Sweet Secrets of the Inner Cores
I had no idea what to do with the inner cores… Joodak had already guessed the reason behind the variant evolution paths.
Just what the hell does this person do for a living that they figure things out faster than me, the actual Dungeon Master?
Thanks to her, I had nothing to say…
"Uh… Sticky?"
She couldn't mean 'StickyThingLover', could she?
I called out too late, but Joodak didn't respond.
Instead…
Three times in a row.
"Ah… nooo…!!!"
She… was here…
The tentacle maniac… The most unhinged person I'd met in this world…
I ignored the cold sweat beading on my skin and checked the messages.
I got straight to the point as quickly as possible. Before she could start reciting the virtues of tentacles again.
Mission accomplished. Time to bail.
Ah…!! It came to this after all!!!!
"Huh…?"
She said the exact opposite of what I'd expected.
Until now, I'd been deliberately avoiding chats with her, claiming I was busy.
To put off the tentacle dungeon as long as possible.
Clinging to the faint hope that her tastes might miraculously normalize.
Since I'd been delaying, she had every right to pressure me to make it sooner.
"She's the one postponing it?"
…I had to ask the reason out of sheer curiosity.
…For real? When just days ago she was checking on my well-being every day?
Someone who'd nag daily about when the tentacle dungeon would be ready suddenly does a 180??
"Ah…!!"
Good lord… This person's ideas are on another level!!!
To realize a new realm exists and immediately abandon the old one…!!
This is a true tentacle seeker…
"Whoa…"
I'm getting dizzy…
I felt like I was staring into the abyss.
What do you call this…?
Oh, right.
SAN loss.
Chatting with her drains my SAN!!
"Gotta escape…"
Before my mind gets more corrupted.
Ah… Don't say it like that all of a sudden, it makes me feel like the bad guy…
"Haa…"
Yeah, why avoid her? She's done nothing wrong… It's all my karma…
Somehow, Sticky and I felt a bit closer now.
I spent until lunchtime scrolling the gallery collecting data, then headed to Luna's stall for a quick lunch.
"Oppa! When are you coming to see our shop?"
"Hmm… Next week? This week's pretty packed… Oh, and since I don't know the area well yet, pick a good spot, Luna."
"Of course! It's our future love nest~"
Yeah, she looked brighter than usual—nice to see, Luna.
Anyway, leave real estate to the locals… It's not like it's for profit, so even if it flops, no biggie.
On the way home, I knocked on Elise's door.
Knock knock—
…No answer?
"Sleeping?"
I tucked a ticket into the door crack.
"She'll get it herself."
Lunch portion ticket.
Today's new dungeon opener called the "Harpy Mine"—a total honey hunting spot.
One worry, though: Elise being a mage.
In my mind, she's a fire mage…
Using explosions or fire magic in a mine? Suicide.
My dungeons probably don't have flammable gas, but oxygen depletion or cave-ins are risks…
But whatever… That's just my guess based on vibes.
I know zilch about this world's magic anyway.
No clue what school Elise is in.
"Heh… Magic, huh… Can't wait."
The mage path everyone dreams of at least once.
I'd already decided mine.
"SunCall."
Yeah… That's it.
Lightning's badass vibe plus ice's AC function.
Ultimate system grabbing style and substance.
Plus, after years of fridge and AC via electricity, it fits my imagery perfectly.
"Tower Master… Here's the analysis report on variant monster materials. But…"
Aisha handed over the preliminary analysis report on materials bought from explorers to Tower Master Evangeline.
"This mysterious crystal called an inner core, only found in variants… There's something odd about it… Not sure how to put it, but it seems safe for human consumption."
"Yeah, I know… What the hell did Dungeon Master make this time?"
Evangeline spoke like she already knew.
The gallery hype had shifted from variants to inner cores, after all.
She skimmed the report.
"Haa… This is gonna get noisy again…"
Evangeline roughly swept back her pale purple hair.
Unintentionally, the shelter's sugar supply had begun.
Soo-chan lay on the bed, petting Kkomangi while watching the gallery frenzy.
"Huh… This is actually real?"