Chapter 50

Doyugeon was playing a submersion contest with Yumina and then surfaced. With his breath unblocked, he felt alive again.

“Ah, I lost, I lost.”

As he caught his breath, Yumina also surfaced.

“Yet you always win. How do you manage it?”

“Magical Girls go through underwater torture training.”

“Really?”

“Half of it’s a joke.”

Yumina giggled, uncertain whether it was a joke or not.

“Since I won, you’re buying me ice cream. Not now, but when we get home.”

“Ha, fine.”

He tilted his head to drain water out of his ear, relieving the clogged feeling. But now, he felt a bit chilly.

“I’ve been in the water too long. I should sunbathe for a while.”

“Good idea. Anyway, I have something fun in mind. Want to try it?”

“What is it?”

Yumina pointed at Current Sky, who was leisurely reading under a parasol.

“She is leaving tomorrow and hasn’t gone into the sea yet, has she?”

“I can guess what you’re about to suggest. How are you planning to handle the aftermath if you throw her into the sea?”

“It’s fine, it’s fine.”

Yumina chuckled mischievously and waved her hand.

“A girl like her, with her generous grace, would let it slide, wouldn’t she?”

Though Yumina seemed to fear Current Sky, she showed no fear at times like this. She claims that Current Sky is surprisingly kind as long as you don’t cross the line. When asked where the line was, she just smiled mysteriously, so the specifics have never been clarified.

“I’m out. I don’t want to deal with the aftermath, even though it might be momentarily fun.”

“Suit yourself.”

As they stepped onto the sandy shore, Current Sky stood up and handed them a towel, which they used to dry their wet hair.

Yumina approached Current Sky with a bright smile.

“Listen, Young Lady.”

“Hm?”

“There’s an ocean right in front of us. Wouldn’t it be a waste not to go in?”

“Not at all.”

“Not even a little?”

“I don’t need to.”

“Nope. Need arises through supply. Our Young Lady should try going into the ocean.”

“Don’t even think about it.”

Quickly, Yumina lifted Current Sky by her legs and hoisted her into the air. After a brief wobble, she stabilized her grip.

Current Sky panicked.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m offering guidance for a friend in need.”

As Yumina moved toward the sea, Current Sky struggled fiercely. She even attempted to escape using magic, but Yumina managed to restrain her.

“Will you put me down? I’m warning you, I’m furious.”

“Hmm, too scary. All right then. I’ll put you down.”

Upon reaching the water, Yumina bent down, submerging Current Sky’s feet. Current Sky squealed in surprise. Then she begged not to be let go.

“Wow! Our Young Lady is so cute!”

It was true. Every time the water touched her, Current Sky acted as if she were mortified, exclaiming “How could you do this to me?”

“Is she scared she’ll catch bugs while gaping open-mouthed? Or is she just lacking in nutrients?”

When had Laplace approached? He added from the side.

“Watching her, it could be either.”

“…Ah.”

Laplace seemed flustered for a moment, then gulped down his lemonade.

“I have something to discuss. Do you have time?”

“I’m free now, so let’s talk. What’s up?”

“You mentioned you’ve tackled rifts before, yes?”

“A few times.”

“Good timing. There’s been a minor issue with Magical Girl operations lately, so we need someone with experience.”

“I’m not a magical girl, nor can I use magic.”

“For outsourced work, credentials don’t matter. All you have to do is clear designated rifts. You can keep the items that drop.”

Rift clearance could be beneficial. It grants experience and occasionally items from treasure chests. Even with daily free item draws, progress was slow, as it took ages to collect the fragments for any decent item.

“Can you give me more details?”

“For months now, the police have been aggressively dismantling criminal organizations. Haven’t you seen the news?”

“I vaguely remember seeing it.”

“That crackdown weakened the criminal organizations for a while, but now, as if they’ve reached an agreement to make a final escape, fights are breaking out everywhere.”

“So it’s dangerous?”

“Exactly! We take responsibility for maintaining order when the police can’t. Coincidentally, someone modified a slime tracker from the Explorers’ Guild to track Magical Girls.”

“Aren’t slime trackers run on AI and big data? How could that be used for Magical Girls?”

“Still believe in that? Truly, how smart are you?”

Laplace applauded.

“I’ve heard it was impossible right from the start. It must’ve been the white cat giving it to the Guild Leader.”

That sounds plausible.

“At any rate, with so many Magical Girls missing, the manpower shortage is severe. While we can recruit Magical Girls indefinitely, the education process is time-consuming and problematic. We need the rift management to be expedited. We’re too busy to handle it ourselves, so we’re outsourcing. What do you think?”

“As I’ve been planning to level up anyway, it’s an enticing offer. But I can’t clear a rift alone.”

