Man of Dungeon

On a certain day in May 2043,

The world has been taken over by AI for more than four years now.

Nihon's famous spots became dungeons, fictional creatures appeared, and the world was being rewritten into a fantasy RPG [Real Fantasy], which was becoming a daily occurrence for people at the earliest.

◇

Spruce -

At the Bunkyo Edo Dungeon--

Formerly a Japanese cultural garden, this place has now also become a dungeon where monsters roam.

However, there are many dungeons that model the past somewhere, and this dungeon retained the taste of Japanese gardens.

Master! Good job!

"Oh... thank you, Sara"

Inside such a dungeon, the voice of a slurping girl echoes, and my uncle, who was nearby, reacts with a vague voice.

The girl has slightly brownish skin and silver hair up to the shoulder position. And there are two horns on the head like goats.

It's called "Sarah."

Although it had a cute look, it was actually a monster, and in its current rank, it was also the boss that crowned the second rank of the Great Demon King.

Such a monster girl has the distinct characteristic of being the self-proclaimed servant of his uncle as described later.

Meanwhile, the middle-aged man was named "Zisan". It is a middle-aged man who does not seem to have any special features, but he unintentionally succeeded in the early start dash of the game. The level is the highest class among all players, and has the unique characteristic of forming a party with a monster girl of the rank of Great Demon King as mentioned above.

"Master, are you really here?" "Spring."

"For the time being, according to NVC..."

"That guy from NVC... I can't trust him..."

"Is that so...?"

Their purpose today was to acquire a spirit monster called "Spring".

It is said that Spring is the corner of the spirit monsters that have ten bodies, and it is a monster that can use "spirit water magic".

Spirit monsters are provided with information on where they appear in various parts of the country, and Spring said that the cane here can be obtained from the beetle.

However, it is extremely difficult to find a spirit monster that exists only in this world with that much information, even if it is just a punkey.

Therefore, Jisun was a bad person, and she asked NVC, the receptionist at the Quest Brokerage Office, to provide information.

"Bunkyo Edo Dungeon" Toyodungeon Dungeon Specific Conditions: Dekiruyodezu "

Then, with such a slightly deliberate one-sided phrase, he unexpectedly taught me a specific dungeon.

Unexpectedly fortunate, Uncle quickly stepped into the corresponding dungeon in a tingly mood and continues to this day.

I'm currently exploring for about an hour, but I don't have any particular results. It is such a situation.

(... oh?)

And then Zisan stops looking at something with a wipe.

(...... child? Alone in this place.....?)

A corner of the garden dungeon. A space that looks like a rest area with a wooden roof and several benches.

There was a boy sitting there by himself, presumably about ten years old.

"... Master, is that the one who's lost?"

"Hmmm..."

There wasn't much of a rush for that, but somewhere it seemed to be frightening and frizzy.

Normally, Zisan would not be involved even if there were other players, but one of the children wondered if it was dangerous for the stone, and decided to get close to it.

What are you doing? It's dangerous to come alone with children.

Instead of Zisan, who doesn't like talking to people, Sarah calls out to the boy.

"... yes, that's right. But there aren't too many strong monsters around here....."

The boy turns to Zisan and the others when he is called, and answers for a moment.

"What's your name...? What's your family...?"

"Rik... oniichan is alone..."

(Oniichan alone...? Ah, no, uh... I didn't hear about the family structure...)

"Well, it's dangerous to be alone anyway." I'll give you this. "

Jisun hands the dungeon escape item, the Dungeon Escape, to a boy named Rik.

"... oh, thank you. But I come here often, but there really aren't many monsters around here..."

(... more often? I don't think it's a good dungeon...)

By the way, Gisan thought that it might not make much sense to go home today.

This game is not necessarily weak because it is a child in the first place.

"Uncle, you seem like a good person, so I'll tell you."

"Huh...?"

That way, the boy displays his own display in the space and shows you the map.

"There is an entrance to the basement around here." There are strong fixed symbol monsters there, so it's better to stay away from them. "

"Fixed symbol monster...!?"

