Episode 5 – Self-Introduction
Nada tried to remember when that had been.
Probably around half a year after he’d entered Aghiya.
The first time he ever fought a “dragon.”
Ask any adventurer what the strongest creature in a dungeon is, and every last one of them would answer “dragon.” They’re considered the most powerful monsters dwelling in dungeons, and dragons only ever appear in the lower floors where spacious chambers open up. Scholars are still researching the exact floors they emerge from, but among adventurers, the common belief is “around the fiftieth floor.”
The first dragon Nada ever fought wasn’t a low-rank dragon species—it was a “stray” dragon. Its strength was incomparable to that of ordinary dragons, and Nada still remembered how brutally he’d struggled against it.
Its name was—Exlidhao Ragario.
His party members in Aghiya at the time told him it was a species known as a land-black dragon.
Exlidhao Ragario had no wings and a stocky, lumbering body. Strictly speaking, it did have wings, but they had already degenerated; only tiny stubs remained on its back as traces. A four-legged dragon, whose mere footsteps could send tremors through the ground when directed toward a fragile human. A casual sweep of its tail was enough to become a lethal weapon to an adventurer. Its body was a charcoal-like black, and its hide was rugged like stone—memories of that appearance had never faded.
Among dragon species, there were, of course, fire-breathing dragons, lightning-clad dragons, and dragons that unleashed attacks no human could have imagined. But Exlidhao Ragario was a monster that roared and unleashed devastating shockwaves.
Back then, Nada was under the command of Iris, the academy’s most outstanding leader, and thanks to her guidance, they’d somehow managed to bring the dragon down.
After that, Nada had never encountered another dragon.
He hadn’t—but the impression its power left on him was still engraved in his body.
As a deep scar.
“………da… Na… Nada… Nada, wake up!!”
He was seeing that in a dream when Nada suddenly opened his eyes.
Apparently, he’d been dreaming about his past. The memory of fighting Exlidhao Ragario had resurfaced.
Why, he wondered? But when he tried to piece his memory together, everything was muddled.
What he did know was that someone had their face right above his—close enough for their eyes and nose to touch—and was watching him with a worried expression.
A small face, slightly protruding canines, the innocent, cat-like features of a friend.
There was only one person who could be.
—Dan.
Dan, a Gift-user, wore his combat gear: a white robe, pouches around his waist, and a small dagger.
“Oh, Nada. You finally woke up. I was really worried, you know?”
Dan puffed his cheeks out, relieved.
Nada slowly pushed himself up and looked around. The walls, floor, and even the ceiling were all pink. No—flesh-colored. They were made of flesh. Walls, floor, ceiling—everything. The whole place pulsed in slow, heavy throbs, and a deep, rumbling heartbeat echoed through the chamber surrounding them. Thick red tubes were embedded and writhing like serpents inside the fleshy walls, and countless folds undulated in slow waves.
Not just that—scattered around were large stones, rocks, and even unidentifiable objects.
“…Don’t tell me… we’re inside a stomach?”
At that moment, Nada remembered—right before he’d dreamed, he had been swallowed by the “red dragon.”
Then this place was—
“—Looks like it. It seems we’ve been eaten,” Dan said cheerfully.
It was clearly not a situation anyone could feel at ease in, but when Nada looked at Dan’s gentle smile, he momentarily forgot the danger, almost feeling like they were safe.
“What’s the point of saving someone like him? Dan, are your eyes rotten?”
A husky woman’s voice came from behind Dan. Dan flailed around in protest, but the dark-skinned woman wasn’t listening.
The owner of that husky voice was a striking woman with glossy brown skin. She wore loose cloth garments over minimal leather armor that hugged her well-balanced figure. Her hair was silver, her eyes a jewel-like blue, and her beauty and poise had an almost fairy-like quality. Hand on her hip, she glared at Nada with narrowed, sharp eyes.
And it wasn’t just her.
Nada saw five silhouettes besides Dan and the dark-skinned woman.
“Who are you guys…?”
Nada had just woken up, and his head still wasn’t working properly.
A man with hair as red as blood spilling out from a helmet with two horns glared at him, chirping out his words.
“We got eaten by the dragon, same as you. At least figure that much out. And don’t you dare talk to me, you pathetic Vinya tree—”
The man was clad in full armor.
It looked like multiple layers of steel stacked together, gleaming in a bright silver-white.
His entire body was encased in the same material, and a white cape hung from his back. His face couldn’t be seen well, but at his waist hung a thin longsword made of the same material as the armor—at a glance, everything he wore was clearly first-rate.
