The march of the "Grand Alliance" through the forest at the foot of the mountain was slow.


    Hey! Can''t you run faster?


    Neil chided his troops irritably.


    The guys from the Arsenal of the Spirits are already a long way ahead of us," he said.


    The "Grand Alliance" gathered at the plaza in front of the dungeon at the same time as the "Arsenal of Spirits" alliance, but they were already far behind.


    First, there was a slight mishap in the troop formation stage, which prevented them from entering the dungeon at the scheduled time.


    In the forest at the foot of the mountain, they had trouble forming a coherent formation whenever they encountered a monster.


    The monsters on the right wing and in the center, where the "Wise Man''s Crown" was still in charge, were cleared without difficulty, but on the left wing, where there were many local adventurers, there was no sign of an end in sight, even though several tens of minutes had passed since the battle had begun.


    The left wing, where many of the local adventurers were located, showed no sign of finishing the battle, even though several dozen minutes had passed since the start of the battle. Enough or I''ll leave you here!"


    Neil, calm down."


    Glen, the elder of the two, said to him as if to correct him.


    The dungeon search has just begun. If you are in too much of a hurry to get going, you will run out of breath.


    But," he said. At this rate, the "Arsenal of Spirits" alliance will reach the mining site before we do.


    No need to be hasty. There are plenty of good ore mines in this dungeon. First of all, we need to establish ties with local adventurers. Have you forgotten what happened last year?　Last year, too, we proceeded without sufficient cooperation with the local guilds, and as a result, we fell apart in the latter half of the year. It is imperative to wash the alliance''s issues while the monsters are still weak in the early stages and optimize them for the middle to end of the game. In this dungeon, ......"


    As Glen was about to say this, the cry of a "fire dragon (Fafnir)" ripping through the sky echoed through the air.


    Soon after, angry shouts and the sound of weapons clanging in battle could be heard.


    When Glenn turned his head to the sky, he saw the "breath of fire," which seemed to be emitted by "Fafnir," and the arrows fired by the archer flying back and forth.


    Is that the ...... ''Arsenal of Spirits'' fighting?"


    They''ve already reached the Metal Line.


    Glenn looks incredulous.


    (That''s ridiculous. He''s going too fast, no matter how much he tries. They can''t maintain their equipment and status at such a high speed. Have you abandoned the game?)


    The sounds of battle did not last long.


    The "Arsenal of Spirits" alliance took out the "Metal Line" monster mixed unit with unbelievable deftness.


    There was not the slightest sign of an unreasonable advance.


    But even so, Glen still could not believe it.


    Common sense inevitably refused to comprehend the events in front of him.


    (The only thing to watch out for on this island should be the Thieves'' Guild. (But then again, ......)


    Hey. Isn''t that a quirk?"


    Ian gave Neil an earful.


    The island''s adventurers are a bit of a shifty bunch," Ian said. If the "Arsenal of Spirits" alliance is too close to us, it will be bad for our face. Some adventurers might even be swayed by the other side.


    At Ian''s advice, Neil''s patience ran out.


    He puts magic into his wand.


    Neil!　What are you doing?"


    I don''t think this is the time to be saving any more time," he said. I''m going to fly. Agility!


    How can we incorporate the strength of the "Guardians of the Magic Tree" into the "Arsenal of Spirits" alliance? That''s what we have to do this time.


    Roland said this prior to the dungeon entry.


    Leon, Hans, and Will. The Guardians of the Magical Tree are still unfamiliar with volcanic dungeons," Roland said before entering the dungeon. If you encounter Fafnir in the Metal Line, you are to set the example of how to defeat him.


    All right, man.


    Yufine, Shakuma. The adventurers on this island are not very good at being outside adventurers. I don''t think this is likely to happen, but when you have to fight the ''Wise Man''s Crown,'' I want you to take the lead."


    Yes, sir.


