Chapter 188.1

188 – Onwards! To the Original Dungeon! (Part 1)

「Pardon the intrusion.」

Heading into the living room, Fellow ran into Milla.

「Lem, isn’t that…」

「This is Fellow, the organizer of the Tag Tournament that I entered previously. This is Milla, she’s…a friend of mine.」

There’s no way I can leak out the fact that she’s one of the Big Four of the Demon King Castle, so I give a vague introduction.

「Ah, Miss Carmilla. Thank you very much for helping with my daughter.」

Milla and I were surprised.

Seeing our reaction, he smiles.

「I know about what goes in my daughter’s workplace at the very least. I am her father, after all.」

If you think about it, it isn’t strange that he is able to attain information from the Demon King Castle even now.

The Monsters of the Demon King Castle respect her Highness, but it isn’t as if it is full of nothing but Monsters that she had found.

For example, Monsters like the giant shark Demi-Beast, the Sea Monster Forneus, have been around since my master’s reign.

So of course, there has to be those that were from Fellow’s reign, as well as those who feel that they owe him a debt of gratitude.

They may not be able to cooperate with him on his goal to eliminate Dungeon Clears, but…it’s not odd for them to at least talk to each other.

Of course, it’s possible that there is no inside informant at all and Fellow is simply using his personal connections to attain information.

You could say that Monsters in a Dungeon are like employees in a company. They keep a record of them. While such things may not be easily disclosed, Fellow is the type of Majin who would dig up such information even if it is difficult.

「…I am fairly sure that her Highness had banned entry to Demon King Castle-related facilities.」

Milla pointed a harsh gaze at him.

「Ahaha…you have the right of it. I asked the staff if I could get in touch with my daughter, but I was ignored, so I tried to speak with her directly by visiting the Demon King Castle, but my Registration Card was disabled, and no one would talk to me.」

「Not only did you throw your Dungeon aside, but you are also working to abolish Dungeon Clears, so isn’t it obvious why?」

「That is harsh. But alas, this is neither the time nor place to discuss that, so I shall continue with the topic at hand. With my heart heavy with sadness over not being able to meet my own daughter, I thought long and hard. I looked for dormitories that are suitable for Normals to live in, and lo and behold, I sensed Sir Lem’s Magical Energy signature in this very building.」

……Hmm?

My Magical Energy signature? That isn’t something that can be easily identified.

There was that time a while ago when Fenix found my inn by following my signature, but we’ve been best friends for ten years, so I can accept that. …Scratch that, it’s still pretty far from normal.

It’s possible…that he can sense the Magical Energy in my horn.

If so, then it’s the Magical Energy of his father. There’s no mistaking it.

The ability to sense Magical Energy differs greatly from person to person, but Majins are generally excellent at it.

「Wha-… Not even I can tell apart Lem’s Magical Energy signature yet…!」

Says Milla, frustrated about the wrong thing.

It can be said that discerning the sizes of signatures and determining an individual’s signature are two different skills. As different as the sense of sight is from the sense of hearing. Probably.

Besides, I suppress my Magical Energy signature, which should make it even harder to sniff out.

The world may be wide, but finding my location by my Magical Energy alone among everyone in the whole town seems like something that only Fenix and Fellow could do.

「Uhm…we have to start getting ready for a journey, so could we please get to the point.」

He sat down on the living room chair and I sat opposite him.

Milla was a little reluctant at first, but she eventually said that she would make some tea and headed into the kitchen.

「First off, how much do you know about Original Dungeons, Lem?」

「A Dungeon that is created from the whims of a Spirit who has chanced upon a natural reservoir of Magical Energy. Due to the instability of its structure and lack of a Core, it will naturally disappear after a set amount of time. In the same fashion, due to there not being a Core, Magical Energy or items created from which within the Dungeon can be taken out, and how the Spirit can grant the favor of whoever traverses the Dungeon to reach it.」

「A splendid answer. Monsters will appear as well, but these are not living things, rather they are imitations created by the Spirit. You could say that they are Avatars without a real body.」

「Right.」

An easy-to-understand explanation, which Fellow probably already knows, is that the opposite is true.

