Kitakyushu Dungeon—-
〈Entry Detected—-Floor Level: 667.〉
Waterfalls. A bustling forest. A clear sky above the forest. Bushes and mountains.
Omariro landed on a path within the trees, as the wind rippled across his face, briefly revealing his stoic, emotionless eyes.
〈Rule: *Find the Exit.*〉
〈Time Remaining: 45:00〉
Omariro surveyed the area, looking at the nearby lake, which had a waterfall running over it. He stood over the lake, silently watching the water ripple.
"Home…" Omariro muttered. "Maldraeth…"
Omariro remained there for several more minutes, before a gate behind him appeared, and an unfamiliar voice called out to him. "Master!"
Arms wrapped around his body, and when he looked around, he noticed Zaria standing there, crying and clinging tightly to him.
"Master!" she repeated. "Why? Why did you leave us?"
Omariro looked down at her. "Wrong person, girl. I am no master."
"W—what? What do you mean? Don't you remember me?"
"No," he replied. "Girl is no student of mine."
Zaria's heart dropped, and she stepped back, her face in utter shock. "No…that's…a lie…sir…it's me! Zaria! You've taught me almost everything I know! You're our leader!"
Omariro's attention returned to the lake. "Leave this place. Dungeon no plaything for girl."
"But you brought us here, I can't leave you, sir! I won't! I'm still a member of your division!"
Omariro ignored her as the others rushed through the gate. Baruto was carrying Rei on his back.
"Zaria!" Rika called out. "Did you find him?"
They all came over, where they found a crying Zaria, and Shino helped her up. "Zaria? What's wrong?"
Rika noticed Omariro and grabbed his arm. "Sir? Are you alright? You left so fast, you worried us!"
Omariro didn't acknowledge her.
"Master?"
"I do not know you, girl. Master somewhere else."
Rika's eyes widened, but when she looked at his face, she noticed he was giving her a cold gaze. "What?"
Omariro stepped away from her grasp, beginning to walk off.
"Sir!" Han called out. "It's us! Your students!"
Omariro continued walking away.
"What's wrong with him?" Nonoka worried. "Why is he acting like he doesn't recognize us?"
Zaria covered her mouth, crying uncontrollably. "It's all my fault! I kept begging him to let us come here, then I got myself caught, and he saved me…and…"
She began wailing as Rika held her tightly, trying to contain her own sobs. "It's okay, he wouldn't forget us, right?"
The kids all watched as Omariro left, but Zaria chased after him, with the others following closely behind. Omariro didn't adjust his pace; he simply surveyed the area.
"Kitakyushu…" he noted. "Why here?"
Nonoka walked up to him. "You remember me, right, sir? Sunahara's daughter, Nonoka? The teachings you gave me?"
"Sunahara…" Omariro repeated. "Strange name."
"Wait, you don't recognize Dad? But sir! You trained him! He sees you as a rival!"
"No rivals," Omariro shot down. "None for me."
He turned toward the kids. "Kirakyushu is dangerous. Will lose your lives if you remain. Fool's errand."
Zaria wiped her tears. "We're not leaving you, sir!"
"We can't!" Rika agreed. "You're our master, and we need you! Rei's hurt, Sōshin's missing, and everything is just so crazy!"
"You're the only one who believed in me, sir!" Han pleaded. "Please, think!"
Shino waved to him. "Remember me, Mr. Nyugawa? The crazy girl you put your faith in? And my brothers?"
"Mr. Nyugawa seems to have forgotten," Baruto noted.
"But he couldn't have just forgotten!" Bakuō pointed out. "It's us! All of us!"
Omariro looked at Rei, narrowing his eyes. "Girl on back. Explain."
Zaria's eyes briefly lit up. "That's Rei! Do you remember Rei? We saved her in Okinawa! That was our first dungeon raid together!"
"Hmm…do not know a Rei. Mistaken for someone else."
Omariro returned to his searching, and Zaria basically fell over, forcing Rika and Nonoka to move and catch her.
