Chapter 10

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【Sun Dungeon】Expo Park Dungeon, General 138 [Suita City]

384: Anonymous Explorer

Evil Ogre: "I just wanted to see the sky"

385: Anonymous Explorer

There's a death, so stop joking around

The Evil Ogre is no laughing matter

I saw it in a stream before, and it's not an enemy a normal human can beat

386: Anonymous Explorer

One person died, so it's not a laughing matter

387: Anonymous Explorer

>>385

It might be impossible for a normal person, but with your special quirks, it should be easy

388: Anonymous Explorer

>>387

Lol

389: Anonymous Explorer

The Evil Ogre is a monster on the 13th floor. Recommended level 60+.

Experience: 9800, D Coins: 10000

Drop items: Blue Magic Stone (60), Evil Ogre's Horn (70), Oni Club (30)

(The numbers in parentheses are the minimum luck values)

After the 10th floor, party exploration is mandatory, so it's a whole different level compared to the enemies on the 5th floor

390: Anonymous Explorer

Nice copy-paste

391: Anonymous Explorer

I was at Expo Park D at that time.

392: Anonymous Explorer

>>391

Rest in peace

393: Anonymous Explorer

I was just waiting for slimes.

I didn't fight the Evil Ogre.

I saw a couple of high school students, a boy and a girl, passing by with oni clubs.

One had green hair, so they might be Awakened.

394: Anonymous Explorer

1 wife regular

Personal information that can identify individuals is not allowed

395: Anonymous Explorer

I see, so it's a lie

High school students can't defeat an Evil Ogre

396: Anonymous Explorer

Evil Ogre: "I got pissed off by the high school couple making out during GW and attacked, but got beaten back"

397: Anonymous Explorer

I could get along with the Evil Ogre

398: Anonymous Explorer

Dungeon entry restriction announcement! ━(ﾟ∀ﾟ)━!

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I was looking at an internet bulletin board.

While Mr. Higashi's hair color had already been revealed, there was almost nothing written about me.

When I clicked on the last URL in that thread, it led to an announcement from the Dungeon Management Bureau about entry restrictions for certain dungeons.

Of course, Expo Park Dungeon was included in the list.

Thinking that I might learn something from Danpon, I opened the PD and went there, but Danpon seemed busy with a web conference, so I hesitated to speak to him.

The additional floors 3 to 5 of Expo Park Dungeon could wait until tomorrow.

Time passed.

At 25:00 today, which is 1:00 AM tomorrow, an emergency press conference by the Prime Minister will be held.

I wondered why it was at such an hour, but it seems that the world's leaders are holding simultaneous press conferences, and since the U.S. is doing it at noon, Japan's time automatically became this hour due to the 13-hour time difference.

It's usually bedtime, but since tomorrow is a day off, everyone in the family was still awake.

This was a good opportunity.

I decided to talk about it.

"Father, Mother, I have something important to tell you."

I turned down the TV volume and sat in seiza, then said to them,

"What is it, suddenly so formal? Did you get a girlfriend?"

"Father, stop it. Taira, what's wrong? You're not borrowing money in advance, are you?"

"Didn't you see the news about the Evil Ogre at Expo Park Dungeon earlier? Someone died."

They nodded.

The news had been broadcast multiple times since the evening, so they would have known even if they hadn't watched the current news.

"That Evil Ogre, I was the one who defeated it."

"Are you kidding? You've only been in the dungeon for about two weeks, right?"

"I saw it on the news too, and they said it was equivalent to level 60. Besides, you're still level 1, right?"

"Really. Look, this is my bank balance."

I showed them my bank balance.

The money from selling the Evil Ogre's drop items had already been deposited.

From selling slime wine and exchanging D Coins, my current balance exceeded 80 million yen.

"Is this not a prank?"

Father made a gesture as if looking for a camera, but there was nothing set up.

"Can you tell us more about it?"

I told them everything.

About the PD generation, detailed appraisal, and the hellfire.

Father and Mother listened silently.

When I paused, the sound of the TV news dominated the room, but they remained silent.

After I finished, Father spoke.

"Taira, what are you going to do now?"

"Um, I'll keep the secret about this skill for a while."

I already stood out by bringing back the oni club.

I think I'll have to reveal it eventually, but I want to avoid being a target of jealousy.

Next year is exam season, so I'll wait until it's over.

"Are you going to be a sole proprietor or start a business? You should consult an expert after the holiday."

