Chapter 3

Even when in card form, I can somehow sense the surroundings. My master, Kazuhiko-sama, seems to be the type who becomes oblivious to his surroundings when he focuses on something. Except for washing up and eating, he spent most of his time fighting on the first floor.

"Hmm. So this is a 'Goblin Card.' I don't need it, though..."

When a monster is defeated, there is a certain probability that it will turn into a card. It's about a 2% chance, I think. When Kazuhiko-sama picked up his tenth card, the status screen appeared on its own.

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【Name】: Kazuhiko Egasubara

【Title】: First Contact

【Rank】: F

【Cards Held】: 10/∞

【Skills】: Card Gacha (1)

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"Hmm? There's a '(1)' next to 'Card Gacha.' Does that mean I can use the gacha once with ten cards? What would happen if I used Shizuka in the gacha?"

What is he saying? I am one of the 108 pillars, the pinnacle among all the cards in the dungeon system. To be treated the same as a goblin! I won't forgive that. Depending on your answer, I might drain you until you can't function anymore!

"Kazuhiko-sama... Surely you wouldn't make me, a being of such caliber, a victim of some unknown skill, would you?"

"Ah, sorry. I shouldn't have said it in a way that could be misunderstood. Don't worry. I won't let go of Shizuka. Not until I die or conquer the dungeon. So, the fact that it appeared with the tenth drop means that the count doesn't include the time I'm summoned from a card, right?"

"Until death do us part... Hehehe."

Hearing such unexpected words from Kazuhiko-sama, my heart was warmed. I'm not a child to be moved by a man's flippant words, but after spending days together, fighting and sharing meals and sleep, it's impossible not to develop feelings.

Kazuhiko-sama's appearance has also changed a bit. His belly is slightly flatter, and the excess flesh under his chin has reduced. He's lost a little weight, but it's not a bad look. If he keeps fighting, he'll become a charming, mature man.

Oh, no. Kazuhiko-sama has summoned something. What is it?

The skill slot on the status screen has changed. From the name 'Card Gacha,' I can imagine it's like a gacha in an online game. But I don't know what I need to 'pay' to use the gacha. At first, I thought it might be the 500-yen coins dropped by goblins, but it didn't react at all. The same thing happened with the first drop card. But now I finally understand. Ten drop cards for one gacha.

"The drop rate feels like 2% to 3%. So, 500 goblins for 10 cards. Not a great return. What should I do? Should I just press these 10 cards on the screen?"

I placed the 10 Goblin Cards on the black part of the screen, and they disappeared like bubbles. The screen changed, showing four gacha machines. Above each one, it says "Character Gacha," "Weapon Gacha," "Armor Gacha," and "Item Gacha." 'Character' probably means summoned creatures like goblins to fight. Weapons, armor, and items are self-explanatory.

"Shizuka, take a look at this."

Shizuka approached and pressed her chest softly against my left arm. Well, that's fine. But there's something I need to confirm.

"Confirmation. Can weapons, armor, and items obtained in the dungeon be used outside?"

"Yes, they can. However, to bring them out, they must be materialized within the dungeon. The same applies when turning them back into cards."

While saying this, she pressed her ample chest against me, making it hard to keep my composure. I'm a man, and I have desires, too. I swallowed and pressed the Item Gacha with my finger. The lever on the right side of the screen turned, and a card floated out, appearing in real life.

"Seems like they put a lot of effort into this."

While muttering, I picked up the card. On the front, there was a drawing of a vial filled with red liquid. Just from that, I could guess what it was.

"A potion, right? It can be used as a cold medicine, and it heals minor cuts and bruises. But it won't work for serious internal injuries or broken bones."

I checked the back just in case.

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【Name】: Potion

【Rarity】: Common

【Description】:

A tasteless and odorless general potion.

Useful as a cold medicine when drunk, and as a healing ointment when applied.

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"Common means 'C,' which stands for 'Common.' So, the higher ranks would be UC, R, SR, UR, and LR, right? It's really like a gacha."

"Kazuhiko-sama, don't be discouraged... I can lick your wounds for you."

Saying this, Shizuka leaned on me, wrapping her arms around my neck. This is dangerous. I can't hold back much longer.

"Earlier, I felt your desire. Don't hold back; take me, and let your fierce male desire out."

"......"

I placed my hands on her slender waist and looked into her moist eyes, then gently pushed her away. This is dangerous.

"I'm still Rank F, and I'm fighting bare-handed. I'll keep it on hold until I get stronger."

"At least make a reservation..."

Her lips touched mine softly.

Over the past few days, I haven't spent all my time in the dungeon. I still need to eat, take baths, and sleep. I've spent about a week in the dungeon, during which I've defeated over 500 goblins. As a result, I have a lot of 500-yen coins.

