It’s Dangerous Outside the Dungeon, Master

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To be honest, I never expected Serika to not cause trouble.

She can be cautious enough to analyze humans and her powers, choosing to hide away and strengthen herself, but fundamentally, she is the ruler who has lived alone in the dungeon.

An absolute being whom no one can stop… the Dungeon Lord.

There’s no way she could tolerate an enemy acting brazenly right in front of her. She probably has the mindset of “As long as I’m not caught, it doesn’t matter.”

I agree with that thought.

As long as I’m not caught, it doesn’t really matter.

“Cry louder. Pig.”

“Oink—!”

… Though I didn’t want to see this sort of thing.

Now that the sightseeing at Sonataph is over and I’m back at the accommodation, I came to find Serika after hearing the news from her maid, and there she was, riding on someone’s back.

That someone happened to be the pirate who had caused a ruckus earlier by approaching Hailey during the day.

This was the man who had introduced himself as the First Mate.

“Serika.”

“Ah, Rita! Look! I’m punishing him!”

Serika, smiling brightly at me, was indeed the cute blonde young lady, but the sight of the man beneath her—though not ruggedly built, he certainly didn’t have a pleasant appearance—made my head hurt.

Of course, they were both properly dressed, but the mere spectacle felt quite disrespectful.

Thank goodness we had rented the whole accommodation; otherwise, I shudder to think how that loud pig-like squeal would have been heard by others.

“It seems more like… you’re enjoying yourself.”

… Moreover, that man, no matter how I looked at him, didn’t seem to be suffering at all.

“Enjoying himself? No way…! How can a person be happy pretending to be a pig?”

“You would think so. Sometimes I find it fascinating. Intelligent beings, how can they produce such varied outcomes? Like an abyss.”

While the blood magic of a vampire who is no longer a Dungeon Lord might lack the ability to create zombies, the power to make humans into kin still remains.

Whether turning a human he drained of blood into a spawn or injecting his poison into a living human to create a lower-class vampire known as a Dhampir.

Though the Dhampir created in this way would obediently follow the vampire’s commands, that doesn’t mean they would delight in acts that go against their true nature.

So that man who became a Dhampir… No, let’s stop with that unpleasant thought.

I focused my gaze back on her.

“Serika, didn’t you promise not to cause trouble?”

“This isn’t trouble. I told you no one would know I brought him here. Even if they did, they wouldn’t care. He’s not a problem.”

“Well, that’s true.”

She wasn’t wrong.

If a pirate’s First Mate were missing for a day, would the other pirates raise an issue? They would probably think he was off frolicking around a brothel, or maybe he bought a woman and spent the night there.

If a problem did arise, she would likely have made it ‘disappear.’ Emotional-related magic is one of the vampire’s specialties.

But the problem is that I had already warned her about this matter.

“You promised with your own mouth. You said you would listen to me.”

“Did I…?”

“And after you met with him, what did I say?”

“Uh… to say something before leaving…?”

“Exactly. That’s right.”

Her eyes rolled round, and realizing something was off, she got off the ‘human pig’ and sat down, speaking weakly.

Though that sulky demeanor was both cute and a bit pitiful…

There’s a saying about a small thief becoming a cattle thief.

When someone inexperienced considers deviation and principles, they tend to choose deviation. To teach how to make choices, you should first hold the reins reasonably and gradually loosen them when they have the capability.

Otherwise, it becomes easy for them to go on a rampage.

And rampage…

[I’m sorry, ” ” brother. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…!]
[Get out.]
[Please just look at me once. If you help me with this, it’ll pass…! It’s just that one useless person who died…!]
[Get out.]

… It’s a sure way to create regrets.

“You need to be punished.”

“I’m sorry…”

“Maid, leave. Clean up that unpleasant mess.”

Of course, the maid didn’t fully comply with my natural command.

To be exact, she listened halfway.

One dragged the pirate First Mate out of the room, while the other approached me and bowed deeply, staying still.

“What are you doing? Not leaving?”

“I’m sorry, Lady. We must only heed the Young Lady’s commands…”

“Hmmm.”

To be honest, I found their stance quite satisfying.

If they had left the room immediately after I told them to leave, they would have cleaned everything away from my sight.

Cleaning up what needs to be cleaned and also protecting their master.

If they had managed to do both, it would have been flawless, but I’d give them an 80 for their actions.

“…”

Even though I continued to stare at her silently, applying pressure, the maid in front of me didn’t move.

Though her body trembled, she managed to hold her ground firmly.

She was Serika’s ally.

“There must be a reason you’re doing this. Speak up.”

“Um, that is…”

My usual appearance might seem weak, but it seems I command some authority when I gather my magical power.

Seeing how terrified they are indicates that.

It could be that I’m simply strong as a Dungeon Lord.

“The Young Lady was really happy to see the Lady. In the family, besides the gentlemen and teachers, she’s often alone. Therefore…”

She spoke carelessly about her master’s situation; that’s a point deduction.

However, even amidst confusion and fear, she spoke what she thought needed to be said, so I’ll consider that and reduce the penalty to half.

Still, that gives her a score of 70. Plenty to pass.

“Alone?”

“Ah…”

“Louise, what are you saying? Don’t say unnecessary things, just leave!”

“Lady…! I’m so sorry…”

“Just go. Quickly… Let’s talk later.”

By the way, “being alone in the family”…

No matter how precious a family is, there shouldn’t be a lack of collateral branches. After all, there might at least be a relative by marriage. Surely, there are blood relatives of a similar mental age to Serika among them.

But for Serika to say that she’s only spent time alone except in specific situations, and that she doesn’t reveal that to me…

“I don’t intend to do anything severe. Didn’t I already promise? So just stay outside.”

