Chapter 2

2

“Huh!”

I clutched my chest and stood up.

The intense pain still seemed to linger, and I fumbled as if clutching my chest.

Fortunately, the hole in my chest was gone, and instead of the sticky blood, I felt the soft texture of fabric.

“M, Master!”

Before I could let out a sigh of relief, a high-pitched voice that sounded like it was about to tear apart echoed.

Who is it this time? My tired gaze turned to where a group of women in maid uniforms, typical of the medieval era, were standing.

Their common trait was that they were young and beautiful, and each of them had a look of shock on their faces.

But the one who was most surprised was me.

“H, Housekeeper!”

One of the three ran off, panting, to find someone.

I wondered what was going on, but I couldn't pay attention to them.

As I regained my senses for a moment, a sudden intense dizziness, hunger, and thirst overwhelmed me.

As I clutched my throat and looked around, one of the maids hurried over to support me, while another brought a cup of water to my lips.

I wanted to drink the water frantically, but the moment I took a sip, my chest felt like it was about to shatter with pain.

It seemed that this body hadn't taken anything by mouth in a very long time.

“Ugh...!”

“Master! Are you alright?”

The maids' faces turned pale when they saw me clutching my chest and expressing pain.

Judging from how they addressed me, it seemed I was the young master of a wealthy family or a noble household.

If I were a noble, and they were to give me water and something went wrong, their lives could be in danger.

The 'common sense' Lucifer had implanted in my mind said as much.

“Ha... I'm fine.”

I finally calmed down, and seeing my expression ease, they seemed to relax a bit.

“Master Luke!”

Just as the pain subsided and I drank more water, feeling a bit more lucid, the maid who had run off returned with people.

Their attire was similar to the maids', but one was an older woman, and the other looked like a doctor, as if it said "I'm a doctor" on his forehead.

“This is incredible... This is truly a miracle. To wake up from that state, it can only be called a miracle.”

The doctor looked at me with a surprised expression.

It seemed that the original owner of this body had been in a very critical condition.

Judging from the current situation, it seemed that Lucifer had sent me to Medsedia by inserting my soul into a dying or dead person.

The problem was that while he had implanted knowledge and common sense, there was not a single fragment of the original owner's memory.

Feeling annoyed by this fact, I calmed my headache and said,

“Where am I?”

In such situations, it's easiest to pretend to have amnesia.

While I might seem calm for someone with amnesia, my condition was far from good enough to act.

Sure enough, the people who heard me had a stunned look on their faces.

They must have been disappointed that the person who had just woken up didn't recognize them and asked where they were in their own home.

“Master Luke, do you recognize me...?”

“Sorry, but I don't know who you are...”

The older maid's expression crumbled when she heard my words.

“Housekeeper...”

The other maids were looking at her for cues.

But the housekeeper quickly composed herself and, with a stern expression, looked around at the maids and said,

“Don't act rashly. The one who is most confused right now is Master. And Ruri, you should inform Lady that Master has woken up. Be careful to explain his current condition gently to lessen the shock.”

“Yes, I understand.”

The maid who was called bowed and hurried out of the room.

If 'Lady' refers to my mother, then...

But I didn't like the complicated situation unfolding.

My body was in the worst condition, and I needed time to sort out the current situation and my thoughts.

“I'm really tired and weak right now.”

My weak voice made the people around me restless again.

“Master, you must be very exhausted both mentally and physically. Given your confused state of memory, the best thing is to...”

The doctor, sweating profusely, was interrupted by the housekeeper, who approached and bowed, saying,

“We got too excited and didn't consider Master's feelings. Please rest for now. I will inform Lady.”

“Thank you...”

As I spoke, I felt a strange sense of familiarity.

Why was I naturally speaking informally to this woman? It wasn't because I had calculated that I should, given my noble status.

It felt like a habit, perhaps a remnant of the original owner's subconscious, and strangely, this woman felt close to me.

But before I could think about it further, the doctor and the housekeeper left the room.

Almost simultaneously, another maid brought in a thin soup that looked like it was for patients, but despite my intense hunger, I couldn't eat much.

Still, being fed the soup by pretty women wasn't a bad experience.

After a tiring yet enjoyable meal, I lay back down on the bed.

The three maids who were there initially remained in a fixed position, waiting.

Well, even if I told them to leave because they were bothering me, they probably wouldn't do so willingly.

From their perspective, even if I told them to leave, they would just make a sad face, caught between me and the housekeeper.

Having reached this conclusion, I turned my attention to checking the current situation.

First, I was specially (forcibly) hired by the Demon Lords because of a comment I made.

I was sent to Medsedia, and since my original body had died, it seems my soul was inserted into a dying person's body in this world.

The dying person was a noble or at least the young master of a wealthy family.

It was fortunate that I wasn't reborn as a peasant's child, starting from the bottom.

How miserable would it be to wake up and see a dilapidated hut's ceiling?

Next, let's check what Lucifer promised to give me.

First, the knowledge and common sense of Medsedia, which I seem to have received.

