A ridiculous number of spells rained down.
The 15th-floor boss monster vanished while letting out a shriek that sounded like, "What the heck, this is crazy."
The now-familiar boss battle strategy—instant annihilation through saturation attacks—was improving daily, mainly thanks to Shion's level-ups.
By having Shion, Ren, and Iris cast spells in quick succession, Shion absorbs the excess magical power scattered in the atmosphere, allowing her to cast additional Foxfire.
This buys enough time for Ren's second set of spells to land comfortably, leading Ren to conclude,
"If this keeps up, the 16th floor will be a breeze, too."
It's a good thing when battles are easy.
Ren exhaled a sigh of relief. They should be able to maintain this pace until at least the 19th floor. There would be no need to retreat and slowly chip away at the enemy, as they had done before.
Shion, who was getting bigger and found it tough to perch chokon on Ren's shoulder, wrapped herself around Ren's neck like a collar and tentatively spoke,
"The 16th floor is a mixed force of Goblins and Orcs, correct?"
"That's right. Orcs still show up, so we'll be happy to get their meat~"
Making jerky from the meat that Orcs occasionally drop has become commonplace. Storing it raw in Storage takes up too much space, and simply placing it in a cold storage unit might still allow it to spoil before it can all be used. Drying out the moisture reduces the volume, which is perfect.
Since they all had a drinking party the other day, Shion also started drinking occasionally, so they never had to worry about having too many snacks.
"However, our pace of conquest has certainly slowed down."
"It's become much larger, so conquering a floor in a single attempt is difficult."
From the 13th floor onwards, they switched to a pace of conquering one floor over two dungeon dives, deciding that a single dive, even if easier, was too much. Thanks to this, the calendar quickly passed August and moved into September, with the season shifting from summer to autumn.
Even so, reaching the 15th floor in about three months is frankly an unusually fast pace.
The leader of a friendly party had even jokingly told them, "Please take it easy; you're making us look bad."
"Ren-san. Sho and the others are currently conquering the 7th floor, right?"
"Yes. The two new girls are beginners, so they're advancing while teaching them."
The exploration of the native generation, which has grown to four people, happens twice a week.
The leaders rotate among the four transferees to support Sho's party. Separately, they conquer the 21st floor and beyond once a week with their main party. This effectively keeps the number of dungeon dives for everyone to twice a week.
The newly joined girls hadn't been training to fight like Sho and Ken. They had only been taught a little by their parents, so they were progressing by accumulating experience bit by bit.
The fact that they weren't getting into fatal arguments suggested that Sho and the others were also finding ways to get along well.
"We can't let Sho's party catch up, so let's keep pressing forward."
"Are you intending to pull even further ahead of your favorite juniors, Master?"
"Those born in this world, like Iris-sama and Mei-sama, do not have skills... If they try to advance solely with their own power, danger inevitably follows. The 'Blessing' truly is that effective."
Shion spoke feelingly, "I am very fortunate."
"That's right. That's why our role might be to bring girls like Iris further down."
-----------------
At the end of a road that stretched straight from a position slightly away from the forest.
A new 'house' appeared on the new land, bathed in sunlight despite being surrounded by 'darkness.'
"Amazing...!"
"This looks quite substantial to eat."
"No, Mei-sama. Please do not eat it."
"But it really is incredible!"
The base color was white.
Incorporating modern architectural methods where possible, and setting a generous budget because they could, the house was a structure that could be rightfully called a "mansion" by the standards of modern Japan.
The number of pure rooms, not including the living room, kitchen, or storage, was eight.
It boasted more than double the size of the house they had been living in and was two stories high. Complete with a balcony and a yard, its construction was impeccable.
"This is my masterpiece."
It was no wonder the carpenter uncle was so proud. Ren and the others profusely thanked the uncle and his collaborators for their hard work.
"It's nothing. You gave us a ton of work, and we're grateful."
The uncle smiled, looked around, and added, "We still have plenty of work left."
Several houses stood at a distance from Ren's house.
Some were nearly complete, some only had the foundation laid, and others were still at the 'planned construction site' stage. They simply couldn't finish everything simultaneously.
Even so, they had requested that the completion of their house be delayed as much as possible. If only Ren's house was finished first while the others were entirely just starting, complaints about unfairness might arise.
That said, there was no point in finishing the houses of the girls who were moving here first just because men weren't allowed to enter. It was impossible to have only women for all the carpenters and movers, and it was unreasonable to say, "Don't enter the property, even for work."
Therefore, Ren's house, whose inhabitants weren't particularly concerned about such things, was allowed to be completed slightly ahead of the others. The house where Mariabelle and Aisha planned to live was also nearly finished.
"The finished furniture has already been moved inside. You can technically move in right now if you want. How will you handle the move?"
"For now, we plan to do as much as we can ourselves. It's fine even if it takes a few days."
The house Ren and the others had lived in was an apartment for Transferees, especially those conquering the dungeon.
Once empty, it would be repurposed for future Transferees. Since the furniture was mostly provided when they first moved in, they intended to leave any furniture in good condition behind. They hadn't used things roughly, so most items were still clean and should last a long time.
(They had, however, ordered replacement beds, as those could not be reused and were paid for by Ren's party.)
As such, there wasn't much large luggage. Clothes, food, tableware, and cooking utensils—items that fit into furniture—could all be managed by transporting them in Storage.
