I was looking up at the roof.
However, the only thing I could see from here was the fence.
Other than that, I couldn't see anything in particular, and there was no one else in sight.

The current me started from that place. I know that.
But I don't want to go to that place.
This is not the same as fear.
It's just that the more I stare at it, the more I know I'm refusing to go there.
And besides....
There's nothing in there.


'So what do we do now?'

Hmm?　Oh.....

That's when Toa asked me where I was going next.
For now, let's use this one another time.

'Let's go inside the school building. We might find something there.

I don't have anything in particular in mind.
I just don't know where we are, but whether it's the dungeon or the world I was in, we need to move on.



　The four of us climbed up the stairs, which were about the size of steps, and headed for the school building.

''Speaking of which, Nem, how much has your level risen now?''

Then, for some reason, Nem looked at me with a huff.

'What?'　What's wrong with you?

'No, sir!　Nem was waiting to see when the master would ask him about it!

You mean, you were sulking because I wouldn't listen to you sooner or later and that's why...

"So what's the point?　What happened to the levels?

That's the great thing!

Then Nem jumped up and down with glee.
He wanted to say it so fast.

'Nem's levell that was thirteen is now twenty-four!

Hmm?　

Then Nem's expression changed to sadness.
Did I say something wrong?

And then Toa--

'Eleven at a time?　That's enough to make you awesome.

Is that so?

Nem didn't directly defeat them.
He just applied a light scorching spell.
That's probably enough to raise his level.

I looked at Nem again and started over.

'Nem, good job!　Keep up the good work and let's do the next one!

...What...?

Hmm?

Is it true?

Nem looked up at me and peered into my face.

'Honestly? .....

'Is Nem ... is it good for your master?'

Nem said that with a sad look on his face as he looked me up and down.

I've wondered before why Nem is so obsessed with me.
It's true that if I hadn't saved him then, he would have been in a bad way by now.
But since I had saved her, she could have done what she wanted.

'Yes, of course!　Maybe I was taking things a little too far on my own level. Good job!　And that magic was awesome, too.

Then Nem smiled slowly, looking at me.

'Yes nah!　We practiced so hard!

I patted Nem's head.
Is he trying so hard ... or is that for me, too?
Then you have to give him credit.
If it will help Nem grow up.

"Masamune, what's that?

Toa pointed to the inside of the schoolhouse, which could be seen from here.

'It's a clog.'

It was a regular line of clogs that hadn't been lined up in a long time.

'Hmm? ...What...?

Then, from a distance, the shadows of the clogs seemed to move for a moment.
I strained my eyes and stared at the shadow.

'Hey?　That was....

Then a single something appeared there.
A slimy mass of something came out of the entrance of the school building.

'What is that thing?'

Sufilia stared at me too, looking at the same thing I did.

''Sufilia?''　Do you know what that is?

No, I don't know.

I peeked at Toa and Nem's faces while I was at it.
But all three of them apparently don't understand.

''Nem, could you try shooting that sludge with the magic you just used?

I told Nem to give it a try.

''Yes Nah.''　--[Demon Fire (Shlaim)]!

Then three balls of fire appeared around Nem.
The same fire as before.
The fireballs emitted a sound of burning and slicing wind, and all at once flew towards the sludge.
And then it hit the sludge.

''We did it!''

There was a light dusting of dust after the direct hit.
I squinted and waited for the smoke to clear.
Then--.

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no!

The smoke cleared.
Then, there was a myriad of additional sludge that appeared.

And I noticed more.
Inside the school building, beyond the clogs.
--I could see the stairs to the second floor, but it was so dark that I couldn't see anything.
And that "pitch black" was moving slightly.
Yes, the same kind of sludge was moving around to fill the space.

I could deal with it all, but....

''It's nasty.''

What are you going to do?

I look and the three of them are waiting for me to tell them what to do.
Toa asks me.

'Let's go in the other way, it's too much trouble.

This is not the only way to enter the school building.
We could even enter through a window on the first floor.


The four of us left the place and headed for the corridor that led from the gymnasium to the school building.



â?



　--Crossing corridor.

It's a long open-air corridor connecting the gym and the school building.
Although the roof is attached, the rest of the hallway is vaulted.
It's a rather long corridor, passing right beside the school building and leading to several entrances.
It is also facing not only the school building but also the staff building.
You can go directly to the classroom building, but you can also enter the classroom building from the second floor of the staff building.
You can go directly to the classroom building, but you can also enter the classroom building from the second floor of the staff building, but that would be a long way around.

To be honest, I probably should have come this way from the start, but I also wanted to walk through that shoe box for the first time in a long time.
There were so many things going on, and it felt like it was a long time ago that I was a student....

