It’s Dangerous Outside the Dungeon, Master

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– 1 –

Leonis’s body had clearly met its demise.

However, his soul still remained in this world.

Before that body died, and before the soul and body separated, I had frozen his body and soul using ‘Necromancy.’

‘This was the best option.’

To reap all the talents and abilities left in his body without damaging his soul, one had to take drastic measures.

A body that has lost its soul decays chemically over time, but it also rots magically.

This is a natural law that even magical freezing cannot halt.

This was the most effective method.

Some might say, especially the Clerics, that it was disrespectful to the deceased, but I hope they would consider it the best way to honor his last wishes.

– So you woke me up for the last time?

“That’s right.”

In fact, his intelligence and emotions remained intact like this.

The appearance I summoned through Necromancy from his frozen body was translucent, but it maintained a colorless form resembling his living self.

According to what Scarlett had said before regarding the quality of the soul, his body possessed not only talent but a strong soul as well, perhaps at a heightened level.

– Then Sonia, I will respond like this.

“Senpai?”

– It is against the natural order for a dead person to interfere in the affairs of the living, so I will not say anything. You will make the right choice. You are not weak.

“But I can’t be that kind of person…”

– …

Despite Sonia’s weak words, Leonis didn’t utter anything beyond what he initially said.

As he mentioned, the deceased’s words interfering with the living is literally against the natural order.

I decided to help Sonia.

“You didn’t even finish your last words. If there’s something you want to say, why not say it now?”

– … You being so kind is awkward. In the end, you… No, never mind. It’s meaningless.

“Is it so hard to convey the words of a dead person?”

I could guess what his vague words were.

Leonis and Sonia would ultimately say that their misfortune stemmed from my intentions.

“Master…”

“It’s alright.”

“… Thank you.”

Sonia looked at me, bewildered, but I simply smiled gently and shook my head.

She too sensed the meaning behind the silence in his words and felt momentarily flustered.

As Sonia bowed her head to me, she looked up at Leonis once more.

He then exhaled deeply and finally spat out the remaining words.

– … You are not weak, Sonia. Whatever choice you make, I will support you. There’s nothing to resent.

Whether she kills Elenore brutally, saves her only to make her suffer more, or even forgives her.

His statement was one of support for Sonia.

“Say your final goodbyes, Sonia. You can’t delay what you owe him any longer.”

“… Yes.”

Though I had frozen him with Necromancy, holding onto a dead person is a highly burdensome magical act.

Now that I had temporarily released Leonis’s magical freezing, his decay was already underway.

The sooner that process was completed, the better.

Of course, there was no need to say such things to Sonia or Leonis.

It would be best for both to find peace in the end.

“Senpai, thank you. Always…”

– Your existence, too, made me grateful to be born into this world, Sonia.

“… May you go to a good place.”

Leaving the final farewells, Sonia stayed in that spot.

To fulfill his last wishes, she had to remain.

“You haven’t changed your resolution to use your legacy for the Dungeon and for her, have you?”

– Of course. It seems that for her to survive now, being by your side is the best option.

“Alright… Let’s begin.”

– I’m ready.

Nodding at his words, I pointed the tip of my staff at his soul, while placing my other hand on his body.

What I had done to his body earlier could be perceived as disrespectful to the deceased, but what I was about to do would be even more so.

The only difference was that I had obtained his approval.

“… ‘Sacrifice Assessment.’”

『Name – Leonis Den』

I effortlessly swiped away the information window that naturally floated up.

What I needed now was not the assistance of my unique system but the original function of the Sacrifice Assessment magic.

The ability to intuitively grasp the status of the soul and body being treated as a sacrifice.

Slurp.

Before my eyes, the spiritual connection that linked Leonis’s soul and body appeared, as well as the real-time status of their decay.

It was impossible to slow down the speed of decay.

However, it was possible to utilize that decay.

Tap.

As I pinpointed the rotting part of Leonis’s soul, a black paint-like substance smeared onto my fingertips.

