Isekai Online Game Developer

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“Adventurers heading to the Dragon Lair to become Dragon Masters… Who will be the first Dragon Master…? Are these people insane?”

It was a leisurely morning.

While casually sipping my coffee, I set my cup down in surprise at an article on the front page of the newspaper.

“If we’re talking about dragons, they can be stronger than a Tower Master depending on the situation… What on earth are they thinking?!”

It was news that made my blood pressure rise beyond a chuckle.

No matter how well-made ‘Eban’ might have been as an interesting class, actually retrieving an egg from the Dragon Lair was a completely different story.

After all, in the ‘Maple Leaf Story,’ Eban was able to handle dragons due to a contract made with past heroes and dragon kin.

“What’s going on, Rai?”

Was Rain just waking up? He emerged from his room after hearing my voice.

Instead of replying, I handed him the newspaper I was reading.

“Dragon Master…? The updates are really creating quite a ripple in the world, huh?”

“Is this something to take lightly? Dragons are one of the apex beings in this world!”

Rain calmly tidied his hair.

Honestly, I was very flustered and even angry about how people were heading to suicide because of the game I created.

“Well… it’s ultimately their choice; what can we do? This kind of thing isn’t new, anyway.”

“But this time, isn’t it blatantly dangerous?”

“Sure, sneaking into a Dragon Lair is dangerous. But there have been people who have done it before, right? Though we don’t see much of that lately.”

“Really?”

Rain shared stories about adventurers who used to raid Dragon Lairs long ago.

From a time before the Demon King was defeated, during the chaotic era, and a little after.

This was all before I was reincarnated into this world.

The Dragon Lairs had many precious treasures, so there were many adventurers attempting to steal them back then.

Of course, they were a minority, and I had no idea that such people had become rare recently.

“People were willing to risk their lives for such things back then…”

“Well, to survive, it’s only natural to risk one’s life. We, being the mages of the Tower, encounter such situations less frequently.”

I still hadn’t grasped the intricacies of this world.

I had let my previous life’s way of thinking slip back in while I was engrossed in the recent updates.

If the previous ‘Maple Leaf Story’ was pure ‘fantasy,’ then this world’s ‘Maple Leaf Story’ was almost non-fiction.

Rain seemed indifferent about it.

“But stealing a dragon egg is a different matter, don’t you think? It’s not just any treasure, it’s a child.”

“That’s… definitely true. Stealing a treasure or two is a different story, right? If that happens, the dragon might just come down to the human cities, don’t you think?”

“Well then, we should tell them to not go!”

“But do you think that will happen? Those who could steal treasures in the past were all just lucky. And considering the sheer amount of treasures dragons hoard, they might not even notice a few missing.

But an egg is different. Dragons usually only raise one egg at a time and keep it in the most precious place. If even the position of the egg changes slightly, the dragon will notice, right? Who could manage to steal that?”

“Now that you mention it, that does make sense. But at the same time, the lives of those sneaking into the lair are still at risk.”

“That’s a matter they have to bear the responsibility for.”

Saying that, Rain yawned again and headed back to his room.

He must have been gaming until late at night.

After a moment of contemplation, I decided to reach out to the media.

I couldn’t just sit idle when I saw a situation so clearly leading to death.

After all, this was partly due to the game I created.

It was a sense of responsibility as a developer, maybe?

Honestly, as Rain said, it was their choice, but giving them a warning beforehand might absolve me of any potential responsibility.

“Haah… I thought I could take a break for a while.”

An update that had been meticulously prepared alongside ‘Minecraft.’

Soon, it would also be the update I was preparing for the COL event, and the third class of ‘Maple Leaf Story’ that was planned for release later was also progressing smoothly.

In ‘Maple Leaf Story,’ I initially aimed to launch all three classes at once this time.

However, the final one needed some additional review, delaying its release.

I had planned to release that and then take a break for a while.

Yet, for some reason, irritating matters were cropping up again.

“Haha! It’ll be fine. Adventurers sneaking into Dragon Lairs have always existed. It’s not something for the mage to feel responsible for.”