And there was also the fact that the four of us wanted to walk past the clogs.
To me, that unimportant geta-box felt like a school gate, and back then, I would put on my shoes alone every day for no reason at all, just passing through.
What would a normal high school student do?
For example, you run into a friend who happens to be at school at the same time and you say "good morning" to each other in a casual conversation.
For a normal high school student, it's an everyday occurrence and doesn't mean anything.
It's just a normal part of life.
But for me, it wasn't.

For me, it was just a dream.

So the four of us wanted to go there together.
Just like that.




We were walking down the hallway.

"So, what's the funny thing about it?

Toa said again.

'It's out of date, isn't it?

Well, all public schools are like this.

Hmmm........it's kind of like a gulag, isn't it?

Gulag?

That's a stretch.

'It's where they keep the bad guys. I saw a picture of it once.

''Hmm. But I've been working hard here, day in and day out, studying...

When I said that, Toa was impressed for some reason.
Rude.

'Where does this road lead to, by the way?

Well, it varies. You know what? How about we go to class?

Classroom is for Masamune?

Yeah.

There's no particular reason for it.
You don't have to go.
But my feet were already pointing there.



As I walked down the corridor, I saw the entrance to the classroom building on my right and the entrance to the staff building on my left.
The entrance has a glass door, and I can see the inside clearly.
That, so to speak, is the entrance room of this school.
And if you cross it, there is a doorway leading to the outside.
On the other side of the doorway is the road.
But there is not a single car there that should be running, or a single pedestrian that should be walking, that I can see.
Instead, there are bloodstains, puddles of blood, and the bodies of those who are supposed to be challengers lying around.

'Let's go...'

Toa saw the bodies lying around, and he turned to leave immediately.

We went upstairs from the staff building to the classroom building, where each classroom is located.
These two wings are connected by the first and second floors.



As soon as we entered the classroom building, we saw a classroom on the right.
There are desks with chairs and a blackboard.
But there are no students in sight.

I'm not sure if this is in the dungeon after all.

I thought again.
I kept wondering which one it was, to be honest.

'Really? .....

'Yeah, I don't see how it can be this empty. If it's evening, there's usually someone around.

But there's no one here but us.
This is crazy, right?
--A ghost school.

Sure. Speaking of which, it's deserted, isn't it?

Yeah, there are dead bodies.

When I said that, Toa looked uncomfortable for a moment.

'Don't ... don't remind me too much. I'm trying not to think about it.''

"Huh ... that was pretty gross, wasn't it?　Come to think of it, if it's a dungeon, didn't you say before that the monsters would turn into particles and disappear?

'What?　Was it?

'Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's what happened in the dungeon I was in before, but the minotaur from earlier didn't disappear, did it?'

'Come to think of it...'

Toa once told me that the monsters in the dungeon disappear after they are defeated.
He said he had read that description in a book.

''Well, whatever.''

Whether it disappears or not, it doesn't matter either way.
Unless it's just about the secrets of this dungeon....



Passing a few classrooms, we continue down the corridor.
Then--.

"Masamune--

Yeah, I know.

--There was a monster.

That's....

We hid behind a pillar.
And then we saw the monster, crawling through the blood on its slippery legs.
You have to look hard.

"An undead species, a walker.

Sufilia said in a whisper.

Well, if I had to describe it in one word, it's a zombie.
No matter where you look at it, it looks like a zombie.
That's the only one walking in front of the stairs that connect the first to fourth floors of this wing.

Is that a common name for a walker?

Yes, from the looks of it, I'm pretty sure it's Walker.

What are these undead species?

'It's one of the categories of monsters. The undead are basically believed to be born accidentally through the medium of a corpse. Their characteristics, as you can see, are rotting bodies and this awful smell.

Sufilia covered her mouth and nose with her hand as she said this.

''I'll do that one by myself, the two of you aren't going to do it anyway, are you?''

Like Sufilia, Toa also covered his mouth and nose.



Nem looked very pale and wobbly.

'Nito-sama?'

Hmm?

As I stepped forward to approach the zombies, Sufilia called out.

''The Holy Attribute is effective against the undead species. However, the Holy Attribute is a Priest's unique magic, so.......

Well I've got one for you then.

I pulled out The Wrath of the Saint from my inter-space storage.

'What's that? .....

Toa asked.

'It's a wand I found in a dungeon a while back. With it, even I, a healer, can use attribute magic.

Hmm. That's unusual, isn't it?

Come to think of it, Zeke said something like that too.

'I won't do it?'

I don't need it.

I leaned away from the pillar, showing Toa a light smile, and stepped forward again.

Then, after taking five steps forward, I looked back.
It was because I felt somehow uncomfortable.
I didn't hear any footsteps other than mine.
It was as if no one was behind me.

--I'm sure you'll be able to see the three of them hiding behind a pillar and not moving at all.

