Chapter 17

As the western sky began to turn red, I and Lirisia stood in front of the wardrobe in the cabin.

Lirisia placed her hand gently on my back and said,

"It's getting quite dark. Is it alright?"

"The inside of the dungeon is dark whether it's day or night, so it's fine. We'll head back after we've seen enough. In the worst case, we can stay in this cabin."

"I understand."

"Then, let's go."

I opened the wardrobe door.

Darkness spread inside.

I drew my sword and entered.

Lirisia followed behind, holding a lantern.

We walked down a narrow corridor made of stone.

I noticed it was brighter than I expected.

Looking at my hand, I saw that the sword, filled with holy energy, was glowing blue.

"It can also serve as a torch. Convenient."

"But be careful, as you'll be visible to any enemies lurking in the dark."

"Indeed. You're smart, Lirisia."

"Thank you!"

Though I couldn't see her face because she was behind me, I imagined she had a beautiful, blushing expression.

Then, the slender fingertips touching my back drew small circles, and I could feel her joy through that simple gesture.

We continued down the narrow corridor.

We walked on and on, a straight path stretching endlessly.

The corridor was narrow enough for only three people to stand side by side.

How far did it go?

The unchanging scenery and situation began to make me uneasy.

"Lirisia, were there any side paths or doors?"

"No, there weren't any."

"Ah, I see. Maybe I should hold the lantern and have you look through the monocle... oh."

When I turned around, Lirisia was already wearing the monocle and walking.

The lantern was floating in the air, supported by several white feathers from below.

"I see, clever. The power of an angel is convenient."

"Yes, leave it to me."

"Then, let's continue on, staying alert."

As we walked further, we finally saw a faint light ahead.

"Is it the exit?"

"It's too dim to be an exit."

We cautiously continued down the narrow corridor.

We emerged into a large hall.

A windowless hall, with the floor and walls made of stone.

The ceiling was high and glowed a faint red, making the room dim.

The corridor we came through was on the opposite wall.

There were also a few doors.

But what caught our attention the most was an object in the center of the hall.

A black, spherical object, about the height of a person.

I approached with my sword drawn.

"What is this?"

"Could it be... Master, is this the dungeon core?"

"Huh? Is there such a small dungeon?"

As I approached, a sound like "Biiin" was heard, and red lines of light ran across the black surface of the sphere.

"What do you want?"

"Can you speak? What are you?"

"I am the dungeon core. I have been revived by Falbour. What are your orders?"

"But I'm not him. Can I give orders?"

"Whatever your orders are. Your orders."

—It seemed a bit broken.

Lirisia peeked from the side.

"Master, can I operate it?"

"Sure, go ahead. I don't understand it."

"Alright. Dungeon core, can you display a map of this dungeon?"

"Anything is possible. Not enough magic power. Possible. Not enough magic power."

The red lines glowed.

"Will holy energy work?"

"Any magic power will do."

"I see—Haah!"

I placed my hand on the dungeon core and channeled holy energy into it.

The ceiling lights turned blue.

The red lines of light on the sphere's surface turned blue as well.

The entire dungeon became bright enough that we didn't need the lantern.

"Magic power 76%—Displaying the map."

A dry "Pip" sound was heard, and a translucent window appeared in front of the sphere.

According to the map, there were only two corridors.

The one we came through and another one on the opposite side.

Looking at the end of the extended corridor—

"Indeed, it's the capital."

"There's also a laboratory room facing this hall. It's locked, but there are no traps."

"Let's check it out. Can the lock be opened?"

"It can be opened."

With a "Clank," all the doors unlocked.

Lirisia and I moved away from the core and headed towards the door on the side of the hall.

There were two rooms on each side of the hall.

We entered the first room.

The sight inside was gruesome.

"Ugh..."

"This is..."

Lirisia covered her mouth.

In the large room, there was a workbench in the center.

Shelves were set up on three walls.

On the workbench, humans and monsters were dismembered.

On the shelves, large glass bottles lined up, containing humans and monsters forcibly attached together.

"They were conducting human experiments."

"How terrible..."

Lirisia's face twisted in sadness.

"Perhaps he fell into darkness and became Hellrich because of these experiments... or maybe even Hellrich was a created being."

"Is there really another Hellrich?"

"I'm not sure... Let's put that aside for now and check the next room."

"Yes... Master."

Lirisia took my hand, trembling as if in pain.

The next room was also a laboratory.

There was a workbench in the center, and flasks and alcohol lamps were set up.

The shelves contained bottles of purple liquid and black powder.

There were many suspicious tools.

"This room is hard to understand."

"It seems they were practicing alchemy. There are even rare minerals and herbs."

Lirisia said, looking through her monocle.

"I see. Let's look for things we can sell later."

"Alright."

Lirisia nodded quietly.

We crossed the hall and entered the opposite room.

Inside, tall bookshelves lined the walls.

There was a reading desk in the corner.

It seemed to be a library.

A book was left open on the desk.

"Ah, this is—"

When I picked it up, it was the fourth volume of necromancy.

A complete set would be worth 300,000 goats.

—But if I have a complete set, it feels wasteful.

I might need it, so I'll keep it for a while before selling it.

Lirisia said,

"Most of the books in this library are rare books on magic, biology, and medicine... even angel magic!?"

Lirisia picked up a book with a blue spine and flipped through it.

"Hmm, I see. Ah, such a use... I see..."

Lirisia began to read it carefully.

I urged her to continue.

"Put the book in the bag and let's check the other rooms. There might still be enemies or dangers."

"Ah! I'm sorry!"

Lirisia quickly put the book in her backpack and took my hand.

We entered the next room.

It was a personal room with a bed, a table, and a desk.

Searching through the shelves and drawers, we found jewels and gold coins.

I decided to take them. Two large gold coins, sixteen gold coins, and forty-nine silver coins.

Lirisia picked up a book and said,

"There's a diary here. It belongs to Falbour."

"Hmm, interesting."

Lirisia and I leaned in to read the diary together.

The genius Falbour apparently had a chronic illness. He conducted research to cure it.

During the day, he worked as a doctor in the city, and at night, he studied magic.

He gradually delved into dark magic.

He used the dungeon core to create a secret laboratory and capture monsters in the forest for research.

He transplanted monster organs into living humans to overcome his illness.

However, he was unable to cure his illness and it recurred.

Rather than die from his illness, he became Hellrich.

The diary ended with a regretful note: "In the end, I couldn't overcome my illness."

—He was a selfish man until the end, I thought, feeling exasperated.

Total money: 34 large gold coins, 27 gold coins, 8 large silver coins, 57 silver coins.

3,683,700 goats.

We ranked 16th in the genre and 54th overall for the day!

Thank you for the bookmarks and ☆ ratings!

I'm glad you enjoyed it even though it's only 50,000 words!

The next chapter will be updated at noon.

→ Chapter 18: Taming the Dungeon