Is It Wrong to Explore the Dungeon Even Though I’m Overpowered? (Danmachi SI- WC) (Patreon)

Chapter 54: Voices Beneath the Dungeon

Inside the Dungeon — 18th Floor

We stood across from Ais and Riveria near the entrance to the 18th floor, bidding them farewell after my spar with the former. We still had business to take care of deeper in the Dungeon, namely, retrieving Marie.

“Thank you again for agreeing to Ais’s request, Astrea-san,” Riveria said, giving me a grateful nod.

“Yes… thank you, Reinhard,” Ais added, bowing slightly. Her expression was as calm as ever, but her eyes made it clear just how sincere she was.

“It was no trouble at all,” I replied with a smile, shaking my head. “I had a lot of fun sparring with you, Ais. Please don’t think twice about it.”

“Well then, we’ll be taking our leave,” Riveria said as she turned to go. “I wish you luck with whatever task awaits you deeper in the Dungeon.”

Ais took a few steps after her, then stopped.

She hesitated, fingers fidgeting at her sides, before glancing back at me. A faint blush crept onto her cheeks as she looked away.

“C-Can we spar again sometime, Reinhard?” she asked quietly, clearly mustering her courage.

Riveria stopped a short distance ahead and glanced back, wearing a fondly exasperated expression.

Blinking at Ais’s sudden shyness, I smiled warmly. “Of course. Whenever you’d like, and if I’m free, feel free to visit our home. We can spar in the backyard.”

Ais’s lips curved into a small smile, her eyes lighting up with excitement as she nodded. “I will. Thank you.”

With one last bow, she finally rejoined Riveria, the two of them walking off while speaking in hushed tones. I caught Ais glancing back at me more than once before they disappeared down the corridor.

Moments later, Est appeared beside me in her human form and immediately tugged on my sleeve.

“Reinhard,” she said simply, “can I eat now?”

Chuckling, I patted her head. “Of course.”

I handed her two bentos as promised, letting her settle comfortably on my lap while I fed her piece by piece. From the side, Rem watched us with an unmistakable pout.

“Mouu~ Why does Est-chan always get special treatment?” she whined.

“Try harder, scrub,” Est muttered flatly, not even looking up.

I blinked, glancing down at her. “Est… do you even know what that word means?”

“Rem doesn’t know what a scrub is,” Rem added, narrowing her eyes, “but it definitely sounds like an insult.”

Est ignored her entirely.

“Have you been browsing the internet again?” I asked cautiously.

She nodded once. “In my free time. I like watching funny videos. Mostly about cats and puppies.” She paused as I fed her another bite of tofu. “Sometimes… of people playing games.”

A nervous sweat trickled down my neck.

‘Yeah. I really need to monitor Est’s internet habits before my innocent sword spirit becomes fully corrupted,’ I thought solemnly.

It wasn’t long before Est finished eating, and once she did, we continued our descent toward the deeper floors, cutting down anything foolish enough to stand in our way. With Ais and Riveria no longer around, I reactivated my loot function, quietly funneling every drop straight into my inventory as monsters fell.

As we passed through the Large Tree Labyrinth, spanning floors nineteen through twenty-four, something immediately set off alarms in my mind.

Shady-looking adventurers were scattered throughout the area, far too many of them, and all of them moved with the same tense, searching desperation.

I frowned but said nothing, keeping my pace steady while subtly staying close to Rem. As we passed, I made sure to memorize faces, gear, mannerisms, anything that might matter later.

“Those people looked really shifty to Rem’s eyes,” she whispered once we were past the latest pair. “Don’t you think, Reinhard-kun?”

“Yeah,” I murmured back, my expression serious. “My gut says they’re up to no good. Keep your eyes open, Rem, anything else that feels off, let me know.”

“Leave it to me~” she replied softly, instantly alert.

Thankfully, we didn’t run into any more suspicious adventurers before finally reaching the 25th floor and stepping into the Water City once more. Deciding to shelve my unease for now, I walked up to the edge of one of the massive waterfalls and peered down toward the depths below.

“Shortcut time,” I muttered.

“Up we go, Rem.”

Before she could respond, I swept her up into a bridal carry. She let out a delighted giggle, a rosy blush spreading across her cheeks as she snuggled closer.

“Hihihi~ Being carried by Reinhard-kun like this is the best~” she murmured happily, resting her head against my chest as and let out a sigh as she listened to my heartbeat.

Shaking my head with a fond smile, I pulled her closer. “Hang on tight.”

Then we jumped.

“Whooooo~!” Rem squealed, laughing like she was on a roller coaster.

‘I wonder what kind of chaos I’d unleash if I ever took everyone to an amusement park,’ I mused as we fell.

