Cassian closed his mouth without being able to argue. Then one of the guild members carefully called to him.
“Vice Guildmaster. There is something I must report…….”
“I will be there shortly. Balanus Domus, you should also make preparations. I will begin giving orders soon.”
Cassian left as if fleeing. Cesare looked as though his mood had improved considerably. He roughly ruffled Xenia’s hair.
“You little brat, you are useful after all.”
“I only said the truth, though?”
As I fixed Xenia’s hair, which had become all fluffy, it soon turned nine o’clock.
“Everyone, focus.”
Cassian stepped before the people and drew their attention. Though he was still young, he gave off a rather seasoned impression. In his attitude, and in his orders as well.
“Balanus Domus will enter first and clear the entrance. It was stated beforehand that if you fail to deal with at least one hundred on each floor, there will be no payment.”
The enormous dungeon entrance was like a black swamp. A darkness that made it difficult to grasp what lay beyond it.
“Let us go, children.”
“Yes, Master.”
I stepped into the entrance with the children. My vision darkened, and soon I sensed the stench of death and dry air. The scenery of Lament came into view.
It was a space densely packed with withered trees. And before I could even exchange words with my disciples, a grotesque sound rang out.
―GRRRGH……!
Among the black trees, white bones began appearing one by one. Magic beasts made of skeletons. They were Skeletons. At a rough estimate, there seemed to be more than fifty.
A dungeon did not wait for us. It was common to have one’s throat torn out by a magic beast the moment one entered.
That was why Cassian had used us like canaries. Canaries taken into mines as sacrifices to detect danger.
But we were not canaries. We were birds of prey.
Weak enemies were not necessary for these children. What mattered was experience fighting strong enemies. Experience that was hard to buy even with money.
I turned to the children and said.
“Then shall we begin the lesson? Fight as you please.”
“Yes, Master.”
As soon as those words ended, the two charged straight at the enemy. The monsters, whose lips had already rotted away, let out strange cries.
―GROOOOH!
However, that cry shattered under Cesare’s slash. Bones flew in fragments. The spear he swung as though crushing everything was a threat in itself.
The ones that clung to Xenia instead of Cesare were also letting out bizarre death cries.
Tentacles protruding from between her clothes quickly seized the Skeletons. The corrosive fluid overflowing from her tentacles melted the bones.
Some might have admired this sight. But to my eyes, there were many things to improve.
“Cesare. Your trajectory is too wide. Do not swing with your entire arm. Use your wrist. Use the spear more skillfully and conserve your energy.”
At those words, Cesare grumbled in complaint.
“Ha, I cannot focus because I have not had anything to drink! Can I drink a little?”
“No. You should be able to do at least this much while sober.”
Cesare was strong, but there was a large difference between his skill when drunk and when sober. Even now, his concentration was lacking, so he had many openings.
Making him display his true ability even while sober. That was Cesare’s goal.
Next, I looked at Xenia. She did not seem to be struggling in battle itself either, but she was not efficient.
“Xenia. It would be better to shape your tentacles like spears and destroy their cores in one blow. Refer to what your brother is doing.”
“Yes, Master.”
What Xenia lacked was practical combat experience. I could only feel grateful to Cassian for leaving the fighting to us.
“Good grief, bone bastards. We are done, Master.”
Cesare spoke while stretching his body at length. Before I knew it, the surroundings had become quiet. Bone fragments were piled thickly at our feet.
Looking at the time, it had taken about ten minutes. Next time, we would have to cut it down to five.
I came out of the dungeon and reported to Cassian.
“It is finished, so you may enter.”
“In ten minutes? There must not have been many.”
Cassian sent the guild members a hand signal to enter. After all of them went in, I entered last. Then I saw the people standing there in confusion.
“What on earth is this……. How many did they take down?”
“The supporters were only inside for ten minutes?”
While the guild members looked at us with faces full of confusion, suspicion, and admiration, Cassian gathered his emotions and looked at us with a blunt expression.
“Balanus Domus. Continue advancing. We will handle anything that comes from the sides.”
“Yes, understood.”
I took my disciples and moved forward. Cesare took the front, and Xenia, who could cover a wide range, took both sides.
Since we had a map, there was no need to wander through the forest. Skeletons kept leaping out from among the dead trees without pause.
―GROOOOH!
A bizarre Skeleton made from the combined bones of a horse, a dog, and several other animals attacked Xenia. Her eyes sparkled with life.
“That one has a different structure. I should take the bones home and put them together.”
At the same time she said that, the magic beasts died instantly.
The guild members had no chance to step in. Those who had been tense when they first entered were now relaxing their stances. Their expressions were quite at ease.
“Wow, we picked good supporters.”
“Seriously. We can just follow along comfortably.”
I glanced at the guild members. At present, the Twilight Swallow’s Nest was a Silver Rank organization. At this level, they should have been at least Second Engraving.
However, less than half of them seemed to be Second Engraving. Among them, only one person looked to be around Third Engraving.
―SLASH!
A bastard sword gleamed sharply. An enemy fell as its core was cleanly cut in two, and the sword strike was clean and beautiful.
It was Cassian. He was a swordsman who suited the phrase “a crane among chickens.” A person who, in a different sense, did not match the level of this guild.
He cut down enemies with agile movements. After slicing in two the Skeleton Cesare had been about to catch, he spoke loftily.
