Chapter 78

"Sorry, I was about to go to the bathroom with Ichi, but I got stuck to her back and couldn't get off..."

Ayame apologized.

Stuck to her back?

So that's why Mikoto looked at my back.

"Hmm... it's the 'Hip Hug' skill."

"Hip Hug? I've never heard of such a skill."

"It's a skill that only monsters can use."

A skill only monsters can use?

"Did you learn the skill used by the Vampire Flea?"

"Eh? But the Vampire Flea wasn't with me, right?"

"The chance of acquiring a skill is higher when it's used on you, but you can also acquire it just by seeing it. You should have been able to return by strongly willing to separate."

Dampun explained.

Come to think of it, Hime said that you can acquire skills like floating and physical immunity from ghosts.

Without such conditions, you wouldn't be able to acquire those skills through learning.

If you strongly will it, you can return.

Ayame probably couldn't return because she was confused and couldn't strongly will it.

She couldn't be thinking that it was fine to stay stuck to my back forever, right?

"The Hip Hug skill allows you to stick to someone and move with them, so you used it to slip through my barrier. That's cheating."

"Eh? I'm sorry."

Dampun puffed out his cheeks, and Ayame apologized, not understanding what was going on.

You don't need to apologize.

When I first came to this PD, Dampun said that you can't enter by normal means, so coming in through a backdoor method was within the expected range.

"Um, Ichi. This is inside a dungeon, right? But the Kyoto dungeon doesn't have Dampun... and why did Ichi dig into the ground? You can't reach the dungeon by digging from outside the entrance, right?"

While stuck to me, she didn't see the entrance.

If it's seen this far, I have no choice but to explain.

"Ah... this isn't the Kyoto dungeon. It's a PD... a Private Dungeon that I created with my skill, specifically for me."

"Eh!? For Ichi only!?"

"Yes. The reason is from the first time I entered a dungeon—"

I explained the dungeon to Ayame.

The circumstances of acquiring the PD skill.

The mechanism of this dungeon.

"I didn't want to be seen as cheating, so I kept it to myself."

"Hmm, I don't think it's that unfair?"

"But it's a dungeon only I can use?"

"That's like having a lot of reference books because you're rich. Having a lot of reference books doesn't make you smart unless you study hard. If having reference books made you smart, bookstore kids would be the smartest. Ichi became strong by working hard in the PD. It's not unfair."

Ayame... thank you.

Hearing that made me feel a bit better.

"Ichi's private dungeon... there are so many D cans, and it feels like a living space. Is this the first time I'm entering Ichi's room?"

Ayame said, looking at the mountain of D cans, the refrigerator, microwave, sleeping bag, and other items.

Well, it's kind of like a man's bachelor pad, so I guess you could call it my room.

It's not bad to have a living space.

At least there's no trash, right?

"Shall we continue the conversation?"

"I'm sorry for interrupting. Should I go outside?"

"It's fine, it's fine. I only asked you to come because I wanted someone to talk to. It's actually better to have more listeners."

Mikoto continued the conversation.

I remember, it was about Mikoto's true identity.

"Beasts like me are born from the memory of this world—more specifically, the memory of the Fushimi Inari tradition and the core of power that flowed from another world. If the dungeon had been created closer to the summit of Mount Fushimi, my power would have been stronger—"

"But it was said that the sacred land couldn't be used. After much negotiation, we managed to create the dungeon in the parking lot."

That's why the dungeon is next to the toilet.

And that's why Mikoto said she's not Inari but not wrong.

She was born from the faith in Mount Inari.

The reason she's in the form of a girl—well, that's probably it.

Rather, I'm glad it's not a H〇W〇RE Inari.

"So, Dampun tried to create a dungeon at Fushimi Inari to summon a sacred beast?"

"Yes. Mikoto was easy to transform into a sacred beast because her power core and wavelength matched. She was managing the flow of power from another world."

"Indeed. Especially the power flowing to the Nara Park Dungeon. I just told Dampun, but it seems the flow of world memory to the Nara Park Dungeon has completely stopped."

"Completely stopped? Does that mean the dungeon's role is over?"

"No, it just means no new monsters are being born, but the existing monsters remain. And that's a troublesome situation."

"Troublesome?"

"The flow of world memory has stopped, but the supply of power from the core hasn't. Some of it is flowing to the Kusatsu Park Ruins Dungeon that Dampun created, but it's on the verge of breaking. We need to go to that dungeon and destroy it urgently."

Can you destroy a dungeon?

No, I remember there was something like that in the D can.

"But the Nara Park Dungeon has a barrier, so you can't enter, right?"

"You can enter, can't you? Just like you did at the Ishibutai Dungeon—"

You're saying to enter Crow's dungeon via the PD.

Wait, but Crow's dungeon is extremely dangerous, with very strong monsters.

I can't handle it alone.

"Will Mikoto come with me?"

"No, I can't. I don't have the power to fight. At most, I can give blessings to help people. Things like business prosperity, matchmaking, bountiful harvests, and silkworm protection."

"Silkworm protection—aren't those the special skills of cat figurines? Isn't that a seal rather than a blessing?"

"Don't be ridiculous. Silkworm protection is about protecting silkworms from rats. It has the effect of protecting people from disasters. Foxes eat rats, so—though recently, the blessings for silkworms from maneki-neko are more common."

"But Ayame fainted because of that effect."

When I said that, Mikoto looked at Ayame intently.

Did I interrupt the conversation?

But it's important.

We need to get this right.

And—

"Hmm... let's see."

"…………!?"

Ayame showed a soundless shock.

Mikoto suddenly grabbed Ayame's chest.

It might have been better if it was Ayame.

If it was Milk, it would have been an 18+ scene, and if it was Hime, there wouldn't be a chest to grab—though that's not the issue!

"What are you—"

"Shut up... I see, the troublesome presence I felt earlier was this. I must be getting senile, not to notice until now."

"Senile? If you were born when this dungeon was created, you're actually only about ten years old."

"Um..."

Ayame spoke timidly, and Mikoto released her hand.

Then, pointing at her as if to say "You're the culprit!" she shouted.

"You're cursed!"

I apologize for the long explanation.

Next time, we'll make progress.