5-4 Dread

Today as well, we set out to investigate the dungeon.

Was it already my eighty-third day since coming to this other world?

It was already late March, and the weather had turned pleasant.

But a tense mood hung in the air, completely unlike the mild early-spring atmosphere.

Adros, one step from disaster!

Berglit-kun seemed to have finally gotten used to teleportation magic.

Now we could summon a dungeon specialist whenever we wanted.

With a faintly dark grin, I headed to the fifteenth floor, where I believed the chimera I first defeated had appeared.

I checked, but there was nothing suspicious.

We went on to the sixteenth floor as well.

We thoroughly searched the lowest level where the dragon “family” had appeared, along with every other location Berglit indicated, but we found nothing abnormal.

Berglit, the dungeon-specialist civil official; Antonio, the veteran adventurer; me, with special sensing; Mari, who had lived here for a thousand years and could be called the dungeon’s ruler.

The fact that this lineup still couldn’t find any irregularities—that itself was an important investigation result.

For now, we decided to suspend on-site investigation.

After returning, we reported that to His Majesty the King, and Berglit would compile a detailed written report and submit it.

We all received rewards, and Antonio even had additional merit credited.

This would count as achievements for the Orston House he planned to reestablish.

But I didn’t let it end there.

Probably because I was a Seventh Sense user.

No—wrong.

Because I was a person living alongside the “being” called the Seventh Sense.

“Antonio. Stick with me a little longer.”

“Hm?”

“There’s something I want to try. It might be a wasted trip. But there’s a chance it turns into a fight, so I want to bring only you.”

“Understood.”

I still wasn’t satisfied with this outcome.

There was something I wanted to check, just a bit more.

“Mari, wait at the guild.”

“Sure. I’ll have some tea while I wait.”

Come to think of it, could Mari fight?

Well, if she’d been shut inside the dungeon for a thousand years, she was probably fine.

And right before I first met her, I’d sensed the presence of an overwhelmingly powerful being.

The Seventh Sense had, anyway.

She was strong, that lady.

She wasn’t even human, after all.

We teleported into the dungeon.

I immediately began radar map searching.

The keyword I used was: “People who bear hostility toward this country.”

On a hunch, I tried searching that.

We had no idea what the enemy might do.

Antonio was my insurance.

I tested the search floor by floor from the top.

And then—there was a hit on the forty-seventh floor.

So someone like that really was in the dungeon right now?!

I teleported closer.

We hurried toward the location, and the two of us approached quietly using invisibility, presence concealment, stealth, and the like.

He was in what looked like a room.

‘What is that guy doing?’

Was he burying something like a stone?

Then, when his work seemed finished, the man gave a creepy grin.

I recorded everything on video.

It seemed the magic effects even extended to items like a video camera.

If someone highly sensitive to gazes were secretly being filmed, they might notice.

Especially since my “lines of sight” were brutally sharp.

But the man was completely absorbed in his work and didn’t seem to notice us at all.

He pulled another stone from a bag in his pocket and looked thoughtful about what to do next.

I immediately stored one of them in my item box just by sight.

What was this?

I thought about appraising it, but—

In the next instant, the man vanished!

D-damn it.

Teleportation magic.

Right—this wasn’t something only I could do.

It was something that existed in this world from the start.

I’d forgotten!

I expanded the radar map across all floors.

In a place like a dungeon, the resolution got badly blurred, but it still revealed the general direction.

There.

Probably just below.

If I knew he was definitely there, my ability could narrow it down.

With Antonio, I jumped to the nearest teleport point.

And then we ran again.

Running always made us slower.

It helped that both of us wore magic armor built for speed.

But we finally found him.

He was burying something again.

“Stun.”

I hit him with a surprise attack.

He clearly hadn’t expected to be tracked and hunted down by a “foreign otherworlder’s” abnormal search ability.

He’d been fully immersed in his work.

The defenseless man collapsed on the spot.

We confiscated everything he carried and bound him tightly.

Then I sealed his magic with my custom “spell canceller.”

A standard collar type I’d made.

I’d figured a case like this would happen someday, so I was glad I’d prepared it.

It detected the activation of magical power and rapidly triggered repeated dispels in a ready-to-cast state.

Of course, it was my SP Dispel.

With an ability like his, if he used teleportation magic, he could escape in an instant.

Then we dug up what he had been burying.

From there, we returned to the royal palace and handed the man and his belongings over to the Kingdom’s Knight Order.

With their permission, I kept several of the stones.

I wanted Lior-san and the Guildmaster to look at them too.

I appraised the stones as well.

I hurriedly burst into the royal palace’s audience chamber.

