Someone was walking inside the dungeon.
His face resembled that of a toad, and his appearance was such that no one could call him human.
His name was Goolon.
He was a section chief currently belonging to the audit team of the Underworld Merchant Guild.
Given his position, he had escorts on either side of him, with Skeleton Knights surrounding him.
There were twenty of them.
“Heh heh.”
Who would receive such luxurious escort?
Skeleton Knights were, in essence, 3-star monsters.
Of course, they weren’t considered extremely high-ranking overall. However, they weren’t so weak that they would be belittled anywhere, so the current level of escort could be called luxurious.
Naturally, this was a courtesy extended by the Guild, as he belonged to the audit team.
Goolon, with a satisfied expression, looked around the dungeon.
‘The inside of the dungeon is just so-so.’
It was a rough appearance, lacking any sense of refinement.
“Hmm.”
Goolon didn’t evaluate the entire dungeon based on its rough appearance.
What kind of place was this?
Wasn’t this the place that helped a nobody like Moru achieve the best performance within the Guild?
That meant the transaction volume was large, and in other words, the owner of this dungeon was incredibly wealthy.
That was why Goolon had visited this dungeon.
Of course, the person in charge of transactions was someone else.
One of the Guild’s rules was not to change the person in charge arbitrarily, and even the audit team had no authority to break it.
Goolon had no interest in such matters and had come here for a different reason.
While walking with the escort of Skeleton Knights, he soon encountered a fork in the road.
“…It’s huge.”
As far as he could tell, the dungeon hadn’t been around for long.
Looking at the transaction records, there had been dungeon expansion work done through the Guild, but to expand this much with just that?
In Goolon’s opinion, it was almost an impossible story.
“Indeed, does it have capability?”
New dungeons are usually given the lowest score in credit ratings.
The Guild considered it a high risk because they didn’t know when it might be subjugated by an external attack and there were many variables.
However, this was a new dungeon, yet it was a dungeon that the Guild itself was paying attention to.
If the Guild is paying attention, it would be appropriate to show this level of capability.
As he paused at the three-way intersection, someone walked out from the path on the right.
“I’ve been waiting. I am Celia, in charge of dungeon management.”
Goolon looked at the person who greeted him first.
She was someone with immense beauty and dignity.
Her clothes also made her appear even more graceful.
Goolon, momentarily captivated by her presence, quickly regained his composure.
“Ah, I apologize. I am Goolon, a ‘Section Chief’ belonging to the Guild’s audit team.”
Goolon deliberately emphasized the word ‘Section Chief’.
This was a move to gain the initiative in the conversation with the other party.
“It’s nice to meet you, Section Chief Goolon. I will guide you this way.”
Celia, without any change in her demeanor, simply smiled and led Goolon down the right path.
Goolon followed behind her, thinking.
‘Why did she erase her presence?’
He couldn’t feel any aura from her.
This usually happened in two cases: one, that she was so high-class that he couldn’t detect her, or two, she was deliberately hiding her aura using skills or artifacts.
‘It’s probably the latter.’
If she were so high-class that he couldn’t discern her level, she would have to be at least 5-star, but despite her apparent grace, she didn’t seem to be at that level.
‘So she’s deliberately hiding it.’
What would be the reason for deliberately hiding it?
There were occasional individuals like that.
Those who were reluctant to reveal their foundation to the Underworld Merchant Guild.
In other words, it was a tactic showing an intention not to go into the conversation at a disadvantage.
‘Perhaps this place isn’t that special after all.’
Maybe they were just lucky to have caught a wealthy adventurer and were now rich.
Various speculations ran through Goolon’s mind, but he silently followed Celia without any change in his expression.
The first place they emerged into was a field.
There, blue grass, flowers, and butterflies flew around.
These were all monsters, not ordinary creatures.
‘The rank is lower than I thought.’
It was far too low.
It looked like a dungeon that could be easily breached by even slightly experienced adventurers.
‘I should report this to the Guild when I return.’
At this level, there seemed to be no need to pay close attention.
Goolon thought so and moved to the next location.
There, a large lake existed.
Near the lakeshore, Goblins could be seen drawing water.
Goolon kept thinking as he observed these scenes.
‘It seems Goblins are deployed in other areas.’
Although he learned a new fact, there was nothing that seemed to warrant significant attention yet.
Walking around the lake, they moved to the next location.
Finally, they arrived at the center of the dungeon.
Goolon first examined the location of the core, which could be called the dungeon’s heart.
The dungeon’s level could be seen depending on how it was managed.
‘The security is decent, considering.’
Troops were deployed around the core.
Although their identities were unknown due to the large robes they wore, they certainly appeared to be paying attention to security.
“Oh… is that a human?”
And another sight.
Through an iron grate, a human woman could be seen, her belly visibly distended.
“That is the fate of one who dared to come here without fear.”
Celia replied with a smile as always.
Goolon slightly upgraded his assessment of the dungeon based on her answer.
A dungeon needed to have such ambition.
After passing the prison, Goolon’s eyes caught a facility.
He didn’t know what purpose that space served, but several Skeleton Knights were guarding it.
