"Wow… amazing, amazing…"
"She has no vocabulary, does she? It's like she has ants in her brain."
"She looks like she can study well… but maybe it's just her looks. There's this guy in my old class who looked smart, but he couldn't study at all."
Elena's appearance was plain, but with her black hair and neat, committee-chair look, she gave off the impression of being intelligent.
But Daniel knew looks and brains didn't necessarily match.
"I'm not sure about that… but her level of magic seems high. She's not inherently stupid. I just don't want to admit it."
Magic was difficult.
To Daniel, it was like memorizing a complicated formula and then writing it from scratch—numbers and symbols shifting with each spell. Advanced magic was like solving multi-page proofs of math conundrums.
"Can I take this with me!?" Elena asked suddenly.
"Eh… you want that raggedy cloth? If you don't have money, I can buy you new cute clothes once we get out of here…"
What Elena had pulled off the shelf looked like a dirty brown rag.
Daniel hadn't even recognized it as something worth keeping. He assumed it was a cleaning rag and tossed it aside.
—I can't believe she wants that. Did she come from a poor family?
He narrowed his eyes and gave her a sympathetic look.
"Are you pitying me!? No, no! This is real magical armor! Extremely rare and expensive! It can't be reproduced with today's technology!"
"Hee~… What kind of garbage is that? I could at least sew you a rag. I've done it before," Sophia muttered flatly.
"It's not garbage! This is the Robe of Flowing Wind! It has wind magic woven into it. It can make the wearer float a little! Not exactly flying, but close!"
—This rag can do that?
Daniel's curiosity sparked. "Seriously?"
"For real!" Elena nodded eagerly.
"Then I've heard of it. It's an Elven invention, and also a lost technology. Elves live so long they neglect to pass on skills, relying too much on individuals. That's their weakness."
—So, out-of-place relics exist in this world too. Or maybe even more than on Earth. With no digital tech, knowledge transmission was fragile.
"If you want, take it. But can you even use it? It's in shambles."
"I-I don't know… I've never seen a real one before."
"No problem. Even a scrap retains its magic. It'll work, no matter the size. That's why it looks torn."
"Wow… kind of high-tech," Elena whispered.
—Is the robe itself a formula? A magic CPU? Maybe this world wasn't backward—just advancing in another direction.
"Should I try it on? Whoa, it's see-through! This is embarrassing!"
"Not that way, this way. Isn't that too lewd? Sophia, do you want anything?" Daniel asked.
"No. The clothes and equipment you bought me are more important than anything else."
Sophia clung to Daniel and looked at Elena with open disdain.
"It feels like I'm the bad guy for wanting something new… and I've been called lewd so many times already…" Elena mumbled.
"That's not true. But honestly, a man finds Sophia's attitude more pleasing. She's modest—it makes me want to give her even more."
If there were cabarets in this world, Sophia would be a top-class girl. She never asked for anything, but she responded so honestly to gifts that Daniel couldn't help but spoil her.
He once thought such men foolish. Now he understood completely.
—Pretty alone isn't enough, Elena. You'd do better in the sex industry. You'd probably enjoy it, too.
"Alright, let's move on. Don't get separated. I'll lead the way to avoid traps."
"A trap? I don't even know what kind are down here…" Elena said nervously.
"Lots. Pressure plates that shoot arrows, pits lined with spears. Though up here, most are broken already."
Daniel feared traps more than demons. Demons could be fought. Traps killed instantly.
"Then let's put this pervert woman in front," Sophia suggested coldly. "She won't take much damage."
"W-what!? Sophia, don't you hate me too much!?"
"It's not that I hate you. I hate humans. You live short lives, yet you ravage the world without care."
Her face returned to that cold look she'd worn when Daniel first met her.
He understood her, at least partly. Humans didn't change, no matter the world—they preyed on others, took everything, left nothing but misery. He'd once walked away from that cycle. Now, here he was again.
"May I have your attention?" Sophia suddenly said, remembering something.
"Hm? What's up?"
"Considering I'm a slave… doesn't that mean this perverted woman ranks higher than me? Even though she's a pervert? Out in the world, wouldn't people see us as an elf slave, a man, and a free human woman?"
"Yes… Sophia's right. You're a perverted woman," Daniel said.
