108
Chapter 108
I pulled the stem, and a bizarre root was yanked out.
It basically looked like a root, but it was a creature with eyes, a nose, a mouth, and even arms and legs.
Whoa, monsters spawn here too.
It seemed I had pulled a dud this time.
I guess the Luck Domain really isn't omnipotent.
Just because I belonged to Luck didn't mean I could unconditionally avoid Misfortune.
"Mandrake!!!"
Kyeeek!
The Mandragora slipped out of my hand, shrieking as it scratched at me wildly.
To just suddenly start attacking like this....
What an ill-mannered little guy.
Naturally, I didn't take any damage.
Not even my clothes, which were basically a part of my body, tore.
Little Mandragora, do you really think that'll work?
With a measly Power of 30, you can't even leave a scratch on my body.
"Greetings!"
"Greetings!"
"Greetings!"
The Butler Fake Dolls immediately took combat stances.
Tosuni also startled and formed a Blood Whip.
They tried to attack the Mandragora, but I reached out and stopped them.
Hey now, hold on.
I'm partly at fault for this one, after all.
Honestly, it made sense for the Mandragora to be angry.
If you think about it, I was the one who started it.
I had forcibly yanked out a guy who was just sleeping peacefully.
"Mandrake! Mandrake! Ptooey! Die!!!"
Smack! Smack!
"Kyeeek! You funny-looking piece of trash! I'll tear you apart! Mandrake! Mandrake!"
Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack!
Hmm.......
But still, attacking me to this extent is crossing the line, isn't it?
My gentlemanly patience had reached its limit.
It didn't just cross the line; it leaped miles over it.
It was only fine because I was strong; if I had been weak, I would have been torn to shreds.
Now that I think about it again, I don't think I did anything wrong.
Who told it to leave its stem swaying outside like that?
Let me correct myself.
This was the fault of the Mandragora that tempted me with its stem.
This guy must definitely be a wicked monster that hides underground and hunts by luring prey with its stem.
Alright.
I've decided on summary execution for this guy!
I never show mercy to severely hostile things that don't even look cute.
I should burn it to death.
[[Flame Manipulation lv.4] skill is used.]
"Mandrakeeeeee!!!"
The Mandragora was engulfed in the flames I spewed out.
It let out an agonizing scream before finally dying.
A weakling acting up without knowing its place.
Afterwards.
We naturally resumed plucking stems as if nothing had happened.
In the process, a Mandragora would occasionally be pulled out.
By the looks of it, they didn't seem to be intentionally ambushing underground to surprise their prey.
Seeing that their stem looked identical to the others, I figured they were probably part of the pulling rewards.
Furthermore, they couldn't even be detected by the Helper skill before the Mandragora was pulled out.
Just in case, I was using Helper on every stem, but not a single piece of information popped up.
In other words.
It meant that the Mandragora wasn't in hibernation or a Camouflage state.
On top of that, not even a question mark Information Window appeared.
This meant they were devoid of life until they were pulled out.
It seemed that life was breathed into them the moment they were plucked, and they were born right then.
There was no need to find it strange that they had a Domain.
They must belong to a Domain as soon as they're born.
Seeing as they were all born at high levels and could immediately speak a systematic language, they seemed to be a special type of monster.
Anyway.
Even though I was killing newborns, I didn't feel uncomfortable about it at all.
"Mandrake! You puke-inducing bastard! Drop dead!"
Because they were a very ferocious species.
It was right to nip such wicked monsters in the bud the moment they were born.
***
That's it for today's date.
We've enjoyed the pulling game enough.
I wanted to explore this space more, go deeper, and pull other stems, but I decided against it.
If we went too far, dangerous things might be pulled out.
I should save the exploration for later when we're fully prepared.
For reference, Tosuni said she had safely only pulled stems near the entrance until now.
She also mentioned that today was the first time a Mandragora had appeared.
She must have been really lucky all this time.
Anyway, we decided it was about time to head back.
There was no problem going back.
The exit was high up on the ceiling, but there was a way for anyone to get out even if they couldn't fly.
Of course there was a way.
It's a place Tosuni has been in and out of countless times since way back.
The escape method was very simple.
The place where we fell down the hole.
To be precise, the ground where we landed was very soft.
It was far more elastic ground than the 2nd Floor of our Dungeon.
I heard that infusing Mana into it makes escape possible.
Tosuni told me that if you pour Mana in with all your might, you can do a Super Jump.
