A Returner’s Magic Should Be Special - Chapter 96

Episode 96. Dungeon Strategy (2)

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The moment the Dezir Party entered the virtual Shadow World, Awinbetz’s Dungeon, a notification chime rang out.

—A quest has been generated.
This is the dungeon of Awinbetz, a great mage. He devoted his entire life here to a single pursuit of knowledge. Clear the dungeon to its end and obtain the legacy he left behind.

—The dungeon consists of three floors in total. Your current location is the first floor.

Mages commonly called the spaces they created for their own research “dungeons.” Such places were treated like treasure vaults, for they held the accumulated achievements of a mage’s lifetime of study.
Awinbetz’s Dungeon, which served as the backdrop for this Party Competition, was constructed based on such dungeons, and the participating parties were cast in the role of Treasure Hunters.
Dezir looked around, but he could see nothing. Pitch darkness enveloped everything on all sides.

[Light.]

He deployed his magic and illuminated his surroundings.
Dozens of skeletons lay scattered across the floor, and the dungeon walls—now faintly visible in the light—were covered densely with symbols and murals of indecipherable meaning. The quick-footed parties had already begun to decipher them.
‘Useless information.’
Dezir already knew what those symbols and murals signified. They were merely warning inscriptions.
In his previous life, he had participated in the Party Competition as a member of a Beta Class party. Of course, they hadn’t even managed to clear the first floor—they’d been completely annihilated.
Not only his own party, but every Beta Class party had suffered the same fate. Not a single Beta Class party had ever progressed to the second floor.

‘The Shadow Worlds that primarily host Beta Class participants are Rank 7. But this place starts at Rank 6 difficulty from the first floor—there’s no way they can properly clear it.’
But now was different from then.
Dezir turned to Romantika.
“Romantika, deploy Detection Magic for me.”
“Leave it to me.”
As Romantika deployed Detection Magic, the wind that originated from her at the center shot outward, splitting into multiple branches toward the passageways that branched off from the starting point.
The most crucial aspect of dungeon conquest was understanding the dungeon’s structure.
Using Romantika’s Detection Magic, Dezir grasped the dungeon’s rough layout and began charting their path forward.
While such preparations were still underway, it happened.
“Hey there, Dezir! We’ll head in first!”
Radoria approached Dezir with a greeting, then set off toward the passageway with her party members.
The Red Dragon Party, to which she belonged, was one of the Academy’s most distinguished parties, and it was only natural that they had mages skilled in Detection Magic among their ranks.
Thus the Red Dragon Party was the first to depart. They chose the passageway to their six o’clock position.
Immediately after the Red Dragon Party set out, Dezir found himself face-to-face with another party. His eyes met those of Kelter, who had been heading toward the passageways.
Kelter’s expression, which had begun to open in a smile directed at Dezir, suddenly froze as if he’d recalled an unpleasant memory.
…….
Without uttering a word, he simply turned his head away and departed at a brisk pace.
Dezir found Kelter’s demeanor troubling. The boy had always been bright and brimming with competitive spirit. Yet something about him now seemed distinctly different from before.
Though Dezir was taken aback for a moment, the memory soon slipped from his mind as quickly as it had come.
“Dezir, the two o’clock, four o’clock, and six o’clock passages seem to be the fastest routes.”
He had no time to concern himself with trivialities.
“Let’s start by heading toward two o’clock.”

* * *

[The Children of Small Wheel Party has given up progress.]
[Aile Kisrai has been eliminated.]
[Demes Yuta has been eliminated.]

Less than an hour after the Party Competition began, more than half of the Beta Class parties had already been eliminated. They hadn’t even properly cleared the first floor.
Had Takiran not joined the Dezir Party, he too would have been among their ranks.
As the notifications continued to sound, this thought crossed his mind.
The reason Takiran, still stuck at Phon Level, had joined the Dezir Party with his younger sister was simple enough.
He wanted to escape Beta Class.
The Dezir Party had risen from Beta Class to Alpha Class, and had even claimed a position among Single Rankers. Perhaps, he’d thought, there might be something he could learn from them.
In truth, he had learned much. He felt as though the past few weeks had taught him more than the previous two years combined. Dezir had shown him the swordsmanship most suited to him, and thanks to that, his skill had improved remarkably.

“We will win the championship this time.”

