Jack of All Trades, Party of None

The two guides who invited me to dinner were named Mr. Anthem, the serious-looking young man who sized me up on the first day, and Mr. Barnard, the more frivolous-looking youth.

They took me to a high-class restaurant they recommended.

Mr. Barnard confidently opened the door and stepped inside, followed by Mr. Anthem and me.

As soon as we entered, a staff member hurried over.

"Ah! Mr. Barnard, Mr. Anthem, welcome!"

As expected from their recommendation, they seemed to be on familiar terms with the staff.

"Hey! Nia-chan. Today I brought a special guest. Ta-da! One of the people who reached the 94th floor of the Great Labyrinth, Orun!"

"Reaching the 94th floor... so you're a hero!? Wow! It's an honor to meet you!"

She grabbed my hand and shook it up and down enthusiastically. Quite a friendly person.

It seemed she hadn’t seen the newspaper that was published today.

"I'm sorry to disappoint, but I'm not a hero."

"But you reached the 94th floor..."

The woman called Nia looked confused by my words.

"I have been to the 94th floor, but I’ve already left the party."

"I see, so that’s how it is. But you did reach the 94th floor, right!? Then it doesn’t matter! The first person to reach the previously unconquered 94th floor in twenty years since someone reached the 93rd floor! You truly deserve to be called a ‘brave explorer’!"

"…You know a lot," I said, clearly taken aback by her sudden enthusiasm.

"Ahaha... I used to be an explorer myself. Oh! I forgot to show you to your seats! Sorry, I got a little carried away."

She stuck out her tongue a little, making a cute face.

"Is the usual private room okay?"

"Sure~"

Mr. Barnard answered the staff’s question.

We were then led to a private room spacious enough for about six people to relax.

"Alright! Tonight we’re going to drink until dawn! Tell me all about your adventures, Orun. Of course, only what you’re comfortable sharing!"

Once everyone sat down, Mr. Barnard said that as his first words.

"No, you shouldn’t drink all night... We have exploration again tomorrow."

"Heh heh heh. I don’t get hangovers. No matter how much I drink, it’s no problem!"

"But even so, lack of sleep isn’t good..."

"Orun’s right. Even if it’s a mid-level exploration, we have to train and protect the rookies. We should prepare in perfect condition just like any other exploration."

"Tch. So Orun’s a serious type just like Anthem. Fine, I get it. Tonight until midnight! At midnight, we’re done!"

After that, the three of us chatted about ourselves while enjoying food and alcohol.

As expected from their recommendation, the dishes looked worthy of serving to nobles.

By the way, in this country, adulthood starts at fifteen, so I, being eighteen, could drink alcohol legally. I heard some countries require you to be twenty.

"Being a regular at such an expensive place, A-rank explorers of the silver rabbits of the night sky must have good incomes."

I usually don’t pry into others’ business, but the alcohol and their personalities led me to ask such a question.

"Even though you’re in the hero party, Orun… I don’t think we earn that much. But explorers don’t know when they’ll die. That’s why I decided to eat good food without regrets."

"That’s how it is. Weren’t you the one living a lavish life every day?"

"I’ve never lived lavishly. I handled administrative tasks for the party, so I hardly had time to play."

"Oh. Hey, honestly, do members of the hero party get along well? There are rumors of discord."

That was a bold question...

Usually, I wouldn’t answer, but after being a bit annoyed by this morning’s article, I decided to share everything except what I absolutely shouldn’t say.

"We’re not exactly unfriendly, but in private we mostly acted separately. Our hobbies and tastes are very different, so we rarely had dinner together."

"Hey, is it alright to say that?"

Mr. Anthem checked, probably thinking it wasn’t appropriate.

"I think it’s fine. The party leader publicly declares his integrity. If there was something we couldn’t talk about, that would be the real problem."