NOVEL NEXT Chapter 8
“A new dungeon has successfully emerged, so I thought, ‘What a pleasant surprise!’ and came here… oh my, oh my. The new Dungeon Lord… no, the Lady is such a cute lady!”
In Mill Don 1, there was always a customer who came after a wave ended.
This was the entity called the Dungeon Merchant, through whom adventurers visiting the dungeon typically sold their useless gear or the corpses and souls of capable beings for currency, allowing them to purchase other necessary items for the dungeon or magical materials to upgrade the dungeon.
However, the Dungeon Merchant in this world differed somewhat from my memory.
“Succubus?”
“Yes, I am a Succubus!”
In Mill Don 1, the Dungeon Merchant who had always been a goblin appeared transformed into a female demon.
Just because she appeared as a human woman doesn’t necessarily make her a Succubus, but it was clear she was one. After all, her clothing ratio was quite low, and she even had a tattoo on her belly.
A tattoo I had seen somewhere before.
I was truly relieved that I didn’t choose the path of the Succubus, or rather, the Undead – Ghost.
“I always encountered goblins in the game.”
The goblin Dungeon Merchant in Mill Don 1 had quite the notorious reputation.
Perhaps because the developers were skilled at creating illustrations, they used their talent for making beautiful hero summons to depict the Dungeon Merchant’s face in high detail.
Not only did it have a nasty personality that involved stabbing you in the back, but there were so many that each time the Dungeon Merchant visited, the goblin’s face looked subtly different.
Is that why, with such good skill, a rare few enthusiastic users complained why the NPC merchant wouldn’t be changed to a female character?
If you asked me, I would have said it hardly mattered whether it was a goblin or a Succubus since you mostly just saw pixelated SD illustrations anyway.
But still, seeing this in person was quite an eye candy, even if I didn’t have any body part to react with.
… By the way, this girl is rude.
“Stop with the charm. What kind of thing is this without an introduction?”
Though she was much stronger than I was now, openly using her enchanting powers right from the first meeting was rather forward.
I could roughly guess why it didn’t work on me, but if I had fallen for it, I would’ve ended up in quite the embarrassing situation. Naturally, our relationship would have soured.
There’s a limit to how far you can test someone.
– Crack.
The skeleton, Eve, standing beside me in protest, seemed clearly offended as well.
The Succubus throwing charm magic at me, the Dungeon Lord, was clearly displeasing to her.
However, despite being extraordinary, the Succubus paid no attention to the skeleton.
“Oh my, you caught me. It didn’t work, after all. Truly, you are a Lady.”
“Are you a lesbian?”
“Of course not. Generally, my affections are not limited to the opposite sex. Though preferences should obviously be discussed separately.”
“… I see. So that’s how it is.”
The Succubus nonchalantly brushed off her rudeness, narrowing her enchanting eyes with a coy smile.
It felt like she might be telling a white lie, but for now, I decided to let it slide. Given the current situation, antagonizing the Mammon Trading Company would be a significant loss for me.
I could always deal with her later.
“Then, let’s start with introductions.”
“Oh dear, my apologies! I am Scarlett Spira Spina, manager of the Mammon Trading Company!”
“I am Libertus. Dungeon Lord Libertus.”
“It’s an honor to meet you, Milady Libertus.”
‘Milady’ is a shorthand for ‘My Lady’.
So she is essentially calling me ‘my lady’ as one would address the lady of the house from the same family.
“Just ‘Lady’ is enough.”
“Oh dear… my apologies.”
When I pointed it out, Scarlett exaggeratedly raised one hand in salute while greeting me, then awkwardly lowered it.
She was a Succubus with attractive red eyes, bright enough to be more crimson than what a human could manage, as if flames were burning in them.
Moreover, her hair color was a vivid pink, making her stand out wherever she went.
Below, she wore clothing that was quite minimal, though it wasn’t the typical leather style associated with Succubi.
It was more of an outfit that resembled formal wear, despite exposing her belly, akin to something you might wear in a bedroom context.
However, one question remained.
“But why are you the manager?”
“Yes, I am the manager!”
“Is it common for a manager to come to such a small dungeon?”
“Of course not!”
Ah, is that so?
Then what are you doing here?
“As I mentioned earlier, I heard that a young dungeon successfully emerged after a long time! There have scarcely been any new customers lately!”
“I see, I see.”
Indeed, it was something I had heard initially.
This world is one where dungeons have started appearing on the continent for over 200 years.
While the frequency of dungeon appearances has significantly increased on the continent, humans too have begun to adapt to dungeons, making it much easier to detect newly birthed dungeons than before.
While it wasn’t certain about exact locations or energy levels, it seems like they must now send scouts, unlike the previous beginner adventurers, to confirm their identities.
At least it was clear that dungeons now appeared often enough that a few beginner adventurers could go missing without much being made of it.
“And thus, I bring you…”
Whoosh!
“I’ve come to introduce wonderful items for the dungeon!”
“An advertisement.”
“Indeed, it’s an advertisement!”
