After taking a short break, Freyr and Arthur both seemed to regain some of their energy.

While Carl and I were unfazed by such an intense march, having grown accustomed to even harsher conditions, it was clear that these two were not.

Kids these days lack grit.

If they had experienced training under Commander Fossell, they’d think being allowed to sleep was a luxury.

Maybe I should invite them to try the Allen family training regimen sometime. I bet they’d jump at the chance if I told them it’s how I got so strong.

“Lucy Allen, so what are we doing next?”

Arthur, who looked like he was about to die when we first reached the safe zone on the 34th floor, now seemed eager to continue. How enthusiastic of him.

“We’re going to hunt monsters!”

“We’re going to massacre some lousy monsters.”

“Huh?”

My plan was simple.

We would go up and down between the 34th and 35th floors, hunting monsters.

At my current level, hunting here is the most efficient way to level up.

The monsters on these floors are heavily armed orcs, and due to their nature, they appear in large numbers.

They rely on quantity rather than individual strength.

Normally, their overwhelming numbers would be terrifying, but not to a gamer.

The high spawn rate means it’s perfect for grinding.

If we spend the entire time hunting orcs until we’re forced out of the dungeon, our levels should increase significantly.

“That’s it?”

When I explained my plan, Freyr asked dismissively.

“Fighting orcs will just be boring.”

“I agree. Is fighting orcs really going to be beneficial for a party like this?”

What were they expecting?

In a dungeon, it’s either clearing floors or grinding for levels.

There’s nothing else to do.

And honestly, it’s annoying that these two, who were exhausted just from running here, are complaining about grinding.

Do they think grinding is easy?

Grinding is the toughest, most tedious part of an RPG, you know?

You’ll find it’s a whole different experience when you actually do it!

“Let’s see if it’s boring once you try it.”

“You think it’s boring? Really? Are you sure about that?”

Maybe something in my tone caught Arthur’s attention, but Freyr wasn’t deterred.

Confident in her opinion, she nodded firmly.

“Of course. Fighting orcs won’t be a problem, no matter how many there are.”

“Really? No matter how many there are, it’ll be fine?”

“Lousy swordsman, really? You’re sure you can handle a flood of lousy orcs?”

“Yep, no problem.”

You just nodded, didn’t you?

So you’re agreeing to the grueling march that’s about to begin, right? Great.

That means I can push you and Arthur without feeling guilty.

Thanks, Freyr.

You’ve lightened my conscience a bit.

“Then let’s get started!”

“Let’s move! I don’t think there’s any pathetic weaklings here who’ll start whining.”

*  

Three hours into the monster hunting that Lucy had described, Arthur had to admit he had overlooked something.

Lucy Allen was born and trained in the Allen family, the most prestigious martial family on the continent.

The training in the Allen family is notoriously brutal.

Even well-known knights have been known to break under the pressure and flee in terror.

Lucy, who trained alongside those knights, would never use something as simple as orc hunting as a mere exercise.

When she first explained this march, Lucy Allen used the word “massacre.”

At the time, Arthur thought she was just being her usual arrogant, overconfident self.

But he was wrong.

The word “massacre” was the only way to accurately describe the current march.

“Four lousy orcs up ahead. I hope there’s no one weaker than me lagging behind?”

“Three squealing pigs around the corner.”

“Six this time? They must think they can win by sticking together. Pathetic weaklings.”

Battle after battle after battle.

Arthur couldn’t even remember how many orcs they had hunted so far.

He could only estimate that the number easily exceeded a hundred.

It goes without saying that fighting orcs wasn’t particularly difficult.

With Lucy Allen effortlessly blocking the orcs’ attacks at the front and Freyr decapitating them with precision whenever the opportunity arose, victory was assured.

No matter how many there were, they were still just orcs.

Freyr even went off on her own several times, annihilating groups of orcs and returning without a scratch.

At the start of the hunt, Arthur had thought it was too easy.

But that was only during the first few battles.

No matter how easy the fight, when it’s repeated over and over, physical exhaustion starts to take its toll.

As their movements became sluggish, the battles grew harder, and the coordination within the party began to falter.

The more things went awry, the longer the fights dragged on, and the quicker their stamina depleted.

A normal party would take a break before things got to this point, but Lucy Allen didn’t.

“You’re already tired? I guess the Pathetic Prince really has lousy stamina. Should I carry you? Give you a little ‘aw, poor baby’?”

That was her only response when Arthur suggested they rest.

