First, Level Up (2)

A corridor that had fallen quiet. After a grueling battle that seemed to stretch on forever, I'd managed to clear every single cow monster that had come at me in a wave.

"Huuu… huuu… huuu…"

My breath was heaving up to the very tip of my chin, and my body was a wreck with not a single intact spot. But the sense of accomplishment—that I'd won victory on the back of all that—sent a rush through me.

Indescribable feelings. I'd started at a mere Level 4, and this was the best result I could achieve relying on nothing but raw physical power. Playing through a monitor was clearly on another level entirely.

"Huuu…"

To be honest, it wasn't purely physical strength that let me wipe out every cow in this room. There was some luck involved, sure, but the biggest reason was this──

These bastards' absurdly low levels. I'd figured they'd at least be Level 20, but when I actually checked, they were only Level 5. I only confirmed this after the fight was over. Given the name "Lucky Cow," that room—built like some kind of ruins—was probably a special spot for leveling. It just wasn't what I expected.

"This is kind of anticlimactic…"

To sum up: I'd fought for my life against cows that were only Level 5. The phrase "cutting off one's nose to spite one's face" doesn't even ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠begin to cover it.

After catching my breath, I spotted a glowing chest in the room where the cows had been. Inside was an item that looked quite special.

Two Hearts. A ridiculous item that lets you resurrect once upon death. For someone running through an actual dungeon—rather than a game—there was nothing better I could ask for.

'…At this point, do I even need to rush out right away?'

I'd stumbled into this place on a whim, found a treasure chest by accident, and pulled out this broken-tier resurrection item. Given the situation, there was no way I wouldn't get greedy. I wondered what other treasures might be hidden in the other rooms.

The tension and fear I'd felt when I first opened my eyes in this dungeon had vanished long ago. Without realizing it, I'd started genuinely enjoying the current situation.

"Should I keep exploring a bit more?"

And on top of that, I'd gotten a one-time resurrection item. There was no reason left to fear this dungeon.

—Clang, clang…

I decided to take it easy. There was no fundamental reason to bolt out of the dungeon right now. Besides, if I wanted to find the exit, I'd have to keep exploring anyway. If I thought of it as killing two birds with one stone, I could move pretty efficiently.

…

After quite some time had passed, I was walking through an endless, maze-like corridor. Then I caught a faint trace of human presence somewhere nearby.

"……"

Murmuring from not too far away. Apparently I wasn't the only one who'd entered this dungeon.

"Hmm…"

I felt a twinge of welcome at meeting fellow humans in this world, but worry came first. Their appearance was a disaster, and I had no guarantee they were good people. I was a little nervous about playing it cool and then getting into trouble.

"Kyaah!"

Then, right in the middle of their murmuring, a woman's scream pierced through from nowhere.

From the instant I heard that scream, my hearing sharpened to an extreme. My entire focus locked onto that sound, and I started moving instinctively.

—Clang, clang. One step. One step.

As I got closer in the direction the sound came from, the voices of people grew clearer. Soon I reached the source, and three rough-looking men in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠shabby clothes slowly revealed themselves.

"Hm?"

Drawn by the loud clanging, the three men who'd been facing away turned their heads toward me one by one. The atmosphere they radiated was anything but ordinary. And at their feet, the source of the scream—a golden-haired woman—lay collapsed on the ground, her body limp and slack.

"What the hell are you?"

"……"

A crude, shackle-like necklace was clamped around the woman's neck. The clothes she wore were old and torn, to the point where you couldn't really call them clothes.

"Got some nerve, walking around here alone. What's the big idea?"

"Lost your way?"

"What's with that ridiculously big sword?"

Snide remarks kept coming, but I didn't react to any of them. My attention was fixed entirely on the woman lying on the floor.

"What are you staring at? If you're going to pass through, move it."

It was my first time running into something like this, and my mind went completely blank. Was I really about to witness a bandit's violent scene in a place like this?

"Oi, deaf or something? If you're going to pass through, move i—"

"──!!!"

Squinting one eye, I swung my large sword in a wide arc toward the bandit who was swaggering closer with a rattling posture. I didn't hesitate. The blade wasn't swung to split anyone in half, but given its size, the impact was going to be far greater than expected.

— GWAHAHAARGH!!!!

Just as I'd figured. The bandit, struck by my sword swung like a baseball bat, flew through the air like a plank and smashed into the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wall, looking both pitiful and ridiculous.

"I don't know what you were doing here, but now that I've confirmed you're bandits, I can't just ignore you and walk past."

"Wha… what…"

"Just now… what the hell…"

There was no reason to leave dangerous bandits roaming this honey-pot of a dungeon. While the three of them were in disarray, I quickly checked the information of the woman collapsed on the floor.

The word "Death" was written clearly on her status. A person who had been alive just moments ago had been killed by these bandits.

— WHOOSH!!

The instant I realized that, I gripped my large sword tight and swung it again without a moment's hesitation at the other two. Using a slave as a front to try and conquer the dungeon, and when that didn't work out, trampling her to death in a fit of rage. It was so absurd I couldn't even laugh.

"Stop messing with my farming."

A light haze of dust rose from the brief commotion. The three bandits had been sent flying by my large sword, reduced to sorry states. But I didn't pay them any mind. I walked straight to the woman who had died.

For a brief moment, I thought about whether I really needed to use something this precious here. But the fact that I was entertaining such selfish thoughts in a real-life situation, not a game, was itself a pretty pathetic thing. She may have been a slave, but the traces of her desperately fighting to survive until the very end were clear.

"……"

I gently straightened the crouching figure, then carefully placed the Two Hearts on her chest.

Then, a faint light flickered before my eyes. It grew slowly, warmly, spreading through her body with an overwhelming vitality.

— Sss…

Soon, her chest began to rise and fall again.

The word "Death" had vanished from her status.

"Hm."

I checked her status window and let out a short, disinterested sigh. I'd done what any decent person would do, but I didn't think about what would happen next. Her body was too fragile to just leave here. But taking her with me would bring all sorts of complications.

"……"

An ambiguous situation where I couldn't quite make up my mind. Leaving her here in what seemed relatively safe. Maybe that was the best I could do for now. It would probably take quite a while before she fully woke up, anyway.

'Might as well cover her with my cloak for now…'

I gently draped the red cloak from my shoulders over her, then set off again with a lighter heart. I'd come back to check on her after about an hour. If she was still unconscious by then, I'd go back to exploring the dungeon.

After taking care of things like that, we'd each go our separate ways naturally. That should work out fine enough.