When I returned from exploring the dungeon to save the world, I found out that my lover had been stolen, and I was blamed for the failed expedition. Enraged, I quit Japan's strongest party—only for them to self-destruct on their own. - Chapter 6
“This is reckless! We can’t push forward like this!”
A river of lava flowed before us.
This wasn’t part of the dungeon’s terrain—it was an attack from a monster.
Our party, struggling without my brother, had managed to make it to the 60th floor—only to face off against a Scorching Golem.
“Damn it, we’re only at the 60th floor! We can’t turn back now!”
As expected, Kazuno had no grasp of reality. His opinion didn’t matter. The fact was, we didn’t have the strength to defeat this thing. We needed my brother.
The live chat was filled with clueless spectators. To them, dungeon exploration was just entertainment—no different from a video game. They had no real grasp of the danger involved.
“Hope Ayaka-chan doesn’t get hurt! I’d be so mad!”
“Yeah, last time, Kotone got injured because that bastard Okita didn’t protect her properly.”
“It’s a shame. If Kotone and Ayaka’s ultimate attacks had landed, we wouldn’t have had to retreat last time.”
“Wait… is this really okay?”
“That magma fireball looks huge.”
“Come on, Kotone-chan! Ayaka-chan! You got this!”
“Go, Hideaki-sama!”
“Haruka-chan, I’m rooting for you!!!”
Despite the flood of encouragement, Kazuno took a direct hit from a fireball. His ridiculously expensive gear saved him, but he wouldn’t survive another hit.
We had to retreat. That was obvious. But no one said it.
No one wanted to be blamed for it.
I could feel it. They were all waiting for someone else to make the call. If they suggested retreat and got blamed for it, it could ruin their careers. And with the broadcast still live, no one wanted to be seen as a coward.
This was insane. Anyone with common sense would call a retreat.
“Kazuno-san, we need to fall back.”
“W-What are you saying?! We can’t retreat at the 60th floor!!!”
Even while severely burned, Kazuno refused to accept reality. His wounds were so bad that he would have died if I hadn’t healed him, and he still thought he could keep going?
“Yeah, are you chickening out? This is nothing! It’s only the 60th floor, right? Kazuno-san, do your best!”
Kotone, who called herself a warrior, was doing absolutely nothing besides cheering him on.
“Uhhh… this doesn’t look good.”
“Why is it just Hideaki-sama, Haruka-chan, and Natsuki fighting?”
“You idiots. Kotone and Ayaka are the damage dealers. They need someone to immobilize the enemy first.”
“Are you stupid? Myoujou always fights like this.”
“Shut up. You wanna go?”
“No, you shut up. You don’t need to immobilize the enemy if you just hit it. So yeah, they’re useless.”
“LOL. Bottom-tier explorers talking like they know anything.”
“Stop disrespecting Kotone-chan! She has more achievements than you losers!”
“Wait. So this is what Koichi had to deal with?”
“No wonder he left. This party is awful.”
“The hell did you just say? Like some no-name loser would know anything about this floor.”
“Hahaha! So pathetic! Keep crying!”
“Excuse me? The only pathetic ones here are YOU.”
“Who cares? Kotone-chan and Ayaka-chan wouldn’t even notice you losers exist.”
“WATCH OUT! MOVE!”
“Huh?”
A massive fireball from the Scorching Golem slammed into them.
This was a battlefield. And these idiots had been too busy arguing with the live chat to even notice the enemy’s attack.
Unbelievable.
“KOTONE?! AYAKA?! DAMN IT, HARUKA! WHY DIDN’T YOU PROTECT THEM?!”
“What?! I was literally healing YOU! I can’t do everything at once! And what were they doing?!”
“No way, no way, no way, no way.”
“Dude. Instead of worrying about Kotone, maybe worry about how stupid Kazuno is.”
“What the hell?! Why are they blaming Haruka?!”
“Are you insulting Hideaki-sama?!”
“No need to insult him—he’s making himself look stupid all on his own.”
“HEAL!!!”
I cast a water spell over the impact zone and began healing those two idiots.
Barely in time. But this was bad. The Scorching Golem’s attacks had a clear cycle. Right now, it wasn’t launching fireballs because Natsuki was keeping it busy.
“So this is Japan’s best party, huh…”
“Let me clarify something. Myoujou was only strong because of Koichi Okita. Without him, they’re maybe C-rank at best. At most, B-rank. The only ones worth anything are Haruka and Natsuki. The rest are garbage.”
“Who are you?!”
“I’m Miyoshi from Meikyoushisui.”
“No way… Japan’s number two explorer?!”
“Are you serious?! Why?! Okita abandoned his responsibilities and ran away—!”
“He didn’t run. He carried this party to the 96th floor and brought everyone back alive. Then, the Dungeon Association blamed him for their failure and kicked him out. I almost couldn’t believe the news when I saw it.”
“But China cleared their dungeon—”
“Just because both dungeons are high-level doesn’t mean they’re equal. When China saw a video of Tokyo Dungeon’s 96th floor, they immediately took theirs down. Their 99th floor was easier than Tokyo’s 80th floor. Hell, this 60th floor might even be harder.”
“Wait. If Okita’s gone… aren’t we totally screwed?”
I clenched my fists.
They were right.
We had to retreat.
I started running through escape strategies when a blinding light erupted from the door behind the Scorching Golem.
It was so bright that I instinctively shut my eyes.
What was that?
An attack?
If so, this was bad.
I couldn’t see.
I couldn’t keep healing.
I forced my eyes open.
And when I did, I saw the Scorching Golem.
A massive hole had been blown straight through its chest.
Support "WHEN I RETURNED FROM EXPLORING THE DUNGEON TO SAVE THE WORLD, I FOUND OUT THAT MY LOVER HAD BEEN STOLEN, AND I WAS BLAMED FOR THE FAILED EXPEDITION. ENRAGED, I QUIT JAPAN’S STRONGEST PARTY—ONLY FOR THEM TO SELF-DESTRUCT ON THEIR OWN."