I, Who Was Criticized as the World's Weakest S-Rank Explorer, Am Actually the World's Strongest Explorer - Episode 23

Episode 23

The next day, and even the day after that—the dungeon’s activity showed no signs of stopping. 

These past few days have been insane. It’s been way too active. And the strength of the enemies has shot up. There are even days when Miyoshi-san can’t fully handle things anymore. 

Could it be that the Kamino Town Dungeon wants to see me? What a pain! 

Somehow, I managed to suppress it and return home safely. My parents were still at work, and I’d been told they wouldn’t be back until after 8 PM. 

For now, I might as well take a shower. I’d worked up quite a sweat. 

Humming “Refresh~” to myself, I headed toward the bathroom. But then Yuna came down from the second floor. She had a slightly complicated expression on her face. 

If I spoke to her, she might dislike it. But not saying anything at this moment would seem rude too. 

After a brief internal debate, I smiled. 

“I’m home.”

“……Welcome back.”

I hadn’t expected a proper response, so it surprised me a little. 

Maybe I should take this opportunity to act a bit more like an older brother and ask her a few things. 

“Are you getting used to school?” 

“…I guess.” 

“That’s good. You seem pretty popular, too.” 

At school, she’s always talking to someone. I’ve even heard rumors that she’s been confessed to by someone. 

As for me, I’ve neither had many chances to make friends nor the desire to form deep relationships. 

Since I could disappear at any time, I didn’t want to leave anyone with bad memories. 

That’s also why I don’t have a girlfriend—not because I couldn’t, okay? 

Yuna seemed willing to talk to me today. Did something good happen? As I wondered about that, she hesitated a bit and then spoke up. 

“…….Hey, is it normal for dungeon surges to happen this often?” 

“The Kamino Town Dungeon is just like this.” 

“I looked it up. For normal dungeons, it’s like once a month or so, right? This is abnormal, isn’t it?” 

“It is abnormal.” 

“Shouldn’t you report this to the Association or something?” 

“I did, but they don’t take it seriously. They’re so careless.” 

I exaggeratedly slumped my shoulders in mock despair. Yuna still looked serious. 

“…Careless?” 

“If you research the Kamino Town Dungeon, you’ll find all sorts of weird stuff. I’ve explained it to the Association, but they don’t believe me. Worse, even the locals get treated like liars. There’s really nothing I can do.” 

“That’s..… terrible.” 

“Well, it can’t be helped. I’ve got a bad reputation, after all. Yuna, no one’s giving you a hard time because of me, right?” 

“…No. I mean, no one even knows we’re related. Besides, no one at school talks bad about you.” 

“That’s a relief.” 

I was a little worried. For example, if she’d talked to someone from my old school and heard bad things about me, that’d be troubling. 

I don’t want to see the people around me hurt because of me anymore. 

“Going to the dungeon every night until late… that’s not normal, is it? And why is it always you handling everything? What about other explorers? What about the Association?” 

“There are people who try to help, but the enemies in the dungeon are too strong. The local explorers are doing their best too. But in the end, it’s always up to me to take the lead.” 

“Don’t explorers come from other towns? Back where we used to live, people came from all over…” 

“In bigger cities or in dungeons that are profitable, you might get outsiders. But the Kamino Town Dungeon has no perks at all. It’s just awful.” 

Yuna fell silent for a moment, then bowed her head. 

“…I’m sorry. I said something terrible to you before.” 

I never expected her to apologize, so I was caught off guard. 

….…Honestly, when she acts differently like this, I’m not sure how to respond. And it’s a bit awkward. 

“Don’t worry about it. I’m used to it.”

“You shouldn’t just get used to it……..” 

I had no choice but to get used to it. If I let it bother me every time, I’d just wear myself out. 

Yuna was still looking down. She forced out more words. 

“I saw it… on the internet. There are so many people bashing you. With how often you’re being called here, it’s obviously impossible to deal with other dungeons…” 

“…Oh, yeah. You figured that out, huh?” 

“Even I, a complete amateur, can tell. If another S-Rank Explorer came to this town, they’d immediately realize something’s wrong, wouldn’t they? Isn’t anyone doing anything to help?” 

Yuna’s suggestion, though strained, was her way of trying to find a solution for my situation. 

That… made me a little happy. I don’t often experience kindness from others, so I tend to get overly touched by it. I guess I’m easy like that. 

“Actually, it’s because I’m here that they won’t come. If another S-rank came, it’d take opportunities away from the local explorers. That’s why they stay away.” 

“……What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“Everyone else is busy, too. Anyway, I’m an S-Rank Explorer. It’s my responsibility to handle it.” 

Yuna looked at me as though she wanted to say something. But after a moment, she quietly spoke. 

“…Sorry. I said some really harsh things to you.” 

“It’s fine. I mean, it’s true that I’m an S-Rank Explorer who hasn’t accomplished much.” 

“…That’s not true, is it?” 

Well, it’s sort of true. 

No matter how tough a dungeon is, if I can just clear it quickly, then the problem is solved. 

But since I haven’t managed to do that, I’ve only caused trouble for the people around me. 

I need to get this under control as soon as possible. 

“Well, hearing that from you has given me a bit of motivation. Guess I can dive into the dungeon every day again.” 

“……If there’s something I can do to help, just say so, okay?” 

“Then—how about calling me ‘onii-sama’?” 

“Absolutely not.” 

Eee~. Seriously? The way she glared at me in genuine disgust left me with no choice but to slump my shoulders in defeat.