Chapter 257

After being told to wait by the man on the wall's walkway, about ten minutes passed before a response finally came from the other side.

"Sorry for the wait! We'll open the door, so come out one by one! You can stay armed. Just know we'll be armed too!"

"Understood!"

The voice was younger and higher-pitched than the first man's, but it carried a more reasonable tone, relieving Tatsuro as he quickly replied.

"So, we can come out, but they'll surround us, huh?"

"How utterly rude!"

"Now, now. It's their job. As long as they don't harm us, let's hear them out."

"Right. I'll take the lead this time. Jeanne-nee can't fit through there unless she's in [Child Form]."

"Good call. Jeanne, you take the rear."

"Neigh."

The single door wasn't large, definitely not built for a six-meter rhinoceros.

So, Athena, who could pass through and move freely, stepped forward.

As they prepared, the electric trap on the doorknob was disarmed, and someone on the other side opened the door before hurriedly retreating.

Feeling oddly over-cautious, they exited in a line: Athena, Cardina, Tatsuro, Nana, Ai, Leah, and Jeanne.

Jeanne quickly moved to the front, ready for combat.

Since the other side had formed an arc of fully armored, armed soldiers, they figured it was fair.

"Quite the spectacle. Is there a festival today?"

"Sorry, we must've startled you."

"That's fine, but I'd like an explanation. Why were we locked in?"

A man in his mid-thirties, wearing the finest armor among them, pondered Ai's words briefly before speaking.

"Could it be… Are you Tatsuro-san and Ai-san, high-ranking adventurers, along with your companions?"

"…Yes, but what's that got to do with it? When we came to this mountain, we showed our IDs to the guards at the entrance, right? I believe their names were… yes, Stuart and Val."

"──────────"

"Is something wrong?"

When Tatsuro confirmed, everyone froze, mouths agape in disbelief.

Since this stalled the conversation, Tatsuro spoke with suspicion, prompting the armored man to snap back to reality.

"C-Could… we see your IDs, please?"

"…? Sure, fine."

If it got them through, it was a small price.

Keeping his guard up, Tatsuro stepped forward with Athena and Ai.

The man cautiously approached, and Tatsuro and Ai presented their IDs together.

He examined them intently.

"I-It's true. No mistake, but…"

"But?"

"You look… far too young. If you're really them, you should be over 40…"

"40? What's that number?"

Tatsuro and the others tilted their heads, puzzled by what "40" meant.

But then, Tatsuro recalled the first man's words, "We've been guarding here for over thirty years," and a chill ran down his spine.

"Could that 40… refer to age?"

"Huh? Oh, yes, exactly. Your entry into the dungeon was recorded on May 20, 992, Ice Day, in the Heldamud Kingdom calendar. Today is September 5, 1028, Water Day, so roughly 36 years have passed in the dungeon."

"—Is that the truth, not a lie or a joke?"

"Yes, of course. There's no reason to lie."

"Damn it"

Tatsuro hurriedly activated the system and pulled up the help menu.

The armored men and Ai's group were startled as the boy, who had been calm, suddenly cursed and began working on something.

"Um, is something"

"Quiet for a sec!"

"Ah, yes."

Tatsuro, too busy to talk, received a telepathic message from Ai.

{What's wrong, Tatsuro? Sure, 36 years is shocking, but we don't even know if it's true.

{36 years, Ai! Think about it. If our world and this one share the same timeline, we'd return to Earth 36 years in the future!}

{That'd be bad!}

A few months or, at worst, a year or two could be manageable.

But two teenagers missing for 36 years, returning unchanged, could never live normal lives.

That's why Tatsuro dove deeper into the system's help on interdimensional transfer magic.

{That old man doesn't seem to be lying, so we need to figure out what to do if it's true.}

{Got it. Please.}

Ai watched Tatsuro with a worried expression.

But soon, the pallor left his face, and with a long sigh, Ai sensed the outcome.

{Good news, it's fine!}

"Yes!"

"Is… something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh, no, just talking to ourselves."

"…Right."

Ai, accidentally shouting aloud in joy, drew suspicious looks from the armored men.

But deciding she didn't care what they thought, she brushed it off and resumed telepathy.

