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

—To split hills, to break through city walls, to vanquish evil dragons.

(Therefore—this sword must strike.)

Their eyes met the lion's.

There was no doubt in those eyes. The light had already been passed on to me.

The clock tower resounded between heaven and earth.

Five minutes. Maximum charging complete.

Staring intently at the enemy figure that the sword could not reach, I detonated the raging flames and unleashed them all at once.

"The Last Flame of the Holy Fire (Argo Vista)"

The fairy leaped back, and the greatsword immediately slashed down.

The condensed energy broke through its shackles, transforming into a fiery slash that shot through the air.

The massive, blazing flames outlined the shape of the slashing light, aiming straight for the dragon's horrified eyes.

Unlike the Knight's Light, the "New Light" cleaves the ominous evil dragon in two.

『Awoooo ...

The centipede was cut in half mid-air, unleashing a deafening wail.

The roar of the raging fire swallowed the dying cry, and the extreme flames spread along the broken end to the whole body. Wherever it went, flesh and blood turned to ashes, until the 'magic stone' was touched by the scorching fire, and a magnificent red lotus flower suddenly bloomed.

Ashes scattered like snowflakes, but the fiery slash that slayed the evil dragon did not stop, rushing straight into the rolling black clouds that shrouded the northern border.

The deep blackness cracked in response to the situation.

On this 'dark wilderness' that should never see the sun, a ray of dazzling blue sky light poured down, like a celestial staircase leading to the heavens.

Nina and I gazed up at the long-lost, beautiful sunlight, lost in our own thoughts.

"...It's a success."

I murmured softly.

The greatsword, now black and charred beyond its limits, hung limply in my hand. I gritted my teeth to keep my knees from collapsing, and my sighs were still devoid of any real sense of victory.

"Yes. You did it."

The knight approached me as I walked through the snow-like ashes.

With a few scorch marks on his silver armor, Professor Leon walked up to Nina and me, who were still standing there in a daze, and stopped, revealing a genuine smile.

"Thank you, Bell. Thanks to you, we were able to defeat the dragon."

Hearing this thank you, a smile finally bloomed on my face.

"Wow, that's amazing, Lapi-kun! No, I mean, Bell-senpai!"

Nina's cheeks flushed with excitement as she ran towards me.

However, my patience had its limit. My taut nerves snapped like broken strings, and my body almost collapsed. Nina, who had been about to take my hand, quickly caught me. As she held me in her arms, I couldn't help but laugh at myself, thinking, "I still wasn't cool enough in the end."

Yet, he still couldn't hide the bitter smile that was overwhelmed by joy.

"That was absolutely amazing. I'm so glad I had this 'adventure'..."

Professor Leon watched over us so gently. He looked up at the sky, where a ray of golden light shone through the torn heavens, causing him to squint slightly. It was as if he were holding the prized fruit of this adventure, marveling at how precious it was.

As I watched him walk away, I couldn't help but think: Just as I expected.

Teacher Leon had long known about the existence of the "Dragon's Snoring" and was also aware that dragons had broken free from their seals.

In fact, he alone would certainly be able to defeat the Centipede Dragon. It can be said that even if an individual stronger than the Centipede Dragon appeared, he would already be prepared to deal with it.

Even so, he still brought us, or rather, brought me here.

So that I could slay that dragon.

In order to allow me to touch even a tiny fragment of 'afterglow'.

And then there's—.

"Even though the city's athletic festival is completely irrelevant now... do you still want to continue the fight, Bell?"

"...No."

"I see. In that case, although unexpected situations have occurred one after another, this was indeed my miscalculation. Let's call this duel a 'draw'. It seems that the battle between Orario and the school district will just end like this."

Seeing that Mr. Leon had no intention of acting anymore, I couldn't hide the smile on my face.

Nina, who was supporting me, seemed to understand everything as well. Her serious personality was now causing her trouble, and she had to desperately suppress her laughter.

