It's Dangerous Outside the Dungeon, Master

* * *

After the meeting inside the dungeon ended, the next day.

“Talhan seeks an audience with the Master!”

“Come in.”

I called Talhan in to comfort him for his hard work so far, and at the same time, presented the reward I intended to give him.

Talhan’s reaction after hearing it was quite intense.

“Is that… really true?”

His lips were trembling, veins were popping out, and the wrinkles on his face were undulating wildly while his eyeballs were unsettled and darting around in all directions.

I can understand how moved he is, but it’s a sight that’s really hard to look at.

Eve stepped in to manage the situation.

“Please calm down. Your appearance is becoming distorted.”

“Ah. Lady Evangeline… Thank you.”

She forcibly calmed him by injecting magic power into his body.

A Cerebrum Skull is merely a mimetic summoned beast, not becoming the body itself, so when greatly flustered psychologically, its mental state manifests externally like that.

That’s why when creating Cerebrum Skulls, I always made sure to manifest characteristics that give mental calmness.

Of course, I couldn’t take measures for Talhan, who was the very first individual and the one who showed me such an appearance.

“For the Master’s… boundless grace and love… I offer my gratitude. This Talhan. From now on, until this life ends, my loyalty…”

…Just how moved was he?

Fearing that such a distorted appearance might appear from him again, I quickly presented him with the paths he should choose.

“Promotion and transformation…”

“That’s right. Whichever you choose, your wishes will be fulfilled.”

What I presented were two methods in total.

“The first is the next stage of the individual that is currently your main body. There are restrictions on the dungeon for now, but you don’t need to worry.”

Corpus Skull, the next stage of Cerebrum Skull, is a being that removes both limitations that the previous stage individual has.

Both the limitation of memory and the limitation of hijacked physical abilities are completely removed, and the lifespan limit of the body is also somewhat lifted.

“Then if I choose this…”

“It means you can steal the body of whoever’s life you want.”

Of course, there won’t be problems with adaptation either.

For now, there is a restriction on elite-grade individuals, but that’s not something to worry about much since I can increase the magic power to some extent by consuming the remaining core magic power. Humans might feel my presence more strongly, but it’s not much different from now.

“The second is to become a completely different being.”

In this case, the detailed options differ.

There are quite a few monsters that have mimicry as a specialized ability and characteristic.

Just off the top of my head, there are many like vampires, slimes, some demons, and so on.

In this case, most of the characteristics currently possessed would disappear, so you wouldn’t be able to rise to elite rank immediately, but instead…

“You could obtain the ‘human body’ you’ve longed for so much.”

“A human… body?”

He fell into contemplation, but that time wasn’t very long.

“…I think it’s better to stay in this state for now.”

It was an answer that almost made my eyes widen involuntarily.

Based on the character I’ve seen of him so far, I thought he would definitely choose one or the other.

However, the emotion felt from him as he spoke his refusal was genuine.

“That’s an answer I didn’t expect. May I hear the reason?”

“Of course, Master.”

At my question, Talhan bowed his head deeply once and began to speak, holding up two fingers and then folding one.

“First, your power needs to expand right now, and changing my position, which is in charge of that information, could soon become a major hindrance.”

“I see…”

That’s not wrong.

Regardless of his nature, the role assigned to him is currently important, and the body he has is also an important figure in the information guild.

I had worried about that too, but I had shaken it off thinking he would manage somehow.

“The next reason only applies to the first option, but there needs to be a hierarchy in the organization, and I shouldn’t rise above the seniors who joined the organization first.”

“Hierarchy, huh.”

He’s talking about respect for Mire and Axe.

The hypothesis that it’s the practice of loyalty to fulfill a greater desire is convincing, but the emotion I feel from him now is only loyalty and faith.

I don’t feel a single grain of deception, and my intuition and ‘Nobility’ affirm this as well.

At least, it seems certain that he is serving me sincerely.

“And.”

“And?”

“It’s enough just knowing that the Master hasn’t forgotten.”

“…I fully understand that you’re sincere.”

It’s unexpected, but it’s a happy thing.

So it doesn’t make sense for there to be no reward for sincere will and loyalty.

“Well then, I should give you a reward for now.”

“By reward, you mean…?”

“For now, it would be appearance. Tell me anytime. The form you want to become. I’ll do my best to prepare it for you.”

“…Thank you, Master.”

“And, take this.”

What I handed over was an artifact I had originally intended to give after he chose one of the paths.

“This is…”

His eyes trembled greatly as he received the accessory in the form of a talisman.

He probably knows well what the price and value of the artifact are.

It’s a luxury item he wouldn’t have been able to receive during his human days, and it’s also a signal that I care about his well-being.

“I can’t leave you without protective magic as you stay outside. I prepared this for that. Take care of your body.”