"In a few days, I've collected 553 500-yen coins. That's 276,500 yen. The problem is, if this is considered income, how do I handle the taxes? Should I exchange them at the bank and keep them in a chest?"

Due to my job, I can't avoid meeting clients. I need to continue my current work for at least a year. I can do office work in the dungeon, but consulting visits take a lot of time.

"I'll prioritize dungeon exploration and not increase my workload. Still, I've lost weight in just three days. My belt and shirt collar are loose. If I step on the scale, I've probably lost about 5 kilograms. With the enhancement factors, my muscle mass has probably increased, so my body fat must have decreased even more.

"This is a problem. To maintain this physique, I need to eat more than the average person..."

While making a self-deprecating joke, I tied my tie with a good mood.

"Kazuhiko, have you lost weight?"

"Yeah, I started exercising a bit."

My childhood friend, Iwamoto, is the owner and president of a mid-sized chain that operates pachinko parlors and business hotels in Chiba Prefecture. He's originally a Korean resident in Japan, but I've never cared about that. We've been drinking together once a year, and he was the first client to support me when I went independent, so he's a very important customer.

"Here are the training plan and the application for the career support grant. With this, the grant is almost guaranteed. Also, I've compiled interviews with part-time employees after one month of employment. As you mentioned, many of them are concerned about the smoke from cigarettes. It might be time to consider separating smoking areas."

"That's quick. You did all this in a week? You're amazing, Kazuhiko. About the smoking areas... The store manager has mentioned it, but it would cost a lot to implement complete separation."

"Why not apply for subsidies from the government and the prefecture? There's a grant for separating smoking areas. With the new regulations in Tokyo, many restaurants have implemented smoking separation, and the government and local authorities have started to provide grants. Here's the information I found. I've included an estimate and a graph showing the expected grant amount."

Iwamoto flipped through the documents, his expression changing. This is more than what one person can do in a week.

"Amazing. Kazuhiko, why don't you join our board of directors? With you, I can trust the management."

"I appreciate the offer, but I prefer being a freelancer. I take requests but not orders. I like being a lone wolf."

After that, we discussed plans for complete smoking separation and related real estate business.

After finishing with clients and returning home, I took a shower and changed into comfortable clothes. I packed my laptop and books into a bag and headed to the dungeon. I needed to input the content of today's meetings and complete the requested analysis. After that, I recorded my dungeon exploration. Using a stopwatch, I recorded the time it took to kill 100 goblins. Without experience points in the real world, I can only figure out the ranking system through such records.

"Should I place a bed here? A frame bed should last, but the problem is the bedding. It's a hassle to bring it in every time. It would be great if I had an item box or a magic storage bag like in light novels."

"It exists, you know?"

"Ah!"

I jumped when I heard a voice from behind. Shizuka had appeared without me noticing.

"Being surprised like that is also charming, Kazuhiko-sama."

She stood in front of me, sitting on my legs with her legs straddling mine. Her well-developed white thighs were visible up to the root.

"Hey... If you keep tempting me like that, I might really do it."

"Oh, I'm so happy. I've been aching for Kazuhiko-sama's favor..."

She pressed her lower body against mine. I sighed in exasperation and patted her thigh.

"Get off. I've finished my work for today, so that's it for now."

Shizuka, still straddling me, turned back into a card.

"In light novels, a gacha usually gives you 11 draws for 10 attempts. I don't know if it works the same with this skill, but I'll collect enough Goblin Cards for 10 attempts."

"100 cards means killing 5,000 goblins, right?"

"Recently, the shortest time to kill 100 goblins is 2 hours. So, 5,000 goblins would take 100 hours. In real time, it's less than an hour. I'll take a 30-minute break every 4 hours, and 8 hours of sleep every 18 hours. That's 16 hours of fighting, repeated 6 times. 26 hours times 5 plus 18 hours... 148 hours in dungeon time. Even with showers and battery changes, it should take about 4 hours in real time."

"Keep killing goblins for that long?"

Shizuka looked worried or perhaps exasperated, but I ignored it. I brought food, water, and towels for wiping my body into the dungeon room. I also prepared an inflatable air mattress.

"Then, let's go..."

I entered the dungeon with Shizuka.

Kazuhiko-sama often uses words like 'efficiency' and 'productivity.' He's interested in how to kill the most monsters with the least effort in a given time. While running through the grid-like first floor, he attacks the goblins that appear. It might be a form of endurance training.

"Kicking while running, then punching. Is this the fastest way to kill them? Let's do 4 sets and see how it goes."

Kazuhiko-sama says, "My method is PDCA." Setting a goal, making a specific plan to achieve it, executing and verifying, and then improving. I was amazed. Kazuhiko-sama is the first person I've seen approach the dungeon so theoretically.

"Killing 100 goblins took about 110 minutes... It's a slight improvement. Two drops, no rank change. How many more do I need to kill to rank up?"