As the Succubus tossed a scroll, it expanded like a carpet, showcasing various items upon it.
However, those items were not the real deal.
They were mere illusions for now. One could instinctively understand that the genuine items would only appear once purchased.
“You may not have the funds to buy anything just yet.”
“I didn’t need that last bit of info.”
“My apologies. It’s just our policy.”
Even though they had no intention of selling anything, showcasing them was likely just a ‘showcase’ event.
『Magic Sword Stormbringer – A magic sword that calls forth the power of thunder and storms. (Information sealed)』
『Contract: Death Knight – A scroll that allows you to contract with a Death Knight (Information sealed) without burdening the core.』
『Forced Corruption Contract – A contract enabling the enforcement of an agreement on a single hero. Compatibility cannot be guaranteed.』
『Free Demon Mercenary Group Contract Guarantee – Try making a temporary contract with a mercenary group guaranteed by the Mammon Trading Company! They will not stab you in the back. Figuratively or literally!”』
Sure enough.
The items emerging on the scroll carpet and simultaneously showing up in my status window were all powerful and outstanding goods.
All the letters displayed were the orange color of ‘Legendary’ or the red color of ‘Mythical’, only occasionally appearing as the purple of ‘Heroic’ like the contract guarantee.
As mentioned, there was virtually nothing I could buy here.
“So?”
“Yes?”
“You didn’t come here just to tease me, did you?”
“Aha. However, you wouldn’t have anything to sell either…”
The Demon sighed, seemingly unsure, avoiding my gaze while saying that.
Demons usually had a strong sense of pride.
I could tell she was pondering how to approach the pride of the Dungeon Lord in front of her.
Of course, as she said, a beginner dungeon had practically no ‘useful items’ that could be sold for currency. This meant items that suited higher-tier demons or devils, such as souls, bodies, or useless gear.
At least it was not me.
“Who mentioned such a thing?”
‘Dungeon Information.’
『Demon Lord Candidate ‘Libertus’ Dungeon Level 2』
『Alias – None』
『Continental Fame – 1 (Unknown)』
『Demon Realm Fame – 12 (‘Really’ fresh newcomer)』
Activating the dungeon information in my mind, the details of my still clean dungeon appeared before me.
Levels typically increase by one after going through one or two waves, so there was no need to worry about its current low level.
The dungeon’s magic, which also affects the level, isn’t the sole factor, after all.
I lowered my gaze slightly.
『Core Activation – 76/136』
『Number of Rooms – 6/6』 『Required Magic – 52/60』
『Summons – 2/2』 『Required Magic – 2/2』
『Other Required Magic – 3/3』
My dungeon had also seen some development in between.
When I caught my second Skeleton, ‘Mire,’ along with Remia and her party, the structure of the dungeon was quite simple back then.
I secured space for a small village at the entrance and used the magic of the Dungeon Lord to pressure the goblins into living there, and behind that, there was just a long passage with no rooms at all.
At the end of that passage was the room where the dungeon’s heart, the Core, is located.
It was a dangerous endeavor, but since I had poured all the magic I had into forming a long passage to capture adventurers back then, it was a necessary move.
Even if I wanted to create additional rooms, I didn’t have the magic.
Now, however, it had developed enough to include several additional rooms. Still, that was not possible through the mere growth of the dungeon itself.
『Core Activation – Magic used 76 / Total magic 136』
Focusing my will onto the core activation, additional explanations appeared. When I infused my will again into the ‘Total Magic,’ the elements contributing to the current dungeon’s magic emerged.
Core magic consists of both the inherent magic of the dungeon core and the production yield from the growth of the dungeon.
The inherent magic refers to the Lord’s magic.
『Attribute – Magic 21』
That is, a multiple of my magic.
However, there are limits to the trick of stupidly increasing magic to boost the dungeon’s power, constrained by my ‘Durability’ and ‘Resistance.’
… Back when I was a beginner, I had foolishly messed things up during that first round.
Well, enough about that.
So where did the remaining sacrificial magic that currently constitutes a significant portion of the dungeon’s magical energy come from?
『Magic from absorbed corpses in the dungeon 52』
『Adventurer Sacrifices = 5』
『Wild Goblins X 31 = 31』
『Wild Beasts X 16 = 16』
It was the share of the victims devoured by the dungeon.
During this time, I diligently captured hostile beings and converted their corpses into magical energy to nourish the dungeon.
Although the hunting and labor were carried out by Eve…
Whenever I tried to step out, she would radiate an aura saying, “Please leave these matters to me, Master!” so I couldn’t do it.
I had no idea why she didn’t want me to go outside.
– Clink!
“I haven’t said anything.”
– Clang.
Eve was indeed adept at hunting.
One day, she brought back a huge wild boar, and I used magic to start a fire and cook it. The taste was somewhat inferior to ordinary pork and tough, but perhaps due to the Dungeon Lord’s body, it was edible.
It did bring back some memories for a moment.
In any case.
Here existed what I was looking to sell.
『Jack Miller = 2』
『Remia Olas = 3』
The adventurer sacrifices, or rather, the remnants of dead humans.