NOVEL NEXT Chapter 19
The Insects had no lingering attachment to their hometown and quickly prepared to leave the forest.
In a way, wasn’t it thanks to just riding one line that I was freed from slavery and became part of The Seven Lairs? A sham, but still.
Unlike Balutak, one Insect who was well-informed about The Seven Lairs was in a tizzy.
“Kirik. The Seven Lairs. I know Keltak well. The chief, an unmatched powerhouse. I will follow the chief for life.”
“The Seven Lairs? What’s that?”
“Something like that exists. You wouldn’t know, you dumbass. Only the clever ones like Keltak can know of The Seven Lairs.”
This guy seems like he has a superiority complex, huh?
I always thought it was odd since his original name was Buraltak.
Thanks to that, it became easier to remember Keltak as a superior complex Insect.
“I will summon Golgol!”
We headed home, reminiscing about the path we took on our skeleton steed, Golgol.
Since they’re Insects, their basic movement speed should be fast, so I believed they would keep up. If they lagged a bit, I’d adjust the pace then.
Hee-haw!
The skeleton steed lifted its front leg and began to run at full speed.
Perhaps it was an overestimation, but the Insects quickly fell behind after following for a bit.
I could hear a loud commotion behind me, but it wasn’t something to be overly concerned about.
“Creeeek! Chief! Don’t leave us behind!”
“I want to stay with the chief!”
Flap!
Only Balutak, the one with wings, managed to keep up.
Seeing him follow without showing any signs of fatigue, I guess being a DLC boss means something after all.
“Kirik! Chief! You’re trying to leave us behind!”
“Chief! We must go together! We become stronger together!”
“Kirik. The strong move ahead. The weak will naturally be eliminated…”
They’re really something.
For a moment, an impulse to just ignore those precious ones and take off crossed my mind.
“Boss, uh, would it be okay if we left them behind?”
“…”
“I made an inappropriate remark. I apologize.”
Nah, I had the same thought just now.
*
“I missed you, Boss!”
Dada-da—
As I returned, Isabella rushed towards me like a loyal puppy.
Seeing her greet me so excitedly, it seemed the hunting party had been quite a hassle.
However, her expression was full of sorrow, yet her body seemed perfectly fine.
“Congratulations on your safe return.”
Behind the frontline succubus, the Night’s Minions stood in formation.
According to their talk, there was no attack from the hunting party.
‘Then why does she look so upset?’
Did the Night’s Minions bully her? There’s no way they would do that in someone else’s house.
Looking at them, I naturally thought maybe I shouldn’t have requested support from Roseha.
It’s only natural to not leave the dungeon empty, but now that I know the results, I couldn’t help but feel regret.
I pried Isabella off, meeting the succubus’s gaze.
“Once you return, tell Roseha. Since we owe her a favor, we’ll repay it as soon as possible.”
“I will relay it as soon as I return.”
The Night’s Minions departed through the usual portal to the dungeon.
As they left and their empty spot was filled, a group of Insects entered.
“Greet them, Balutak. This is the vampire Isabella and her subordinates.”
Isabella, seeing the insect for the first time, made a puzzled expression and awkwardly smiled while extending her hand.
“Um… I’m Isabella. You said your name is Balutak, right? It’s our first meeting, but let’s get along well.”
“Creeeak. Vampire, look weak. Balutak is probably stronger. Balutak eats the weak to grow stronger. Eating a vampire could lead to evolution.”
“…Huh?”
Realizing what that meant a bit late, Isabella’s face paled.
“I had a feeling this would happen.”
“Balutak. In this dungeon, there are no weak or strong. We’re all just comrades living together.”
“Creeeak. Cannot understand. The weak are eaten by the strong. The strong take the weak and grow stronger.”
“So are you saying you’d just accept it if I killed you right here?”
“Creeeak… Balutak. Wouldn’t do that. I won’t eat vampires.”
Using fear as coercion has its limits.
I needed to instill a reason to coexist peacefully with the vampires.
