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Dungeon Dive
The second day of school.
Just as I thought that lesson was finally about to start, us third group class turned out to have special training course from the first period.
What is distributed to all of us is a cypress stick, or not, but one meter-long stick that looks like a baton.
The other item is a small and light shield that can be held in one hand, seemingly made of some kind of special plastic.
「Haa, it truly is depressing.」
「Ahaha. It’s our first time, so we can’t help but get nervous, right?」
「You’re, right.」
Seiichi, Mai and Shizuka are on standby while similarly holding a baton and a shield.
According to the explanation, the activity in the dungeon is generally a group activity of four to five people.
With the general width of the passage within, it seems to be unsuitable for any more people than that to act together.
「—Now then, from here on it will be everyone’s first special training.」
Our homeroom teacher Midori-sensei, with a binder of student rolls in hand, looks over at the facility behind her.
A red shrine.
That’s the first image that comes to mind.
Red-lacquered pillars, a sharp-edged roof, and an altar enshrined on a granite-filled pedestal.
It’s located in the center of the academy building, perhaps around right below the garden-like courtyard.
We must have descended about three floors worth of the stairs beyond the entrance.
We pass through several massive doors that look like the ones used to seal off the underground vaults of banks I have seen on TV.
The place we have been brought straight to from the classroom is an underground large cavern.
「This is called Rashōmon. You’ll learn its structure as well as its functions in the Introduction to Labyrinths class from now on…. Originally, the right order may have been for you to learn about it in the classroom first, but to explain it in an easy-to-understand manner….」
Perhaps harboring some reluctance, she averts her gaze slightly.
「This is a kind of gate that opens a hole in the world. As well as a safety mechanism that protects your safety.」
Rashōmon, located beyond several properly lined up red toriis, certainly has not enough depth to be a shrine.
It would be more understandable for it to be a gate set in front of a large shrine.
However, I wonder where it is beyond this closed gate is connected to.
「Even if something fatal were to happen inside, you would be sent back to this place. Hence….」
For some reason, Midori-sensei, who seems to be desperately trying to say something, also seems to be wishing for an apology to us.
But Midori-sensei’s prior explanation is interrupted by what appears to be janitor-san standing on either side of the gate, and ceases there.
After closing her eyes and heaving out a sigh, with a face that’s suddenly bereft of all expression, Midori-sensei begins giving out instructions again.
「Now then. Please go through Rashōmon according to party order.」
With a swoosh, I feel that a breeze is blowing through the red torii.
◇ ◇ ◇
As the first party activated Rashōmon, the space between the pillars distorted, and the figures of the students vanished as if melting into the distortion.
Rather than fear, the drifting airs were more akin to excitement in front of an amusement park attraction.
「Actually, I’m also a little excited.」
Amidst the parties that were transferred in order, becoming the last one, Touma and the others were also standing in the line.
「Haa…, you sure are carefree, aren’t you?」
「Hey, I don’t remember giving you permission to call me ‘you’, though. Be sure to call me by my name.」
Perhaps somewhat excited, Mai, whose healthy cheeks slightly flushed, lashed out at Seiichi.
In the mire of depression, Seiichi, whose face had lost some blood, heaved out a sigh.
「Well, at this late of the game, I bet those who have known it have already known it, so I’ll just tell you. This, first dungeon dive is set to be a one-way traffic, you see.」
「… Huh?」
「What’s that?」
Not only Mai, Shizuka, who had gone rigid in nervous, also had her body stiffened with a start.
「The baptism of returning from death seems to be a tradition here. The goal of the first training seems to register the so-called biometric data of the new students into that goddamned gate.」
As the queue had moved halfway, they could even feel intimidating air from the double-roofed Karamon they could do nothing but look up to.
There were five doors installed in front of Rashōmon, among which three were for regular use, one for new registrations, while the remaining one was strictly managed by the academy.
The rightmost door facing the front side was open, and this time the closing of the gate was set at 3:00 p.m.
There was no way to come back from the other side of Rashōmon until then.
If you thought of it as an attraction, it would be a survival game where you had to survive until the appointed time.
「Everyone’s saying that we should just think of it as a game, but it’s a bit nerve-wracking, isn’t it?」
「Well, no matter what happens, it won’t lead to trauma, though. Even if you experience something extreme inside, you’d forget about it, after all.」
Shizuka, whose complexion had gone beyond pale and began to turn white, rigidly floated a bitter smile.
