I approached Aisha and Siena's team, who were staggering under the effect of [Confusion] magic.

Then I pulled a [Debuff Recovery Potion] out of my bag.

'First, Aisha.'

She tends to be more aware of her surroundings than anyone.

And she's currently the team leader.

It would be best for her leadership to avoid showing her embarrassing state to the other team members as much as possible.

With that thought, I approached Aisha.

Aisha, with tears welling in her eyes, was shaking her head back and forth.

"I... realize it now. I'm not... fit to be the head of the family!"

"..."

She seems to be having a hard time.

Just like Piel, Aisha also seems to have her boundaries between reality and illusion crumbled.

I immediately opened the cap of the [Debuff Recovery Potion], and with my left hand, I tightly grabbed Aisha's flailing arms.

"Ah... huh?"

Then with my right hand, I opened her lips and poured the potion into her mouth.

"Ugh... it, it's gross. Cough, hack!"

Aisha coughed and struggled as the sticky liquid suddenly went down her throat.

But I didn't let go of her arms.

I didn't give her something harmful, and I need to hold onto her until the potion takes effect.

She could fall and hurt herself while flailing, or potentially injure her team members.

Soon, a tired-looking Aisha looked up at me with glazed eyes.

"Te... Theo? Is it you, Theo?"

"Yes."

I nodded, looking her in the eye.

Aisha wiped the cold sweat trickling down her face with the back of her hand.

Then she slapped her cheeks with both hands, trying to pull herself together.

"How are you here...? I saw something horrible."

"...Let's talk later. The rest of your team isn't doing too well."

I looked at Aisha's teammates, who were still in a [Confusion] state.

Except for Siena, they were all on their knees, drenched in sweat and convulsing as if they were haunted.

"Ah, understood! Could you... give me that potion too?"

"Alright, I'll handle Siena. You should go help the rest of your team."

"Y-Yes!"

I took another [Debuff Recovery Potion] out of my bag and handed it to Aisha.

Then I approached Siena.

"I don't want to, father. I can't stand being here, in the Great Forest, like the other elves for almost a thousand years. I'm sick of it. I want to leave the Great Forest and learn things, live happily even just a year sooner."

Siena was a bit different.

Unlike Piel & Aisha, she was very calm.

She seemed to be recollecting a past experience, not suffering from a nightmare.

"......"

For a moment, I looked at Siena and mulled over the words she had spoken.

'It seems she is recalling a conversation she had with her father in the past.'

Siena is the princess of the Great Forest.

Naturally, Siena's father is the representative of the Great Forest.

There's no title like 'King' in the Great Forest, but in reality, he's no different from one.

And in the original game, he was famously a terrible doting father.

I recall what that old elf had said when Neike had visited the Great Forest with Siena.

["You've given your heart to a mere human, Siena... Truly, this father can't see because the tears are blurring his vision... You there.

No, I don't want to know your name, shut your mouth. A short-lived species without dignity... you will pay the price for taking my beloved daughter's heart, human male."]

That old elf had spat out those words with an appearance straight out of a pure romance comic, pulling out a sword from his waist.

...Anyway, I must never get involved with that guy.

He's a genuine racist who dismisses all species other than elves as undignified short-lived species.

If it were the modern era, he would constantly appear in international news.

...Thinking about it makes me feel nauseous.

Suddenly, Siena appears like an angel.

While Siena may be a bit off in the head, she means well, while the other elves are crazy lunatics.

They challenge duels at the drop of a hat.

And each and every one of them is disgustingly strong. There isn't a single weak one.

Anyway... let's quickly release Siena from the [Confusion] state.

I brought a potion to Siena's lips.

Unlike Aisha, there was no need to force her mouth open.

As the bottle's mouth touched her lips, Siena naturally parted her lips.

Gulp, gulp

The potion went down her throat.

Eventually, Siena furrowed her brows and opened her eyes.

"I was remembering something incredibly suffocating."

As she muttered that, Siena turned her head to look at me.