    No matter how carefully you prepare, there will always be unforeseen circumstances in the dungeon. Each time this happens, we will be forced to make improvements and fine-tune our approach, so every guild should be proactive in voicing their opinions."


    「「「「「 yes 」」」」」


    And in the dungeon.


    "Carla, ''Fafnir the Fire Dragon'' is coming!"


    Jeff said.


    ''I''m on it!　Huh."


    Carla followed Jeff and showered the low-flying "Fire Dragon (Fafnir)" with "Kaiten Sword Dance".


    (Ugh. Can you cut it?)


    Carla is startled by the new sword''s cutting ability.


    With just one slash, the sword bites deeply into the skin of Fafnir, which normally requires multiple cuts to pass through, and almost reaches the bone.


    Thanks to this, Carla missed the technique with too much momentum and almost lost her landing position.


    Cecil, who was standing behind her, rushed to finish off "Fafnir.


    What are you doing, Carla? You missed the shot, didn''t you?


    I''m sorry. I got a little out of hand. ......"


    (Wayne guy, what kind of slashing sword are you going to give me? If he does a bad "Kaiten Kenbai", he''ll fail to defeat him.)


    Elio was under attack from "Rock Fang" at another location.


    It is extremely difficult to completely defend against the attacks of "Rock Fang," which has high agility.


    However, Erio was about to do it.


    (Normally, I''d be okay with taking damage, but if you want to be an A-class shield user, you have to be able to kill the enemy''s power perfectly.)


    Erio watches closely for the "Rock Fang," which moves in small increments to seek an opening, and tries to find the right moment to strike.


    Rock Fang" jumped at him.


    （Now!)


    Elio holds up his shield to defend against "Rock Fang''s" claw attack.


    However, he could not kill the impact completely and felt his equipment and status being cut down.


    (Heck, no?)


    Elio glanced back at Roland and shook his head.


    (d*mn. Again.)


    Hans was chasing a "wyvern".


    （I can''t shoot as fast as Alice or shoot as many times as Claire. ) So, to get to A class, I have to aim for the power of the "magic shot" and ...... a hundred hits!


    Hans unleashes a "magic shot" surrounded by flames, but is unable to shoot down the "flying dragon (wyvern)" with a single shot.


    (d*mn. It''s no good. The shooting motion of "Magic Shot" is always delayed. I have to concentrate more.)


    Will was destroying the enemy with "blast magic" from behind the battle lines of his allies.


    The blast that rolled out was one larger than usual.


    He said, "Wow. It''s amazing. Big brother.


    I''m not sure I want to go back to the same place. That''s great. This cane. Looks like Wayne''s guy did a good job. But ......"


    (In the current battle, we could have defeated the enemy more efficiently. We had to get into position faster and create more blasts in the right places. Besides ......)


    Will tightened his grip on his staff.


    (It should be able to produce more power. (This cane that Wayne made for me should be able to do more.)


    Roland looked around the entire battlefield, especially watching the work of Elio, Hans, Will, and Carla.


    He had told the four of them to prioritize their growth, even if it meant putting aside some of their unit''s needs.


    （I can see that all four of them have more desire than before, and the will to be A-class is real," he said. (At this rate, they will naturally improve their skills with more experience, and when they encounter A-class monsters, they will not hesitate to hit them.)


    Carla, I''m going to go for another ''Fafnir'' dragon. This time, you have to finish it off with a single blow.


    Jeff made a move to draw the "Fire Dragon (Fafnir)".


    Carla followed suit.


    (With the new weapon, it is difficult to decide on the "Kaiten Ken Dance". Then here is ...... "Swordsmanship"!)


    A flash.


    With a single stroke, Carla sliced the thick neck of the fire dragon (Fafnir) in two.


    Skill and Status of Carla Grazia


    Swordsmanship: A (up1)


    Adaptability: 80% (↑20%)


    (Carla, you have a good sense of style. (Adaptation rate to new equipment is getting better.)