Nada didn’t bother replying to the fully armored man. He simply averted his gaze with a cool expression.
The man’s eyebrows twitched at being ignored—
“Ah—so you are Nada-senpai? I’ve been dying to meet you.”
Cutting off the armored man, a woman stepped forward—she wore the same kind of robe as Dan.
Her long, wavy red hair reached her shoulders, with only her bangs pinned aside by a simple clip.
A beauty mark near her eye made her look striking.
She could be called a pretty girl, but she also gave off a faintly suspicious aura.
“Hey!! Don’t interrupt me!!”
The armored man shouted at her, but she paid him no mind at all.
Instead, she walked right up to Nada, peering up at him from below—despite being almost two heads shorter.
“So anywayyy, I really respect you, Nada-senpaaai! Do you know who I am? Lately, among the second-years, I’m kinda famous for being talented and cute, you know?”
Her cheeks were tinged slightly pink as she spoke.
“…Unfortunately, I don’t know you. I’m not very familiar with the trends.”
“Ehh—what’s with that! Then please, you’ve GOT to get to know me now! My name is—”
“I’ll listen to your story later. More importantly—”
Nada ignored her entirely and looked past both her and the armored man—toward another person standing behind them.
He recognized him.
“Long time no see, Nada. About half a year, right?”
The man spoke to him in a friendly tone.
His eyes were slender, and from the corner of his eye down to his jaw ran a deep scar, as if his cheek had once been torn open.
He was proud of that scar, so he kept his dusky black hair cut short and messy to show it off.
His physique was lean and sharp.
He wore extremely light gear.
No armor at all. He had leather boots and bracers, but his torso was just a black long-sleeved sleeve with a black vest on top. The vest had many pockets, but it didn’t look like it could stop an enemy’s attack. His pants were black too, and he didn’t wear any armor around the waist.
But at his hip hung a single sword.
From the sheath to the hilt, it gleamed with a jade-green shine—an overwhelmingly striking presence.
Nada gave a light reply, as if he indeed knew the man.
“Yeah. Long time. Didn’t think I’d run into you in a place like this… Corvo.”
Of the five adventurers besides Dan in this place, Nada knew almost none of them—except Corvo, the man with the jade sword.
He was an eighth-year student, close to graduation, and one of the top adventurers in the academy—on the same level as Iris.
His achievements weren’t as flashy as hers: he didn’t break century-old records, nor did he possess rare Gifts or unusual Abilities.
But after spending eight years in Larva Academy, honing himself more than anyone else there, steadily producing results, there wasn’t a single person who doubted he was a first-rate adventurer.
No matter what party he joined, he consistently earned Calvaon and returned from the dungeon with almost no losses. His stability alone made him a top-tier adventurer.
They called him—Magister.
Among the adventurers of Larva Academy, he was one of the few who excelled in everything, and rumor had it that various parties, organizations, and even nations were trying to recruit him for their future plans.
Nada knew Corvo thanks to Iris.
She had introduced them, and they had met once before.
“Looks like you’ve had your own share of various things going on. I heard it was rough.”
“Yeah, pretty much.”
It seemed Corvo also knew that Nada had left Aghiya.
“Well, since we’re stuck in a situation like this, I’ll be counting on you—”
Corvo held out his right hand. Nada stared at it for a few seconds, then finally took it.
“Yeah—”
“Oi! We don’t need that guy’s strength!”
Seeing Nada and Corvo shake hands, the full-plate armored man shouted in a loud, echoing voice.
“Don’t say that! Nada’s really dependable, you know!”
Dan shot back, raising his voice to counter him.
While the two glared at each other, growling like beasts, the last of the five silhouettes slowly rose to his feet.
“Mm. It seems the conversation has wrapped up, has it not—”
The last man was wearing a kimono-style garb. The fabric was indigo, dirtied with dust, and held in place only by a black sash—an extremely thin and unprotected outfit. His chest was boldly exposed, one arm not even through the sleeve. His long, messy hair was tied loosely at the back, his skin was rough, and his perpetually sleepy, slit-like eyes gave off no sense of cleanliness whatsoever.
And at his waist, he carried a katana and a wakizashi. Both were black-lacquered blades.
“It hasn’t wrapped up at all! Are you half asleep or what?!”
The full-plate armored man roared at the kimono-wearing man.
But the man in the kimono replied in a carefree tone:
“Ohh, how scary. I’m not very good with that sort of thing... Could you keep it down a bit?”
The armored man drew in breath to yell again, but the dark-skinned woman cut in first, muttering sharply:
“Be quiet. Are you two in heat like dogs or something?”
