Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

Short Sword Oratoria Art Book Bonus: The Track to This Day, An Endless Journey

The Taiwanese version is from the Kingdom of Light

Input: Bored Echo

Ais was walking through the city that day. There was no particular reason; she just felt that the cloudless sky looked particularly beautiful and wanted to take a leisurely stroll before heading to the dungeon.

Central streets, central squares, streets, alleys. Ais strolled through the eastern part of the city, a place she rarely visited. "So there are places like this," she thought, immersed in the novelty, when suddenly she stumbled upon a familiar scene.

"here it is……"

Memories from more than three months ago.

On the day of the Monster Festival, a corner of the main road where the man-eating plant was fought.

This is also the place where Lefia helped Ais and her group with "magic".

The streets, ravaged by the monsters, had been restored to their former glory. The once-cracked ground was now neatly paved with stones, and the half-destroyed buildings, riddled with holes, had been rebuilt. The crowds, as always, moved about noisily. Ais was overwhelmed with emotion at this sight.

"That's... Miss Wallenstein?"

"Ah! Really? Good afternoon!"

"The guild's... Eina and Missia?"

They encountered two guild employees.

The visitors were the half-elf Eina Zul and the human Misia Flot. Ais and Eina were old friends, and Misia was the service window lady who had been quite kind to Ais within the [Family].

Two beautiful women, dressed in neat black tops and trousers, greeted Ais with smiles.

"Going for a walk today?"

"Ah... Eina, what about you...?"

"We are inspecting this area. This area was affected by the Monster Festival incident, so we need to pay special attention."

"The monster escaped then, which is really worrying! I don't know what to do!"

Missia responded to Eina's statement with an "Yeah!" and her petite body suddenly made an exaggerated gesture.

"Miss Ais was so cool back then! She took down one monster after another with a 'bang bang bang'!"

"Missia, isn't that incredibly rude of you?... But I really owe you a lot of help that time. Please allow me to thank you again."

"Thank you so much!"

Eina, who had criticized Missia for not being serious enough, narrowed her emerald green eyes behind her glasses and expressed her gratitude verbally. Ais, who was bowed to along with Missia, looked puzzled.

Ais considered herself, as an adventurer residing in the city, merely fulfilling her natural duty, and was very unaccustomed to receiving such straightforward gratitude. A hint of embarrassment appeared on her usually emotionless face. Just then...

"Big sister!"

「… … ?」

A beastman girl called out from the side.

Ais was initially puzzled, but upon seeing the face of the girl her mother was with, she immediately remembered.

She was the girl who didn't have time to escape during the commotion at the Monster Festival, but was protected by Ais and thus escaped harm from the man-eating plants.

"I was so grateful back then! I've always wanted to thank my older sister!"

The girl was thrilled by this rare opportunity, gesturing wildly to express her joy. Her mother, beside her, also repeatedly expressed her gratitude.

"The older sisters are all so beautiful and cool! I want to be like you! To become a hero who helps others out of trouble!"

With Eina and Missia watching with knowing smiles, Ais, who had been dumbfounded, was finally able to accept their gratitude. Ais narrowed her eyes and smiled.

"Thank you, big sister, for protecting everyone!"

"Where...where?"

Say goodbye to the cozy world above ground and head to the labyrinth.

Ais, who was constantly fighting monsters to hone her skills, soon arrived at the middle section of the so-called "middle layer" of the labyrinth. This was the 18th floor, "Labyrinth Paradise," bathed in the light of white crystal.

The safe floors of the dungeon are filled with magnificent natural scenery. After passing numerous giant trees standing in the center of the floors, Ais heades towards "Rivera Town," where adventurers can catch their breath.

"Hey! Fiora! Long time no see. How have you been?"

"Mr. Perth..."

Walking along the road where exposed rocks and crystals are everywhere, I encountered the head of this inn town, Perse Elder.

The burly, fierce-looking giant sweater spread his arms wide with a happy expression.

"Look, the town that you and the monsters messed up is all back to normal! Don't forget to come back often!"

This town of "Rivera" was also affected by the strange man and the man-eating plant incident, and once faced the crisis of destruction. Now it has returned to its former glory as a bustling inn town, frequented by high-level adventurers. No, perhaps it is even more vibrant than before.

It's easy to imagine that the success of the Loki Familia's "Expedition"—the feat of becoming the first group after the gods and goddesses to reach the 59th floor—still drives the passion of fellow adventurers. After all, this is not only an inn town, but also the world's most beautiful "rogue town," run entirely by adventurers.

At this point, Ais suddenly remembered something and spoke up.

"Oh right, that greatsword of the floor owner—"

The rare loot "Udeos' Black Sword," obtainable only after achieving the great feat of defeating the "Lone King of the Labyrinth" in the deepest area, was previously entrusted to Perse, a weapons fanatic, for safekeeping by Ais.

Ais mentioned to the leader in front of her that he had once made the bold statement that he would turn it into an unparalleled weapon.

"—Hahahaha!? Well, I ran into a little trouble while polishing it. It truly lives up to its reputation as the floor owner's spoils. It'll probably take some more time, so I can't give it to you right away. In fact, it's beyond my control right now—anyway, see you another day!?"

Perth broke out in a cold sweat, then strangely fled from Ais's sight, all the while laughing uproariously, as if trying to brush something off.

Ais tilted her head in confusion.

"..."

Then, slowly.

Ais looked around.

"I'm here... for the first time with that person..."

The red-haired oddball, Revis. Ais first met Revis, who called her "Arya," in this town of "Rivera."