Balutak wouldn’t understand that we were monsters from the same dungeon.
While pondering, I recalled what Balutak said during our first meeting.
“Open your mind in another direction. Did you not say to embrace and take responsibility for the weak? Try living well with the vampires in that spirit.”
“That’s right. Balutak does eat the weak, but also takes responsibility. The chief’s words are correct. Vampires are weak. Balutak will protect them.”
“Good thinking. Now let me guide you through the dungeon to help you adapt more easily.”
“Creeeak. Balutak has adapted. Evolved. Changed. Adapting is easy for Balutak.”
“I’ll do it, boss.”
Charlotte stepped up, but I shook my head.
Being human, she must be exhausted after all this.
“I’ll handle it, so you rest.”
A boss stepping in to guarantee her subordinate’s right to rest? Loyalty was bound to sprout!
“Can I just accompany you? They haven’t had enough etiquette training yet. They might show their claws to the boss.”
…Saying it that way made me a bit nervous.
Without showing any hesitation, I agreed to her companionship as a sign that I couldn’t be swayed.
Fortunately, the incidents Charlotte worried about didn’t occur.
As we toured the seventh level, Balutak and the insects had their eyes shining with excitement.
The last place we visited was the mining site, the workplace of the insects—a place needing plenty of explanations.
From the mining site to the resting area, guard posts, two-wheeled carts, provisions, and water sources, it seemed some insects were starting to figure out roughly what these places were.
“I’ll temporarily assign Balutak, who can counter the hunting party, as a guard on the fifth level. But you all are still weak. Against the hunting party, you would only die like dogs.”
“Creeeak….”
“The way the weak live in this dungeon is as workers. For now, prove your worth by working here.”
They looked like they realized they were inadvertently being treated as slaves and understood the nature of labor.
That’s why they all wore a dejected expression.
They thought they were liberated from slavery, only to find they had to work again? Their despair was practically throbbing in the air.
‘But what can be done?’
I’m human, after all.
It’s natural to feel sympathy, but I brought them here at the cost of ten million cells.
Just the immediate expenses were already ten million, and the maintenance costs would clearly be quite substantial.
It was clear that tens of thousands would be spent, not just for the initial costs but also for maintenance.
There was no reason to spend such a fortune on weak Insects with levels only around 20 to 30; I had to find a way to balance the books, even if it meant creating a reason.
What on earth could I possibly use these weak Insects for?
One fortunate thing is that Insects made great workers for labyrinth dungeons, much like Kobolds.
So, my plan was to use them as workers for mining and even for repairing or expanding the dungeon.
Moreover, these monsters had greater strength and stamina than humans, allowing me to push them around without much worry.
“Kirik… I don’t wanna work…”
“Labor is hard. It’s scary. It hurts.”
“This is a command from the boss. If anyone has complaints, you can leave this dungeon immediately. No dungeon needs useless monsters.”
The commotion, which had murmured in discontent, came to an abrupt halt at Charlotte’s words.
I felt for them, but it couldn’t be helped. I brought them here with the intention to make them work since there were no other workers available.
“What you all need to focus on is mining first and foremost. If there are no special circumstances, it will be dungeon construction.”
The Insects looked at each other and dropped their heads in defeat.
It was clear to see they were despondent.
“Kirik… dungeon construction, you say…”
“Keltak. I know about dungeon construction. We’ve done it endlessly. It’s hard, we’re hungry, and it hurts.”
“I even lost my arm. I don’t want to go through that again. It’s painful…”
“Kirik…”
But I couldn’t let them lounge around; I couldn’t just make them work a little bit and let them rest.
Since I brought them over at a loss because of Balutak, I needed to make the most of them.
Having vowed to develop the dungeon like the Seven Lairs of Mugan, I needed to toughen my heart and pursue practicality.
I know they were treated like slaves by Beastmen, but this was one thing, and that was another.
I turned away from their watery eyes and continued speaking.
