Ch.82Midterm Exams, and Bluebeard’s Gift (4)

After touring the dungeon once, I immediately headed outside.

Outside, Bluebeard was leisurely reading a book.

Being a writer by nature, I was curious about what this gentleman was reading. I immediately lifted my head to see the title of the book.

However, Bluebeard deliberately closed the book and hid it behind his back.

“It seems you’ve completed a circuit. And… your level has increased by one.”

Bluebeard smiled.

“It went up incredibly fast.”

It was several times more efficient than running laps at the kendo dojo in the outside world or hunting monsters at night. The difference was palpable.

‘Leveling up faster in a dream… that’s strange.’

That’s what I thought.

If I were just an extra without any protagonist buffs… shouldn’t I be gaining only a pittance of experience here too? That was my question.

“And Mr. Bluebeard. It’s too cruel. Couldn’t you make them disappear like smoke when they die, like the monsters in the outside world?”

I said while wiping off the blood soaking my body. Even though it was a dream, it felt quite disgusting.

Besides… not being a psychopath myself, watching monsters die with blood and flesh splattering everywhere made me nauseous.

“What are you talking about? I’ve never interfered with the exact internal structure of the dungeon.”

Bluebeard looked up and said.

“What? What does that…”

“This dungeon is a place created by your inner world. I merely opened the door to the dungeon.”

Bluebeard said.

So this bloodbath is also part of my inner self?

Well… is my inner self that messed up? I could think that way, but… something felt familiar.

‘This abandoned mine dungeon… feels somewhat familiar.’

It was material I’d used when writing fantasy in the real world, but this was different. It felt like I’d actually been here before.

When I tried to recall it, it felt like fog intentionally clouded my mind. It was frustratingly unclear.

“………”

While I was pondering, Bluebeard awkwardly changed the subject.

“By the way, given the time we have left, you could probably run through the dungeon once or twice more. Would you like to continue?”

Bluebeard asked with a smile.

“Ah. Sure. Why not.”

I replied. I couldn’t pass up a good farming opportunity like this.

“Then… would you like to try a level 30 dungeon now? You should be able to handle it.”

Bluebeard said.

“I’ll stick with the level 20 one.”

Knowing that running lower-level dungeons was the safest option, I answered firmly.

“You’re… quite the coward.”

Bluebeard said in a mocking tone.

“Safety first!!!”

I declared decisively before heading to the level 20 dungeon. I’m not a coward!! I’m making a rational decision!!! It’s better to run lower-level dungeons multiple times than a high-level dungeon once!! Really!!

I had already figured out the internal structure of the Kobold Mine. Since I knew the mob placement, the risk of death was minimized. The clear time would be shortened too. It was the perfect environment for dungeon farming.

———

“Squeeeak!!”

“Squeak!!”

As soon as I entered the dungeon, Kobolds armed with pickaxes blocked my way with angry expressions.

Knowledge translated to confidence. I boldly stood before the Kobolds.

Swoosh-! Slash-!!

I swung my sword in sequence, slaughtering the Kobolds before me.

“Squeeeeeak!!”

“Squeak!!!”

After stepping over the Kobolds’ corpses, I immediately turned into an alley.

“There you are!!”

I knew from my previous run that there was one waiting in ambush in the alley.

“Squeek?!”

The Kobold made a surprised sound as its ambush was discovered.

“Take this!!!”

After steadying my breath, I brought my sword down on the safety helmet covering the Kobold’s head.

Swoosh-!!!!!

As the safety helmet split like tofu, the Kobold’s body was cut in half and scattered.

In this manner, I circled the dungeon, hunting every mob in the field.

Soon, I faced the dungeon boss again.

“Squeeeeeak!!”

It was the same Kobold covered in layers of armor as before.

“Hi-ya!!!”

I immediately charged toward the boss mob.

Swoosh-!!!

With a single strike, I cut down the boss mob, armor and all.

Ding-!!!

My level immediately rose to 22. Since my level was still low, I gained one level with each dungeon run.

I went outside the dungeon and faced Bluebeard again.

The mobs would only respawn after I exited through the dungeon door. This aspect was unnecessarily game-like.

“What… you’re done already?”

Bluebeard looked up from his book and stared at me.

“I’ve already figured it out.”

I shrugged.

The time taken was about 10 minutes.

Considering that I had about an hour left, I could run it 6 times. Since I had this opportunity to level up, I intended to make the most of it.

“Truly… a possessor of unusual qualities.”

Bluebeard looked at me as if amazed.

“Then one more round!!!”