"Zaria," Rika said. "Please! We can still reach him! He's our master! We've just gotta jog his memory!"
Zaria slammed the ground, basically wailing at this point. "It's my fault! My fault! It's always my damn fault! Damn it, damn it! Everyone I care about! Everyone! Why did I drag us here? WHY?"
Omariro stopped, briefly turning around. "Cease screaming. Monsters will hear."
Zaria paused, wiping her tears. "M—Master?"
Rumblings could be heard from the bushes, and Omariro formed his blade. "Girl has drawn unnecessary attention. Go! All of you!"
Sure enough, a large number of demonic-like beings emerged from the bushes, wielding large spears that appeared to be made of darkness.
〈Enemy: Forest Oni. Level: 250,000〉
"Oni," Omariro noted.
The biggest Oni stepped forward, curiously analyzing Omariro. "Huh. Omariro Nyugawa. You live yet?"
Omariro lifted an eyebrow. "Odd name."
The kids all paused.
"That's…your name, isn't it, sir?" Han pointed out.
"No matter," the lead Oni declared. "We shall slay you in kind this time, Destroyer."
"Come, attack," Omariro ordered. "Homeland will be avenged."
Three of the Oni lunged at Omariro, who blocked their spears with his blade, but the kids read his movements, utterly stunned.
"He's…" Nonoka realized. "Not fighting the same."
"It's like he's more offensive, more fierce!" Rika gasped. "But…Master usually fights measured and defensively!"
Omariro unleashed a spinning attack on his foes, disarming them at once. Before he could finish them off, more Oni emerged, attempting to swarm Omariro.
"Hmph."
With a casual flicker of his blade, Omariro cut down the Oni behind him. More moved to try and attack, but they too were cut down.
The head Oni cautiously watched Omariro, backing away. Omariro gave him a cold stare. "Flee."
"Do not patronize me, Destroyer!"
The Oni lunged at Omariro, who tore him to shreds in an instant. Once the danger had passed, Omariro continued as if nothing had happened.
Zaria clenched her fists, wiping her face. "No. I won't lose him!"
She caught up to Omariro, holding onto his arm with all her might. "Sir! Even if you don't know who I am, I'm still standing by your side! You're still my hero!"
Rika joined her. "Mine too!"
"And mine!" Nonoka added.
Han came over. "I believe in you, sir. Just like you believed in me."
Shino, Baruto, and Bakuō flanked either side of Omariro.
"You're like, my idol, Mr. Nyugawa," Shino admitted. "So, letting you go now would be a big no-no for me."
"Meh," Baruto shrugged. "It can go either way for me."
"You're a legend, sir!" Bakuō stammered.
"Let go."
The air suddenly became thick.
"Sir?" Zaria questioned.
"Let. Go. I am no hero."
"You are!"
Omariro teleported out of their grasp, reappearing a few feet away. "Children are foolish. You follow the wrong man."
"As if!" Nonoka scoffed. "We want our Master back!"
"Then seek."
Zaria gritted her teeth, before walking behind Omariro, who barely even acknowledged her. "I'm sticking with you. No matter what. We all are."
"Foolish. Girl is mortal. And weak. Death is inevitable."
"Maybe so," Zaria replied. "But you saved me, Master. If I'm going to die for anyone, it'll be for you."
Omariro stared at the faces of the kids, noticing their resolve. Rika placed a hand over her heart. "Even if you don't recognize us, please let us stay with you, Master. It's the least we can do."
Omariro's blade disappeared and he kept moving. "Children do as they wish. If harm comes, do not place blame towards me."
Their faces began to relax, and Zaria's face shifted into one of determination. "How do we escape this floor, Master?"
"No master. None for you."
"You are! You're my Master! All of our Master!"
"Hmph. Floor requires exit. Find exit."
Omariro pointed to a UI hanging above their heads.
〈Time Remaining: 17:00〉
"Time short."
Nonoka took a deep breath. "Finding an exit? This is easy, right? Just like Kagoshima."
