A clacking sound –
The sound of bones hitting each other was heard from beside me.
“Ah, yeah… Thanks?”
In the game, no, wait.
It was reality existing within a smartphone disguised as a game.
A Skeleton Soldier emerged from that reality.
Currently, it took a drink from the refrigerator and handed it to me.
Then, it started mopping the floor of the room again.
I originally intended to send it back because it was too conspicuous at first.
—The Altar’s level is too low. Please upgrade the Altar.
This was impossible with the Altar’s current low level.
—Cannot upgrade the Altar.
—Altar-related upgrades are not unlocked.
Since it wasn’t the situation to upgrade the Altar, there was no way to send it back.
Fortunately, the Skeleton Soldier was very polite.
It obeyed all my commands perfectly.
Even now, it not only cleans the house but also brings me drinks without me having to move, I wonder if there’s any need to send it back.
“Can you bring more?”
Curiosity briefly sparked.
—The Altar’s level is too low. Please upgrade the Altar.
“Tsk.”
It’s no good when I try to do anything.
While drinking the beverage the Skeleton Soldier handed me, I started to focus on my smartphone.
My objective was, of course, to check if my dungeon was running well.
The game logo appeared on the screen.
As I touched the screen, the first thing I focused on was Celia.
“It’s definitely satisfying to see her in pretty clothes.”
I had spent quite a bit of money recently.
Through that real money purchase, the ‘General Goods Gacha’ system appeared.
I immediately spun the General Goods Gacha, and one of the items that came out was the outfit Celia was currently wearing.
The red dress made Celia’s charms stand out even more than her previous Maid Outfit.
It was an outright cheat.
Naturally, there was no one left to wear the Maid Outfit, so I was about to reclaim it, but Celia cautiously made a request.
—Subordinate Officer Celia earnestly requests this of Master.
The gist was whether she could be entrusted with the utilization of the Maid Outfit.
“Sure, do whatever you want, my Celia.”
My trust in her was already at MAX, what was this small request for?
I recalled that I had entrusted all authority regarding the Maid Outfit to Celia at that time.
I don’t know where it is now, but Celia will handle it.
I stopped paying attention and started looking at other things.
“But who is this person?”
There was someone I had never seen before in front of Celia, so I clicked on her.
“Aren?”
Her name appeared, but there was no detailed explanation.
It felt similar to the merchant who had visited my dungeon last time.
“She seems to have come from outside, like a merchant.”
Since she was talking with Celia at the moment, I decided not to disturb them.
I touched the screen to proceed to the next sector.
Sector 1, first.
As expected, the Death Knight caught my eye first.
With a large shield strapped to its back, it looked incredibly reliable.
And here too, there was someone I had never seen before.
“Who is this one again?”
I had seen the Dullahan before, but there was another being besides the Dullahan.
“Why is a Paladin here?”
Even more so, its actions were those of guarding the dungeon.
I thought for a moment about why a Paladin would be guarding a dungeon.
“Ah, it’s a Banshee.”
A Banshee’s ability is mind control.
It seemed one Paladin had fallen victim to the Banshee.
Normally, a Paladin wouldn’t be easily affected by a Banshee, but it seems the Banshee’s abilities are quite potent.
“At this rate, I should consider creating a separate Banshee unit.”
I’ll have to think about it after I check the gacha results later.
After checking Sector 1, I sequentially scanned the other sectors as well.
“Well, nothing seems particularly out of the ordinary.”
All the Goblins were inside their huts, so they weren’t clearly visible.
When the time comes, I’ll have to upgrade those huts too….
In Sector 3, flowers were blooming in a wide field.
Blood-sucking Butterflies were flying above them.
Including a spider ominously settled in a corner, there were no issues here either.
Sector 4 was also peaceful.
The Naga, newly acquired monsters, were not visible as they were in the water, and Goblins were sporadically fetching water.
“This should be fine for now.”
After all, I couldn’t purchase jewels yet.
I checked all the dungeon sectors and pressed the exit button.
Then, I handed the smartphone to the one beside me.
“Charge it.”
At my command, the waiting Skeleton Soldier plugged the smartphone into the charger.
‘Convenient.’
This is what I keep thinking, I don’t think there’s any need to send it back.
“Is there any way to utilize it?”
For instance, something like a dungeon.
“Hmm…”
Let’s think about it.
* * *
The interior of the Adventurer’s Guild was bustling with activity.
More precisely, the Adventurer’s Guild in the Sail Kingdom was in such a situation.
Despite the absence of the usual crowd of adventurers, the guild staff were moving frantically.
The reason was simple: an Inquisitor from the Church was scheduled to visit.
Recently, a Priest went missing. It happened in this Sail Kingdom.
For that reason, the White Church decided to dispatch an Inquisitor.
“Hurry and check. See if there are any dungeons that have had dealings with the Church recently, or any that have not been subjugated for a long time.”
The branch chief ran around, urging the staff.
Then someone responded to the branch chief’s urgency.
“Branch Chief!”
“Yes, what is it?”
“Look at this.”
He snatched the document found by the person and looked at its contents.
“Hmm…”
It was a dungeon that was previously of the same rank but had been downgraded to Iron Rank.
Recently, a Silver Rank adventurer had accepted a quest for that dungeon.
The problem was that there had been no contact since then.
