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High School Hack and Slash Chapter 7 Part 1

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Pasifista

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Speak With Your Fists

　The bell in the clock tower signaled the end of the morning classes.

　Since yesterday, it had also turned into the ring of a bell that signaled after school period.

　The air in the classroom turned into a light and buoyant mood from the sense of liberation that stemmed from the conclusion of classes.

　The hasty ones had already experienced the voluntary dungeon dive, while most of the students had decided to start tackling it from here on, but no pressure could be sensed on them.

　That was because none of them had any memories of what it was like in the dungeon as of yet.

　All of them thought of it as a real life dungeon conquest in the same sense as that of a computer RPG.

　Even as they advanced in grades, that VR-like game mindset remained the same.

　From the second year onwards, the students were polarized into two groups: the dungeon group, who steadily made progress in their dungeon conquest, and the enjoy group, who were unable to get accustomed to fighting in the dungeons no matter what and continued to return from the dead.

　As the privileges provided by the academy in accordance with their progress were so great, though, they were often referred to with the epithets of the winners group and losers group.

　However, even the enjoy group would not be subjected to expulsion as long as they continued to try the dungeon.

　The reason why there was no tension among the new students was also partly because they were aware of that.

　The first wall for new students who were tackling the dungeon dive with a light heart was to return from the dungeon alive.

　This might sound like an obvious factor, but the『revival of the dead』 system of Rashomon was seen a defected system from the point of view of dungeon conquest.

　Having their whole memories, emotions, and flesh restored through returning from the dead meant the act of gaining experience was beyond them.

　The reason for their mistakes, the elements they lacked for dungeon conquest, the cooperation with their comrades, the way they could have done better, all of these were lost.

　And then, the pure reset of EXP they had gained from monsters.

　The first step new students should aim for was to return alive.

　The students of the steady faction had already begun to find the answers on what they ought to do.

　One of the options that new students could choose from among several conquest patterns was to delay the starting time of their dungeon dive close to the time when Rashōmon would close its gate.

　Shortening the time of activity in the dungeon, it was a safety measure with returning alive as their foremost priority.

　As long as they were unable to escape with their own strength, gradually extending their dungeon conquest time was surely the orthodox way.

　There were also optional dungeon escape items for sale in the purchasing department, but they cost a sum of capital unaffordable for new students.

　The mid-day Rashōmon, the new students who headed to the dungeon square right after the opening of the gate were seen as beginners who had yet to shed their country bumpkins aura.

「Ahaha, as expected I can’t help but feel a little nervous.」

　Mai, equipped with a brand new freshmen recommended set (short sword type), showed a smile to liven up the mood.

　The academy uniform of a navy jacket, a tartan-checked skirt, black knee socks, and combat boots.

　The uniform set provided by the academy was a practical combat suit woven with the acclaimed spectra fiber.

　However, the sight of a high school girl, who were usually seen chattering at a fast food chain located somewhere in front of the station, donning a boorish body armor, which looked like the ones special police wore, over her uniform looked like nothing but a cosplay.

　The existence of the short sword strapped on her hips was ruining the sense of realism even more.

「Say, Seiichi. Do I look strange somewhere?」

「Hmm… Well, isn’t it fine?」

　Seiichi, who hadn’t concealed his ill humor since the morning, dished out a random answer while averting his gaze toward no one in particular.

「Sheesh, no spirit at all there. Even though I’ve taken the trouble to put these on.」

　Mai, who had done up her usually dropped curly hair into a ponytail, folded her arms and obnoxiously puffed her cheeks.

　In fact, Mai had put more effort into her make-up than usual, to the point of being uselessly heavy.

　To the extent of being enough to conceal the bruise on her mouth.

「It’s almost the time, isn’t it?」

　Shizuka, who began to even ooze a quiet yet frigid air, poised herself in the next rear of Touma with her short spear resting on her shoulder.

　With neither excitement nor fear, she was simply following after Touma.

　In a sense, it was the fruit of her overdependence heart, but there was no doubting the fact that she was more courageous than anyone else.

　She bore a fearful resolve that if Touma were to order her to die, she might really commit suicide in silence.

　Shizuka realized the significance of her roommate’s heavy makeup as well as her awkward interactions with Seiichi, who had become completely distant.

　That was because Shizuka had a very good understanding of Mai’s clinging puppy-like flattery method toward men.

