Living in a Dungeon in Modern Japan! An Overpowered Life with a Useless Skill - Episode 6

Episode 6

During the hour-long session, I was asked many questions and ended up explaining in detail what had happened between the previous measurement day and today. Even though I was talking about my own life, I couldn’t help but feel like I’d been living a rather unremarkable one.

Day after day, I went to work to earn a living, saved the money for the future, and lived a modest life. There were various reasons why things had turned out this way. But since the questions were limited to what had happened after the last measurement, I wasn’t asked about the more difficult parts.

“I’m sorry for asking so much. But this is part of the job. If we can figure out how someone gains magic power, it might help others who don’t have any.”

If the reason someone went from zero magic power to having it could be identified, it might be useful to others with no magic. I understood the logic behind it, but…

“Well, we’ve asked the same kinds of questions before and gotten zero results. There’s no consistent behavior pattern or anything. Honestly, we’re at a total loss. We ask out of obligation. But the real answer to why someone awakens magic is: no one knows.”

Just as she said, if something like that were already understood, it would have been shared with the public—or at the very least, with those of us who have no magic. Which just means that they still don’t know anything.

“If we really wanted to track behavior patterns, we’d have to make people submit detailed reports on their daily lives and measure them every month. Otherwise, there’s no point.”

It sounded like a complaint, but I felt like saying “No thanks” to something that troublesome. After all, there are quite a lot of people with zero magic. If such measures were applied to all of them, the cost and manpower needed would be ridiculous.

“Well, enough complaining. Let’s get to what you’ve been waiting for—checking your unique skill.”

Hearing that made me straighten up. My magic power level wasn’t high. So whatever the unique skill was, it wouldn’t change much. Still, having grown up with manga and anime, I couldn’t help but get a little excited at the idea of a special ability.

“Please take care of me.”

“You don’t need to be that nervous. Okay, can you touch this tablet for me?”

She pulled out something about the size of an A4 sheet—a tablet-like object. It had a screen like a tablet. But the rest of it looked like stone, which seemed strange. As I was examining it, she placed it screen-down on the desk.

Following her instructions, I nervously placed my hand on it.

“This is different from a detection stone. It’s called a *skill board*. And it shows the skills a person has. You might be wondering where it comes from. But all I can say is—it’s something excavated from dungeons. These are found more often than detection stones, but they rarely drop. So they’re expensive. Please don’t break it, okay?”

The unexpected threat made me quickly pull my hand away from the skill board.

“It’s not that fragile, so don’t worry.”

Even so, when you’re told it’s expensive, it’s natural for a poor person like me to be cautious.

When Hiyori lifted the board, letters appeared on the screen.

『Special Attack』

The skill displayed had a rather dangerous-sounding name.

“Ah, don’t worry. It’s not a self-destruct kamikaze-type of skill. Still… Special Attack, huh…”

As she muttered those words, the screen lit up again. And a description was added below the skill name.

『Gains Special Attack against Slimes.』

That was all it said.

“Ahh… Slimes, huh…”

Seeing her obviously disappointed reaction, I nervously asked:

“I-is it really that bad?”

“The Special Attack skill increases damage against certain monsters. But the target monster is fixed and can’t be changed.”

“That sounds useful, at least from the explanation…”

In games, skills like Special Attack are usually valuable.

“This one’s tricky. In your case, it boosts damage against Slimes—but it also makes it harder to damage any other monsters.”

“What!?”

“You probably already know this, but dungeons have all kinds of monsters. So even if you have Special Attack against one type, if your damage against all the others is reduced… well, that kind of skill…”

“Yeah… that’s definitely a problem…”

To succeed as an explorer, you need to dive deep into dungeons. The deeper you go, the more valuable the drops get. The magic stones found on the first floor can be over ten times less valuable than those from the tenth. In that sense, this skill was extremely inconvenient.

“On top of that, unique skills can’t be turned off. And in your case, your skill is specifically effective only against Slimes.”

“Is there something particularly bad about Slimes?”

It felt depressing to hear more bad news. But I figured it was better to know.

“Slimes are generally weak monsters. They usually appear only on the shallow floors of dungeons. In fact, no Slime sightings have ever been confirmed in the deeper levels of any dungeon around the world. That means your skill works only against low-tier monsters—ones with little value to an explorer. I’m sorry to say, but your skill is considered a ‘dud skill’ for anyone aiming to become an explorer.”

With her usual frank attitude, she laid it out clearly. It was tough to hear my unique skill labeled a “dud”. But I appreciated the honesty more than vague sugarcoating.

Knowing now that my special ability was a “dud skill,” I felt a heavy blow to my heart. Still, I tried to console myself by thinking: I went from having nothing to having something. I let go of the faint hope of chasing the dungeon dream as an explorer.

“I see…”

Maybe she picked up on my expression because she added,

“Well, if you’re not planning to become an explorer, then it’s not a problem. So don’t worry too much!”

And she was right. If I wasn’t aiming to be an explorer, this skill wouldn’t be an issue. Some skills even make everyday life harder. So in comparison, mine wasn’t too bad.

“By the way, you’re eligible to take the dungeon training next. Want to do it?”

“Ah, yes—I’ll take it.”

Despite the gloom in my heart, I replied with resolve.

Dungeon training is required for anyone who’s been confirmed to have magic. Since they’re now allowed to enter dungeons. The training teaches safety protocols and rules. Without it, even those with magic can’t enter.

Those who don’t plan to become explorers often skip this training. Facilities near city halls don’t have dungeons. So those who want to take the training either have to travel or reschedule for another day—so many don’t bother.

But since I’d come all the way to a place with a dungeon, I figured I might as well. Even though I had just given up on the idea of becoming an explorer, I decided to go through with it anyway.