Chapter 229 Switcheroo

Satoshi leaped sideways as the desperate Giant Orc got his bearings back and pounded on him with one of his intact fists. It was angry, no doubt, and it screamed an ear-shattering scream as it tried to catch up to him. Then again, it's not like Satoshi would allow the Giant Orc to hit him. He didn't waste any time mercilessly hacking and slashing at the Giant Orc until it was reduced to bits.

As for the humanoid-robed figures which were chanting by the sidelines, Satoshi dealt with them before they could even reorganize themselves. They couldn't believe that a single human managed to tip the scales in an instant. They weren't even losing, to begin with, and now the other party had won by a landslide.

'Strong... really strong...' By the time Troppus got back to his senses, Satoshi was already finished with the onslaught. Not a single monster on the thirtieth floor was left alive, and all of them miraculously survived even though they were this close to meeting with death.

"Son..." Tatsuki weakly uttered as he steadied himself, helping those who were alive up to their feet.

Some of the superheroes burst out in tears, imagining their loved ones' reactions on the off-chance that they receive the news of their death. What would have been the greatest tragedy in the history of SAO was reversed by a rookie superhero who just got his license less than a day ago.

"At this rate... we won't be able to clear Dungeon Spire in one week."

"At least we're alive... the others weren't so lucky..."

"Chin up, you guys, we shouldn't be showing such ungrateful faces towards our benefactor."

"He's right."

"Yeah,"

As the rest of the superheroes gathered around to bow at Satoshi, thanking him for saving their lives, Satoshi could already feel that he was nearing his limits. At most, there's only one minute before he slips into unconsciousness.

Without wasting another second, Satoshi opened a portal in front of everyone. "Please get in, this leads straight into the outside. And please help my classmates, they're fighting the Japanese Navy right now." Satoshi continued.

"What do you mean, son?" Tatsuki asked. He was about to grab his son by the shoulders when his hands almost got burned by the pure energy that poured out from him.

"Dear, let's get out of here first. We shouldn't let our son's hard work go to waste. Every added second we stay here is just making it difficult for him." Ayumu softly muttered before leading everyone outside.

Thanks to Ayumu's words, the 'evacuation' didn't take more than twenty seconds, which gave Satoshi more time in his reserves. 'Let's see here... Dex, how much time do I have left?'

[Surprisingly, your control over your superpower was more refined than I thought. You still have, at most, five minutes before you lose control] Dex responded with a slight hint of surprise in his monotonous voice.

"All right, that's more than enough time," Satoshi said, closing the portal in front of him.

"Now it's time to clear this dungeon."

.....

A flash of sunlight greeted Tatsuki and his party the moment they came out of the portal that Satoshi made for them. Blinking twice, Tatsuki's sight finally adjusted to the brightness of the surroundings. He and his party collapsed on the ground the moment they touched the grass, too exhausted due to the insane amount of energy they expended during their Dungeon Exploration.

They've only been inside the Dungeon for less than a day but to them, it felt like they haven't seen the sun nor touched the grass in weeks. It was a pretty weird feeling that no one could get used to even though some of them had prior experience with going into Dungeons.

When their sight finally got used to the intense brightness outside, what greeted them next was pure pandemonium as superpowers upon superpowers clashed against each other in the middle of the Sea of Japan. It was like waking up from one intrusive nightmare to another, giving them no time to take a break both mentally and physically.

"PLUNDER!" Someone roared from behind him. It was none other than Fury, teary-eyed as he tackle-hugged the number one superhero.

"Fury, what are you doing? That hurts." Plunder was too exhausted that even his voice was becoming a monologue. "In any case, what's going on here? Can you explain what the current situation is right now? Satoshi just briefly told us about the Japanese Navy attacking his classmates or somethi— "

That nagging feeling that Plunder felt suddenly caught up to him, causing him to instantly swivel his head as he scanned the area for a sign on behalf of a certain someone. His jaw dropped as his face paled in color. With a slow turn of the head, he stared straight into his wife's eyes as if he had just seen a ghost... "Dear... where's Satoshi?"

Satoshi was nowhere to be found. Of course, he chose to stay inside the Dungeon after all. He figured he'd speedrun it before his timer runs out...

... or he dies first. Whichever the case, Satoshi's action was pure foolish. However, it was a risk he was willing to take in search of the rumored treasures that lie at the lowest floor of the Dungeon.

"SATOSHI? SATOSHI?!" Plunder was beginning to panic. As adrenaline coursed through his veins, he found the strength to stand up. He then desperately crawl-walked his way towards the mouth of the dungeon, seeking to enter it without a second thought.

"Dear!" Ayumu rushed towards her husband, hugging him from behind. "You can't enter the dungeon."

"B-but our son!" Plunder continued, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"Believe in him. We know how strong he is. We have to believe in him." Ayumu advised as she wore a stern expression on her face. "And right now, he's depending on us to assist his classmates. For now... we have to do what we can."

As much as Plunder wanted to help his son down there, he knew that he would just be a burden for him since his energy was almost exhausted. "All right..." He conceded before asking Fury about the details.