Chapter 11: Pave 10 Paths and Earn a Penny (1)

Clang!

A pickaxe struck the wall of a stone hole. How long have I been doing this for now?

Transience of life, all is vanity, vanity is all…… I swung my pickaxe endlessly with the intent to cultivate myself morally and religiously. They say that Bodhidharma trained himself by going into a cave and staring at a wall for an incredibly long period of time. There was no reason for people to not call me an ascetic for mining tunnels endlessly like this.

After striking the wall roughly 40 to 50 times, a hologram appeared while emitting a ‘Ding!’―I honestly think this sound effect is going to make me neurotic―sound effect.

「You’ve extracted 2 iron ores.」

Ooh.

Cultivating myself turned out to be a worthwhile thing to do. Two ores came out at the same time. This rarely happens.

I put down the iron ores I received as loot by my feet. I went back to swinging my pickaxe energetically.

“Mother~ why do I~ keep wanting to~ see you~.”

Why was a Demon Lord like myself in a mine extracting iron?

There was no reason to ask. It was for money.

200 gold coins were taken from my initial fund of 1,000 gold. I spent 400 gold in order to hire a golem. All the money I had left on me was 400 gold.

If I were a normal human, then this would be enough to laze around for the rest of my life. However, as a Demon Lord, this was a sum that would be embarrassing to show anyone else.

Should I just take the money and run off somewhere?

There was a time when I once considered this idea. It must be because I was a Demon Lord as I had a small horn on the back of my head (It was so small that I only discovered it recently); however, if you excluded this, then I looked no different from a human. I had become a Demon Lord with the exact same appearance and physique I had in my original world. I naturally thought that if I just went around with a hat, then I could live a relatively wealthy life.

However, I remembered something. What the culprit behind all of this, VenusPanties, said to me.

─ VenusPanties: In any case, if the goal of Dungeon Attack is to stop the Demon Lords and protect the world, then the biggest goal of the sequel is to conquer the world. This is what’s important. Don’t forget.

I didn’t really think much about this at the time. I simply thought that they were giving me some information on the new game that was coming out. If I think about it now, it was a type of allusion. It was information on what I had to do in order to reach the ending of this damn world.

‘Conquer the world, huh.’

If this were a game, then I would have thought that this goal wasn’t anything impressive and that it was dull. However, the idea of having to conquer the world with this piece of garbage character seemed hopeless. I was Dantalian. The weakest Demon Lord. If this guy went and declared that he’d conquer the world, then a passing slime would probably snicker at him.

Well, I shouldn’t be hasty.

If I learned something in these past few days, then it was probably the fact that no matter how desperate the situation was, I should always keep a corner of my mind calm. There was a chance that if I tried to run away, a systematic restriction could be imposed upon me.

─ Keruru, keru.

A goblin approached me. It was a monster that I barely managed to hire with what little I had.

The reason why I went out of my way to summon a goblin was simple. It was written on their monster tab that they specialized in digging caves. Golems were powerful, but they had no talent in mining. In other words, they were purely warriors. I required a worker.

Meeting my expectations, the goblin was holding an armful of iron ores. It seems he came to me to show off his haul.

“Oh, our Blingy! You mined this much today as well?”

I put down my pickaxe and started to rub the goblin’s cheeks. The goblin grinned.

I wonder how it could be so adorable. Ever since I became a Demon Lord, even horrifyingly ugly goblins started to look cute to me. There was no doubt that my sense of beauty was broken. But who cares when he’s this cute?

─ Keruru.

The goblin laughed adorably and spread out his arms. I grabbed him by the waist and lifted him up. I then started to spin around. The goblin started to laugh with excitement.

The thing I experienced with the golem for the first time happened again. The goblin’s emotions were being transmitted to me. It was a purely joy-filled emotion. It felt like our senses had connected.

A dark cavern, grand stalactites, the scent of moist dirt─.

The goblin’s deep and instinctual love for all of this was being transmitted to me with no alterations whatsoever. I could tell that this child liked this dungeon a lot. It was to the point that it made even me like it slightly. Who knew that having your senses connected with another being would be this phenomenal.

It was then, while I was in the middle of playing with the goblin.

“Sir Dantalian.”

“Ah.”

I came to an abrupt stop because of the sudden voice.

“I am here to purchase the ores.”

Once I turned around, I saw an impassive girl standing a short distance away.

The girl was wearing a black suit like an office worker. She bowed to me while maintaining a perfect posture. There was still an absence of emotions on her face when she lifted her head back up. It gave off a feeling that she had bowed to me because it was standard procedures and not because she held any respect towards me.

“Huh? Oh, is it time already?”

“Yes.”

“Time really goes fast in a cave, huh? Haha…….”

The girl didn’t respond. She only stared at me with her azure stone-like eyes. It was then that I realized I had been hugging the goblin since earlier.

I felt awkward, so I put the goblin down.

