Chapter 59: The Realities of Being an Explorer: The Struggle for Survival and Pay

"We still need to collect the magic stones."

"…How much is a hound dog's magic stone worth?"

"Let's see… with this size and purity, it's about 500 yen, I'd say."

"Eh?"

That's cheap. Are top-floor monsters usually this low? Does that mean you need to kill 20 of them to make 10,000 yen?

: Sounds about right.

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: A bit more than goblins, I guess?

: That's pocket money for a kid.

: For a side job, it's still a life-threatening one.

: Not so much on the top floors, though.

: Even though hound dogs are a hassle, they're only worth slightly more than goblins?

"…Could it be that the reason we don't see more explorers is because of these prices?"

"That's probably it. The guild's been asking for higher buyback prices, but not much has changed."

"It's a tough world… No wonder there aren't more mid-floor explorers."

"Exactly."

Even though the government paying more would probably be the most effective way to increase the number of explorers, Japan tends to hate the idea of spreading money around domestically. Especially now, when Japan has solidified its position as a dungeon superpower. Sёarch* The nôvelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

The country is making money, and the people are getting a bit wealthier, but the improvement in the economy is just numbers—people don't really feel it, like they said on TV.

: If the government paid more…

: If they're exporting magic stones, they should pay more for them.

: Totally.

: They're buying cheap from their own people and selling high abroad, huh?

: It's not funny.

: But if they increase the price too much, more people will die.

: That's just the excuse they use to keep prices down.

: In the end, it's Japan itself that's the real enemy, huh?

: Somebody destroy the National Diet Dungeon already.

What the heck is the National Diet Dungeon?

Well, I get it. There's definitely dissatisfaction with the government lately… Explorers ranked B or higher often get jobs from the guild, but a lot of them refuse. I might feel a sense of duty as an EX, but when you're underpaid for magic stones for so long, and then suddenly they're willing to pay once you've proven yourself, I understand why people are bitter.

"Kisaragi, how far did you climb the ranks again?"

"Me? I went from E to EX."

: Huh?

: Did he just slap an X on his E-rank and call it EX?

: Isn't EX something you get after S-rank?

: So EX isn't just a natural progression from the lower ranks?

: Seriously?

: That seems unfair, but… I guess he's ridiculously strong, so it makes sense.

"Right, you were recommended by Jinguuji, weren't you?"

"Yeah, that's right."

: Huh, so EX is a recommendation system.

: What about Aizawa?

: I always thought EX was something you achieved by ranking up normally.

: Didn't know that.

I guess not many people know about this… It's treated like common knowledge among higher-ranked explorers.

"There are two ways to become an EX-ranked explorer: either the Explorers Guild deems you exceptional, or you're directly recommended by someone who is EX-rank. Jinguuji-san and I were promoted from S-rank by the guild."

"I was recommended by my grandma… Jinguuji Kaede-san, when I was still E-rank. Kamishiro-san, I think, was promoted from A by the guild."

Suddenly being told to become her apprentice, forced into dungeon diving, and then mastering shikigami techniques… When she said, "You're EX now," with a satisfied look on her face, I had no idea what was going on.

Now, I use my EX privileges left and right without hesitation, but back then, I didn't know what to do with this sudden status. Aizawa-san was the one who taught me most of the basics of being an explorer. So, while I'm grateful to my grandma, I really respect Aizawa-san. Kamishiro-san, I trust because we've fought side by side, but respect… not so much.

: I dream of becoming EX, but I'm just not strong enough.

: Honestly, if you're thinking about becoming an explorer, you'd be better off getting a part-time job somewhere.

: Hmm… maybe.

: If you're just going to stick to the top floors, a part-time job is probably better.

: Seriously, normal work is better.

: Explorers don't make much money.

"As long as people say explorers don't make money, the numbers won't increase."

"That's probably why so many people start streaming or blogging."

Because just being an explorer isn't enough to live off of, people are trying to make extra income through ads and other sources.

"The government does offer explorers special tax breaks and other incentives, but… it's not enough, is it?"

"I guess it can't be helped… Being self-employed is just like that."

This conversation is turning from a basics lecture into a rant about the struggles of being an explorer. I should get it back on track.

"To summarize the basics: magic control, working in a party, aiming for one-on-one fights, being cautious of ambushes… and, above all, prioritizing your life, right?"

"Yeah. If you can do those things, you should be able to manage on the upper floors. As for mid-floor strategies… we can save that for another time."

"Let's do this again."

"That might be a good idea. The guild is concerned about the number of explorers, after all."

: Nice.

: That was fun in its own way.

: Bring EX Reiman back next time.

: Kisaragi's streams are always interesting because he gets so many unique guests.

: I wasn't sure at first, but there was a lot of useful info.

: I might actually try becoming an explorer.

"Alright, let's wrap up the stream. Everyone, take care of yourselves, and enjoy your dungeon explorations."

"Good work, everyone."

After the sign-off, I'll just post on social media: "Next stream date is undecided, but (semi-forcibly) I'll be collabing with Asagao-san next time." It probably won't be long before the next one, though.

"Thank you for today, Aizawa-san."

"No problem. I thought it'd be interesting since you invited me. Even Kamishiro-san seemed to enjoy the stream."

"You think so?"

"Yeah… but I do have some thoughts about not reporting your latest dungeon record and casually streaming the highest-floor run."

I get it. Not reporting it was my fault. And casually streaming it… well, that's probably on both me and Kamishiro-san.

"But I'm glad to see you're still going strong as an explorer."

"…Uh, I am EX-ranked, you know."

"Everyone's just worried about you because you're still a high school kid."

The world might see me as an EX, but Aizawa-san looks at me like I'm his nephew. And Grandma acts like a grandparent even though she says a lot of tough things. I guess in the explorer world, they see me as the youngest kid or something?