“Slow.”
“What? You bastard, what are you doing stealing something someone else was going to catch?”
Cesare growled, then pierced the magic beast that appeared in front of him in a single stroke. His movement was much sharper than before.
It felt as though Cassian had awakened his competitive spirit. His attacks became even fiercer and sharper.
Cassian was truly a good young man.
To think he would yield all these magic beasts to us and stimulate Cesare as well.
I hoped he would continue getting along poorly with my disciples. For the sake of my disciples’ growth.
“You bastard, you got beaten by me last time and still did not apologize. How shameless.”
“I was only careless then. This is my true skill.”
After that, Cassian and Cesare continued hunting fiercely. With the three of them working together, the battle was over in an instant.
And so we arrived at the stairs leading down to the second basement floor. During a short rest, Cassian approached me and abruptly asked.
“Why are you not fighting?”
Was he picking a fight? No, it was a little different. This seemed closer to pure curiosity.
“Because there is no problem with the battle even with only Cesare and Xenia.”
“I know you are the strongest among the three. It does not look good for the strongest person to be lazy.”
Suddenly, I remembered the sight of Cassian stepping forward and fighting.
I stared quietly at Cassian and said.
“In that case, Mr. Cassian, why not try being lazy as well?”
“Pardon?”
He looked at me as if I had said something absurd.
“I mean that Mr. Cassian should not fight, and should entrust everything to the guild members.”
“You want me, the strongest in the guild, to step out? If I am removed from our combat strength, they will be injured.”
“Injuries while fighting cannot be helped.”
There were times when my heart wavered while raising my disciples. Mostly when the children were hurt. If I followed my heart, I wanted to hide them behind my back. I wanted to defeat every enemy for them.
But I knew that was impossible, and that I must not do so.
Cassian seemed about to say something more, but when a guild member called him, he left. Cesare grumbled.
“What is with that bastard now? Why did he suddenly come pick a fight?”
“Is he trying to make Master work?”
“Wow, that bastard does not even know to respect his elders.”
Judging by faces alone, I was the younger one.
A moment later, Cassian called the people together and gave the next order.
“Now we will descend to the second floor and split into three groups to search for the bodies of the fallen.”
I had already heard this part in advance as well. They were to find the remains of those who had entered Lament and died, but whose bodies had never been recovered.
“I will call out the group lists, so please gather with your assigned group. Group One. Cesare Balanus, John Smith…….”
Coincidentally, Cesare was assigned to Group One, Xenia to Group Two, and I to Group Three.
Cesare whispered with a worried face.
“Will you be all right alone, Master? Ask them to switch you to my group or Xenia’s.”
Worry was evident in his voice. Xenia was the same.
“Do not worry. There are others going with me, are there not? They will defeat the enemies for me.”
“But they are not skilled.”
As Xenia said, their skills were not good. Still, it was fine. Cassian was in Group Three as well.
“But I am skilled, am I not? I will see you later.”
And so we split into three groups and went down to the second basement floor.
Every time we stepped on the old stairs, there was a hollow sound like bones echoing. The second basement floor resembled a closed monastery.
Even though it was underground, lanterns were hanging here and there on the walls, so it was bright. They seemed to be mana lanterns.
I looked at the members of Group Three. Their eyes seemed to believe that I would fight for them. Cassian also jerked his chin toward a dark corridor.
“Lead the way, Dane Balanus. You must defeat all the magic beasts.”
“If I lead the way, what will the others do?”
“While you defeat the magic beasts and escort us, the guild members will look for the bodies.”
Of course, that was the job a supporter was supposed to do. However, I had no intention of doing it. I looked at Cassian and spoke solemnly.
“You are taking away their opportunity to grow.”
“……What do you mean by that?”
I spoke in a clear voice so that the other guild members could hear as well.
“You asked me earlier why I, the strongest in Balanus, was not fighting.”
At those words, Cassian’s brow twitched. Since we had spoken earlier, he must have known exactly what I meant.
“If I stepped forward, the dungeon conquest would end in an instant. That is why I did not. So that Cesare and Xenia could have the opportunity to fight and grow.”
“…….”
“I know well that you care for your guild members. That is why you were defeating all the enemies alone on the first basement floor as well.”
The expressions of the guild members who had been listening to our conversation also began to change. I saw hesitation appear in Cassian’s eyes.
“My father said this: Growth requires trials. Give them the chance to fight.”
The moment he heard those words, Cassian’s expression changed. He looked around at the guild members as though he had made up his mind.
“……I will change the order. The supporter and I will search for the bodies, and the rest of you will be in charge of combat.”
“Lord Cassian! The two strongest people searching? That is inefficient and dangerous.”
“It is not dangerous.”
Cassian looked at the protesting guild member and spoke clearly.
“If any guild member is put in danger, I will certainly save them. If you trust my skill, follow my order.”
In the end, the other person lowered his tail.
I, who had been standing at the vanguard, moved to the very back.
Watching Cassian rearrange the formation, I let out a sigh of relief. It was fortunate that he was an upright young man.
A moment later, Cassian approached me and handed me a black, shining cube.
“It is a Subspace Cube. Put the bodies inside this. And…….”
He hesitated, then cleared his throat.
“Thank you for worrying about our guild. As expected of Dane Balanus’s son.”
No, I had not exactly been worried.