The long conversation continued, but….
In the end, I failed to stop Ragner from entering the dungeon.
However, it wasn’t a complete loss.
He entered the dungeon not as a challenger, but as a visitor.
“Now that I’ve confirmed there’s a dungeon near the village, I can’t simply leave it be as an adventurer. I need to see for myself whether this place will be a threat, or whether we can coexist in an unspoken symbiosis.”
How troublesome.
In the end, I couldn’t stop Ragner, who refused to back down until he had inspected the dungeon himself.
“You’re really just going to look and leave. Absolutely no combat!”
“Yes, as long as there’s no threat, I won’t be the first to draw my sword.”
Did that mean he would attack without hesitation if he found a threatening element…?
I couldn’t just stand by and watch the employees I had worked so hard to hire get cut down before my eyes.
These were monsters who had barely tasted their first victory and were just regaining their confidence.
They had only just begun to escape their sense of defeat—if they suffered another overwhelming loss here, their morale would clearly crumble. And how difficult is it to raise the morale of employees once it’s been crushed?
“They’re all so good-natured. They listen well too….”
“Monsters are good-natured….”
I praised my precious employees enthusiastically as I gave the visitors a tour of the dungeon.
“It really is… an empty dungeon. Was it created recently? Even so, it’s far too….”
Ragner, having looked around the lobby, gave his first assessment in a calm tone.
His evaluation pierced my chest like a dagger.
Someday, without fail, I will make this a dungeon so great that no one can ignore it…!
“Brother, my wooden sword!”
“Ah, by any chance, was there a lost item in the dungeon?”
“Haha, a lost item. Yes, ah… just a moment. Stay right there. Don’t move.”
I earnestly begged them not to leave the lobby, then stood before the first gate.
First, I took off my glasses.
Knocking on the door, I urgently called toward the inside.
“It’s me. It’s the manager! Not a challenger!”
When I carefully opened the door, the monsters who had been posing to threaten a challenger greeted me in awkward stances. I waved my hands frantically, signaling them to stand down.
Even in the midst of that, I tried not to take my eyes off Ragner in case he changed his mind.
His half-lidded, cold eyes were staring intently at this place. Eek….
“A, a lost item report came in! The wooden swords the previous challengers left behind, right?”
“My friend’s too!”
“Two of them. Two wooden swords.”
I pointed to the two skeletons who had received the wooden swords. Then I whispered in a voice too small to reach the lobby.
“I’m really sorry for giving them and then taking them back. Next time, I’ll definitely prepare better weapons for you. So… could you please return the lost items?”
“We are prepared to follow any command you give, Manager. Clatter. You don’t need to apologize.”
They readily handed the wooden swords back to me. I felt so sorry that my heart was about to tear apart.
“Ahaha, it turns out our employees were keeping the lost items. Here you go.”
I put my glasses back on and handed the wooden sword to Teon.
“It looks a bit damaged, though?”
“What are you talking about? It was in that condition from the start.”
Teon, receiving the wooden sword, grumbled as he examined it closely here and there.
“You found it, so shouldn’t you say thank you?”
“Thank youuu.”
“No, it was only natural.”
I forced a smile and looked at Ragner.
“Now… is everything you came for done? As you can see, the monsters here are very gentle, and they listen to me well. Not threatening at all. Right?”
Ragner silently looked at me, then slowly shifted his gaze to the gate behind me. His chilling eyes lingered quietly, as if piercing through to the other side of the gate.
His silence sent cold sweat running down my back.
He wasn’t thinking about sweeping them all away right now, was he?
“Understood. I’ll leave it as it is for now.”
“Phew….”
“If all the monsters in the dungeon are at that level, I could clean them up at any time.”
I clenched my fist tightly.
I had barely saved a company that was about to go under overnight!
“By the way, are you really all right?”
“Pardon?”
He raised a hand and tapped at the area around his eyes.
Not knowing what that gesture meant, I unconsciously mimicked it, and my fingertips caught on my glasses.
Don’t tell me… he noticed that I have trouble looking at monsters with the naked eye?
“Yes, I’m really fine. I’m happy and content!”