“That may be, but what if someone actually steals an egg? I feel like I’d be targeted by a dragon then.”

“Hahaha! What kind of foolish dragon would let a human steal its egg! That won’t happen, so don’t worry!”

Not long after, I spoke with the head of the media outlet.

After our conversation ended, I decided to let the situation lie for now.

For some reason, I felt worried, while these people didn’t seem to take it seriously at all.

Was adventuring just a daily occurrence for them?

“Well… I suppose so? Well, I’m relieved if that’s the case.”

Thus, the number of people setting off for the Dragon Lair to steal dragon eggs continued to rise.

Of course, I hadn’t heard any news about anyone successfully stealing a dragon egg.

Time passed, and the dragon taming story began to cool down.

It seemed like it would end as just a simple happening.

But,

“Did you hear? There’s an adventurer who succeeded in stealing a dragon egg!”

“Is that true?! How did they do it?!”

“I heard it from a friend I met during an adventure! They’re currently coming back after taking an egg from the lair!”

A short while later, I overheard a conversation between a few men.

I doubted my own ears.

There existed a foolish dragon that could allow its egg to be stolen by a human.

*

Hetz was lost in thought over a map he had made in the past.

This map marked the locations of various Dragon Lairs he had observed.

The locations of the lairs varied based on each dragon’s characteristics.

Some lairs resided within active volcanoes, others deep within colossal icebergs in polar regions, and some were hidden in the highest mountains in the world.

All were incredibly dangerous places.

However, depending on the timing, the likelihood of being able to raid each lair increased.

Hetz carefully examined the numerous pieces of information he had compiled in the past.

“At this moment, the lair of a Red Dragon might be more accessible. Or perhaps the underground…”

He was a veteran of raiding lairs.

While there were many adventurers with simple combat abilities superior to his, Hetz had dedicated long hours to studying dragons.

And considering the unique habits of dragons, he had devised imaginative methods.

Few understood dragons better than he did.

Given the ancient nature of dragons, information about them was sparse.

All this knowledge had been gained through his own experiences.

“…But I’m left with nearly no options.”

If it were merely about raiding, some locations seemed plausible.

But this wasn’t about stealing treasures; it was about retrieving an ‘egg.’

That meant he needed to raid the lair of a dragon, which was presumed to be in its laying season.

And since dragons were incredibly strong yet existed in very small numbers, the occasions they would lay eggs were incredibly rare, occurring perhaps once every few hundred years.

“Black Dragon, and…”

Hetz circled two lairs.

One was a Black Dragon’s lair, and the other was one without a name.

Raiding the Black Dragon’s lair was nearly impossible.

There were so many monsters lurking nearby that approaching it was arduous.

Even if he managed to steal an egg, he wouldn’t escape unscathed from the monsters in between.

“Is this the only option left?”

The last choice was the one with the highest potential.

Having made his decision, Hetz began to pack his gear.

*

How many days passed?

The towering mountain range ahead came into view, shrouded in low-lying clouds.

At the peak beyond those clouds stood a gigantic temple.

This was the temple where the guardian of dragon kin resided.

“So it’s exactly as it was.”

It was a place where no human foot had set.

After all, this was a location Hetz had discovered after much adventure.

Somewhere deep within a remote mountain range, Hetz was the only one who knew of the temple’s existence.

He never let the information about Dragon Lairs slip out into the world.

“I can’t sense any energy, which means…”

Approaching the mountain range, Hetz took out a tool he had prepared.

It was a device to measure mana concentration.

If an entity with overwhelming mana like a dragon kin were nearby, it would burst instantly.

Since it remained intact, it meant there was no guardian present in the temple right now.

Hetz quickly began climbing the mountain.

Though it was called the temple of the dragon kin guardian, that guardian was still a dragon.

It was merely a pleasant title; in reality, the guardian was left to deal with the annoying chores.

Being the lowest-ranking among dragon kin, they had to do whatever was assigned.

This was also information Hetz had discovered through direct observation.

