A Glimpse of a Trap and the Tightrope of Caution
A loud *thud* echoed as a hefty chunk of ore clattered out from the stone wall.
“Huh?”
“Mm?”
Both me and the receptionist jolted upright in unison. It was only natural—far larger than anything I’d anticipated. The orb was massive. The receptionist, who’d seen enough upgrades to know the drill, looked genuinely startled.
“J-just a moment. Let’s weigh this ore.”
“I’ll hold it for you.”
“Ah, thank you!”
I did what I always did—gripped it firmly.
“Hm?”
“Why?”
“Oh, nothing.”
…It felt lighter than before. Had I really grown that much?
I set the ore on the scale. The receptionist stared at the reading, then let out a startled laugh.
“W-whoa… You’re really something. You might as well be promoted to S-rank right now!”
“Really?”
“Yes! It’s more than enough! You must’ve trained like crazy!”
I had trained hard.
“Thank you.”
“Then, Adventurer Abel, I’ll record your promotion to S-rank immediately. Please hand over your old guild card and I’ll issue a new one with the updated mark.”
“Here.”
I slid the old card across. The receptionist nodded, smiling.
“Thank you for your hard work! Your assessment is complete!”
“Ah, thank you.”
…Yeah, I really had gotten strong.
It hit home when I saw the numbers. It was all so obvious now.
Sure, I’d been pushing myself since the transmigration. Thanks to Estelle giving me that extra push…
“Um… excuse me.”
“Mm?”
Did I miss something?
I tilted my head at the receptionist. She looked a little embarrassed.
“U-um… do you have time later? Maybe tonight, or tomorrow night…”
“…What?”
I remembered exactly what Estelle had warned me about.
—All women are foxes. You get it?
…Had that been the hint?
I apologized to the flustered receptionist with a smile.
“Sorry. I already have a girlfriend.”
“Ah… ahaha… I see.”
She bowed quickly and hurried off. Alone in the assessment room, I scratched my cheek.
…It was a strange feeling.
#
“Estelle, Celine!”
Estelle and Celine, who were supposed to meet me in the lobby, were standing against the wall, huddled over the quest board.
I walked up with good news.
“I got the S-rank.”
I held up the new guild card. Instead of the usual D, a bold “S” stared back at us.
“Congratulations.”
Celine offered a simple nod. Estelle just grinned at me, eyes sparkling.
“The weak hero has grown so much♡ Good job♡”
…Hearing her praise felt great. Like I’d finally been recognized.
“By the way, you weren’t hurt, right?”
“…Hurt? What do you mean?”
“Um… never mind.”
…Why did she keep guessing so accurately? I was secretly grateful she didn’t push further.
“If you’re S-rank too… that’s good.”
Estelle pointed at one of the boards. Celine checked it and nodded.
“What’s it say? It looks like a nest-clearing quest…”
“S-level quest, you idiot♡”
“…A dungeon?”
Was it the one from the game? Or something else in this world?
I asked Estelle to be sure.
“What’s a dungeon?”
“Dummy♡ Don’t you even know that? Abel, you really lack common sense~♡”
…She’d been calling me dummy for ages. Cute, but it wasn’t a good habit.
I stepped closer. Estelle startled, cheeks pink.
“If you keep teasing me, I’ll scold you at night again, you know?”
“…W-what are you talking about!?”
Her face flushed bright red as she looked away.
…This teasing felt way too good. It was kind of satisfying to realize why she always did it.
I let Estelle’s embarrassment slide and turned to Celine.
“Dungeons aren’t just one kind of monster—they’re places where many types live together. That’s why nests with Mothers count as dungeons too.”
“I see.”
So these were the dangerous zones where monsters swarmed.
“The quest requires at least two S-rank adventurers. That means there are Upper-class monsters—trolls, probably.”
Upper-class… With a blessing I could probably cut through them easily, but this quest was for training. No blessing today.
Could I even fight without one?