‘Huh…’
It was a space that was clearly no ordinary place.
The Skeleton Knights stationed there likely represented the dungeon’s potential.
It was clearly a space as important as guarding the core.
Goolon noted this fact in his mind and continued to walk.
Eventually, they reached the end of the central area.
There was a chair adorned with jewels, which undoubtedly looked like the seat of the dungeon’s owner.
A throne.
“Come to think of it, do you know where the owner of the dungeon is?”
Goolon looked around.
No matter how he looked, there was no one who could be called the owner of the dungeon.
“Ah, the Master is not here right now. But don’t worry. I have been granted full authority by the Master, so you can speak to me.”
Goolon had a moment of doubt at Celia’s words but soon came to a conclusion.
‘No matter how I look at it, she is definitely the owner.’
What kind of owner would abandon the dungeon and leave their seat?
Especially when they had been notified of the Guild’s visit.
This was merely propaganda.
“Is that so.”
However, Goolon was not so amateurish as to reveal his thoughts directly.
“Then the conversation will be quick. The reason I visited here is to make one thing clear.”
Goolon, too, offered Celia a pleasant smile and clapped his hands once.
*Clap*
Then, two of the Skeleton Knights who were guarding him dragged something out.
There was a person stained with blood.
It was Jewell, the superior of the merchant Moru.
However, Jewell was in a horrific state.
Her eyes were sewn shut with thread, and bloody fluid dripped from the stitches onto the floor.
And that wasn’t all.
Her mouth was also sewn shut like her eyes, making it impossible to open.
The only relief was that the stitches were slightly parted, allowing her to breathe through the gap. Her neck seemed to have been seared with a branding iron, as no sound of agony escaped, and her ears were plugged with unknown substances.
Currently, she could neither see, hear, nor speak.
In other words, all her freedom had been taken away.
Goolon glanced at Jewell once and then turned his head towards Celia.
At the same time, his greedy neck jiggled.
“What do you think? One of our Guild’s employees was extremely disrespectful to you yesterday. Please consider this the minimum sincerity on our part.”
Goolon bowed.
This was a courtesy to a dungeon that had recently boosted the Guild’s revenue, and at the same time, it was the end for someone who had tried to slander such a dungeon.
“This person is no longer associated with the Guild. Please, Master of the Dungeon… no, Lady Celia, do as you please. If you wish, using her for monster breeding, like this human girl, would also be good. *Chuckle*.”
Goolon laughed like a demon.
The intention was also to gain leverage by showing the other party the cruel side of the Underworld Merchant Guild.
However, Celia was surprised in a different sense.
‘This is what should be called punishment.’
She had been too lenient until now.
From now on, she thought that such punishment should be given to those who disrespected the Master.
When Celia remained silent, Goolon grinned and continued.
“Of course, our Guild is not stopping here. We will offer discounts and special treatment in future transactions.”
Goolon took out a card from his pocket.
It had a different appearance from the usual Black Card.
It was a white card with one golden star drawn on it.
This was the ‘White Card’, representing a VIP of the Underworld Merchant Guild.
The more stars, the higher the rank, but even one star held significant meaning.
White Cards were not issued to just anyone.
Those who possessed this card not only received special treatment from the Guild but also gained the right to attend special auctions, making it more than just a simple card.
Therefore, giving a White Card to a newly established dungeon?
Even this showed how much attention the Guild was paying.
Of course, Celia, with her past experience in dungeon management, was not unaware of this.
Celia paused for a moment.
The Incubus who had invaded her dungeon.
She knew that Jewell was behind it and had planned to punish her soon.
However, the Guild had somehow found out and had already taken action.
Although Celia felt resentment towards the Guild for this, she decided to overlook it generously, as these were people who would eventually work for the Master anyway.
“I see. If the Guild is going to act like this, it’s hard to refuse.”
Celia took the card Goolon offered.
“Speaking of which, the owners of nearby dungeons are planning a banquet for this evening. Would you like to attend, Lady Celia?”
Goolon subtly said, raising his hand.
“Ah, please don’t misunderstand. Since the Master is not here, I am only speaking to Lady Celia.”
“Thank you for the good information.”
“It’s nothing. Our Guild is always sincere. Then, I hope to see you again someday…”
Celia offered her thanks, and Goolon left the dungeon after finishing his words.
Celia pondered how to deal with the sprawled Jewell on the floor, then mulled over Goolon’s words.
“A banquet…”
With this, another restriction was lifted.
The range they could venture outside the dungeon had increased.
This meant they could conquer dungeons that were previously too far away.
Celia considered the banquet as a preliminary reconnaissance before conquest.
* * *
“Chweeeek, I’d like to express my gratitude to those who attended this banquet…”
The Orc who was speaking stopped.
Then he rubbed his eyes and cautiously opened them again.
“Chweeeek?”
Strange.
It was a banquet to socialize with those in similar circumstances.
It was clearly such a banquet, but a being of a completely different caliber had appeared.
“Uh…”
The Orc stammered in surprise.
“I… I surrender.”
Starting with the Orc’s words, everyone attending the banquet declared their surrender upon Celia’s appearance.