"Y-you say that too much! Do you have to tack on pervert every time!?" Elena's voice cracked.
—A little pervert? Daniel and Sophia both thought the same thing.
"It can't be helped," Daniel shrugged. "At least I don't think of Sophia as a slave."
"Y-yeah, even if you suddenly say that…"
"You. Become my Master's slave too," Sophia declared, pointing at Elena. "That solves everything. Master and his slaves. I don't mind. Being a slave's slave is fine. And I know slave magic—it was used on me, so I learned it."
Her eyes gleamed with a dangerous light as she glared at Elena.
Daniel considered stopping her—but in truth, he didn't dislike the idea. He didn't want to treat either as slaves, but… if he thought of Elena as his, he'd grow attached faster. He'd already half-decided to steal her from Derek. He was sure he could make her happier.
"I-I'm going to become a sex slave!? No way, I don't like that!" Elena panicked.
"Don't worry," Sophia smirked. "I'll keep monopolizing Master's body. I never said anything about sex slavery. You'll just take care of chores, spring traps, maybe lure monsters. Oh, and… how about dragging iron balls on both feet?"
"I'd rather not! But… maybe I wouldn't mind serving in some ways…"
"You're a dirty girl."
"You're a horny little bitch."
"I-I'm not!" Elena squeaked.
And so, the three of them descended deeper, bickering about filth and perversion.
From an outsider's view, they seemed completely carefree.
But below, something else awaited.
*****
"Get out of my way, you demons! Get out of my way!"
Derek, who was in the lower levels, was moving with simmering ambition and anger.
Accompanying him was a group of five strong men. They were the ones he had scouted on his way to [Sekhmet]. They all believed that Derek was the real [Thunder].
Unlike Daniel, Derek did not hesitate to cut down small, adorable demons as they appeared. All around him, the bodily fluids of the demons splattered, and there was no one alive in the trail that Derek had passed.
His white armor was covered in blood, and it was obvious how he had come to be here.
In order to call himself [Thunder] he wore electricity on his sword, but it was not his original fighting style, so he did not use it in battle.
Derek Lawson, twenty-two years old, was a man with nothing, according to his own values.
He was born as the third son of a count's family.
Even though he was a count, Derek's family was not rich enough to be called one.
By the time Derek was born, they had sold most of their land and lost their ancestral fortune in a business failure.
He was originally a poor nobleman, and because of the noble tradition of the eldest son inheriting everything, he never received any fortune.
The only things he could inherit were his father's arrogance and his martial arts, which he had lost everything for and yet had always clung to as a nobleman.
From an objective point of view, Derek had a talent for combat.
However, that alone was not enough to conquer dungeons. It was a world where talent was a given.
There were a number of things that he lacked.
One was money, one was friends, one was knowledge. And a track record.
As long as he had a track record, he could manage the money and the friends. They would come to him.
But it was a contradictory situation, because he needed a track record to make a track record.
He was stuck in a deadlock.
It was more difficult than Derek had imagined to have a bright future.
No one would accept him with half-hearted talent.
Joining some other party was an option, but Derek didn't think it was a good idea.
First of all, he didn't like the idea of splitting the credit.
Moreover, the credit would be attached to the leader.
He didn't want to go into dangerous dungeons more than once. He wanted to get the treasure in one go and live a glorious life with wealth and fame.
If he did that, he would be able to get back at all the people who made fun of him.
One day, while he was in such a hurry, he heard a rumor that a dungeon called [Ganymede] had been conquered.
However, there was no information about who had broken through it.
The only information that came in was that the person who broke through was called [Thunder].
――This means I can become the real [Thunder].
Thinking of usurping the honor, Derek came forward that day.
He was afraid that someone else might think the same thing as he did.
Above all, he didn't want the real one to come out. If he came forward first, he would be suspected, but he would be able to take over to some extent.
In this world, where there was no Internet or television, most information spread by word of mouth. The power of diffusion was low. In fact, the one who was now called [Thunder] was Derek, and the real Daniel was just a boy.
Of course, he considered the risk.
The real one was a dungeon conqueror, after all. He didn't think he could win in a proper fight. If he was found, he would probably be killed.