"......hehe, Theo. It was you. As expected, there's no one but you who can fill my boredom."

Saying that, Siena tried to snuggle up to me.

I swiftly moved away from her and said.

"The others aren't doing well, Siena."

"Hehe, I understand. Please look at them quickly. Your heart truly is that of a real hero~"

"......"

And so, I released the other team members from their [Confusion] state together with Aisha.

Exhausted, they sat down on the ground, breaking out in cold sweat.

'I guess it's enough to have helped this much.'

Thinking that, I looked at Aisha and Siena and said.

"Well then, best of luck. My team and I will be moving on."

"......Understood. See you next time... Theo. Today, I am really, really grateful."

Aisha bowed her head respectfully, expressing her gratitude in a manner befitting a noble.

"Hehe, Theo. Can't you stay a little longer? I've missed you so much, you know?"

Like a cicada clinging to a tree, Siena clung to my arm and looked up at me.

"We're in the middle of a practical evaluation. Let's see each other after it's over."

Saying so, I peeled off Siena who was clinging to my arm.

Anyway, see you again later.

Of course, there's a very high chance that we'll meet again.

Aisha & Siena's team will also be exploring this dungeon tomorrow and the day after, just like me.

Moreover, there's debuff magic at the second branching point, and the same goes for the third and fourth branches.

"Well then, I'll be going."

I turned my back to them.

I was considering giving Aisha a [Debuff Recovery Potion] to hold onto, but I decided against it.

Even if I handed it over, my team would still come in first. But they might take it the wrong way.

Of course, they won't say anything because it's something I prepared in advance, but they might feel dislike it.

To those unaware of our relations, Aisha & Seria's team are just competitors.

Besides, I'm currently the leader of our team, so I have to dedicate myself to the role of a loyal leader.

But

"There's a similar magic at the second branching point. Stay alert."

This much should be okay.

I just turned my neck slightly and spoke to Aisha.

"Okay. Thank you very much, Theo. I'll definitely repay this favor."

Aisha slowly nodded her head.

After that, I returned to my team members who had been looking this way from afar.

"I apologize for the delay, I know you all want to rest. Let's get out of this dungeon quickly."

"Oh, it's okay. I'm sure the leader had his reasons~"

"Yeah, yeah. Don't worry about us! We'll follow you anywhere."

Travis and Monica spoke nonchalantly.

Piel was looking at me with a complex look in her eyes, her arms folded, and Andrew was looking at me with bored eyes.

Our team finally exited the dungeon.

Immediately, we set up camp near the entrance to rest.

Since we hadn't eaten anything since morning, we decided to have a meal.

It was difficult to light a fire due to the lack of firewood.

Therefore, we decided to make do with the pre-packaged meals provided by our instructors.

Travis and Monica took out food and water from their backpacks.

"Theo, you should rest. We'll handle the food."

"Yeah, that's right. Relax a bit. You, Piel, and Andrew have worked hard, haven't you?"

Travis and Monica stepped forward, preventing usPiel, Andrew, and mefrom helping.

Excellent.

I should seize this opportunity to talk with Amy.

"Then, I'll look around to see if there's anything nearby."

"I need to rest. My mana still hasn't recovered."

Piel and Andrew said.

Piel quickly left the area.

Andrew, looking tired, wrapped a blanket around himself and closed his eyes for a while.

Following that, I also spoke.

"Thanks for your help, Travis, Monica. I will also briefly look around."

Saying so, I quickly left the vicinity.

Of course, in the opposite direction to Piel.

'Hmm, there's no one around.'

With my enhanced [Observer's Eye], I quickly scanned the area, took out the communication crystal, and immediately contacted Amy.

Soon, Amy's dry voice came through the crystal.

How may I assist you, young master?

The sound quality was very good.

This meant she wasn't far from my location.

I told her my location before entering the dungeon in the morning.

It seems she has stopped by close to us.

"Amy, I need your help."

-Please give your orders, young master.

"I need a detailed investigation of a specific location. It's not far from here. I need it done in a day. Can you do it, Amy?"