An Old Man Restaurant Owner Is Unparalleled by Relying on His Old Tricks. It Turns Out, He’s the Legendary Dungeon Conqueror.

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Chapter 103: You’re a Cautious One, Aren’t You?

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“It seems I made it in time.”

Landing atop the Goryokaku Tower, Seia Jinguji, bow in hand, let out a small sigh of relief.

Thanks to the efforts of the explorers, it seemed that, for the time being, the monsters had been kept inside Goryokaku Park, and there seemed to be no damage to the surrounding city. This was one of the two ultra-high-difficulty dungeons in the country, rated Class 11 or higher. Seiya had been challenging the Shiretoko Dungeon, and upon hearing the news of the dungeon collapse, she immediately rushed to offer assistance.

When she received the urgent report, she had been on the 52nd floor of the Abyss Level. It was a place that supposedly took about a month just to reach, and she had been planning a two-month expedition. Without hesitation, she used a return crystal to head back to the surface. Then, crossing the vast Hokkaido region, she rode on the deep level Glacial Dragon, Doranko, which had been tamed by her companion, Moka Sakura, and made her way to Hakodate.

By the way, the rest of their team was on their way here, riding another dragon.

“First, we need to take care of that boss.”

As she focused her magic energy, a light arrow appeared, and with a shot, a powerful blow pierced Cerberus’s body. At twenty-seven, Seiya was hailed as the strongest explorer in the country, and her weapon was a bow. Especially the orichalcum bow she had obtained in this dungeon. This bow automatically loaded arrows with her magic energy. It was a fine piece of equipment, even for her standard. Not only was its power remarkable, but it also had high tracking ability, and the number of arrows could be adjusted, allowing her to take down multiple monsters at once.

Even after teaming up with Moka Sakura to defeat the boss, Seiya’s attacks continued to eliminate the deep-tier monsters one by one. The top of this tower, overlooking Goryokaku, was the perfect spot for a sniper like her.

“…!”

Sensing something ominous, she turned around immediately after releasing the arrow.

“…Who are you?”

There was no one to be seen, but Seia Jinguji readied her bow with maximum caution. Then, from a place that should have been empty, a voice came.

“Oh? You noticed me well. Even though I’ve hidden my presence…”

“That dreadful presence… Even if you hide your presence, it can’t be concealed. (In fact, for me to allow you to get this close…)”

Soon, the figure revealed itself calmly.

“…Tch… You are, no way…”

It looked very human. A tall young man with well-defined features—he could easily be mistaken for a handsome man. However, his white eyes were black, inverted, and his skin was gray. He had horns on his head and pitch-black wings on his back.

“Demons…!?”

Demons. Though sometimes considered a type of monster, they had some major features not found in ordinary monsters. One was their high intelligence and ability to understand human language. The other was… Their overwhelming strength.

Seia Jinguji immediately infused her magic power into her bow and shot a light arrow at the demon. A surprise attack, it seemed, would pierce the demon’s body—

—but the demon caught it in his hand and crushed it.

“What…?”

“Attacking me all of a sudden like that… You’re quite the rude lady, aren’t you?”

Seiya was left speechless as her level of attack, which could easily eliminate deep level monsters, was effortlessly blocked by this demon.

“Well, it did hurt, just a little. But only a little.”

“…”

Before the demon finished speaking, she poured more magic into her bow, and this time, countless arrows appeared. The light arrows rained down on the demon.

“Hehehe, I like you. I don’t mind this kind of headstrong type!”

The demon, grinning and creating countless black orbs of light. They blocked Seiya’s arrows one by one.

“Then, how about I come at you next?”

When the rain of arrows stopped, the demon kicked the ground and lunged at her. Seiya, acting quickly, leapt backward, but the distance between them closed in no time.

GAAAAAAANNN!!

“Oh? A barrier? You’re a cautious one, aren’t you?”

The demon’s fist was blocked by a barrier she had deployed in advance. However, even this barrier, which could withstand attacks from Abyss level monsters, cracked under the force of the blow.

BAAAAANNN!!

With the second punch, the barrier was completely shattered. The demon’s fist was now racing toward her. But it missed, cutting through the air.

“Hm? So, you distorted the sense of distance with light refraction. You think of many things, don’t you?”

“….(Tch… I can’t believe he figured that out in a single moment…)”

Seiya stood frozen for a moment, then quickly produced another arrow. Meanwhile, the demon also created black orbs of light, and this time, he manipulated their shapes.

“Since we’re already at it, let’s have a little match of the same technique.”

“You underestimate me!”

Countless beams of light collided, each nullifying the other. The power of each beam was about equal, but the numbers were different. The black light arrows that couldn’t be countered pierced Seiya’s body.

“Gah!?”

She plummeted from the top of Goryokaku Tower toward the ground… But halfway down, someone caught her body.

“Seiya-chan!? Are you okay!?”

It was her companion, Moka Sakura, and her mount, Doranko, the Glacial Dragon.

“OAAAAAAGGGHH!!”

Doranko opened its massive mouth wide and prepared to unleash an icy breath at the demon.

“Seems you’ve tamed it quite well.”

However, the demon’s black light arrows were drawn into Doranko’s mouth.

“AAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!?”

“Doranko!?”

The breath was interrupted as Doranko was attacked. Howling in pain, Doranko twisted its massive body and began to fall to the ground.

“…Doranko, are you okay!?”