“I heard that! I don’t care if you’re a woman—I’ll cut you in half!”
The armored man stepped toward the dark-skinned woman, but she only gave him a cool, slicing-eyed smile.
She was clearly confident.
“Hey, hey, Nada-senpai~, with all the people who don’t get along here, at least we should stay friendly, right~? In emergencies like this, helping each other is the proper thing to do~”
Meanwhile, the red-haired woman tugged at Nada’s clothing, speaking in a bright, bubbly voice, though Nada couldn’t shake off a bad feeling—like there was something suspicious behind it.
“Mhm, mhm. You all get along surprisingly well. Looks like we’ll manage to escape this place after all.”
Completely opposite from the red-haired woman, the kimono-wearing man laughed, “Kaka,” stepping back from the group as if to watch from the sidelines.
But the voices—especially the armored man’s—kept getting louder.
And then, a voice cut through it all like a crane’s call.
“—Come on now, let’s all get along. We’re going to be adventuring together from here on out.”
It came from Corvo.
His tone carried a spirit none of the others could match, and behind his smile, it felt like something dark flickered.
“Adventuring together? What’s that supposed to mean?”
Nada frowned at Corvo’s words.
“Well, even if we’re from different parties, we’ve all ended up trapped in the stomach of a monster like this. If we want to escape, cooperating is the ‘ancient custom,’ right?”
Apparently, no one had any objections to Corvo’s proposal.
No one except Nada.
“—I’ll pass. I’m fine on my own. I’ve been adventuring solo up to now anyway.”
Nada rejected Corvo’s suggestion without hesitation.
He had no desire to form some mismatched, chaotic party.
If anything, he now found solo adventuring comfortable.
“Nada!”
But Dan raised his voice at him.
“...What is it?”
Given how much Nada owed Dan, he couldn’t just ignore him.
“We were all eaten by that dragon and got separated from our companions. Isn’t it normal to work together here? Or… do you hate the idea of adventuring with me…?”
Dan looked up at Nada, who was several heads taller, his eyes slightly teary.
Seeing him like that, Nada felt an uncomfortable pang in his chest. He let out a long sigh and gave a nod.
Catching that response, Corvo grinned, then addressed the other six adventurers.
“Well, whatever the process was, it looks like we’ve all been separated from our parties. And—this is the inside of a monster’s stomach. I think we’ll be fine with this lineup, but let’s do a brief self-introduction. Even if it’s only for a short time, since we’ll be forming a temporary party, we should at least know the basics about each other, right?”
No one objected to Corvo’s suggestion, and the six adventurers began introducing themselves one after another.
The first was Dan.
“My name is Dan. I’m a fifth-year, in the party Sekha. My Gift is from the God of Healing, so I specialize in treatment.”
Next was the dark-skinned woman.
“My name is Serena. You don’t need to remember it, and I don’t care to be called. I’m in the same party as Dan over there—Sekha. Sixth year. Try not to drag me down.”
After her, the loud man clad in full armor introduced himself.
“I’m Bramia. My party is Inundaseon! I’ll accept forming a party for now… but I’ve got no intention of trusting any of you. So don’t expect any ‘spirit of cooperation’ from me. The second things get dangerous, I’ll cut any of you loose without hesitation. Not gonna lose sleep over it either.”
Next, the red-haired woman spoke in a light, cheerful tone.
“My name is Clarisse! Feel free to call me Kuu-chan, Chris, or whatever you like! I’m a second-year, and I serve the God of Darkness—! I’m not sure how much of that will be effective here, but I’ll support everyone the best I can, so please take care of me!”
Once her energetic introduction ended, the man in the yukata spoke briefly.
“Hmm. Then next would be this one. This one’s name is Amarelo.”
Finally, it was Nada’s turn—his self-introduction was especially short.
“Unaffiliated. Nada. I’m just Nada.”
And last was Corvo. With some familiar faces among them, he slowly surveyed the group before speaking in a commanding tone.
“Some of you may know my name, but I’m Corvo. Currently unaffiliated—I was acting as a temporary support for a certain party when the dragon swallowed me. I’m not expecting any special bond of mutual assistance, but as adventurers, I do expect minimum cooperation.”
After the seven adventurers exchanged brief introductions and swore to escape from inside the dragon together, they immediately began to move from that spot.
None of them showed hesitation. Each naturally fell into formation, fulfilling the basic roles expected of adventurer trainees nearing first-rate level. No one insisted on personal whims; no one interfered.
Everyone knew what they were capable of and acted accordingly.
Their movements were unmistakably those of true adventurers.
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