“Work hours are 12 hours a day. Once assigned, you’ll work for 3 hours at a time, split into four shifts throughout the day. If you feel tired or hungry and need to resolve it, please use that resting area. You will have free time outside of work, so rest as you see fit. And Charlotte.”
“Yes.”
“Tomorrow, I’ll finalize the personnel assignments and shift order with you. Once the work schedule is drawn up, assign the workers accordingly.”
“I will follow your orders.”
As I finished speaking, the Insects looked at me with blank expressions.
I understood—12 hours was absolutely ridiculous for work hours.
Not to mention that while mundane tasks were one thing, these Insects had to endure half a day mining.
No matter how resilient they were, it was a tough job, but there was no other choice.
As the saying goes, those who do not work shall not eat.
“For now, it’s 12 hours a day. Depending on how things go later, we can adjust it.”
This was the bare minimum compromise out of pity. Anything more and I’d be pushing my luck.
I felt the Insects’ gazes heavy on me, but I pretended not to see and quickly left the room.
*
“Did I hear that wrong?”
“Kirik. Twelve hours is half a day! The Chief said the labor time is 12 hours. It doesn’t make sense.”
After the boss left, the Insects buzzed in confusion.
They only stared at the boss, still in shock, while whispering among themselves.
“This place… is a paradise! We can rest for half a day!”
“Get ready! I can rest for half the day!”
“Kirik! I’m glad I came! I can rest a lot! I’m so happy!”
“Here, survival is guaranteed! You can live without evolving! Just work half a day, and you can survive!”
The insects cheered with one heart and mind.
When they were under the beastman, working at least 20 hours was the norm.
They had been working like that for a month without proper sleep or even access to drinking water.
Having escaped and settled down, a sense of despair loomed knowing they still had to work like that.
But it wasn’t like that. They would work, but it was almost half the amount they originally did.
“Kikirik! Everyone, come here! There’s food too!”
The insect’s voice echoed from inside the resting place.
Soon, the insects, upon seeing the food and water prepared in the resting area, couldn’t believe their eyes.
“Kirik! What’s all this?!”
“Try it! Food is coming out! Eat it! It’s delicious!”
“Kirik! It’s so tasty! There’s still so much food!”
“And there’s plenty of water! We can eat and drink while working!”
“This place is a paradise! Long live the chief!”
“The chief is kind! We’ll follow the chief for life!”
Charlotte, watching that scene, turned her gaze to the spot where the boss had left.
She was just as surprised.
“…It really is different.”
In an ordinary dungeon, workers are usually overworked.
After all, workers are treated as the lowest class in the dungeon.
If they had a mining base underground, it would be taken for granted that there would be no rights guaranteed for the workers, including resting areas.
Of course, if you systematically ensure rest and build a base, efficiency increases.
But the contempt and discrimination against the weak rooted in dungeons have persisted to this day.
Whether beasts or dungeon monsters, their origins are the same. They exploit the weak without protection, sharing that aspect completely.
This understanding has been ingrained for hundreds of years as the dungeon’s survival culture.
No boss has ever seen workers as anything but slaves to be overworked and has not guaranteed their rights.
If the workers were hired from a trading company, they would receive suitable treatment, but for workers bound to a dungeon, mistreatment was the norm.
‘Which side will the boss take?’
But the boss of this dungeon was different.
Whether it was a focus on efficiency or altruism that led to such a decision, either way, they were different from other bosses.
In fact, Charlotte wanted to advise that protecting the basic rights of workers would be good for efficiency.
She kept it to herself knowing it would be rude, but surprisingly, that boss made that decision on their own.
“…This dungeon would collapse overnight without the boss.”
It was a single-entity dungeon from the very beginning, so why even mention it?
There was no need to mention the power they possessed to take down heroes; they also had a view that emphasized efficiency.
In contrast, the subordinates were a bunch of blundering lieutenants, useless vampires, and bug-like fools…
“It makes me reflect…”
If you exclude the boss, no one would consider this The Seven Lairs.
Charlotte genuinely thought so, and her respect for the boss grew even deeper.