Han sported a guilty look on his face as Shino glared at him before scanning the terrain. "I don't see any gates nearby."
"Sōshin would be perfect right about now," Rika lamented.
"We'll find him," Zaria assured her. "And we'll get Master back. Everything's gonna go back to normal."
"Yeah…you're right."
Nonoka moved to keep pace with Omariro. "If you're not our Master, sir, who are you?"
"Remnant of an old world," he answered. "World is now gone. Burned by monsters."
"What kind of world was it?"
"Irrelevant."
"That's the Master I know," she said, sadly. "Always dodging questions."
She looked toward the ground, a tear falling from her face, before coughing and attempting to play it cool. "What do you plan to do after this?"
"Find what remains of home," Omariro remarked. "Hunt those who ruined home."
"But what about Shinkaidan?"
"Irrelevant. No knowledge of Shinkaidan."
Nonoka stopped him. "You don't know about the Kaitansha? Director Hayate? Any of the Kaidanchō?"
Omariro gazed at her, a look of confusion on his face.
"Great…" Nonoka realized. "It's even worse than I thought. It's like he's unfamiliar with the entire current world…"
Another rustling came from the bushes, and this time, 3 large lions with multiple heads emerged, their predatory eyes locked onto the group.
〈Enemies: 3-Headed Lions. Level: 255,000〉
One lion tried to bite Zaria, but she kicked it in the face. The lion shook it off, stalking her like prey.
Shino attempted to erase it, but all she could manage was one of its heads, enraging it. The second lion charged at Bakuō, but Baruto moved to slice it.
He only cut a small gash into its hide, while Nonoka and Rei both evaded its teeth. Han tried pulling on its tail, but the lion turned around, preparing to lunge.
"Hey! Furball!"
The lion swiftly refocused on Zaria, who chucked her spear at it. It bounced off like a toothpick.
Zaria jumped into the air and flipped forward, kicking the lion in the head. "Tenkai-geri!"
The lion's face smacked into the ground, and Baruto grabbed it by the tail and spun around, chucking it into a tree as it slumped to the ground, dazed.
"Hey? A little help?"
The other lion had Shino cornered by a tree, who was frantically flicking her fingers in an attempt to erase it. She eventually erased one eye, but the other stayed locked onto her.
Rika quickly formed a sigil. "Shino! Take this!"
〈Sigil Created: Siphon.〉
The lion bit Shino, but the damage reflected onto it, causing its arm to be torn clean off while Shino remained mostly unharmed. Nonoka began to glow, unleashing a buff that spread throughout all the kids.
"Get it, guys!"
Both Zaria and Baruto attacked at the same time, slamming the lion into the ground. Bakuō shifted into his bison form and rammed straight into the lion, piercing it from the side and gutting it.
Zaria tackled the lion to the ground, rapidly kicking it again and again as it lashed out at her, clawing her side and roaring in her face.
"Stupid lion, get the hell off!"
Nonoka threw a rock at its face, momentarily distracting it. Zaria took the opportunity to deliver a backwards kick to its jaw and create some separation.
"Jugen-Tōshi: Senkai Yari!"
Her spear spun into the lion's face, blinding it and allowing Baruto to toss it into the air. As the kids all regained their breath, they noticed Omariro holding the bloodied body of the last lion up in the air, which was lifeless.
"Hmm," Omariro noted. "Lion weak."
"Well," Han said, nervously. "At least he's still as strong as ever?"
Omariro casually tossed the lion aside, before catching a glimpse of something buried within the dirt.
In the blink of an eye, he clapped his hands, erasing the dirt surrounding the object, which was a small dungeon gate.
〈Exit Found.〉
Omariro moved to enter it, with the kids gathering around him.
"We're coming too, Master! Zaria declared.
"Fate is in children's own hands," Omariro warned.
"That's always been the case," she informed him. "We choose to follow you, and we're choosing it again."
"Then move with purpose. Do not slow me."
"Yes, sir!"
Omariro entered the gate, with the kids entering behind him as it closed, crumbling into pieces.
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