Chapter 79

I returned to the town, which serves as our base, from the demon kingdom.

With a convenient carriage, I can reach the demon kingdom in one go, making the back-and-forth much easier.

When I returned to the mansion, the servants came to greet me.

"Welcome back, Master!"

The servants rushed over with a "Wah...!"

"I just got back. Is everything alright?"

"Well, that is... um..."

"What is it? Trouble? Report it quickly. It's a waste of time."

"Actually, Lady Frederica... has gone missing."

"What? Missing?"

What is that dog up to now, really?

"This was left in your room."

The servant handed me an envelope.

In Frederica's handwriting, it read:

【Since Master doesn't pay attention to me, I'm going back to my parents' house. Please look for me.】

"...Idiot."

I sighed.

"Lady Frederica seemed lonely recently because Master has been away from home a lot..."

"Probably wants some attention, huh?"

"Master, what should we do?"

"Should we go look for her?"

I snorted and said,

"Leave her be."

"「「「Eh...」」」

"A dog that abandons her duties is not needed."

"「「「But...」」」

I put the letter in my pocket.

"I'm going on a short break. If there's anything, let me know early. I'm going to sleep."

Ignoring the dissatisfied servants, I returned to my room.

Despite being left unattended for a long time, the room was perfectly clean.

Not a speck of dust, the sheets were crisp and starched.

"...What a hassle."

★

The next morning.

I had breakfast in the dining room.

"Master Act..."

"What is it, Riri?"

Riri, the daughter of the head chef, a beast girl, asked me anxiously.

"Is Lady Frederica not coming back...?"

...The servants are very fond of Frederica.

They must be worried that she won't return.

What a hassle.

"Don't worry. She'll be back soon."

"When...?"

"Who knows."

I finished my meal.

"Great job today."

"Uh-huh..."

Riri's face was downcast. I patted her head.

"Tell the servants I'm going for a walk."

"! You're going to look for Lady Frederica!"

Riri's face lit up with a smile.

"Don't get the wrong idea. It's just a walk."

"Yes! Yes! Have a good trip! We'll be waiting!"

Leaving Riri waving her hands, I left the mansion.

I took out a communication magic tool from my pocket.

"It's me. Come in five minutes."

After a while.

I was riding on the back of the evil dragon Veevle, heading to a certain place.

"Hey... I'm not a carriage, you know..."

"Carriages don't talk back."

"Alas... How cruel... I used to be the ultimate weapon against the super hero, you know..."

"Unfortunately, you're the weakest in the Lawrence party. You have no chance of winning, so don't get any funny ideas."

"I know! I value my life too!"

Before long, we arrived in front of a cave.

"Is this a dungeon?"

Veevle, now in human form, looked up and said,

"We've come quite far. What's the business here?"

"I'm here to rescue a maid."

"Oh, Lady Frederica? But why here?"

"She's at her parents' house now."

"Her parents' house...? Well, okay. I'm done. I'm going back!"

Veevle turned to leave but froze, unable to move.

"Ah! Time stop! I'm going to die! I'm going to be killed!"

"What would I gain by killing you? It's a waste of time. Follow me. There's still work for you to do."

"...What if I refuse?"

"Then one member of the hero party will drop out."

"Ugh... Alright... I'll follow... geez..."

With Veevle's agreement, I proceeded into the dungeon.

"What about the monsters? I can't transform into a dragon in these narrow passages."

"I'm choosing a route where we won't encounter enemies. No problem."

"Wow... Your appraisal eye is amazing..."

Before long, I reached a dead end.

"Did we take a wrong turn?"

"No."

I touched the wall.

The scenery blurred, and we were transported to another place.

"A teleportation trap... Could this be a hidden dungeon!?"

"Yes. You know a lot."

There are countless dungeons in the world, with varying levels of difficulty.

Occasionally, there are hidden dungeons within dungeons, known as "hidden dungeons."

"I've heard they're all very difficult to clear... Could this be our destination?"

"Not yet. We need to go deeper."

"Eh... Let's turn back...?"

"No. We're going."

We chose routes to avoid enemies, but the number and quality of enemies were far beyond those in a regular dungeon.

Naturally, we encountered enemies.

"Ah! A Death Bear! An S-rank monster! I'm going to die!"

A massive black bear glared at me, its claws made of steel, capable of easily tearing through iron.

"Grrooaaaaaah!"

"Ah! It's over! The evil guild master, complete!"

The Death Bear's claws stopped right in front of my eyes.

"Is this... a time stop...?"

"I don't use that here. It would be a waste."

"Then why am I still alive...?"

Veevle looked at the Death Bear, which was trembling.

"The guild master's eyes... They're scaring it... To make an S-rank monster cower just by a glance... That's... amazing..."

"We need to hurry."

More enemies appeared, but most of them fled when I glared at them.

"I forgot that you're also a monster, Master Act..."

The dungeon stretched deeper and deeper underground.

"Lady Frederica ran away, right? Why is she here?"

"Yes. Her parents' house is deeper in."

"Hmm... You really care about her. To come to such a dangerous place for her..."

"Hmph. Don't get the wrong idea."

I continued, saying,

"Without that dog, the servants' performance will suffer. I'm just bringing her back. It's not for her sake."

"Sure, sure, tsundere, tsundere."

After a while, we reached a dead end.

Or rather, the passage ended here.

"What's this huge hole...? Ah... I can't see the bottom..."

In front of us was a large hole, the air resonating as if it were the mouth of a monster.

"Surely she's not down there, right? Surely not, surely not...?"

"We're going down."

"Ah, I thought so! Eh... What are we going to do? We'll die if we go down from here!"

"Why do you think I brought you along?"

"Oh, I see..."

Riding on Veevle's back in dragon form, we descended into the hole.

"Hey... We've been diving for a while, and we haven't reached the bottom yet. Can we get back?"

"Who knows?"

"Ah!? We might not be able to get back!?"

"From the abyss, you can't return without the permission of a Transcender."

"Transcender? What's that?"

"The former owner of the dog."

Before long, we reached the bottom level.

"Ah... There's a building at the bottom of this abyss. Some people really live in remote places."

At the bottom of the dark cave, there was a shining palace.

It's been about ten years since I last visited here.

"Let's go."

I led the humanized Veevle to the entrance of the palace.

"It's me. I've come to pick up the stray dog."

The door opened silently.

"Ah, I've been waiting for you, Act. Come in, please."

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