Wait, aren't you from school, greeting everyone daily at the entrance? I think Kashima something?"
The girl seemed to have something to say, but seemingly recognising me, her face twisted in a scowl for some reason. It was as if she'd seen trash from the street in her room. Really, why?
......I was even sure I never breathed in the same air as her until today. There should be no reason for Shiranami-san to scowl like that.
She was Fuyuno Shiranami. How do I know her name? Well, a better question would be who didn't in our school. It was no exaggeration.
She'd become a topic of everyone's discussion when her skill outbreak happened, causing her to grow fox ears and a tail. Even her initially black hair, fashioned in bob-cut, turned white. The only thing left to tell the tale of her original hair colour was the tip of her ears and tails, both dyed in black.
Everything added to make her appear very adorable. She reached the fame of idol overnight in the school.
While she hadn't disclosed her skill, everyone seemed to have guessed it must be «Beastkin Transformation (Fox)». There were quite a good number of people who turned beastkin, and some of them had disclosed their skill to explain how they turned like that, so the guess shouldn't be far from truth.
She was also a sophomore, though we weren't in the same class. If anything, we had never shared a class together, so her reaction as if she was physically appalled had thoroughly floored me.
Whatever, at least she saved me from becoming the goblin's snack, so I bowed in gratitude.
"Honestly, I was at my wits end here. Thank you very much."
"Don't sweat over it. I just barged in thinking I could make some cash, since Monster House in starting floors only has goblins to deal with. And speaking of it, you clearly aren't strong if a trap of this degree overwhelms you, so I will honestly suggest you to give up that filthy dream of having harem."
What? But I never said I wanted a harem though. Heck, I had even decided to not marry.
"Anyway, let's 50-50 these magic stones. Think of it as a service charge."
"Ah, it's alright. I mean, you literally saved my wool here, so you can have all of them."
"Are you sure?!"
"Woah!"
Shiranami-san's tail stood at its end at my words and promptly closed the between us, peering into my eyes wide-eyed.
I was still crouched, so our faces were merely a few centimeters away, startling me.
"Are you sure you don't want any of them?"
"Y, Yeah. And honestly, what I defeated will not even reach a fraction of yours."
"A-ah, mhm, thanks...... Alright, I will lend you a hand again if you fall into such a situation again. Well, with proper compensation of course."
Somehow, the earlier scowl had lessened to some degree, instead she sported a beaming expression while picking up the magic stones. And just like that, within a few moments, she departed.
...Ah. I forgot to tell her I never said I wanted harem.
"Oh well... But man, I really thought I was a goner today."
Nearly a month into the dungeon, I once again reaffirmed the danger that lies in the dungeon, and resolved myself to never lose my vigilance.
◆◆◆
"Good morning......"
"Morning... but, what am I seeing, Souta. Aren't your replies lacking spirit? Wait, you even look weary. You didn't over-do, did you?"
"......I almost came this close to death."
"Huuhhh?! What the hell happened?"
"Good morning. I will explain later in the class."
"You really are keeping up with greetings despite your brush with death, huh."
"Good morning. Gacha is life."
If it's for gacha, I didn’t care even if I would've nearly bled to death yesterday. I would’ve still continued to greet everyone for as long as this body breathed.
Whipping my body to keep it awake—a weariness had seized my mind and body—I somehow finished my morning routine, and dragged myself to the classroom.
I completely threw myself on the table, relaxing, when Daiki and Akihito walked up to my seat.
"Are you sure you're okay, Souta?"
"You really should've taken a day off if you're still tired."
"And how was I supposed to stock up points then?"
"You know, at this point, I don't even know if I can call you tenacious. You're almost obsessed."
"Hehehe, because I act by the higher will of Gacha..."
"Uh-huh, you're really beyond saving to utter this yourself. Anyway, what happened yesterday?"
I narrated yesterday's incident to them.
"Woah, so you really did come close to death."
"Yeah, it made me deeply realise dungeons really aren't solo things."
I mean, just imagine. I did overlook the mark representing Monster House, but if I had someone alongside me, maybe they would've noticed that first, and warn me, covering my blind spot.
"Seriously, it's really tough to explore alone. Alas, no one's willing to follow me, or let me join them......"
"Now what, giving up?"
"Hell will burst open before I give up! Besides, I also gained another level up after yesterday's adventure. At my current level, I can handle anything not-trap with ease, so you bet I am going to continue."
"Are you hearing me? Goodness gracious, this guy really hasn't learned his lesson even now."
Daiki badmouthed me as if he'd the copyright to it. It's clearly not what he said, alright. I was seriously reflecting over my action.
"That's Souta for you. As long as it's about gacha, he will never give up. Just try in moderation, and don't die, alright?"
"Of course, I will. A dead man plays no gacha, after all."
"Yeah, this guy's beyond help. Just don't push yourself too hard. Only when there's life, can you have hope."
"Mhm, I know."
Behind the banter, I know they're seriously worried about me. I replied with equal gravitas.
Once again, I carved it into my heart to never lose my vigilance, and began to imagine today's exploration in my mind while going through lessons.