Another World Survival: Min-maxing My Support and Summoning Magic Vol. 02

Chapter 26: Search Through the Girls’ Dormitory Arisu began using Healing Magic on the surviving girls, starting with Heal and finishing with Cure Mind. She moved from person to person and, once soothed by her magic, the hopelessness cast over their expressions faded. Light began to shine in their eyes once more. Naturally, applying so many recovery spells at once was burning through her MP. Nevertheless, we couldn't leave them injured and broken; these measures were necessary. “Tamaki, Mia!” Turning around, I called out to the stunned pair. They were standing motionless behind me, staring at their horrific surroundings in shock. “While Arisu takes care of things here, we're going to look around. Follow me.” They needed some sort of task to perform right now─anything was fine. So long as there was something they could do to take their minds off this mess. Leaving Arisu to take care of things here, we moved away from the dining hall. Tamaki and Mia walked with me, and my familiar wolf trotted behind us. I imagined we wouldn't be coming across any orcs during our search, much less an elite. Every last one of them had more likely than not met their doom when they rushed out of the building. That being said, we couldn't get negligent just because we believed the building to be clear. And so we began our search of the building. First on the list: the first floor. Not a single sound other than our footsteps rang out as we made our way down the corridor. We stopped at each room and searched high and low before moving on to the next. Some of the doors were locked, but Tamaki broke down the door using her axe so we could also explore those rooms. Considering all the noise we'd made outside, there was no point in holding back now. “Oh, that reminds me. Where are you guys' rooms?” I asked out of the blue. “Arisu's and mine are right over there,” Tamaki replied, pointing nearby. “We were neighbors.” “Mine's on the third floor,” Mia answered. I momentarily lapsed into thought before instructing Tamaki to go to her room and change into a new set of clothes. “And while you're at it, grab a pair for Arisu as well. Once you're done with that, find the girls' rooms in the dining hall and grab a set of clothes,” I added. “Roger! We can't leave Arisu alone down there forever, can we?” She waved and turned around. “I'll leave the searching to you guys.” “Mia, you're staying with me. We're heading up to the third floor.” I imagined we could manage without her with the wolf acting as our escort. Even if there was a surviving orc lying in wait somewhere, it was sure to sniff it out with its superior sense of smell. Moreover, the corridor was narrow; I doubted more than one orc could approach at a time. If I needed to buy a couple of seconds, I could also conjure another wolf to stall for time. Mia could provide cover fire with magic. While we were on the topic, I had healed the injuries of my familiar by using Cure Familiar, a Rank 3 Support Magic spell. Summoning Rank 3 familiars reduced my current and maximum MP by 9, so compared to calling a whole new wolf, healing the current one's injuries was more efficient. Separating from Tamaki, Mia and I ascended the staircase. Fortunately, my fears were not realized; earlier every enemy seemed to have rushed out all at once. I didn't spot so much as a single orc as we made our way upstairs. The second and third floors were dominated by the constant buzzing sound of flies. My ears felt ringing as we passed the second-floor hallway and continued up the stairs. They had probably spotted the corpses and gathered on them. Finally, we reached the hallway for the third floor. We skipped past the other rooms and made a beeline for Mia's room so she could change into fresh clothes. “You're not gonna peek at me as I'm changing, are you?” Mia asked at the doorway. “I'm not gonna peep at you.” I waited outside the room with the wolf for her to finish her business. I lowered myself to the floor and sat down, my knees nearly touching my chest. My ashen-colored familiar sat down next to me, assuming the same pose as Hachikō, the dog renowned for its immense loyalty. Awe, aren't you a smart boy? I brushed the wolf's gray fur, and a comfortable expression came over its face as the wolf half-closed its eyes in bliss. Dang, this guy's actually pretty cute. “What about the stained pair of underwear?” I heard her voice coming from within the room. “Don’t bother taking them. Just throw them away,” I said dismissively. “Besides, there should be plenty of alternatives for you to take, shouldn’t there?” A slight pause followed before I heard her reply. “Oh. Right. I suppose I’ll just take some from my roommate.” Crap. I groaned as I realized the mistake in my phrasing. I had just told Mia straight to her face that all her friends were dead. Moving my hand, I covered my mouth in an attempt to conceal the groan. “Don’t worry about it.” Mia opened the door, poking her head out. I wondered if my inner turmoil had been discovered through the shift in my tone or perhaps some sixth sense of hers. “I’m well aware of the current situation. My friends, classmates, teachers, and everyone else is most likely dead. I was the only one lucky enough to have survived.” “… You don’t know that for sure yet.” “It’s best to be prepared for the worst. Don’t worry, I already cried about it last night.” Mia patted my shoulder as I remained seated against the wall, seemingly trying to comfort me. “All of us cried last night in the girls’ room. Shiki-san suggested we do it.”