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Chapter 64 Part 2

「I can tell that much, of course.」

「……For real!? Could it be that, Russell-san, are you like, actually pretty smart? Or is it something that normally most adventurers could tell?」

「No, I don’t think regular adventurers could figure it out on their own.」

Now that I think about it, Eve hasn’t seen that Demon Lord yet.

I’m sure she would quickly find out how disgusting he is once she heard all the unpleasant things he’s saying.

Taking this into consideration, I tell her what I think.

「Right now, we’re in the process of looking for the path to get to the next floor, and as you can see, we currently have no idea where it is or if there’s even one to begin with. Normally, there should be a path with stairs somewhere along the wall that leads to the next floor, but…」

「Fumu fumu」

「I couldn’t help but think this second layer is designed to mess you with『boredom』 and 『sense of futility』. Now here’s a quiz, what do you think will instil the most 『sense of futility』 in this situation?」

I gave her some easy-to-understand hints to guide her toward the answer.

Even I can tell that Eve is a clever girl. If I laid it out like that, I’m sure she will be able to piece the pieces together on her own.

And just as I expected, it seems Eve just figured out the reason as we ran along behind Sybilla and Emmy.

She then turned to me with her eyes wide and presented her answer.

「…It’s a situation where the staircase to the next floor is on the pyramid, isn’t it!?」

「That’s right. Well, that’s what I’m guessing too, at least.」

Yes, the pyramid is the starting point.

If, after endlessly exploring this extremely vast area, we were to return to the starting point only to find the entrance to the next floor was there all along, the mental anguish would be immeasurable.

That’s why Sybilla wanted to destroy that possibility first.

It’s a method that’s difficult to come up with on the fly unless someone else points it out.

This just proves that this Goddess is taking the battle of wits against the Demon Lord seriously.

「Sybilla is definitely looking for the hidden stairs under the ground.」

「I got it! Sybilla Nee-san ain’t just beautiful but so cool and smart too, ain’t she!? How reliable!」

Seeing Eve compliment Sybilla so happily was heartwarming. That’s what I thought as we both watched the back of the two who ran ahead of us.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Emmy looking at Sybilla with a look of sheer joy on her face.

While Sybilla, the person in question, was scratching her head as she ran.

Just as I thought she was going to run along the wall, Sybilla immediately turns around and moves as if she’s sweeping a rag across the room.

She repeated this action several times.

I know we won’t feel tired because of my magic, but we really went back all the way to the pyramid and without stopping, continued our search beyond it.

It really looks like we are going to see the entirety of this vast second floor.

It was around the time when I had lost track of how many times I’d used my healing magic.

「……Fufufu!」

It’s the laugh I’ve heard from Sybilla before.

Before I could peek at what happened in the front, Emmy shouted, 「Ahhh—!」.

「What happened?」

「We found it!」

Emmy pointed to a gaping hole in the floor, and there it was, a staircase leading down.

Finally, we’ve found it……!

「A staircase in this half-assed distance from both the wall and pyramid and there’s not even a hint at that! Unless they have someone like me who can remember where I ran in my head, anyone would’ve totally stuck!」

……Tell me about it, it’s a nasty dungeon in every way!

There was quite a distance from the wall to these stairs… I even thought at one point that there might not be another floor below.

To be honest, I don’t feel like I can take on this dungeon alone.

……but, thankfully Sybilla’s memory and senses were superior.

She precisely navigated her way, filling up the spots she hadn’t run through in this place that had no landmarks whatsoever, and found the path to the next floor.

Doesn’t matter if it’s an unexpected trap or simply a difficult situation, there’s nothing that can stand in Sybilla’s way now.

「Russell, Emmy-chan, cast defense magic!」

Emmy and I cast our defense magic as Sybilla told us.

Furthermore, I don’t forget to enchant my weapon with dark magic so I can fight right away.

「I’m getting bored already, and you guys are too, right?」

As we’ve been running around without fighting any monsters for quite a while now, frustration started building up inside us as we nodded our heads.

「Let’s proceed down there with Emmy-chan in the front. I’m sure the next floor will be as troublesome, but whatever it is, it will be our victory in the end!」

And thus, we descended the stairs leading to the third floor.

After we descended the stairs, there it was……

That figure that I’ve been wanting to put down for the past few days.

「Even for a lowly Twilight Goddess, I didn’t think you could’ve found the lowest floor of this dungeon so easily……!」

「It was nothing, I was just better, you see~ Too bad, it looks like your dungeon was much cheaper!」

「This wench…! How dare you, even though you’re just a cheap goddess, surrounded by a cheap bunch! Your existence itself is extremely crude and unsophisticated! Don’t think I’ll forgive you for that!」

The Demon Lord spread his hands and as he did that, monsters immediately emerged from the ground.

It’s a dragon-like monster with big horns and a huge body, but… to me who has been fighting boredom on the previous floor, they only look like good prey that’s worth defeating.

My sword rattles with excitement as if it can’t wait to prey on those monsters.

I think Sybilla has been the only one who got to show off today.

I’m proud to have such a reliable partner, but… I can’t be satisfied without doing anything myself.

Surely it’s alright for me to get a chance to say a little bit at the end, right?

Especially in this long-awaited battle against the Demon Lord.

Now then… allow me to collect the payments for all the hardship and bullshit you’ve put us through.