A Chance to Grow Stronger

The next day.

The moment the morning sun ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠rose, I left the hospital without delay.

My attending physician clung to my pant leg and tried to stop me, but staying any longer felt like pure waste of time, so I slipped out at once.

I'm fine. No reason to keep lying around in a hospital bed.

"Haha… When I first heard my heart had stopped, the shock was real."

That was right.

According to Beatrix, I had died once inside the dungeon.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

My last memory before losing consciousness had been Ah, I'm dead, so there was no reason to doubt her words.

My heart stopping had been the spark that jolted the seal imprisoning her, creating some kind of flaw—and that was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠what had awakened her consciousness. That seemed to be the whole story.

After listening all night to everything that had happened to Beatrix, I could not decide whether to laugh or cry.

The one silver lining was that, even after all of that, not a single member of the party had been seriously hurt.

According to the doctor, the girls had only been knocked out briefly by the shockwave of the mana storm; once they came to, they had been forcibly returned.

"Still, the fact that no one else was hurt is a real relief. I should call it a miracle."

The thought that I had survived while something might have happened to them made my head spin.

I would never have been able to hold my head up again for the rest of my life.

To soothe Beatrix's grumbling, I waved the right arm she had restored for me.

"I'm fine. The great Red Dragon King herself fixed me up good as new, right?"

When I asked her that, her voice softened just a little.

Just how easy had it been for this self-proclaimed dragon?

"Sure, sure."

I answered lightly, but I myself had felt to the marrow of my bones that she truly was a dragon.

Status window.

I still remembered how stunned I had been the first time I saw the status window.

Not only had new skills appeared so soon after I obtained a new talent, but an entirely new category—Race—that never existed in the game had shown up as well.

And the race listed there was not even Human.

Half-Human/Half-Dragon.

Whether it was because I had been revived by her power, or simply because she now resided in my body after breaking free of the seal, I could not say for certain. But with the character for "dragon" attached to the race name, Beatrix's influence was unmistakable.

The stat growth is completely insane too…

Skill level-ups and new skills would naturally raise things a little, but the jump in MP especially defied imagination.

A full hundred points had exploded upward in one go.

MP 153 was already on par with the average for active lower-rank heroes in the field.

It was nowhere near a set of stats someone should possess less than a month after entering the Academy.

According to her, the dragon power contained in my skills originated from the sealed Beatrix herself.

Without even realizing it, I had been drawing on her strength all along.

I had already experienced how quickly my mind crumbled when using dragon-related skills, so I understood at once.

That was exactly what happened whenever I used Dragon Blood.

Beatrix explained that I was the vessel containing her. If that vessel remained weak while I kept siphoning dragon power, it would eventually overflow—or shatter completely.

If the vessel merely cracked, she could repair it with her power. But if it shattered, even she would be helpless. That was why she insisted I quickly become qualified.

Grow stronger, huh…

Wait. Right now, that might actually be possible.

A brilliant idea flashed through my mind.

"If I want to get strong fast, there's only one place to go."

I pulled a sheet of parchment from my inventory.

It was the dungeon information I had purchased from Dahlia Campbell of the Information Guild.

Because of yesterday's incident, an imperial audit team had arrived and another school suspension had been declared.

In other words, free time had fallen into my lap—and this was the perfect chance to make the trip.

"It might look meaningless to a dragon, but for me right now it's definitely the place where I can grow the fastest."

Even if it was an early-game honey dungeon, asking whether a being out of legend could grow stronger there was a little awkward to answer.

Besides, while growth was certainly part of what I needed from the dungeon, the real prize was the hidden gimmick waiting inside.

"Ohhh."

So she was capable of normal reasoning after all.

Everyone equally weak before her power, huh.

If anyone else had said that to me I would have scoffed, but after tasting her strength secondhand, all I felt was pure envy.

Gamers were a breed that always chased "first" or "strongest."

And among them, I was the most terminal case of all.

"Alright then—time to get fired up!"

Woohoo—! Growth! Level-ups!

"Ah."

At her words, the tension that had been building in my shoulders inevitably eased a little.

Following the map drawn on the parchment, I arrived at the city nearest the dungeon.

Because it was a city that existed for its dungeon, the streets were packed with far more people than Tirhi could ever boast.

It was the first time since coming to this world that I had seen so many people at once, and I found myself staring in mild wonder—until Beatrix's grumbling voice cut in.

And?

I need to make preparations first if I want to go there.

Just be patient. I know what I'm doing.

Clearing the dungeon alone would be easy enough for me now, but solving the hidden gimmick required five people.

Alright then—time to put in a request.

In the lore of Hero Con Brio, heroes who specialized in conquering dungeons were called dungeon explorers—or simply adventurers.

And the organization that managed those adventurers was the Adventurer's Guild.

That was exactly where I was headed now.

Wonder where it is…

The city was large and complicated, but this was still an adventurer's city through and through.

Following the main avenue brought me straight to the guild building right in the city center.

Even though it was still early, the interior was already bustling with adventurers.

As a new face I drew more than a few stares, but I had long since become a professional at being the center of attention.

Looks of this level could not so much as ruffle my mood.

What are you staring at? What exactly do you think you can do about it?

Besides, I was the client paying the money.

In other words, I was the boss.

As if to prove it, the moment I headed for the request counter most of those gazes simply melted away.

"Welcome to the Adventurer's Guild. What kind of request would you like to make?"

"A request for Kir Dungeon up to the third floor. I'll handle the hunting myself; the hired adventurers only need to step in if I'm in real danger."

"A dungeon escort request, then. For the third floor, would two D-rank or higher adventurers be sufficient?"

"No. I'll pay the advance, so I want four."

The moment I stated I needed four people and set gold coins on the counter, the receptionist looked a little surprised.

"Um… I apologize for saying this, but having more adventurers does not necessarily make things safer."

"I'm well aware. But I've paid, so the request is possible, isn't it?"

Guild lady, I know it's overkill, but I need four.

"…Understood. Then the fee will be fifteen gold coins. When would you like to depart?"

Fifteen gold was such a small amount relative to my current funds that calling it an expense almost felt embarrassing. My wallet barely noticed the hit.

"I'll pay extra. As soon as possible—today would be ideal."

I pushed the pile of coins—now eighteen—toward the receptionist.

A little grease for the wheels.

Three gold was by no means a small sum; she would handle the rest on her own.

I don't have much time.

With no way of knowing when the imperial audit team that had descended on the Academy would finish, I needed to wrap this up and return as quickly as possible.

It was still early morning; if today was possible, that would be perfect.

"Understood. Once the request is arranged, the guild will send a message. Please be sure to check it."

"I will."

Money's power was truly magnificent.

I received not a professional smile but a genuine, heartfelt one from the receptionist, complete with a personal send-off.

This was what flexing looked like.

When a fast and easy path existed, refusing to take it was just a loss.

Money really is the best.