Still, Derek had a delusional certainty. ――The real thing will never come out.
The reason why there was no information on the conqueror was not because of information control by the nobles, but because they themselves had not claimed it.
When he heard the information that the nobles were looking for [Thunder], his delusion turned into certainty.
It was a feeling Derek did not quite understand, but he believed this person wanted to hide.
If he flaunted his fortune, the risk of an attempt on his life would increase.
Even if he could win a head-on battle, it would be exhausting to be on guard at all times.
That's why he thought the real [Thunder] had chosen to stay hidden.
"We're going down another level!"
"D-Derek, aren't you going too fast? If we don't take a break, we'll lose energy and magic power――"
"――Shut up! Just shut up and follow me!"
――Achievements! Achievements!
It's the only way to be the real [Thunder]!
Impatience for honor made him ignore reason.
Don't push yourself unnecessarily.
Derek did not even understand such a natural thing.
**********
"We've got a trail of demon carcasses... And they're pretty old. The blood is dry. Maybe it was a day ago. When Elena came to our room, Derek was here. He's further along than I thought."
Daniel observed the demon blood that was spread on the ground.
It was completely reddish brown and rough to the touch. It resembled paint that had dried on a palette.
There were some differences from human blood, and most of it was very sticky. The cracks in the paint after it dried were also very strong, and Daniel could tell that it belonged to a demon.
After wandering around for about half a day, Daniel and the others had gone down two more levels, but they couldn't see Derek's back.
"Isn't this Derek guy actually pretty strong? He can slice through even the biggest demons. Maybe I was wrong."
"Everyone says he's a good swordsman. He has good eyesight. That's why no one suspected that he wasn't the [Thunder]."
The hesitant sword line left on the demon's corpse was not bad, even from Daniel's point of view.
――If his personality wasn't like that, I'd be happy to have him as a friend, this one.
He thought for a moment, then quickly changed his mind. He remembered that Sophia had been made fun of.
"Shall we take a break?"
Daniel called out to Sophia and Elena. Sophia nodded silently. She didn't say it out loud, but she had a look of exhaustion on her face. Daniel had noticed this.
Her elf's long ears were really useful this time, and she noticed the demon in the distance before anyone else did. The traps were also detected by her by listening to the sounds of the underground mechanisms and warning Daniel.
Being on the lookout for traps and demons was far more tiring than moving normally.
The distance they had walked was about fifty kilometers.
As it was a dungeon, the lower levels were not in a straight line. Sometimes it was the same path over and over again, and sometimes another path that looked very similar. Even if the path was only a kilometer long, they might have to move over ten kilometers to get there.
There was a lot of moving up and down, so they were far more tired than the distance suggested.
Daniel didn't talk about it, but he felt the fatigue himself. He was the one who had to be most careful.
Only Elena, who was unaware of such hardships, put on a cheerful face and chased after him.
Elena was walking behind him, so all she had to do was stay alert to the demons that came out.
"I-I can still go! You're not that tired, are you, Daniel? We're either running away from or hiding from most of the demons."
"There's no reason to fight, right? When I have no choice but to fight, I'll fight. I'm not sure why you're taking more risks. Are you a combat freak?"
Whenever Daniel and his friends saw a demon, they would hide in the shadows or lure it into a trap that had been set to defeat it.
Combat was a last resort for Daniel.
He believed that everything that could be avoided should be avoided.
――We'll have to fight them on the last level anyway, so we'll save our energy until then.
Most of the demons that needed to be fought directly were already buried by Derek, so there were few obstacles.
Elena would deal with the occasional demon they encountered with her magic. Even though Daniel had told her to ignore them, Elena was strangely eager to fight.
Elena's forte was fire magic.
Ashes to ashes, she burned demons to the ground.
Daniel wondered if she was cremating them because she had been a grave keeper, but in this world, burial was common.
From an objective point of view, Elena was a dangerous person.
She would gloat over the flames she had set off.
To Daniel, she looked like an arsonist.
Daniel led the way, followed by Sophia and finally Elena.
Suddenly, they heard Elena's startled voice from behind.
"Aahhh!? Noo!!"
"Elena!?"
The floor cracked open, and Daniel saw the moment when Elena fell into the pit.
She sank down with a look of despair on her face.