"Right. Good to see you, Travis."
I returned Travis' greeting.
"Haha, we really are lucky. Who would've thought we'd all end up together? There's Theo, Ralph, Noctar, and even Aisha!"
Travis bead, taking in our assembled team.
In contrast, Ralph stared at with a stern expression.
"...We sure keep crossing paths, Theo."
"Do we?"
I was honestly not sure.
Had Ralph and I crossed paths that often? Our interactions were minimal at best.
Sure, Ralph had been my opponent in the previous practical evaluation, but he hadn't been in my thoughts much since then.
"Seems like lots of familiar faces here."
Noctar swiveled his thick neck, surveying the group.
Then, he looked at Ralph.
"You're Ralph, right? I rember."
"...Forget about the evaluation. I may have lost then, but things are different now."
"No, how could I forget? You gave it your all, didn't you? Even warriors can't always be victorious. The key is learning from defeat. The Great War God once said, 'To be a true warrior, you must accept your past failures.' It was an impressive performance."
"..."
Ralph looked up at Noctar.
A mont later, the corners of his mouth twitched.
"…Thanks, Noctar. To be honest, your match impressed the most. I assud you'd be at a clear disadvantage, but you defied all expectations."
Ralph extended his hand towards Noctar.
"Ha, I can't just lose to a wizard."
Noctar, grinning ear to ear, clasped hands with Ralph.
"..."
They seed to get along surprisingly well.
Watching the pair, Travis, still wearing his broad grin, turned to Aisha.
"But Aisha hasn't said a word? She's the hero who nabbed the culprit of the Magic Dungeon incident. It's fate that we're on the sa team, so don't be shy."
"…Ah."
Aisha's eyes fluttered nervously.
She quickly threw a glance in my direction.
"…Yeah. Say sothing."
I looked at Aisha coolly and urged her.
"I, I'll do my best! This ti, I won't let anyone down!"
"Ay~ What do you an 'let anyone down'? If anyone is a burden here, it's us. Isn't that right, everyone?"
Travis looked at us, his smile unwavering.
"Absolutely. Aisha is ranked 6th overall, but she's also first in theoretical grades, isn't she? To be honest, I struggle with the thinking part. Just tell what to do."
"I agree. A true warrior should use his brain, but it's wise to follow if there's a proven tactician."
Ralph and Noctar chid in.
The two echoed each other perfectly.
"Um, uh..."
Once again, Aisha looked at and started speaking.
"I, I'll give it my all!"
She whimpered, reminiscent of a rabbit terrified of a looming wolf.
It was as if she was broadcasting her fear for all to hear, 'I'm scared~ What should I do~'.
It almost made feel like the bad guy.
Travis and Ralph, confused, offered Aisha their encouragent.
"Haha, Aisha, you must be worn out today~ That's understandable. Being the center of attention can be tiring. But once we enter the dungeon, you'll snap back into your clever, dependable self, right?"
"Aisha always delivers when it counts. We trust you, Aisha. We'll need your skills for the evaluation."
"Ah, ah-"
Aisha seed to be at a loss for words.
"······Hmm."
I felt the need to intervene.
If Aisha continued in this state, it could beco problematic.
"Aisha."
"Yes, yes?! Oh, Theo. You were... uh, saying?"
"······."
Her current state was indeed concerning.
How had such a shrewd character, always so aware of her surroundings, been reduced to this state?
First, I needed to diffuse Aisha's nervousness.
"Co over here for a mont. I want to discuss sothing."
"Uh, uh... Yes, yes."
Her already trembling eyes began to quake as if there was an earthquake.
She responded, yet she remained rooted to the spot, seemingly unable to move.
··· Sigh.
I approached Aisha and whispered into her ear.
─Just act as you normally would. Don't be so nervous.
"······!"
It was only then that Aisha t my gaze and,
"Yes, yes!"
She nodded vigorously, her petite face bobbing up and down.
Roughly 10 minutes had passed.
'Her nerves seem to be easing sowhat.'
I observed Aisha interacting with the other students.
She still wasn't completely relaxed, but... given a bit more ti, she should recover.