"True. Tax planning is important. We'll decide the details with a tax accountant. If you get injured and can't explore dungeons, you'll be unemployed, so you need to build up your assets."

"Ah, our son might become a dungeon ranker?"

"Can I enter the private dungeon too? I'd like to take a second nap there when I don't want to get up in the morning. Also, if used properly, it can save time when making stewed dishes."

"Wait, Mother. You can't bring a camping stove or a pot into the dungeon. Besides, the slime wine. Do you really have several bottles? I've been holding back because I thought they were rare. Can I take one to the office? I want to show off to my colleague, Sakata, who loves alcohol."

"Then let's all go for a barbecue tomorrow! Of course, Taira will treat us!"

"Sounds good! Let's go for the all-you-can-drink beer course, not the sparkling wine course!"

Somehow, they accepted it so easily that I felt silly for keeping it a secret.

I laughed and nodded.

Then I turned the TV volume back up.

It was already past 1:00 AM, and the Prime Minister was giving a press conference.

"Let me inform the citizens. The cause of the dungeon appearing at the summit of Mount Fuji and the phenomenon of monsters moving between floors in multiple locations in the country has been identified as a challenge to humanity by an invasive extraterrestrial intelligent life form, the [Dumple], different from the cooperative extraterrestrial intelligent life form, Danpon. I repeat, the dungeon at the summit of Mount Fuji—"

...Huh?

※ ※ ※

"The Duples are unpleasant beings who call themselves gods. Thanks to them, I couldn't play any games."

Danpon said, puffing out his cheeks like a rice ball.

"You knew about the Duples?"

"Danpons are always fighting the Duples. Dungeons should be used for fun, peace, and resources, but the Duples see them as battlefields where life and death are at stake. That's why there are no absolutes in the dungeons created by Danpon. Monsters can move across floors and even exit the dungeon. The upper echelons of governments in various countries were already informed of the possibility of the Duples coming to this world."

Why did the Prime Minister, and the leaders of other countries, keep this a secret?

At the press conference, they said that the probability of the Duples coming to this world was very low, and it was not good to cause unnecessary anxiety.

In fact, we had been approaching dungeons with a sports mentality, but the thought that a strong monster could suddenly appear and put us in danger, as it did yesterday, is scary.

Moreover, if it were said that monsters could come out of dungeons, the residents around the dungeons would oppose it.

At least, they wouldn't allow a dungeon to be created in the center of a bustling area.

In fact, demonstrations demanding the closure of dungeons are taking place in various countries.

On the other hand, it is also a fact that people's lives have become richer thanks to the resources that come out of dungeons.

Last year, a car that runs on magic stones was born, with the slogan that one black magic stone can travel up to 2,000 kilometers, and the stock price of the automaker that succeeded in developing the engine has been soaring.

In water-scarce countries, there are places where water is created from magic stones and used for daily life, and the construction company Obayashi announced that they would build a space elevator using magic stone energy by 2040 (although it is unclear if there is demand, as the delay in space development has been advancing due to the availability of resources from dungeons).

Life without magic stones is no longer possible.

Some even say that the dungeons created by the Duples, which yield only magic stones, are the dungeons that humanity has been seeking.

"Then, what about the Evil Ogre the other day?"

"The Evil Ogre was an individual freed from the dungeon's constraints by Duple technology. It's like a computer virus. The manager on the other side was grateful that Taira defeated it."

I guess I'm like antivirus software.

Well, I leveled up quickly and made a lot of money, so it was good for me, but it was the worst for Mr. Higashi.

After I got home yesterday, we talked on a messaging app, but he seemed more cheerful than I expected, which was a relief.

However, this made me a bit worried about the Ishibutai dungeon.

When I called Milk this morning to confirm the schedule for tomorrow, it seemed that they would continue.

Milk's father gave the green light, saying that since they only go to the first floor, they can evacuate immediately if something unusual happens in the lower floors.

You never know with dungeons, though.

"Is the PD dungeon safe?"

"Oh, this one is fine. When the PD acquires information from external dungeons, it only duplicates the surface data, so even if the external dungeon is under attack by the Duples, there's no problem."

"Sorry, I don't understand."

"It's like how you won't get infected by a virus if you take a picture of an image file with a virus instead of downloading it."

"I see."

For now, I had the PD recreate floors 1 to 5 of the Expo Park dungeon.

The enemy to defeat is on the 5th floor.

I later learned that the reason there were no other monsters on the 5th floor besides the Evil Ogre was that Mr. Higashi, in a panic, ran around the 5th floor, and the monsters that sensed the Evil Ogre's presence fled to the corners of the floor.

