The head of their companion, Geurekto, fell to the ground.
"......."
The adventurers watched that sight in silence.
At the gruesome spectacle, some shed tears while others were filled with regret.
Everyone wept soundlessly.
"N-No way...."
Iseurin muttered as if she couldn't believe it.
Who was Geurekto?
Was he not a warrior boasting an enormous physique and tremendous strength?
His personality might have been taciturn, but having him by your side was like having a reliable comrade.
Above all, he was a Silver-grade adventurer.
And such a person was taken down by a mere orc?
Generally, orcs were 2-star monsters.
A 2-star monster wasn't even a match for a Silver-grade adventurer. It was a fight that a Bronze-grade adventurer could handle.
But the result now was completely different.
Iseurin looked around.
She could tell just from seeing the monsters positioned widely around them.
They were waiting, poised as if merely awaiting the orders of the orc that had felled Geurekto.
'As expected, that orc is controlling the monsters in the vicinity.'
It wasn't an ordinary 2-star orc.
It was far stronger.
Perhaps she should have intervened in the battle earlier.
If she had used magic, perhaps at least Geurekto wouldn't have died.
'No, that's not right.'
But she shook her head.
Suppose she had saved Geurekto that way.
Then what about the remaining monsters?
Would those numerous orcs and goblins have stayed still?
No matter how much she thought about it, it wouldn't have been the right answer.
Likely, the others would have suffered harm from the monsters beginning to run amok.
Of course, that didn't mean the current situation was fine.
As a result, Geurekto had lost to that orc, and no one knew what would become of those who remained.
If there was any fortune to be found, it was that the orc facing Geurekto possessed intelligence.
At least they could communicate, so there might be room for negotiation.
Iseurin looked at the orc.
It had definitely said its name was Seukol.
It hadn't been long since the battle ended.
The orc called Seukol was so composed; she had thought it would at least be gasping for breath.
On the contrary, it was leisurely gathering spoils of war.
"Equipment used by an honorable warrior... I shall take this!"
Seukol picked up Geurekto's greatsword and shield that had fallen to the ground.
"Uwooooooh-!"
When it raised the weapon, the monsters surrounding them let out cheers.
'What should I do?'
No answer came to mind at all.
The others were the same.
"Wh-What should we do?"
Nariel, who had been trembling beside her, opened her mouth.
But in the current situation, nothing came to Iseurin's mind either.
She could only stare at Seukol standing before them.
Seukol was clearly different from other orcs.
Not only was its frame massive, but its face was covered in scars.
And what of its fluttering red hair?
Its very presence looked extremely threatening.
'Can we survive?'
In this situation, could they really escape unscathed?
Iseurin watched Seukol, trying to find an opening.
By chance, Seukol was surveying the weapon it had acquired.
"I have decided to respect this warrior!"
"U! U! U!"
With every word Seukol spoke, the monsters around it responded.
Seukol looked at Geurekto's fallen corpse on the ground.
"This warrior's honor must be known by all!"
After babbling such strange words, suddenly it lifted Geurekto's head.
Just what was it doing?
"......."
Iseurin, and of course the adventurers as well, quietly awaited Seukol's next action.
But what followed was truly a horrifying scene.
Seukol lifted Geurekto's head and began attaching it to the plundered shield.
"Huh?"
Someone voiced their confusion.
They were probably all thinking the same thing.
Seukol attached Geurekto's head to the plundered shield.
And as if showing it off, it raised the shield high.
"Uwooooooh-!"
Geurekto's head was attached to the shield.
Urk—
The adventurers gagged at that sight.
Meanwhile, the surrounding orcs cheered even louder.
It had definitely spoken of honor.
It had said it would spread Geurekto's honor.
"What kind of honor is there in that?!"
Iseurin couldn't understand.
Without realizing it, she shouted in that instant.
At her cry, those who had been cheering fell silent.
And everyone's gaze turned toward Iseurin.
"I-Iseurin..."
A frightened Nariel clung tightly to Iseurin's side.
But fortunately, the monsters didn't move.
Only Seukol shook its head and opened its mouth.
"This means I have acknowledged this warrior! This is a sign of respect passed down among warriors!"
She couldn't understand Seukol's words.
But she had no intention of continuing an argument here.
It was a waste of time.
Above all, it was their turn now, so she steeled herself.
'Should we launch a preemptive strike first, or should we just run...'
Several options appeared in her head, but they were all reckless ones.
The adventurers too were all in a panic.
Having witnessed such a bizarre scene made it even worse.
Their thoughts weren't so different from Iseurin's.
'- We have to run.'