Ultimately, this power emanated from the decay of both the soul and body.

It was a force similar to the magic power of the Demon Clan, something a Necromancer should be familiar with.

Thanks to that, I was able to manipulate it like this.

– Why did I have to die…

– I don’t want to go alone…

The feelings emanating from there were emotions that if Leonis were normal, he wouldn’t have expressed in words.

It was a deep emotional curse that made me feel uncomfortable.

Normally, a typical Necromancer would amplify this state, make the soul ‘decay’ more ‘appropriately,’ and enhance this emotion for use.

However, what I was doing now was the complete opposite.

Ghhhhh!

Using the ‘decaying soul’ I slightly extracted like a surgical blade, I cut away all the parts that were existentially rotting in Leonis’s body and soul.

Slowing down the decay process, this was the process of amplifying the power I could use.

– … What is this…

“Senpai, you’ve gotten a bit younger.”

– Haha. It does seem that way.

As a result, Leonis’s soul experienced a side effect of appearing several years younger.

The voices of the two, unaware of precisely what was happening, brushed past my ears, but I left them alone and continued with the process.

After all, if they realized what was happening, it would only lead to panic.

“‘Soul Refinement.’”

Swoosh!

Upon reciting the incantation, the extracted decaying soul easily severed the ties that connected Leonis’s soul to his true self.

A magic that separates them purely so they cannot influence each other.

The limits of the influence that someone else’s magic can have on the soul are dictated by the time and magical effort expended; thus, one must obtain the consent of the person involved before applying it.

Of course, Necromancers usually extract talent from both and use it to summon, so they wouldn’t let the offering become like this.

This was solely a creation born from my own thoughts and imagination.

– … I feel free.

It was an inopportune moment for such a ridiculous thought to surface in my mind.

It so happened that a meme used on Earth popped into my head.

Fortunately, I didn’t burst out laughing and called back the system window to check the situation I had created.

『Attributes – Health X Skill 5 Endurance X Magic 14 Resistance 11』
『Attributes – Health 24 Skill 36 Endurance 29 Magic 40 Resistance 35』
『Traits – Advanced Specialization: Detection Magic, …』
『An adventurer mage with good abilities compared to their rank. The body is of superior quality, and the soul is of the highest quality.』
『The soul underwent a level increase during the processing by the will of the mage.』

Although I minimized the portion the soul took from the body, it was impossible for there to be no effect at all.

Moreover, the feeling of Leonis’s soul being ‘free’ seemed to arise from the elevation of his soul level during this process.

If this had happened while he was alive, it would’ve served as a catalyst for a significant level-up.

But since it was only possible after death, what’s the point of speculating?

“Sonia, are you ready?”

“Ah… Yes!”

Anyway, all preparations were complete now.

I was ready to show Leonis’s last wishes being fulfilled before he ascended.

This was a method of transferring the abilities of a deceased sacrifice, applied through the ‘Contract-based ability transfer’ that became available upon becoming a High-level Dungeon Lord.

“I’ve already explained this, but what’s about to happen will be different from the enhancement you experienced through the Orc’s essence.”

Until now, my ‘sacrifice enhancement’ had been conducted without the subject’s consent.

That’s why I utilized the power of the soul to suppress the remaining essence in the body to forcibly extract the resources of the sacrifice.

This wasn’t how I desired it to be; it was the very mechanism of the sacrifice enhancement magic.

However, the enhancement I was about to perform was different.

“I told you that you’ll become significantly stronger.”

“Since Leonis agreed to let you use his body, it’s possible. While the results can be somewhat predicted, side effects may also occur.”

It was a situation where the messenger agreed to fully use his body, and even the soul’s consent was obtained, so even the resisting essence would be entirely used as a sacrifice.

All of Leonis’s remaining resources would be used for Sonia’s enhancement.

How wide the spectrum of that enhancement would be, I could only speculate.

– Wait a moment. You did say it would be safe, right?