「… Now then, let’s go die, shall we?」

　Among the lines of numerous parties on the second, third, and fourth gates of Rashōmon, their turn had finally turned up.

　Touma, who was staring fixedly at Seiichi’s face that was warping into the form of a faint smile, stepped forward first.

「Oh, you want to act as the leader? Well, for our first time, it’s the same no matter who does, though.」

　As they stepped into the third gate of the three central gates of the double-roofed pavilion, the party was enveloped by a flickering space and a cold smell.

　Touma, standing in the center of the two-layered transfer circles, turned around, folded his arms, and expressionlessly waited for Seiichi and the others.

　Turning the one standing in the center of the circles into the base marker, Rashomon set the transfer coordinates to the inside of the dungeon.

　The location where the new students, who would be using the three central gates for the first time, would be sent to was around the center area of the first stratum, where the miasma concentration was said to be the lowest.

　The destination where the first door, which was utilized as a device for new students to register themselves in Rashomon, would send them was a random location where the miasma density was thick and stale.

　In order to stabilize Yomotsu Hirasaka, they were thrown there like firewood tossed into a furnace.

　This was the important duty of the new students of the general class.

　Quietly, Shizuka poised herself in Touma’s rear like a shadow, and Mai, sensing the queer air, peered at the faces of the two.

「Err, Touma, kun?」

「It would be better if there’s no nuisance. Let’s get on with it at once.」

「That might be difficult. It seems that new students are more or less sent to the same place, after all. It’s not at all uncommon to bump into other parties inside, you know?」

　The case of parties of new students scrambling for monsters among themselves was numerous.

　That was why the initial starting point was set at a place with thin miasma.

　Although it was not authorized by the academy, battles between students, who had become strangely in high tension, also tended to occur.

　The purpose was to seize their items, to assault the party members who had caught their attention, and so on.

　As the ones who were killed wound up losing their memories, the after the act risk could be said to be nigh zero.

　The upperclassmen hunting the new students for amusements had also become a customary in a sense.

「Yea…, that may be interesting in its own way.」

　Still with clouded eyes, Seiichi stared at the lines of the party where numerous new students were mixed among them.

　Each of them was showing a carefree, oblivious idiotic face.

　He wondered if perhaps he would be able to raise his spirit a bit by telling them the truth and seeing those faces distorted.

　Besides, it was a good chance to gobble up the girls from other classes.

　He would assault and then kill them one after another, be thorough with the ones that were in good condition, just like Mai.

「Seiichi….」

　She called his name with a smile that seemed like she was about to cry, but he had gotten incapable of even looking at Mai straight in the eye since last night.

　Seiichi was the last to step into the two-layered transfer circles.

　Based on the person who became the base marker, Rashomon would transfer (in) the entire party to the same coordinates (log).

　The timing for the recording of the user’s coordinates (log) was at the previous closing of the gate moment.

　It was the place where the survivor was standing on their own feet.

 

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――『Yomotsu Hirasaka』, a branch realm connected to the labyrinth of Perforation Realm, 『YGGDRASILL』――

――The『third』 stratum, 『uncharted』 domain――

　The depth of the dungeon, which was divided into stratums, was not known how far down it went.

　Even the scale of the stratums that had been conquered weren’t yet fully mapped out.

　The only ones that Toyoashihara academy were aware of and barely controlled were the corridors that connected the dungeon stratums as well as the charted domains surrounding them.

　In other words, there were also corridors extending beyond the dungeon map published by the academy, and those were called the uncharted domain.

　Touma cross checked the terrain around him with his somewhat hazy memories, and looked at the『blank』 wall where the store of the stall spirit used to be.

　Auto moving, such a trait was also so store-like, or so he thought.

「Err… umm, it’s somewhat different from the『first dungeon』 image I have, I think.」

　Mai hugged her own body and surveyed her surroundings while trembling.

　Grudge grudge, luck luck, such sutra chanting-like groans were shaking the surrounding air.

　The oppressive pressure from the ceiling, floor and walls made their body shrivel up.

　Shizuka also went pale, gripping the handle of the spear in her hand tightly.

「Ha, hahaha… the heck is this? Such, such a thing is dungeon, huh.」

　Seiichi, whose face had stiffened, was taken aback.

　His mind seemed like it was about to break merely from getting in contact with air in the stratum.

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