Today I’m leaving in the morning to roam around in the shopping district near the dungeon.
I’m not really after anything, I just need to think, so I’m strolling.
I haven’t been here in the morning in a while. I see employees getting ready to open stores, cleaning, opening shutters, and putting out signs.
Oh, that one’s daily special is fried shrimp.
And that one has croquettes. Hm, which one…
No no, wrong wrong.
I’m not here to think about food. It’s about what Toufu said yesterday.
What she said was…
“Hic… Danaka. Why djyu esploar de dunjun upuh?”
I stepped away from her because it looked like she was about to throw up, but she held me and threw up anyway.
I just silently cried.
No, that’s not it.
Why do I explore the dungeon?
If a person is living normally, hunting a couple of orcs on the twenty-first floor is enough profit. And yet, I’m aiming deeper.
I’m not the only one, other seekers do the same, but they’re said to be drawn by the dungeon, or cursed by it. And they are commonly called dungeon junkies.
Toufu said she wants to know why it exists. She was studying archaeology in university, and thinks the dungeon might have been created by people, or other intelligent beings.
In actuality, there are a lot of things that seem man-made from the thirty-first floor onward, and she wants to get through the thirtieth floor to study them.
But that’s just Toufu. The others have their reasons.
Hearing them leads me to wonder about me.
I’m drawn by the dungeon. I go there practically every day. I can’t deny that.
At first, it was a stopgap until I found another job, but I’m hooked.
If I’m aiming deeper, I should have a goal. Maybe not having one and exploring because I feel like it is fine too, because it means I can quit whenever I want, but I feel like having a goal would make it more fun.
I stop by the convenience store, buy an ice coffee, and sit on a bench at the park. The creaking sound tells me the bench is in its twilight years.
I sip my coffee and let out a sigh, and then I hear my name being called from the side.
Ou, I haven’t seen you since yesterday, why are you here so early?
The person calling out to me is Chisato Shirabe. I honestly didn’t expect her to talk to me.
She’s asking me what I’m doing here, but I want to ask if she thinks I’m suspicious or something.
Yes, kids play in this park, and parents are side-eyeing me, but do I look that weird?
Eh? It’s because I’m muttering to myself in the park?
…Sorry.
We move to a cafe in the shopping district, and she orders like she’s used to it. But I don’t know what to order, so I ask for something cold and get a laugh in return.
What, you think I’ve ever been to a fancy place like this? I’ve only been to that fast food place with the M.
When I ask Chisato what’s good, she orders for me. And what I get is a frappuccino.
I said I wanted something cold, but not this. I could’ve done with a regular ice coffee.
But I don’t say that, and just take it. And Chisato’s bratty smile tells me she did it on purpose.
So, are you okay? Did you need anything?
We sit down, and ask that as I look at her fancy outfit. She’s clearly going out somewhere, so should she be taking it easy in a place like this?
She says she has time until she has to meet someone, so she might as well talk to me.
Looking at her also brings a question to my mind. Why is she a seeker?
Personality aside, she’s good looking and has a nice figure. She could even be a model.
Hum, why are you working as a seeker?
What, don’t look at me like I’m weird.
What about me?
I’m asking because I’m wondering that too.
She lets out a big sigh and looks exasperated.
Then she says asking that won’t help me find a reason to explore. And that if I’m enchanted with the dungeon, I might as well think about it while exploring. She’s talking to me like I’m a kid.
Oh, look at miss adult here. Calls me a pig and then starts acting all mature.
But what she says settles in my chest. It’s true, I might have gotten flustered because of what Toufu said.
Watching her party having fun talking about their successes and struggles gave me the wrong idea that it’s different when you have an objective or a goal.
I should take it easy. I have plenty of time.
I thank Chisato, and gulp down my frappuccino. The sweetness that spreads in my mouth is nothing compared to ant queen honey.
I get up to leave this place, but Chisato grabs my hand, and I freeze with a surprised expression.
When I ask her what’s wrong, she just looks at me with a surprised expression of her own. Then her phone rings, prompting her to reboot.
Is she okay?
I leave her as she answers the phone, and head to the dungeon.
◇ ◇ ◇
The eleventh floor.
I carefully look around the walls with Trace.
I find the place where there was some sort of pupa, and open a hole with Earth Magic.
All I find is something small, like it withered. I’m sure it failed to fully grow and died.
I was thinking I might be able to find more honey, but no such luck.
I move to the place where I cast Healing Magic on a pupa, and along the way find a man and woman making one of their own in a different way.
Hey, what are you doing in the dungeon?
Our eyes meet, and we freeze. The woman comes to her senses and screams, but I don’t look away.
It’s not like I’m interested in her body, but a big ant is saying hello from near these active people, so I was thinking if I should tell them.
Hum, there’s something else peeking.
When I say that, both jolt up, but get their feet caught up in their clothes and fall. And one screams loudly after being bitten on the shoulder.
I approach the big ant, and bisect it with the tyrant battleaxe.
The man has a deep wound on his shoulder, but I have no intention of casting Healing Magic or using a potion.
Doing that here is like asking for monsters to kill you, so be glad you’re alive. And surely if you’re seekers, you have potions, right?
The woman still hasn’t put her clothes on, because she’s worried about the wounded man.
When I try to leave, she asks for help. I tell her to use a potion, but she says they don’t have the money to buy one.
Then don’t do that here.
The man’s turning pale, probably because he’s bleeding too much.
It doesn’t look like a fatal wound, but it might be if it isn’t treated.
I take out a potion, give it to the woman, and get out of there.
◇ ◇ ◇
I try to clear my head as I reach my destination.
I use Earth Magic to open another hole, but there’s nothing.
Actually, there’s a hole just big enough for a big ant to cross to the other side. And marks that tell me something did pass here. The pupa probably hatched.
I use Trace on the other side, but can’t figure out if something passed here because it’s like something’s blocking me.
I could open a hole and go in, but my instincts as a living being or something like that are telling me it’s dangerous.
And so, I give up and leave the hole.
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Haruto Tanaka (24)
Level: 17
Skills: Earth Magic, Trace, Healing Magic, Spatial Grasp, Toughness, Magic Energy Control, Physical Strengthening, Poison Resistance, Storage Space, See Through, Parallel Thinking, Sewing, Limit Break, Dismantling
Equipment: Agility bracelet, tyrant battleaxe, divine bird boots, safeguard necklace, magic mirror armor
Status: Fat (All abilities boosted)
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