Chapter 07: The Two Holding Hands
Seeing the notification that they had successfully added each other as friends, Asuna looked up at Asagiri and spoke calmly.
"It's really not easy to gain your trust, is it, Mr. Naruto... No, Utsunomiya?"
"Isn't this the level of vigilance a Player should have?"
Asagiri replied with a faint smile. Then he placed the chainsaw and power drill on the ground. After that, he removed the black coat and peeled off the books and magazines taped beneath it. Finally, he took off his sunglasses and the black mask covering his face.
The moment his face was revealed, Asuna's eyes trembled slightly.
His hair was slightly messy yet tidy, a bit long, and his black eyes carried a quiet, gentle smile that made him seem unexpectedly approachable. Judging from his hairstyle and eyes alone, he was already handsome.
And with his other features well-defined, without the overly delicate softness some idols had, paired with his tall, lean frame—over 1.8 meters—he was, simply put, undeniably good-looking.
"So that's what you look like..."
It wasn't that Asuna was suddenly lovestruck. It was just that, somehow, his personality and appearance felt strangely contradictory.
"How is it, handsome?" he asked casually.
"Yeah, you're indeed very handsome."
"Oh, you're too kind, Yuuki Asuna. You're also very pretty."
Neither of them showed the awkwardness or shyness typical of high school students talking about looks. Asuna simply didn't have the energy or mood to think about such things after what they'd just gone through, and she had no romantic feelings toward him. She was just stating the truth.
Next, Asuna tested her equipment.
The slender rapier rewarded for clearing the dungeon looked ordinary, but with just a thought, it vanished—or reappeared—in an instant. A very convenient ability.
Just as she made the rapier disappear again, Asagiri suddenly stepped in front of her and did something that made her freeze in shock, her face instantly turning red.
He grabbed both of her hands. Not in a simple handshake, but fingers intertwined—an intimate way of holding hands.
"You... w-what are you doing..."
Even someone as composed as Asuna was still a high school girl. Her heart sped up instantly from the unexpected closeness.
"Why are you blushing? Calm down. Don't get caught up in romance," Asagiri said casually, his tone steady as ever.
"Try it now. See if you can equip the rapier."
Realization struck immediately. He was testing whether a Player could summon their equipment while being physically restrained.
"Hmph, I-I just didn't react at first. It's not because of romance," she muttered defensively, then focused on summoning the rapier. Nothing happened.
"I can't summon it."
"Alright."
Asagiri nodded. "That means you can't summon equipment when the body is restricted."
Hearing this, Asuna pursed her lips. Her expression grew complicated.
It wasn't because their hands were still linked—though that was embarrassing enough.
It was because she realized something else.
Ever since entering the dungeon, Asagiri had been the one leading everything. Escaping the ward, analyzing the true purpose of the Caregivers, and even immediately testing new information after receiving their rewards—he had been moving efficiently the whole time.
If it were another girl, being guided so smoothly while barely needing to lift a finger might have been comforting.
But Asuna wasn't like that.
Raised with elite expectations, her pride wouldn't allow her to become a useless ornament—a cute liability carried through the dungeon.
Of course, she also understood that acting recklessly out of pride would only cause trouble. Instead, she simply resolved to adjust to the rhythm of the dungeons faster and prove her worth as a teammate next time.
"Wait... that's not right."
Once she released his hand, Asuna frowned slightly.
"The reward from the app is a Western sword. It's rare but not impossible to buy in the real world. Since you brought a chainsaw and power drill, couldn't I just bring a weapon next time? The only advantage of the rapier is that it's convenient. But as a reward for an A+ clear... isn't it too ordinary?"
"Congratulations, blind student—you found the key point."
Asagiri didn't explain. Instead, he guided her with another question.
"Since I could bring tools like a chainsaw and power drill into the dungeon, if I exaggerated a bit and had a gun on me, I could've brought that too, right? So if Players can bring their own weapons, what's the point of the equipment rewarded by the dungeon?"
Asuna murmured thoughtfully, "That's true... what is the point? Could it be that bringing your own weapons is only allowed the first time? And future dungeons won't let you bring anything...? No, that's not all. I get it—the fact that this is a Newbie Dungeon means being allowed to bring weapons was itself a hint for clearing it!"
Asagiri raised a brow, amused. "Oh? How do you figure?"
Asuna's face lit up with sudden clarity.
"Because the Caregivers don't attack Players at all. As long as you escape within the time limit, you don't need to fight. If you fail to leave in time, something abnormal happens and you'll be trapped. So the key to clearing the dungeon isn't the weapon—fruit knife, drill, chainsaw, or even nothing. It's simply whether the Player can figure out the Caregivers' true purpose and gather the courage to open the ward door."
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