When Takiran had first heard those words, the feeling remained vivid even now.
He’d thought it absolutely impossible. He’d assumed it was just meant to boost morale.
But he was wrong. Dezir had been sincere. He possessed the skill to speak such words without arrogance.
“Pricel, would you clear the dust from the floor with magic?”
“Of course!”
Whoooosh!
“…As I thought, there is a trap. From its configuration, it appears to be a weight-sensitive trap. Azest.”
“No problem.”
Rumble-rumble-rumble!
“All right, everyone move forward.”
The Dezir Party advanced through the dungeon with swift, unimpeded progress. Though the difficulty was surely that of a Grade-6 Shadow World, it felt almost like a casual stroll.
“It should be about time for something new to appear. Romantika, confirm the path ahead with Detection Magic.”
Whip!
“Multiple life signatures detected. It’s a goblin horde.”
“Fram and Takiran take the vanguard. Romantika, provide cover for the vanguard. Takiran, show me what you’ve learned so far.”
Takiran gripped the blades in both hands tightly and nodded without a word.
Rather than simply clearing the dungeon, Dezir was deliberately giving Takiran and Pricel opportunities to shine. He was building their real-world experience.
For the existing party members, a Grade-6 Shadow World was scarcely more than that.
“Azest, if Takiran finds himself in danger, cover him immediately.”
“Understood.”
His orders were flawless. Dezir’s command was remarkably clear to follow, and remarkably efficient.
“Romantika, brief us on the remaining distance.”
“Roughly fifteen meters. Wait—there’s a monster here that’s considerably large for a goblin.”
“What does it look like?”
“The tusks are enormous. The body is far larger than a normal goblin—larger even than an orc…”
“If it possesses such an enormous frame and tusks like that, it must be an Ogre. It might be too much for Takiran to handle. Fram, suppress the Ogre so it cannot rampage.”
“Leave it to me!”
When unexpected situations arose, Dezir flexed his strategy fluidly to adapt and respond.
“Humans… humans!”
Goblins and an Ogre rushed toward the Dezir Party. The moment the enemy positions came into view, Fram burst forward with speed like a streak of light, engaging the Ogre. What remained was the goblin horde.
Trusting the support of his party members, Takiran deployed without restraint the swordsmanship he had learned from Dezir these past weeks.
Slash!
“Graaaagh!”
“Shriek-shriek!”
The monster horde fell like autumn leaves caught in the wind.
Still raw and prone to mistakes, yet each time Romantika’s covering fire supported him, and when necessary, Azest would step in to finish the job.
“Good, combat complete.”
After dispatching the last one, Dezir spoke.
“We’ll regroup for five minutes, then depart again.”
Takiran shook the blood from his blade and sheathed it.
‘Perhaps it really is possible.’
With the Dezir Party, perhaps it was. They might overcome every Alpha Class team and stand at the pinnacle of this Academy. They might prove that even a commoner could reach such heights.
‘No—with this man, it is certainly possible.’
Takiran felt his dream crystallize before him with startling clarity.

The Dezir Party resumed their advance.
As they progressed through the dungeon, more traps and monster hordes appeared, yet under Dezir’s command, all were overcome with ease.
It was while moving forward through the dungeon at such speed.
From somewhere came the sound of weapons clashing. Dezir quietly raised his hand, signaling combat readiness. Maintaining formation, they pressed ahead.
“Roaaaaaaagh!”
“Nngh!”
The screams of humans echoed through the dungeon.
“…Let’s move a little faster.”
The Dezir Party quickened their pace.
As they advanced, the corridor opened steadily wider, until at last they emerged into a vast chamber.
Within, a single party was locked in combat with a monster—a creature of stone with massive wings and a horn the size of a man’s forearm planted squarely in its brow.
“A Gargoyle……!”
An artificially created guardian, born to protect the dungeon. And the party facing it was Beta Class.
It wasn’t difficult to guess their rank. The quality of their equipment told the story at a glance.
They wore no Closemail, no Defense Magic Enchanted Armor. Their armament consisted entirely of old-style plate and leather, patched and worn.
Even their Iron Swords were of poor quality; the blades had lost so many teeth battering the Gargoyles that they looked less like swords than iron clubs.
‘How they arrived so quickly is beside the point…….’
Four members remained.
Thunk!
The body of the student whose chest the Gargoyle’s horn had pierced wavered and faded from sight.

[Bijurei has been eliminated.]

Now only three remained.
The party must have begun with six members, but two had been eliminated long ago. Only the final three flailed on, desperately clinging to survival.
“What should we do, Dezir?”
Romantika asked.
“By the rules, we have no obligation to help them.”
This was a Party Competition—a trial that pitted faction against faction to measure their relative strength.
And since the regulations contained no clause prohibiting attacks on other parties, attacking them was effectively permitted. In fact, the others should have counted themselves fortunate to avoid assault altogether.
“But we have to cross this path anyway. Why waste time waiting for them all to be eliminated when we could press forward instead? Wouldn’t you say?”
“Of course, Dezir.”
Fram, having grasped what Dezir was about to propose, answered at once.
No one offered a dissenting voice.
“Charge!”
The Dezir Party surged toward the battlefield.

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