Ordinary Person × Modern Dungeon × Summer Vacation Life = Rise to Success!? 〜A Private Dungeon Was Made at the Remains of a Secret Base From Childhood〜 - Episode 24: The Explorer Exam, Cancelled

Episode 24: The Explorer Exam, Cancelled

“This is Yamada from the Tochigi Prefecture Explorer Association. Contacting all examiners. We have an irregular abnormal situation. A Goblin General has appeared on the first floor. The target has been defeated, but I recommend canceling the exam. What do you say, Jōnuma from Gunma Prefecture?”

Yamada-san lowered the black device from her mouth.

That was probably some kind of communication tool.

*Beeep, grrrkk…*

“This is Jōnuma. The exam is cancelled. Staff members are to prioritize the safety of examinees and escort them outside the dungeon.”

“—Gunma Prefecture Explorer Association, Tatara here. Understood.”

“Tochigi Prefecture, Omoigawa here. Understood. Yamada-san… Are there any injuries among the examinees?”

“Yamada. Exam cancellation acknowledged. Omoigawa-san, the examinees are all safe. Everyone, please proceed with caution during evacuation.”

☆★☆

“Kou-chan, thank goodness you’re okay!!”

“Whoa!!”

As I came back up to the surface from the dungeon, Otama-chan jumped at me and hugged me tight.

She wrapped both arms around me. She was squeezing so hard it hurt.

“H-Hey, cut it out…”

“I heard it was an ‘irregular abnormal situation’… I was so worried… I’m just glad you’re safe…”

“Otama-chan…”

Her voice seemed to tremble, as if she were holding back tears.

I still didn’t fully grasp how serious the situation had been. But it seemed things inside the dungeon had gotten very dangerous.

Feeling ignorant, I started to feel a little guilty.

“Hey! Omoigawa-san, please behave more appropriately as an examiner!! You’ll make people question the Association’s fairness!!”

“B-But… I was really worried…”

Otama-chan got scolded by Yamada-san and quietly let go of me.

Then—

“My, my. Tamaki-san, you seem quite attached to this young man, don’t you?”

A woman from the Gunma Prefecture Explorer Association spoke to Otama-chan.

“Ugh, what? Kaede-chan, this has nothing to do with you!”

“Oh ho, I see now. Tamaki-san, you recently changed helmets, didn’t you? Does that mean the rumor came true? You know, the one where if you write the name of someone you like on your helmet and enter the dungeon 100 times, you become a couple…”

“Waaa! Waaa!! Shut up!! You’re only level 20, don’t act so smug!!”

“Wha…!? I’ll be level 21 soon! That’s no different from you!!”

“Heheh, I’m already level 22!!”

“…?”

The two of them kept bickering in a strangely friendly way.

Wait, what were they even talking about?

“…Hey, Tatara. This isn’t the time to be goofing off. Save the friendly chit-chat for after work.”

“…You too, Omoigawa-san. Expect a lecture later.”

“I-I’m sorry…”

“Why meee…”

“Well, whatever. Looks like everyone’s safe.”

Jōnuma-san patted my shoulder.

“Must’ve been scary, huh? The other examinees are back in their rooms. You should go back too.”

“Yes, thank you.”

“You’re lucky you were with Yamada-san. That woman’s crazy strong, isn’t she?”

“Uhh…”

I was about to say I didn’t see her fight after the exam ended, so I didn’t know.

But then Yamada-san stepped in front of me and spoke.

“—Jōnuma-san. It may be hard to believe, but the Goblin General was defeated by this Natsume here.”

“H-Huh!? But this kid’s still just an examinee with no real combat experience…”

“There’s footage from the test room drone. So please review it later. …It was over in a flash. The moment I declared the exam canceled, the Goblin General was already down.”

“…It took me two years after becoming an explorer to finally be able to beat a Goblin General.”

“…What a monster. He’s not an illegal explorer, is he?”

“No. He’s not. I can vouch for that. He has a [Green] license and has been entering private dungeons.”

“[Green]…? Isn’t that for Type-5 dungeons with no resource value? How did he… Pff, gahaha!! Well, whatever, no need to sweat the small stuff!”

*WHACK!*

“Ow!!”

Jōnuma-san slapped my back hard.

“I like you!! Once your license arrives, come work with us at the Gunma Prefecture Explorer Association!! I’ll buy you a house or a car with the company budget!!”

“B-Branch Chief, you can’t just decide that on your own…”

“It’s fine! Yamada-san herself approved of him. He’s definitely got talent.”

“N-Noooo!!”

At that moment, Otama-chan shouted loudly and cut in.

“Kou-chan already promised to join my party!! D-Don’t take him away!!”

The concrete space at the Ōta Dungeon entrance fell silent for a moment.

Then—

“Gahahaha!! I see, I see! My bad, Miss Omoigawa!! If there’s a prior promise, I won’t steal him! Take care of each other!”

“Omoigawa-san, didn’t I tell you? Don’t do anything that might make people question the fairness of the Association… I’ve decided. A lecture isn’t enough. It’s back to training in the dungeon for you.”

“W-Why!?”

Otama-chan’s voice echoed through the concrete halls of Ōta Dungeon.

☆★☆

In the end, the rest of the exam was rescheduled to a different day and location.

Apparently, the results of those who had already taken the exam wouldn’t be overturned—even if they failed—because a Goblin is still a Goblin. It didn’t matter how aggressive it got due to the irregular situation.

Considering the nature of being an explorer, I guess such a harsh judgment is to be expected.

We examinees were told to promptly leave the Ōta Dungeon premises and return home.

—And that night…

I got a LINK message from Otama-chan.

*Ping!*

Tamaki: Sorry, I won’t be able to come to your place tomorrow 

(Crying bear sticker)

Koichi: What happened? Is Yamada-san going to scold you?

Tamaki: That’ll happen later (crying face)

Tamaki: Since Ōta Dungeon is now off-limits, we have to set up makeup exams for the people who couldn’t take it today

Tamaki: Things like organizing transport buses and paperwork between the Associations… I had to postpone my day off too 

(Sticker of a bear flipping a table yelling “I can’t take this anymore!”)

Koichi: I see. Don’t push yourself too hard

Koichi: The exam work looked tough enough already

Koichi: Let’s hang out again once things settle down

Tamaki: After the makeup exams, I have to prep for the Ōta Dungeon investigation (crying face)

Tamaki: Since it’ll stay off-limits until we check it out, the pressure from active explorers is intense

Koichi: Are you going into a dangerous dungeon?

Tamaki: Yeah. But the same four examiners from today are going in. Yamada-san and Jōnuma-san are both strong and know when to pull back. So we’ll be fine

Koichi: Sounds like a lot to deal with

Tamaki: That’s just the job of the Association, so it can’t be helped

Tamaki: I’ll be looking forward to the next time we meet 

(Sticker of a bear drinking alcohol saying “Being a bear is tough…”)