Ch.11Request, Dungeon Exploration (1)

For the first time since coming to this world, I could finally relax comfortably. Just lounging in bed doing nothing but playing with my phone—I couldn’t be happier.

Plus, since this world is completely different from the one I came from, there are countless things to do.

Games, novels, comics, anime, songs—everything is new to me. That’s why browsing through online communities is particularly enjoyable.

No matter what post I click on, I only find things I’ve never seen before, so it’s impossible not to have fun.

While happily browsing the community, I spotted a title that immediately caught my eye.

[Walking eye candy.jpg]

Usually, posts like these are all clickbait. You might suddenly see a frog mocking you, or a Kamen Rider might appear, or in the worst case, a tactical nuclear weapon.

Still, I had no choice but to click. If something real was there, it would be worth checking out.

And there it was—a photo of a beautiful woman in a low-cut dress with a plunging neckline, blushing as she stood there.

Someone familiar… shit, that’s me.

The moment I realized this, I threw my phone far away.

I’m never going back to that community, absolutely never. Those lawless bastards…

When will I ever be able to rest in peace?

***

Today I had a terrifying nightmare. I dreamed that I was transformed into a woman, forcibly dressed in feminine clothes, and that image was preserved forever on an online community.

Please tell me it’s just a dream. Tell me none of this is real…

But the second hand keeps ticking. The minute hand keeps moving. The hour hand also continues to move.

Like the flowing time, I too must keep moving. I absolutely cannot stand still. If I do, I’ll only fall behind. So I must do what I can.

With that deep resolve, I left my room.

***

I’m making seaweed soup.

…After all that determination, all I’m doing is preparing breakfast? Talk about anticlimactic.

“Aren’t you going to wear the maid outfit I bought yesterday? I think it would suit you right now.”

Drawn by the smell of the seaweed soup I was making, Agath came out of her room.

“I will never wear such clothes, ever.”

“Then will you do the naked apron for me?”

“I’d rather bite my tongue and die than do something like that.”

While we were having this pointless conversation, Rebecca also came out of her room.

“Did everyone sleep well?”

“Yes. How about you, Rebecca?”

“I rested well. And I’m looking forward to breakfast today too.”

Breakfast is almost ready, and everyone except one person has gathered.

“By the way, where did Leo go?”

“He said he was going to take care of some paperwork related to the request. Oh right, Leo said we should eat breakfast without him.”

Come to think of it, we were supposed to do a dungeon exploration request today. I wonder how the request will proceed.

***

After the meal, another ordeal awaited me.

“You remember everything I told you yesterday, right? Just wash yourself the same way.”

“…Yes.”

I planned to wash with my eyes closed again today. But this time, Rebecca said she would check if I washed my hair properly, so I couldn’t wash like yesterday.

So for the first time, I saw my own naked body.

It’s been three days since my body changed, but I still don’t feel like this body belongs to me.

So it’s only natural that I got excited. It’s definitely not narcissism or anything like that.

Fortunately, that excitement didn’t last long. It was all thanks to the incredibly complicated hair care routine.

Let’s start with this one… no, was it this one? Ah, whatever. Let’s just use it. They’re all the same once they touch my hair, right?

***

I came out after washing somewhat successfully. Maybe I’ve already mastered hair care?

But Rebecca didn’t seem to agree with that thought as she sighed deeply and said:

“Is this really your best effort?”

“Isn’t this pretty good for my first try?”

“Sigh… just follow me.”

Rebecca dragged me back to the bathroom and explained the identity of each mysterious item one by one again.

Honestly, I still don’t understand. I feel like I’ll forget it all again tomorrow.

“If you wash like this again tomorrow, you’ll have to bathe with Agath.”

“I will definitely remember everything.”

I absolutely must not forget. I even wrote a separate memo just in case I might forget.

Hair care is seriously difficult. And it takes so much time to dry it too.

Just as I finished drying my hair, Leo shouted loudly from outside the room.

“Request procedures are done! We’re leaving soon!”

Since we had to leave anyway, I hastily finished drying my hair and picked the longest skirt and least revealing clothes from the closet.

But is it normal that the longest skirt only comes down to just above my knees?

Anyway, I quickly finished preparing and went outside.

***

We decided to take a regular train to the request location.

“Don’t you use teleportation magic?”

“That takes at least five days to prepare. And if there’s even one small error, the magic won’t activate at all.”

“That’s more troublesome than I thought.”

Why is this world so strict about magic? Wouldn’t it be better if magic was easy to use from the start?

But that would cause big problems. I can already imagine the news: “Elementary school student collapses building while playing with magic.” Just thinking about it makes me dizzy.

“By the way, how long until we arrive?”

“About two hours left. In the meantime, play with your phone. There’s lots of fun stuff there.”

“I really can’t do that because of certain circumstances…”

“What circumstances? Did you see a tactical nuclear weapon or something?”

