chapter_0057

57 – Dungeon Appearance

57 – Dungeon Appearance

The Argon Plains in the southwestern region of the Empire

Located between the south and west, this plain was not suitable for farming, but its flat and solid rocky ground made it a vital thoroughfare connecting numerous territories.

Suddenly, an unusual phenomenon began to occur on the plains.

Crackle—crackle—

“What is that?”

The first to witness it were a group of merchants passing through the plains.

As they were transporting food as usual, they turned to look around at the strange sound that suddenly echoed.

The plains were as quiet as ever.

Thinking they must have misheard, they attempted to continue on their way, and at that moment, it appeared.

Crackle—crackle—crackle—! Boom!!!

“Th-That’s!!”

In the center of the Argon Plains, black lightning began to strike, and suddenly a black door appeared.

This black door looked like an object not of this world, inscribed with ancient characters.

Seeing that ominous door, the merchants hurriedly whipped their horses and fled the scene.

Though it was their first time seeing it up close, they knew what it was.

It was none other than…

“Hurry! We must inform everyone! A dungeon has appeared in the Argon Plains!”

Some called it a place for instant wealth, while others considered it a seed of disaster—

A “Dungeon.”

That day, a dungeon descended upon the Argon Plains.

Dungeon

There were various opinions among scholars regarding its origin.

Some said it was the accidental descent of an ancient god’s chamber into the mortal realm, while others claimed it was created by an ancient god to provide trials along with rewards.

Though its origin remains unclear, dungeons that descended to the ground shared common characteristics.

First, monsters would gradually emerge from the dungeon and attack people.

Additionally, if there were monster habitats near the dungeon, they would dominate those as well, further inciting attacks on people.

To stop this, the only option was to conquer the dungeon.

The problem arose when a dungeon was left unattended for an extended period without being conquered.

While there is a time lag for each dungeon, if left unattended for too long, the dungeon would unleash all the monsters within it onto the mortal realm before disappearing.

This phenomenon is known as the “Dungeon Wave,” and historical records indicate that cities have perished due to such waves.

Fundamentally, the lord governing the area is responsible for managing the dungeon.

It was a natural response, as neglecting the dungeon would lead to the destruction of their own territory.

However, there are times when a dungeon descends in an area that does not belong to any lord.

In such cases, the dungeon is managed by the Red Magic Tower, which requests assistance from nearby territories.

Just like now.

“The lord of the Red Magic Tower has requested cooperation for dungeon management.”

As I spoke to the vassals gathered in the office, Noah expressed a look of concern.

“To think we would receive a request for cooperation… It seems proper collaboration isn’t happening after all.”

“Indeed, dungeon management is something no one wants to do,” another replied.

Dungeon management often led to unexpected events, resulting in unforeseen damage from monsters.

Thus, unless it erupted within their own territory, lords generally preferred not to participate in dungeon management.

Everyone would merely send some money or food to save face, and it seemed that was why the request for cooperation had reached us.

At that moment, Sharen spoke with a worried expression.

“D-Does that mean we won’t cooperate with dungeon management…?”

Sharen looked genuinely troubled.

And rightly so.

The lord of the Red Magic Tower who requested help was none other than Sharen’s mentor.

Having been at the Red Magic Tower, Sharen had undoubtedly experienced dungeon management and knew how difficult it could be.

Perhaps that was why Sharen was so distressed.

As the heir of the Red Magic Tower and as her mentor’s disciple, it was only right for her to support dungeon management, but as the resident magician of Cron, it was appropriate to observe like the other lords.

Dungeon management was fraught with unexpected occurrences.

At that point, I made my decision.

“We will cooperate with dungeon management.”

“My lord…”

Sharen appeared moved by my words.

I conveyed my intentions to everyone.

“Dungeon management is a dangerous task, but it is also for the sake of the wise and the people. I believe it is only natural for us in Cron to cooperate in such matters.”

Interpreting Cron’s motto, “Always look up from the lowest place,” through the eyes of the people, I led them.

If we did not cooperate here, I would fail to uphold that principle myself.

