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The Villainous Noble Who Kept Rewinding After Death: The Story Somehow Changed When I Committed Suicide

Episode 260: Anomaly

The final day of dungeon practice.

I was a bit more pumped than usual today.

“El. You seem to be having fun.”

“Can you tell?”

“Yeah.”

In front of the dungeon entrance.

While watching the other teams of students enter the dungeon under the teachers’ instructions, I was approached by Fiera, who came nearby.

“Is something happening today?”

“Oh, there’s something super interesting lined up.”

“Really? Then I’m looking forward to it.”

“Fiera, I think today will be a good experience for Sylpha too, so keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn’t get hurt.”

“Got it.”

“Well then, see you later.”

“Yeah.”

With that, I bid farewell to Fiera and led Iris and the others through the door that led to the dungeon before anyone else.

The goal for this final day was to defeat the boss located on the tenth floor.

To summarize the dungeon practice since the first day, on the second day, we defeated the boss that appears on the fifth floor.

On the third day, after clearing from the sixth to the eighth floors, the achievement condition was to return to the sixth floor and exit the dungeon using the transfer magic circle.

Moreover, a few days before the dungeon practice began, each class was given a special card. This card is similar to the guild card adventurers possess, and by holding this card to a magical tool, a record is made that you’ve reached that floor, allowing you to use the transfer magic circle located there afterward.

This is just like a regular guild card, but what’s really special about this card is that by infusing it with individual magic power, the moment you enter the dungeon, the dungeon automatically reads the wavelength of that power and lets you start from the last reached floor.

For instance, if I infused my magic power into this card and continued to conquer the dungeon, if the last reached floor was the eighth floor, I’d be transported somewhere on the eighth floor and could continue from there.

In regular dungeons, if you stop midway, you can only start again from the nearest transfer magic circle, but with this dungeon, you can start from the last reached floor, making it considerably easier to conquer.

“Still, this dungeon really has a strange design, doesn’t it?”

“Indeed. I was surprised on the second day too, but being able to start from halfway through is unheard of.”

“Yes. It’s really mysterious that we can be automatically moved to the last reached floor without using a transfer magic circle.”

“Is that so?”

Shuvina, Rick, and Mail had all shown considerable surprise when the second day of dungeon practice began, realizing they started from the third floor as they entered.

“Iris has never entered another dungeon, so she wouldn’t know. If you want to challenge a regular dungeon from a midway point, you can only enter or exit using the transfer magic circles placed every five floors. So even if you conquer up to the tenth floor, unless you register with the magical tool near the next floor using the guild card, you’ll have to start from the fifth floor again.”

“I see. It’s definitely different from the others that you can start from any point without going through a transfer magic circle.”

“It’s likely related to the time-space magic that Lime mentioned on the first day. This dungeon has a very unique design, and it’s possible that the dungeon records each person’s information by passing through the magic power infused into the card.”

Why this dungeon has such a special design, who realized that infusing magic power into the card would leave records for when challenging, and what exactly is a dungeon?

I couldn’t find answers to those in any books, but one thing was certain—this dungeon was far too convenient.

Given the size of the dungeon, it might be possible that it has a larger amount of magic power compared to others, allowing these functions, but Shudo, the protagonist, attends the academy, the holy sword is sealed, and the design favors challengers quite a lot.

Honestly, it’s unreasonable to assume such an unnatural and overly convenient structure shouldn’t be questioned.

(Well, thinking about things without records is pointless, so let’s just enjoy what’s coming next.)

Knowing that I couldn’t figure it out no matter how much I thought, I smiled widely while envisioning the events to unfold. With Iris and the others, I continued deeper into the dungeon.

◇◇◇

“Ha!!”

“Guugyaa!”

While Lewis advanced through the dungeon towards the tenth floor, Shudo, who had entered the dungeon later than them, effortlessly cleaved a goblin in front of him in one swing.

“Way to go, Shudo-kun! To slice a goblin in half with his weapon—impressive!”

“Indeed. That slash was like a meteor. I too wish to learn from it.”

“Everyone, please calm down. We are inside a dungeon, so raising your voice too much will attract monsters.”

“Thank you, Yuleen, and Oona. But as Anabel said, let’s not let our guard down since we’re in a dungeon.”

“Ugh… Well, you’re right. I’ll be careful, Shudo-kun.”

“Yeah, I got a bit heated, sorry.”

After being lightly admonished by Shudo, the two immedately turned apologetic and refocused on the path ahead.

In reality, it was these three girls who invited Shudo to their team. They approached him, who seemed somewhat isolated in class.

To explain briefly about the three: the first to energetically compliment Shudo was Yuleen, a girl with red twin-tailed hair proficient in archery and scouting.

Next was Oona, who spoke in a unique manner, with her black hair tied back, wielding a spear.

Lastly, Anabel, who gently scolded the two, was a magician with light-colored white hair at shoulder length and a large staff in hand.

And behind them, two adventurers, Jin and Titan, were on watch, observing Shudo and the girls’ exchanges while vigilantly scanning the surroundings.

“That’s right. We have to be careful. But don’t worry; I’ll find any enemies for you!”

“No need to trust that. Isn’t it your job to find enemies? It’s only logical.”

“What?! I’d have led us astray without me! You directionally challenged person!”

“Not true! I’m not directionally challenged! The paths are just too complicated!”

“No, no! Just earlier, I told you to go right, yet you clearly tried to go left…”

“Okay, okay! You two, let’s keep it down. Shudo-san, I’m sorry we fought so much after inviting you…”

“Haha. Don’t worry about it. I can tell you two aren’t really angry at each other, and it’s fun to watch. But since we’re in a dungeon, don’t let your guard down.”

“Ugh… Well, yes. You’re right, Shudo-kun. Sorry about that.”

“Yeah. I got a little too worked up. My bad.”

After the two, lightly reprimanded by Shudo, apologized with sheepish expressions, they immediately shifted their focus back.

In truth, as noted earlier by Anabel, it was them who invited Shudo to their group. They had approached him since he had slightly stood out in class after a decent showing against Iris from Class S during the martial arts tournament held before summer vacation, discouraging others from teaming up with him.

During such times, it was Yuleen who had spoken up, leading Shudo to successfully form a group.

“You’re fine! They say you’re good friends when you bicker, so I bet you two are the same.”

“Hmm. Well, I don’t dislike Oona, but she does have that directionally challenged thing going on…”

“Still bringing that up, huh?! I’m not directionally challenged—!”

“Shh! Everyone be quiet!”

Just as a second round started to brew between Yuleen and Oona, Shudo lowered his voice and said seriously, and the two, who had been playful, immediately readied their weapons, while Anabel, Jin, and Titan also turned their attentions forward.

Suddenly, a wave of white magic rushed towards them like a tsunami, hurtling toward Shudo and the others at astonishing speed.

“W-What is that!?”

“Quick, everyone, run—”

In a fluster, Shudo directed everyone to escape, but at that very moment, the dungeon shook violently, as if the very fabric of space was being warped. The wave of magic engulfed them as they tried to flee, and the six vanished from the scene in an instant.

And this marked the signal for the beginning of the story, as they soon discovered this day would truly usher in the real start of their tale.

 

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