“…Does that disgusting thing exist in this world too?”

“…Did that rotten stuff exist in your world too?”

The world I came from and this world have unnecessarily many similarities. But there’s no need for such terrible things to be similar.

“So what circumstances are keeping you from using your phone?”

“Well… I… I was secretly photographed…”

“Are you talking about the photo of you in that dress yesterday?”

Agath, who had been quietly using her phone, joined the conversation.

“…Yes.”

“I was the first one to upload that to the community.”

“…What?”

“I thought it was too good to keep to myself, so I uploaded it for everyone to see. I’m sure many men saw that photo and comforted themselves…”

Somehow, I was already pointing a gun at my head. If I just press this happiness button on the gun, can I be happy?

In that case, I should press it right now…

“Calm down.”

With a sudden strong impact to my head, everything went dark.

If I had just a little more time, I could have been truly happy…

***

I naturally came to my senses when I heard the announcement that we were approaching our destination. Leo looked at me glumly and said:

“Didn’t you say you had no thoughts of suicide?”

“I didn’t. But suddenly I did.”

“Aren’t you taking your life too lightly? No matter what, you only have one life, so try to value it a bit more.”

It feels strange to hear such words from someone who views their own death positively.

“Anyway, we’re arriving soon, so get ready to get off.”

After a little while, we finally arrived at our destination. As soon as we got off the train, a man in a suit approached us.

“Hero, you’ve arrived. The dungeon is this way.”

The man led the way, guiding us to where the dungeon was located.

“By the way, what exactly is dungeon exploration?”

“In the theory of mana circulation, there’s a part about concentration, and specifically…”

Leo started rambling about something using incomprehensible technical terms again.

While I couldn’t understand a word he was saying, Rebecca kindly gave me a simple explanation.

“When mana naturally imbues an object, it gains special powers. Let’s call that a relic for now.”

“So we’re excavating these relics?”

“No. Our goal is to seize the relic from the center of the dungeon.”

“Seize?”

“Relics create a kind of self-defense by altering the surrounding terrain or creating monsters. So if you leave a dungeon alone, it becomes quite a headache for the nearby areas.”

“Then how do you neutralize a dungeon?”

“For a dungeon, the relic is like a heart. So when the relic is gone, the dungeon naturally disappears.”

So that’s what they meant when they said dungeon exploration is like treasure hunting. It really does end once you find the relic.

“If you want to know more details, ask Leo. Oh, he’s already talking about it.”

Even while Rebecca and I were chatting, Leo continued steadily with his explanation. Since I wouldn’t understand even if I listened, I’ll just let it go in one ear and out the other.

***

“We’ve arrived.”

The man stopped in front of a large hole and announced.

…Surely that’s not the dungeon?

“This is an ant-hill type dungeon where undead or ghost-like monsters mainly appear. Do you have any other questions?”

“We’re good. Thanks for your help.”

“Understood. Then I wish you good luck.”

With those final words, the man disappeared. So that really is the dungeon. It’s so different from what I imagined.

I had pictured something like ancient ruins, not this tunnel-like shape.

But how do we enter this dungeon? Do we need to prepare a rope or something?

“Let’s finish this quickly and go back.”

Leo jumped into the deep hole without any safety equipment. Well, he’s someone who can jump from the 20th floor without a problem, so I guess this is fine for him.

“See you at the bottom.”

Rebecca also followed Leo and jumped into the hole.

Well, she’s a saint, so she can probably jump down there safely. Let’s not be too bound by common sense.

While I was wondering how to get down there, Agath asked with a puzzled look:

“Aren’t you coming down?”

“Well… how do I get down there?”

“You just jump down.”

“Do you know what my physical abilities are like?”

“Oh right, that’s true.”

Agath seems to have finally realized that my body is fragile.

“Then I guess I’ll have to carry you.”

Agath smiled wickedly as if she had some scheme in mind. It seemed ominous, but I let her carry me anyway.

“Hey, can you feel my chest?”

“…”

“I can vividly feel your breasts against my back right now. They’re quite soft.”

Lately, I’ve been having more suicidal thoughts. Maybe I should just close my eyes once and pull the trigger.

As much as I want to, I’d probably close my eyes forever if I did that, so I’ll restrain myself.

“Are you deliberately trying to seduce me? Sorry, but I’m a noble holy knight, so I’m inclined to give in easily.”

“…Can I just go back home?”

“No.”

“I mean, I’m just… Kyaaah!”

Without any warning, Agath jumped into the hole.

***

“Now you’re even screaming like a girl? You’re completely female.”

“…”

“By the way, silence is implicit agreement.”

“So what do we do now?”

There seems to have been some problem during the fall. Because there should be four of us, but only Agath and I are here.

“I don’t know. Maybe we’ll find the others if we look around?”

“…Sigh.”

We got lost as soon as we entered the dungeon.

Nothing is going right. Nothing at all!