"What!? What's the matter, Uncle..."

"No, no..."

Zissan's reaction to the word Fixed Symbol Monster was unexpected and stronger, and the boy shrugged slightly.

"Ah, thank you, Riku-kun... be careful... be careful"

"Um, yeah..."

◇

After breaking up with the boy, Zisan and the others gladly headed to the point based on the advice of a boy named Riku.

To put it simply, Zissan, a monster collector, is invisible to rare monsters.

Fixed symbol monsters were more likely to be special monsters and were a very attractive source of information for him.

"This is the road we passed once... I wonder if there was an entrance to the basement..."

"That's right... hmmm..."

The two of them glanced at each other.

"Ah, Master... here...!"

"Whoa...!"

Looking carefully, there was indeed a staircase leading down to the basement, behind the trees.

◇

===============================

Hakamori Golem Rank J

===============================

"Was it rank J...?"

They defeated a monster called Hakamori Golem who was waiting down the stairs and tamed it.

You can tame a monster by defeating it using the special weapon "Tam Weapon".

The rank of the monster represents its strength, starting with A and increasing like B, C...

Even in Rank J, considering that the rank of the monster on the ground in this dungeon was about B to D, it would be much higher. That is the high level of accidents.

(ABCDEFGHI [J] KLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ)

However, in a special dungeon called the "Cascade Exterior Underground Dungeon" where they usually dived, it was not uncommon to fight around Rank O, P, and Q, and for both of them, it was not a difficult enemy.

It should be noted that Sara is rank S. (The ranks of Great Demon King as the boss and Tame Monster are treated differently)

By the way, Sarah is not tamed, but prefers to party with her uncle.

Certain ranks of monsters have special privileges that allow them to become like players: playable privileges.

But it's just a fixed symbol, it's Tame's first monster.

In contrast to Sarah, who had a flirtatious appearance in rank J, my uncle had a flabbergasted face.

Monster Rank and Difficulty are not always linked.

The monster atlas was filled up again. This fact alone pleased my uncle.

Awesome!

Huh!?

Suddenly, a third party admires Zissan and the others as his uncle flirts.

The two turned their gaze toward the voice, and there was a boy staring at Zisan and the others with very glittering eyes.

"Ah, just now...? You can't follow me..."

Huh? Just now?

"Master, if you look closely, it doesn't look like the child before." She looks a little young. ”

(Nh...?)

Indeed, looking closely, it was a different boy than the one just now, and he looked about eight years younger than two or three years old.

"Even so, uncles, you're strong!" How dare you defeat that Hakamori Golem! "

"Huh...? I-I see..."

And maybe you're a tamer?

"Eh, yeah..."

……

Her personality was brighter than that of the boy before, and Jisan thought she'd come.

"Wow, Tamer, that's amazing!" Well, maybe it's just the right time! I know a secret labyrinth where there might be some super rare monsters! Shall I show you around? "

"Eh, ultra rare...!?"

"Master...!"

"Ah, yeah..."

I inadvertently reacted to the word "ultra-rare", but as if I was shyly embarrassed by Sarah, when I think calmly, I am sure that a child as or less than the child before me. Zissan thinks it would be... to take her to a dangerous place.

"But...."

"It's all right, Uncle! Don't judge people by their appearance. And I'm a dungeon scientist."

Eh, a dungeon researcher?

Yes! If you guys are strong enough to follow me, right?

"Hmmm..."

(... it's true that children are stronger in this game...)

"Come on, let's go!" Please follow me! "

"Ah....."

The boy does not wait for a formal answer, and he walks out with a half-start.

◇

"Look, there's a hidden door here."

"Ohh..."

Not far from the room where Hakamori Golem was, there was certainly a hidden door that I would have missed if it were normal.

Beyond that.

(...... it's not a trap in a boulder, is it?)

Zisan is a little nervous about the mysterious situation where a child knows a place like this.

"Kid...... isn't it a trap or something?"

"Huh...!?"