Since the area would be noisy with construction for a while, moving things in their spare time seemed perfect.
"Is there any risk of a break-in...?"
"Hmm, I think we'll be fine. The risk is too high for that."
Carpenters are working during the day, so any suspicious activity would be noticed.
Also, the road from the town to here shares a path with the road to the forest for a while. Anyone seen heading toward the forest at night would be clearly suspicious.
Furthermore, there's the problem of what to do with stolen goods. Since selling them in another town isn't an option, and it's easy to get testimony from the person who made or sold the item, it would quickly be discovered if something was stolen.
Since theft is almost unheard of in the town, the townsfolk must be well aware of this.
"Well then, let's start moving our things here little by little and move in when the time is right."
"I agree!"
A week later, Ren and the others moved into the new house.
By then, a few other houses were also completed. The atmosphere was lively with Mariabelle and Aisha, as well as groups who had come to inspect the area.
"Alright, since we're here, why don't we hold a ground-breaking ceremony (Jichinsai)?"
"Huh? What was that again?"
"That thing they do when they build a new house."
"That's right. It's supposed to be done before construction starts, though."
In this world, things are more flexible, and it's often done in the form of a completion ceremony.
Well, there's also the question of whether a local land god would be satisfied with the same ceremony used in Japan, and ultimately, it's just for show.
Since it was so informal, the way it was performed was also flexible.
"Oh, Shion-chan, please help out a bit. It seems lucky."
"M-Me!?"
"Wouldn't it be good? If we have a real Inari deity, there might be some divine favor."
And so, Shion, with her now five tails revealed, was presented before everyone and somehow ended up being revered.
"...And why did you move to the corner, Ren?"
"Well, I feel like I'd have the opposite effect."
Ren was alone in the corner, far from the ceremony, when Furi approached her.
"Ah. Well, you do look like a demon."
"Exactly. I don't want to deal with more complaints."
Just as I said that, Iris and Mei also came closer.
"If everyone comes over here, what's the point?"
"But we are a party."
"If it is merely a symbolic ceremony, there is no need to be in the circle of people."
After the ceremony was over, Shion, now released, protested, "Don't leave me out!"
"By the way, Shion. Did you get any experience points from that?"
"I wouldn't think so... Wait, I did. For some reason."
"So, participating in Shinto rituals is also effective."
Yōko are treated as both a yōkai (supernatural being) and a god. That must be related.
"Why don't we just build a shrine to enshrine Shion-san?"
"Enshrine me? Wouldn't that bring divine punishment?"
"But Shion-chan is like the originator of the Yōko in this world, right? Isn't it okay to call you a god?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Oh, old man."
"Don't call me old man. Ren, your manner of speaking is reverting."
The Sage just happened to arrive, and when they told him about it, he readily agreed, "Why not?"
"If this world was destroyed once, the gods may be dead. Furthermore, if the gods didn't want the introduction of customs from another world or the birth of a new god, they wouldn't have given you such a haphazard 'Blessing.'"
"That's certainly true."
"If Shion has reservations, you can just construct it as a shrine dedicated to Inari for appearances. You could say it's related to Shion, or you could say it's not. Wouldn't that suffice?"
"Yes. That's a little easier to bear than being directly enshrined."
When they spoke to the carpenter uncle, he enthusiastically agreed, "That sounds interesting!" He even offered a substantial discount as a service, so they decided to have it built at the back of the new residential area.
"Excellent. Since you're at it, have them build a fine one. If you do, people might use that instead of the temple for their New Year's visit."
"If more people visit the shrine, will Shion-chan's level go up?"
"It's possible. Even if not, you might receive offerings. Since it would be a waste, Shion should just eat them."
Shion again said, "Is that alright...?" but she stopped abruptly when Ren whispered, "They might offer sake, too."
"Sake, you say? No, I'm not intending to be lured by alcohol."
"What, Shion can hold her liquor too? Ren's group is full of heavy drinkers."
"Iris, who isn't particularly weak, is probably the weakest one."
The ranking would be something like Iris, Furi, Shion, and Ren. Mariabelle is about after Iris. If Aisha is included, she would be the weakest.
Mei, however, is an exception. She is literally a bottomless pit or a pool; since she has no concept of intoxication, she can ingest up to her capacity.
At any rate.
With the ceremony and discussion over, Ren and the others decided to go inside the house.
"Now we can finally relax~"
"Yeah. It took a while, but Mei and Shion can relax in their own rooms as much as they like now."
"Thank you."
After bowing her head, Ren flicked Mei's forehead when she said with a straight face, "You may come to my room at night."
"Um! I apologize for the discourtesy after receiving my own room, but... could I still sleep with everyone?"
Shion pleaded, tapping Ren's leg with her paws.
Shion's room was the same size as the others. It had a cat-door-like opening for easy entry and exit, but given her size, she might find it too large.
As interacting with Shion was a source of comfort for Ren and the others, they readily agreed, "Of course."
"Then, let's sleep together with either me, Iris-chan, or Shion-chan."
"Ren-san, please take naps with me."
"Yeah. I think I'll do that."
The reason Ren only naps with them and doesn't sleep with them at night is because someone else is always sleeping with her... That's the implication.
Since everything was pretty much exposed by now, Shion didn't bother to comment on that.
============
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