Entering the Passage

This time, Smile absolutely refused to take the lead and scout ahead again. Last time, she had been willing to be the first to rush through the gate into the ruin because she had been worried about getting locked outside. It had been a choice forced upon her, although judging by how dangerous this ruin was, being locked outside might actually have been a stroke of good luck...

Unfortunately, there was no medicine for regret in this world, much less any such thing as foresight.

Seeing that Smile was unwilling to scout ahead, Kane was the first to look thoroughly displeased. The mad knight's sarcasm spared absolutely no one's feelings.

If Smile would not take point, was Kane willing to do it? Thus, Kane, who loved exposing others' shortcomings whenever he insulted them, directly shouted to the maiden goddess:

"Hey, hey, hey, Her Majesty the Queen, since you followed us into the ruin, you ought to at least prove that you're useful in some tiny little way, right? Strength can be accumulated slowly, but we can't lack ambition. Courage is the first essential for gaining strength..."

"Oh? This concubine thinks a certain clueless fellow is quite qualified to become stronger! Why don't you go prove how brave you are? With the brutishness of a gorilla, perhaps you might catch up to a spellcaster one day."

"...Tch. My courage has never needed proof. On the other hand, a certain young lady's shamelessness in contributing nothing from start to finish while still wanting a share of the loot has already been thoroughly proven."

"..."

Standing before the narrow passage entrance, Punk watched Kane and Smile prepare to argue endlessly again. These two would never actually come to blows, so when they argued, they were especially unrestrained and reckless with their words. Both