I can't use it as if it were my own knowledge, but when a situation arises, the knowledge surfaces as if it's loading.

For example, I have a vague idea of the housekeeper's position.

Second, the ability he promised...

The moment I thought about the ability, a status window appeared in front of me as a hologram.

It seems this world is governed by a system like a game.

However, the 'evil' characteristic? What kind of characteristic is this? I focused to see the details.

“...”

The ancient sages weren't wrong when they said to be careful of the three ends.

They warned to be careful of the tip of the tongue, the tip of the hand, and the X end, but how many times do I have to hear that I'm evil because of a single comment?

How evil must I have been evaluated to have an 'Ultimate' rating?

I've never thought of myself as evil, and in fact, I considered myself quite good.

The 'evil' and 'Ultimate' rating characteristic of this world's soul is both simple and complex.

Based on my judgment and intuition honed by simulation games, the screen I'm seeing might be an effect of this characteristic.

Even in a world governed by a game-like system, the people of this world can't see such screens.

I can see the quantified data, but they can only vaguely sense it with their bodies.

This game-like screen is likely a 'concept of this world' to them.

This is a hypothesis based on my 'common sense,' so if Lucifer didn't give me a false impression, it should be accurate.

There might be other effects, but I have no way to find out right now.

It's wise to set aside questions that can't be answered immediately.

A checkable characteristic with a rating finally appeared.

EX rating, which seems to be below Ultimate but still quite high.

The ability to create dungeons, a hell shop, and the ability to purchase items gradually gave me a sense of what kind of ability I had.

Lucifer clearly said it was 'the ability that suits you the most.'

Confirming the last characteristic solidified my belief.

At 21 years old, I was already a simulation master, starting with stone tools and progressing to launching nuclear bombs by the next morning.

Given this information, I could tell it was a perfect fit.

'Dungeon.'

Sure enough, thinking about the dungeon brought up a dungeon window.

Selecting the dungeon list showed the name and location of the dungeon I owned. There was only one, but that was it.

The location of my only dungeon was a fairly large village in the Romelon territory.

Specifically, a cave on a hill behind the village.

The name was the Goblin Cave of Romelon Territory.

A very simple name.

Just in case, I tried changing the name, and it worked, but I left it as is and checked the detailed information.

Currently, the only monsters in the Goblin Cave were 24 goblins, ranging from level 3 to level 5.

It seemed like I had simply taken over an existing goblin cave.

Well, since it had no owner, the term 'taken over' might be incorrect.

'Hell Shop.'

Next, I tried to bring up the Hell Shop, another hint from the characteristic.

Sure enough, the shop window appeared as expected.

“Huh?”

At the top of the shop window, as in mobile games, the currency unit was displayed, and I already had currency.

300 Negative Points.

I chuckled.

Lucifer clearly told me to collect negatives.

And the currency for the shop was Negative Points. It was almost cute for a Demon Lord to do something like this, not like giving out mileage.

But why do I have 300 points? Was it a bonus?

The shop window conveniently allowed me to check the point acquisition and consumption history.

“...”

Could it be that my initial actions, like clutching my chest and pretending to have amnesia, were converted into points?

I decided to check.

“Hmm...”

“Master, is something bothering you?”

One of the maids approached when I made a groaning sound.

She was the one who had given me water and turned pale when I showed pain.

“I think I need to dismiss you all because you don't suit me.”

The maid's face turned white when she heard my whispered words.

Being dismissed on a whim, or even suddenly killed, is a reality for maids and commoners in this world.

She must be frantically trying to find what she might have done wrong.

“I, I apologize if I have done anything wrong. Please forgive me.”

“It's a joke. I'm just bored from lying down. Why don't you all sit on the chairs over there and wait?”

“We, we are fine.”

The maid, still trembling, stuttered even after hearing my joke.

I should feel guilty seeing her like this, but I didn't.

Could this also be an effect of the evil characteristic? I wondered if guilt was part of the penalty.

“Sit down because I'm in a bad mood.”

“Yes, I understand.”

The stiffly responding maid made the others sit down as well.

Strangely, sitting in chairs made them even more rigid and uncomfortable.

Well, at least their legs would be more comfortable.

I turned my attention back to the shop window, ignoring the maids.

Like the overall system, the shop window had a game-like appearance.

Especially similar to mobile games.

The basic items available in the shop were various items.

The problem was that I could only purchase items of level 1.

It seemed that the item level unlock in the shop was based on my level.

The text indicating 1-10, 11-20, etc., suggested this.

And as a special feature of the Dungeon Maker characteristic, the shop offered a variety of items related to dungeons, from monsters and traps to dungeon expansion projects.

These were also limited to level 1, and the unlock seemed to be based on the dungeon's level rather than my level.

The prices... For items, consumables ranged from 50 to 150 points, and the cheapest equipment was 100 points.

Dungeon items ranged from a low of 50 points to over 3,000 points for high-end items.

It seemed that my initial reflection on my ability was complete.

The rest would have to be gathered and improved through experience.