“Come on, Akutsu! You can’t take down a goblin with such a weak stance!”

“Y-yes! Uwaaaa!”

“Alright! Next! Kawai!”

“Yes…”

“Too quiet! Run five laps around the field! Next! Nihon!”

“Yes! Hyaaa!”

“Don’t close your eyes! Drop and give me fifty push-ups right there!”

“Y-yes!”

Damn it! These guys are just having their way with us. When did I sign up for the army?

Right now, I’m undergoing training at a new explorer education facility on Oshima Island, run by the Explorers’ Association.

A week ago, I was surrounded by government officials and police officers, shoved into a patrol car with just one bag, and taken all the way to Shinjuku. Where the car stopped was the Explorers’ Association headquarters.

There, I found many other people like me, dragged here with nothing but the clothes on their backs. After a medical check-up, they were forced to join the association. Of course, I was made to join as well after my examination.

After that, I was driven in a police van to the port, put on a ship along with other jobless individuals from different regions, and sailed to Oshima. I had already resigned myself to my fate, so I slept wherever I could on the ship until we arrived, despite one guy crying the whole way, which really ruined the mood.

Once we got to Oshima, we were put in another van and brought to this facility, surrounded by barricades like a prison. Then we were crammed into a room for a hundred people with bunk beds, and we’ve been living like soldiers ever since.

During that drive, I looked up the Unemployment Employment Law on my phone and confirmed that forced labor in dungeons was, indeed, real. I checked message boards, too, and they were filled with posts of people in complete despair. It turns out that even people who had been job-hunting this year weren’t spared and were dragged here as well.

Everyone thought there was no way such a bill would pass, and when it did, they just accepted that they’d have to take whatever jobs the government assigned. But the outcry happened because it was only just before implementation that they announced we’d be working for the Explorers’ Association, harvesting resources from dungeons.

The Explorers’ Association was created a year ago by the government to send civilians into dungeons, since the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) didn’t have enough manpower. At first, many people joined in hopes of striking it rich, but since guns aren’t allowed in Japan, many lost their lives even in the shallow floors of dungeons. In just a few months, nobody signed up anymore.

In other countries, the system works because people can use guns, so the entry-level difficulty is lower. Japan proposed a law to allow firearms in dungeons, but nobody wanted to take responsibility if something went wrong, so it’s still under deliberation.

Recently, they allowed the use of bladed weapons, as long as they’re stored at the Explorers’ Association branch near the dungeons. That brought in a few more members, but the death rate is still high, and the shallow floors don’t yield much profit, so they’re constantly understaffed.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

The passing of the Unemployment Employment Law was said to be a ploy by the business world on all the forums. They’re desperate for the dungeon resources. When the bill passed, the government didn’t specify the type of work involved, and only when it was implemented did they reveal that we’d be working for the Explorers’ Association. Typical of politicians and bureaucrats.

Even when opposition parties and human rights groups complain, no company is willing to employ the 10,000 people affected by this in the current economic climate. Even if they became quasi-public servants, taxpayers would see it as a waste of money.

The law is already in place. As a nation of laws, we must abide by it. That’s why the media and human rights groups have been turning a blind eye to this “NEET-hunting” situation, pretending nothing is happening.

The truth is, we NEETs have been discarded by the country. We’re being thrown into the dungeons to maintain the Explorers’ Association, an organization plagued by high death rates that no one wants to join.

This world is like that movie where they created a terrible law, took a high school class to a deserted island, and forced them to kill each other. In our case, though, the enemies are monsters. You get released if you survive for six months. But only 40% of people survive six months after joining the Explorers’ Association.

“Akutsu! What are you daydreaming for? Fifty push-ups, now!”

“Y-yes!”

Damn it! I just have to master how to survive in the dungeons. I used to be a decent middle-distance runner in school, but years of working life and being a NEET have sapped my stamina!