“I will engrave the Master’s grace on this soul. I swear once again here that I will become the red carpet laid on the path you walk.”

Talhan, speaking with a trembling voice, seemed to be trying to jump around like before, but perhaps because of the experience he had just now, he was somewhat more composed.

“I already fully understand your loyalty. That oath. I gratefully accept it. I too promise that I will never let your life be in vain.”

“Thank you.”

From that appearance, I felt something like a revelation that his wavering had disappeared.

From this moment, now.

He too was truly my servant.

* * *

“We seek an audience with the Dungeon Lady!”

An old demon shouted with a squeaking voice while bowing his head.

His skin was gray, and despite his somewhat weak or cunning-sounding voice, his entire body was muscular and visibly well-developed for an old man.

Mischief oozed from the corners of his mouth, and his eyes were full of greed, so it’s easy to guess what his true personality is like.

“You’ve worked hard all this time. I hope you don’t feel burdened by receiving this reward. Your skills and attitude have satisfied me sufficiently.”

“We gremlins have endless greed beyond our station, so you don’t need to worry!”

He was one of the chieftains of the Elder Gremlins.

And today was the day when their tribe’s work on finalizing the dungeon, which they had been doing all this time, was completely finished.

They expanded the dungeon, which was originally 2 floors above ground and 1 floor underground, to 5 floors above ground and 3 floors underground.

They also established a consistent style so that when I change the appearance of the dungeon with magic power, it can follow that uniformity.

‘Although only some rooms have been properly set up yet…’

Currently, only up to the 3rd floor above ground and 2nd floor underground were being used.

But since they had done the foundation work properly, I could increase the number of floors and rooms as needed in the future.

Since they had already firmly established the framework.

Even if an emergency situation occurs where I can’t inject magic power one day and it collapses, or if there’s an attack, the outer walls won’t be easily penetrated.

“Here. The ruby ore I promised.”

“Ooh… I’ve been looking forward to it since you mentioned it, but the quality is so good that I can tell at a glance.”

The Gremlin chief’s mouth opened as wide as a basket, and his eyes, which were already large, bulged out even more as he watched the carts being taken away by his subordinate gremlins.

Seeing such a sight, I naturally became curious.

“Is there a separate reason why you like precious metals? It’s just simple curiosity, so you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.”

“It’s not like that. Firstly, as you might guess, it’s because our magic is extremely focused on Midgard…”

‘Midgard’ refers to the material world in magical formula coordinates.

It connects with the spiritual world ‘Celestia’ to form the basis of druid spells or spirit magic, and mainly contacts the elemental world ‘Terrarium’ to create the elements that magicians mainly deal with.

But of course, what they’re calling Midgard magic probably means directly involving minerals.

However, this was something I already knew.

The answer that satisfied my curiosity came next.

“…Also because it’s a special food and elixir.”

“Oh. I see.”

It seems that the gremlin’s body can digest human precious metals.

Seeing that they can digest everything from gold to diamonds, from processed stones to raw ore, it’s probably not a biological feature but a magical characteristic.

Just like elves gain vitality from plants, and dwarves hear the resonance emitted by rocks.

“Because of this characteristic, gremlins born in the natural demon realm rather than dungeons developed magic that interferes with minerals, and from there, they became interested in processing and carving minerals.”

It’s saying that gremlins do their own ‘plating’, just like humans decorate food beautifully on a plate.

Probably the engineering and artistic knowledge that gremlins possess also developed from here.

“That was an interesting fact. I think it was good to hear it.”

“It’s a pleasure to feel indirectly how sweet the attention you give to those around you is, when even Dungeon Lords, let alone those who share joys and sorrows with us in the demon realm, don’t know this fact that you’re curious about.”

“You have discerning eyes, old man.”

Seeing Xue naturally responding to the Gremlin chief’s words, which were half praise and half flattery, I couldn’t help but laugh.

What are they doing in front of me?

“You speak as if you have honey on your tongue. That’s a silver tongue that will surely get you rewards wherever you go.”

“Oh… hehehe. I understand why manager Scarlet was babbling.”

“Hmm…?”

“Oh my. It’s nothing. Well then, we’ll be off! We’re greatly indebted to you, Lady.”

When I let out a voice of incomprehension, he soon shook his head saying it was nothing.

Somehow it felt uncomfortable to press further, so I decided not to talk more about it.

“Call us again if there’s any good work!”

“Alright. I think there will be work to call you for.”

“Is that true? We’ll be waiting!”

Anyway, I’ll end up calling the gremlins several times to manage Ran’s dungeon or other occupied territories besides this place.

If I know one group properly, it will be convenient in many ways.

“Stay healthy. Especially since your age seems to be high.”

“Yes, Lady!”

