Even Though the Gender Ratio Has Changed, My Attempts at Flirting With Women Are Unsuccessful

Chapter 30: The Exclusive Maid Wants to Proceed Steadily in the Pair Exam

“Sheffy, is it okay if we head this way next?”

“Yes, Ark-sama.”

Our hands were bound together by handcuffs.

On top of that, we were holding hands, so calling out like this was important, right?

We were exploring the dungeon.

Looking to the right or left, all I could see were the same rocky walls and passages.

This dungeon was vast, though. It wasn’t just for walking; the corridors were wide and tall enough for a proper battle.

Still, if the academy created it, I figured it was probably a low-level dungeon…

“Hmm. A map would really come in handy,” I muttered.

Wandering aimlessly wasn’t going to get us far, especially with a time limit.

Even as I thought this, I kept moving forward.

It was when we turned a corner.

“GROOOOAR!”

A low, rumbling growl echoed through the dungeon.

In front of us stood a massive figure, easily two meters tall, made of rock and earth.

“I see. So the ‘something else’ they mentioned was a golem.”

A golem.

It was a familiar creature in this other world, typically made of rock or earth and dwelling in dungeons or caves.

But they said there weren’t supposed to be any monsters in this dungeon.

That meant this was an academy-made creation. There had to be something more to it.

Well, since we’d encountered it, running wasn’t an option.

Time to break through head-on!

For a situation like this, the right magic would be…

“《Wind Shock》!!”

I activated wind magic, swinging a fist cloaked in wind. The compressed air punched a hole right through the golem’s torso.

Wind magic was fast and allowed for precise control of power, making it effective in tight spaces or against large enemies like this.

No room for carelessness. I didn’t stop at the torso—I slammed wind-cloaked fists into its legs and head, too.

Unable to withstand the assault, the golem collapsed with a clatter, turning to dust.

“Phew… That went well.”

“Impressive, Ark-sama.”

“Yeah…”

As I let out a sigh of relief, I realized I’d unconsciously gripped Sheffy’s hand tightly.

“Sheffy, sorry. I squeezed too hard. Your hand’s not hurting, is it?”

My body tensed up reflexively when casting magic.

Even if I could control the spell’s power, I couldn’t help but put too much strength into my grip when I was focused.

“I’m fine, Ark-sama. …In fact, you could grip even harder if you’d like. No need to hold back.”

“R-Really? Thanks, Sheffy. That’s reassuring to hear.”

“No, I’m the one who should thank you, Ark-sama. …Hehe.”

Sheffy smiled softly.

Saying I didn’t need to hold back—she was so kind!

As we prepared to move on, I glanced at where the golem had been. In the cloud of dust, a single square card glowed faintly.

“What’s that? Let’s check it out, Sheffy.”

“Yes, Ark-sama.”

We approached and picked up the card. Simple text was etched onto it…

‘Hint: This dungeon has seven floors.’

“…I see. If it’s a monster, you’d get a drop item, but with an academy-made golem, you get a hint for the exam.”

Pretty clever setup.

The goal of the exam was to reach the dungeon’s end. Defeating golems wasn’t required.

But it seemed like we wouldn’t get hints unless we took them down.

For me, the priority was reaching the goal as quickly as possible. To progress confidently, finding golems for their hints seemed like the best strategy.

“Wait a sec… What if we heal the golem and defeat it again? Could we get another hint?”

“Shall we try, Ark-sama?”

“Please, Sheffy!”

“《Heal》”

Sheffy cast a recovery spell.

The moment a soft light touched the dust, it swirled together, reforming into the golem’s massive form.

“GROOOOAR!!!”

The golem reappeared.

Its roar echoed heavily through the quiet dungeon. It seemed… more spirited than before, somehow.

“Leave the rest to me!”

I activated wind magic again.

This time, though, when the golem crumbled into dust, no card appeared.

“So, one hint per golem, huh? Makes sense. Otherwise, it’d be too easy to breeze through the exam. Sorry for dragging you into that, Sheffy.”

“No, we’re making good progress. Let’s keep going like this, hand in hand, steadily.”

“Got it!”

That was Sheffy’s way of encouraging me, I bet. She even gave my hand a firm squeeze.

It seemed like Sheffy preferred to tackle the pair exam at a steady pace.

—

Chapter 31.1: The True Aim of the Pair Exam (1)

After that, we continued to defeat golems one after another, and the hint papers we obtained had piled up quite a bit.

“Alright. Let’s organize them for now.”

“Yes.”

A short distance away, we found a suitably sized rock to serve as a chair, so we sat down side by side.

“Sheffy, aren’t you tired?”

“Yes. I’m fine. But…”

“But?”

“You’ve been doing all the fighting, Ark-sama… I’m happy to watch your battles up close, but… are you alright, Ark-sama?”

“I’m fine too! In fact, because Sheffy casts stamina recovery magic on me, I can try out all sorts of spells, and it’s fun! Thanks. Having Sheffy by my side makes me feel reliable.”

“Ark-sama… Thank you for this wonderful time. It’s been so much fun for me too.”

Sheffy blushed happily and squeezed the hand I was holding tightly.

“Alright… these are our results so far.”

I laid out the collected hint papers and looked them over.

We had defeated seven golems, so we had seven hints.

The ones that particularly caught my interest were…

“During the exam, it is possible to take the opponent’s hint papers according to the rules.”

“Even if you trigger a trap, there is a hint paper that describes how to escape it.”

“After triggering a trap, find and defeat the green golem.”

“Hmm… So that’s why we haven’t run into anyone else until now.”

The first hint had said this dungeon had all seven layers.

Since it had seven layers, I thought we were about due to cross paths with at least one other pair of classmates…