「But still, even in such a situation, you sure look totally fine, Touma.」
「… No, I’m also panicking here.」
「Is that so? From what I can see, you look like the usual you, though.」
I don’t think he’ll do something conspicuous right off the bat, so let’s take a wait and see stance for the time being, with such a thought, Seiichi shrugged his shoulders.
No matter what would happen inside, it was not as if they’d be able to leave with recollections of it, but he was genuinely curious about this nonsensical guy.
Without any particular trouble, Touma and the rest of the party arrived at the first door of Rashōmon.
Midori, their homeroom teacher, was waiting for them in front of the door, providing support for their first transfer.
「Now then, so it’s your turn. Please stand in the middle of the two-layered circle in the center of the gate. During the transfer, everyone in the circle will be moved to the same place. There’s a rare chance of you getting separated, but if you connect your bodies, hold hands there should be no problem.」
「Okay.」
「Yes.」
「Under, stood.」
「… Roger.」
With a swish, the figures of Touma and the others warped like ink that was spilled into water.
From the point of view of Touma and the other, the one that looked warping was the surrounding space itself.
「I’m sorry. Very please…. don’t lose it.」
With the understanding that it wouldn’t reach them, Midori offered an apology to her students.
◇ ◇ ◇
『Permesivanelacitadolentepermesivaneletternodololerepermesivatralaperdutagente.』
『Giustiziamosseilmioalttofattoorefechemiladivinapodestaterasommasapienzaelprimoamore.』
『Dinanziamenonforcoseceleatessenoneterneeioternodolorasciateognesperanzavoichintrate.』
I can see rows of alphabets I don’t particularly understand.
On the side, there is unfamiliar writing, probably Chinese.
Above, there’s an ink writing of what looks like Japanese that is written overly skillfully to the point of being unreadable.
And underneath, there is a jumbled up multiplex of squares and circles, as well as number and hieroglyph-looking something.
But even if I can’t read them, I can『somehow』 make out their meaning.
Alphabets, Kanji, Chinese, numbers, as well as squares and circles all have the same meaning.
To put it bluntly, inconsistency.
A vulgar mix of Japanese and Western.
However, its severity that lacks serenity is totally sickening.
It’s as if they were desperately trying to give form to something, but simply threw and mixed up everything without proper direction.
The last part of the hardly alphabet rows.
I don’t know why, but I can now『read』 its meaning.
It’s similar to the inscription on the gates of hell in Dante’s Divine Comedy, which I remember reading in manga or something.
—Abandon whole life, you who pass through this gate—
That moment, my vision, which has lost its form, regains its three-dimensional form as if it has been reverse regenerated.
Not only my sense of balance, it feels as if even the insides of my body have also been jumbled up, so I’m assailed with dizziness.
The place I’m standing has completely changed from where I was standing just a moment ago.
The dim and wide space is rectangular, and the ceiling is by no means low, but it gives off a terrific oppressive feeling.
No, it’s not just the ceiling, I can feel it from our whole surroundings.
I don’t know how I should put it, but it’s similar to when I previously got involved in a fight and was surrounded by dozens of male students.
I did manage to convince them that it was a misunderstanding but I can still remember how much trouble it took me to accomplish it.
「… Phew, first of all, it’s a success, I guess.」
Looking at the surroundings, Seiichi heaves out a sigh of relief.
There’s nothing sort of an electric light here, but mysteriously I’m able to secure vision at the level of not getting troubled with it.
「It’s not as exaggerated, as I thought.」
I’m not sure whether she’s courageous or thickheaded, but Mai is restlessly looking around at the surroundings at once.
「Here, is, the inside of the dungeon….」
Shizuka is pale-faced, still gripping the baton and the shield in her hands.
Talk about an elaborate attraction.
Let’s stop fooling myself in such a way.
Seems like this academy is beyond my imagination in a lot of ways.
「Seiichi, explain this situation in three sentences.」
「Dungeon RPG. Difficulty: Hell mode. Level 1. OK?」
Pretty much just as I have guessed.
It’s no longer a role-play, but a real life dungeon conquest.
First of all, once I get out of this place, I’ll head back to my hometown for once and give my homeroom teacher from middle school a nice full swing punch.
With a starting run on top of it.