Chapter 213

Introductions

Lead by Hero Wataru, the group made its way to the corner of the former riddle area, a place called the [Avarice Lodge] .

“Huh, there’s a shop in a place like this?”

“Oh? … Preserved food and rental books? Heeh . It’s pretty expensive, but it’s nice to have . ”

Although there was a room with the main cubicles lined up, there was a place in front of it inside the range of the safety zone for people to shop .

“I can’t even think of this place as a dungeon with this shop here . ”

Wataru spoke with a wry smile .

The Dyne Firm, well, our village’s ministry of finance put a serious shop here when I was talking with them about something that reminded me of those cafes that let you rent manga while you’re there . I was the one talking about it, but it surprised even me .

I wondered how they’d make a profit from consumers with something that shouldn’t exist like that, but it appears they make a profit by only keeping the store open for a short window of time . It goes by following the idea that its main consumers will match their timing up with it .

“So you have to pay in advance or show your Adventurer Guild Card to rent a book, huh . You can’t skip your bill that way . ”

“They have hard bread and jerky… haven’t seen this kind of bread recently, huh…”

Nayuta and Setsuna paid for books and food respectively . There were both textbooks and storybooks there to rent, but it looks like Nayuta went with renting a storybook .

“This has got to be the weird facility that was discovered recently~”

Nerune already knew about the facility, but only from the management side of it . This was the first time she’d gone the normal way .

We were going with her really wanting be brought there to see it, so she was looking at the small rooms like they were super interesting to her .

“Well, let’s give them a go . Twelve hours is a bit long, though . ”

“Maybe it’ll be easier to kill time if we split into pairs?”

Nayuta responded to Wataru’s statement with an extremely proper idea . After all, spending twelve hours alone is quite a long time .

“Please wait~ . Our time is limited~, so wouldn’t it be better to get more chances in one try~? There’s enough rooms for it~”

“Y-yeah . It’d be bad for us to split into pairs among us with me here . ” [2] As in he is humbly admitting that the girls wouldn’t want to be the person to pair up with him, a man .

“… Right . Let’s go with one person per room then . ”

Thanks to Nerune’s intervention, we succeeded in safely breaking everyone up . Now we’re done with the first step .

“I borrowed some futons from Kehma-san, please use them . ”

“Oh? How thoughtful . ”

“Okay~, let’s meet again in twelve hours~”

The four each entered a stall after Wataru laid out a futon in each of them .

With the hourglasses turned upside down, the twelve-hour timer began .

*

Only a single hour had passed, but Setsuna was already getting bored . Giving up, she decided to try and get into her futon and sleep, but it didn’t look like she was tired .

Is it about time?

I called Rokuko over . She joined me in the Master Room within three seconds of me calling her .

“The true identity of those sisters will finally be revealed!”

“Maybe . ”

Manipulating the Golem, I prepared a letter from the backside of the room Setsuna was waiting in . The timer was still going, but I dropped the letter down into the place that the items come out from . I hadn’t put the letter into an envelope and just folded it twice, but it still rang out as it hit the bottom .

It looked like Setsuna, who didn’t know what to do with her spare time, noticed it .

[Nn? … It hasn’t been twelve hours yet has it?]

Setsuna reached out for the letter timidly .

The letter was written in a very official manner, reading: [If you wish to have a conversation, please press against the wall beneath the hourglass . ] Looking like she’d figured it out with that, Setsuna didn’t looked worried in the least and pressed against the wall .

The wall shifted backward . Once it had moved around twenty centimeters back, it started sliding sideways . The wall with the hourglass on it was a Golem, so it could move on its own . The gimmick was just so that I could operate it from here and see Setsuna’s reaction .

The other side of the wall had a passage, followed by a stairway after a little while . It was originally a passage meant for employee-use only, but I redecorated it a bit for appearances .

[I guess it wants me to advance?]

She advanced slowly .

Then, Setsuna arrived in the small room that I’d ran the Golem back to wait on standby in . It’s the Messenger Golem with the ability to talk that I’d made a while back .

I put it there to stop her in the off chance she went to destroy the Dummy Core .

[A… Golem?]

Setsuna tilted her head upon seeing the golem sitting with its back against the wall . Activating the golem, I used it to talk to her .

“Yo . Nice to meet ya, how’re you?”

Hearing the thick voice that sounded like it had been run through a voice changer, Setsuna reacted with a start .

[The Golem talked!?]

“Hahaha, what’s so weird? You came to talk yeah? Wouldn’t it be impossible if I couldn’t talk?”

[Ah, un… I guess?]

Setsuna nodded in doubt . She was wary, but it looked like she did intend to have a talk with me .

[What are you?]

“I’d like to check with you first, what do you think I am?”

[… … A Golem?]

“It’s as you see, but is that all?”

[Umm… a dungeon monster?]

“That’s also correct… is that all?”

When I emphasized that last part, Setsuna thought for a moment before speaking like she was having to squeeze her voice out .

[… Are you—a Dungeon Core?]

“Well, it’s that kind of feeling . ”

It looks like Setsuna concluded that the Golem was a Dungeon Core . Cores and bosses being one-in-the-same is a commonly known ‘fact’, so I still can’t make a judgement on her identity… nn? Weren’t they called dungeon bosses? I could narrow it down further if she’d said Dungeon Master, but… yeah, this is taking too long . I’ll try asking her myself .

“Please, call me Euma . So, what are you?”

[I’m Setsuna . Just an ordinary adventurer~!]

“Let’s try asking again—what are you?”

[Asking again? A Wakoku spy!]

“That’s not all, is it?”

[That’s right, I’m actually…! A certain Dungeon Core’s child!!]

Setsuna declared it with an unnecessary pause . Ah, so she was connected to a dungeon after all—wait, did she just say… child?

Oi hold up, Dungeon Cores can reproduce?

I looked toward Rokuko . Realizing my thoughts, Rokuko blushed and started banging her hands against me .

Judging by her reaction… she can? Or not? Which is it?

… I take it Haku-san knows? Yep, can’t ask her . She’d kill me .

She’d said that the Emperor had the founder’s bloodline, but I don’t know if that meant Haku-san’s bloodline since she didn’t say .

Alright, let’s ask clearly . Can Dungeon Cores have children?

“Ummm, was that a metaphor?”

[It was literally . ]

“While we’re on the subject, what’s the core’s name?”

[… Ummm, Core 410—I think that’s how you all say it? He’s my papa!]

A number I don’t know . I’d thought that she was definitely involved with Core 4, but I just heard it from Ontentoo . I guess the timing was just too good .

Incidentally, she said that she had a different father than Nayuta, but I’m convinced this is the reason she’s worth 0 DP .

“Rokuko, do you know about Core 410?”

“Nn~… nope, sorry!”

Yeah… there’s not even much known about the famous cores .

It was clumsy, but the self-introduction ended like that . I already learned the gist of what I was wondering though .

Ah, I still haven’t asked what her goal is . Well, she’s talking with me like this, so although I don’t think it’s going to be a violent goal—let’s try asking bluntly .