—If I were to offer a solution that neither favors Orario nor the school district, and that "could resolve this unrest," would you be willing to help me?

So that's what Professor Leon meant by "the plan" back then.

Using the final battle of the city's competitive festival as a pretext, the dragon that must be defeated is disguised as a sudden "interloper," thus letting the outcome of the battle between Orario and the school district remain unresolved.

But will people really accept this?

Just as I was starting to worry about the adventurers and students watching the battle through the 'mirror,' Teacher Leon spoke up.

"Bell, although it was unexpected, you have already fought the 'Valley' Dragon, so I wanted to ask you, what do you think we should do next?"

"What should I do?"

"Can the adventurers of Orario defeat those dragons on their own? Can our 'school district' alone protect the Nether indefinitely?"

This question will surely be the final topic of this 'field survey'.

As the subject of this investigation, what answer will I arrive at after this trip—that is the last question posed by Professor Leon.

Nina held her breath, staring intently at my profile, but my answer was already decided.

"Even if the most outstanding 'hero' appears... one person alone cannot win."

I gave a wry yet composed smile, towards the wide-eyed girl, the smiling knight, and everyone watching us.

"One person can't do anything. But two people can do some things. Three people can do even more. And if everyone works together... then there's nothing they can't do."

Without the help of Professor Leon and Nina, I would never have been able to defeat that dragon.

Even Leon himself couldn't possibly eliminate all the dragons in the Wind Seal on his own.

We all have limits. This journey made me realize that once again.

So I'm willing to shout it out loud: I want to rely on others.

Because, compared to "one hero", "a group of heroes" is definitely more powerful.

"Is this line from a tale of heroes?"

"Yes. It's a line from Grandpa's favorite book... It just suddenly popped into my head."

That was a message left by a hero in a story my grandfather once read to me in my hometown village.

I couldn't help but feel that this was the perfect moment to say the words I had been keeping in my heart.

"I truly believe... that we cannot win without everyone working together."

Upon hearing this answer, Professor Leon nodded solemnly, seemingly giving him a perfect score.

"I think so too."

"Professor Leon..."

"There are still many people in this world who hate each other and opposing forces. But I hope that one day we can unite as one. After all, as partners facing the same end... it is only natural and beyond doubt that we should all move in the same direction."

During his conversation, he extended his hand to me. And my response was already predetermined.

Professor Leon and I smiled at each other and held hands tightly.

Nina, who witnessed this scene, also smiled broadly.

Although the sky was once again obscured by dark clouds, the warm sunlight shone on us until the very last moment.

Okay

Just as the silent time passed between Orario and the "School District," the words of the god fell.

"As the Knight among Knights said, this match ultimately ended inconclusively. But... Orario, and everyone in the school district, what are your plans now?"

Hermes's affected voice, amplified by the magic stone megaphone, echoed leisurely above the circular arena and arena.

Everyone in the audience looked troubled, or crossed their arms and fell into deep thought, but the deity spoke lightly.

"The Dragon Valley at the northernmost edge of the world is truly terrifying, so frightening. Those monsters need to be dealt with. However, such a person... is destined not to be chosen amidst this constant fighting. This is a divine decree."

The world thirsts for heroes.

Standing atop the temple tower in the "school district," the God of Light murmured to himself, his eyes closed and a smile on his face.

"If you can lower your raised fists, our divine council is willing to intervene and mediate the dispute between Orario and the school district, and offer a constructive compromise... What do you mean?"

They were completely at the mercy of the gods.

An adventurer who hated gods cursed disdainfully.

What a terrible farce.

The still-young students echoed this sentiment, pouting in dissatisfaction.

Therefore, no one responded.

But when faced with the smiling helping hands extended by the gods, not one of them said no.

postscript

When I was in elementary school, I had a teacher I really liked.

Once the teacher gets serious, even if my friends and I work together, we can't catch up with him. He runs incredibly fast and can easily dunk on a basketball hoop that we can't reach at all.