{So, how's it fine?}

{Here's the deal. In terms of interdimensional transfer via spacetime magic, 36 years in the future, Japan is practically another world.}

{Uh-huh, don't get it.}

{Basically, I rechecked the transfer magic conditions in detail. One person in the group needs to have been to the destination, and one needs to vividly imagine it. For us, even if it's the same place, we've never been to a future 36 years ahead, nor can we imagine it. So, we can't go to the future even if we wanted to. Transfer magic will only take us to the timeline we know.}

{…So, it's about going to a place we know, right?}

{Exactly, you got it. In extreme terms, even if we spent a billion years here ageless, we'd only return to the Japan of our era. No weird excuses needed, Ai.}

{I'd rather not stick around a billion years when we can go back, but that's great! Getting weird looks from everyone would suck!}

{Right? We can go back with our heads high!}

As they excitedly locked eyes in silent celebration, they noticed the stinging gazes around them.

Their joy overshadowed the awkwardness, but the conversation wasn't moving forward.

Tatsuro cleared his throat, pretending nothing had happened, and addressed the armored man.

"Sorry for the harsh words earlier. Hearing 36 years had passed threw me off, but I'm fine now."

"Uh-huh."

"Here's the thing. Anyone who's been in a dungeon knows that day and night don't cycle regularly like in the real world."

"Yes, everyone here knows that."

The armored men, puzzled by the sudden topic, nodded along.

"Right. So, to keep track of time, we meticulously checked it, confirming whether it was day or night in the real world and how many days had passed since we entered."

"A small oversight can be deadly. Such attention to detail can save lives. But what does that"

"Our records show only seven months and one day have passed in the dungeon. That's why our appearances haven't changed much."

"…If that's true, you wouldn't have aged a year… But could such a thing happen?"

"I wouldn't know. Maybe when the dungeon leveled up, time flowed differently inside and out. It's like another world, so anything's possible."

"That's well, yes. If so, it makes sense you'd look unchanged after all this time… right?"

They were skeptical about 36 years passing, so how could they answer his doubts?

Tatsuro swallowed the words rising to his throat.

"Now, let me ask. Why were dungeon monsters near the entrance?

And why was this wall built, and what are you all doing?"

"…Dungeons above Level 10 occasionally, though not frequently, release monsters to this side. Fortunately, they can only survive in the dungeon, so they vanish with their Magic Stone after a while. But they're powerful, and if they reached populated areas, it'd be trouble. Plus, they can reproduce. If they mate with outside monsters, their offspring, born without a Magic Stone, would roam the surface indefinitely. So we built this sturdy wall to keep them in. We monitor it 26 hours a day, using force to eliminate any that try to break, climb, or fly over it."

"Using force…"

It was rude, but Tatsuro couldn't help thinking that if monsters from the dungeon's deepest layers appeared, these armored men, even together, wouldn't stand a chance.

A quick scan with [Spirit Eye] showed the highest-ranking man barely above Level 50 in Ki, magic, and skill brilliance.

The others ranged from 30 to 40, with a few stronger ones still under 50—hardly a formidable force.

That's worrying… Perhaps his thoughts showed, as the armored man gave a wry smile.

"Haha, you look concerned. Compared to folks who return from a Level 10 dungeon looking so pristine, we're outmatched… But rest assured, we always have a team of adventurers stationed here. It's not cheap, so our funds are tight…"

"Oh, I see. Well then, that's reassuring- 'cough'. With such tight defenses, everyone can feel safe!"

"Yes, well…"

Realizing he nearly belittled the men, Tatsuro coughed to cover it, but his true thoughts were heard, souring the mood around them, though the main man stayed composed.

"Anyway, I understand the situation. But attacking us, calling us monsters while we're talking, is a bit much."

"Yes, sorry about that. But we've heard of a country that mistook monsters mimicking human speech for people, leading to catastrophic damage… Plus, after ten years without emerging from a dungeon, you're presumed dead… We never imagined people like you would show up…"

"Monsters like that… Intelligent ones?"

"No. Those monsters reportedly memorized conversation patterns and mimicked vocal cords. I haven't seen them myself, so I don't know the details. But tell me, were there such monsters in the dungeon?"

"No. At least, no monsters spoke to us in human voices."

The man's eyes seemed to glint.

As Tatsuro braced himself, another question came.

"Then, specifically, what monsters were there, and on which floors?"

"Hold on. Isn't that a bit too forward?"

"Yeah. The kid answering easily is one thing, but taking advantage of that is low."

The armored man's question was abruptly cut off by newcomers, and he sweated as if caught doing something wrong.

Tatsuro realized the man was trying to get dungeon info for free and mentally kicked himself.

(In my excitement, I let my guard down. I need to reflect--)

If 36 years had truly passed, dungeon info could be valuable for gauging the situation.

It wasn't a card to play lightly.

Thinking this, Tatsuro turned to face the newcomers.