I’d teleported directly into the chamber.

Normally, magic was restricted inside the palace, so that shouldn’t have been possible, but for some reason I could do even that kind of outrageous thing.

“Do you realize where you are?! Such insolence!”

A royal guard posted in the audience chamber reprimanded me.

Apparently, he didn’t think I had teleported in.

Well, normally you shouldn’t be able to use magic there.

“That’s not the issue. This is serious!”

His Majesty tried to calm me.

“What is it, Alphonse? Compose yourself.”

“Forgive the interruption during an audience. We found this in the dungeon! A suspicious man was burying these stones. We captured him and handed him to the Kingdom’s Knight Order. This is an item that triggers a stampede—and it’s mass-produced!”

“W-what?!”

Even the king’s face went pale at that.

“How many have already been planted… We confirmed at least one has already been embedded. By now, all of it has likely been absorbed into the dungeon and has begun taking effect. That man was using teleportation magic. Please make absolutely sure he does not escape. I’ve put a magic-sealing device on his neck for now, but—”

“Teleportation magic?!”

Oh, that was a good reaction.

Was it really that rare?

Sorry, Your Majesty.

I use it like it’s everyday life.

In fact, I’d used it to get into this audience chamber just now—but apparently no one had noticed that far.

“I’m going back to check again, but I can’t guarantee what state the dungeon is in!”

With that, I withdrew from the audience chamber.

His Majesty was deep in thought with a grim expression, and the chamber had erupted into chaos as the knight order and others moved hurriedly.

Then, together with Antonio—who I’d left waiting outside the palace—we headed back to the dungeon.

There was an intensely ominous presence inside.

I knew it without needing logic.

“Hey… be careful.”

Even I couldn’t help being cautious.

“Yeah. I don’t need you to tell me—this is…”

Antonio frowned as well.

As expected of a seasoned adventurer, he could sense the presence of abnormal monsters even from outside the dungeon.

“If it’s bad, we pull back.”

“Of course.”

Before going in, we decided to confirm with skills.

Even Antonio’s face looked pale.

On the radar map, the cave was a solid sea of red.

Not just “red dots”—the map was filled with writhing, shifting reds of different intensities.

Gah—this is—

“All those clustered red marks are monsters. The density is so high it’s not even clear whether they still count as ‘dots.’ The inside is already packed full of monsters. And—ugh—there are tons of huge red marks too. Those are probably A-rank and above. Ha…”

I let Antonio see it in a visualized form as well.

Recently, I’d learned how to do tricks like that.

“I-if all of these spill outside…”

In response to my dry laugh, Antonio spoke in a grave voice.

I saw Eri, Paul, Marie, and the kids’ faces flash through my mind.

We had to withdraw for now.

I gave up on recovering the stones.

They had probably already been planted throughout the floors—or at least in every key location.

The mana that had been gradually raised must have finally surged like a swelling wave, and this last push had been the finishing touch.

By now, the stones had been absorbed into the dungeon and were massively boosting monster generation.

So I acted selfishly.

Either way, it was already too late.

First, I went to pick up Eri’s family.

“Eri!”

“Huh? Al big brother, what’s wrong?”

“Just come with me. Everyone else too.”

“W-what? What?”

“Hurry!”

“O-okay. Got it.”

Eri was confused at first, but when she saw my desperate expression, she started preparing.

I’d already given them an item box, so most things were inside—just light packing.

“Let’s go.”

Once everyone was ready, I teleported us to Elmia.

“Whew—teleportation magic all of a sudden… that really surprised me.”

“Surprised.”

“Me too!”

They were all startled, but I didn’t give them any choice and teleported straight to the church in Elmia.

“Huh? Isn’t that Alphonse-san? What happened?”

“Yeah, I don’t have time right now. Sorry, but I need you to look after these people for a while. I’ve given them supplies and preparations.”

“I-is that so… understood.”

“Sorry. I’m in a hurry, so I can’t explain leisurely. I’ll come pick them up later. See you!”

It was a sudden evacuation, so both sides were shocked, but the priest readily agreed to take them in.

After that, I quickly went to report to the king.

That it was completely too late.

That a stampede was only a matter of time.

His Majesty’s expression hardened.

As the nation’s leader, he was being forced to choose whose lives to sacrifice.

“We will prioritize defending the royal capital. We will not send soldiers to Adros.”

After quietly closing his eyes once, the king delivered a harsh decision in the next moment: defend the royal capital.

He abandoned the outcast city of Adros without hesitation.

As a king, it was a natural decision.

If anything, the speed of that decision was worthy of praise.

There was simply no time.