“Hahaha.”

“…….”

Keru? The goblin made a quizzical sound as it tilted its head.

Go on now. I said inside my head.

The goblin heeded my request and walked to the far side of the cave. I could communicate with monsters mentally. I let out a sigh. It was a relief that I didn’t have to show the goblin my unsightly side.

“Now then, Sir Dantalian, let us begin the exchange.”

The girl spoke in a businesslike manner.

Lapis Lazuli, this was her name.

I met her for the first time half a month ago. After I dealt with the adventurer party from Jalsen village, I continued to research the game functionalities of this world.

My efforts paid off. Not only did I discover that I could perform magic research and technology research―the cheapest magic research I could do was 5,000 gold, so I couldn’t possibly dream of doing it in my current state―but I also discovered how to place luxury items in my dungeon and how to set up all sorts of traps.

All of the necessities required to operate a dungeon was available.

I also discovered that there was a trade tab. Other than a button with the word ‘Trade’ on it, there was nothing else. I clicked it once out of curiosity and a pink magic circle was suddenly drawn in front of me.

Once I stepped back in surprise, a girl appeared from the magic circle. She was beautiful. Her pink hair was tied into low pigtails. As soon as the girl, who was wearing a black suit which I was used to seeing in my own world, appeared, she gave me a polite bow.

‘It is an honor to meet you, Sir Dantalian. I am Lapis Lazuli of the Keuncuska Firm.’

She introduced herself as a rank 5 personnel demon in a flat tone.

‘I have been put in charge of Sir Dantalian’s transactions with the Keuncuska Firm. I will be in your care.’

The way she moved her body was adept like a veteran butler. I couldn’t hold back my curiosity as I asked her to elaborate. While maintaining her impassive expression and toneless voice, she gave me a thorough explanation.

The Keuncuska Firm was a company that shouldered the mundane work of Demon Lords and other high-ranking demons. They would go and acquire anything their customers asked for. All of their employees were demons and their headquarters was in the demon world.

「We can even provide you with a dragon’s horn!」

This was the Keuncuska Firm’s motto. However, this was only if you could pay them properly.

Lapis’ explanation went like this: as Demon Lords were all VIP customers to them, the Keuncuska Firm provided an impressive customer service where they summoned personnel like herself directly in front of their customers. I got a little excited as I asked her a question.

‘Am I also a prioritized customer?’

‘Nominally.’

Lapis continued without batting an eye.

‘I am a rank 5 personnel demon. Rank 5 is the lowest rank.’

There was no need for any further explanation.

Damn D Class.

There was literally all sorts of items in the inventory list which Lapis showed me. From high-quality grimoires to nearly peerless swords. However, my customer level was only F. The most an F rank customer can buy is a well-sharpened long sword or some armor for goblins.

‘Your rank goes up the more items you purchase. If you reach rank A, then rather than buying a dragon horn, you can purchase a dragon entirely.’

A dragon?! In Dungeon Attack, dragons were monsters that were second to Demon Lords. If you had a dragon, then even if an adventurer, no, the regular army of a kingdom swarmed you, there was nothing to fear.

‘B-But…… I don’t have any money.’

‘Is that so? Pardon me, but how much gold do you have, Sir Dantalian?’

‘406 gold.’

I answered with a retreating tone.

Lapis’ eyes narrowed slightly.

‘Sir Dantalian, may I ask how many monsters you have in your dungeon?’

‘……One.’

Lapis’ temperament changed. I hastily added to my sentence.

‘No. I mean, I also have a goblin.’

There was no change in the other party’s face. It was impassive.

Except, it felt as if the calm and still aura that was surrounding Lapis had changed into a viscous one for some reason. Ah, since she’s also a demon, is she considered a monster as well? It wasn’t the same as how it was with the golem and the goblin, but a certain degree of her emotions was transmitted to me.

‘Excuse me. I believe that I heard a single monster and not an entire unit. Did I hear correctly?’

‘Y-Yes.”

Before I knew it, I started to speak formally.

‘May I ask what type of monster it is?’

‘A lowest-tier golem.’

Woosh.

A needlessly cold gust of wind blew past.

‘I apologize, Sir Dantalian. This may be discourteous of me, but I have no other choice but to say this.’

‘Go ahead…….’

‘This is the first time in my short demon life that I’ve seen such an ungainly dungeon.’

I sincerely thought the same as well.

I found a useful service, but I didn’t have enough money to buy anything. Fortunately, the Keuncuska Firm seemed to also purchase products. They took care of the equipment and other things which Demon Lords would often take from adventurers. If I play my cards right, I might be able to make a profit.

The problem was that I didn’t have anything to sell.

Lapis thought for a second after hearing about my situation.

‘You have no other choice but to extract ores.’

She suggested.

The places where Demon Lords set their dungeons up are, if I use a term from my original world, propitious spots. They’re overflowing with mana, so the ores are sometimes enchanted with magic. Thus, ores infused with mana sell for a relatively high price.

