Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Haruto, looking at the mess in the corridor, felt a sense of pride. Moreover, he had realized that he possessed a certain level of strength that would help him survive in this world, which was great news for him.

However, as he looked at the two women, he felt a bit strange. Both of them seemed quite tired and, from any angle, did not look like they could continue moving forward any longer. So, he decided to ask, while thinking 'I've already got the gist of this dungeon, so even if I stop the hunt here for today, I don't think it would be disadvantageous for me.'

Meanwhile, Akane and Emi exchanged glances before looking at Haruto. Although they didn't want to admit it, they both knew that the energy they had left was insufficient to allow them to proceed any further in the dungeon; they would just be dead weight for Haruto.

"No! Mister Haruto is our benefactor, so we can't be a burden on him," both of them thought. Then, getting back on their feet, Akane suddenly said, "We don't think we can go any further than this. It seems like we still have a long way to go before becoming true adventurers."

Hearing that, Haruto sighed inwardly, thinking, 'At least they have a reality check.' Nodding his head, he replied, "That's a good choice, Miss Akane. You shouldn't worry too much about this; since this is just your first time going on a hunt, you will gain experience as you continue to explore this dungeon and will grow as well."

Though he wished he could tell them to abandon the idea of becoming adventurers, as their stats were too lacking, he didn't have the heart to be too harsh on them since they seemed eager to achieve something.

Akane, who had been contemplating something, suddenly looked at Haruto and couldn't help but say, "Ahem... Mister Haruto, if you don't mind, you can just call me Akane."

"That's right! You can just call me Emi too." Emi wasn't the type to hold back, and moreover, given the adventurer experience Haruto had shown, he had already secured a special place in her heart. However, that wasn't the case for Akane, who still viewed Haruto as someone who could help her escape her unfortunate fate with his sheer experience.

Haruto, hearing the two women, couldn't help but laugh inwardly, thinking, 'Seems like I have successfully breached the first line of defense.' Clearing his throat, he said, "Then you can both call me by my name."

Hana, who had been standing a little distance away, approached the group and, in her shy and soft voice, said, "You can call me Hana."

Haruto nodded at Hana without saying anything; however, he felt a little bad for her, as she had the least amount of hunting experience in this dungeon. If she had just a few more skills, she could have integrated into the party more smoothly. Moreover, now that he remembered, she hadn't even tried to heal Emi from a distance. What was that about?

Perhaps her skill doesn't work beyond a certain distance, or maybe she simply doesn't know about it? Whatever the case, he didn't feel it was the right time to address it, as he could use this information to his advantage and leverage it to break down her defenses as well.

"Anyway, Haruto, I don't think we can continue the hunt, but if you want to keep going, we can stop here and wait for you to come back," Emi said, dusting the gooey slime off her clothes, revealing her fair skin through the tattered fabric.

"Umm... If you want, I can come with you to help, since I haven't done much and have energy to spare." Although Hana wanted to remain silent, she wasn't satisfied with this hunt. She knew very well that, except for her, her two friends had gained a lot from this hunt and would likely not face many hurdles while raiding this dungeon later. But that would not be the case for her.

Moreover, at that time, Haruto might not be there, and she feared that she would prove to be dead weight in the party.

"Hana... Are you sure about that?" Akane and Emi asked almost simultaneously, both surprised that Hana had even found the courage to make such a request.

Hana turned her head toward them and nodded, saying, "I don't want to lag behind my friends and be unable to help them." Hearing this, both of them could only sigh with a smile, realizing that in all the adrenaline rush, they had forgotten about their friend who had stayed behind.

Haruto, hearing the request, felt a bit greedy but then said, "Sorry, Miss Hana, but I can't accept your request because I'm also planning to stop the hunt here today." However, noticing her disappointed expression, he added, "But if you don't mind, I will join your hunt some other day."

Hana stared at Haruto for a moment, and then a smile bloomed on her face as she said, "Mhm, thank you! I will definitely join."

"We will too," the other two chimed in, as this was an opportunity they couldn't ignore, even if they wanted to. In such a short time, they had realized that Haruto possessed a certain power that made them feel at ease, even in a dungeon that was supposed to be dangerous.

Looking at how his simple display of kindness had brought him another opportunity to get close to them, Haruto could only show his white teeth while thinking inwardly, 'I didn't know i was such charm?' but at the same time, his own mind cursed at him giving him reality check.

So, coughing a little he said, "Alright, then it's decided, so for now we should leave the dungeon, but before that shouldn't we collect this core we had earned with our hard work." in the rush of making his harem, Haruto had almost forgotten about the cores.