True, though the idea was tempting, clearing a rift alone would be reckless.

“Isn’t there a Great Wizard over there by the sea?”

Laplace pointed towards the sea, where Yumina was spinning Current Sky before tripping and dropping her into the ocean. Current Sky flailed while Yumina, looking pale, took a few steps back and fled. It appeared accidental.

“Current Sky doesn’t like dangerous things.”

“So how have you been leveling up?”

“Managing somehow with excuses and sudden actions. People tend to follow when you initiate something.”

“Excuses? Won’t there be a suitable one coming up soon? I’ve heard from Schrödinger that a 2nd class quest update is scheduled, and it involves rift clearance.”

“That won’t work as an excuse.”

Laplace shrugged.

“That’s up to the person involved. Are you in or out?”

“I’ll do it.”

“Great, contract time!”

Magic activated, and a contract floated down.

“Isn’t using magic for something like this wasteful?”

“You die when you die. Hurry up and stamp it.”

And so, it was stamped.

“But if things are so busy, shouldn’t you be working instead of hanging out here?”

“Exactly because it’s busy, I’m here. Why suffer unnecessarily?”

Meanwhile, Yumina screamed. Current Sky, now soaked like a wet rat, had dunked Yumina into the sea. Perhaps she should intervene.

—

Switching to open beta, the hunting grounds for levels above 25 were now open. While levels leading up to 25 felt relatively familiar, everything beyond that was a labyrinth.

Whether an underground cave or a cave system remains uncertain, but visibility depended on torches randomly placed along the walls. Though the possibility of logging out relieved some of the pressure of getting lost, the gloomy, damp air kept everyone tense.

Additionally, the enemies were skeletons—terrifying when they came in droves. But individually, they were pathetic, easily killed with a spell.

There was someone busily slaying these foes, namely Doyugeon, right before their eyes.

“Do I get any reward for killing them?”

Doyugeon, too focused on slashing, said nothing. His diagonal strike split a skeleton cleanly from the skull to the ribs, but within moments, the bones reassembled, and it charged again. The skeleton lunged for Doyugeon’s arm and was kicked back.

Breathing heavily, Doyugeon prepared to face the relentless attack again.

This situation kept repeating. The skeleton’s attacks were not particularly threatening, but Doyugeon’s sword was ineffective. Other explorers would let the mage take care of it or bash the skeletons with blunt objects. However, Doyugeon only wielded a sword, so neither option was available.

Suggesting that Doyugeon use a shield, only to swing it for melee combat, was met with a ridiculous excuse that it wasn’t stylish. Though he seemed embarrassed as he spoke while hesitating, he was stubbornly set on his choice.

“Ugh! I can’t do this!”

“Well step aside then. Let me cast a spell.”

Doyugeon didn’t step aside but gripped his sword differently and swung the flat side against the skeleton, shattering its skull and finishing it off.

“Why didn’t you just do that?”

“The sword might get damaged this way.”

“Oh…”

That unexpected response caught me off-guard. Perhaps I underestimated him.

“Your gaze is kind of off-putting.”

“Not really, that’s my usual expression.”

Doyugeon felt uneasy and moved towards a neglected treasure chest.

“Hold on. That could be a mimic.”

Doyugeon stopped and shook his head.

“What’s a mimic? We’re only level 35.”

Mimics are level 40 enemies.

“Exceptions could happen, and caution never hurts.”

He threw a bit of magic at the chest, which rolled due to the shock.

Doyugeon muttered darkly.

“I’m worried the items inside might get damaged.”

Items are exceptionally rare in treasure chests. Rare enough that collecting fragments via item draws may be statistically more efficient.

“There won’t be any items.”

“You said exceptions could happen earlier.”

“Let’s let the small stuff slide.”

On checking, unsurprisingly, there were no items.

“Good, nothing got damaged.”

“Is it unfortunate or fortunate there’s nothing?”

“It’s fortunate.”

The sound of rushing footsteps echoed, followed by a swarm of skeletons flooding the labyrinth. A quantity meant not to be slain but rather for retreat. Even with magic, a party of mages would struggle, making escape the best option.

“Are you saying you want to deal with those without magic?”

“Of course not!”

About time he saw reason.

“I’ll shout ‘I can’t do anything without Current Sky’ and you’ll help me, right?”

Doyugeon briefly hesitated then turned to flee. What? Why is he running?

“Are you running because you can’t shout it?”

“This isn’t running. It’s strategic withdrawal!”

“It’s the same thing.”

In the end, after fleeing and getting tired, he used magic to sweep them all away. Though fleeing was the textbook approach, eliminating them directly also seemed viable.

---