Of course, I did not think of cooperating solely for that reason.

From the situation, it seemed that this matter involved the prince, princess, and lords of the northern duchy as well.

By creating a debt with them through this incident, I could firmly establish myself as a beloved ally.

Moreover, building a good relationship with Sharen’s mentor and the lord of the Red Magic Tower through this incident wouldn’t be a bad thing either.

Lastly, and most importantly, it was also my personal interest.

Though I had been lackadaisical about everything in the World Archive, there was one content I had cleared perfectly up to the end—dungeon exploration content.

I was confident in “Dungeon Conquest” more than anyone else.

“If that is your will, my lord, we will follow.”

“Indeed! It is for justice, so of course we will follow you, my lord!”

Noah and Azel expressed their enthusiastic support, and everyone else accepted my decision as well.

And Sharen looked at me with the most touched expression.

Since I had a cheat key for dungeon exploration, I stepped forward with confidence, which was honestly a bit embarrassing.

In any case, Cron decided to cooperate in the management of the dungeon in the Argon Plains.

At that moment, the Red Magic Tower was waging war on the Argon Plains.

Every day, goblins and orcs poured out of the dungeon, affecting the surrounding forests, causing beasts like the crescent wolves to become ferocious and rampage.

Even with fifty skilled magicians from the Red Magic Tower, there was a limit to handling all of it with manpower.

Thus, they were requesting cooperation from nearby lords, but all they received in return were letters of refusal.

“Those bastards rejected us again!”

Bang—!

In the Red Magic Tower’s camp, the tower lord smashed the second table.

The lord of the Red Magic Tower, Laer Sialenis.

At the relatively young age of 311, she was an elf magician who had become a tower lord.

Being a pureblood elf, she had platinum hair and a youthful appearance that looked like she was in her twenties.

But that was merely her appearance.

Inside, she was the seasoned tower lord known as the Contracted One of Fire, the queen of the Red Magic Tower, and some of her disciples feared her, calling her the “Flame Hag.”

Naturally, if one were to call her “Flame Hag” in her presence, they would have to prepare for a week in solitary confinement.

She was smoking northern mountain tobacco, not hiding her irritation.

She had every reason to be furious.

She had experienced many times that lords were uncooperative with dungeon management.

But this was the first time they had been so uncooperative.

The closest territories had sent word that they would compensate with money and food, while the more distant ones shirked responsibility, claiming it was not their business.

At least the Sila family sent a few soldiers, but with only fifty men, it was barely enough to set up a perimeter.

It seemed they were conserving soldiers for the upcoming Game of Thrones or whatever it was, but from her perspective, it was all pointless.

Living for a hundred or a thousand years, they were willing to make their fellow kin tremble in fear of death for just a few decades of power—something she, as an elf, could not comprehend.

She thought that if it weren’t for her duties as a tower lord, she would want to throw it all away.

As she was suffering over how to manage the dungeon, her disciple entered.

“Master! We have received a reply from Lord Cron!”

“Really? What does he say he will send? Food? Money? Or just a big ‘screw you’?”

She knew a bit about Lord Cron.

Her beloved disciple Sharen had become the direct magician of that family, so she was curious.

According to the bards’ songs, he seemed to be a lord beloved by the people, but to Laer, he was ultimately just another lord.

For three hundred years, countless lords had been born and died.

Was there not a young reformist lord like him among them?

There were a few, but in the end, they all acted for their own popularity and power, disappointing her.

Just as she was expecting nothing, her disciple Zeke answered.

“He says Cron will send a total of one thousand soldiers, combining knights and infantry.”

“What! One thousand!?”

One thousand was the maximum number of soldiers expected to be needed for this dungeon management.

The fact that one family would send that many at once left her astonished.

“And since dungeon management is important, Lord Calix himself will come.”

“He’s coming in person!?”

Not only was he sending soldiers, but the fact that the lord himself was coming left her the most surprised she had been in her three hundred years of life.

Could it be that her disciple chose a good master?

With that thought, her image of Cron improved slightly.

A word from the author (Author’s note)

The next chapter begins.

Thank you for reading today!

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