Now it was a situation where they had to fend for themselves to survive.
But this was a mountain range.
Even if they ran, could they safely get past this many orcs and goblins?
On the other hand, attacking first was also a foolish choice.
Rather, running in different directions was a way for some to survive.
Just as the adventurers' deliberation was stretching on.
Seukol's mouth opened.
"You are no longer needed."
"?"
What had that thing just said?
Iseurin's thoughts momentarily stopped.
"Can't you hear? You are no longer needed. You may go."
She hadn't misheard.
Seukol, as if they truly weren't needed, took only the weapons and the shield with Geurekto's head attached, and departed down a different path.
The monsters followed behind it.
The suffocating gazes that had been upon them until moments ago vanished in an instant.
"Hoo—"
"W-We lived?! Are we okay?"
As the orcs and goblins left, the adventurers collapsed in their spots.
They had been lucky.
"......."
Leaving the adventurers sighing in relief behind it, Seukol advanced forward.
And then it spoke to the existence beside it.
"Report to the Administrator! Heh, this Seukol has dealt with one adventurer in an honorable manner!"
It was a shadow.
Having heard Seukol's words, the shadow soon disappeared.
After confirming that its form had completely vanished, Seukol muttered to itself.
"Indeed, is the Ruler testing us?"
Seukol had not spared those adventurers out of mere amusement.
It was precisely because of the Chief Administrator, Sellia's, request that it had simply followed the order.
The order the shadow had brought was singular:
If adventurers came, not to annihilate them all.
Before this, an inspector had come.
The Ruler was likely measuring their usefulness.
"I must stand by the Ruler's side unconditionally."
Others might not, but Seukol itself would remain by the Ruler's side.
What could be more honorable than being loyal to a Ruler who respects warriors?
The objective had been achieved anyway.
This much should have earned a good score with the Ruler.
Seukol raised the shield with the honorable warrior's head attached and set foot toward its dungeon.
* * *
The surviving adventurers walked and walked.
What had happened moments ago was truly lucky.
Iseurin recalled the recent events with a question in mind.
'To think the monsters would just let us go.'
Come to think of it, it had been absurd from the start for the orc to propose a one-on-one duel.
Thankfully, they had overcome one crisis, but the problem lay ahead.
What were they to do now?
Iseurin glanced back.
The other adventurers had long since lost their will.
She felt she could faintly understand why the Seil Kingdom had forbidden entry into the mountain range.
'A mutant monster appearing... who would have thought.'
The orc named Seukol earlier was definitely no ordinary orc.
A monster that had gained power for some reason.
A so-called mutant.
It was a problem she had never imagined.
And another problem lay ahead.
First, despite knowing this fact, none of them could think of leaving the mountain range.
They had already accepted the commission for an enormous sum.
Giving up here would be fine, but the penalty fee was a concern.
The contract at the time had stated they would face various penalties if they abandoned the mission midway.
Back then, they hadn't intended to give up, so they had signed without hesitation.
But reality was different.
In that reality, everyone's heart had already crumbled.
"Should we run?"
But unfortunately, all of them were official adventurers.
Any noble would have looked into the identities of the adventurers here before entrusting the commission.
Moreover, if they ran away like this now, they wouldn't be able to receive proper adventurer commissions in the future.
That was what nobles were, and adventurers who had lost trust were as good as used up.
Of course, it had been a secret commission, but entering the mountain range was forbidden in the first place right now.
Either way, losing trust as an adventurer was the same.
In the end, they were well and truly trapped.
They had already received the money.
So they couldn't abandon the commission.
Somehow, they had to complete the commission for the remaining duration.
"Why don't we just hide out somewhere?"
Someone said.
It was the opinion that they should hide somewhere for the remaining period.
Some adventurers agreed with that suggestion and nodded.
Everyone knew the mountain range was not in a normal state right now.
So it was right to be more careful.
Nariel and Iseurin beside her couldn't help but agree with that for now.
The current situation was that bad.
On top of that, the sun was setting.
The worst situation would be to greet the night completely unprepared.
Everyone wanted to find a place to spend the night first.
How long had they walked?
Nariel pointed her finger toward the front.
"A cave...? No, is that a dungeon?"
Iseurin said so and approached.
They needed a place to stay for now.
Even if it was a dungeon, it would be better to spend the night inside after subjugating it.
Iseurin and Nariel led the adventurers and entered that place.
"It's dark?"
The inside of the cave was dark.
And very humid.
The further they went in, the higher the temperature rose.
The adventurers began taking off their outer garments one by one.
As they continued deeper, a being suddenly popped out.
"Ppuyo!"