“Also, Your Highness, dungeons are very different from open battles. It depends on the layout, but this one looks like a cave from the description. There might not be enough space to swing your sword freely.”
“The walls could block you?”
“Exactly. Adapting your swordsmanship to the limited space is part of the training.”
I’d have to be careful. Still, Celine explained it well. I wasn’t sure how much she really knew compared to Estelle, but she was definitely smart.
…Only I was the dummy.
“…I guess I really should study more.”
“Hm?”
“I feel like I know nothing.”
“You’re the hero. You’re supposed to know nothing about this stuff. It’s only natural. Saintess does tease you, but she understands.”
True, but I couldn’t ask every day. And they couldn’t stay with me forever.
It wasn’t that they were abandoning me—it was that something might happen and they’d have to step back for a bit.
“Estelle, should we do this quest?”
Estelle, who’d been twisting her body like she was imagining something naughty, snapped back to reality when she heard me.
“Yes?… Ah, yes. Guild registration first, then we head out.”
“Alright.”
She left to report to the receptionist. I wandered over to Celine to look at the other boards. Most were clearly S-rank requests.
“Speaking of which, what’s this one?”
“An ogre has appeared in the mountains. Eliminate it.”
“How many S-rank adventurers do they need?”
“At least three.”
Three? So ogres really were that strong. Back then, I’d probably only beaten one thanks to a blessing. It was like a cheat skill.
…Wait a second. What happened to Estelle when she took down an entire ogre pack alone?
“…Now I’m a little scared of you.”
“Hm?”
I looked worried. Celine tilted her head, having missed the conversation.
#
The dungeon lay deep in the mountains south of Bourbon City, right at the edge of a waterfall cliff where the river met the range.
“Right there?”
“Yes, that’s it. Your sight has improved a lot, Abel♡”
…You’d have to be blind not to see the kobolds right in front of the entrance.
“You said dungeons have many monsters, right? How do they usually clear them?”
“Ehehe♡ Looks like you’re ready to ask useful questions now♡”
“…Do I really look that stupid?”
“Ehehe♡”
…That was harsh.
…Would I really get scolded at night? It was scary now, but I’d win when the sun went down.
“No blessing, right?”
“None♡”
I pulled out the Holy Sword. Maybe I could use the serrated edge somehow.
It wasn’t meant for tearing skin, but… I gripped it with the teeth pointing down.
“Let’s start at the entrance.”
“Yes~♡ Do your best, Abel♥”
Estelle smiled brightly, cheering me on.
“…Got it.”
I slammed the sword into the ground with a *thud*.
“Kyiiiik?”
“Kyiiiik! H-humans!?”
The kobolds had spotted me too late. I was already swinging.
The serrated blade sliced through one’s neck. Instead of a clean cut, the skin caught on the teeth and the creature was torn apart.
“Kyiiiik!!”
The one beside me swung its own weapon in the opposite direction and finished the job cleanly.
“…It feels weird. Not the usual swing.”
It was different. For bigger monsters it might be better—deeper wounds, more damage.
Only the kobolds I’d just killed were around. I waved at Estelle and Celine. They nodded and came over.
“How deep do you think it goes? The entrance is pretty big.”
“Not too deep. The quest only asks for two adventurers, and it looks like it can be cleared in a day.”
“Should we go in?”
“Let’s. No point wasting time.”
I led the way. Estelle and Celine followed. The moment we stepped inside, something went wrong.
“Estelle.”
“Mm?”
“Can’t see a thing.”
Blind with eyes open.
Estelle giggled.
“Use magic, you idiot♡”
“Ah.”
Mana. I poured it into my fingers and drew a glowing light orb. A floating ball of light hovered around me, illuminating everything.
It was basically an auto flashlight.
“There’s a lot of dripping water.”
“Looks like limestone. Be careful not to slip.”
“Alright.”
After a few steps, something came into view.
“Kyiiik! Humans! Kyiiik!”
Small green creatures—no bigger than kids—scuttled out.
“Kobolds, but there are goblins too. Multiple species.”
