It's Dangerous Outside the Dungeon, Master

What could be seen entering the interior of the room through the wide door was a quite spacious room and warriors looking this way warily from all directions.

And in the center of it all stood a warrior wearing an impressive helmet.

“Welcome, Dungeon Queen.”

A warrior with a longsword made of non-iron material, that is, made of their carapace, hanging at her waist.

She greeted me while taking off her helmet with impressively extended horns on both sides of her head like a bull.

“I am Orea. Queen of the Myrmikian, Clever clan.”

As she took off her helmet with the upper pair of her two pairs of arms, while indicating her other shoulder with one hand of her lower arms and bowing her head with a polite silent greeting, she exuded a knightly atmosphere.

“You’re handsome. You.”

“Uh… Thank you.”

The appearance revealed as some heat flowed out from between her helmet, as if she had just returned, was very different from my imagination overall.

Both from the impression I got from that helmet, and from the prejudices I held.

‘I thought she’d be much bigger.’

This was an impression that came from the prejudice formed by seeing the appearance of ‘queen ants’ in all kinds of media.

First of all, realistically, isn’t the body itself much larger than ordinary ants?

In animations or comics, when monster queen ants appear, they usually come out with enormously large and obese bodies.

And even if their own body isn’t that big, it’s usually in a situation where they can’t even think of moving because they’re laying eggs somewhere in the nest.

‘But…’

The queen I met now had an appearance that smashed such prejudices head-on.

First, although her body looked slightly bigger, perhaps because more external carapace was attached, her height was smaller than Eve or Xue.

The face revealed after taking off her helmet was different from that of humans, making it difficult to judge carelessly, but at first glance, she looked like a very active person.

This is almost like…

‘Rather than a queen, it seems more like a knight commander… or a great general.’

Except for the differences as a monster, it was clearly a ‘prince-like’ face.

“Should I call you Queen?”

“Just call me by my name, or call me General. I prefer that.”

She really seemed to think of herself that way, as in the next conversation, she affirmed the assessment I had made inwardly.

Although I was a bit surprised by her words that seemed as if she had heard my thoughts, I didn’t show that surprise.

“Alright. General Orea. I am Libertas. In your way of speaking, the Queen of the Dungeon.”

“Nice to meet you, Libertas. Please sit.”

She maintained a consistently stiff and strong attitude, which was also reflected in her appearance shown the next moment.

“You. Bring refreshments.”

“Yes!!”

Although it was an ant person who looked like a maid or servant no matter how you looked at it, her posture in answering Orea’s order was no different from that of a soldier.

I understood.

‘Myrmikians’ are monsters that take the form of ant people.

They inherit the nature of the ants they’re modeled after, being diligent and good at group living, with excellent reproductive ability, and most of the group are workers and warriors.

In other words, the entire group is both manpower and military power. Strict obedience to orders must be the instinct of the species.

They would have been a species that would have been exterminated as a target of subjugation long ago if there hadn’t been a special reason.

‘If it weren’t for the iron wood of this coniferous forest.’

The fact that they’ve survived and maintained their population is essentially a concession from humans, but I’m not sure if these monsters know that.

Whether they know or not, it’s not a situation to care about.

They’re in the midst of a fierce war with forces of other monsters now.

“I didn’t expect you to come visit in such a chaotic time, Libertas.”

“I have my own matters. I hope you’ll understand that I can’t consider your circumstances. Orea.”

“Matters?”

“Just as you are waging war, I too am a body that must face numerous challenges and competitions in the future. So isn’t it natural to catch the appropriate timing for all matters?”

“…”

“Cooperation with the dungeon is necessary for you too. Isn’t it?”

Orea only furrowed her brow at my words, without any particular rebuttal.

It seems she too was aware that their refusal of the meeting was nothing more than half pushing their own situation.

‘She probably didn’t want to belong to a dungeon. It seems she envisions quite an independent life…’

The relationship between dungeons and nearby monsters is usually cooperation with the dungeon as the superior.

While monster groups often take a stance of hiding from humans, if they don’t want to do that, they ultimately need to gain the cooperation of demons and the demon realm.

The arrogance of the Dungeon Lords who came to this area had its own basis.

After all, as time goes on, it’s the dungeon that can promise great support to the monsters, so they urge submission by throwing out empty promises.

That’s why my attitude seems strange to the monsters.

“You’re no different from other Dungeon Lords after all.”

However, from her perspective, it was natural to receive a different impression from what other queens received, since I had forcibly pushed my way in.

Of course, I have things to say too.

“I think I’m already quite gentlemanly, coming to have a conversation even after hearing your fierce rejection.”

“Hmm…”

Orea closes her mouth again.

She must have nothing to say.

Although she received Kamaya’s envoy to proceed with the meeting together with me, she flatly refused, and the other envoy I sent next wasn’t even allowed to enter this residence.

‘The time when I could just overlook it has already passed.’

“Looking at it, I’m even doubtful if you have the qualifications to represent this region.”

“What do you mean…?”

“Do you still feel like rebutting after seeing those enemies? I don’t think I would.”

“…”

Therefore, unless she chooses war, Orea can’t freely rebel even if I come out so rudely.

Further refusal means not giving any room to build a relationship, which is no different from facing another front.

By that time, she should know that other queens won’t be able to help her.

In the end, it was they themselves who provided the basis for me to act like this.

“Your Majesty… no, sister. We should listen now. The situation isn’t good either.”

“Etna.”

At that moment, the woman who guided us here put her hand on Orea’s shoulder and spoke like that.

“…Sister?”

As I hadn’t expected such a title although I thought she wasn’t a maid, I looked back and forth between them, and the woman called Etna smiled slightly as if apologizing for deceiving.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t greeted you properly yet. Greet properly, Etna.”