The reason why the guardian was the lowest in rank remained unknown to Hetz.

He only used that fact to temporarily shift the guardian’s attention away.

“This is my first time entering here.”

Hetz arrived at the tranquil temple.

Perhaps due to the altitude, his ears felt muffled.

In truth, the temple where dragons resided was filled with mysterious mana.

Hetz set down his pre-prepared items and proceeded inside the temple.

Click-clack—

Inside the temple, an astonishing stillness prevailed.

The slightly reddish columns of plaster were more than fifty times taller than Hetz.

Its height indicated how extensive the temple was.

The interior of the temple was shrouded in a smoky haze.

Hetz parted through the haze, making his way toward the center of the temple.

“Oooh…”

In the very center stood the only patch of grass.

A massive pit in the middle of the temple was filled with grass.

Unlike other locations where sunlight was obstructed by clouds, directly above that pit, sunlight poured down perfectly.

And resting in the center where the sunlight fell was a single egg.

It appeared to be three or four times the size of Hetz’s body.

The dragon had yet to arrive.

Hetz took out a tool from his bag.

A hammer, saw, and other tools he had prepared for raiding lairs in the past.

“Hmm-!”

Kaaang—

Hetz raised the hammer and brought it down on the egg.

With an immense recoil, his arm went numb.

Dragon eggs were generally harder than almost any material in this world.

This was only natural, as they contained enormous mana reserves.

Typically, they wouldn’t crack until a hatchling broke through first.

Hetz pulled another pouch from his bag.

It was a spatial pocket created at the Magic Tower.

Though it was expensive, he purchased it for this occasion.

From the spatial pocket, Hetz pulled out four hefty logs.

Then, he placed the logs in front of the egg at regular intervals.

“Usually, one would have given up by now.”

Most adventurers lacked knowledge about dragon eggs.

They would probably never imagine an egg could be this massive, leading to no one having succeeded in stealing eggs until now.

Even if one managed to obtain this colossal egg, there was usually no means of transporting it.

Due to the dragon’s mana, it wouldn’t even fit into a spatial pocket.

Boom—

With a large explosion, the egg topples over.

It was a blast artifact made at the Fire Tower.

The impact knocked the egg onto the logs.

And rolling the logs slightly helped move the egg forward.

It was difficult work, but by doing this he could manage to transport the large, heavy dragon egg by himself.

Having transported the dragon egg outside the temple, Hetz began panting heavily.

It was nearly time for the egg’s owner to return.

But he had only just exited the temple.

He still had to descend this towering mountain.

But Hetz had a plan for that.

He set up the blast artifact on the launcher he had prepared beforehand.

Then he moved the egg to the launcher’s position.

“This direction should work.”

He carefully adjusted the angle, considering the wind.

The dragon egg was set to launch down the mountain, like a shell inside a mortar.

Hetz intended to fire the dragon egg down the mountain.

Since it wouldn’t break anyway, it didn’t matter what he did.

Given the mountain’s height, even a slight elevation wouldn’t pose a problem as it would float down safely.

Deceiving the dragon and launching the dragon egg—what a crazy thought.

But one couldn’t even entertain the notion of stealing a dragon egg without being insane.

“3… 2…”

Hetz counted down.

Before long, mana gathered in the blast artifact.

Boom—

With a cheerful explosion, the dragon egg launched in an arc down the mountain.

“Hahahahahahaha—! I did it!”

Hetz laughed like a maniac as he gathered his belongings and dashed down the mountainside.

And a few hours later.

From beyond the sky, a being resembling a half-dragon flew toward the guardian’s temple.

“Ha…! Did you really make me come all this way just for a bug?!”

She snorted in anger as she folded her wings and entered the temple.

But something felt off.

An unusual air had mixed within the serene flow of mana.

It seemed a human had intruded.

However, the temple was too impeccably clean for that.

“…Huh?! EEK!!!!”

The only thing that had changed was that her egg had gone missing.

“W-who… who did this?!”

It was intolerable that a treasure had vanished, let alone an egg.

She flew down to the human city.