    While the locals took the lead in fighting the monsters, the "Guardians of the Magic Tree" stayed in the background and watched the battle.


    Roland had told them to stay behind and watch the local group fight until they got used to the monsters in the "volcano dungeon.


    Rick, too, had been behind the scenes ever since he entered the dungeon and had been doing his best to stay in the rear guard, but when he saw Carla slash the "Fire Dragon (Fafnir)," he finally reached the end of his patience.


    He finally ran out of patience when he saw Carla slash at "Fafnir. But when he saw Carla slash at Fafnir, he finally reached the end of his patience. I can''t stand it any longer. Lelio, we are going to hunt Fafnir too.


    I''m not sure. Yes, that''s right. Let''s do it.


    Lelio, with his quick feet, takes up a position and shoots the "Fire Dragon (Fafnir)" far away.


    Jeff rolled his eyes.


    （This guy is fast. Is he a class-A archer?


    Rick casts "Agility Grant" on himself, and despite his heavy armor, he overtakes Lelio at the speed of wind and catches the claws of the swooping "Fire Dragon (Fafnir)" with his "Shield Defense" and then disposes of them with his "Sword Technique.


    (He is a high-level user of support magic, shield defense, and swordsmanship. He''s an A-class magic knight, too.)


    Leon judged Rick as such.


    Encouraged by Rick and Lelio, the archers and warriors of the "Guardians of the Magic Tree" began to challenge the "Fire Dragon (Fafnir)" one after another.


    Each of them hunts "Fafnir" by making use of their unique skills and stats.


    Leon observed their fighting style carefully.


    （I see. They are the strongest team in the "City of Adventurers". Even though they have only been in the volcano dungeon for a short time, they have mastered the technique of defeating the "Fafnir" perfectly. But ......, is it my imagination?　(Doesn''t there seem to be that much difference between our movements and those of the "Guardians of the Magic Tree"?)


    Leon looked around at his troops.


    (Are we already at the level of those guys from off the island?　(No, no way. ......)


    As the "Arsenal of Spirits" alliance progressed, the monsters grew in strength.


    The local adventurers and the "Guardians of the Magical Tree" began to compete with each other to defeat the "Fire Dragon (Fafnir)," and it became a battle for the prey.


    As the "Guardians of the Magic Tree" danced forward, local adventurers would overtake them and take up positions in front.


    Then the adventurers of the "Guardians of the Magic Tree" moved even further ahead, and the formation of the group lengthened.


    (Hey, hey, hey, isn''t this a little bit bad?)


    Leon sees the heated competition for defeat and begins to feel impatient.


    （It''s still early in the game, and we can''t keep going this fast. We have a battle with the "White Wolf" on the way back. I think we should save our energy for a bit here. ...... No, but ......)


    Leon glanced at the "Guardians of the Magic Tree".


    (Am I really allowed to say such a thing?　The "Guardians of the Magic Tree" is also a high-level guild from the outside. If we interfere in a strange way and things get sour, there is no way we can recover. (No, but ......)


    Leon now looks at the local adventurers.


    (The locals, who usually hide easily behind outside guilds, are now more competitive than ever. That in itself is a good thing. (That in itself is a good thing, but ......, if things continue as they are, you can see that the locals and the outsiders will get into trouble again.)


    Another local adventurer passed the "Guardian of the Magic Tree" and took the lead.


    The line would be further thinned out.


    (What are we going to do?　If things continue as they are, the alliance could fall apart. Someone has to stop this trend. But who?　(There is no one here who can talk to and convince both locals and outsiders. ......)


    Leon, Euphine. Tell the troops to stop."


    Roland said.


    ''That''s it for today''s search. Start getting ready for encampment."


    Hearing this, Leon was relieved.


    (You guys are so quintessential, you put in a good interval at the right time. I can cool down for now.)


    With a single word from Roland, the "Arsenal of Spirits" alliance set up camp on a small nearby hill, even though the sun was still high in the sky, and began to prepare for encampment.


    <>