Sarah suddenly confirmed that she was thinking the same thing, with a voice that lowered her tone more than usual.

"No, that's not it..."

The boy answered the question in a sudden girl's voice with a slight impatient expression.

"Well, even if it were a trap, even if it wasn't enough for Master and me... I can't do the child's pranks anymore." I wonder if you're ready for it. "

“Please, believe me. It's really not a trap...!"

The boy suddenly answers desperately.

"Huh..."

"Sara..."

"Y-Yes...!"

Well, that's fine, isn't it?

"I understand...!" If that's what the master says...! "

……

The boy breathes in relief and walks out again.

Then the two of them proceeded to the hidden passage guided by the boy.

◇

"Look, there it is...!"

(Sigh...?)

Even though the boy pointed underground, it was like a big hollow.

(Mmm...?)

"This way, this way..."

And then move to a place where you can peek into the cavity.

"Ohh..."

When I peered into the cavity from above, there was a Japanese-style wooden hut without a roof, and it was regularly lined up like a basket.

"Something like this is underground..."

Yes, the rooms are 14 by 21, side by side.

"Um, um..."

(Sure enough, that's about it... er... multiplication...)

……

(Yeah... well, I don't care...)

It's 294.

"Come on, let's go down the stairs there."

"Huh...?"

That's where super rare monsters come out.

"Ah!?"

◇

"... it's kind of creepy, isn't it?"

Sarah muttered anxiously in a room lined up like a ribbon brought by a boy.

(Sure enough....)

The dimness in the dungeon was accompanied by a Japanese-style atmosphere, which was a bit of a spiritual space.

Hahaha, I think it's okay.

"What are you laughing at!"

Sarah shall be Punska.

"Excuse me... but... once upon a time... my child became a game over in this dungeon..."

"Eh......"

"Somehow that ghost will emerge..."

"Ugh...!"

Sarah suddenly loses her words.

”Whatever it is, the child was the last to accompany the party, and there was something... it's the spiritual one in the ground.”

"Master, maybe that boy named Riku..."

(Nh...? Ahh... it was definitely a fluffy atmosphere and there were no feet on the ground...)

”Fufu, do you have any idea?”

"Master, I kind of..."

Sarah clings to the shadow of Zisan, and strips her clothes.

(... is the Great Demon King also afraid of ghosts?)

Bo......

"Wow, what!?"

"Oh, I'm sorry."

It was the sound of the boy lighting (both) a lantern in the middle of the room.

”Totally... what are you doing all of a sudden?”

"I thought I was scared, so I turned on the light..."

"I-I 'm scared..."

"I'm just kidding... there, there..."

The boy points at something.

"Giaaaaaa!!"

Something vague appeared, and Sarah was blindfolded.

"Sara, calm down... it's a monster..."

Huh?

"That's right, this is the way to lure rare monsters..."

"...... I... you..."

Sarah bit her lips in embarrassment.

"Spirits monster... it's definitely rare..."

Fluffy like a ball of fire... somehow the tension of Zissan rises to a loose-faced monster.

===============================

Inisier Spirits Rank I

===============================

◇

Moving to the next room and lighting the lantern, the monster appeared again.

===============================

Inisier Spirits Rank I

===============================

"It was the same monster again." Now let's change the place a little bit. ”

"That's right..."

The boy then passes through several rooms, moves to another room, and lights the lantern again.

===============================

Harakiri Goblin Rank J

===============================

"Ohh..."

(Another new monster... it's quite a harvest...)

How about that?

The boy asks Zisan.

It certainly feels like there are a lot of rare monsters.

"I'm glad about that. Now, let's go.”

"Hmm...!"

◇

After that, they lit lanterns and fought monsters over and over again.

Lighting several adjacent lanterns, the boy occasionally stops and thinks about something, then moves to a room a little further away, repeating that he lights the fire again.

“But why would you show us around?”

"Eh..."

Along the way, Zisan wonders and asks the boy, as he sometimes travels to a room close to ten rooms apart.