For a Demon Lord to swing a pickaxe, this was literally the lowest one could get.

But what am I supposed to do? I had no other immediate way to make money. I heeded Lapis’ advice and hired a goblin before spending the next half month digging tunnels endlessly.

“How many ores will you be selling today?”

“Fifty-six iron ores.”

I answered after putting together the ores the goblin had mined as well. Lapis let out a small breath. I realized a few days ago that that was the constantly impassive Lapis’ unique way of sighing.

“Sir Dantalian, as you know already, iron ores are the lowest-tier ores. No matter how much mana is infused in them, I cannot offer you a high price.”

That’s right. Iron ores had as little value as pureed soybean soup. However, I also had an excuse. What am I supposed to when my mining level was so low that only iron ores came out?! In the first place, the very fact that a Demon Lord had the mining skill was weird.

“I wish to tell you that my recent business performance is the lowest in our company.”

“Fufufu.”

I chuckled. Lapis tilted her head.

Girl, if you thought that I would stay as a Demon Lord that’s only a nuisance to you, then you’re wrong!

“I knew it would be like this, so I prepared a secret weapon.”

I pulled out an ore while imitating fanfare. It was an ore that emitted a golden glint.

“Behold! Gold! What do you think? If it’s this, then it isn’t that bad, right?”

“……Hm.”

Was this able to surprise even the eternally impassive girl? She let out a ‘Hm’ of awe. A whole ‘Hm’. She received the gold ore from me and examined it carefully.

I managed to mine gold by pure chance. As I was on my way to dig while freeing myself from all ideas and thoughts, I noticed something yellow out of the corner of my eye. Amazing! I let out a cry of joy and immediately mined the gold.

I felt like Spring had finally come to my demon life. Despite having mined and sold iron ores for the past 15 days, I couldn’t even make 10 gold. A gold ore infused with mana should go for at least 100 gold.

“Lapis, there’s no need for you to be overly grateful. If it weren’t for your suggestion, then I would have never discovered this gold. This is all thanks to you.”

“…….”

“I only feel genuine gratitude towards you. It’s not something to boast about, but I truly have nothing. It’s not like I became a Demon Lord because I wanted to.”

While I was going on and on, Lapis was silently scratching the wall of the cave with the gold ore.

“My dungeon only has a golem and a goblin, so I don’t have anyone to talk to. Ah, of course, the golem and the golem are good kids. They listen to me well and they don’t complain despite living in such a shabby home. Truly…….”

“Sir Dantalian, this is not gold.”

“they’re so kin…… Pardon?”

Lapis looked at me calmly while holding the ore in one hand.

I blinked.

“Eh?”

“This is pyrite. It is often mistaken for gold because they look similar on the outside. It is also known as Fool’s Gold. I am uncertain as to whether you know this or not, but the way to distinguish ores which have a similar color on the outside is to scratch a surface with them.”

She showed me the residue that came out from scratching the wall with the ore. The residue was black.

“People refer to this color that comes out after scratching an unweathered surface with a mineral as ‘streak color’. Native gold, pyrite, and copper pyrite all give off a similar color, but their respective streak colors are gold, black, and murky green. This is pyrite.”

“…….”

I plunged into a depthless pool of embarrassment.

“T-Then, how much will it sell for?”

“I can only say that it will not reach anywhere near Sir Dantalian’s original expectation.”

I fell to my knees in despair.

“A-And here I thought things were getting a little better…….”

“Fifty-six iron ores. One pyrite ore.”

Lapis acted as if nothing had happened and cold-heartedly used an abacus.

“The total will be 2 gold.”

“Uuuah…….”

“Thank you for doing business with the Keuncuska Firm.”

“Kuuuaaah…….”

A Demon Lord like myself managed to make only 2 gold after working all day. Tears blocked my vision.

I heard Lapis’ calm voice above me.

“I fully recognize Your Highness Dantalian’s enthusiasm towards myself; however, I would be happier if you were able to provide more of a profit for our business.”

Guuaaack!

I rolled around on the floor for a while due to my embarrassment.

***

Author’s Afterword

The Keuncuska Firm is a parody of the Gyungyuska Firm from <Nest Making Dragon>. This story received a lot of influence from Nest Making Dragon.

***

TL note: Thanks for reading the chapter. I appreciate the number of you who waited patiently for this release. I mentioned in the last two chapters that my university classes were starting again and that I would also resume the translations for Handholding, but people ignored that and kept asking when the next release would be. Don’t worry guys, I haven’t been slacking. I’ve actually finished Chapter 0 and Chapter 1 for the 4th volume of Handholding, which is 4 times longer than this chapter when put together. I’m still waiting patiently for the scans before I release them, so I hope that you guys will bear with me as well. Hopefully, I’ll be able to publish them within the next few days.

In any case, see you guys in the next release.