Dungeon Revolution (2)
Dungeon Revolution (2)
As usual. Having slaughtered dozens of monsters and collected the magic stones today, we emerged from the dungeon.
The 1st floor was no different from the morning, teeming with countless people who had set up camp, and some among them looked at us descending from the 10th floor with envious eyes.
'No, is that a gaze coveting magic stones.......'
However, in front of this many people, there was no idiot foolish enough to pick a fight with us who had been hunting beyond the 10th floor.
Well, if they lacked that level of judgment and intelligence, they would have already rushed at monsters and gotten eaten long ago.
Visiting the guild without any problems, we exclaimed in admiration at the guild's appearance, which had changed drastically compared to just a few days ago.
The adventurers who until just a few days ago had swarmed in droves pestering us were gone, and now they were maintaining order and sequence like people visiting a bank.
Amazed by the sight, we went up to the 2nd floor and submitted our guild cards. Not long after, Pion, the staff member in charge of us, came up to the 2nd floor.
"You've worked hard again today, Dojin-nim."
"No, not at all...... Could you explain what's been going on lately?"
"Dojin-nim always lets me suck on honey. Are you perhaps a honeybee?"
Pion tossed out that joke and then explained what the guild had been doing.
However, much like a company employee who's gotten close to a client, Pion was more focused on downplaying the guild's achievements rather than exaggerating them.
"There was a lot of friction, you see. People were saying, 'The dungeon has changed like this, what is the guild even doing?'... As you know, what could the guild possibly do in such an act-of-god situation?"
"Yeah, I don't know?"
"The guild master probably didn't know either. So he did what he knows best."
"What's that?"
"Forceful regulation."
As soon as I heard those words, the guards stationed in front of the dungeon came to mind. Those figures wearing full-body armor—something quite difficult for an ordinary adventurer to obtain—who would make regular adventurers shrink back in fear just by seeing them.
"After enforcing that regulation, surprisingly, the situation resolved itself quite well."
"How so?"
"It's different from the old days when you couldn't even know how many people went inside, right? Now you can know exactly who enters and exits the dungeon, and how many, right?"
"That's true."
"So we said we'd just block off the dungeon and only let those who listen to us come and go! When we said that, what could they possibly do about it?"
Back when we had first fallen into this otherworld, dungeon management was quite lax. They didn't even bother controlling the entrance or keeping a record of people coming and going.
They couldn't really do that either, and the guild, worried that magic stone collection would decrease if they enforced such control, refrained from doing so.
Now it's different. Since the inside is clearly visible and connected, they can keep a record, and since the number of monsters that can be hunted per day is fixed, they also have a pretext for control.
Control equals power. The guild, which until now had been closer to a magic stone sales agency, has finally regained a position befitting its name.
"After about a week, people seem to have gotten somewhat used to it and are complying well with the regulation...... And now that it's like this, it actually seems better than before, doesn't it?"
"But they just let us pass through?"
"Adventurers Level 2 and above are exceptions. The dungeon still splits into multiple instances like before, right? Well, maybe when the 20th floor changes the same way someday......."
Listening to Pion's words, I hid my stinging conscience and asked about the biggest point of curiosity.
"Other adventurers aren't complaining?"
"Complaints? There are plenty. However, the ones voicing those complaints are only the Level 1 adventurers who are so numerous they need to be culled, and surprisingly, the high-rank adventurers seem to love it."
"Why?"
"They say it's become comfortable to go up to the 10th floor......."
"Hmm, it would be nice if an elevator connecting to other floors appeared."
"Ele......vator? What's that?"
"Ah, my mistake. I meant it would be nice if direct passageways to other floors appeared like the 10th floor's."
I rubbed the corner of my mouth, ruminating on my slip-up. Fortunately, it seemed she didn't understand, probably because it was a proper noun.
However, these minor slip-ups could accumulate and pile up, and someday it might be discovered that I was the one who changed the dungeon like this.
After all, the guild already knew about some mysterious mechanism whose name they didn't know......
'I need to be careful.'
"Ah, if there's any complaint...... it's that people ask us to open direct passageways to other floors too, but how is that something we can possibly do?"
Hahaha, I smiled back at Pion who laughed like that, and left the guild.
That night, a direct passageway to the 5th floor appeared in the dungeon.
"Well, well, look who it is. If it isn't the Fire Dragon Sword God?"
"Fuck...... who the hell gave me that nickname. Was it you?"
"It's Seoyun, yes?"
"......No, do you just call me by whatever name Seoyun gave me?"
"Why? Fire Dragon Sword God. It's cool."
"Shut up, I'm leaving. Don't look for me."
"Where are you going?"
"The dungeon."
I headed for the dungeon alone. I was in the mood to swing my sword, but unfortunately, all my party members had requested a break for various reasons.
'No, when you live together, do your periods all come on the same day?'
It was an unbelievable probability, but surprisingly, all three women complained that their periods had come.
Since I couldn't forcibly drag them to the dungeon when they said they were on their period, I came to the dungeon alone.
Lately, it had become popular to form temporary parties to tackle the dungeon, so I had no hesitation.
Arriving in front of the dungeon, the area was still bustling with adventurers today as well. Heading straight for the recruitment area, I looked around.
Just as modern people dislike being the group leader in team projects, people in this otherworld also seem to dislike being the party leader in temporary parties; many people were looking for parties, but few were actually recruiting people.