"Um... I see."

(Nh...?)

The boy leans down and often silences himself to think of something.

"Ji, actually, there's something behind it."

"Huh!?"

"You... after all..."

Ah, but don't worry.

"What do you want me to be safe with?"

"Well, uh, there's definitely something behind it, but it's not something that would cause trouble for the two of you..."

"Hah!?... hah!?"

Sarah looked confused, not knowing if she should be surprised or angry.

"Well, well... Sara... I'm not sure, but we have mutual benefits..."

"Yes, yes..."

◇

After that, I continued my quirky search by lighting lanterns, and I noticed that there were more than fifty monsters that I had tamed.

"How much would you like to keep for today..."

"Huh!? That's right..."

Gisan responds a bit unfortunately to the boy's proposal to withdraw.

"Eh, even if you tame fifty bodies, are you still not enough, uncle..."

"Um... well..."

(Does the vital spirit monster "Spring" have anything to do with this?)

Gisan thought vaguely that if he turned on the lights in all the rooms, he might not do that kind of thing.

Even though the fifty bodies were tamed, from all rooms, it was still about 1/6, and Jisan, who was a lava rock, thought that it was the limit to take the boy around. but instead of taking the boy around, he was taken around.....

Well then, let's do it for the last time.

"Ah... yeah"

"Fufufu..."

Today, the boy recalls standing in front of the lantern in the last room.

"Finally...... I'm glad you guys followed me...... obediently... thanks to you, I was able to fulfill my purpose......"

Having said that, the boy smiles mischievously.

"Ah!?"

(...... I can't believe it...... something is still happening......)

The boy lights up the lantern at that moment.

"Uncle...... thank you......"

"Eh......?"

"I... can't get out of the basement of this dungeon..."

"Huh...!?"

That said, the boy disappeared from the scene.

I didn't leave. It really disappeared.

(Eh...? Eh...? Eh...?)

"Well, Master...... Could it be...... this one......"

”Jeez, gjiq3jfaaa”

The two of them shrugged and turned pale.

◇

Well, Master... are you okay?

"Ah, ahh... it's okay..."

It was Zisan, whose liver was chilled, but managed to climb the stairs to reach the upper part of the cavity.

By giving the dungeon escape item "Dungeon Escape" to a boy named Rik, he just ran out and had to walk back to the dungeon entrance.

"Phew..."

Jisun takes a breath away from me.

(...... but after all, what was his purpose......)

I suddenly think of such a thing. At that time.....

"Hey, Master... that..."

"Huh...?!?"

Sarah looks down at the shed, lined up like a croissant they were exploring.

Then, the room lit by the lantern glowed vaguely.

"Sarah...... I'm sure that boy said that the party he was with at the end had some mistakes......"

"... yes"

"...... Well then, I'll have to find that boy......"

"... yes!"

Rikkinisuruna

◇

"...... Brother Hal......"

A boy named Rik cries when he sees the message reflected by the lantern.....

(... elder brother...?)

And Zisan and the others returned to the earth, and for two days they ambushed, and found Rik, who appeared in the dungeon.

It was a boy I didn't believe in at first, but when I told him about his appearance, he followed me with suspicion.

"Three years ago... I was six years old, and Hal's brother was eight years old..."

……

"That day... if only I hadn't found the stairs leading to this basement... oniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis

"Ah!?"

Perhaps emotions exploded, and the boy clung to Zisan, who was nearby.

Gisan bounces a little when things don't usually go well.

…………

But I'll stroke the boy's head with awkwardness.

At that time, the lantern lights that had been there for two days were shaking and vanishing.

I'm sure Hal really wanted to tell you that....

Was it really a ghost?

Maybe it's a fantasy (program) created by AI.

Then leave him over the game... and feel like he's a terrible selfie.

Still...

I wonder if Hal's cultivation has cleared up somewhat.

It was Zisan who felt that way.

[Spirit Monster: "Spring" Received]

It was not until some time later that he noticed that a pop-up had occurred on the display.