Under normal circumstances, Arthur would prioritize calm, rational decisions over his pride, but Lucy Allen’s words had a strange power.

The thought of losing to her was unbearable, so Arthur gritted his teeth and insisted he was fine.@@novelbin@@

After more than twenty battles, the party members had stopped talking altogether.

Lucy Allen continued to brief and direct them, but no one responded.

They simply didn’t have the strength to answer.

Freyr’s sword strikes were becoming slower, Arthur’s decisions were increasingly delayed and often wrong, and even Lucy, the one with the most stamina, was beginning to make mistakes.

By the time they’d fought nearly thirty battles, they had all reached their limit.

Arthur could feel his mana reserves completely drained.

Freyr was barely doing anything except gasping for breath.

Even Lucy Allen showed signs of exhaustion.

Everyone was falling apart.

“Professor Carl, is this really okay?”

As safe as this dungeon is, that only means they’re not at risk of dying.

Injuries and wounds are still very possible.

If this march continues with the party in such a worn-out state, someone is bound to get seriously hurt.

Arthur voiced his concern, and Freyr perked up her ears.

She was too proud to say it, but she was exhausted too.

“Is there a problem?”

Arthur hoped Carl would intervene, but Carl’s response was far from what he expected.

“No problem with this grueling march?”

“Yes. This is a training exercise to push their stamina to the limit. It’s a necessary experience.”

Carl explained.

When you enter a dungeon, you can’t always control the situation.

The idea that you can rest whenever you need to is a fantasy.

“It would be nice if safe zones appeared whenever they were needed, but real-life scenarios don’t work that way. There may be times when you go through an entire dungeon without finding a single safe zone.”

“So this is training for that?”

“Yes, that’s why I’m not stopping it.”

That arrogant, overconfident girl actually thought this through?

Hearing Carl’s words, Arthur looked ahead.

There was Lucy, forcing herself to maintain a calm demeanor as she led the way.

Come to think of it, she’s the one having the hardest time here.

Always at the front, taking the brunt of the enemy’s attacks, she’s doing the most work because she’s the one with the most stamina.

Yet, she hasn’t said a word about resting.

Lucy Allen is pushing herself to the brink.

So this is what she meant by gaining experience.

“My apologies. I was being petty. Please forget I said anything.”

“Yes, understood, Your Highness.”

With a clear answer from Carl, Arthur took a deep breath.

Yeah, I still have enough energy to whine, don’t I?

I can’t collapse before Lucy Allen does.

I won’t give her the satisfaction.

*  

Leveling up is slower than I expected.

There are plenty of problems, but the biggest one is stamina.

When this was just a game, I didn’t have to worry about the stamina of my party members.

They didn’t complain about being tired.

But now that it’s reality, things are different.

Arthur and Freyr are human.

Even if they’re extraordinary humans, they have their limits.

Just like in the game, they can’t fight at the same pace from the first hunt to the last.

We’ve been forcing the pace so far, but I can see their limits approaching.

Even Freyr, who used to charge ahead recklessly, flinches every time she hears there are more orcs.

I think it’s time we took a break.

“Everyone, shall we rest a bit?”

“Hey, pathetic ones. Your legs are shaking. If you bow your heads, I might let you rest.”

“I’m fine.”

“No problem.”

I expected them to welcome the idea with open arms, but Arthur and Freyr’s responses were different.

“We can still keep going.”

“Orcs are trash. Still easy.”

Do they really think they can keep going when they look like they’re about to keel over?

Is this just because they don’t want to lose to me?

Well, whatever. If they want to keep pushing themselves, who am I to stop them?

*  

Surprisingly, Arthur and Freyr followed my grueling march to the very end.

We took a few short breaks under Carl’s guidance, but that was it.

In the end, even though they were barely able to stand, they gritted their teeth and kept up with me.

Thanks to that, I was able to hunt until we were forced out of the dungeon.

The result? I gained three levels today.

So now I’m level 18.

It’s too slow.

I thought I might not reach my goal in one day, but I didn’t expect it to be this bad.

Considering it gets harder to level up as your level increases, I might have to spend several days just grinding.

Normally, I would go back into the dungeon tomorrow to continue grinding, but unfortunately, I have prior commitments.

I have some business to take care of in the streets of Soul Academy tomorrow.

As a gamer, I can’t miss the beginning of the main quest, right?

I wonder which Apostle of the Evil God will wreak havoc on Soul Academy’s first years this time.