"I have absolutely no idea what I’m supposed to do," Arthur muttered, gripping his head in frustration as he stood in the seemingly endless corridor.
"Shouldn’t there be some kind of clue or proper hint, Lucy Alrn?"
It had been nearly half a day since Arthur’s party began attempting to solve the fourth room of the Dungeon Studies exam.
Initially, they’d thought the corridor from the first room might be linked to this fourth room.
If they examined the differences between the two corridors, they were bound to find a thread that would guide them out of this maze, eventually leading to the next room.
However, what had seemed like a thread dangling before them kept slipping further out of reach, evading their grasp as time dragged on.
Since entering this room, Arthur and his group had tried every possible tactic.
They inspected the various furniture, decorations, and portraits from the first corridor, thinking their positions might hold a clue.
They walked around, dispelling and purifying to see if anything hidden would reveal itself.
They even tried attacking the corridor and the lights, wondering if they needed to break something.
They attempted to bring frames and decorations from the first room.
They ran through the corridor, hoping they’d eventually reach an end.
They reviewed all three previous rooms in case they’d missed something critical.
They even read aloud Lucy Alrn’s taunts scrawled on the note, hoping it might trigger something.
None of these efforts did anything but fuel their frustration toward Lucy, making half a day feel like an utter waste.
"Damn it. What are we missing?" Arthur grumbled, clutching his head in exasperation.
While he fumed, Frey stood nearby, frowning as she struck the wall with her sword, as if expecting it might eventually shatter.
Faivy approached the almost-exploding Arthur, trying to calm his anger and remind him that losing composure would only plunge them deeper into trouble.
Meanwhile, Joy stood at the center of the corridor, staring into the endless darkness ahead.
We’re at a dead end.
It felt like they’d tried every possible idea but still hadn’t found even the faintest clue.
Without much thought, Joy took a step forward.
“Ah?!”
She tripped over her own foot and fell forward with a heavy thud.
Arthur sighed at the sight of Joy sprawled on the floor.
"Are you trying to lighten the mood in your own clumsy way? Quite the sacrifice."
"...You could at least show a little concern," she muttered.
"What’s there to worry about? You’re tough enough not to be hurt by a little fall. Although, I suppose I should worry about the possibility of you getting thrown out because of that fall. That could be troublesome."
"Third Prince, this isn’t the time to vent your frustrations on me...”
An odd feeling.
It might have been something minor, barely noticeable, but in a situation where even the smallest clue was vital, Joy couldn’t ignore it.
She fell silent, and Arthur, who had been mocking her, looked over curiously.
“...Ah, Joy. I apologize. That was uncalled for.”
“Prince.”
“Oh, uh, yes?”
“When we tackled the third room again, you mentioned it looked similar to the first room, didn’t you?”
“Yes. That’s right. Both involved finding the targets to attack, so they required similar observational skills.”
“And then you guessed that there might be a common element between the second and fourth rooms.”
“Yes, I did. But you know as well as I do that my guess led us nowhere.”
Arthur had made that deduction hours ago.
Since then, they had searched endlessly for a common factor between the second and fourth rooms, but his theory hadn’t borne any fruit.
"No. It might actually be correct."
At least, up until now.
“Huh?”
“Yes. Thinking of it that way makes all the oddities align perfectly.”
Lost in her own thoughts, Joy spoke aloud without noticing the gazes fixed on her.
Joy, usually composed and aristocratic, displayed a rare spark of that eccentricity unique to magicians.
“If this entire room is an illusion, then everything would make sense!”
Arthur, who had known Joy for a long time, was aware that while she could be scatterbrained, she also had flashes of brilliance, and so he listened intently.
“The absurd size of this room compared to the others? Simple! It’s because what we’re seeing here isn’t real!”
“The way the walls and decorations remain undamaged? It’s the same as when we couldn’t defeat the wolves! If you think of it that way, it all explains itself!”
“The lack of any hints from Lady Alrn? That’s the clue itself! The very fact that there’s nothing here is what makes it all feel off!”
Caught up in her excitement, Joy realized the others were all staring at her. She quickly pulled out a fan to hide her now-red face.
“Continue. That’s an order from the Third Prince.”
“Um. Do you remember what was at the end of the first corridor?”
“Yes. There was a cradle there, along with a ridiculous note about finding the exit to escape the maze.”
“A cradle is where a baby sleeps, right? So the corridor ending with a cradle suggests...”
“...A dream! This corridor is a dream!”
“Exactly. We’re currently trapped in a dream.”
“If this is a dream, then that note’s meaning becomes clear! To escape the maze, we must find the exit! So, to wake from a dream, what do we need?”
