It's Dangerous Outside the Dungeon, Master

* * *

『Lord of Necropolis – Increases the highest stat of the skeleton army that follows you.』

『Member of Necropolis – This soldier receives your special blessing.』

‘Necropolis’, the characteristic shared between me and my soldiers. I thought this was just one of the special benefits I gained from choosing to be a necromancer at the beginning.

But now it seems that wasn’t all.

『Occupation and Rank – Werewolf Berserker』

『Characteristics – … Blood Blade, Member of Necropolis』

‘Why is this here…?’

Information about the wolf humanoid luxuriously possessing two legendary, heroic, and two rare-grade characteristics in order. Detailed information wasn’t showing, perhaps because he hadn’t contracted with me yet, but its colors alone were enough to catch the eye.

However, what really drew my attention was the lowest grade characteristic at the end.

Well, alright.

Strictly speaking, just because it’s called a ‘necropolis’ doesn’t mean there are only ghosts and undead in that city. Couldn’t adventurers who come to deal with those undead also stay for quite a while?

But this characteristic clearly indicates being a resident of that city, so that’s a problem.

“Have you ever heard of Necropolis?”

“Necro…polis? It must be a dungeon name. No, I haven’t… At least it’s not among the famous dungeons.”

Wondering if there might be some setting in my body that I didn’t know about, I asked Mari about Necropolis, but she also seemed completely unaware.

Moreover, even she, who arranged for that mercenary, doesn’t seem to have noticed that this ‘Lin Xue’ possesses that ability.

The latter was actually possible.

Even if those who can’t see status windows name their own or others’ abilities, they wouldn’t know the official name of this ability since it’s only given to me.

However, it’s just frustrating that even when asked metaphorically if there seems to be such and such ability, she answers that she doesn’t know.

There was only one way to resolve this question.

“I’ll accept the proposal. With such a resource, it would be a loss not to accept.”

Meeting directly.

Shouldn’t there at least be room for judgment about a potential enemy when the safety is guaranteed by the guild of one of the seven Archdukes of the demon realm?

“Yes…! Then here’s the contract… The magic maintenance cost will be paid half by the guild… The contract fee is free at the mercenary’s request…”

“Free, you say?”

“Yes… I don’t know why… They requested it so strongly…”

“I see. That is strange.”

Moreover, the conditions are so good, to the point where not accepting would make one a fool, which makes it even more suspicious.

Is the guild side really trying to pull a scam? Or does this mercenary have some cruelty towards novice Dungeon Lords?

However, what erases that suspicion is some kind of ‘premonition’.

“…It’s really strange.”

A premonition that this mercenary and I are connected in some way.

A premonition that if we meet face to face, all questions will be resolved or at least won’t need to be worried about.

That inexplicable premonition was guiding me.

* * *

After sending off Mari, who said she would bring the contracting party next time, I came to the room serving as a living room and examined the contract documents purchased from the guild.

At the top was a blank space for personal information, and below that was a handwritten copy stating that the Demon King certifies that this being is registered in the demon realm.

‘The handwriting is nice.’

The Demon King’s handwriting was quite stylish. Whether it’s the Demon King’s own handwriting or a scribe’s, I don’t know.

It doesn’t matter to me since the magic power contained in it is real.

‘Then…’

“「Soul Contract, Imprint」.”

Following the knowledge that all Dungeon Lords know, as I scatter magic power, the personal information is automatically written on the contract document following the handwriting of those who have preliminary contracts with me.

Also, above those characters, a strange pattern that is difficult to record by hand or draw as a picture is drawn with light, which is, so to speak, a kind of ‘fingerprint’.

It should be called a ‘Soulprint’ rather than a ‘Fingerprint’.

After engraving the trace of the soul on the contract document and completing the contract document, if magic power is activated according to a certain pattern, that soulprint is engraved in the demon realm.

Then, from that moment on, the subject of that contract belongs to the demon realm, not the continent.

“Daniel.”

-…! Is it you, Lady?

The completed contract document had a dreamlike appearance with glowing letters engraved in double-over complex letters.

As I placed my hand on one of those contract documents and opened my mouth to speak, Daniel’s voice, who should be on a journey by now, was heard.

Since the trace of the soul is engraved here, I can directly speak to the subject.

“Yes. I’m about to execute the contract now. Check your surroundings, and if it’s a situation where you can be paralyzed or faint for a moment without problem, answer.”

-Ah, please wait a moment.

Currently, the subjects who can establish the contract are Sonia, Leonis, and Daniel.

That contract is an act of forcibly detaching the soul from the human world and making it belong to the demon realm, so there’s bound to be a shock.

Therefore, Daniel needed preparation.

-…I’m ready.

“Good. I’ll execute it. Prepare your mind.”

I’ve put all the people away.

What’s about to happen will be very difficult for ordinary people or summons to endure.

“Then, 「Contract Establishment」.”

Whoosh!

After biting my finger to draw blood and dropping it while chanting the spell, the contract document momentarily emitted a strong black light, and then a white sphere was summoned above it.

A form I’m now familiar with.

Daniel’s soul, or more precisely, the fragment needed for the contract.

I immediately stood up and prepared to pay respects. The subject that would come out after this was someone to whom I must definitely show respect, whether it was the person himself or his avatar.

Boom!!

A gigantic hand rises up, creating a rift in space by breaking through the floor.

At the end of that hand, which was full of black or red light as if molded from rock and magma, blue nails that seemed carved by hellfire stood out.

Growl…!!

After that black hand firmly grasped the soul and dragged it away.

From the hole in the floor, one eye began to appear.

When I felt the presence of that eye, I bowed my head without daring to meet its gaze even for a moment.