They drooled and hissed.
“Kyiiik! Kill the men, take the women!”
“Kyiiihihih! This is fun!!”
“Ugh, gross.”
Estelle made a disgusted face. Celine looked the same.
The little monsters were hunting for someone.
“Mine!”
“Eh…”
No hesitation. They charged.
Given the narrow cave, I couldn’t swing the sword wide. I stabbed straight down or thrust forward.
Goblins were the weakest rank. They fell easily. I scanned the shadows, but there were no more hiding.
“Everyone down. Let’s move… Estelle?”
“Mine…”
Her face burned red. She twisted her body. Celine glanced away too.
…Was she shy? Why was Celine reacting like that?
“Two adventurers?”
“Ha… yes, coming.”
“…I’ll follow.”
Celine’s reaction bothered me slightly, but I pushed it aside and kept moving.
As we advanced, monsters came at us in waves—Lower-class: kobolds, lizards. Middle-class: hobgoblins, orcs.
We cleared the cave smoothly until we reached a fork.
“What now?”
“We split. One group takes each side~♡”
“Mm.”
We didn’t know how long the paths were. Going back and forth would waste time.
“Time might be short.”
“If you kill monsters faster, we’ll finish sooner~♡”
“Haha…”
Work hard, huh?
“…Alright. Let’s take the right path.”
“Ye~♡”
The right tunnel opened into a huge empty chamber. It didn’t look natural. I tensed.
“…What the—”
Nothing attacked.
“Why is there nothing here?”
“Unknown.”
“Hide somewhere?”
Estelle and Celine scanned the walls too. Nothing. No boss room, no trap.
“Leaving through the center right now would be stupid.”
“True, but if we wait something might happen. I’ll block it.”
That was reassuring.
“Then I and Celine will go ahead. Estelle, stay behind and watch.”
“Got it.”
I took point, Celine behind me, Estelle last. We reached the center. A metallic *clang* rang out.
“…What was that?”
“Hm?”
Only I heard it?
“Something clanged just now.”
*Clang…*
Estelle lifted her head meaningfully. I followed her gaze. Something dropped from above.
*BOOM!!!*
“…Huh?”
#
A massive iron cage had fallen from the sky.
Abel was unharmed. But the two Saintesses behind him were trapped inside.
“Estelle! Celine! Are you okay?!”
“Yes… no injuries…”
*Clank.* Estelle shook the bars. They didn’t budge.
“It was definitely a trap.”
“A trap?”
“Yes. This cage is made of a metal with very high holy resistance. Only used against holy users. How did monsters get one?”
“…So we can’t escape?”
“Holy light magic might work.”
“…Then what do we do?”
Abel was panicking for the first time. Estelle smiled calmly.
“It’s fine, Abel. Don’t panic. Stay calm and look around.”
Abel nodded and surveyed the chamber. Giant figures moved inside. Far larger than humans, each wielding a club.
“…Trolls.”
“Kekel, human brats… You walked right into the trap.”
Trolls. More monsters appeared around them—especially goblins and orcs.
“Kyiiihih! Kill humans!”
“Kyiii! The human looks strong! Guard the sword, kyiii!”
The monsters eyed Abel’s Holy Sword warily. He breathed low, analyzing.
‘Twelve orcs, twenty goblins, four kobolds, two hobgoblins, one lizardman chieftain… and the troll. So the boss is in here.’
Abel glanced back. Estelle hadn’t blessed him yet. That meant…
‘Even without a blessing, I can handle this.’
He trusted Estelle more than his own nerves. He assessed his situation.
He had to protect the two trapped Saintesses. The chamber was spacious enough for a full swing, but protecting someone while fighting was new.
He’d been tense. Then he changed his thinking.
‘…It’s like protecting soldiers.’
Kill the enemies before they reach the protected. Cobolds shooting arrows from above were the priority.
“Haa…”
Abel took a deep breath, then a steady one, and gripped his sword tightly.
“Let’s do this.”
---
**Chapter ends.**