I, Who Was Criticized as the World's Weakest S-Rank Explorer, Am Actually the World's Strongest Explorer - Episode 15

Episode 15

(Note: Special for this chapter, dialogues from the internet and TV are in 『….』.)

Morning. 

In the spacious office of the Explorer Association Headquarters. Asakura, a guild employee, sighed as he checked an email from the Akisaki City branch. 

The email, in short, said, “The dungeon in Kamino Town is acting strange and needs investigation.” 

The sender was Ryoko Kirishima. She was a rookie who had just joined the Akisaki branch this fiscal year. 

“The Kamino Town dungeon… That rings a bell… Oh, right, it’s that weakest S-rank guy’s place. He should just deal with it himself.” 

Looking exasperated, Asakura called out to his boss, Manager Kizaki, who was nearby. 

“Manager Kizaki, there’s another message from the Akisaki branch. What should we do? They say the Kamino Town Dungeon is acting strange.” 

Manager Kizaki was skimming through some documents. He showed little interest in the matter. 

“Kamino Town… Doesn’t that place have an S-Rank Explorer? Someone called Amakusa or something?” 

“Yeah, that’s right. Amakusa’s there, so we don’t need to bother, do we? Is he really that incompetent?” 

“Oh, he’s definitely useless. Remember when he lied about the 101st floor a while back? Thanks to that, the Explorer Association was bombarded with inquiries. It was a nightmare.” 

“Ah, I see. What a hopeless liar.” 

“Exactly… Oh, here it is—the investigation report from back then.” 

They searched the guild’s archives and began reviewing the file together. 

“What kind of investigation did you do?” 

“We checked for abnormalities by measuring the magic output generated by the dungeon. The result? Nothing unusual at all.” 

“Wow… So, Amakusa lied about not being able to clear the 100th floor, huh?” 

“That’s probably it. What a fool. Did he not realize that magic output checks would expose him immediately? What a kid.” 

“Seriously, he’s disgusting. Imagine being an S-Rank Explorer and putting in zero effort.” 

“Exactly. Everyone in Japan went wild over ‘the birth of the strongest adventurer’, and look where that got us—one big embarrassment. Thanks to him, Japan became a laughingstock worldwide. I feel bad for the other S-Rank Explorers.” 

“Totally. So, should I just reply to the Akisaki branch saying, ‘Have the lazy S-rank handle it’?” 

“Haha, maybe phrase it a little more diplomatically. Also, notify the branch manager. It’s unacceptable for a subordinate to send such emails without oversight. Tell them to keep things under control.” 

“Got it. Geez, they’re always dumping extra work on us.” 

“Ain’t that the truth.” 

Following Manager Kizaki’s instructions, Asakura quickly turned to his computer and began drafting an email to Nakamura, the branch manager of the Akisaki City branch. 

—

(Back to MC’s Perspective) 

Having suppressed the dungeon surge, I headed to the dungeon entrance after receiving a message from Kirishima-san. 

Once again, Kirishima-san looked stunning today. Standing here, waiting to meet her, I couldn’t help but feel like my life had become a little more fulfilling. 

She mentioned wanting to discuss yesterday’s investigation results and the plans moving forward. 

After a while, I spotted Kirishima-san’s car approaching. 

Lately, we’d been meeting frequently. Honestly, having someone go this far for me was unprecedented. And I was beyond grateful for it. 

She stepped out of her car and gave me a small wave. Her expression, as always, was serious and stern. 

“Good work. Were you dealing with the dungeon surge again today?” 

“Yeah. Some weird layers showed up, so it was pretty exhausting.” 

“…I see.” 

Dealing with frequent dungeon surges has become routine for me. But the constant need to address them still wears me down. 

This dungeon really seems to love me. 

The moment I step away, it’s like the dungeon screams, “I want to see you now!” and activates. It’s so clingy that even the most obsessive person would be stunned. 

And on top of that, the dungeon floors are completely unpredictable. 

When monsters activate, they shift to other floors. So Miyoshi-san and his team are primarily stationed on the first floor to keep watch. Meanwhile, the rest of us take turns patrolling each floor periodically. If we detect any abnormalities, we immediately coordinate to handle them. 

Usually, Miyoshi-san and his team handle things on their own. But when it’s beyond their capabilities, I get called in. Honestly, about half the time, I end up fighting. The monsters are tough. 

The physical exhaustion from diving into the dungeon repeatedly, coupled with the mental strain that comes with it, is overwhelming. But since people are counting on me, I do my best. 

If this was some other group that didn’t trust me at all, I would’ve quit a long time ago. 

“Well, I’m glad to hear that. So… about the results from yesterday’s tests—we had my superiors review them, but, um… they weren’t very receptive.” 

“…I see.” 

Yeah, figures. As I slumped my shoulders, Kirishima-san hastily tried to console me. 

“Just in case, I sent an email to the Explorer Association Headquarter as well. So, there’s a chance they might take action on their end.” 

“That would be nice, but I’ve never seen anyone at the Explorer Association Headquarter actually do their job.” 

“…Well, that’s… um…” 

Kirishima-san looked flustered. 

Her having to go through all this trouble was partly because of my bad reputation. 

If only I were as strong as Kiryu-san, or in a better position, she wouldn’t have to deal with this nonsense. 

I should’ve done something back when people still had high expectations of me, like in middle school. 

I worked hard then—challenging the dungeon while balancing my studies, diving into the floors step by step. But I struggled to find the next floor, the activations were frequent, and everything took so much time. 

Eventually, I made it to the 100th floor. And just as I thought I’d finally achieved something, I discovered the 101st floor—something I wasn’t supposed to find. 

By then, my reputation was already in shambles. Kanzaki, who was the same age as me, had already cleared several dungeons. And the criticism directed at me was brutal. 

『Kanzaki’s already cleared 10 dungeons, and this guy’s at zero?』 

『Three years of effort, and he’s lying about a 101st floor now?』 

『At least come up with a better lie, lol』

『The Guild officially announced it—this report’s all bogus, lol』 

………I still remember the comments from back then, crystal clear. 

If people wanted to deny me, fine—let them. But it was unbearable when my mom started getting harassed at her workplace because of it. 

I honestly wanted to wipe out humanity at that point. 

But for now, I’ve got to hang in there—for Kirishima-san, who’s been helping me all this time.