It’s Dangerous Outside the Dungeon, Master

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“Is it over?”

The first battle, which I thought would be challenging, ended in an unexpectedly swift manner.

To lure in the goblin horde from outside as a distraction, I killed one of them to control its corpse like a puppet, neither a zombie nor anything else, and meticulously manipulated the dungeon for as long as I could, creating shadows with the skeleton.

I prepared diligently, but I couldn’t guarantee it would actually work.

While many of my preparations proved effective, it was my summon, the skeleton, that surpassed my expectations, making the battle much easier.

[One skeleton, at least…]

The way my skeleton dealt with Jack was simple.

Undead attacks are typically aggressive.

Jack, relying on that common sense, raised his shield to counter the skeleton’s assault, but my skeleton—

[Huh?]

At just the right moment, it extended its hand over the shield, pressing down on Jack’s joint.

Jack must have never imagined a simple undead would employ such a devious trick, as the gap he showed was enormous. The blade passed right through his abdomen, and he couldn’t do a thing.

So, in the end, I subdued Jack in just two moves.

In a situation where there was a variable like Remia, I took the risk of killing him quickly to eliminate him.

I had instructed not to kill if possible, but completing my objective was the top priority, and my skeleton executed that command flawlessly.

– Snap.

The soldier reporting back to me held a knife to the neck of the woman, Remia, who was subdued while still relatively unharmed.

The message conveyed was something like, “Victory. All clear.”

“Good job.”

– Snap!

I gave a pat on the back, filled with admiration, and a brighter sound echoed back. My smaller stature compared to the soldier might have made it a less impressive sight, but who cares?

No one here could point that out.

“It’s quite a mess.”

The sight of my skeleton stained red with the blood of the warrior named Jack was rather eerie and difficult to approach.

But that gruesome appearance was formed to protect me.

Thinking that, I hesitated not at all.

Of course, it would have been impossible back on Earth… I should check the status window more carefully.

“No injuries… none.”

Aside from being soaked in blood, the white body was clean without a single wound.

It was clearly strange.

If a beginner adventurer and a skeleton had a direct confrontation, it would normally end with the adventurer’s victory.

While undead bodies do show considerable variation depending on their past profession, there must be a limit to that.

“I was planning to ambush and take out the crossbowman while diverting their attention. To finish things all by itself.”

There were plenty of special undead with unique titles in the game, but no skeleton could single-handedly take down an adventurer in a 1:1 battle without it being an ambush.

Except for one I had summoned before with the title “Perfect.” Back then, it was a zombie, not a skeleton.

Could it be that this one is such a being?

If so, then that would be luck beyond simple fortune.

“You really did well. Smart and skillful.”

– Clack!

Praises flowed naturally from my lips, and the skeleton responded with another nod of its jaw.

After witnessing its previous performance, there was no longer any chill from its appearance.

Just a sense of reassurance.

Though the skeleton was hidden to the right and the mage was to the left, it ignored its undead instincts and patiently focused on taking down the most threatening entity first.

Fighting a human warrior, it didn’t retreat an inch while delivering precise strikes.

Lastly, following my instruction to avoid killing if possible, it managed to subdue all without a single death.

Seeing that, if I didn’t feel reassured, I would be unworthy as a master.

It was oddly capable, but it would also be strange to suspect someone who constantly showed me a friendly demeanor.

“Is it truly a ‘perfect’ specimen? It’s inconvenient not being able to see the summon’s status window.”

Maybe it’s still locked, or it vanished with reality; I had no way to intuitively check the status of my summon.

I felt a sense of strength from it, but that didn’t give me the basis to devise a strategy.

Leaving those regrets behind, I patted the cold skeleton’s arm once more and turned my body towards today’s prey.

“Hello there. You two. Not so well, I suppose.”

One mage unable to converse due to fainting.

One warrior, having his abdomen pierced but still clinging to life.

And lastly, one appearing to be a ranger or hunter.

All three were in a rather fine condition for the spoils of the first battle.

With undead driven by hatred for the living focusing solely on tearing apart their enemies, I hadn’t expected to have any interrogation time.

Swallowing my admiration for the skeleton once more, I spoke again.

“I regret that our first meeting turned out this way.”

“What… ugh…”

“Why is the skeleton this strong…?”

“I can’t answer that. Isn’t there something more important?”

Looking at Remia, who stared at me blankly, I pointed at the dying warrior.

“First aid, now. If you leave him, he’ll die.”

“Why…?”

“Is the reason that important? If you just want to survive while letting your friend die, then fine.”

“…Ugh!”

All weapons had been seized from the soldier, while the mage was bound and had her eyes, ears, mouth, and other body parts blocked from casting spells.

There was no means to resist.

“Jack. Jack? Stay with me, okay?”

“Re… mi…”

“Right. I’m here. I’ll treat you, alright?”

“Do… me…!”

“What do you mean, where do you think you’re going…?!”