“I’m here, so regardless of what happens, it means that she won’t suffer greatly, Leonis.”

– …

“Thank you, Senpai.”

As Sonia looked at Leonis with concern, she smiled back at me.

Then, I executed the final process.

“‘Sacrifice Enhancement.’”

Swoosh -!

As soon as the words left my lips, black magical power enveloped Leonis’s body.

However, the manifestation was different from the usual sacrificial enhancement. While it typically appeared murky and sticky, what covered his body now was much ‘cleaner.’

With neither a fiery appearance nor a slimy look.

It flowed smoothly like ink, transforming into a single sphere, and the residual ‘remnants’ left behind were absorbed into the dungeon at a much faster rate.

“Uh…”

“It is indeed larger than usual. Let’s proceed.”

The power of the created sacrifice was significantly higher than usual, momentarily causing Sonia, who had undergone enhancement multiple times, to hesitate.

It certainly looked quite abnormal.

But I didn’t delay any longer and immediately transferred that sphere to her.

Swish!

“Uh… Huh?”

The sphere, which appeared clean on the outside, was absorbed at a pace even faster than usual.

Sonia, surprised by the massive liquid that vanished into her body in the blink of an eye, felt around her body, but there was no trace of the disappeared Leonis.

Yet it was clearly visible to me.

『Attributes – Health 19(◀ 7) Skill 29(◀ 11) Endurance 31(◀ 16) Magic 50(◀ 34) Resistance 41(◀ 27)』

The increase was roughly about half of what was left in Leonis’s body.

Physical attributes rose more than magical attributes.

『Traits – Advanced Specialization: Detection Magic, Advanced Specialization: Curse, … Magic Overadaptation』

Moreover, the detection magic that he originally possessed was absorbed with a slightly lower proficiency, while all plant and illusion type magic was consolidated into curses and absorbed to heighten its proficiency.

Finally, the grade of Magic Overadaptation rose again.

It’s likely that some of the magical talents she could not absorb directed towards this side.

With this, her abilities were clearly bizarre for a rank that had not yet been formally recognized by the Magic Guild.

I would need to visit the Demon World soon to gather what I needed.

“Uh… I feel nauseous…”

– That’s an injury.

“I’m sorry, Senpai… Ugh.”

Perhaps due to that influence, Sonia’s face turned pale. It must have been from the sudden surge of magical power.

“It seems that the special ability you originally had has returned to its original stage. Since your constitution has changed, it’s only natural that you would feel the difference.”

“Really? Then…”

“Now that your abilities are enough, there’s no need to worry about that magical power.”

“Haa…”

Sonia let out a sigh of relief as she pressed her chest.

… Now that I think about it, her body seems to have grown significantly as it returned to normal. I think it was a lot smaller before.

No, that’s beside the point.

– I’m glad, Sonia.

“Yes, Senpai… Senpai?”

Sonia, looking up, had her eyes wobbling significantly.

It was likely because Leonis’s soul had become noticeably more transparent than before.

Now it was time to part ways.

– Don’t make that face. I doubt anyone has ended their involvement with a dungeon so gently. I think it’s an accomplishment you can be proud of.

“I don’t think that’s something to say in front of the lord of the dungeon.”

– Accept it. It’s the last time after all.

Leonis’s expression was remarkably clear.

It truly felt as if he had cast off all the burdens and shackles of the world.

Even in the way he looked at Sonia, there might be love, but not an ounce of obsession could be felt.

“Senpai…”

– Goodbye, Sonia.

And with that, Leonis departed.

‘In some sense, could this be seen as tying up loose ends?’

In the end, I had cast him into the abyss, and with my own hands, I had sent him to where he was originally meant to go.

– 2 –

“I… want to give her a chance too. A chance to learn what it truly means to have a good heart.”

Having properly concluded with Leonis, Sonia likely made this decision out of necessity.

“Very well. Do it.”

Of course, I permitted that as well.

‘Indeed, she…’

I think I’m starting to understand a bit.

About the feelings Sonia has for me.