Dungeon Gacha Life Chapter 9

 Chapter 9: The Explorer's Wall, and the Power of Stats

After finishing up the cash-in as usual, Shimotsuki-san suggested I move on to Floor 4.

"It's not mandatory, but..." she began, prefacing her words.

"Over this past month, you've kept up a steady pace of exploring, Suzukaze-san. Judging by the number of magic stones you've dropped, you should already be at a level where you can hold your own on Floor 4."

That wasn't exactly true since I kept losing my levels due to gacha, but she wasn't wrong that I had the combat strength for it.

The reason I'd been camping out on Floor 3 was that the cheese tactic with Lapis made things easy. And because that alone was more than enough to keep pulling the gacha.

"Starting on Floor 4, aggressive monsters called Goblins appear. People say this is the first wall that decides whether you can make it as a full-time Explorer."

Goblins.

The hideous humanoid monster familiar from RPGs and the like.

Weak in combat, but aggressive and active in attacking people. They carried clubs in hand, and they'd swing those at you. Clearly a different level of danger from the slimes and rabbits I'd dealt with so far.

But the reason they were called a "wall" had to do with their appearance.

Inside the dungeon, there were rules that felt just like something out of a game. The psychological barrier to killing small creatures like slimes or rabbits there was low. At most, all you had to worry about was not panicking if you took a hit.

But Goblins were humanoid. Whether you could actually kill something that looked so close to yourself — that was the first hurdle standing between you and pushing further into the dungeon.

"But your goal is to become a full-time Explorer, Suzukaze-san. Eventually, you'll need to get past this and move forward, or you can't expect a stable income."

There were people out there who just picked up a certain amount of Status and Skills and then dove into the dungeon every so often as a change of pace — the casual crowd. Apparently, people like that kept right on hunting only non-aggressive monsters, same as me.

But what I was aiming for was a stable life. My goal was to secure a steady income as a full-time Explorer. And for that, it was also true that I'd eventually have to move on past Floor 4.

"Including whether or not you can clear that psychological hurdle — why not give hunting on Floor 4 a try around now?"

She said this, looking at me with a serious expression.

Now then, what should I do?

* * *

To repeat myself, if all I wanted was to keep pulling the gacha, Floor 3 was plenty. It was safe, and at my current pace, I'd hit the pity cap in under a month anyway.

On that basis alone, there wasn't much upside to moving to Floor 4 right now.

But there were downsides too.

Staying put indefinitely on floors with only non-aggressive monsters didn't look good to others. Actually, given how much attention I was already drawing because of Lapis, that kind of bad reputation already existed.

Something like, "A coward who's got a Unique Skill and still won't leave the Upper Levels."

On top of that, I'd turned down every single party invitation, so people's impression of me wasn't great to begin with. Lapis was the only one with a good reputation.

Not that this actually hurt me in any concrete way, but I probably ought to avoid standing out any worse than I already did.

The Level drops from gacha were also getting offset thanks to the stat orbs, anyway. Come to think of it, maybe it really was time to update my hunting ground.

Gacha itself was still a secret, but Shimotsuki-san probably knew about that kind of reputation floating around. That was probably why she'd given me this advice.

It had been just under a month since I became an Explorer. Even for an Explorer taking plenty of rest and leveling up cautiously, it was about time to start considering a shot at Goblins.

Timing-wise, it wasn't bad at all. If anything, putting it off any longer would probably look pretty bad.

The issue was the danger of actually fighting Goblins. But that wasn't a problem either. I'd known I'd be moving forward eventually. I'd already prepared plenty for it.

To begin with, I had "Physical Enhancement Lv5," which cost a full 15 SP, and "Fortitude Lv5," which cost the same 15 SP. Normally, that was a level of investment you'd only be able to afford around Lv 31.

I figured I could probably beat one in a straight fight without much trouble.

For what it's worth, the internet said the recommended Level for taking on Goblins was 7 and up. Yeah, even without the Skills, I would've been plenty ready to take them on.

"Alright, I'll give it a shot as soon as tomorrow, then."

Judging there was no issue, I told Shimotsuki-san as much.

Seeing her look a little relieved, I figured stalling any longer really would've been a bad look.

I really can't thank Shimotsuki-san enough.

* * *

"Sorry to keep you waiting!"

Before long, Lapis, who'd been chatting with other Explorers, came back.

There wasn't really any need for her to sit in on the paperwork anyway. I pretty much let her do as she pleased in the lobby.

There were people who asked to take her picture, and plenty who came over wanting to chat. Since dealing with every single one of them myself would be a pain, I just left it all to Lapis.

This actually went over well with everyone, and that was part of why Lapis was so popular. Yeah, if she hadn't even done this much, my reputation would've bottomed out long ago.

On that front, I really did owe Lapis some thanks. Well, it's also because of her that everyone knows I've got a Unique Skill in the first place.

"Thanks for all your hard work, Ryouka-san!"

Lapis said this to Shimotsuki-san with a beaming, wide-open smile. In response, Shimotsuki-san smiled back.

"Yes, thank you for your hard work too, Lapis-san."

"Yep! Oh, that's right! Ryouka-san, did you see that bed!?"

Shimotsuki-san answered with a small laugh at Lapis, who was talking about it so happily.

It was kind of like watching a little kid and her nursery teacher.

"Yes, it was such a cute bed. With the canopy and everything, it's just like something a princess would have. So you'll be sleeping in that starting tonight, Lapis-san?"

"That's right! I can't wait! I'm finally saying goodbye to that miserable little bed of mine!!"

Ah, this one. Saying more than she needed to.

Shimotsuki-san's eyes narrowed slowly, pinning me in place.

"'A miserable little bed,' you say?"

"...It's a cardboard box with a cushion laid inside and a towel draped over it."

Otherwise known as: a stray cat's bed.

For what it's worth, there'd been a plan to buy her a proper bed from a pet shop, but that fell through after Lapis made it clear she wasn't thrilled with the idea. Same as with the Churu — apparently she wasn't a fan of being treated the same as a cat or dog.

Still, what else was I supposed to do about it? That one famous dollhouse "Family" brand's miniature house would've been way too small for her, after all.

Once I explained the situation, she seemed to accept it. Shimotsuki-san's expression relaxed.

"Well, I suppose there isn't much furniture out there designed with living alongside a fairy in mind."

"And even if there were, who'd actually buy something like that."

"As a product line, it probably wouldn't turn a profit."

Shimotsuki-san laughed softly.

I put on an especially serious expression for her.

"But there is one problem with this bed..."

"A problem?"

I looked at Lapis and murmured.

"When it's time to throw this out, would it count as bulk trash? Or burnable trash?"

"There's an option where you throw it out!?"

With Lapis thoroughly shocked, the three of us enjoyed a pleasant chat.

This was another of the perks of coming in during the off-hours too.