You could say that Avatar technology has its roots in imitating the way in which the Spirit creates imitations of living things using Magical Energy.

「Due to the nature of Original Dungeons, they must not become the target of modern-day Hero parties. To be more precise, they must not become entertainment for mankind.」

There are many reasons for that, the first being that the safety of all cannot be guaranteed. The Dungeon’s structure is unstable and could disappear at any time. If it was an underground labyrinth, the worst-case scenario would be that the Dungeon disappears and you’re buried alive…anything could happen. There aren’t any cameras or microphones, not even cocoons to transfer your consciousness to your Avatar.

Therefore, instead of Hero parties challenging it, an organization that can ensure its safety goes to investigate.

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「It’s carried out by the national government, right? In the email from my parents, they mentioned that people have come and sealed off the surrounding area.」

This is why I wish to head down there as fast as possible to reassure them, so I want to finish packing.

「To be precise, this country does not have such an organization that Clears Original Dungeons. There are too few occurrences of such Dungeons to warrant establishing such a specialized agency. Most of the time, they entrust it to the Union and partnered organizations. This way, Adventurers can also be used. The Knights Order might make a move as well, but that is extremely rare.」

「I see… Uhm, if I may…how should I put this?」

「Yes?」

Fellow is smiling.

「About the partnered organizations you mentioned…is that where you come in?」

「I expected no less from you, Sir Lem. Your mind is as sharp as a tack.」

「Not at all… If you think about everything that has happened so far, it’s not difficult.」

「A dim person would not have noticed.」

「…Then, I suppose I’m not dim.」

「Such a modest individual.」

At that moment, a sullen-looking Milla brought the tea.

Fellow smiled.

「Thank you very much.」

「Your welcome.」

「…Oho. Not only is she beautiful, but she can brew such delicious tea. Sir Lem has been blessed with a most wonderful partner.」

「I-if you say it like that, I…」

Milla couldn’t help but smile.

Regaining her sullenness, she sits next to me.

「I have been listening to the conversation. Please continue.」

「As Sir Lem pointed out, the national government has commissioned a separate company to conduct a joint investigation. This is likely thanks to my father. As Sir Lem most assuredly knows, he has taken up residence near that village.」

…Ah, so he found my master.

When he noticed the connection between my master and me, it probably wasn’t difficult to put two and two together.

「Did my master contact you?」

「Yes. That’s why I was able to appeal to the national government as soon as possible. Have you heard anything from him, Sir Lem?」

Hm. He hasn’t contacted me at all. Or rather, he never replies to my messages to him.

「No, nothing at all.」

「He most likely did not wish to disturb you. When I visited him a while ago, I saw a mountain of letters from you upon his desk. Of course, they were all opened.」

So he reads them…

「Also, he watched the Tournament.」

…He watched it.

Those simple acts alone were enough to make me happy.

「Is…that so? What were the contents of master’s letter?」

「It simply read “A Dungeon has appeared, deal with it.” By the way, all attempts at communication I had made since then were ignored.」

That is really, really like my master. It is so like him that I want to add one more really.

「If that’s the case, master probably isn’t there anymore.」　

If it turns into an investigation of an Original Dungeon, it will be a pretty large-scale operation that will include some powerful people.

There will bound to be people who notice the Magical Energy signature of someone like my master even if he were hiding it.

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「Indeed, it appears that he is not in that neighborhood anymore. His house is gone, and that’s not all, even the plot of land where it stood has become a part of the forest.」

He didn’t just destroy the house, he grew the surrounding trees to make it look as if nothing was ever there and covered his tracks. My master should be able to do something like this. He is an all-round person who can use any element.

「Uhm, I believe you are here to ask Lem for help with the investigation, yes?」

Said Milla, impatiently.

「That is correct, Miss Milla. But you must be wondering as to why? Considering that there is already an investigation team.」