As soon as he arrived at the police station, Souma was led to an interrogation room.
It was a small, narrow room like something out of a drama, with nothing but a tiny desk.
Souma and the police officer sat facing each other.
"Sorry for startling you. Normally we'd ask for voluntary cooperation, but the footage caught on camera was so abnormal that it was determined there were special circumstances, and it ended up like this."
The officer placed a laptop on the table. After a few quick operations, he turned the screen toward Souma.
"This is...!"
What was shown was footage of a truck accident. The moment a large truck plowed into Souma and was heavily damaged. It also showed Souma walking away unharmed.
"During our investigation, we consulted with teachers at your adventurer school and with professional adventurers. Apparently, even a seasoned adventurer would find it difficult to be that tough. What we want to know isn't the details of the accident, but how you became so strong."
"My strength, you say…"
"Adventurer training is a top priority in every country. However, no efficient training method has been established. If you have any personal training program you're doing on your own, could you share it with us?"
The officer's goal was the secret behind Souma's strength.
"I understand."
Souma wasn't clever enough to lie to the police.
(I know it's a hard story to believe, but even Elena believed me. If I tell the truth, the police will believe me too!)
With that thought, Souma held nothing back.
"While I'm sleeping, I can go to another world called Mistria!"
And the result was—
"Stop messing around!"
Not only did they not believe him, he ended up getting yelled at.
◇
After about an hour of interrogation, Souma was released. Just when it seemed his story might close, it began again.
(The officer said he'd contact the school, but today is PT training. I've kept the PT members waiting...! Damn!)
Souma hurried toward the school on foot.
"Who's that?!"
"He's running faster than a car!"
Running was faster than taking a taxi or train. As Souma arrived at school, two people were waiting for him.
"You're late!"
The one who yelled right off the bat was Mai Osaka. Her blue semi-long hair fluttered in the wind.
"I got a call from the police. Unlucky, huh."
The one who spoke gently was the teacher, Saito.
"Sorry for keeping you waiting... Wait, where are the other members? Today's supposed to be a four-person PT, right."
"About that. At Osaka's request, it's been changed. Today, you'll be tackling the dungeon with just the two of you."
"So the top student in the grade, Osaka-san, wants me all to herself?"
Immediately, Mai yelled, "That's not it!" Her cheeks were slightly red.
"It's to prove that the abnormal score you pulled off in the last training ground was a fluke, not real ability."
"It's not a fluke, it's ability…"
"I told her that, but she insisted on seeing for herself and wouldn't listen. Well, the school also judged that since both of you are strong enough to hold your own even at an elite school, it should be fine."
"I see."
Souma didn't pay it much mind. He had zero expectations for his companion's abilities anyway.
"This weekend, I asked an adventurer to let me tag along to a dungeon. Not some kiddie dungeon accessible from this school, but a level 8 dungeon!"
"Can a student even operate with an adventurer?"
There were two things that bothered Souma.
"With permission from the school and the adventurer, yes. Of course, you don't get any reward."
"Work for free."
Souma was disappointed.
(If there were rewards, I'd go hunting with adventurers too.)
"Work for free… you're way too conceited. You're just dead weight, so it's only right you don't get paid. Actually, normally you'd be the one paying."
"For you, Osaka-san, maybe."
"Wha—?! What did you say!?"
Mai's face turned bright red.
"Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to provoke you. More importantly, you said you went to a level 8 dungeon, right? What kind of monsters were there?"
"Cactus Men!"
"Ah…"
Souma smiled wryly.
(I hunted those same guys. They were weak for their level; I was underwhelmed.)
He looked back on yesterday's battle. The enemies had been so weak that he'd actually wondered if they were really level 8.
"You seem to know them. Cactus Men are very strong, contrary to their appearance. For a student of this school, just coming back alive would be a challenge."
"H-hey… Is that so…!"
Seeing Mai's proud face, Souma thought, "I'll just keep my mouth shut."
◇
Souma and Mai walked through the school building, following behind Saito. They were heading to the "Transfer Room," which contained the gate leading to the dungeon.
"Huh? Isn't this the wrong way?"
At the end of the hall, Saito took a path opposite the usual one.
"At Osaka's request, we decided to use a different dungeon than usual. It's the most challenging dungeon that only top-ranking third-years can attempt, right before graduation."
Saito answered without turning around.
"What's wrong? Getting scared?"
Mai asked with a smirk. But inside, she herself was growing uneasy.
(Maybe going in just the two of us was too reckless? I'm starting to feel nervous.)
Meanwhile, Souma looked completely calm.
"I'm not scared at all. Because it's weaker than a Cactus Man, right?"
"Wha—!"
"Hahaha, it's nothing compared to a Cactus Man. Even though it's the most challenging, it's still for student practice. Still, it's a level 5 dungeon, so the danger level is on a different order."
Mai trembled, "Level 5…!" Souma smiled wryly, "Level 5…" The enemy level was far too low.
"We're here."
The three arrived at the intended transfer room. It was a small room, unlike the one they usually used. Once inside, Saito operated the device.
"With Kamishiro's strength, I think you'll be fine, but don't push yourselves."
A gate appeared at the back of the room. It was a vertically long, elliptical black haze. It was reminiscent of a black hole from sci-fi movies.
"If you admit that you cheated in the last training exercise, I could change the dungeon to another one, you know?"
Mai said with a trembling voice.
"What are you talking about? Let's go."
Souma drew his sword and walked calmly into the gate.
"Wait!"
Mai hurried toward the gate. But Saito grabbed her shoulder to stop her.
"Osaka, let me tell you something first."
"What is it, teacher?"
"Don't be overwhelmed by Kamishiro's strength and fall into despair. You're exceptional in your own right."
Mai bristled and shook off Saito's hand.
"Don't assume I'm inferior to Kamishiro! Besides, until recently, he was a dropout! This isn't a game; no matter how hard you work, you can't get that strong in such a short time!"
Without waiting for Saito's reply, Mai disappeared into the gate.
"His strength isn't something you can measure by common sense…"
Saito sighed.
◇
(There's definitely some trick behind his training ground score. I'll find it out!)
Mai's vision, which had been dark, began to show the dungeon landscape. A vast lake reflecting the moonlight, surrounded by trees. And in the center of her field of view—
"There were enemies nearby, so I started fighting on my own. That's fine, right?"
—Souma had calmly massacred all the enemies. The corpses of slimes shaped like falcons were piled up all around.
"It's only been a few minutes since we arrived in the dungeon, and already this many…!?"
"They die in one hit, these guys."
Souma shot down the flying slimes one after another with Lightning.
"Huh? You can use magic!? And the power is ridiculous too!"
"Is that right? Maybe it's because it's Mistria-made?"
"Mistria…?"
Without worrying, Souma kept firing off magic.
(I wasn't sure if magic would work on Earth, but I'm glad it did. Not having an MP gauge is a bit awkward, but since it's low-level magic, I can fire about a hundred shots, so it's no problem.)
Behind him, Mai had turned pale.
(W-what is with this guy…!)
She understood why Saito had said, "Don't fall into despair."