“… Excuse me, Young Lady. Lady.”

At Serika’s request and my additional command, the maid eventually left, bowing deeply.

Even after leaving, I felt a presence lingering outside…

“It would be better if you went further away…”

“But shouldn’t there be someone to protect her?”

“The Lady is a Dungeon Lord… a Necromancer. There are already plenty of protectors…”

“Ah…”

That presence was sent away by Xue.

I contemplated that it would be nice if she offered some comfort to the maids, and I perceived the presence of her comforting them.

She truly knows my heart well.

“Serika.”

“Um…?”

After all that talk, we finally had a moment alone.

The first thing I did was bend down and take her hand to help her up.

“Where are you trying to go?”

“You were displeased with our date during the day, so shouldn’t we get a ‘make-up’ one?”

“Uh… okay?”

“Let’s go. On a date.”

It was late at night.

Even though it was a bustling city with established security, it wasn’t exactly a good situation for two women to be going out on a date.

This city has a black market, which means there are plenty of undesirable people around.

– Snap.

“Don’t worry. I’m not planning to go far. Besides, it’s just the two of us, and you’re with me.”

– Clack.

However, the two of us were the superior Dungeon Lord and a former Dungeon Lord demon.

If ordinary folks approached, it would be them that would end up as prey. Even if stronger beings came near, her dark spirit magic combined with my dark magic would yield a favorable outcome.

“Okay!”

Serika’s face brightened instantly as she followed.

We slipped into the darkness of the night through the window.

Our destination: the black market.

There was no need to worry that it would be closed.

I had heard from Hailey that this place becomes even livelier not during the day but at dawn, owing to the name “black market” and its main clientele.

“Seeing you punishing him means you were quite angry with that guy.”

“Uh, yes… I was happy with Rita, but he interrupted that…”

“I see…”

As we walked, I continued our conversation while offering her one hand to hold.

It wasn’t really the topic to discuss during a date, but this was the original purpose.

“But you had a promise with me, didn’t you? Isn’t that right?”

“I promised to listen well. And I was told to say something before going out…”

“You’re remembering well now.”

I nodded a couple of times, but the air behind me gradually grew tense.

Her steps slowed slightly, so I adjusted my pace to match hers.

Yet, I kept speaking.

“So, what did you do?”

“I didn’t say anything…”

“That means?”

“I didn’t listen to Rita…”

“Smart thinking.”

“…”

Soon, she slumped into a sitting position.

As I turned around based on the hand I was holding, she looked up at me with rabbit-like big eyes brimming with unshed tears.

“Don’t dislike me…”

“What do you mean?”

“People dislike me. They say the stable successor is an impediment and such… they say I’m so self-willed. I don’t care about that at all. It’s just that I didn’t listen to Rita, so they started disliking me…”

Serika was anxious.

I thought maybe my feelings for her had soured.

The one who supposedly spent her entire time alone in the family was maintaining a bright demeanor throughout our exchanges.

But it doesn’t seem like those words hurt her genuinely. They must have just popped into her mind during this anxious moment.

Still, if left unchecked, she would soon develop a deep wound in her heart.

That’s not what I wanted for either of us.

“It’s not like that.”

“But… I’m so self-willed. The family members said so too. People don’t like someone who’s self-willed…”

“Serika.”

I tapped her forehead lightly.

While speaking, she was gradually lowering her body and head. Before I knew it, she was completely curled up.

“Ugh…?”

With a face that seemed to want to pop a question mark on top of her head, she looked up at me while gripping her forehead.

At that moment, I decided to enlighten her on one thing.

“If you were genuinely self-willed, you wouldn’t be worried about me at all.”

“Uh…? Is that so…?”

“Of course. A purely self-willed person wouldn’t care about the maids who are getting scolded because of them.”

“Uh, how did you know?”

With her mouth agape in surprise, she looked up at me incredulously.

I patted her on the head once and squished her soft cheeks like a rice cake.

She still had a cute face.

Including the fact that her eyes were still glistening.

“Mm, hmm! (What are you doing…?)”

“Serika. If you’ve done something wrong, you have to take responsibility. It’s not the same as just leaving it all to others. You have to apologize for what you did wrong, promise not to do it again, and observe the other person’s disposition to either draw closer or give them a bit of time.”

“Then… does that mean you’ll forgive me?”

“I don’t know about that.”

“What do you mean…! Let me go! That hurts!”

At her request, I released the pinch on her rosy cheeks, and she pouted slightly, narrowing her eyes to glare at me.

Seeing that face, I couldn’t help but smile.

“If you constantly apologize and reflect on your mistakes, I think anyone would forgive you.”

“Really…?”

“If not, I’ll have to scold you.”

Her face brightened momentarily before clouding up again.

Looking at that, I was sure.

She has already been punished enough. A punishment that she imposed on herself, and no one else.

She has reflected.

If she realized that with her first mistake, that should be sufficient.

“Well then, if you do that…?”

“I’ve already forgiven you. You’ve been telling me about your mistakes all along.”

“Is that… true?”

“Yeah.”

Her face slowly brightened.

As I held her hand and lifted her up, this time she grabbed my hands and spun us both in a circular motion.

Her face had returned to a clear smile.

“Then we can go on a date, right?”

“Sure.”

“Let’s go, let’s go! I’ve been curious about that place! Can we go there?”

“Do as you please. I’ll tell you if there’s something we shouldn’t do.”

“Okay!”

The date that followed was enjoyable.

It was noisy and boisterous, but Serika was smiling the whole time.

We played while quickly clearing away anything that might get in our way.

And so, the next day.

“Today, we’re going to look for the core, right?”

“Yeah. I hope it’s your core.”

“Okay!”

The morning of the black market auction day dawned.