"Wh… what? You're only Lv1?!"
Laurier's eyes widened in shock after hearing Bell's explanation. Just how much resolve did this boy have to charge straight into a swarm of monsters... A warm surge rushed through Laurier's chest, stirring her heart.
"It's all my fault… I dragged you into this…"
"Laurier-san, you don't need to apologize. It was those adventurers' fault, and they got what they deserved."
Before entering the thirteenth floor, Bell had heard a series of miserable screams. The good news was that the ones who had preyed on monsters met a wretched end of their own. The bad news was that if no one happened to pass by, no one would know Bell and the others had reached the fourteenth floor. They might not be rescued until the next day.
Laurier knew this, yet simply following behind Bell filled her with an oddly comforting sense of safety—baseless, but intoxicating.
To reunite with Lili and the others, the two continued forward through a narrow passage under Bell's lead.
"Bell can remember the route this clearly…"
Laurier strengthened her resolve. As an Lv2, she had to step forward at critical moments and protect him. She repeated this in her mind, and when she finally spoke, she accidentally let a slightly intimate form of address slip out.
"Um… Cranel-san, I'm sorry… just now I wasn't careful…"
Laurier fumbled through her explanation.
"It's fine. Just call me Bell. Laurier-san is older than me anyway, right?"
Their situation was anything but good. Down here on the perilous fourteenth floor of the dungeon, etiquette had no place.
"But… is that really okay? Then please call me by my name too…"
Just a simple change in how they addressed each other sent ripples through Laurier's heart.
"Mm—"
Before Bell could say her name, a spherical monster appeared ahead in the passage.
Sand and dust churned as the massive orb scraped along the ground, rolling straight toward them.
"Hard Armored!"
Laurier immediately drew her slender sword. Running into one here, in such a narrow tunnel, was the worst possible situation.
Bell had memorized the map issued by the Guild. When traveling with the Loki Familia to the eighteenth floor, he had also learned the monsters' distribution and abilities by heart.
There were fewer monsters in this cramped passage, but once a Hard Armored armadillo appeared, there was nowhere to run. Unless a party had a shield-bearer famous for their endurance, they would never choose this route.
Bell had taken it only to avoid large monster clusters and reunite with Lili and the others as quickly as possible. But the dungeon's malice wouldn't let that chance slip away.
The monster barreled toward them like a giant rolling stone.
"Laurier, lend me your longsword!"
"Huh? O-okay!"
Laurier couldn't defeat this monster. She had just gathered her courage, ready to stake her life to protect the boy, when he unexpectedly asked to borrow her weapon. Without a moment's hesitation, Laurier handed him her rapier.
"You… you have to be careful!"
As her worried voice followed him, Bell gripped the slender blade and rushed toward the monster.
The rolling sphere came at them with the speed of a wheel. Bell looked as if he were about to slam straight into it.
"Watch out!"
Laurier couldn't stop herself from shouting. Even through her worry, she tried to keep her voice low to avoid drawing more monsters.
The Hard Armored had defenses like reinforced iron. When it curled into a ball, its rapidly spinning shell could deflect almost any physical attack. Using Firebolt would be too loud; the blast would definitely attract more monsters.
Even in this desperate moment, Laurier still believed in him.
The rapier struck the Hard Armored—and in the next instant, the monster was flung into the air.
"What?!"
Laurier stared in shock.
Bell had driven the rapier diagonally into the ground and lowered his body, forcing the Hard Armored to roll upward instead of into them. The monster crashed into the wall behind them. The impact forced it to uncurl and expose itself.
Before it could regain its stance, a dagger glowing blue-violet sliced toward it.
Black mist rose as the monster dissolved. Bell didn't even stop to check the drop; he turned immediately.
"I tried to keep the noise down, but that impact might bring monsters. Run."
"Okay!"
Laurier was still caught up in the brilliance of the battle. Using a rapier as a ramp—she had never even imagined such a tactic. Without noticing, she found herself growing more and more captivated by the boy ahead of her.
...
After a while, the passage narrowed further, drawing the two closer together.
"Laurier, earlier you said you hoped the infiltration plan would get exposed, right?"
Bell knew little about the Hermes Familia, so he asked for details.
"Mm… I just can't accept that kind of tactic—using beauty to deceive others." Laurier realized her words sounded a bit self-flattering and quickly corrected herself. "I mean, people only pay attention because I'm an elf. I didn't mean anything else…"
"Well, I think Laurier is really pretty," Bell said with a soft laugh.
"Wh-what? P-pretty?!" Laurier felt as if an arrow had shot straight through her chest, leaving her mind floating.
"I mean it," Bell said honestly.
The elf girl walking behind him had a unique presence—a blend of elven pride and her own gentle kindness, creating a calming aura. Laurier's long golden hair was tied neatly, with two long braids hanging beside her slender, beautiful ears. The carefully woven braids highlighted her youthful charm. A single look into her deep green eyes felt like stepping into a vast forest. Her aloof yet delicate face and her graceful, youthful figure made her all the more striking.
Bell could easily picture it—one smile from Laurier and adventurers would scramble to recruit her. But Laurier would never do such a thing. Even for gathering information, she detested such methods. She despised deception, met the vile with cold indifference, and no matter what happened, her heart always yearned for the sacred purity of the Sacred Tree.
Bell realized deeply that Laurier was an exceptionally pure elf.
Unnoticed, the two were drawing close to their rendezvous point.
Laurier was still flustered from Bell's compliment. Walking behind him, she couldn't see what was happening ahead.
"Hellhound! Watch out!"
Bell noticed flames gathering in the monster's jaws and immediately spun around.
"W-wait?!"
Laurier panicked—not because of the incoming monster, but because the boy was suddenly so close.
Bell pulled the Salamander Wool over both their heads, wrapped his arm around Laurier, and pressed them tight against the wall.
A breath later, flames roared past them.
Laurier's heart, too, ignited. In that brief moment of being held close, her heartbeat surged with a rhythm she had never known.