Chapter 420

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Dungeon of Scorching Heat

Before heading into the dungeon, we listened to Syl and the other Gods’ requests. After immediately making and delivering what they asked for, we finally decided to head to the “Dungeon of Scorching Heat.”

“Ojiisama, we are off!”

“Obaasama, we are off!”

“Take care of yourselves.”

“Don’t push yourselves too hard and avoid getting hurt, okay?”

“”Ye~s.””

Perhaps because they knew we were going to an advanced dungeon, both Matthias-san and Rebecca-san had worried expressions.

“Takumi-kun, make sure to contact us immediately if anything happens.”

“Takumi-san, take care, okay?”

“Yes. Well then, we’re off.”

We had informed the members of the Ruven and Risner families about the teleportation magic tool and were instructed to contact them immediately if anything happened. Moreover, arrangements were made for exchanging letters between the two families and us through the royal family.

The efficiency of these arrangements left me speechless.

“”We are off~””

With that, we departed and, after a few hours, quickly arrived at the location of the Dungeon of Scorching Heat.

“”We are here~!””

(I’m looking forward to it~)

(Niichan, let’s go in quickly!)

(Krrr~)

As soon as the children reached the entrance, they tried to enter inside.

“Now, now, take a short break first!”

Though they might not have exhausted their physical and mental strength, it was still not advisable to rush in like that.

“Let’s hydrate first. What about snacks?”

“”We will eat them~~~””

So, we took a rest before continuing our journey.

“”Can we go now?””

“Yes, yes. Since this dungeon is hot, make sure to drink water frequently even after entering.”

“”(((((Okay~)))))””

(Krr!)

Just as I was about to say, “Let’s go,” a problem arose.

“”Ah!””

“What’s…—!?”

“””””Uwah!”””””

As we reached the entrance, we collided with people coming out of the dungeon, and they let out surprised voices.

“These are my contracted beasts!”

Seeing them preparing their weapons with surprise, I shouted to stop them.

“… Contracted beasts?”

“Yes. I’m sorry for startling you. They won’t attack without reason!”

I reassured the adventurers, who still seemed half in doubt.

“Phew~ that was close. I thought I was going to die!”

“We were just about to exit the dungeon, so we let our guard down.”

Although we were also completely off guard, it seemed the other party had been careless because they were leaving the dungeon.

“… This is amazing~”

“It’s my first time seeing A-rank and S-rank monsters up close like this!”

“Nono, seeing them up close would mean early death!”

The five male adventurers calmed down and began to observe Joule and the others.

“Ah, sorry. We didn’t mean to stare like that.”

“Umm… it’s your first time seeing them, so…”

I think it’s natural for the people we introduced Joule and the others to be curious. After all, creatures like Fenrir and Celestial Tiger are rarely seen.

As long as they don’t have malicious or disdainful looks, both I, Joule and the others won’t get upset, of course.

“You, are you ‘Setsuna’ by any chance?”

“Huh!? Ehh!? Why!?”

“Oh, did I hit the mark? The rumors were just too spot-on, so I thought it must be true.”

“… Rumors.”

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It seemed they knew about me from the rumors.

They seemed to know about me through the rumors.

“Well… when talking about a ‘black-haired man with a blue-haired twins and several familiars,’ then that would be me, I suppose~”

“Yeah, that’s right. There’s not so many people who would fit those exact conditions. Oh, I’m Siegfried, the leader of the party ‘Ice Blade.’ Call me Sieg.”

The other members greeted us one after another.

They were adventurers stationed in the town of Gista near the Dungeon of Scorching Heat, forming a B-rank party with two A-rank and three B-rank members. They all had a friendly vibe, and the conversation flowed easily.

“Your nickname, is ‘Ice Blade’, Sieg-san!?”

“Yeah, our party’s name doubles as our leader’s nickname!”

“Oscar, you’re so loud! Warren is like that, too!”

“Warren-san’s nickname is ‘Absolute Zero’ because of how cold he is to everyone~”

It seems there are various reasons behind people’s nicknames.

“In that regard, Takumi-kun’s ‘Setsuna’ is pretty cool.”

“… You think so?”

I always thought it was just embarrassing, so I never considered if it was cool or not.

Well, I don’t think it’s uncool, though.

“Nicknames tend to stick and spread without you even realizing it. There’s nothing you can do about it.”

“…That’s true.”

Sieg-san sighed deeply. He didn’t seem completely satisfied with his own nickname.

“By the way, I assume you guys are here to enter the dungeon? You are taking the kids with you?”

“Yes, that’s the plan… But is the dungeon really that hot?”

“Well, at the beginning, it’s not so bad, but it gets hotter the deeper you go. We manage to progress thanks to our ice and wind magic, but it’s still challenging.”

“I see.”

So, the dungeon lives up to its name.

“We’ve prepared some countermeasures, and we have a child who can use ice magic, so we’ll try to go as far as we can safely.”

“Don’t push yourselves too hard.”

“Of course not. Sorry for keeping you guys here for so long. We should be on our way soon.”

“Sorry for keeping you too. If we meet in Gista, let’s have a meal together!”

“Sure, we’d love that.”

As the kids were still waiting impatiently, I decided to wrap up the conversation with the ‘Ice Blade’ party.

“Sorry for making you wait.”

After parting ways with Sieg-san and his party, I approached the kids who had gathered in one spot, and they seemed a little uneasy.

“Eh, what’s wrong?”

(Niichan, I’m sorry for being careless.)

(… We knew there were people in the dungeon, but we couldn’t tell where they were.)

(I never thought they would be this close.)

(I’m sorry, Takumi Nii!)

Joule, Feat, Bolt, and Mile seemed down because they couldn’t sense the presence of others until we bumped into them.

Radian, being a child, didn’t understand why everyone was feeling down. That’s fine. But is it okay for Vector to be so nonchalant about it? Well, he’s Vector, after all… Can I just leave it at that?

“Don’t worry about it too much. I didn’t notice either…”

“Alen didn’t sense anything either~”

“Elena is the same~”

I tried sensing the inside of the dungeon from the outside, and while I could faintly feel the presence of people, I had no idea where they were.

“Joule, could you try entering the dungeon for a bit? You don’t have to go far.”

(Sure thing~)

I had a thought and asked Joule alone to enter the dungeon. As he did so, it became harder to sense his presence.

“Ah~ so that’s how it is after all.”

“”Lost track of him!””

Joule was clearly visible to my eyes, yet the location of his presence was distorted.

“Joule, it’s okay now. Thanks.”

(No problem at all. But it’s strange. Even from my side, I couldn’t really sense you guys well~ And not just your presence, but even your scent!)

It seems that sensing each other’s presence from the outside to the inside of the dungeon and vice versa is difficult.

Truly, dungeons are mysterious places.

“See, it’s not something to worry about. It’s not anyone’s fault. From now on, whenever we enter or leave a dungeon, let’s remember that this can happen.”

“”(((((Okay!)))))””

(Krr!)

I reassured everyone that they shouldn’t worry too much and let the matter rest.