Seeing the name that appeared before him, Aaron choked.
Kiana Kaslana, or rather, K423...
Looking purely at the girl's abilities, she was definitely a combat genius.
After all, the Kaslana family bloodline combined with her natural talent was enough to let the girl display considerable strength after training.
But the problem was, that was *after* training.
And right now, it was 2014. At this point in time, she's still just a tuna!
A tuna who has a brain but is usually too lazy to use it, and who has no idea what kind of hardships she's about to face!
"Sigh, why her... Forget it, I won't overthink it."
"At least her physical abilities are fine. I just have to make sure I don't drag her down."
[Teammate confirmed. Dungeon teleportation will commence today at 23:59. Please prepare.]
"Prepare... What else is there to prepare?"
I'll get some rope, a Swiss Army knife... I might not use them, but it's better than not having them when I need them.
I'll grab a few extra bricks, too. They might not be the best weapons in a fight, though.
Dry rations and drinking water are also essential.
And a change of clothes...
Thinking of clothes, Aaron suddenly had a small problem.
After hesitating for a moment, he... right in front of everyone...
—walked into a women's clothing store.
"Um, sir..."
"Oh, I'm buying clothes for my girlfriend. It's her birthday. Her measurements are 84/59/87."
"I need a full set, including a bra and panties..."
Under the store clerk's 'Is this guy a pervert?' gaze, Aaron calmly told his lie while reaching into his pocket.
Then, from an angle no one could see, he pulled the credit card directly from his storage space and placed it on the counter.
"Money isn't an issue. Make it quick."
"...Yes! Right away!"
Watching the clerk's gaze shift from 'Maybe a pervert' to 'Definitely a rich sucker,' Aaron felt a little uncomfortable.
The way the clerk looked at him wasn't the main thing. The main thing was, why did I feel like her assessment wasn't far off?
What a pain. Next time, can't you match me with a slightly more reliable teammate?
If my teammate were reliable, I wouldn't have to worry about all this (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻.
.......................
Same time. Nagazora City.
In Nagazora City, Kiana Kaslana, who was still hanging out with Raiden Mei, suddenly heard a voice.
"Mei, did you hear a weird voice? Something about a dungeon and a teammate, it's so weird."
"No... Kiana, are you tired?"
Looking at her friend, Raiden Mei sighed softly and said, "If you're too tired, let's go home and rest early today. Tomorrow is the weekend. If you want to go out, I'll go with you."
"Eh? I'm not tired. I just thought it was weird... I don't want to go back so early!"
Looking at the amusement park in front of them, Kiana's eyes lit up with a brilliant light, like a small child.
"Mei, hurry up! There's no line right now!"
"Yes, yes. I really don't know what to do with you."
Watching Kiana run off, Raiden Mei smiled wryly and muttered to herself before following after her.
Her friend was great in every way, except that she usually acted like a child who hadn't grown up.
Although Raiden Mei didn't mind Kiana's behavior, in other people's eyes...
Forget it, what others thought didn't matter.
Ever since her father, Raiden Ryoma, was imprisoned for financial crimes, Raiden Mei, having tasted the bitterness of the world, no longer cared as much about others' opinions.
In her view, those who flattered you when you were on top wouldn't stick around after you fell.
No, they'd even turn on you, forget everything they'd done in the past, and kick you a few more times while you were already in the abyss.
It was precisely because she had experienced these things that Raiden Mei cherished her friendship with Kiana Kaslana so much.
Nothing else mattered.
As long as Kiana was happy, nothing else mattered.
........................
That night, after washing up, Kiana Kaslana, exhausted from a full day of playing, changed into her pajamas, shouted "Yahoo!" and jumped onto her bed.
"Speaking of which, that voice I heard at the amusement park today... I think it said something would happen at 23:59? Whatever, I'll just ignore it. It was probably just my imagination."
"But the time now is... ah, it's already 23:58? It's so late."
"Whatever, I don't care. I'll sleep first. Tomorrow, I'm going to play my heart out again!"
[Ding! The time has come! Teleportation beginning.]
Before Kiana could react, she suddenly felt the space and scenery around her distort.
When she came to her senses, she had been transported from her apartment to a place she had never seen before.
..........................