Chapter 23: Another Hero Party

"—It was like that, you know? Pretty fun, intense, and totally had that ‘hero’ vibe."

While training solo in the dungeon, Kazuya had encountered another hero party on the ninth floor.

Unlike someone like Dominic, this guy was a passionate hot-blooded type, an A-rank hero named Roy who wielded fire magic and radiated a red aura—his ability was called Blazing Awakening.

That party also included a retired hero named Joseph, nearly fifty years old and formerly S-rank. He had taken Roy in as a disciple and, just like Kazuya, had him dive into the dungeon for the sake of training.

Joseph, also a fire-user and a former S-rank hero, was apparently still able to use Azure Awakening to some extent.

Blazing, Azure… What even is that, I thought, but apparently you can just name the first part of your "Awakening" however you like, so I guess that’s how it works. Based on the names, Roy’s flames are probably red and Joseph’s are blue.

Roy’s girlfriend Claudia, an A-rank ranger and Joseph’s daughter, was also in the party. Then there was Wyndham, Roy’s childhood friend and an A-rank warrior who served as the tank. The last members were Erin and Corin, twin sisters of B-rank who’d joined the party along the way to the royal capital—Erin as a healer, and Corin handling support. That made it a six-person team.

Pretty well-balanced, I’d say. Their relationships seemed interesting too.

Honestly, compared to our party, just about any group looks balanced. After all, it’s just Kazuya acting as both attacker and tank, and me handling healing, support, offense, and pretty much everything else.

Kazuya hit it off with Roy and temporarily joined their party. He spent about two days on the lower floors training against A-rank enemies. He even learned how to use Awakening from Joseph and picked up a few tricks for his Golden Awakening.

Good to see he hasn’t lost sight of his goals.

"He said he’s going to keep training in the dungeon for a while, so we might run into him again. By the way, you’re coming into the dungeon with me starting tomorrow, right?"

Yeah, that’s the plan. But there’s just one thing that’s bothering me.

"That’s the idea, but… isn’t Dominic still around? I really don’t wanna run into him in the same dungeon."

When I said that, Kazuya responded cheerfully.

"If that’s what you’re worried about, relax. Dominic’s not in the capital or the dungeon anymore. After he took down that executive, he got summoned to the castle. Once that was over, he left the capital right away. So you won’t be seeing him in the dungeon."

Well, in that case, I guess there’s no problem. Honestly, I really don’t ever want to see him again.

"…I see. Then yeah, I’ll go into the dungeon with you."

When I said that, Kazuya smiled warmly, clearly happy.

---

The next morning, I was embraced like always. But this time, it wasn’t just a one-sided hug from Kazuya. When I wrapped my arms around his back too, as if seeking his warmth, he murmured my name and held me a little tighter.

It wasn’t overwhelming like before—just the right kind of closeness.

Surrounded by Kazuya’s scent, his warmth, and his strong body, I felt this burst of joy and excitement. I felt like dancing, or jumping for joy.

In that happy moment, Kazuya suddenly leaned in and nibbled on the tip of my ear.

"Hyah!?"

The unexpected action made me let out a squeak. But Kazuya didn’t pull away. He gently nibbled and softly licked the tip of my ear, almost like he was savoring it.

The sensation was ticklish, almost teasing, and the sound of his tongue echoed deep in my mind, making me feel… strange.

At first, it was just uncomfortable. But as I got used to it, that discomfort shifted into something else—something that felt… addictive.

In the end, I never got around to saying “stop,” and after a short while, Kazuya let go of both his mouth and his hold.

"Thanks for the meal!"

"…That’s not something you say! What the hell was that for!? You scared me!"

I protested while covering my ear.

The tip was slightly damp, a clear sign that it had been in his mouth, licked.

"I mean, your long ears were twitching right in front of me! That never happened before. They were just so cute, I couldn’t help myself."

Kazuya said it so casually.

