Raising the Lowest-Ranked Adventurer, the Heroic Girl – Wasn’t I Just a Substitute Old Man?

Raising the Lowest-Ranked Adventurer, the Heroic Girl – Wasn’t I Just a Substitute Old Man?

Chapter 2 Encounter

“Hey, why are you acting like that?”

“Huh?”

However, as we reached the reception, we heard a young girl’s voice filled with distress coming from the neighboring counter.

“Why? I mean, even if you ask me why, there are currently no adventurers available for introduction. Currently…”

“That’s why I’m asking why!”

“Hey, Kana, calm down. The lady was still in the middle of explaining. Let’s listen until the end, okay?”

There were three girls, and one of them was angrily shouting at the receptionist, while another one was trying to calm her down.

Are they friends, perhaps? The shouting girl reluctantly quieted down, displaying her displeasure openly, as she was pacified by the other girl.

“I’m sorry. Could we please continue where we left off earlier?”

“No, I apologize as well for not explaining clearly.”

Apologizing is the Japanese way, after all. The receptionist, who seemed accustomed to dealing with complainers, even when they were children, bowed politely and responded.

“I mentioned that we cannot introduce adventurers to you, but to be precise, we are currently unable to introduce adventurers to anyone else as well. Three dungeons have simultaneously appeared within the areas under this guild’s jurisdiction. While it’s not abnormal to have multiple dungeons, this occurrence has led to the dispatch of a significant number of adventurers for investigation and combat readiness. Consequently, we don’t have enough available adventurers to make introductions.”

Oh, three dungeons at the same time. It’s certainly unusual, but not unheard of.

Considering the scale of this place, it’s probably just enough to handle basic investigations. It’s a matter of fact that there are fewer adventurers here due to the relatively smaller population.

Still, even though this place has a decent number of adventurers. After all, there’s a school for adventurer training here. It’s not the capital city, but it’s conveniently accessible within an hour’s travel, and with the abundance of rice fields around, it’s probably just the right location. Facilities for adventurers tend to take up quite a bit of space.

“…So, does that mean we can’t gather our party today and enter the dungeon?”

“While we can permit you to enter with one more member, we cannot arrange it for you.”

There is no specific maximum limit set for entering the dungeon, but a minimum of four people is required. This is a legal requirement, and going below that number would result in penalties.

Well, even that has its exceptions, you know. There are always special cases. For example… someone who is jokingly referred to as the “World’s Strongest” or something like that.

“Huh? What are you staring at? Isn’t it a problem for an old man like you to be gazing at high school girls?”

“What? Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not looking at that. I’m referring to the three dungeons over there.”

As I was watching the commotion next to me, my companion made such a comment, so I shifted my gaze back to the situation. It seemed like they had returned the key and were about to leave.

“Oh, right. We don’t dive into newly discovered dungeons because they’re full of danger, but they do offer a good amount of money.”

“But even just diving into regular dungeons and making a living should be enough, right? Is it really worth risking your life for money?”

Personally, I value my life more. In fact, I’m planning to quit being an adventurer as soon as “service” is over.

“Do you know? They call those who risk danger ‘adventurers’!”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. I know.”

“Life is more important than money.”

“Well, having money is certainly better, but if we aim too high, we might end up dead.”

As our team continued the conversation and walked away, I briefly turned around to catch a glimpse of the girls who had been causing a commotion.

… Oh, our eyes met.

“So, um… We’ve already met this month’s quota, right? So, we’re free to disband and do our own thing?”

As my eyes met with the girl who had stopped the commotion, I quickly turned my attention forward upon hearing my teammates’ voices.

“Yeah.”

“Sounds good.”

“Me too.”

“Well then, let’s meet again in two weeks. Even though we won’t be diving into the dungeon during that time, don’t neglect your training and preparations. It’s only three more months, and it won’t be funny if anyone dies.”

“We understand.”

In the midst of the discussion about the remaining three months, I caught the girl’s gaze, and I shrugged my shoulders in response. The other two nodded in agreement.

“Alright, then…”

“Wait a minute!”

Just as our team leader was about to announce our disbandment after completing this month’s quota, we were interrupted by a familiar voice.

Well, not exactly familiar, but I just heard that voice a moment ago.

“Hm?”

Caught off guard by the unexpected interruption, we turned around, and there stood one of the three girls whose voice we had heard earlier.

“Well, um… I, uh, overheard your conversation. I’m sorry about that.”

“Huh? Oh, no, it’s fine. We weren’t exactly trying to keep it a secret or anything.”

Suddenly approached by a young girl, our leader, Hiro, showed a puzzled expression as he responded.

Hey, you’re married, don’t act all bashful. I’ll make sure to tell your wife later, you know?

“So, um, I have something I’d like to ask. Have all of you completed today’s ‘conquest’?”

“Yeah, well…”

“If you don’t mind, would you consider joining us in our conquest?”

Upon hearing the girl’s words, we exchanged glances.

We haven’t heard the full story from the girl yet, but we can roughly guess why she said that. Most likely, they’re lacking members.

I cast a brief glance behind the girl, but all I saw were the girl who had caused a commotion earlier and another girl with a quieter demeanor.

I briefly scanned the surroundings, but I didn’t see anyone who seemed to be their companion or acquaintance.

So, that means these girls were trying to enter the dungeon but were stopped due to not meeting the minimum required number of members.

Well, we were just discussing that a moment ago.

And it seems they saw us, who had just finished conquering the dungeon, and approached us to join their party.

Hiro, our leader, seemed to understand the situation as well. He redirected his gaze back to the girl who had approached us and began speaking in a gentler and more polite tone, trying not to intimidate her.

“…Even if you say that out of the blue, you should understand that dungeons are dangerous places. No matter where you enter, there’s always a risk to your life. Without the union’s introduction and coming from someone we’ve just met, saying ‘Please come with us’ is not something we can immediately agree to.”

“…Yes.”

Normally, the union would recommend and arrange teams for those who are not part of a union-formed team or don’t have scheduled activities with their team. However, as I mentioned earlier, today is an exception and they can’t provide that service.

That means we have to find the remaining members ourselves without relying on the union, but teams consisting of individuals who haven’t been introduced through the union are generally not recommended.

It’s different if they were originally acquaintances or introduced by acquaintances, but teaming up with someone you don’t know at all is something we should generally avoid.

After all, the dungeon is a dangerous area filled with monsters. It’s quite challenging to coordinate and complement each other’s deficiencies when we don’t even know each other well.

We don’t know their skills or personalities, so it’s possible to get into fights inside the dungeon. If that happens, it can be extremely risky. It’s not uncommon for both parties to drag each other down and end up in mutual failure.

Furthermore, as often mentioned, the inside of the dungeon is a lawless zone. While killing or similar acts are technically prohibited, there are no surveillance cameras, and we have no idea what might happen inside.

That’s why we can’t enter the dungeon unless we have truly trustworthy comrades by our side.