Right now, I’m in a meeting room, and a simple map of the surrounding area is spread out in front of me.

This map marks information reported by adventurers who have spotted monsters in places where they’re not usually seen, such as hunting grounds.

The map itself isn’t color-coded or anything, but thanks to the many checkmarks and notes added each time new information is reported, it’s gradually becoming quite colorful.

By the way, since I can move across a wide area, I’ve discovered far more than other adventurers—nearly half of the sightings come from me.

From what I’ve heard, there’s a sort of reward paid for useful information, but since I’m aligned with the lord’s side, I usually do it for free.

“I see…”

The staff member listening to my report gave a small nod, his expression softening slightly with relief.

My report today was pretty uneventful—just that nothing unusual had occurred anywhere—but he’s probably someone with a fairly high position and likely knows about the Church District situation too.

That’s probably why he understands the reason I’ve been focusing my patrols around the river lately.

Well… to be honest, it’s mostly because I just want to go hunting…

“At this rate, there might be nothing to worry about anymore.”

“Yeah. Even Fio-san hasn’t reported any abnormalities for weeks now. She also said that even if anything had flowed into the river, it’s probably diluted enough by now to be harmless.”

There haven’t been any abnormalities in the monsters or plants on the surface, and there are no issues with the river either.

With this, I think we can finally say that the issues related to that facility are resolved.

“That’s true. Thank you. The area we needed to cover was quite broad, and with it being winter, everyone’s prioritizing dungeons, so it’s been hard to assign adventurers to this.”

He gave a wry smile as he said this.

So most of the hunting happens in dungeons, huh.

I hadn’t seen many people outside, and even in the first-floor lobby, I barely saw any adventurers hanging around.

Maybe they’re all gathering in the hall in front of the dungeon?

“I wonder how the dungeon’s doing these days? The upper levels and such?”

Come to think of it, I haven’t gone dungeon diving in quite a while. The hunting trends might have changed too.

Back in summer, most people were sticking to the upper levels, with only a few venturing into the middle levels…

“The dungeon? These days, most are focusing on the middle levels. It’s already been a year since the dungeon was discovered, and the adventurers in Riana are quite skilled. Plus, the support for dungeon exploration here is solid, both inside and outside. That makes it easier for them to aim beyond the upper levels.”

He spoke with a somewhat proud tone.

“Hmm, I see…”

So the middle levels are becoming more active…

The lobby in front of the dungeon is set up like a small café, making it easy for people to gather their parties and hold pre-expedition meetings. Inside the dungeon, knights and warrior units keep watch here and there in case of accidents.

As he said, the adventurers here are skilled, and with solid support in place, it’s become an environment where heading deeper is easier.

The middle layer of this dungeon is a large hall that requires fighting off swarms of monsters, so going in with a small party has always been risky, making the upper levels the main focus.

But if you can gather enough members, the middle levels are far more efficient.

If the route up to that point has been well established, then resupply and rotation should be possible too. Before long, multiple parties might be stationed there regularly.

That’s something you can’t easily do in most other dungeons.

If that happens, then stable access to materials from the dungeon’s middle levels will be possible, which could be a major selling point.

It might even help draw more adventurers from elsewhere.

The Knight Order’s cooperation and Liesel’s leadership also play a big role, but the one that truly made it all happen is the Adventurer Guild.

The continued development of Riana absolutely depends on adventurers, so of course, they’d be proud of that.

However…

That means my intense, fiery hunts in the middle levels are probably a thing of the past now.

“What about the shallows? What’s going on there?”

“The shallows? They’re still used for requests that need an intact corpse, but there are barely any hunters staying in the area now. That might change once spring comes and more rookies show up, though…”

So it’s empty, but some people do still hunt there.

Doesn’t seem like the kind of atmosphere I’d be comfortable hunting in.

“I see… Alright, I think that wraps up my report?”

“Ah, yes. It’s all good. Thank you for your work.”

“Yup. Thanks, you too.”

After our exchange, I headed for the exit door.

Since I’m already here, I might as well take the underground passage back.

I also want to take a look at the lobby in front of the dungeon while I’m at it…

Still, I ended up just working seriously again today after all.

The river patrol was supposed to be a break, but I didn’t even get to hunt… what a letdown.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

Sera・Blessing・【Hideout】+1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Wind’s Garment】

Blessed Item・【Floating Orb】+1【Shadow Sword】+1【Scarlet Bee Needle】【Fairy’s Eye】【Dragon’s Lung】【Amber Sword】【Danrem’s Thread】【Serpent’s Tail】【Ankle Bracelet】【Amber Shield】【Purple Wings】【Red Sword】【Monkey’s Arm】・8 cards

Seriana・【Area Identification】・【】・0 cards

Elena・【】・【Green Fang】【Amber Sword】・4 cards

Alec・【Strong Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・10 cards