She relentlessly pursued Ais, causing numerous unnecessary disasters and sacrifices.

Ais instinctively clenched her fists, her gaze sweeping over the Crystal Street in Rivera Town, where she had first clashed with Revis. After a brief moment of gazing at the iconic town landmark resembling a crystal canyon, Ais finally took a step forward.

She herself didn't know why she was doing this. By the time Ais realized it, they had already arrived at a tavern in a remote area of ​​the town.

The shop sign hanging above the cave reads "Golden Cellar Pavilion".

"Ah, [Fiora]? Isn't this [Fiora]!?"

"Lulune...Miss Asphie, you're here too."

"Hello. What a coincidence."

Upon opening the door, they encountered a dog-woman with tanned skin, a beautiful human woman with silver-rimmed glasses, and a group of adventurers beside them.

Lulune Louis, Asphie Al Andromeda, and the rest of the Hermes Familia were all inside the shop. They sat around a large table, drinking together.

Lulu, the tiger-woman Falgar, the dwarf Mary, and even the human Nelly—everyone greeted Ais warmly, and Asifi smiled back at her.

"Everyone, what are you all doing here...?"

"Hmm~ We happened to have some free time, so everyone suggested coming here for drinks... saying we should have a big drink for all the guys who are no longer here."

"..."

How could I forget?

The incident that occurred in the 24th-floor grain warehouse.

At that time, Ais and the Hermes Familia accepted adventurers' requests to investigate the "abnormal situation" causing the large-scale appearance of monsters and attempt to suppress it. In the fierce battle with the second monster, Olivas Actor, there were even casualties, who were members of the Hermes Familia.

This tavern was the very place where Ais, Lulu, and the others had agreed to meet. In other words, this was the last tavern visited by the members of the Hermes Familia who participated in that quest; Lulu and Asif came here specifically to mourn their fallen comrades.

Recalling the faces of the adventurers who had fought alongside her, Ais couldn't help but show a sad expression.

"Don't make that face, Fiora. We're not here to cry and whine."

"We must move forward. There's no time for dwelling on the past. So—we can only laugh and say that those guys who didn't get to drink such fine wine were utterly foolish."

Lulune casually waved her hand, and Asphie chuckled in response. Lulune's words were already surprising enough, but the fact that the "omnipotent one" could actually joke was the most astonishing.

However, Ais also realized that they were truly mourning their fallen companions. This was done through mocking their friends' resentment at not being able to drink the fine wine—a uniquely adventurer's way.

Are you all watching? As he said this, he raised his cup to the sky. This clumsy way of paying respects had a very adventurous feel to it.

"[Fiora], if you also miss those guys, then keep going. That will be the best tribute to them."

"Because we are all adventurers."

Asifi and Luluni both narrowed their eyes.

"The scenes those guys never got to witness, the 'unknown' they never got to explore."

"Please have Miss Ais bear witness."

"And then...tell your story to the other side of the sky."

Falgar, Nellie, and Merry all smiled at Ais.

Ais nodded gently at the group's smiling faces, which held a hint of wistful reminiscence.

"OK……"

After leaving Rivera, Ais spent several hours aimlessly gazing at the scenery of "Maze Park" before deciding to abandon her original plan to explore the maze and head back to the surface.

Immersed in my own thoughts, I easily climbed up the floors one by one, until I reached the 9th floor of the "upper level".

After continuing along the only path, Ais stopped. The sound that stopped her wasn't the cry of a monster, but rather the voice of adventurers talking.

Ais tilted her head in surprise—but then immediately looked astonished.

"And I even went out of my way to remind you if you needed a better weapon."

"..."

"For a master like you, finding a weapon that suits your hand is incredibly difficult, isn't it?"

"..."

"So, I'll make one for you as soon as possible."

"..."

Not far away, the person standing shoulder to shoulder with the blacksmith named "Tsubaki" who was wearing an eye patch and talking to was none other than—Otto.

This unexpected combination even interrupted Ais's thinking. On the other hand, since Tsubaki comes from a major blacksmithing faction (the Hephaestus Familia), perhaps as long as she can get a commission and finds an adventurer pleasing to the eye, she will make weapons for them no matter what kind of adventurer they are...?

The defiant half-dwarf, attempting to persuade with an air of nonchalance, was met with the utterly silent boarman. This was perhaps the "strange" sight the gods spoke of. Ais silently drew her own conclusion, but she was still unable to shake off the astonishing spectacle.

"Hmm? Oh, it's [Fiora]!"

At that moment, Tsubaki noticed Ais's figure. To be honest, Ais actually hoped that Ais wouldn't notice her.

The boar-men's gaze followed Chun to Ais, then they silently approached. Ais, snapping out of her daze, instinctively assumed a fighting stance.

"【Fiora】..."

His ruddy red eyes, filled with intimidation, looked down at Ais from a height of two meters. It was the same look in his eyes when the two were facing off with weapons.

Ais and Ota had fought on this floor before.

Ais waited tensely for what was to come.

"I heard the floor owner dropped a greatsword... Is that true?"

Upon hearing this question, Ais simply blinked repeatedly.

He nodded stiffly after a few seconds.

"Do you know what kind of behavior triggers the loot?"

"...Probably because I was fighting alone..."

"I see. Thank you."

Ignoring Ais's bewilderment, Otto walked past her on his own.

He had always harbored intense hostility and tried to block Ais's path, even threatening to:

"We belong to opposing factions; isn't that a perfect reason for a duel?"