I bent my knees at the last second, landing hard and leaving a shallow crater beneath us. Stepping out of it, I gently set Rem back on her feet before drawing Est and swiftly dispatching the monsters that had been lurking nearby.

“Now where is—”

I didn’t get to finish.

A sudden splash erupted from the water, followed by an excited, familiar voice.

“Reinhaaaaard~!”

An emerald-blue blur shot straight toward me.

The impact nearly knocked me back as a pair of pale arms wrapped around my head. Instinctively, I caught the figure and steadied myself, looking down moments later into a pair of bright jade eyes beaming up at me.

Marie had found us.

Taking a moment to look at her properly, I immediately noticed what was different. Marie still had the same hair and eye color, but her skin tone had completely changed. Instead of indigo-blue, she now had pale yet healthy human skin. The biggest difference of all, however, was that she now had human legs instead of her cute mermaid tail.

It took another second for another realization to hit me. My gaze flicked downward briefly before I snapped my eyes back up to her face.

Just like before… she wasn’t wearing a shred of clothing.

Unlike when she still had her tail and didn’t need to worry about things like panties, that was very much not the case now. One accidental glance had been more than enough to confirm that she wasn’t wearing anything at all, no panties, no bra, nothing. In the shock of meeting her again, I had completely forgotten to tell her that clothes were now a requirement.

“A-Ahem… hello, Marie.” I smiled awkwardly, my cheeks burning as I did my absolute best to keep my eyes firmly on her face. “I hope we didn’t keep you waiting too long.”

“Nuh uh~!” Marie chirped happily. “I was just so excited that I couldn’t even sleep!”

She hopped out of my arms and landed in front of me, raising her hands proudly into the air. “Look, Reinhard! Look! I look just like a human now~!”

My blush deepened instantly as I got a peek at everything again idly noticing that the drapes did indeed match the curtain with the small trimmed patch just below her abdomen.

“I have human legs and everything!” she continued, wiggling in place. “It took me a little while to walk properly, though.”

Each movement made the situation significantly worse, with her breasts bouncing in place drawing my eyes to her rosy nipples for a second.

Thankfully, salvation arrived in the form of Rem.

Without hesitation, she grabbed Marie and dragged her behind a large rock with an irritated scowl. “Come on, you ditzy airhead! Let’s get you dressed already. You’re making Reinhard-kun uncomfortable!”

Letting out a long breath I hadn’t realized I was holding, I slumped slightly where I stood.

“…Thanks for the save, Rem.” I muttered quietly.

Minutes later, Rem and Marie emerged from behind the rock, the latter now dressed in a cute white-and-blue school outfit accented with a red ribbon, long socks, and brown shoes.

Marie tugged at the fabric with a small frown. “These clothes feel a little itchy on my skin,” she complained, only for her expression to instantly flip the moment her eyes landed on me. She straightened, spun once, then struck a cute pose.

“What do you think, Reinhard?” she asked cheerfully, switching poses one after another. “Do I look cute?”

Smiling back at her, I reached out and patted her head. “You look very cute indeed, Marie.”

Turning slightly, I gave Rem a headpat as well with my free hand. The pout she’d been wearing vanished immediately, replaced by a satisfied smile.

“And thank you for this, Rem,” I added. “I’m guessing you made the outfit?”

“Yep~!” Rem chirped proudly. “I was looking up outfits on the internet, and this one really caught my eye. I made a few variations for everyone.”

“Oh!” Marie suddenly exclaimed, snapping her fingers as if she’d remembered something important. “I forgot to tell you, Reinhard!”

She leaned closer, eyes sparkling. “Some of my friends want to meet you here on the 27th floor. They came to visit me after you left, and when I told them all about you, they got really curious! Will you come meet them?”

I raised an eyebrow, considering her request as I shared a brief glance with Rem.

“This could be a trap, Reinhard-kun.” Rem’s voice echoed through our mental connection.

“Maybe,” I replied calmly. “But this could also be the opportunity we’ve been looking for to learn more about the Xenos. Besides, with just you, Est and me here, we can handle ourselves. Worst case scenario, I’m confident I can retreat if I only have you and Marie to carry.”

“Rem will follow your lead like always, Reinhard-kun.”

Turning my attention back to Marie, I smiled and nodded. “Of course I will. I’m curious to meet your friends too.”

“Yipeee~!” Marie cheered, grabbing my hand without hesitation. “Come on! I’ll take you there!”

She laughed as she started pulling me along. “Now that I have human legs, I can actually lead the way myself. It’s my first time visiting our hideout like this, if I’m being honest.”