'Hey!　You guys should come, it's not safe for the three of us to be alone.

I called out to all three of them in as low a voice as possible so that the zombies wouldn't notice.

Then Nem was the first to wander up to me, wandering over to me.
Following him, the two behind him slowly walked over to me.

'What are you doing?'

Because I don't want to get too close.

I told you to stay with me.　You'll get used to it.

Tor plucked his nose, a little exaggeratedly, and let me see the smell.
I grinned at him.
I pointed my wand at the first zombie.

Now that I'm here, I realize there's a bathroom right next to the stairs.
I can't see inside due to the hazy glass door, but I can see a shadow in there.

[Saint Shine]

A yellow glowing ball was released from the tip of the staff.
It hit the zombie's head and its head exploded.


-- "With the defeat of Walker , the [Goddess' blessing] has been activated. Please choose your loot."


The first skill is 'binge eating'.


-- "I have mastered the skill [binge eating]."
-- "With experience gained, you have leveled up from Lv:812 to Lv:909.


The popped pieces of flesh created an even worse stench.

''Speaking of which, as I recall, to the skill...''

I opened my status and fished through some skills.

'What's the matter...?　Master Nito.

Sufilia managed to ask me through a series of sobs.

'No, there must still be a few more in the toilet... there were...'

I used the skill 'washing' and washed the surroundings.
I had completely forgotten that I had these skills as well.

'How's that?'　It's a little better now, isn't it?

Then, as Nem realized with a huff, he moved his hand away from his mouth.

"...it's all right!　It doesn't stink anymore!

Then, following Nem, they both removed their hands from their mouths.

'Really!　I can't smell it!

Apparently, the two of them are fine with this.
Terrible skills!

How did you do it?

Toa asked me, surprised.

'I used 'washing'

Do you mean cleaning skills?

Oh, I forgot I had it. In the meantime, I'll have this on hand at all times while I'm on this floor, so it'll be a lot better, right?

Then the three of them took a deep breath with a refreshed look on their faces.

'You're overreacting,'

'I'm not exaggerating!　It was a terrible smell!

Nem, unusually, poked at me.

'Well, Nem has a keen sense of smell.

Nem can't help it.
But the two of them need to learn to be a little more patient.
And Sufilia was raised in a greenhouse.
From what I've heard, the Toa would be similar.

''Well, let's go get rid of the rest of the zombies. Though they're only Lv:450 zombies.

Nem will do it too!

Why don't you give them three guys a go?

Toa's expression was as strong as ever when he heard the level.

''Nito-sama, after all, I (I) am fine too. Let me think about it again when something more affordable appears.

That's what Sufilia said, too.
Let me think about it again," said Sufilia, "that's equal to not doing it.

Well, I don't know, maybe there is no such thing as "affordable"?　And this is a dungeon.

When I say that, Sufilia only smiles bitterly.

She doesn't seem to be interested in fighting anymore.
If possible, though, I'd like you to raise your level a little for future adventures.
Well, but even a graze could be fatal, and if it's a level, you don't have to be in a dungeon to raise it.

''Then that's fine, just don't leave, okay?

I didn't pursue it much at first because I was nervous, but apparently not even when the tension was released.

'So, Nem?　I'm going to open that door right now, and then you're going to shoot your magic as fast as you can.

Yes, sir!

Nem raises his arms and replies in a whisper.

'By the way, Nem.　Can you use holy attribute magic?

It doesn't work...

Then Nem said this with a sad look on his face.

'Yay!　It doesn't matter!　Then the fire magic from earlier is fine!

I understand!

Nem nodded.
Whenever something happens, he immediately looks sad.
Well, that's how much he wants to respond to me.
But why is that?
I feel like Nem is manipulating me for good........

'And I know you're trying to live up to my expectations in a lot of ways, but Nem has already done enough to exceed them. You need to relax your shoulders a bit. You need to relax, or you're going to have to get yourself out of trouble. Well, I'll protect you, I guess.

I understand ... you have to try!

Nem's voice gets even quieter as you get closer to the door where you can see the shadows of the human form.
I guess he can sense the presence of the guys in here.

I then move closer to the door, with Nem waiting behind me.
Then I put my hand on the door.

Let's go then, shall we?

I gave Nem a quick look.

"Just take the first shot. I'll hold them off. Once you fire one shot, you need to step away.

Yes, sir.

And I opened the door.

Now!

[Shrime]

The moment it is opened, Nem releases a spell.
It hits the zombies that were lurking in there in droves.

Good!　I'll do it!

At my signal, Nem retreated and the two of them moved away, their faces twitching reflexively.

.................Now it should be okay.

''【Revolutionary Wave of Erosion 《Disparage Aura》!

I stepped behind the door (inside the toilet), deploying my erosional magic.