"Gomgom."
"Woong!"
Like that, we each took turns jumping with all our might and went up the hole.
It was a satisfying and successful date.
***
The day after our successful date.
I stopped by the Labor Camp early in the morning to manage the Slaves.
The Slaves had already finished adapting to our Dungeon in the meantime.
They were spending their days diligently carrying out their assigned tasks.
And they were no longer terrified when they saw us.
That didn't mean they looked down on us, either.
It was because they realized that as long as they didn't cross us and just worked hard, we wouldn't harm them and would instead accommodate them.
"■□■■■□."
"■□■■■□."
Chunsik and Chunsam bowed toward me.
I don't know what they were saying.
I just guessed it was something along the lines of, Have you arrived?
They're no longer scared, but they're still very polite.
Well, they can't exactly afford to be arrogant.
They wouldn't have forgotten their position.
If they forgot they were Slaves and tried to slowly crawl their way up, I planned to make them pay an equivalent price.
Fortunately, there was no sign of that at all right now.
They didn't seem to have any thoughts of rebelling or running away.
Of course, you never know what's on the inside.
Even if they look like that on the outside, they could be harboring impure thoughts.
That's why I still didn't fully trust the Slaves.
"■? ■□■■■□!"
Chunja, who had come over from the Magic Tool Workshop, spotted me and bowed politely.
It seemed she had come to take a short break.
It wasn't an unauthorized break.
I had told them they could rest as much as they wanted whenever they needed to.
After all, they are Slaves, but they are also a high-quality workforce.
"Gomgom."
After accepting her greeting.
I gifted Chunja a very stylish set of Work Clothes.
It was a reward for her recent performance.
"■■■□? □□■■!"
Is this for me?
Thank you!
I figured she probably said something like that.
Even without Ailee's Interpretation, I could sometimes roughly understand what they were saying just from their expressions.
It's not exact, just a guess, though.
Surely she wasn't just making that face and swearing at me because I can't understand Human speech.
As Chunja happily received the Work Clothes, Chunsik and Chunsam looked at her with envious eyes.
If you're jealous, prove your worth more than you do now.
Then I'll naturally take good care of you too.
Oh, for reference.
Chunsik and Chunsam aren't completely useless guys either.
First off, Chunsik is a monster Dismantling Expert.
He was so skilled at Dismantling that I asked through Ailee, and it turned out he possesses multiple Dismantling-related skills.
And Chunsam is the emotional pillar for the other two Slaves.
You could say he acts like a dependable dad.
Whenever Chunja and Chunsik are having a hard time, they always look for Chunsam first.
Without a support system like Chunsam, those two might eventually fail to endure life in this unfamiliar environment and mentally collapse.
So in a way, Chunsam was a pretty important Slave too.
Even if his abilities are useless, that is.
The scrawny Chunsam is a Slayer specialized in protecting his comrades.
Contrary to his appearance, he's a guy possessing multiple Defense skills.
Because of that, he wasn't particularly helpful to us.
On a side note.
Chunsam once appealed his skills through Ailee.
He claimed he was confident he could perform very well if entrusted with the mission of Protection for the Dungeon.
I naturally rejected him flat out.
What kind of Gatekeeper can't even beat a Butler Fake Doll?
On top of that, why would I entrust a heavy role like Gatekeeper to an untrustworthy Slave?
You idiot.
Recalling what happened back then, I lightly bonked Chunsam on the head with my Cane.
Not knowing the reason, Chunsam looked flustered.
I turned around, pretending nothing had happened.
And just as I was about to take a step to check if there were any problems in the Magic Tool Restoration Room.
Wee-woo, wee-woo-!
Suddenly, an Alarm sounded.
It was a sound announcing the entry of a living being not registered in the Alarm.
What is it, an Intruder?
Or a guest visiting after a long time?
For now, I left the Slaves behind and exited the Labor Camp.
Then, the urgent voices of the Little Yellow Dragon and the Fox came from the direction of the Portal.
"Papa! Mama came back hurt!!!"
"Vampa-jjang is hurt! Where's To-jjang!!"
Hearing their shouts, I hurriedly ran toward the Portal.
Upon arriving there, I spotted Ms. Vampire collapsed face down on the floor, letting out painful groans.
"Ughh, uh......."
Ms. Vampire?
Why are you injured every time we reunite?
Her entire body was riddled with several holes.
It was a very serious injury.