The Red Crystal Curse

With nothing particular left to do after leaving the Adventurers' Guild, I decided to wander the city and take in the sights.

Karep, the city of adventurers.

Even in the game it had been one of the few major cities, so it was fairly well known. That said, it was also an early-game region, and whenever I'd visited I'd spent the entire time inside ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a dungeon. Honestly, my impression of the city itself had always been pretty hazy.

What am I supposed to do with myself…

While I was still mulling it over, Beatrix let out a soft sound of wonder at the noisy streets around us.

"Truly astonishing. To think so many humans would gather and live in one place…"

You remember what I called this city?

"Do you take this body for a fool? You called it the city of adventurers!"

And what do you suppose a city of adventurers would have?

"You came here with a purpose… so a dungeon, I presume?"

Exactly. A dungeon.

Dungeons endlessly produced a rich resource known as mana stones. Abundant resources meant money, and money, in the end, drew people. That was how the adventurer city of Karep had come into being.

Dungeons mean money. Among humans, that's a famous saying.

More precisely, it had been famous among players.

"Is that so. Money, then."

She didn't know much about human society, but for some reason she was fond of money, so the idea of a place where wealth gathered seemed to make enough sense to her.

Besides, at this hour the streets are at their busiest. That might be why it looks even more crowded.

As a city of adventurers, Karep's mornings were when people heading for the dungeons moved with the greatest urgency. A glance around was enough to confirm it — far more people wore armor of every description and carried weapons than ordinary clothes.

…Just the morning commute, really.

The moment the thought crossed my mind, I almost imagined the weight of a salaryman's woes settling on every adventurer's shoulders. Probably just my imagination. Still, for someone who, right up until the moment of possession, had been fretting over the next day's work, the sight was enough to bring tears to my eyes.

Once I'd had my fill of people-watching, I wandered Karep from end to end. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I bought a decent set of leather armor to wear in place of my ruined plate, and I tried the local specialty — meat skewers with a fiery sauce. I was still burning through my coin and enjoying myself when word came from the Adventurers' Guild.

They had already found an adventurer willing to take my request — and not even two hours had passed.

Faster than I expected.

Maybe it was simply because there were so many adventurers in the city. Or maybe the gold I'd used as a bribe had done its job. Either way, for someone in a hurry like me, it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was genuinely welcome news.

The party the guild introduced me to was a D-rank group calling themselves the Red Wolf Party.

"I'm Zephyr, leader of the Red Wolf Party. Looking forward to working with you."

"Taylor. You understand the request clearly, I assume?"

"…Yeah. The guild filled us in thoroughly. Nothing to worry about."

The man who introduced himself as the leader was a solidly built adventurer covered in tattoos. Late twenties, maybe? He looked a little younger than the face I remembered, but the massive greatsword strapped to his back was identical to the one from the game.

Zephyr led me to a table in a corner of the guild and introduced his party members: a man with a sword at his hip, a woman in tight clothes who seemed to carry daggers, and a figure in a black robe who looked like a caster of some kind.

The Red Wolf Party consisted of two melee dealers, one scout, and one supporter-or-magic-dealer. A classic all-offense composition that had thrown the tank out the window.

Zephyr said they needed a moment to prepare, and we agreed to meet in front of Kir Dungeon before setting out.

"Brat. Those people—"

I know. Don't worry about it.

When I arrived at the entrance to Kir Dungeon at the appointed time, every member of the Red Wolf Party was already there.

"All set?"

"Oh, of course. Thanks to your little consideration, we finished everything."

Zephyr winked as he spoke.

"Then let's move."

I nodded and started walking. Zephyr and his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠party fell in behind me.

My second dungeon expedition had begun.

Once we were inside, the exploration went smoothly.

The monsters that primarily appeared in Kir Dungeon were Scavengers — low-grade beast-type monsters of the same kind the Light of Dawn had once unleashed on the Academy.

—Kyaaak!

—Kya-kyaaak!

I calmly swept my spear through them, cutting the Scavengers down one by one. They had been the first monsters I'd faced after arriving in this world, so the difference in my strength now was impossible to miss.

True to the terms of my request, the Red Wolf Party simply followed behind me and watched my back. They never so much as touched my prey.

"You. Why aren't you using your skills? You could hunt far faster if you did."

I want to save a little mana. We're almost there — just wait.

"Hah. I will never understand you."

I am a complicated man, I'll admit.

After answering her inwardly, I swung my spear at the Scavenger in front of me.

Thwack!

—Keheeeurk!

With its short death cry, the creature's life ended — and a faint tremor ran through the dungeon.

Rumble…

The vibration was brief. In the center of the boss chamber, a portal of blue light took shape.

The portal to the next floor.

"It's been a long time since I've seen someone clear a dungeon this fast. Already almost on the third floor — impressive!"

Zephyr laid it on thick. I shook my head as if it were nothing.

"I'll be counting on you for the rest of the dungeon as well."

I meant it.

"Of course. Leave it to us. Hahaha!"

Kir Dungeon had far fewer monster rooms than the beginner dungeon at the Academy, and the monsters themselves weren't particularly numerous. We reached our destination — the third floor — in no time at all.

As I approached the portal, I carefully drew out an item and drank it where the Red Wolf Party couldn't see.

Gulp.

A message appeared saying I needed 200 MP to fully absorb the effect and couldn't take it all in — but seeing the duration stretch from five minutes to twenty left me a little proud of myself.

"See you on the third floor, then."

After confirming the item's effect, I stepped through the portal.

The space on the other side was a wide cavern like the ones I'd seen in the Academy dungeon. The crystals embedded in the ceiling, however, glowed a deep red, casting an atmosphere of quiet dread over the chamber.

I settled into a familiar spot in the empty room and sat down. For a while, there was nothing else I needed to do.

"You. Is your body truly all right?!"

"Of course it is. It's all part of the plan, so relax. Can't you see this?"

"See what?! You idiot! Looking at empty air — this is serious!"

I tried to show her the hologram floating in front of me, but she apparently couldn't see it.

Well. Nothing I can do about that.

Giving up on calming her down, I simply swiped the endless stream of holograms aside.

Damn, that's loud.

Unlike the game, there was no settings window to mute the alerts. A real shame.

The noisy alarms gradually thinned out, and at last, with one final message, they stopped altogether.

…How long are they going to take?

Even after the item's effect had fully worn off, a good while longer passed before I finally saw someone come through the portal, chattering noisily as they arrived.

"Took you damn long enough. Finally here, are you?"

Zephyr's group — the Red Wolf Party.

"H-how are you still alive?!"

"He's right! How are you still alive?!"

At Zephyr's and Beatrix's words alike, I curled the corner of my mouth into a smile.

"I have no obligation to answer that. Crush the enemy with movements like light."

While they were still reeling, I activated the skill without a second's hesitation. They might have been proper heroes, but they were still low-rank D-class adventurers who had walked in assuming I was already dead — completely off guard.

BOOM—!!

"Gyaaah!!"

The swordsman who took the full force of Ruinous Charge died on the spot.

"You bastard!"

Seeing their comrade fall, the others scrambled to take up combat stances — but I had no intention of sitting still and letting them.

Your turn isn't coming again.

I drove into their midst, gathering mana as I spoke the activation phrase.

"The dragon's roar shakes the heavens."

KRAAAAAAAGH!!!

With the dragon's roar, a storm of mana swept through the chamber.