The Gremlin chief bowed deeply and left.

While seeing him off, I looked at Xue for no reason.

“…Why?”

“It’s nothing.”

It seems like Xue, Ran, and Eve are all desperate to make me feel embarrassed.

But if I say such things, I ended up swallowing my words, thinking they might join forces later to do something that doesn’t need control.

It’s fortunate that they at least distinguish between time and place.

* * *

As the dungeon grows larger and develops, there’s something that needs more attention.

That is, of course, about the equipment of the summons.

Most of them appear with equipment that suits them when summoned, but while that equipment is optimized, it’s not the best.

“”We seek an audience with the Dungeon Lady.””

To equip them with the best, I called in specialist guilds for demon realm weapons and armor to the dungeon.

“The first guild currently has contracts with 5 noble families…”

The blue succubus Mari was still maintaining a very tense atmosphere when dealing with me.

Since she showed that she was being careful from the moment I gave a warning, it seemed there was no need to constantly pay attention.

“Don’t be too nervous. You’re the intermediary, if you’re like this you’ll miss what you should originally see.”

“Ah, yes…!”

I had to say this because she seemed too nervous even in her guidance.

Anyway, thanks to Mari’s proactive attitude, there wasn’t much problem in choosing one guild.

“I see. A group of blacksmiths, you say.”

“Yes! Lady!”

To be precise, it wasn’t a guild but a group that evolved into a guild after blacksmiths gathered to work together.

Their weapons and armor didn’t have any special abilities imbued, but they had enough craftsmen to mass-produce and the quality was high and uniform.

It was also noteworthy that as a pure group of craftsmen without magicians, there was no strange experimental spirit imbued in each item.

“You seem reliable. Let’s start with 30 blunt weapons and 30 axes for now.”

“Blunt weapons and… axes.”

“That’s right.”

My first-generation skeletons, including Axe, are mostly from bandit origins.

Therefore, the weapons they possess are mostly axes or blunt weapons that are easy to use and have a high minimum power, rather than swords or spears.

Of course, I’ll need to prepare more diverse weapons later, but that’s not for now.

“Understood! If you could choose samples from here…”

“You all. Come here.”

Of course, it’s my skeletons who will choose those weapons.

I don’t know what fits in their hands.

-Clatter.

-Tack!

“Leaders, come this way. I have something I want to order separately.”

“Yes!”

As I watched the skeletons discussing something, I beckoned to the leader of the blacksmiths and called him.

“I want to order some weapons and armor to engrave my magic on. I’d like you to focus on reliability in production more than anything else.”

“By reliability, you mean…?”

“You know that what I’m talking about isn’t just simple durability.”

“Ah… Ah! I understand.”

The first thing I want is not something hard and long-lasting, but weapons that clearly show signs when they’re about to break, making them easy to manage.

In other words, it’s for those who haven’t handled weapons and armor properly before.

“For now, I’ll need three sets of magic-using weapons and armor.”

“Please wait a moment. We have items to use as models.”

What the blacksmith leader brought after a while were three types of magic-using weapons and armor.

Seeing this, I called my disciple.

“Sonia. Come here.”

“Yes! Master!”

“A human…?”

The orc blacksmith’s eyes shone with disgust towards humans and at the same time with respect towards me.

It’s not common for a high-ranking Dungeon Lord who can’t control their emotions yet to employ humans.

At the same time, he satisfied me with his self-control as he tried not to show his disgust towards Sonia.

“Choose one that suits your taste.”

“What? Is it for me?”

“Of course.”

“Thank you! Master!”

“Yes. Go ahead and choose.”

What Sonia chose was a staff.

I ordered three types to be made with different designs, and also ordered things that would serve as models for weapons and armor for other servants.

Even in the worst case, if these craftsmen’s skills are insufficient to produce high-quality items, it will help in finding another guild.

For the first full-fledged weapons and armor for my people, I wanted them to be ones that passed through my hands.

“The weapons to arm other armies will be made soon, so we’ll show you when we bring those.”

“Alright. I’ll be looking forward to it.”

The answer was that it would take about a week for weapons for the army, and more time from there for weapons that require full craftsmanship.

It was a bit of a long time, but the expectation was sufficient.

“I’m looking forward to it…!”

“So am I.”

While stroking Sonia’s head, which showed excitement over her expressionless face, I smiled as well.

* * *

On one of those busy days of preparing the dungeon before starting new work, Serha visited the dungeon.

What she brought was the welcome news I had been waiting for.

“A conference, you say.”

“Yes, Queen!”

I took the small harpy’s hand and led her to my private room. To hear the detailed story.

“When is it?”

“The day after tomorrow! We’re meeting near the dungeon, so you just need to come!”

“I see.”

The queens were gathering.

For the first conference to be held after I revealed my presence.