So, I returned to the 5th floor.

There was a yellow horned rabbit.

It's an Almirage.

Its speed and horn strength are apparently stronger than those of a horned rabbit.

"Sure-hit Sword"

It's one of the basic sword skills I learned at level 15, which increases the hit rate against small, agile enemies at the cost of reduced power.

It's called "sure-hit," but it doesn't always hit.

The Almirage was defeated with one strike.

Well, it's supposed to be a level 20 dungeon, but I'm already level 26.

I recalled the stats I saw earlier.

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Taira Ichino: Level 26

Cash: 72,156D (Ranking: 9k-10k [JPN])

HP: 315/315

MP: 160/160

Attack: 125

Defense: 119

Skill: 98

Agility: 95

Luck: 241

Skills: PD Generation, Aura Detection, Basic Sword Skills, Simple Alchemy, Detailed Appraisal, Hellfire Magic

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These are abilities I couldn't have imagined just two weeks ago.

I picked up the Almirage's dropped meat, lightly dusted it off, and put it in a wooden box.

While horned rabbits don't drop meat, Almirages do.

It's not particularly valuable, but Mother asked me to bring it back for tonight's sukiyaki.

Thanks to revealing the PD, I no longer have to lie about going jogging or for a walk, but I feel like I'll be overworked.

Almirage meat is said to be very juicy and delicious, without the gamey flavor typical of wild game, so I'm looking forward to it.

I also gave her the umaki mushrooms and gekiumaki mushrooms to eat with it.

I saw three figures in the distance.

This is my personal dungeon. They are not real humans. They have tails, which humans don't have.

They are lizardmen.

While goblins are about the size of children, lizardmen are about the size of adult men.

They wield wooden poles with Almirage horns tied to the ends, making them effective weapons.

First, I used Hellfire Magic to get used to the sensation of casting spells.

"Release, Hellfire"

A pillar of fire rose, and the flames spread to the ceiling, reaching above my head.

One lizardman was reduced to ashes.

Another nearby lizardman was also killed by the flames.

It was definitely overkill.

They died even without a direct hit.

The remaining lizardman, which was a bit farther away, seemed to be unharmed.

Alright, I'll take this one with my sword—

But when I realized it, it was gone.

All that remained was the lizardman's tail.

I could no longer sense its presence.

"Lizard tail cut!? It escaped"

Lizardmen have a skill that allows them to escape to a distant location on the same floor by using their tail as a decoy.

The tail regenerates after 24 hours, but the skill can't be used again until then.

Adding a lizard tail to a healing potion during additional synthesis can give it the effect of healing minor injuries.

However, the mushrooms and herbs needed to make healing potions are in short supply, so there are plenty of lizard tails, and the buyback price is not high.

I'll use this one for myself.

Next time, I'll try to defeat it before it can escape—while picking up the dropped D Coins, I thought.

After that, I explored the 5th floor, but there were no monsters that could challenge me.

I encountered the lizardman whose tail I had cut off earlier and defeated it easily.

With the number of drops increasing, I decided to escape when I found a treasure chest.

Inside was a D can.

【Unlock Condition: Exit the dungeon with 50 kilograms or more of drops found in a single exploration (currently 37 kilograms)]

...Continue!

It seems the dungeon doesn't want me to go home.

And then—

"Taira, we can't eat all this rabbit meat. I'll freeze half of it."

"Father, I'm opening the red slime wine today! I've been wanting to try it. In return, I'll take you to Ishibutai tomorrow."

"Is this the gekiumaki mushroom? It looks like a poisonous mushroom, but is it edible? ...What? 70,000 yen per mushroom!? That's more expensive than matsutake!"

"Sorry, nothing's sinking in right now. I'll be quiet... I'm exhausted from carrying 50 kilograms of loot back to the first floor."

In this state of exhaustion, I thought I wouldn't be able to taste anything, but I sat down.

We had dinner together.

Tonight's sukiyaki with rabbit meat was the best sukiyaki of my life.

Especially the gekiumaki mushrooms were incredibly delicious.

Matsutake doesn't even compare.

I want to eat gekiumaki mushrooms.

I ranked 3rd in the daily low fantasy ranking.

Thank you all.

If you find it interesting, want to read more, or are hungry, please leave a review, add it to your favorites, or give it a star rating.

Next time, the story will move to the Ishibutai dungeon in Nara Prefecture.