Tension can be detrintal to a hero before a mission.
Even hot-headed types like Ralph or Eshild, who charge into battle at the re sight of an enemy, are arguably better off.
"Hmm."
Noctar, who had just been debating with Ralph over whether an axe or a mace was the superior weapon, strolled over.
"Theo. What did you say to Aisha earlier?"
"Nothing of particular importance. I just told her to act as she normally would."
"Hooho─ I see."
"Why do you ask?"
"It's fascinating that a single sentence could ease her tension. It's an unusual sight."
Noctar tilted his head.
"Well, it's nothing really."
I nodded slowly.
"Anyway, it looks like it's about ti to start."
Multiple portals─ entrances to the magical dungeon─ started materializing near the forest.
Shortly after, Rok summoned the students once more.
Naturally, my team was the first to be called.
Rok glanced at our team, more specifically at , and began to speak.
"Team 1, proceed."
"Understood."
Typically, in scenarios involving portals or dungeons, the students with higher ranks enter first.
Aisha was the first to step into the magical dungeon.
In her wake, Ralph, Noctar, Travis, and I made our entrance.
"Phew."
I exhaled briefly, hoping that the future would remain unchanged this ti.
Let's proceed.
"Where are we?"
Upon entering the magical dungeon, Travis surveyed our surroundings.
"During the 'Monster Subjugation', it was in grasslands. But this... it looks like a basent?"
"Umm... Regardless of the angle, it doesn't seem like we're on the surface. A basent more likely."
Aisha's red eyes glittered as she scanned our environnt.
Noctar, standing next to , directed his gaze downwards.
"Theo, is this a basent?"
"Yes."
It's a basent dungeon.
'Luckily, it's exactly the sa as in the original.'
In the ga, the place had felt rely dark and gloomy, but being here in person, it was sowhat stuffy.
'Ah, I need to locate the treasure quickly and escape.'
My body seed to reject this place.
Our team's current location is basent level 4—B4 of the dungeon.
The artifact exploration evaluation concludes when we secure the marker situated on basent level 1—B1 and ascend to the surface.
In essence, the crux of the task is to navigate our way to B1.
With Aisha's [Sharp Vision], it should be much easier.
Her trait exerts an overwhelming influence when it cos to finding paths.
The evaluators aren't fools; they've stationed a guardian at B1... however, with heavy-hitters like Ralph and Noctar, we should be able to handle it easily.
'Good, we need days like this.’
I balled my hand into a fist.
The treasure I need to secure, [Magic Cartridge], is also located at B1.
Just like the previous ti when I acquired [Natural Power], I need to input a special pattern to obtain the [Magic Cartridge].
If you know the pattern, it's relatively simple.
Naturally, I've committed the pattern to mory.
"Umm..."
"Aisha, is sothing wrong?"
"Yes. As you all know, my trait allows to see clearly even in this level of darkness, but..."
"But?"
Travis eyed Aisha with a troubled expression.
Aisha shook her head.
"I can see... but it's not crystal clear. It appears there's so magical device obscuring vision within this basent."
"Ah... No wonder I couldn't see anything at all."
Travis exhaled heavily.
"So, what's our next course of action?"
Ralph swung the mace in his hand, warming up.
"Honestly, at present, it seems we don't have any ideal options. We either dismantle the magical device or we proceed cautiously, learning from trial and error."
Aisha raked her fingers through her hair.
"We're in for a slog."
Travis and Ralph sighed in unison.
"......"
Ah, why can't things ever be simple?
Ti is of the essence.
My objective is to secure the [Magic Cartridge] and simultaneously, rank first.
I cast [Magic Nullification] upon myself.
'Sure enough, there's magic at play in this space.'
Now, I can see with crystal clarity.
anwhile, everyone else is virtually blind.
'It wasn't like this in the original ga.'
From where did this butterfly effect originate?
Of course, it's beyond my capacity to predict.
If I had such an intellect, I'd already have confronted the rascal who hurled into this world.
"Everyone, focus for a mont."
All I can do is do my utmost to overco this hurdle.
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