Episode 150: The Name of the Traitor

"By the way... I just thought of something."

"Hm?"

"Even if we meet the clear conditions and open the entrance to the 'Boss Room,' the group led by Ryuma and the others on the same floor can still proceed ahead of us, right?"

"That's right."

The door leading to the 'Boss Room' should become accessible to anyone who meets the conditions for its appearance.

"If that's the case, it's like the 'boss room' appears the moment we show up. Isn't it a bit suspicious that a complete newcomer suddenly triggers the appearance of the 'boss room'?"

There's no need to worry, is there? Just fudge it casually.

I just hope you can accept it smoothly.

...

The secret chat ends here.

According to Haruna, our privacy is only guaranteed within the inn.

Opening the door to the "Bamboo Course," we step outside.

There, we encounter Ichii-kun—whose real name is Ichitaka Kobayashi—carrying a chocolate parfait that's melted into a muddy mess.

"Ah... uh, hey, sister."

He gives me his usual distant expression. Maybe he's just shy.

"Off to go hunting now?"

"Something like that."

"Can I come along?"

After slowly dragging the parfait into his mouth, Ichi-kun stood up.

"...No, thanks. As I said yesterday, we handle things on our own."

"Come on, just a short walk with us won't hurt."

"Sorry, but I don't like kids."

The "Gambler" gives me a teasing challenge that makes my heart race.

Ichi-kun seemed slightly annoyed, but—

"...You're the one who's the kid."

He didn't seem overly emotional about it.

Apparently, it wasn't worth getting truly angry at a kid-like "Gambler" with a child's appearance.

"Anyway, whatever you say, I'm coming with you."

Ichi-kun didn't back down at all, grabbing the "iron sword" nearby.

"Cheh."

The "Gambler" clicks their tongue, clearly annoyed.

Then,

"Troublesome. —This guy was waiting for us all along."

"Wait, really?"

"The chocolate parfait melted, wasn't it? That's proof he's been sitting here for a while."

"Maybe he just likes eating melted chocolate parfaits."

"...You..."

The "Gambler" shrugs their shoulders and lets out a deep sigh.

"Ah, whatever. Even if we knew their moves, we'd still be no match for them anyway."

"That's a classic villain line signaling defeat, you know."

"Shut up."

As we quietly exchanged words, Ichi-kun hurriedly followed us out of the Adventurer's Inn.

▼

Later, after some time.

"Hey, miss."

Ichi-kun suddenly spoke up.

"What is it?"

"Your sword... could it be... 'Murasama'?"

"Yeah."

"That's the one, right? I heard it cost over ten thousand gold..."

He compared it to his own "Iron Blade" (120 gold),

"...still, the edge feels different, doesn't it?"

He asked, his tone clearly driven by pure curiosity.

Incidentally, his job is the same as mine—“Warrior.” He's mainly fought with swords all along.

"Want to try it out?"

"Eh, really?"

"Go ahead," he said.

The "Gambler" gave me a reproachful look, but I ignored it.

Now that I've left the Adventurer's Inn, I should be prepared not to return for at least half a day. Lingering in an awkward atmosphere isn't good for my mental well-being.

Ichi-kun's expression brightened slightly as he picked up "Murasama." In turn, I took hold of "Hagane no Tsurugi."

"Uwah, wow. Light as heck."

"Try cutting into the dungeon wall with it."

"Huh? The wall?"

"You'll find it really interesting."

Following the instruction, Ichi-kun plunged his blade, "Murasama," into the dungeon wall.

Then,

"W-wait, what's this!?"

The blade sank into the wall as if it were sinking into mud.

"It's... it's so sharp, the wall's just like butter...!"

"Fufufu. Pretty impressive, huh?"

"Seriously? This is insane..."

Ichi-kun's eyes widen. Me, just a bit more nose-high than usual.

Feeling a bit like a proud collector.

"Next time you get a 'Bounce Slime,' can I try it out?"

"Of course!"

"Yay! Thanks, big sis!"

Hmm, hmm.

It's good to be able to say thanks sincerely.

For some reason, it reminds me of my interactions with Ayane-chan.

▼

After that, all the regular appearances of the "Bounce Slimes" were handled by Ichi-kun, so we were able to make good progress with much less effort.

"...Man, there are a lot of these today! I've never earned this much since coming to this floor!"

Ichi-kun, beaming with pride.

His bag was already completely full of gold.

"Could it be, older sister, you're just lucky?"

Well, it's thanks to the "Gambling Master" guy's "Ring of Shura" effect.

"But seriously, you're okay with getting nothing from that share?"

"I'm fine with it. Carrying that stuff around would just be a hassle. Besides, it's Ichi-kun who's directly hunting the 'Bounce Slimes,' isn't it? We haven't done anything at all."

"Well, yeah, that's true... but..."

And then, they spotted the first "Return Point."

A "Return Point" is a blue, six-sided, hollow object floating in midair.

No one quite understands the principle behind its levitation, but it has the ability to teleport anyone who touches it directly to the "Adventurer's Inn."

"...What should we do? Are you heading back, Kazuki?"

"No, if you're not going back, then I'm staying too."

The Gambler gave a clearly annoyed expression,

"Then, alright. Hey, Kazuki, mind lending me one gold coin?"

Hmm? I don't mind, but...

The gold coin thrown by Ichi-kun floats through the air.

The "gambler" immediately flicked it with his thumb upon receiving it.

"!"

At the same time, gold coins fly everywhere at tremendous speed, shattering the "Return Point."

W-what... was that just now...?

The "Gambling Master"'s —《Coin Toss》

"Wha... coins...?"

"Um, I think it's something with monetary value..."

Interrupting my words,

"Hey. Don't go revealing my skill's details without permission."

Ugh.

Such a tightwad.

"Bu-but... why go out of your way to destroy the 'Return Point'?"

"Can't figure out what triggers the 'Boss Room' to appear. Just trying things out."

"Ahh, I see..."

It seems Ichi-kun has readily accepted that.

"We always came back to the 'Return Point' once we found it. We never thought of that approach."

"Right? That's the key—being flexible in your thinking."

...This guy casually lies without hesitation.

"Ah, but maybe that actually is the real answer."

Saying that, Ichi-kun picks up something that looks like a piece of paper.

"Look here, big sis... Something came out from the 'Return Point' we just destroyed."

Hmm?

I didn't hear anything about something appearing after breaking a 'Return Point'...

Well, maybe Hanako just forgot to mention it.

But as I'm thinking that casually...

"What's this...? Huh? Hmmmm?"

Ichi-kun picks up the piece of paper, making strange noises.

"What... is this supposed to mean?"

"What's wrong?"

I move closer to Ichi-kun and examine the piece of paper.

It looked familiar—something I'd seen before.

...That's right.

The very same A4-sized paper that was placed by my pillow when I first arrived at this "Master Dungeon."

It appears to be the same type of paper.

Back then, it had been filled with a lengthy, self-introduction-style message from Nakamichi En.

"...So that's how it began."

This time, the message is brief, stated with such absolute certainty that there's no room for argument.

"Warning. — Name the traitor's name immediately."