As long as you just leave this place right now.
“…Understood.”
“Now, the tour is over. I’m sorry, but I can’t attend to visitors for long right now since it’s working hours.”
As I pushed at their backs, Ragner moved his feet out of the dungeon as if conceding. Once outside, he quietly opened his mouth.
“You should keep the contract between you and the Demon King as hidden as possible. It would be best not to carelessly expose yourself staying in the dungeon either. Especially to the temple. Otherwise, you’ll be branded a heretic and executed.”
A chill ran down my spine for a moment.
Ah, I really have gotten myself into a terrible situation.
“Yes, yes, I’ll be careful. You’ll keep it a secret too, right? You said you’d cooperate.”
He had only said he would leave it alone for now, not that he would cooperate, but I decided to push my luck anyway.
To that, Ragner spoke in a languid voice, saying something chilling.
“Normally, I should have taken you straight to the temple the moment I heard your circumstances.”
“…….”
“But since I didn’t, I too have incurred the sin of overlooking a heretic. I don’t want to be punished, so I won’t reveal the secret.”
“Thank you….”
He had almost ruined my job overnight, but maybe he was actually a fairly decent person?
“I’ll manage things here on my own, so you don’t need to worry at all. Ah, if it’s beginner adventurers who are just starting out, I’d appreciate it if you could subtly spread some information about the dungeon. Only truly weak adventurers! We’ll go easy on them too.”
“Beginner adventurers….”
“Yes, I’d like to ask you a favor. Goodbye then!”
Please, let’s not see each other for a long, long time!
Just as I was thinking I wanted to sprinkle salt all over the front of the dungeon once they left.
Ragner rolled his eyes and said something unexpected.
“How would you like me to invite you to the village?”
“…Pardon?”
“Oh! Sister, want to come visit our village? It’s a really nice village!”
He had just been calling me a heretic moments ago, and he knew I was on the monsters’ side—yet he was inviting me to the village?
“Didn’t you say you needed beginner adventurers? You’ll find good opportunities in the village.”
Good opportunities?
“And rather than staying with monsters all the time, wouldn’t it be good to spend some time with fellow humans for a change of pace? If you hide your circumstances, you’ll just look like an ordinary outsider.”
I hesitated. That was true, but.
I still hadn’t gotten used to the monsters’ vicious faces, so taking my glasses on and off all the time was a bit inconvenient.
“Don’t you try to lure our Chihuahua away! You’re trying to coax her like that and take our innocent girl away, aren’t you? If our Chihuahua isn’t here, the dungeon is doomed!”
Brownie, who had been too afraid of Ragner to come out of my hair the whole time, suddenly popped out in indignation.
“Chihuahua, don’t be fooled! That one’s insides are completely black!”
“I have no ill intentions.”
“Lies. You’re pretending to be nice, but you’re obviously going to sell her to the temple!”
“Then why don’t you come along as well? If you’re traveling with a fairy, they’ll think you’re an ordinary spirit summoner. It’s a place traveling adventurers often visit too.”
At those words, my ears perked up.
“Brownie too?”
“Th, this…! You’re going to sell me too! A cruel, bloodless bastard! More vicious than a monster!”
But Brownie is a household fairy and can’t leave the dungeon, isn’t that right?
Ah, come to think of it….
“I worked hard collecting coins people dropped. I held back from buying candy too, so please use it sparingly.”
Seeing how it collected coins and brought cleaning tools from the garbage dump, it seemed Brownie could at least travel to the village near the dungeon.
I adjusted my glasses. I could feel my wary heart slowly stirring.
If it was just a short trip out with Brownie, wouldn’t it be all right?
I was also a little curious about how the people of this world lived….
“What exactly are these good opportunities?”
“Perhaps we can make it so that beginner adventurers visit the dungeon regularly.”
At those words, Brownie, who had been huffing the whole time, stopped moving abruptly.
“Really?”
It looked at Ragner with sparkling eyes.
“Of course, I’ll only arrange the opportunity—the rest depends on you, Choi.”
If done well, it meant we could attract a steady stream of customers to the dungeon?
It was a fairly tempting offer.