He recorded the time on a piece of paper in his pocket and started running again. It's been determined that two hits can kill a goblin. So, Kazuhiko-sama runs at the front, and I pick up the 500-yen coins and guard the rear. Occasionally, goblins attack from behind, but a single shuriken takes care of them, so it's easy for me. It must be tough for Kazuhiko-sama. His body will change with the enhancement factors, so I'll give him a massage later.

Japan, being prone to earthquakes, has a wide variety of survival foods. The 500-yen coins from the last goblin hunt were all used to buy survival foods. I have two weeks' worth of "emergency curry" and "canned bread" ordered online. I prepared 4 liters of water per person per day. The dungeon seems to absorb waste, so it's very eco-friendly.

"This is great. I never thought we could have such a luxurious meal in the dungeon..."

Shizuka smiled as she ate the Hayashi rice. With a heating agent, it can be warmed without a fire. The development power of Japanese manufacturers is impressive. We return to the safety zone on the first floor every 4 hours for meals. The 500-yen coins and Goblin Cards we collect become heavy, so we store them in the room. Having such a room is very helpful.

However, there are some inconveniences. Plastic and vinyl waste must be taken out of the dungeon. There's no shower room in this room, and we can only use battery-powered electricity. Ultimately, we can't stay in this room indefinitely.

"If Kazuhiko-sama conquers the dungeon, the problem might be solved."

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

While complaining and getting a shoulder massage from Shizuka, I received an unexpected answer.

"When a dungeon is conquered, the conqueror gets two options. One is to completely destroy the dungeon, and the other is to become the Dungeon Master and make the dungeon their private property."

"Private property? This dungeon would become mine?"

"Generally, the option to destroy it is more common. The reason is that many people participate in dungeon conquests, and making it someone's private property is not accepted by the other participants. However, since Kazuhiko-sama is the only one entering this dungeon, it might be possible to own it."

"If I own it, can I increase the drop items as much as I want?"

That would be fantastic. I could produce a lot of 10,000-yen bills and other items from the other world.

"Unfortunately, it's not that simple. I don't know the details, but the dungeon draws power from another dimension to spawn monsters and generate items. So, it's not infinite. However, as a Dungeon Master, you can customize the dungeon as you like. You can create a bath or a toilet, for example."

"I see. Then I need to conquer it quickly. Let's go. After this, we'll take an 8-hour break. I'll go back to the surface, take a bath, and come back."

"Understood. Then..."

I changed my gloves and started running again with Shizuka.

"Huh?"

When I punched a goblin, I felt something odd. As the goblin turned to smoke, I looked at my fist.

"Kazuhiko-sama, is something wrong?"

"No, the goblin just disappeared with one punch. It usually takes two... Maybe..."

I called up the status screen.

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【Name】: Kazuhiko Egasubara

【Title】: First Contact

【Rank】: E

【Cards Held】: 24/∞

【Skills】: Card Gacha

(Empty)

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"Oh, my rank has gone up. And the skills have changed. What's this 'Empty'?"

I turned to Shizuka, but she shook her head. She didn't know.

"Skills are usually obtained from 'Skill Orbs' dropped in the dungeon or through long-term experience. Sometimes, they appear when you rank up, but this 'Empty' is new. I thought you might learn a striking skill, but..."

"Hmm... Well, we'll test it later. First, let's recalculate with the new E rank. I'll measure the time it takes to kill 100 goblins again."

I pressed the switch on the shock-resistant watch on my left wrist.

After eating and taking a bath, I returned to the dungeon. I also restocked water, food, clothes, and batteries. I was lying on a leather sofa in the safety zone, wearing a trainer. Shizuka was also in a silk all-in-one, not her usual ninja outfit.

"Hehehe... Tonight, I can share a bed with Kazuhiko-sama for the first time. Please enjoy me to your heart's content."

"No, let's do the status first. What's this 'Empty'?"

My head was lifted, and Shizuka slipped in. While resting on her knees, I looked at the black screen, but her protruding chest blocked my view. I turned sideways, and her chest landed on my face. The sensation was pleasant, so I let it be.

"Empty... Hmm?"

When I touched the 'Empty' slot on the skill screen, it changed. A grid appeared, like a spreadsheet, with something written in each cell.

"Swordsmanship, Spear Technique, Martial Arts... These seem to be skill names. I see, you can choose from these. The '???' means it's unknown for some reason. Interesting, a simple explanation appears when you touch it. It's like a game."

"How about Martial Arts? Your attacks have been focused on striking. With Martial Arts, you can leverage that experience."

"That's a good point, but I'll pass."

"Why?"

I sat up. I thought about how to explain it. I wished I had a whiteboard.

"If this was the only dungeon, I'd agree with Shizuka. But in a