A strong shock, enough to jolt us awake.
“Then... could it be that Lucy Alrn deliberately gave us a way to escape the dungeon?”
“She probably set it up to prevent us from passing the room by self-harming. It’s both a hindrance and a hint at the same time.”
“And the taunt written on the back was just to make sure we didn’t question the note’s strangeness! Ha! I thought she was simply mocking us, but there was a reason behind it! No matter—what matters is that we finally know what we need to do...”
Having arrived at the answer, Arthur turned his gaze toward Joy.
Behind her fan, she wore a mischievous smile.
"Time to wake up."
“Wait, Joy. I must apologize once more. I was wrong to take my frustration out on you earlier.”
"Um, Joy. I’m sorry for nagging you the other day, too. You know it’s because we care about you, right?"
"I don’t really know what’s going on, but I’m sorry too.”
“Hehe. My dear comrades, Your Highness, do I look like the kind of person to hold a grudge?”
“Isn’t there a personal grudge burning behind that smile right now?! Stop! Wait! Fine! I’ll wake myself up instead, so...”
"Saint, if things go wrong, save me, please."
“Hmm. If I’m fine at that point, I’ll do my best.”
“Starting now.”
“I told you to stooooop!”
Though Adri had warned me to be cautious, it’s not like there’s anything I can actually do about it.
I am paying attention to the atmosphere around me!
I’m sweating bullets on the inside from all these piercing looks!
But what can I do?
The Mesugaki skill is constantly working against me!
All I can do is hope that the people who read the first hint are too ticked off to check the second one.
Grumbling at the unfairness of it all, I headed back to the Academy. Just before going to my room, I turned toward the Dungeon Studies exam site.
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<“Are you trying to detonate this bomb now, just to get it over with?”>
“...Please don’t make me sound so reckless.”
If it were the kind of bomb that would go off once and be done, I’d probably just let it explode and deal with the aftermath. But this is different!
This is an earthquake! It’s going to keep rumbling after the initial quake!
<You sound exhausted. Your language skills are deteriorating.>
“Anyway! I’m not going there to cause trouble!”
<Then why are you going? You’re not likely to enjoy what you see.>
“...I’m just curious to see how far they’ve gotten.”
The last time I checked was right before my first exam.
At that point, they had already cleared the fourth room.
Seeing Arthur’s team top the leaderboard above Kurten and Cecile gave me a sense of pride.
Those are my students! I felt like bragging to someone.
Of course, with no one to brag to, I had to keep my joy to myself.
Arthur’s party had reached the fourth room this morning. They should have reached the fifth room by now.
<You’re not curious about their progress. You just want to hear what they thought of getting past the fourth room.>
“...You know me too well, old man.”
He was right.
I’m just eager to hear their thoughts after clearing the fourth room. I put a lot of effort into crafting that experience.
Even if I have to coax it out, I want to be praised!
I want acknowledgment for a job well done!
<I understand, but do you really think they’ve cleared the fourth room yet?>
“Wouldn’t they have by now?”
The fourth room’s gimmick may seem confusing, but once they realize the trick, it’s annoyingly simple.
I doubt they’d still be stuck there.
<We’ll see.>
“You’re always underestimating people, old man.”
I know I stand out as an exceptional case in Soul Academy, but the talents around me aren’t lacking.
Just look at how quickly they improved after adjusting their training methods.
Joy is now able to cast complex magic circles that most can’t handle until mid-second year.
Frey has gained full control over her aura.
Even Faivy is growing rapidly under Bishop Johan’s guidance.
Arthur, while slower than the others due to training in both swordsmanship and magic, still surpasses the typical first-year standards.
As both the “hardcore player” monitoring from afar and as their mentor watching their efforts firsthand, I can vouch for them.
These students are brilliant, each shining with their own unique talent.
There’s no way they’re still stuck on the fourth room.
<Could it be that you’re overestimating them?>
“Not at all.”
I shook my head without hesitation, and the old man smiled softly.
<My, you’re truly a sparkling child.>
“...What’s that supposed to mean?”
<Just something I noticed.>
Hey, come on, old man. Don’t treat me like a kid.
That “it’s something you don’t need to know” attitude is seriously irritating.
I wanted to demand a proper explanation, but unfortunately, my determination faded away as he turned to the scoreboard.
<Well. It seems your friends haven’t let you down.>
“...Looks like it.”
At the Dungeon Studies exam scoreboard in Soul Academy, where numerous names are displayed to fuel the competition for first clears.
At the very top, written above all others, was none other than:
[Arthur’s Party: Currently on the 5th Floor]
My students’ names were there.