I immediately opened the door and went in. Ah… finally, the feeling of leveling up smoothly without any hassle. Naturally, I couldn’t help but be excited.

———-

Afterward, I completed a full 6 runs of the dungeon.

Ding-! Ding-! Ding-!!

My level quickly rose to 24. Honestly, I wanted to reach 25. It feels more satisfying when your level is a multiple of 5. But well, this was already more than I could ask for.

“Ah… dawn is breaking. Let’s wrap up here. We’ll meet again tonight.”

Bluebeard clapped his hands.

Simultaneously, the world surrounding Bluebeard and me began to collapse. Then, my consciousness faded to black.

———

I expected to wake up immediately, but I opened my eyes somewhere else.

‘Where is this?’

It was definitely a dream. But it was in third-person perspective. The strange phenomenon of seeing myself from outside was occurring.

It was me, wearing animal hide and with a sword casually strapped to my waist. The face and build were similar, but the atmosphere was different. I looked much tougher… and reeked of blood.

I was dragging a giant dragon’s head, parading through the streets like a triumphant general. The street had a medieval atmosphere. People’s attire was extremely medieval as well.

The hygiene of the people was too good for it to be the actual medieval period. That’s it. Yes, that’s it. It was a fantasy-styled version of the medieval era.

“Long live the hero!!!”

“Hero!!!!”

“Hero!!!!!”

“The hero has defeated the evil poison dragon!!!!”

People unanimously cheered. The dream version of me smiled and reacted to their cheers. The way I was jumping up and down while making strange noises was just like me. The me here is quite frivolous too.

Then, the dream scene changed.

I was lying on a huge bed, frolicking with naked beauties. Among the many beauties, there was a woman with long ears. Yes, an elf. This was definitely fantasy. A very stereotypical fantasy.

Great achievements, wealth and fame, beautiful women… it was me enjoying all of a man’s fantasies.

‘I see… it’s that kind of dream.’

I was convinced. Was this a high-quality dream manifesting my internalized desires?

But I haven’t been particularly frustrated with unfulfilled desires lately. If anything, my desires have been so well-fulfilled that it’s almost scary.

As I was pondering these questions, my consciousness immediately faded to black.

——–

“Hnngh!!”

I opened my eyes. Familiar ceiling, familiar smell, yes. It was my home.

Lick-! Lick-!

Umi, Eri, and Taiga were crawling over my body like slugs, licking my chest. They had been licking so much that the smell of saliva was overwhelming.

“What are you guys doing?”

I looked at the three of them.

“Oh… Shota. You were sweating so much. We’re licking to wipe away your sweat.”

Umi said something absurd with a straight face.

“At… first we licked as a joke, but it’s strangely addictive.”

Eri said as she climbed onto my chest. With her belly pressed against my chest, the spectacular view of Eri’s ample breasts being squished came into view.

Naturally, my lower body couldn’t help but respond.

“This guy… has such good stamina. It’s only 5 AM. Let’s have some fun before we go.”

Taiga smiled and snuggled up to me.

“Shouldn’t we just go to school early…”

Before I could finish speaking, my girlfriends threw themselves at me.

And so, I was ravished by my girlfriends from the early morning. Since everyone got into the mood more than expected, we were barely able to rush to school just before being late. Thus, another ordinary day began.

After school, I stopped by home briefly to help my girlfriends study for their exams and work on my web novel, then packed my things and headed to the kendo dojo. Yesterday I went to the dojo first, but today I decided to change things up a bit.

“Umi. Why don’t you show your face too? You should greet Master and Ms. Asuna.”

I said to Umi, who was fiddling with her phone on the sofa. She was dressed extremely casually in just a t-shirt and panties. Since we’ve seen everything there is to see of each other, it’s a feast for my eyes, but… my lower body was getting hard to control.

“Too troublesome.”

Umi said nonchalantly. Since dating me, Umi had completely become a house spirit in my home.

Master… you’d be disappointed if you saw this. That thought naturally crossed my mind.

Well, if she doesn’t want to go, there’s nothing I can do. I immediately headed to the dojo.

———

“I’m home!!!!!”

I entered the dojo right away. No lie, it had become my second home. A place I visit every day.

But the atmosphere in the dojo was strange.

“……….”

All the other disciples were sitting quietly as if mice had died.

Huh? This is different from usual.

Normally, I should have been greeted by loud noise as soon as I entered. Everyone is usually so energetic.

Soon, I realized why the dojo was different from usual.

In the center of the dojo stood a beauty with silver hair, wearing a training uniform.

Yes, it was Saito Kana. A strong contender for the championship in the Warrior’s Cup.