My body was wracked with wounds from walking at the front of the pack up to the tenth level.

　Nobody said anything to me, but I thought they should have given me a little credit for making it through the 9th level with little information, but nobody said anything to me.



"Hey, can we take a break?"

　Just a little bit. Just a few moments to breathe and unpack would make all the difference in the world.



"You're slowing me down and you want me to take a break?"



Rock, that's ...... the later you get home, the more danger you're in.



"Hey, did you hear what I was saying?　I just want to get it over with and get out of here."



"Puhahahaha!　He's an idiot. You know what?　How do you get so much hate from your friends?　Hey, you know what?　Why?　You can't read the air so well, it's a story now."



　No one agreed with my idea of taking a break.

　On the contrary, I was accused of taking a break as if it were a sin to do so.



　I wouldn't have been so tired if I hadn't had to carry everyone's baggage, deal with demons, and walk alone in the lead.



　But no one understands that.

　There was not a shred of my effort left in their sense of value.



"Oh, I get it. I'm sorry. Let's go."



"What the hell are you talking about? Emmy, Kara, that's enough, okay?"

　Emmy and Kara are nodding.



"Rock, I wasn't sure when I was going to tell you, but since you're so useless, I'm going to tell you now. We're going to the next stage with Mr. Kidd here. You're fired after this dungeon crawl. You should go back to the village and relax. I'll write them a nice letter. Your friends must be proud of you just because they're all S class, right?　And just being a part of an S-class party, even if only for a moment, is enough for you to be praised back in the village."



"Okay. I'll leave this party when we get out of this dungeon. Emmy and Kara agree with that, don't they?"



　They both looked me in the eye and nodded silently.



"Well, now that we're clear, let's go. No one has ever been able to go further and come back. But we're going to win. Let's just get the hell out of here and go home. We're the best party.



　Isaac called out and everyone raised their fists high in the air.

　It was the same as when we had formed the party in Graela.



　The only difference was that I was no longer there.

　Staring at it, it seems like a faraway story.



　For the boss battle, Isaac and Kid were in the vanguard, with Emmy in the middle doing magic and Kara in the end doing recovery.



　I am told to watch the coming battle from behind Kara.

　I had been allowed to participate at least in the boss battle, but now that Kid has joined, I guess I'm out of the picture.



　I step into the boss's room and see a big dog sleeping there.

"What the hell, the boss of the 10th level is a gray wolf?



　The big dog is a beautiful silver color, and even from a distance you can see its silky fur. Is that the gray wolf?

　A gray wolf is a monster that can be defeated by a few E-level adventurers.

　There's no way they're here.

　And it's not gray, it's silver and white. ...... That's not a big dog!



　That's Fenrir!



　Fenrir is a legendary demon, and no matter how strong an S-class adventurer gets, it's not an easy thing to beat. It is said to be one of the fastest and most powerful demons in the world.

　The only saving grace is that Fenrir is a very smart demon and will not kill you just by seeing you.



　They will often let you go as long as you don't attack them.

　The other adventurers who came here must have been in a hurry and mistook Fenrir for a gray wolf and attacked him. There is no way that a gray wolf could have been here.



　This explains why there was no information on the 10th level.

　If anyone here says he is a gray wolf, he will look crazy, and if he says he is Fenrir, no one will believe him.



　Anyone who would have taken the gray wolf for a fool would have been preyed upon.



"No!　That monster!"

　Isaac and Kid's swords are on Fenrir's body before I can reach them.

　I prayed that the attack would have some effect, but alas, it had no effect at all.



　Isaac's attack was blocked by Fenrir's hard fur and did not reach his skin, while Kid's sword snapped off at the root as a result of his powerful swing.



　I would have pointed this out before I left.

　That's why I told you to take care of your weapons.



　Fenrir, who had been sleeping and ignoring me all this time, wakes up.

"Wooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

　Fear washes over me. Fenrir's yell seems to have the power to turn my state of mind into a panic. I have a certain degree of mental tolerance, so I can get through this, but Kara is shaking so badly she can't move.



　We have no choice but to run away.

　There was no way I could fight in this condition.



　Isaac hesitated, but Kid made a quick decision.




"Isaac, no. I can't fight if my sword's broken, no matter how cool and brave I am. If I can make it this far with this much time to spare, I can try again and again.



"Are you serious, Kid?　We haven't even fought yet.



"No, Isaac's sword has done little damage even in that sleeping state. We'd better run away this time."



"Shit!　I know. Everyone retreat!"



　I lifted a panicked Kara up on top of my head and, since I was the last to leave, I withdrew.

　Emmy seems to be managing to run on her own.



　From behind,

"You're the best at running, aren't you? You're such a f*cking a**h*le!"

　I can hear Isaac swearing.

　It's just that I happen to be in the back of the pack. I don't deserve that much of a complaint.



"It's okay. "It's okay. They've got their roles."

　Kid ran in front of me and suddenly thrust his broken sword straight into my chest.

　My breastplate was shocked by the sword of the hero.

　I quickly covered Kara to keep her from falling, but she too fell to the floor.



　Kid pulls out a spare sword from my bag.

"I have to take the sword the king gave me home with me. I'll give you the rest of my stuff, including some valuables. Please take it with you on your journey home.



　He pulls the sword from my chest and sheathes it,

"Oh, I'm sorry. Should I have at least used the hilt?　No, I don't care. Isaac... now I'm part of the party.



"Of course I am."



Of course I am. - You're kidding me.　We're childhood friends from the same hometown, aren't we?　How could you do this to me?

　His chest is not bleeding from the broken sword, but it hurts like hell.

　But the pain in his heart was more intense.



"Garururu!"

　Fenrir's roar can be heard behind her.



　Emmy runs past me, crumpled by the impact of the sword on her chest.

　Kara, alone, gets up and looks at my bag,

"My dress would have cost ...... more."

　She mumbles, "My dress was expensive," and runs past me.



　I had helped her out of her panic and carried her to the hospital, but all she cared about was her dress.



　Is this really the end? We've known each other since we were kids. We've grown up together since we were little and laughed so much together.



　None of us ever looked back.

　I see. They hated us that much.



　The distance between the four of us is growing wider and wider, and Fenrir is approaching from behind.



Isaac... We used to practice sword fighting together when we were little. We were friends and rivals.

We swore to protect each other no matter who was stronger.



"I'll never let Locke beat you. But if you get stronger, it means our party has a chance of surviving. So let's be strong together."



　Kara, now a saint, was troubled at first by the burden of being a saint, and I was always there to counsel her.

　Now she's a greedy little thing, but she's still a really sweet girl. I told her to help her friends recover when they were injured.

"Rock, you leave the recovery to me. So you have to protect me. I trust you, Rock."



　Emmy, the wizard, was also poor at dexterity and could do everything, but her firepower was not as strong. So we trained together in magic and learned how to increase our firepower.

"I'm not going to let you beat me just because you can do magic. But thank you for everything. You're the reason this party stays together."



　Memories from my childhood run through my head. All I can remember now are the smiles on everyone's faces and the fun we had.



　What the hell? I'm in such a tough spot. I can't seem to hold a grudge against everyone.

　Still, my feelings and everyone else's seem to have drifted apart.

　I can't believe it's going to end like this. I'm not wanted by you people.



　Fenrir slowly walks up to me and opens his big mouth.