Isekai Yururi Kikou ~Raising Children While Being an Adventurer~ Chapter 494:

Ethan-dono

"I'm sorry for the sudden visit."

Upon arriving at the Dungeon Managent Headquarters and requesting an audience with Ethan-dono, we were promptly accommodated here as well.

"No, no, you are always welco, Takumi-dono and company. So, what brings you here today?"

"We ca to say goodbye before our departure."

"... What?"

When I inford Ethan-dono, who had graciously welcod us, of the reason for our visit, he froze in place.

"Departure?"

"Yes, we’re planning to return to Guardia soon."

"I see..."

It seems that Ethan-dono, too, regrets our impending departure.

"‘E-chan, we’ll co back, okay?’"

"You will… co back?"

"”Yes, we will~””

"Allen and Elena.”

"Conquer everything!’"

“”So we’ll co back.”"

The children, fully intent on completing the Dungeon of Precious Stones, seem to have already decided that we will revisit this town.

"Haha, aiming for full conquest, are you?"

"”Yes, we are!”"

The children struck triumphant poses and showed their determined faces to Ethan-dono. While they tried to appear serious, their expressions were so adorable that Ethan-dono couldn’t suppress his laughter.

"Speaking of which, how many floors of the Dungeon Precious Stones been conquered so far?"

"There are records of the lowest floor being cleared in the past. Currently, the most advanced adventurer party is challenging the forty-third floor."

"‘Forty-three!’"

"That’s tough!"

"We’re losing!"

"Hmm, we’re losing, are we? That is indeed a concern."

Upon hearing that the deepest floor currently reached is the forty-third, the children—and even Kaiser—began to panic for so reason.

"No, no, this isn’t about winning or losing. Besides, since others are already progressing, it technically ans you’re already behind."

“”Ehhh~!””

The children seed genuinely disappointed, perhaps because they were seriously thinking of competing.

"The old records!"

"Don’t count them!"

"Hmm, fair enough!"

"So that’s how it is, huh~"

The children decided to disregard past records and declared that they wanted to be the top among those currently attempting the dungeon.

"”If not counting, can we win?”"

"Who knows? Ethan-dono, what do you think?"

"How far have you progressed, Takumi-dono and company?"

"”Thirty-two!”"

"That’s impressive. At your current pace, I’m certain you’ll catch up if you continue."

"”What if we don’t continue?””

"Then it might be difficult."

"”Ehh~!”"

Well, we’re planning to pause our progress and return ho, after all. When we’ll return to continue the conquest is still undecided. There’s no way we could claim an advantage in such circumstances.

"Currently, the party challenging the forty-third floor consists of nine people: two A-rank adventurers and two B-rank adventurers from the party ‘Thunder Spear,’ along with one A-rank and four B-rank adventurers from the party ‘Iron Hamr.’ This information is common knowledge among residents of this town."

"”Nine people!””

"Yes, a total of nine mbers."

"Ah, so they’re working together."

That makes sense. There’s no need to tackle it as a single party.

"It takes them about a month per floor around the fortieth floor. They dive for about ten days at a ti, searching two or three tis before finding the stairs to the next floor. That’s the general pattern. Of course, the exact duration varies, and they take breaks during their explorations, so it’s not strictly one month per floor."

“”Seven more months?””

"Yes, if everything goes smoothly, it should take about seven more months to conquer the dungeon. However, the closer they get to the lowest floor, the more dangerous it becos, so they’ll need to proceed even more cautiously. This ans it might take up to a year or, at most, two years to complete."

The complete conquest by the "Thunder Spear" and "Iron Hamr" parties seems to be a hope not just for the town but for the entire country. Perhaps the Dungeon Managent Headquarters is supporting them in so way?

“”Oniichan!””

"Yes, what is it?"

"Next spring!"

"We’ll co back!"

"Next spring? Ah, by then, the dungeon might still not be fully conquered."

"”Exactly!””

While we’ll return ho this ti, it seems the children want to revisit this town after the new year to aim for dungeon conquest.

Well, I should probably be thankful they didn’t insist on staying.

"That’s quite far ahead, so I can’t make any promises, but it’s not impossible."

“”We’ll definitely co back!””

"Hahaha~"

The children didn’t seem willing to yield on this.

"Alright, then. Let’s plan to co back next spring."

“”Thank you!”"

"So, you’ll return next year. I’ll be looking forward to it."

We plan to return to Guardia, spend fall sowhere undecided, spend winter in the royal capital as has beco customary, and then revisit the Regulus Empire in spring.

"That’s the plan, then."

"That’s wonderful. We’ll look forward to your visit next year."

Ethan-dono, who had been watching our conversation with a gentle smile, seed genuinely happy about our planned return.

"Umm… what about the permits? Should we return them?"

"There are temporary permits that must be returned after use, but the ones given to you are fine to keep. Just be sure not to lose them. Next ti, you won’t need to wait for a permit to enter the dungeon."

“”Yay!”"

It feels like preparations for another attempt at the Dungeon of the Precious Stones are already underway.

By next year, our guild cards and statuses will likely bear the achievent of conquering an advanced dungeon. I’ll have to prepare myself for the inevitable attention that will bring.

"Thank you for making ti for us, Ethan-dono. Until we et again."

Even though we decided on a return visit, we’re still leaving for now. So, we made sure to bid a proper farewell.

"”Bye, E-chan! Don’t forget to send us updates!””

"Yes, until we et again. I’ll take care of the updates."

The children also said their goodbyes, but they had asked Ethan-dono to notify us via the Guardia Kingdom’s Adventurers’ Guild if the cooperative party made faster progress than expected—specifically, if they reached the forty-eighth floor. From that point, they estimate they’d have at least three to four months to catch up.

Their reasoning and foresight impressed , but I could only leave the Dungeon Managent Headquarters with a wry smile at their growth and cleverness.