It's Dangerous Outside the Dungeon, Master

* * *

“Can I come along too?”

“I think you should.”

After Eve left first, I didn’t reject Xue as she cuddled into my arms again with her question and embraced her back.

Though I had pushed her away earlier, accepting her now was partly out of a sense of compensation for my apology to her for coming to our dungeon. After all, she’s being thrown into actual combat right away because of the situation with me and the guild, without even a proper welcoming ceremony.

Xue, who had been smiling slightly on her face, came down to sit next to me again and spoke with a slightly whining tone and an otherwise calm voice.

“That’s good…”

“Yes. Thank you.”

“But I don’t like Lady going out…”

“Why is that?”

“Outside is dangerous. Lady is fragile.”

“You’re saying that too, huh.”

Her appearance, still expressionless but full of cuteness in her body, was like seeing a legendary modern being said to have the appearance of a cat but the attitude of a dog.

It’s funny that she’s actually a wolf.

“Calling a Dungeon Lord fragile. If someone heard that, they’d say not to make such malicious jokes. Asking if so many people died to that weak thing.”

“But Lady is…”

Most humans would dismiss this as nonsense. There’s a reason the ‘system’ treats Dungeon Lords’ attribute standards as about twice that of ordinary monsters or humans.

The dungeon core is a mass of magic power.

The body of a Dungeon Lord, who directly utilizes that magic power from the core, is no different from a monster that has developed by concentrating magic power.

‘Stats’ are an indicator of which parts of the body that magic power is developing.

Also…

“I’m not the type to just stay in the back. But thank you for worrying about me.”

“…It’s okay. Still. I’ll protect Lady.”

“How admirable.”

Grrrr…

As I patted her head and touched her ears, she let out a pleased growling. I remembered hearing that dogs like having this area touched, so I tried it, and the response wasn’t bad.

I certainly don’t dislike her lovely attitude either.

To begin with, she’s extremely pretty in appearance and had a good first impression, and her eyes looking at me are always sparkling and full of fondness.

There’s no way I could dislike it.

Of course, that doesn’t mean I stopped thinking about what I should do just because I was captivated by that.

“By the way, I should pray that the two forces have as equal a battle as possible.”

“So there’s more to eat…?”

“Your words are wild, but yes. You’re not wrong. You’re clever, Xue.”

“Mm… I’m. Smart. Because Lady says so, it’s true.”

Is she not smart herself, but smart because I say she’s smart? This level of favoritism is enough to be considered fanaticism.

I really wonder where such a lady popped out from.

I suspect if there might have been something between us before I entered this body.

‘But that’s impossible.’

‘Dungeon Lords are babies with demon race blood’. This was a setting established in MilDun 1.

If I extend my thoughts to an unreasonable range, there is an option that seems right, but that was really nonsensical.

‘And that’s not really important anyway.’

What’s important is now, this moment.

Them caring for me, and me pondered what I could do for them in return.

Surviving and becoming stronger for that.

That was the top priority.

‘There’s no such situation that’s only good for me in the first place.’

I think it’s better to leave assumptions like them coming from the future as just fantasy.

It doesn’t make sense.

-Chirp chirp.

I looked out the window, which was unusually red with the sunset today.

I thought there wouldn’t be animals or birds in the forest near the dungeon, but perhaps because I’ve caught a lot of wild demons that would prey on them nearby, the sounds have increased quite a bit lately.

It’s a peaceful scene that doesn’t suit the word ‘dungeon’.

‘This will be my second journey.’

It was about one month since the end of my last outing to Solemio.

* * *

-You’ve already figured it out?

This was the response I got when I contacted Scarlet three days after she left, telling her ‘The situation of the Dungeon Lord in question has been confirmed.’

A tone full of surprise and saying ‘That’s impossible.’

Though it probably wasn’t her intention, it was a tone that subtly provoked one’s pride. An ordinary Dungeon Lord might get upset at this point.

-Ah, I’m sorry.

I wouldn’t get angry over something like that, and she seemed to know that, too, so she quickly apologized.

“Yes. Do you want to come and hear about it?”

-Th-That, I probably have work today… No! I’ll take time off to come see you even if I have to!

“There’s no need for that.”

-There’s no need to take time off! I just mean that’s how determined I am!

“I see.”

And then, Scarlet really succeeded in coming quickly within the morning I contacted her.

With a powerful demon realm being beside her whom I felt like I’d seen before despite seeing for the first time.

“You really came quickly? Who is this beside you?”

“Well…”

“Pleased to meet you, Lady Libertas. I am Grim du Rol, department head of the guild that has Scarlet as a subordinate.”

A goblin merchant bowed politely with one hand behind his back and the other on his chest.

His appearance was familiar to my eyes.

‘It’s been about two months… feels like I’m seeing it after a very long time.’

He had the exact same name and appearance as one of the infamous backstabbing goblin merchants from ‘MilDun 1’.

Though his outfit has changed, and his current face doesn’t have that vile or cunning expression, it seems his disposition has changed somewhat over 200 years.

I wonder if other goblins are alive too? That’s quite curious.

“I’m not sure how I should address you, Grim du Rol.”