Twitching ears…? What even is that? That makes it sound like I was happy… Like I’m some dog wagging its tail… That can’t be right—no way!

—Could it be because I’ve started to realize my feelings? Started to become more conscious of them? Is that why those emotions are showing on the outside?

Still, my ears moving like that is way too obvious!

"By the way, I kind of just ended up licking your ear, but… you weren’t disgusted, right? You didn’t say you didn’t like it."

Ugh, he really asked that?

"…Well, it felt weird at first, but… I guess I didn’t really hate it. Yeah…"

…Why did I answer honestly?

If I’d just lied and said it was gross or that I hated it, he probably wouldn’t do it again.

"Really? That’s good. But hey, if you ever do hate something, make sure you say so, okay? I’m not trying to force anything on you, Miki."

"Yeah… I know."

I nodded, and instinctively reached up to touch the ear Kazuya had licked once more.

---

The two of us dove into the dungeon together.

Even though Kazuya said it had only been five days, he had grown so much stronger it was like looking at a different person. He advanced through the floors with ease.

This time, we had agreed not to use any body enhancement magic. Unless the situation became truly dangerous, we decided I wouldn’t use support magic on Kazuya while we were inside the dungeon.

And yet, before I knew it, we’d already breezed through the fifth floor.

Starting from the sixth floor, we decided to take turns fighting the groups of monsters so I could gain some combat experience too.

Even so, we made it past the tenth floor in less than a day, and finally set up camp for the night in a small chamber on the eleventh floor.

From the eleventh floor onward, A-rank monsters would begin to appear. So as part of our training, we chose not to use mapping magic and instead take our time clearing the area.

When facing lone enemies, we fought in turns; against groups, we worked together. Progress was steady.

Then, on the thirteenth floor, we ran into another party.

It turned out to be the hero party Kazuya had told me about the other day—Roy and his team.

“Yo, Kazuya! So this is that girlfriend you’ve been bragging about, Miki, right?”

…Girlfriend? Huh? Wait, what?

I tugged on Kazuya’s hand and lowered my voice to a whisper.

“Hey. What’s this all about?”

Kazuya gave me an awkward look, obviously flustered.

“Uhh, well, you know… it’s just—look! With Dominic and other guys, remember? It’d be a pain if they started hitting on you again. But if I say you’re my girlfriend, then they’ll back off, right? So, it’s safer that way!”

“You could’ve at least told me yesterday…”

He’s always been like this, hasn’t he?

Not that I mind if other men look at me anymore—now, it only makes me uncomfortable. But if I let Kazuya know that, he’d just get cocky. So for now, I’ll just play along, acting like I had no choice.

“Please! Just pretend to be my girlfriend for now, just for appearances—please!”

“...Ugh, fine. I’ll go along with it. But I’m just pretending, alright? Pretending.”

“Ahh, you’re the best!”

Kazuya turned back to Roy and the others and introduced me.

“Let me introduce you—this is Miki, my girlfriend! She’s amazing. And Miki, these are the guys I told you about yesterday—Roy and his team.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Miki Claire, a mage. Pleased to make your acquaintance.”

I gave a simple, polite self-introduction.

“I’m Roy. Great to meet ya!”

He held out his hand for a handshake.

I hesitated just slightly, then took it.

There was nothing uncomfortable about it—this much, at least, I could handle.

After that, I greeted the rest of the party as well, and we parted ways for the time being.

We agreed to share a meal together the following night.

---

After that, Kazuya and I cleared the fourteenth floor together. Beyond it, there was nothing left. With that, we had fully conquered all dungeon floors.

It was a bit disappointing that there wasn’t some S-rank monster boss waiting for us at the deepest level, but that couldn’t be helped.

In the end, we completed the whole run without me ever using any support magic like body enhancement on Kazuya.

Considering how the first time went, this showed just how much he had powered up.

Honestly, the growth rate of a Hero is astounding.