Pick Me Up!

[Han, Jenna, Dajil, Grete, Gael have arrived!]

“Why haven’t the people who left come back…?”

Dajil mumbled.

Gael, who was lying down and groaning, spoke up.

“Listen, noble fairy. I have arthritis, and I can’t walk anymore. Please exclude me.”

“Arthritis? You’ve been walking just fine.” Jenna shouted.

“What am I supposed to do if it suddenly starts hurting?”

[This mothe…?]

I shrugged my shoulders and entered through the door at the front of the square. The interior of the door was a spacious circular room with towering mirrors, each one larger than 10 meters. Information about the dungeon in question appeared above the mirrors.

[Climb the tower and save the world!]

[Main Dungeon: Current climbing floor – 0]

[A daily-changing feast of dungeons!]

[Weekday Dungeon]

[Access denied! Clear Main Dungeon 5th floor.]

[Collect various rare materials!]

[Exploration Dungeon]

[Access denied! Clear Main Dungeon 10th floor.]

Except for the mirror on the left, the other two mirrors were pitch black.

“So, that’s how it is.”

The feeling of looking down as a master and looking up as a hero.

There’s a world of difference.

It’s okay. I can do it. I can’t die in a place like this without even knowing the reason.

That determination alone chilled my rationality.

Shortly after, the other party members entered through the rift in space.

“I have arthritis!”

“Just come for now. We’ll live and die together!” Jenna encouraged.

[Noisy, noisy, it’s noisy! Be quiet and get ready.]

“Well, what should we prepare for?”

“I’ve never even held a spear…”

[Main Dungeon, current challenge floor is 1st floor.]

[The door will open in 10 seconds. Get ready!]

I surveyed the party members behind me. Jenna and Gael kept quarreling, and Dajil was covered in sweat. And Grete was trembling in a corner.

“Isn’t there anyone useful here?”

I let out a sigh.

The mirror on the left began to shine.

The light grew stronger, obscuring my vision and covering the entire room.

“What, what is this light!”

“Don’t be overwhelmed! It’s starting!”

I shouted. It was a message to the party members, but also to myself. In this world, there’s no one to rely on except me. If I lose my composure, it’s over.

I kept saying it to myself like brainwashing.

And when the light subsided, I found myself in an unfamiliar place.

[Floor 1.]

[Mission type – Subjection]

[Objective – Annihilate the enemy!]

A gentle breeze blew.

An endlessly vast plain that extended beyond the horizon.

“Wait, where is this?”

“Where else could it be? It’s a battlefield!”

I tapped my shield with the old iron sword.

Four goblins were gathering about 10 meters away. They were wearing iron helmets and wielding bent swords. One of them even had a sling.

[Goblin Lv.3] X 4

They had leveled up by 2 since the tutorial.

The eyes of the goblins that noticed us glowed red.

“I told you before, if we don’t fight, we’ll be wiped out. So get your act together…”

As I spoke, I looked back.

No one was there.

“Damn it.”

[‘Jenna(★)’ feels fear. All stats decreased by 30%.]

[‘Dajil(★)’ feels fear. All stats decreased by 30%.]

[‘Grete(★)’ feels fear. All stats decreased by 30%.]

[‘Gael(★)’ feels fear. All stats decreased by 30%.]

The four of them were running around in a panic, not knowing whether to move forward or backward.

Gael, who claimed to have arthritis, was the fastest.

I had anticipated it, but I didn’t expect them to be this useless.

Gael stumbled at the edge of the field and fell down. The three others followed suit.

“Ouch! My back!”

“Why is it stopping us?”

“Open up! Let me out! I need to go to the bathroom!”

[‘Dajil(★)’ falls into panic. All stats decreased by 50%.]

[‘Grete(★)’ falls into panic. All stats decreased by 50%.]

[‘Gael(★)’ falls into despair. All stats decreased by 80%.]

They were cowering in a corner without any intention of fighting the goblins.

Dajil swung his axe at the wall, but his wrist gave way, and he collapsed. Grete struck the wall with her spear, and Gael must have pulled his back because he couldn’t get up.

Only Jenna came back, panting heavily.

“Brother, if we defeat those goblins, can we leave?”

Her pumpkin-colored eyes trembled, and she had cold sweat on her forehead.

But Jenna firmly grasped her bow.

“You know how to shoot a bow, right?”

“My father was a hunter.”

“I’ll go out and fight, and you shoot from behind. Can you do it?”

“Yes!”

[‘Dajil(★)’ falls into despair. All stats decreased by 80%.]

[‘Grete(★)’ falls into despair. All stats decreased by 80%.]

“What about those people…?” Jenna looked back.

“Don’t worry about them. They’re of no help. Let’s go!”

I exerted strength in my left hand, which held the shield and rushed forward.

I’ve never used a shield before. The same goes for a sword. But I had to use them now.

The goblins ran wildly, charging towards us.

Rocks were flying through the air!

I raised the shield to my face. A heavy impact resonated from my left hand. If it weren’t for the shield, I would have been hit. In the field of vision revealed beneath the shield, a goblin swung its sword.

Lowering the shield in my left hand to block, I thrust with the sword in my right hand!

The goblin, with a deep gash on its arm, retreated.

I took a few steps back and assessed the situation.

“Why is there only one of them?”

The reason became clear soon. The other two goblins, excluding the one holding a sling, were rushing towards our roaring party members. Even with the goblins approaching, the three of them couldn’t regain their composure.

“Uncle, let’s fight! The monsters are coming!”

Jenna, who had quickly loaded her bow, shot an arrow.

The arrow grazed above the goblin’s head.

“Oh no, I missed!”

Jenna took another arrow from her quiver with a frustrated expression.

“I told you not to worry about them!”

I decided to ignore them.

But it was actually fortunate. Since those guys acted as bait, we could defeat the monsters individually. I charged at the goblin, gnashing my teeth, with my arm clenched. I deflected a rock that came flying at me and blocked his sword with the iron sword and then struck him with the shield!

“Kyaah!”

The goblin fell face down with a thud.

Good, I can do it. I can definitely do it! I plunged my sword into the fallen goblin’s chest.

“Grr, grrrrr…”

The goblin foamed from its mouth and dropped its head.

“Kiaaaaah, kiaaaah!”

“Euaaaaak!”

[‘Dajil(★)’ returns to the embrace of the goddess. His determination will be remembered forever.]

I didn’t look back.

One is still left. It’s a ranged goblin spinning a sling. I held up my shield and charged. The goblin began slinging rocks. The rocks were blocked by the shield.

Choosing the shield was indeed the right answer.

[‘Grete(★)’ returns to the embrace of the goddess. Her determination will be remembered forever.]

From behind, I heard a desperate scream and a squelching sound. It was an unpleasant sound as if tearing through flesh and splitting it apart.

The Goblin in front of me started running.

“Where do you think you’re running?”

“Kirarak!”

I tackled the fleeing goblin from behind. The goblin tried to hit my forehead with a rock. I blocked it with the shield.

“Hail to the shield, you bastard!”

I thrust the sword into the exposed ribcage. An unpleasant sensation of scraping against bones was transmitted. Ignoring it, I thrust it deeply. Once pulled out, I stabbed it again.

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

After doing that four times, I let go of the held hand, and the goblin crumbled like a wreck.