The boy stood in stunned silence for a moment before finally comprehending the situation. Slowly, he opened his mouth.
"You, you saved me, didn't you? Thank you."
"Yeah. But why is a shield-bearer exploring solo?"
"Well, actually..."
The boy started to explain the circumstances, stammering as he went along.
The boy's name was Il.
He had been given the [Emblem of the Shield] about two months ago, and his current level was 12.
Far from the recommended level 18 for tackling the [Nest of Thorns].
The reason he was attempting it at such a low level was—
"An E-rank party told me that clearing this dungeon solo was a condition for joining their party. You know, [Emblem of the Shield] bearers aren't very popular, right? So, I thought I couldn't miss this chance and took on the challenge. They said I could handle it at my level, but it turned out to be much harder than I expected..."
"...I see."
I was beginning to grasp the whole situation.
The [Emblem of the Shield], as its name suggests, is an emblem that allows the bearer to acquire many tank-oriented skills using a shield.
In the mid-to-late stages of the game, it was a powerful emblem, almost essential for any party.
But that wasn't necessarily the case in the early stages.
When monster levels are low, pure damage dealers are often needed more, and the demand for tanks or support roles is generally lower.
That trend likely holds true in this world as well.
Il, with his [Emblem of the Shield], probably had a hard time finding a party to join and was given the current condition in that context.
To sum up all this information concisely—
"Uh, hate to break it to you, but I think you were probably tricked."
"Ugh..."
Il clutched his chest as if I'd struck a painful blow. He must have suspected as much himself.
With a face that looked like he was about to cry, Il spoke again.
"I-I thought so too. I only have [Decoy] to draw enemies' attention, and there's no way a [Shield Emblem] bearer can fight alone..."
"No, that's not true."
"Huh?"
He seemed to have misunderstood, so I clarified.
"Even though it's true for now, the [Shield Emblem] does have attack skills. You'll learn them a bit later, but once you do, you should be able to deal more damage than most damage dealers."
"R-Really?"
"Yeah. So, don't be so down on yourself. Believe in your emblem more."
"O-Okay! Thank you... um..."
After thanking me, Il trailed off, as if remembering something.
Then I realized I hadn't introduced myself yet.
"I'm Xeros Syl... No, just call me Xeros."
"Thank you, Xeros! Thanks to you, I feel a bit more confident!"
Il smiled brightly.
I had instinctively hidden my family name... but well, it's safer this way to avoid trouble.
After we introduced ourselves, I advised Il to give up on the dungeon for now, and we decided to leave together.
On our way back, Il suddenly asked,
"By the way, what's your emblem, Xeros? You must have an amazing emblem to tackle this dungeon alone..."
"Hmm? Here."
I showed him the back of my left hand.
He looked at it, dumbfounded.
"[Emblem of Null]? That means you defeated those monsters without any skills?!"
He exclaimed.
...I see. He must have had his eyes closed when I defeated the monsters.
He didn't see me use Slash, so he must have misunderstood.
(Well, that works out fine for me.)
It's not like I have to hide the true power of the [Emblem of Null] at all costs.
But I'd rather not spread it around unnecessarily.
In this case, it's convenient that he misunderstood on his own.
Besides—
"If you can be that strong without skills, then I need to stop whining and work harder..."
It seemed to have motivated Il.
(If it helps him, there's no need to correct him.)
With that thought, Il and I continued towards the exit.