After all, the distance between the royal capital and Adros was only twenty kilometers.

It was questionable whether even defending the royal capital would be in time.

Even if the king gave the order, it didn’t mean all soldiers could fight immediately.

They weren’t in a fully mobilized wartime posture.

If a state of national emergency had already been declared, it would be different—but in peacetime, all they could do was deploy the standing rapid-response forces.

And those forces, not being in the midst of strict wartime training, would be weaker than a full wartime deployment.

From here, orders would likely go out to the national army, to the private armies of nobles stationed in the royal capital, and to ducal knight orders as well.

They must be panicking.

There was no way evacuating civilians outside the capital would make it in time.

If people were told about this, they’d just panic.

It would only hinder defense.

They’d have to issue a curfew and keep everyone inside their homes.

It would also be impossible for civilians to flee the royal capital on their own.

Refugees would jam the three gates not facing Adros, panic would erupt, and even the army would likely get trapped at best by the second defensive wall, unable to move.

If I remembered right, the upper gate was reserved for the royal family, so only two gates could really be used.

Next, I went to the Guildmaster of the Royal Capital Adventurers’ Guild and explained the situation briefly.

Then I regrouped with Mari as well.

“This is…!”

Even the Guildmaster had to think hard before asking.

“What are you going to do?”

“Of course I’m going to the dungeon. I don’t want that Adros city we finally made more livable to get crushed over some stupid scheme.”

“I see. Be careful. We’ll issue an emergency quest and gather people to respond.”

“Got it. Then here—consider this a donation.”

I left a huge amount of potions and other supplies.

Then, with Mari and Antonio, the three of us teleported to Adros.

First, I told the dungeon gate guards what was going on.

They looked shocked, but only raised their eyebrows slightly.

They’d apparently already heard that large numbers of monsters had been coming out.

Everyone who had been inside had already come out, too.

Adventurers—fast at running away.

In this case, that was convenient.

I also told the two gate guards that no reinforcements would come from the royal capital.

And that even if they fled, the king would not punish them.

But they’d already made their decision.

They didn’t move an inch.

“We are the gate guards here.”

I couldn’t stop them after that short reply.

They wore the pride of men staking their lives on their faces.

Then… we had no choice but to protect them, no matter what.

I contacted the Adventurers’ Guild in Adros as well.

Everyone wore grim faces, but no one tried to run.

Incredible.

And they were all adventurers—my comrades.

Good company.

Just in case, I asked Mari too—she was, in a sense, a resident of the Adros dungeon.

“Can you do something about this?”

“It’s a bit difficult.”

Then it couldn’t be helped.

Looks like I had to use my specialty again—dirty, underhanded methods.

I didn’t want anyone to die.

I’d already decided what I was going to do.

It would be a fairly harsh path even for me, but if it didn’t work, then the only option left would be a huge fight outside.

And I didn’t even want to think about the number of casualties that would cause.

In such an unfavorable battlefield, even my combat power would be heavily limited.

I couldn’t deal with spiderlings scattering in all directions by myself.

I had to crush the egg sac before it burst.

So I had to charge straight down the dirty road and see it through.

“I see. Then I’m going.”

Antonio looked startled when I said it so abruptly.

When he started to say “Me too,” I stopped him with one hand and gave orders.

“You watch the outside. Take care of Mari too. If it gets bad, I’ll retreat as well. Inside the dungeon, I’m going to use something that absolutely cannot be used if people are inside. Even with magic armor, if you’re in there, you won’t survive. Antonio, don’t forget—I’m a dangerously abnormal rare visitor, just like the founding king. We rare visitors are the kind of people who do things you pure natives could never even imagine.”

“Understood…”

He really was quick to accept things—thank goodness.

He didn’t whine or argue.

The best partner I could ask for.

“If things get bad for you too, keep in mind the option of retreating toward the royal capital. Also consider supporting the evacuation of Adros’s residents. Once you reach the capital, tell them I told you to let them shelter inside. If that doesn’t work, we’ll have no choice but to set up a refugee camp in front of the capital. I should’ve asked the king directly, but I didn’t have the presence of mind in the moment. If they refuse to let the residents into the capital, have Mari ask the king somehow.”

I’d heard that in the founding king’s era, during wartime the walls of the capital of Alba served as a shelter protecting the people.

Even the people of the outcast city of Adros were citizens of this nation.

“Yeah. Wrap this up fast, and let’s have a drink at our usual place.”

I raised my hand at that great suggestion from my partner.

We clapped our right hands together—smack—and it burned with heat.

Alright then— let’s have this S-rank rare visitor tear loose against a monster stampede!