Though goblins themselves only have about half the height of ordinary humans so they looked funny at a glance, my senses that weren’t my own caught both that his etiquette was close to perfect and the aura of a ‘swordsman’ hidden in that small body.

‘He’s really strong. So even ordinary goblins can become this strong after 200 years.’

It was the power of ‘Nobility’ that could distinguish those worthy of taking as one’s own people.

The current me couldn’t carelessly treat someone with overwhelming strength and perfect etiquette.

Of course, I didn’t need to be intimidated either.

“Just call me Grim, or Viscount. Lady, though you can’t be clearly distinguished by title, you have such an exalted status that you don’t need to show respect to anyone who isn’t at least a Count-level demon realm noble. Scarlet. What have you been doing not informing her of even these things.”

“I-I’m sorry…!”

The skillfulness of not losing composure by scolding his subordinate made me aware of the disadvantageous position of still being a young Dungeon Lord.

At the same time, an unusually low posture for the head of the Mammon Guild’s sales department.

“It’s alright, Grim. I was too busy to hear such detailed explanations anyway. How could that be rude?”

“I am grateful for Lady’s ocean-like grace.”

But my nonchalant appearance seemed unexpected, as he twitched the eyebrow over his monocle once and then bowed.

I could guess the reason for such a low posture he was taking.

And he seemed to guess now that I knew as he revealed that reason the very next moment.

“Each of the Archdukes in the demon realm has 2-3 Marquises who can be called direct subordinates. One of these Marquises is the client for this request. It’s a status that’s difficult for a mere department to handle. As such, I hope that Lady will help us with your benevolent heart.”

With detailed explanations first, on the premise that Scarlet wouldn’t have told me.

Sometimes revealing weakness brings benefits in a transaction if a good relationship has been maintained until then.

The goblin probably guessed that I would be such an entity…

Yes. That’s not incorrect.

The ‘good relationship’ that Scarlet has maintained with me is something I feel as an intangible debt.

“I see. I had guessed as much.”

“Is there anything else I should inform you of?”

“Is it correct that the Marquis is a vampire?”

“…Yes. That’s right. Lady ‘Serica’ is his illegitimate child.”

“I see.”

The goblin hesitated momentarily as if to say, ‘You figured out that much?’, then told the truth.

Probably that Marquis just disclosed this much.

‘By the way, an illegitimate child.’

I knew for certain that Dungeon Lords were babies of the demon realm, but it seems there really were demon realm nobles who knew whose baby it was and supported them.

Well, even in ‘MilDun 1’, there were requests asking to place one of the ground NPC Dungeon Lords under the ‘protection’ of users who became famous as Dungeon Lords.

It was a generous quest that significantly increased the ‘fame’ ability score needed to purchase good items, and once you ‘protected’ a Dungeon Lord, they didn’t care what you did as long as you didn’t kill them…

The game didn’t reveal the exact reason, but I think this case is similar to that.

“I suppose you can’t tell me who that noble is?”

“No. I’m sorry, but…”

“I’m not so rude and inconsiderate as to get angry at such things. I just asked in case.”

“I was out of line.”

As expected, they can’t reveal this due to the guild’s position. But then, he indirectly gave an answer to my question.

This is also because of that position.

We’re almost in equal positions regarding the current incident.

The side that needs to cooperate should at least provide information.

“But if the request is successful, that side will rather approach Lady.”

“Thank you for telling me the truth.”

“I thought you would guess this much.”

“Hmm.”

I fell into thought for a moment while drinking tea.

The original request was to find out the Dungeon Lord’s whereabouts. But this goblin is now talking as if there’s obviously a next request.

I could quickly guess what that request would be.

And there was one more thing I realized that this goblin had already guessed how I would move.

“You want me to protect her.”

“The Marquis’s side hopes for that.”

“And you?”

“Lady has already fulfilled the conditions we want in a trading partner.”

“Is it okay for you to say that?”

“Our directors also have that much power.”

Those directors are probably ‘Marquises’ too.

This also means that since there will be no full-scale conflict, they’re leaving the resolution of this matter to me.

“Still, it would be better for you if I rescued her completely, right?”

“That’s true, but… You can judge at your discretion, according to your capabilities. They won’t make an issue of it either. We’ll handle the rest on our side. We can also provide mercenary support.”

“That’s alright.”

When I even refused the support, Grim finally showed a surprised expression on his face, which had been calm until now.

He seems to think I’m being reckless in the face of a difficult task, like other young Dungeon Lords.

“But if you carelessly reveal the dungeon and Lady’s existence now…”

“In the end, it’s just that I shouldn’t be revealed, right? Don’t worry. Moving with a large number of people will only expose my existence to humans. It would be better to watch. What kind of being Lady Libertas is.”

I just smiled and continued speaking.

The words I was saying were a bit cringeworthy to me, but it was necessary at this point.

It’s not good for others to see me as too high and excellent, either. I needed to show moderate arrogance in my thoughts and actions.

‘Moreover…’

I was confident that this time, I would absolutely not be revealed, even if I failed to complete the request.

I intended to make the humans offer up the corpse or living body of the Dungeon Lord on their own.

Without them realizing they were doing so for me.