But I don’t want to die. I still want to read the next chapter of that web novel, watch the next episode of that anime, visit some adult shops again, and maybe one day marry a cute girl. I need to build my strength. Without stamina, I won’t be able to run when it counts.

Fueled by all these desires, I endured the torturous training under the instructor, enduring two weeks of classroom studies, basic physical training, and weapons training.

I didn’t resist because the slave mentality from my years of corporate life was still ingrained in me.

As it turns out, that was the right decision here.

I realized it when, not even a week into training, a bunch of people tried to escape. It’s an island with nowhere to go, so they were all caught easily and forced to complete the training. Then, they were thrown into some region’s dungeon, unprepared, without the knowledge or strength to survive…

♢♢♢♢♢♢♢♢♢♢♢

“Akutsu, the goblin’s coming your way!”

“Leave it to me! Hya!”

“Yesss! Hamada, collect the magic stone! I’ll keep an eye on that corner.”

“Got it, Akutsu-san!”

Three months have passed since I was dragged into this. Now, I’m diving into a beginner-level dungeon in Chiba with my party. After finishing the rookie training course, we were each assigned to different regions.

I, along with a few of my roommates from Oshima, was sent to a dungeon in Kisarazu City, Chiba. When dungeons appeared, the government surrounded them with walls to prevent monsters from escaping. These walls are about five meters tall, made of thick concrete.

To implement the new law, prefab barracks were set up inside the walls. NEETs were shipped in one after another, and at one point, 600 people were living here.

Yeah, that was the case. Now, there are fewer than 400. We’re not allowed to use phones here, and there are no phones installed. So, there’s no way to let the outside world know about the deaths.

They throw us into the dungeon in groups of 12. There are no veteran guides, and even if there were, they couldn’t handle the numbers. It would be great if the SDF would help, but they’re a separate organization and don’t lend a hand. Regular explorers don’t come to this dungeon either. The only ones here are the staff and D-rank explorers who double as our supervisors.

Those guys are insanely strong. You know why? In the first month here, when I’d gone crazy from all the goblin killing and watching my comrades die, I tried to escape with my weapon. They crushed us in seconds.

I heard that once you reach D-rank, bullets stop at your skin. That’s superhuman, man.

After that, I gave up resisting and just kept fighting as I was told. The only consolation is that they at least gave us decent weapons—though they weren’t free. We were forced to sign a six-month loan contract for 380,000 yen. My monthly salary, risking my life to meet the quota, is 350,000 yen. After rent, food, and taxes, I’m left with 150,000 yen.

My old black company seems like a paradise compared to this. Over 200 people have died in just three months, and there’s no news coverage at all. This is happening in dungeons across the country.

How are they going to explain this to the families when they find out their child is dead? Will they just say they’re missing? Or hide behind the ridiculous waiver we signed when we joined, promising not to complain if we died? Even if the media is complicit, they can’t stop the news from spreading on social media. This government’s going down. I’ll make sure of it.

“Nice work, Akutsu. Glad to have someone with good reflexes in the party.”

“I’m glad to have you too, Baba-san. And I think I’m starting to get the hang of this whole magic power thing.”

The only silver lining since I was sent to this dungeon in Chiba is that I ended up in a party with Baba, a muscle-bound guy who’s nothing like a NEET. His power with a greatsword is incredible. All I have to do is back him up with my speed and sword. The other members keep the goblins at bay with their spears, so even when six of them come at us, we manage.

On top of that, thanks to constantly fighting goblins on the front lines, I’ve developed something called magic power. It’s made cutting them down much easier.

I think this ability awakened because I did nothing but run and fight. The other party members have no idea. Maybe it’s something I can get strong enough to use as a trump card to survive.

“Let’s head back! We’re at today’s quota!”

Everyone sighed in relief, and we headed back, the goblins defeated, another day survived.

But every day is a gamble. A wrong move, and I could easily die.

I’ll fight, survive, and claw my way back to the surface, back to my life.

Six months, that’s my goal.

Just six months…