The Meguro portal glowed red in the darkness.

  Suzume checked her gear one more time. Yellow tape fluttered in the wind around the perimeter.

  She ducked under it and approached the portal.

  [B-rank monsters. Haven't faced too many of those. I imagine a single swipe from them could take my head off. Gotta be careful.]

  The portal's surface rippled like water. She took a breath and stepped through.

  The other side opened into a massive spiral staircase.

  Each step was carved from black stone, descending into darkness. The walls curved inward, creating a funnel effect. No ceiling visible above. Just more stairs going up into shadow.

  The air smelled like sulfur and old blood. The Players were probably below. Far below.

  Suzume wrapped her Rescue Line around the central pillar and rappelled down. The golden rope extended to its full twenty meters, then she had to stop, find another anchor point, and continue. The descent took fifteen minutes.

  Level after level passed. Some had doorways leading to side chambers the players had probably been through. She ignored them.

  [How deep does this go?]

  Her feet hit a landing. Finally. She spotted an archway that led into a wider chamber.

  And soon, she heard them before she saw them.

  "—told you we should've bailed when it destabilized!"

  "Shut up and keep pressure on that wound."

  Three Players huddled against the far wall. One was bleeding badly from his stomach. The other two looked exhausted but uninjured. A smartphone sat propped against a rock, its camera pointed at them.

  Suzume moved into view and the conscious Players jumped.

  "Who the hell—"

  Ignoring them, she rushed to the injured Player and knelt beside him.

  His HP bar read 12/140. Critical condition.

  "Whatever. Thank god! Are you a healer?" one of them asked.

  "We've been down here for six hours," the other added. "This whole place went to shit when it destabilized."

  Suzume nodded and activated Toolkit. A first aid kit materialized in her hands. She pulled out gauze and started packing the wound.

  "What guild are you from?" The Player with the phone moved closer. "Wait, are you streaming this? This is incredible! Chat, we've got a rescue!"

  Suzume opened her mouth to answer—

  And, she stopped herself.

  [Wait. The camera.]

  She froze.

  The phone's camera was aimed right at her. Thousands of people were probably watching. If she spoke, someone would recognize her voice.

  [Shit. I can't talk.]

  "Hey, what's your class?" the streaming Player asked again.

  She ignored him and kept working. The bleeding slowed. She activated Emergency Treatment and green light flowed from her hands into the wound. The Player's HP climbed to 42/140. Definitely not enough to call him saved, but good enough for now.

  "She's not talking. Maybe she's mute?"

  "Dude, don't be rude."

  "I'm just saying—"

  A roar echoed from somewhere below. Then another. Then dozens more.

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  The Players went pale.

  "Shit. They're coming up."

  Suzume grabbed the injured Player under his arms and started dragging him toward the stairs. She jerked her head at the others to help.

  "Wait, we can't move him—"

  She glared at them and kept pulling. One finally got the message and grabbed his legs.

  "The stream!" the third Player said, grabbing his phone. "Chat needs to see this!"

  [Are you serious right now?]

  They started climbing. The injured Player moaned with each step. The streaming Player kept his camera rolling, narrating everything.

  "We've got some kind of rescue specialist here, folks. She just appeared out of nowhere. Can't see her face clearly but—holy shit!"

  A creature burst from the shadows below. It looked like a wolf crossed with a praying mantis. Blade-like arms, too many legs, eyes that glowed purple in the darkness.

  Level 45. Blade Stalker.

  [Yeah this thing will kill me in one hit if it gets close. But it hates bright lights, if I remember correctly.]

  Suzume threw a flare down the stairs. The creature shrieked and retreated.

  "Did you see that? She's got flares! Who brings flares to a dungeon?"

  [Someone trying not to die.]

  More creatures appeared behind them. Different types. Some crawled on the walls like spiders. Others bounded up the stairs on legs that bent in three places.

  Suzume's Danger Sense screamed warnings. She activated Guardian Light just as something dropped from above. The barrier caught a creature mid-leap. It bounced off and fell into the darkness.

  They climbed faster. The injured Player had passed out.

  "How many floors did we go down?" one Player gasped.

  "Thirty? Forty? I lost count."

  "Hey, rescue girl! What's the plan here?"