The first to greet them was a slime.
And a large one at that.
"A King Slime...?"
Behind the King Slime, several other slimes appeared.
Slimes of various colors approached the adventurers in a line.
"Ppyu! Ppeup!"
It seemed like the King Slime was saying something, but unfortunately they couldn't understand it.
If there was any fortune, it was that they seemed friendly toward them.
The adventurers followed the slimes deeper inside.
"Huh? It's a hot spring!"
A place with warm water gushing forth appeared.
It really was a hot spring.
One adventurer joyfully plunged into the water with a splash.
Before those beside him could stop him, it had already happened.
"That idiot...!"
Iseurin lost her temper at the adventurer who had jumped into the water.
In a dungeon, one had to be careful of everything.
If you missed even the smallest thing, it would soon result in death.
That was why the action just now could only be called truly foolish.
Still, it was fortunate.
Nothing happened to the adventurer who had plunged into the water.
"You guys come in quick! It's warm and great!"
He even gestured to the other adventurers.
Starting with his words, one by one carefully entered the water.
Truly, nothing happened.
The slimes mixing with the warm hot spring water gave an even more pleasant feeling.
The fatigue accumulated over the day melted away.
More and more adventurers jumped into the water.
As if their worries from moments ago were lies, everyone wore happy expressions.
Iseurin and Nariel could only watch that scene.
"Aren't you coming in, Iseurin...?"
At Nariel’s question, Islin merely nodded.
Then she soon sank down onto the floor.
This was, in the strictest sense, a dungeon.
Therefore, they had to remain vigilant until the very end.
Even if the others did not, Islin resolved that she, at least, would keep her wits about her to the end.
Nariel, too, took a seat beside Islin.
And so the two of them sat quietly, watching the adventurers in the water.
* * *
“So this is supposed to be a report?”
Celia frowned as she looked at the thick notebook the shadow held out to her.
The thick notebook was something the Arc Lich had been carrying around.
She had wanted to hear an interim report, so she had ordered a shadow to bring her the Arc Lich’s notebook, but…
“Why is it filled only with good things?”
This was supposed to be an evaluation record?
“……”
Every single point was listed as positive.
- Information is slow. This is grounds for demerit, but the steadfastness of pursuing the aesthetics of slowness in a rapidly changing dungeon is grounds for praise.
- Though he is the master of the dungeon, he attempts division of labor by separating them rather than seeking harmony. A good attitude.
- Takes good care of his weapons in ordinary times. Good.
- Red-Haired Tribe dungeon, no issues.
“……”
Just in case, she turned to the next page.
- As befits a dungeon master, his roaring appearance is also rough.
He presents a highly threatening appearance to adventurers.
- Sticky Puddle dungeon, no issues whatsoever.
This one was so simple that there were only a few lines written down.
“This really is the record, right?”
Celia was doubtful.
Perhaps Mr. Shadow had brought the wrong notebook?
The latter half of the notebook was even filled entirely with writings praising Master.
- The great, supreme, and magnificent Master bestowed a robe upon me. This is an incredible gift, and I intend to treasure it for the rest of my life.
“……”
For some reason, Celia found herself at a loss for words today.
If he evaluated things like this, it would be difficult to objectively grasp the dungeon’s strength.
Celia wondered whether it was truly right to keep entrusting the Arc Lich with the role of inspector.
Of course, assigning the inspector role had been the will of the great Master, but she could at least make a suggestion.
A short while later, another shadow handed Celia an additional document.
She immediately checked its contents.
The contents were simple.
[Skol defeated the adventurers.]
Skol, who led the dungeon “Red-Haired Tribe.”
A report had come in that he had repelled the adventurers.
It even said that he had defeated an adventurer presumed to be Silver-rank.
“As expected, he must show a figure befitting the mercy of the Great One.”
If one bore Master’s will, resolving something of that level with ease was only natural.
Celia nodded.
At the same time, her evaluation of the Arc Lich rose slightly.
At least when it came to Skol, it seemed he had evaluated him without personal bias.
But even if that was true of Skol, wasn’t the evaluation of the next dungeon far too meager?
The “Sticky Puddle” dungeon.
Celia checked the next part of the document.
[The adventurers who entered the water were dissolved with the slimes’ acidic substance.]
The report was simple as well.
It even said that most of the adventurers had died in the process.
It seemed Mr. Arc Lich had, in his own way, made an objective evaluation.
“……”
But none of this was because Mr. Arc Lich had done well.
Had the great Master not bestowed upon Mr. Arc Lich the role of inspector?
“As expected of Master.”
Celia felt awe at the insight of the Great One.