“Okay.”

She stood up from her seat, gathered the upper pair of her two pairs of arms towards her belly, then lifted her skirt with her lower hands and greeted gracefully.

While the sister had a more slender and muscular figure, the younger sister had a good style that could be seen even over the carapace.

“I am Etna. I serve as the prime minister of our Clever clan. Privately, I am Orea’s younger sister.”

It was obvious at a glance.

This place too has considerably absorbed the culture of humans and demons.

No matter how you look at it, that’s not just the appearance of a wild monster grown in the wild.

Even wild monsters show such adaptation to the human world rather than simply hiding, so humans must find it threatening.

It’s natural that land decreases as the population increases.

“Prime minister. Then it seems you perform internal affairs.”

“I’m lacking, but I’m doing my best.”

But watching these two, one question arose.

It was a question that arose because the appearance of the two seemed to be designed for ‘the same role’ no matter how I looked at it.

“No matter how I look, your appearances seem similar… Is only Orea the queen among you two?”

Among ants, only one individual becomes the queen ant.

Once a queen ant is born, that queen exerts power to control her kin from giving birth to another queen.

So it’s bound to seem strange that there are two queen individuals among ant people originating from ants, and within the same clan at that.

“Ah, that’s…”

Hearing my question, Orea was unfazed, but Etna’s expression changed.

Her thoroughly flustered face didn’t suit the title of prime minister, but…

‘Since there’s no way for politics or factional struggles to occur in monster territory, a ‘prime minister without a political poker face’ could appear.’

I roughly understood it like that and moved on.

“If the question was rude, you don’t have to answer. It was just a question out of simple curiosity. If it was disrespectful, I’ll apologize.”

“That’s not it.”

Orea shook her head once, then seemed to ponder for a moment before shaking her head again.

It was a gesture of refusal.

“But we’re not yet intimate enough for me to tell you that.”

“Is that so? Then let’s talk about something else.”

Judging by their attitude, it’s not a grand secret, but seems to be a meaningful memory for the two sisters.

I didn’t mention it any further and returned to the main subject.

“So I’ll ask. Why did you refuse the meeting?”

“I remember already telling you that.”

Orea’s atmosphere, which had loosened for a moment as if reminiscing about the past, sharpened like a blade again.

A woman who has consistently exuded a cold and sharp atmosphere from when I first saw her until now, except for just before.

No matter how you look at it, she’s closer to a general, as she said herself, rather than a queen.

“We are at war. Therefore, we have no time to participate in meetings.”

“Looking at the battle pattern today, it seemed advantageous for this side. Moreover, you weren’t even on that battlefield.”

“That’s… Haah.”

Orea sighs as if it can’t be helped.

She hesitated for a moment, then gave her answer. While removing part of the carapace attached to her chest area.

“Sister…!”

“It’s because the leader of the other side is powerful.”

There was one big discomfort there.

The differences between them and human appearance are pitch-black eyes and antennae, two pairs of arms, and doll-like joints.

In Orea’s case, one more was added just now.

“That injury?”

The fact that she’s alive even after suffering a penetrating wound large enough for one of her pair of breasts to disappear.

One of her breasts was literally tattered.

Although I don’t know what was used for hemostasis, blood wasn’t flowing, but one was pierced through enough to see her back, and the other two pierced vertically were deep enough to see her internal organs.

“It’s an injury received from the enemy king.”

“It’s already been a week since the injury, so with sufficient nutrients and all kinds of treatment methods mobilized, it should be better by now… but it’s not healing at all. This has never happened before…”

After showing that injury, the atmosphere of the two changed somewhat.

Etna spoke in a voice that seemed about to burst into tears, and Orea frowned as if showing the pain she had been hiding until now.

‘Had she been hiding it well until now? Or does she just not know pain?’

If she’s properly feeling pain, it’s certainly a serious injury that’s difficult even to move with.

Nevertheless, Orea hadn’t shown even a fragment of that pain until now, so I can’t help but be suspicious of her current appearance.

“Let me take a look for now.”

However, suspicion is suspicion, and what needs to be done needs to be done.

As I got up from my seat and approached, Orea shrank her body as if wary for a moment, then showed a relaxing posture.

A sigh was a bonus.

“…It can’t be helped. Please.”

“…Please help, Your Majesty. My sister won’t even listen when told to rest…”

Orea’s calm and seemingly resentful gaze, and Etna’s eyes full of expectation and worry.

Receiving the two gazes, I examined Orea’s pierced chest area, and there were a few things I could understand.

‘This… isn’t that difficult?’

One is what the magical presence felt from this injury is.

Another is that the magical knowledge possessed by the Myrmikians… at least this Clever clan, is miserably poor.

Lastly, these individuals are utterly blockheaded.

“Didn’t you think of showing it to other queens?”

If they had tried their best to understand the cause maintaining this injury, there would have been no need to leave it neglected for so long.

“Uh…”

“…”

Sure enough, the ant queen sisters remained silent, unable to say anything else to my question.

Etna was flustered, and Orea stubbornly kept her mouth shut.

I don’t know what Etna or other ants were thinking, but somehow I felt I knew what was in Orea’s mind.

‘We can’t receive help from other species during wartime.’

“…Is that what you’re thinking? Orea.”

“How did you…?”

It seems I’ve come to know at least one thing perfectly.

That these ants’ refusal of the meeting wasn’t because of some other ulterior motive, but truly ‘because they are in the midst of war’.

“You… no, you, Orea. You’re really a blockheaded person.”

It was a behavior pattern that made me unable to hold back from saying something.

These sisters.

No matter how I looked at it, I couldn’t leave them like this.