  She wanted to answer. Wanted to tell them to save their breath, that talking wasted energy. But the camera was still rolling. She pointed up instead.

  "Right. Up. Got it."

  A Blade Stalker got too close. The Player with the phone tried to cast a spell but nothing happened.

  "I'm out! I've got nothing left! It's game over bro, IT'S GAME OVER!!!"

  Suzume dropped the injured Player and grabbed a concussion grenade from her Toolkit. She pulled the pin, counted to two, and rolled it down the stairs.

  The explosion shook the entire structure. Dust and debris rained down. The monsters retreated.

  [Despite being game-like nightmares, they still act like any other animals on occasion. Well, these ones anyway.]

  They used the opening to climb faster. Twenty floors. Fifteen. Ten.

  Her arms burned. Her Endurance stat was still garbage. But she kept pulling.

  Finally, light appeared above. The portal entrance.

  They stumbled through and collapsed on the concrete. Fresh air hit Suzume's lungs. Tokyo's smog had never tasted so good.

  "We made it! Holy shit, we actually made it!" The streaming Player spun his camera around. "Chat, did you see that? This absolute legend just saved our asses!"

  Suzume was already backing away.

  "Wait! What's your name? People need to know who you are!"

  She shook her head and kept moving.

  "Come on! You saved our lives! At least say something!"

  She broke into a run.

  "She's leaving! Someone stop her! We need to—"

  Their voices faded behind her. Three blocks away, she finally ducked into an alley and pulled off her mouth mask.

  Her hands shook as she pulled out her phone.

  Yumi: I'm watching the stream. You okay?

  Suzume: Fine. They're alive.

  Yumi: Why didn't you say anything? The chat's going crazy.

  Suzume: He was streaming. My voice is too recognizable.

  Yumi took a second to respond.

  Yumi: Smart.

  Suzume leaned against the alley wall, catching her breath.

  Yumi: I have an idea. Can you meet tomorrow?

  Suzume: I have training in the morning.

  Yumi: Training?

  Suzume: Personal stuff.

  Yumi: Mysterious. Fine. Tomorrow afternoon then. We need to figure this out before your next rescue.

  Suzume: Voice modulator?

  Yumi: Maybe. Or we lean into the silent thing. Make it part of your mystique.

  Suzume: I can't coordinate with survivors if I can't talk.

  Yumi: We'll figure it out. Get some rest.

  She pocketed her phone and started the long walk home. Every muscle ached. The adrenaline was wearing off.

  [No talking during rescues. Great. That won't make things complicated at all.]

  The System notification appeared as she rounded the corner:

  [Mission Complete]

  [Players Saved: 3]

  [EXP Gained: 45]

  [Total EXP: 112/250]

  [Bonus Objective Completed: Zero Casualties]

  [Additional EXP: 15]

  [Total EXP: 127/250]

  [Players Saved (Lifetime): 14]

  Her phone buzzed. Kasumi.

  Kasumi: you still up?

  Suzume: Yeah, just got home from... cardio

  Kasumi: at 2am? that's dedication

  Kasumi: or insomnia

  Kasumi: either way, get some sleep

  Kasumi: need you fresh for our sparring tomorrow

  Suzume: I will

  Kasumi: good

  Kasumi: sweet dreams suzu-chan

  Despite everything, Suzume smiled.

  [Four hours until training.]

  She opened her laptop. The stream was already viral. "MYSTERIOUS SILENT RESCUER SAVES THREE FROM B-RANK DUNGEON." Fifty thousand views and climbing.

  The comments were a mix of speculation and awe:

  "Why won't she talk???"

  "That's definitely Rescue Girl from the other videos"

  "Maybe she's mute?"

  "Those reflexes though ??"

  "Silent badass aesthetic is peak"

  "Anyone else notice she's not registered? No Association badge"

  One comment made her freeze:

  "Her build looks familiar. Reminds me of someone but can't place it..."

  She slammed the laptop shut.

  [I need to be more careful.]

  Her Rescuer class was unique. No one else had it, as far as she knew. If the Association ever got their hands on her, they'd want to study her. Control her. Turn her into a propaganda tool.

  Or worse, shut her down entirely.

  She finally collapsed into bed at 3 AM. Three hours until she had to meet Kasumi.

  Her eyes closed and she dreamed of spiral staircases descending forever into darkness.