“We will be doing an emergency dungeon broadcast from now on. Shiba and Kōya will explore the dungeon again.”
I made an urgent announcement on social media. A dungeon broadcast that wasn’t part of the original schedule.
I don’t know if people will gather. No, it’s fine if they don’t gather at this point. If I can help Daigo-san.
I set up a waiting area for the broadcast and called Shiba-san.
“Shiba-san, are you ready?”
“Yes. I’m here in front of the dungeon mark. If I touch this mark, I can teleport to the checkpoint I set.”
“Got it. We’re also ready for the broadcast here. We’ll start the stream as soon as we enter the dungeon. Since there’s no time, we can skip the opening greeting. The moderators will handle the greetings and announcements.”
“Thank you. Now, Kōya-kun, let’s go.”
“Yes.”
While watching Daigo-san’s stream on the TV, I decided to watch Shiba-san’s stream on my smartphone.
Please, Shiba-san. I hope the rescue is in time.
The waiting area was starting the emergency broadcast. The comment section was buzzing, likely questioning the lack of the usual opening greeting.
Shadow Stars Administration: Thank you all for gathering today. I apologize for starting the broadcast without a greeting. However, I hope you can watch the stream calmly.
As the administrator, I greeted in the chat. There was no point in causing anxiety in the chat section. Let’s temporarily set aside the fact that it’s an emergency and let everyone enjoy the broadcast.
: > Moderator: Understood.
: But they seem to be in a hurry, right?
: Why are these people running through the dungeon so quickly?
Usually, at the beginning of a dungeon run, it’s rare to see such haste. Running through the dungeon makes you stand out and increases the chances of encountering monsters. At the early stages, your body hasn’t absorbed the magical energy yet, so there are restrictions on magic use.
Therefore, streamers typically proceed cautiously, walking while being alert to their surroundings at the start. Running at such a pace right from the beginning is, frankly, a bad example.
But they have no choice but to do it. While they’re doing this, Daigo-san is suffering damage from his fight with the Murder Machine.
However, monsters appear before Shiba-san and the others. It’s a goblin monster.
“Shiba-san…! As planned, I will take care of this.”
“Ah. Thank you. I’m sorry. Don’t die.”
First, Kōya steps up to the front line and attacks the goblin. As soon as the goblin’s target turns to Kōya, Shiba-san rushes out.
: What!? Shiba-san isn’t fighting?
: Where are you going, leaving Kōya-kun behind?
: Is this a retreat in front of the enemy?
: No, but there’s no way Shiba would do that…
The comments start buzzing with confusion over Shiba-san’s actions. It’s understandable; if I didn’t know the circumstances, I would have reacted the same way as them.
Shiba-san ran. And ahead of him—
“Daigo-kun!”
There was Daigo-san, trying to fend off the attacks of the Murder Machine while protecting his bleeding right shoulder. His face was devoid of life, and his eyes were vacant. His expression told of despair. However, when he heard Shiba-san’s voice, vitality returned to his eyes.
“Huh? Shiba!? What are you doing here?!”
In that moment of distraction, the Murder Machine raised its axe high.
“Ah, no!”
At the moment the axe was about to swing down, Shiba-san, spear in hand, charged at the Murder Machine. The spear struck the Murder Machine’s waist. The machine staggered back from the impact and fell.
: W-wait!?
: I don’t really understand, but yay!
: Daigo-kun!? What happened? You’re hurt on your shoulder!
: Could it be that Shiba and Kōya were aiming to rescue Daigo?
“Yes. This is Shiba from Shadow Stars. I apologize for the late greeting. Today’s broadcast is about going to rescue my comrade. We are currently trying to achieve that goal.”
The fallen Murder Machine was making a rattling noise as it struggled to get back up. The creaking of metal sounded eerie.
“Beep beep beep.”
A mysterious electronic sound came from the Murder Machine.
“Mode change! Dual-wield mode.”
The Murder Machine pulled out an axe that was stored in its body and held one in each hand. It charged at Shiba-san with both axes.
“Whoa.”
Shiba-san dodged the Murder Machine’s attack. However, the other axe came at him. Shiba-san evaded that as well.
Now, it became a battle of endurance between the Murder Machine and Shiba-san. The Murder Machine swung its axes rhythmically. The clanging of axes echoed as they gouged the dungeon floor.
While Shiba-san drew the enemy’s attacks, Daigo-san began treating his own injury. He pressed a cloth hard against the bleeding area to stop the bleeding. Although returning to the fight seemed difficult, minimizing damage from blood loss was significant.
“This is a one-sided defense. This is troubling. There’s no opening to attack.”
Shiba-san continued to evade the enemy’s attacks. His movements were graceful like a butterfly. However, Shiba-san was still human. Eventually, fatigue would dull his movements. Continually avoiding attacks would be taxing both physically and mentally.
“Suuuu.”
Shiba-san took a deep breath and exhaled, “Haaaah.”
“Magic power is building up! Dash!”
Shiba-san moved at a speed that was almost too fast to see. I felt it was faster than even an Olympic sprinter. In an instant, he slipped into the Murder Machine’s range and thrust his spear hard into its abdomen.
“Beeep… Gagaga.”
Given that the enemy had a tough metallic body, the spear couldn’t easily penetrate it. However, the impact was conveyed, causing the Murder Machine to fall backward.
Still, the battles in the dungeon are complex. Even Shiba-san, who appeared to be on the defensive, had a chance for a comeback. Humans can absorb the magical energy overflowing in the dungeon to cast spells.
Shiba-san was aiming for a speed-up spell and was buying time to gather the magical energy needed to activate it.
This means that simply exhausting physical stamina doesn’t directly lead to a disadvantage. The weight of magic in combat is that significant.
Shiba-san is truly amazing. He’s accustomed to fighting.
“I’ll finish this in one go!”
: Go, Shiba!
: So strong! Shiba is awesome!
Shiba-san approached the fallen Murder Machine, ready to deliver the finishing blow with his spear. However—
“Beeep… Boost mode on!”
The Murder Machine’s legs erupted with jet engines. It flew off the ground, dodging Shiba-san’s strike and regaining its posture.
The distance between the Murder Machine and Shiba-san widened. Shiba-san did not chase after it. Perhaps it’s a fundamental rule of battle to avoid deep pursuits.
“Beeep. Mode change. Caterpillar mode.”
The Murder Machine’s legs transformed into a type resembling caterpillar tracks instead of human-like bipedal legs.
Transforming robots are a boy’s romance. If it weren’t an enemy, I would have been excited, but facing such a troublesome transforming robot makes me wish it wouldn’t do anything unnecessary.
“Target eliminated! Eliminating!”
“Target? Me? Hehe, give it a try if you can!”
Shiba-san gripped his spear and grinned mischievously.
