Chapter 85

At the entrance to the mountain dungeon.

This place could be called the foot of the mountain.

As soon as they entered, a swarm of monsters attacked, but they vanished like smoke at the mere wave of the teacher's hand.

"Sure enough, the teacher is strong!!"

Indeed, the Undead King, No-Life King! The magic he wields is far too powerful for the mere test monsters at the entrance.

A final boss tackling the dungeon.

A setup that looks downright diabolical.

No matter how difficult and seemingly impossible to conquer, it would immediately turn into a cakewalk.

"GYAAAAAAH!! NOOOOOO!!"

Just then, Viel in dragon form flew down from above.

What's going on in the sky above the mountain dungeon?

Thinking about it is probably pointless.

"Master's mischief!! By throwing in a fake corpse, the game is decided from the start, turning the entire journey into a formality!!"

Yes, that's exactly right.

"Cheating is not allowed, so I will confiscate this fake corpse! I will keep it at the summit!!"

"Sir Saint, I will be waiting for you at the goal!!"

Then the teacher was carried away by Viel in dragon form.

Given the teacher's capabilities, he could have easily refused, but in essence, he was being escorted by the dungeon master to the final destination.

"...So, the deepest part of the dungeon where No-Life King and the dragon are waiting, huh?"

"Shall we go back?"

The words only convey despair.

"It's fine! It's fine! The fake corpse is just a spectator!"

"I'm waiting for you to reach the final destination, Sir Saint!"

Viel and the teacher's voices echoed as if through a speaker.

I don't know how it works, but they seem to be able to monitor and communicate throughout the dungeon at any time.

They really are treating this like an attraction.

"..."

Plati calms me down.

"Getting the teacher to help with the dungeon is indeed too much, so this might be for the best. Viel is in a playful mood, so let's go along with it."

That's true.

Then, let's all work together and conquer the dungeon without cheating, using proper methods.

"GWAAHAHAHAHA! Come on, you lowly creatures! Show me your corpses in the hellish dungeon I've created!!"

...

"Is Viel the one who's cheating?"

"Who knows... Game masters often want to play recklessly..."

If they set up a game without rules, we should use unfair methods to break the balance without hesitation.

We decided to head towards the final destination of the mountain dungeon, which is the summit.

* * *

The dungeon being a mountain is counterintuitive and confusing.

Usually, a dungeon is a long cave leading underground. Just being outdoors and calling it a dungeon makes you go, "?"

But in the games I played in the previous world, there were often dungeons like "○○ Mountain."

Usually, there was a flying dragon at the summit, and you would ride it to the castle of the demon king or to the next continent.

Actual mountains are also complex with their terrain and forests, making it easy to get lost, and there are always people who get stranded somewhere.

Isn't it a much more difficult maze than a cave?

After advancing for a while in the mountain dungeon, we didn't feel particularly challenged.

Viel said he put a lot of effort into remodeling the dungeon, but the interior and the monsters that attacked us were no different from before.

What exactly did he change in this dungeon?

"Hehehe... Are you wondering what has changed from the previous dungeon?"

Just then, Viel's broadcast began.

"Rest assured, you are only at the first stage."

"First stage?"

It seems to be the first level of a cave dungeon.

"The first stage is the same as before, with the same interior and monsters! I didn't want to make it difficult for Square Bore to gather materials!"

Indeed.

Viel remembered that one of the purposes of remodeling the dungeon was to find new materials.

New materials are important, but existing useful materials are also important.

"New! My dungeon has a five-area structure from the first to the fifth stage!"

Ah.

It doesn't go up to the tenth stage like a regular mountain.

"The first stage is the same as before, but from the second stage onwards, I will welcome my master with new elements! Hurry up and climb!!"

Viel must be eager to show off the new sections he worked hard on.

Fine, I'll try to meet his expectations as quickly as possible.

"Oh? Is it okay to walk so fast? You might step on a trap if you hurry!"

...

Maybe we should take a break here.

"Fine, then. Behold! The first new area created by the mighty Grinzel Dragon, Viel!"

Oh, the trees are thinning out and it's getting brighter here?

"...It's the Spring Area!!"