-- After that, Garnet and I decided to leave the Spring Wakaba Tei and head to the nearest dungeon, 'Sundial Forest'.

　I didn't need to think about our next destination, since all the members of the head office were going to the 'Sundial Forest' or the Hollow Bottom Branch of the Adventurer's Guild, which is built on the lowest level of the forest.

　Alexia didn't know the specifics of the labyrinth search plan, nor did she know the whereabouts of Sakura, who seemed to be aware of it, so if she wanted to hear from Sakura, she would have to find out on her own.

　However, it's a question that can be solved by asking any adventurer I know other than Sakura, so even if Sakura were to go away on a request, it wouldn't be a problem.

'Oops, there you are.'

　While descending through the basin-like 'Sundial Forest' covered with trees, Garnett suddenly shouted out on the fourth level before the fifth level, where the branch was located.

　A familiar figure of a woman and a girl in a grassy area off the well-maintained path.
　Noir and Erica were there, diligently collecting medicinal herbs.

'Long time no see!　How you're doing!

　Garnett called out to us and they noticed us too, and Erica immediately ran up to us.

'Manager!　You're too late!
'Bad, bad. The bridge we were going to go over was broken, so we had to go the long way.
It was in the letter, and I know it can't be helped, but ...... there were days when it was pretty last minute, right?
I'll make it up to you, of course.

　As Sylvia had said, the main store's business itself seemed to have managed without collapsing, but it was still giving the staff a hard time behind the scenes.

　Slightly later, Noir catches up with me with a basket of medicinal herbs under his arm.

'...... welcome back ......'
I'm home. You're in trouble.
I'm ...... separate. Erica did a good ...... job, and she was ......

　Erica lightly scratched her cheeks in embarrassment, probably because of the praise Noir had given her.

　According to her, Noir and Alexia were often required to vacate the shop due to their respective specialized skills, and Erica often ran the shop during that time.

'So, are the store managers going to the branch now?　In that case, why don't we go back to rest?
...... Yes, that's right: ......

　The two of them also seem to have decided to stop their work and return to the Hollow Bottom Fortress, so the four of us decide to go down to the fifth level together.

　Behind Garnett walking around while talking to Erica about King's Landing, Noir quietly - I guess he's just talking normally in person - approached me.

'Luke ...... actually ...... interested, deep, I found ...... the material ...... ......
"Sources?

　Noir gave a small nod of his head in a persistent manner.

　From his demeanor and the way he speaks, it seems that this is not a serious topic of conversation, but a mere chit chat.

　He's extremely bad at assertiveness and interpersonal relationships, but since we've known each other for some time now, I've come to understand what he's thinking in a certain way.

"...... old, ...... old, material that was lying dormant in the ...... village hall, I was able to lend and get ...... from

　I don't know if it's a wizard's occupational hazard or a personal hobby of Noir's, but he seems to have shown an interest in a very geeky field.

'Green Hollow's ...... origins ......, various theories ......'

　--Green Hollow Town, according to Noir, grew out of the discovery of a hot spring in the mountains and the gathering of people around it.

　There are many theories as to how the source was discovered and spread among the people.

　The first one is that it was used by hunters and woodcutters to heal their fatigue, and then it became widely known as a secret hot spring.

　The second reason is that the secret hot spring used to be used by hunters and lumberjacks to heal their tiredness, and then it became widely known.

　The second is that a priest of a famous temple was given the location of a hot spring oracle to heal his people who were suffering from an epidemic disease.

　There are many theories on this one, including the fundamental question of which god's priest was the priest, and it is thought that the various temples tried to spread it as an afterthought in order to give themselves a boost.

　And thirdly - the

...... dragon, what is it?
Is ......?
"Decades ago, a ...... lone dragon appeared on ...... the earth, and it was defeated by a warrior who found ...... a hot spring on his way home to heal his wounds... A warrior who defeated it on his way home ...... found a hot spring ...... and healed his wounds... ...

　Noir's tone is dazed, but he made the third theory as clear as possible to me.

It's not uncommon for magical beasts to appear out of dungeons from time to time, and not all dragons appear in the vicinity of ...... green hollow, but when a dragon appears in the vicinity of Green Hollow, you can't help but read too much into it.
It's ......, right ......?

　The fifth level of the "Sundial Forest" we are heading to is connected to another dungeon, the "Demon King's Castle Realm", which is inhabited by a large number of dragons.

　The only way to open the hidden passage that connects the two dungeons is to destroy the wall of the labyrinth, the Millennium Corridor of the Abyss, which can be considered a legitimate route to reach the Demon King's Castle Realm - although it is currently set up so that you can go back and forth freely.

　If the hidden passage is opened, the dragons of the Demon King's Castle Realm will be able to move to the ground.

　The problem is that the walls were built by Mithril and continue to repair themselves due to the enormous amount of earth magic, making them extremely difficult to destroy.

"If the dragons didn't fly in from elsewhere, but appeared via the then undiscovered Sundial Forest, ...... someone who dove into the Millennium Corridor of the Abyss as of a few decades ago succeeded in destroying the wall, or... ...

　I recall the incident of the Night Ripper (Night Ripper) that I was just involved in in the King's Capital.

　The destruction of the walls of the "Thousand Year Corridor of the Abyss", which cannot be accomplished by humans today without using special skills, and the Demon King's army didn't seem to have been able to do it.

　But what about those who are not humans or Demon King Gandalf's forces, but those who have skills that surpass them?

　For example, the true identity of the Night Ripper, the ones who sent the autonomous puppets with personalities that neither humans nor the Demon King's army could ever achieve, are the ones who lurk even deeper than the Demon King's Castle Realm that defeated the Demon King's army in the past.

...... I don't want to think about it being the work of the people behind the 'Demon King's Castle Realm',
"Ah ...... the demon king said, the true enemy ......
''I heard that the adventurers are trying to explore a place deeper than the 'Demon King's Castle Realm', but I hope they don't accidentally run into each other.
"Or, they don't know about ......, do they? ......?　True enemy, to ......
No way!

　I rejected Noir's anxious statement outright.

'Of course they're going to explore it knowingly. I'm sure they'll be happy to climb into it, especially if they've risen to high rank. That's what adventurers are all about.