"I Was Reincarnated Into Another World So I Want to Teach Them a Lesson in the Dungeon." ~I May Have Been Expelled as a C-Rank Sorcerer, but Since It Seems Everyone Wants My Cheat Skill, I Think I'll Teach Them a Lesson~ - Chapter 5

As Miria’s voice echoed away, like an answer from the mountains, I might have been mixing and embellishing memories in the midst of my dreamlike state.

But when I awoke, I was indeed resting on Miria’s thighs.

Whether I had dozed off while she stroked my hair, or the fire had died out, leaving her hands cold to the touch against my cheek, I couldn’t tell.

Unlike her, I must have slept soundly without getting chilled, thanks to the warmth retained in her fresh green nithsdale.

I was lying comfortably, and the intricately woven dark undergarments were close enough to discern even the creases.

“Hey, you’ve got it pretty good there.”

The one to announce the morning to me before the rooster’s crow was Lokiel. He came striding over with rye bread in hand. His voice startled me awake, and I hastily tried to explain.

I wasn’t staring at her undergarments, not at all.

“No, it’s not what you think, Lokiel. I was just using her knee as a pillow—!”

“Jealous? I’m just saying you’ve got it good. You’re pretty smooth, Soma, moving so quickly from yesterday.”

“That’s not it…”

“Heh, don’t worry. If we’re talking about who’s got the charm, I’d win hands down, so I’m not jealous.”

“…That’s a relief.”

He tossed me two pieces of rye bread.

“One’s for Miria. Give it to her when she wakes up.”

“Thanks, Lokiel.”

“Don’t mention it. I’m good at sneaking things out—ah, don’t get me wrong. I don’t have sticky fingers normally. It’s just my unique skill that tells me where the A-rankers are.”

“That’s a handy unique skill.”

“Yeah, maybe I should just become a bread delivery guy for the investigation team with my unique skill.”

Lokiel cheerfully went off to distribute the bread.

“What a waste.”

“Ah, Mi-Miria… you were awake…”

“Good morning, Soma-kun. Did you sleep well last night?”

“Thanks to you, it was extremely comfortable. And thanks for this nithsdale—it’s really warm and smells good.”

Miria’s cheeks flushed.

Of course, saying the pillow was comfortable was synonymous with “thanks for your soft thighs,” and saying it smelled nice was the same as saying “Miria, you smell good.”

“No, that’s not what I meant… Why am I saying such strange things…? I must be a pervert…!”

“It’s okay, it’s okay. I’m really happy about it.”

“If you say so…”

“Hehe. Hehehe…”

Miria smiled sweetly, an innocent look on her face that I hadn’t expected, and I found myself smiling back, caught by her infectious laughter.

“Um… here, rye bread. Lokiel said it was for you.”

“I’m really hungry.”

“You said ‘what a waste’ just now, what did you mean?”

“Oh, that? I just thought that with Lokiel’s personality, he could join a better investigation team. Doesn’t he seem like the kind of guy people would love?”

“True. Lokiel is an easygoing guy.”

Using the terminology of my previous life, he would undoubtedly be classified as a popular guy.

◆ ◆ ◆

Six days had passed since the start of our dungeon exploration.

The results were disheartening; the morale of the investigation team had declined with the death of one of the provisional A-rank members, the archer Edgar Lubroff, and we were faced with the dilemma of being able to track the demon area boss that had killed him.

This happened on the fifth day.

When we encountered the area boss demon, Mule, we were utterly defeated without a chance.

Even pooling all our unique skills, only three of us could effectively participate in combat, a fragility we couldn’t overcome.

So Edgar’s death hit us hard.

Mule deflected Edgar’s arrow with a magically conjured shield and taunted us,

“Hehehe. What’s this? So dull. Can’t any of you entertain me?”

Not even Caroline’s magic could make a dent; it was simply erased. So arrows were clearly not going to cut it.

“We’re retreating for now!”

At Ryner’s command, we left Edgar’s body behind and were forced to retreat deep into the woods.

Subsequently, there was no strategy meeting; Ryner used one of his unique skills, “Clairvoyance,” to order us to track the enemy.

It turned out that Lokiel was the holder of this skill. Its effect allowed one to sense the location of any target once visual contact had been made—an extraordinary advantage.

However, whether it was effective inside the dungeon was debatable, as it only became a valid tactic when the enemy was fleeing or when we were in a situation like yesterday, on the run and at a disadvantage. Ryner’s disdain for it was inevitable, given his character.

“Hey, Soma! Since our presence has been detected, there might be more traps than ever before, so stay sharp!”

Had I ever been anything but sharp?

“Really, it’s because we only have weaklings with trash skills that Edgar died! Because of them, I could get killed!”

“Calm down, Caroline.”

“But… but… Edgar is dead, you know?”

“I swear I’ll avenge Edgar. And I won’t let you get killed. I’ll protect you, okay?”

“Thank you. Ryner, I knew I could count on you.”

Forced to witness their mushy display, the team resumed tracking Mule.