Rem quickly caught up and took my free hand, and together we followed Marie as she rambled excitedly about everything that had happened since yesterday, about learning to walk, about dreaming of the surface, and especially about the sun.

“Everyone’s going to be so jealous,” Marie giggled, “when they see that I can now go outside and see the real sun.”

Before long, Marie led us to a corridor that ended in what appeared to be a dead end. At first glance, it looked like solid rock, but that illusion only held on the surface.

Beyond the wall, I could already sense numerous presences.

Most of them weren’t hostile… but some were.

“Heads up, Rem,” I immediately informed her through our connection, keeping my expression neutral. “The Xenos are up ahead. I’m sensing hostility from a few of them. If this turns into a real fight, don’t hold back and protect yourself and Marie.”

“Understood!” Rem replied immediately, her grip tightening around her flail as her body subtly tensed.

“We’re here~ Now give me a second,” Marie said cheerfully, completely unaware of the danger. She let go of my hand and stepped forward, fiddling with several rock formations along the wall and floor.

With a low rumble, the stone shifted, revealing a hidden entrance wide enough for us to pass through.

“Here we go!” Marie beamed as she returned and grabbed my hand again. “Come on, everyone’s waiting~”

As we entered, the passage sealed itself shut behind us. Marie led us into a broad clearing, but oddly, there was no one in sight.

We stopped in the center and my guard was instantly up along with Rem’s.

Marie blinked and looked around. “Huh? Why is everyone hiding?”

She tilted her head and called out, voice echoing softly. “Heeellooo~? Lyd? Ray? Fear? Ranye? Laura?”

“I brought Reinhard, just like I said!”

My instincts screamed, sensing a strong foe getting ready to attack.

“Stand behind me, Marie,” I said firmly as I stepped in front of her, Est already sliding into my hand. “Rem, protect her.”

“Right!”

“W-What’s going on, Reinhard?” Marie asked, her voice tinged with confusion and growing unease.

“I’m about to find out,” I replied calmly, my gaze locking onto a specific point in the shadows. “Come out. I know you’re there.”

The moment the words left my mouth, a red-scaled Lizardman burst from hiding, armored and dual-wielding, launching himself straight at me.

I stepped forward and raised a single hand.

Clang.

I stopped his strike effortlessly, forcing him to halt mid-motion.

“There’s no reason for us to fight,” I said evenly, looking back at the intelligent orange eyes looking back at me.

I could feel his intent, hostile, wary, but there was no malice behind it. Which told me there was more to this than initial impressions.

The Lizardman snarled instead of answering, leaping back before roaring and charging again, unleashing a flurry of attacks.

Each one was cleanly parried.

As I engaged him, I kept part of my focus behind me, ensuring Marie and Rem remained untouched. The remaining presences stayed hidden thankfully, apparently content to only watch.

“Lyd! Why are you fighting Reinhard!?” Marie screamed, her voice cracking as Rem held her back to stop her from rushing forward. Tears streamed down her beautiful face as she watched us clash.

“He’s not like the other humans, I promise!” she cried desperately. “He’s the kindest person I’ve ever met!”

She shook her head violently, trying to remove Rem’s hand from her shoulder but failing. “Look! He even gave me the ability to turn into a human! I can finally see the sun with my own eyes, just like you always dreamed of!”

Her voice trembled as she looked at Lyd. “I’m sure if you just talk to him… if you ask him nicely… he could help you too!”

The words hit.

For just a moment, I saw regret flicker across the Lizardman’s face before it was instantly replaced with determination.

 Just seeing the innocent and happy face of Marie look so distraught though was making me a bit angry so I decided to end it.

“This farce has gone on long enough,” I said, my voice hardening.

I stopped holding back.

In a single, clean motion, Est flashed, disarming Lyd effortlessly. Before he could recover, I stepped forward and drove my fist into his solar plexus.

The impact knocked the wind from him.

Lyd collapsed to his knees, wheezing as he clutched his stomach.

“I know you’re capable of human speech,” I said calmly, my gaze steady. “So if this was some kind of test, I’m more than willing to talk.”

I sheathed Est and turned my eyes to the shadows surrounding us.

“But I will not continue fighting when it brings Marie this much pain.”

My voice carried through the chamber.

“That goes for everyone.”

Silence followed.

The only sounds were Lyd’s labored breathing, and Marie’s quiet sobs and hiccups.

Then, slowly, the shadows stirred.

One by one, dozens of monsters stepped into the light, revealing themselves at last.

‘A Xenos settlement,’ I realized.

I walked back to Rem and Marie, placing a gentle hand on Marie’s head and rubbed her head in reassurance as she instantly latched onto my hand.

‘For her sake,’ I thought quietly, ‘let this be the last confrontation.’