“This might be…”
Normally, the Adventurer’s Guild would conduct its own investigation, but the situation was as it was.
The Inquisitors’ arrival was a matter of time.
At that point, most of the guild’s operations would have to focus on the Church.
“Smooth it over somehow. And raise the dungeon’s rank to Silver.”
“I will do so.”
Thus, the rank of the dungeon ‘Evil God’s Nest’ was decided again.
* * *
At the Underworld Merchant Guild, Moru’s performance was improving day by day.
Most people commented on it this way: it was the rebellion of a half-blood Succubus, who was at the very bottom of the guild.
And someone else was jealous of her soaring success: Jewel, Moru’s superior.
Moreover, Jewel herself was the one who assigned the dungeon that allowed Moru to rise.
Currently, Jewel was wracking her brain at her desk.
“Why did I give it to her!”
Jewel originally saw Moru as a thorn in her side.
Unlike pure Succubi, Moru was a half-blood Succubus with human blood, wasn’t she?
It was unpleasant to have a creature with impure blood working in the same space as her.
Then, a dungeon requested a transaction with the guild.
Except for a very small number, most dungeons could not be self-sufficient, so it was common for them to develop through the Underworld Merchant Guild.
Of course, for the guild, the most important thing was whether the dungeon possessed the financial capacity for transactions.
At that time, Jewel thought the dungeon that requested the transaction would not have much funds.
It was a newly emerged dungeon she had never seen before.
Therefore, she handed that dungeon over to Moru.
The meaning of a merchant taking charge of a dungeon in the guild was by no means small.
Once assigned, a dungeon could not be easily changed.
Exceptions would be if the dungeon’s owner first requested a change of 담당자, or if the dungeon was subjugated.
Except for these two cases, the assigned dungeon could not be changed, so it was practically a commitment until the end.
Therefore, the 담당자’s capabilities were also important.
The 담당자 held most of the discretionary power in transactions.
If there was no money, the dungeon could be given credit against its management rights, which was also at the 담당자’s discretion.
Of course, this was only possible when the dungeon was doing quite well; it was virtually impossible for a newly emerged dungeon.
Jewel went a step further, thinking that Moru would easily give credit.
It was her first dungeon, and judging by her kind heart, she guessed she would do so.
Thus, as the credit piled up, she imagined a scenario where Moru would eventually fall into ruin.
However, everything turned to nothing due to a single variable.
“I never thought it would be so wealthy…”
The problem was that the dungeon handed to Moru was incredibly wealthy.
That’s probably why Moru’s performance improved so much.
Moreover, Moru was growing into a figure that caught the attention of guild executives, her performance soaring to new heights.
“This can’t happen.”
How dare a mere descendant of humble origins try to be above her?
Jewel did not want such a situation.
Therefore, she began to formulate her own plan.
Knock knock-
Someone knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
Upon Jewel’s permission, the door opened, and a small demon entered.
It was an Imp.
“Yes, did you find out what I asked you to look into?”
“Yes, Madam Jewel!”
At Jewel’s words, the Imp handed over the document containing the information he found.
“According to checks on nearby dungeons, the owner of the dungeon Moru is in charge of appears to be a Succubus.”
“A Succubus?”
“Yes. However, currently, that dungeon seems to be conquering nearby dungeons.”
As I skimmed the contents of the document, it was indeed conquering nearby dungeons.
Jewel smiled at the Imp’s report.
The dungeon owner is a Succubus.
And currently, she is focusing on expanding her dungeon while primarily subjugating.
Why is a creature called a Succubus aiming for dungeon expansion?
Whatever the reason, it was an opportunity for Jewel.
First, the dungeon ranks of the subjugation targets were all low.
This means she was choosing opponents at her own level.
It’s impossible to touch opponents with a higher combat power than oneself.
Second. All dungeons are customers of the Underworld Merchant Guild.
Therefore, subjugating dungeons indiscriminately like this reduces the guild’s profits.
Of course, while the guild wouldn’t interfere since Moru’s performance was boosted by that dungeon, it was technically a challenge to the guild.
“Daring to not know the fear of the guild.”
Jewel thought it was necessary to teach this dungeon owner a lesson.
“A Succubus huh…”
Jewel herself was a Succubus, so she knew well.
Succubi originally live in colonies.
All existing Succubus dungeons are confirmed in the Demonic Realm.
But the owner of a new dungeon is a Succubus?
She probably has no contact with the Succubus Queen, nor any Succubus acquaintances.
She’s probably just a rich, second-rate nobody.
“You can leave now that I’ve seen it.”
“Yes!”
Jewel smiled and began to infuse her magic into a small orb.
It was an action to contact someone.
“Oh, brother, have you been doing well?”
Once she made contact with the other party, Jewel’s expression and tone of voice changed.
It was as if she was talking to a lover.
“Mhm, actually, could you handle a dungeon for me?”
Jewel referred to the other party as ‘brother’.
The other party was an Incubus.
An Incubus is perfect for handling Succubi.
Therefore, Jewel chose him.
She would use the Incubus to deal with the dungeon owner.
Perhaps it would go beyond simply dealing with her, and she would be in a disastrous state?
‘Moru, you’re finished now.’
If the dungeon owner disappears, Moru’s performance will also plummet.
‘I can’t wait for that future to come.’
Jewel was very much looking forward to it.