Pulling out a red glass bottle from my bag, Remia sprinkled some onto Jack’s wound and poured a bit into his mouth.

That was the moment I intervened.

“That’s enough.”

“But it’s not fully treated…!”

“You won’t die now, will you? Right?”

Thud.

As if to affirm my words, the skeleton stepped forward and placed its sword against Remia’s chin. She instinctively raised her chin, bit her lip, and slowly backed away.

She understood that the sword could plunge back into Jack’s body at any moment.

“Smart girl.”

Though Jack’s recovery speed was definitely not fast, likely due to the pain improving, his wounds were visibly healing.

However, it seemed there would be limits in the amount he could recover this way.

Just what I wanted.

“Is this a human potion?”

“…Yes.”

This red medicine Remia used must be the potion I often saw in games.

Having checked there were several more in the bag, I could use them later. Given they were made by beginner adventurers, their quality wasn’t great, but it was better than nothing.

In the worst case, I might be able to use them myself.

“Now, will you answer my questions?”

I approached the hunter, still facing my soldier’s sword, and inquired about their condition.

She nodded, still biting her lip.

That rubbed me the wrong way a bit.

“If you keep biting your lip like that, it’ll get hurt. Be good. Okay?”

As I gently tapped her lips, she slowly eased the pressure of her teeth.

I was puzzled as to why she acted like that, but it seemed to be just a mood-driven action, without deeper meaning.

I merely posed the next question.

“What’s your name?”

“Why does that matter…”

“Your name.”

“…Remia.”

Still defiant, but simply answering the question itself was a lowering of her walls.

It probably helped that I was appearing as a young woman. Since ancient times, beauty has often been a deadly poison to humans.

With a smile, I continued in a warm tone.

“Were you two trying to challenge the dungeon on your own? Or did you come from the Guild?”

“…Yes. Through the Guild…”

Swoop.

“Y-yes!”

There was a little mishap when the skeleton pressed its sword closer as she answered informally, but at least it seemed she was ready to provide more information.

Even without me asking further, she began to divulge what she knew.

“It was a… general request…”

“General? I’ll ask my friends later too. When that time comes, I won’t be so gentle. No lies now.”

“It is a general request…!”

“…Okay. Seems like that’s true.”

At my words, the woman visibly relaxed.

It was pitiful to see her frightened for her friends’ lives, but I couldn’t take pity on her.

Even back in modern times, if necessary, one should be prepared to topple competitors.

Some might call me a sociopath for such actions, but for most ordinary people, competition can be brutal.

If I hadn’t been prepared to topple others, having been cut off from family and alone, I’d probably be dead.

The difference between committing suicide over financial stress on Earth and dying in a cave here without gaining anything while my acquaintances had no idea was essentially nonexistent for me.

Although both actions are inherently wrong, still…

“…Is this it then?”

The information gathered from the woman through interrogation was as follows.

“It’s been two hundred years… Quite a while.”

First, the current era was far beyond the background of “Mill Don” that I knew.

When the first dungeon emerged in this world, it marked the year 5 of the Empire’s strength and the year 1 of the Chaos Era, also known as the background for Mill Don 1. Now, it was described as the year 214 of the Chaos Era.

So, this place must be within the universe of the game’s sequel, “Million Dungeon Lord 2.”

The emergence of such a powerful skeleton as my soldier may perhaps be due to that difference in eras.

“General requests. That’s a term that didn’t exist in the game I used to play.”

Second, guild requests are classified into two types.

Formal requests or designated assignments aimed at threatening entities, and general requests which are often left open for adventurers to take as they wish.

Additionally, there was a third fact I learned here.

If dungeons’ creation is treated as an “ordinary task” by the guild, it suggests that dungeons really must be sprouting like mushrooms in this world.

In the “Million” of what became “Mill Don 2,” perhaps the number of dungeons indeed approaches the promise of “millions.”

If that’s the case, it’s a relief.

It means if these folks fail their quest, my existence wouldn’t easily become known to others.

“Just what I needed, to have a headache already.”

Lastly, I realized there was another danger I hadn’t previously recognized.

Thanks to discovering the differences between the era I knew and the current time and background, along with hearing about the state of the world from Remia.

“It seems this world has plenty of tricky veterans.”

This referred to the existence of six established dungeon lords known as the “Grand Dukes of the Magical Realm.”

After settling in the continent for quite a while, they successfully cultivated their dungeons into a new being named “Magical Realm.”

Among all dungeon lords, they were likely the ones closest to the title of Demon Lord Candidate.

– Clack.

“Can we really do this? Thank you.”

The shadows of beings so distant they felt impossible to overcome weighed heavily on my shoulders, despite the encouragement of a trusty skeleton.

For dungeon lords, among the most significant foes are the rival demon lord candidates, and the fact that some of those candidates are already far ahead implies impending challenges.

This was the emergence of new strong adversaries that didn’t exist in Mill Don 1.