When the classmates were playing and making noise, he would clap his hands with a smile. But when we did something wrong, he would scold us sternly in a loud voice, so loud that it would make our shoulders tremble. I think it wasn't just me; all the other classmates must like him very much.

Back then, I was terrified of jumping over the boxes and couldn't get over them no matter what I tried. My teacher stayed with me, helping me practice until I finally succeeded. The moment I successfully jumped over them for the first time, we were both overjoyed and couldn't help but shout out loud. That scene is still deeply etched in my memory.

But afterwards, the teacher apologized to me.

"I wish I had taught you this sooner. I'm sorry."

At the time, I didn't understand why the teacher was apologizing; the excitement of skipping over it overshadowed everything else. So I just kept giggling like an idiot. But looking back now, it was probably because we always assumed that teachers could do anything. However, in places we couldn't see, the teacher probably put in a lot of effort and thought behind the scenes.

Once, while cleaning, we accidentally discovered that the teacher's lecture notes had been thrown into the trash can. But the teacher wasn't angry; he just watched silently, a hint of melancholy in his eyes. At the time, we saw him as an incredibly mature adult. But to me now, that age seems surprisingly young. Perhaps, compared to us, he was the one who worried more, constantly exploring and trying new things.

Back then, I was immersed in the happy times I spent with my teacher every day, but I never thought to ask him: Why did you choose to become a teacher, and what have you experienced before?

It would be so nice to ask.

I really want to know more about him.

I wonder if it's still too late?

These days, I keep thinking about these things.

While developing Leon, a key character in this volume, I couldn't help but think of my teacher.

However, despite all that, the teacher and Leon are actually nothing alike. They have almost nothing in common. 'The strongest knight teacher I've come up with' is a hundred times more handsome, more powerful, and stronger than the teacher. No arguments accepted.

After all, I've included all my quirks in there! Hahaha, that's just how capricious I am!

In addition, I have always consciously avoided having myself or the people around me reflected in the characters (because I feel very awkward if the character overlaps with someone I know). To be honest, I never thought that kind of writing would be successful.

But for some reason, the name Leon, which I could never write smoothly, would naturally come to mind whenever I recalled my teacher.

That's incredible. Really. Why is that?

If this is proof that my teacher is still silently guiding me, then I really wouldn't be able to hold back my tears.

Encounters are truly wonderful.

We may not realize it at the moment of the encounter, but as time passes, we will eventually realize that the encounter has become an invaluable treasure. This thought has been on my mind as I write this volume.

Finally, although it's a little embarrassing to admit, and it might sound like I'm making excuses, the protagonist's feelings and admiration for that knight perhaps reflect some of my own subjective feelings towards my teacher back then. I'm truly sorry about that.

Now, please allow me to express my gratitude.

First of all, I would like to thank Ms. Usami, who is in charge of this book, for her continued help. I would also like to thank the newly joined editors, Mr. Nakamizo and Mr. Tsukui, for their continued support. And thank you so much to the illustrator, Ms. Yasuda Suzuhito, for bringing such vivid and lifelike images to the characters like Leon with your brush.

This is the twentieth volume of the series, and a limited special edition was also released simultaneously. Many people provided invaluable support during the production process. My heartfelt thanks go to Niritsu-sensei for the cover illustration, and to Taisei Yamachi, Takashi Yagi, Hina Sei Momoyama, Kitsune Fukukatsu, and Kurodeko for their wonderful guest illustrations. I also extend my sincerest gratitude to everyone involved in the production. Although the decision to produce this limited special edition came rather suddenly, and the process was somewhat chaotic, I am deeply grateful for everyone's hard work in ensuring its successful publication.

Finally, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the readers. The main story of DanMachi has finally reached its twentieth volume. It's all thanks to your support that we've come this far; thank you for being with us all the way. If you would continue to accompany me in the stories to come, that would be my greatest joy.