Since making money wasn't the goal today, I looked around for someone suitable to pick as a party member.
They couldn't look too shabby, but I also passed on people wearing clothes that looked brand new without a speck of dust.
Someone wearing moderately worn but not dirty clothes, who lacked confidence and hesitated to voice their opinion but wasn't completely devoid of confidence either.
While looking for such talent, my eyes met those of a little kid with messy, spiky hair sticking out, wearing a pointed hat.
The clothes looked a bit old but were clean, and the scared expression made them seem lacking in confidence, but they didn't avoid eye contact.
'Good.'
I've decided on you, I immediately approached the kid and asked.
"Looking for a party?"
"......Yes. But."
"How about me? I'm looking for someone to pick up magic stones from behind."
"......Mage, mastered beginner magic, know a bit of intermediate magic."
'Short with words. Brat.'
However, since I had been the one to use informal speech first, I didn't point that out and conversed with the kid.
"My name is Dojin. And you?"
"Raize......."
"Alright, shall we go in then."
I immediately formed a party with him and headed for the dungeon. Normally, we would have had to line up to enter the dungeon, but upon hearing we'd have to wait in line for over an hour, I immediately took him and attempted to cut in line.
A legal cut-in; when I presented my high-rank adventurer card, the guard actually smiled and sent us both in.
Even then, because the 1st floor was too crowded, we immediately boarded the elevator going up and headed to the 5th floor.
"......Dojin, what do you do?"
"What do you mean what do I do? I'm an adventurer."
"I meant why is a high-rank adventurer recruiting people on the street."
"Ah, that?"
I smiled brightly and explained that my companions had circumstances preventing them from coming, that I was forced to take a break for a while, but staying cooped up at home was making me antsy, so I came down to the dungeon alone.
Hearing my words, Raize looked at me with an expression that seemed to think even high-rank adventurers could be like that, then made a request.
"......Need to conduct an experiment."
"What experiment?"
"An experiment on how much resistance monsters have to magic."
"Oh ho, so that's why a mage came down to the dungeon......."
Mages are precious. They also know their own lives are precious. So they don't readily approach the dungeon even though magic stones spring from its depths.
But ever since the dungeon completely changed some time ago, it's been different. With safety guaranteed, mages have started showing interest in the dungeon first.
"Alright, sure. Give it a try."
"Okay."
Raize said that and then stared at me blankly. When I shrugged my shoulders, he cautiously opened his mouth.
"There are no monsters. Bring some."
"......Aha, I have to teach you this from the start?"
As I said earlier, mages are precious. They also know they themselves are precious.
And precious brats always tend to be a bit lacking in manners.
I smacked him on the head.
Raize clutched his head and looked up at me.
"Wh, what was that for!"
"Are monsters lab rats? This is a dungeon, monsters aren't something you can just bring over because you want them."
"Th, that's no reason to hit me!"
"No, I just felt like smacking you once."
Then, a growling sound came from somewhere. The cry of the 5th-floor monsters, the Shadow Wolves.
One of the monsters that had become weakest since the dungeon's dark curtain was lifted.
A pack of pitch-black wolves swarmed towards us.
"Ah, monsters came just like you said. What are you going to do now?"
"......You, just you wait."
Raize glared and began incanting a spell. Its grandeur seemed quite threatening even to me, a magic layman.
The monsters must have felt it even more so.
"Grooowl!"
"Kyaaak!?"
The monsters rushed in and pounced on Raize. He let out a girlish scream unbecoming of a boy and fell down.
I thrust my sword, piercing the Shadow Wolf's mouth. The wolf skewered on the sword whimpered and shrieked like a pup.
"Gyaaang! Kyiing, Gyaang!"
"What kind of 'kyaaak' is that for a guy? And where did your magic go?"
"Sh, shut up! If only they hadn't rushed at me......!"
"Ah, a typical mage's excuse. You, if it weren't for me, you'd have died a dog's death somewhere."
Judging by the sight, that was exactly it. That kind of mage who trusts in their own magic, acts recklessly, and dies.
"Kyaeang!"
I swung my sword, severing the wolf's neck, and stepped forward. The wolf pack began circling around me warily.
Raize clung to my back, trembling. My heart began to pound, facing a situation I was experiencing for the first time since falling into this otherworld.
'Ah, I wish our girls were like this too.'
Since I only have women who slaughter dozens of monsters with their own power.
And women who laugh and thrust a dagger even when their arm gets bitten.
Even though he's a guy, I quite liked this appearance of trusting and relying on me.
Wanting to show off a bit in front of the scared boy, I drew upon my ability. Soon after, my sword began burning hotly.
'That's right, I am the Fire Dragon Sword God. Fuck.'
I swung the sword. A fire dragon tore through the wolf pack as it passed. I reached out my hand toward Raize, who had slumped to the ground.
"You okay?"
'Damn, that was fucking awesome.'
Even I could see I'd be impressed by this.
But don't fall for me.
I'm not interested in guys.
Raize looked at Dojin and blushed.
From the start, she hadn't liked how he casually used informal speech.
But now she saw that he was a man with sufficient ability to do so.
'How can a person...... breathe fire with their bare body?'
Magical interest also began to stir. Thanks to growth that had halted due to many accidents while handling magic since childhood, there seemed to be some misunderstanding......
'The misunderstanding...... can be cleared up later.'
She was a woman.
Dojin didn't know, but she was even older than him.