If it were ‘according to the setting’, that would be a being that could burn and kill even young demons just by making eye contact.

‘Ugh… ugh.’

And as if to prove that, pressure that could never be endured with ordinary mental strength began to weigh down on my body. Because of this, my back was already damp with cold sweat.

That definitely didn’t feel like the presence of a mere avatar.

‘I can’t believe the main body is appearing here.’

It was completely unexpected.

-The contract has been established. My child.

“I deeply thank you for your efforts, Your Majesty!”

The one who obscures the sun of the mortal world. And the one who erects the black sun. No name defines that existence and it is simply called the ‘Demon King’.

A conversation while encountering just one eye of that Demon King.

The Demon King had such an enormous presence that just from the pressure flowing out of that conversation, my arms and legs were trembling and I felt like I should kneel.

I don’t know where the strength came from, but I was barely able to continue the conversation while bowing at the waist without kneeling…

Conversely speaking, that was all I could do.

-… It’s an excellent soul. Both the contractor and the contracted. For a young one to secure such a soul… You show quite some promise. I’ll be watching.

“I will never forget this honor…!”

I don’t care about that, just leave already…!

-You know how to use sweet words. However, you look like you’re struggling.

“Not at all…!!”

-It would be better not to lie in front of me from now on. I’ll go. Next time, I’ll send an avatar.

Growl…!!

The rift in the ground disappearing like an earthquake.

Only after the eye and its presence completely disappeared could I release the strength I had been forcibly maintaining.

Bang!

The door opened as if it had been waiting.

When I confirmed that the figure visible beyond it was Eve, my first skeleton with a longsword at her waist.

I felt my eyes closing involuntarily.

‘I need to… give Daniel the order to do his job.’

This emotion filling deep in my chest.

Its name was surely ‘relief’.

* * *

Thud!

‘Haa.’

Evangeline, who managed to catch Rita in her arms just before she collapsed.

She inwardly sighed in relief and reached out towards the contract document that was still glowing.

She knew well what that magic power pattern was, having seen the ‘contract’ scene countless times.

-Lady? Lady? What’s this, is it over?

As expected, the Demon King’s power clearly didn’t reach that side. If it had, Daniel should have fainted too.

She conveyed her will, mixing in the sigh she hadn’t managed to erase.

-Clack (It’s Evangeline. Continue carrying out the instructions).

-This voice… Evangeline? That’s clearly the skeleton next to Lady…

When she conveyed the voice of the soul mixed with magic power, some sounds were heard from the other side, but Evangeline simply ignored them and removed her hand from the contract documents, which had now become two sheets.

It would be sacrilege to use only one hand to hold her precious master.

There was much to do.

Her master’s body, which usually hardly sweats, let alone cold sweat, was soaked.

‘Although I still don’t like it…’

-Clack.

Evangeline instructed one of the two soldiers always standing in front of the master’s door to ‘call Sonia’, then headed towards a facility recently built within the dungeon.

Rattle. Thud!

That facility was none other than a bathroom.

This magical bathroom, which draws groundwater from under this mountain, uses it, and then purifies and releases that water again, was one of two facilities that Evangeline strongly advocated for construction along with Rita’s room.

Because she remembered that the master’s condition always improved greatly after taking a shower ‘before’.

Swish.

Evangeline, who walked into the bathroom, leaned the master she was holding against the sofa, then waited for a moment until Sonia arrived.

She couldn’t perform this process anyway. She wanted to, but she shouldn’t.

Not because her body was bone, nor because her fingertips were sharp, but because it was obvious that a situation would arise where she would resent herself for not having a body yet.

Someone who could coldly do what needed to be done while seeing the master’s naked body had to come.

“You called me… Huh?”

-Clatter.

“What… What happened?”

To Sonia’s question, Evangeline quietly shook her head.

Meaning not to ask for the reason.

Sonia maintained silence for a moment, then entered the bathroom while rolling up her sleeves.

“I understand. You’re saying I should do it anyway, right?”

-Clack.

After Evangeline stepped aside and Sonia stepped forward.

For a while, only the sound of water and cloth brushing filled that space.

‘She looks so cute when sleeping like this…’

Looking at the sleeping Libertas, Sonia suppressed complex emotions.

Although her clean skin that seems to reflect light like glass and that dazzling appearance are tremendous, the body revealed under the luxuriant black dress was just delicate.

A small body, even for an adult human woman.

The owner of this small body ‘dealt’ with them, who had a more advantageous force through deception, eventually subdued them and succeeded in ‘owning’ them.

Moreover, although she looks this small, the power she actually possesses is even overwhelming.

She seemed like a literally perfect being.

On the surface.

‘…If that’s true, how should I treat her?’

However, Sonia didn’t forget.

That previous ‘assumption’.

‘Maybe…’

The thought that what she must do for this woman might not be revenge at all.

Swish…

While forcibly suppressing such complex thoughts, Sonia continued to wash Rita’s delicate body with clumsy hands.

A little while later.

“You still can’t tell me what happened?”

After laying Rita, whose body had been wiped clean, on the bed in her room, Sonia faced Evangeline.

-Clack.

Evangeline shook her head firmly.

Sonia simply nodded.

She had just barely escaped from being a prisoner. Although her feelings towards the dungeon’s master were complex now, that couldn’t become a sign of trust.

“I understand. But if anything happens, call me. I’ll help.”

-Clack.

After seeing Evangeline’s nod, Sonia left.

After properly confirming that there was no one nearby, let alone anyone who could remember anything, Evangeline entered Rita’s room again.

This time it wasn’t because of any selfish reasons.

It was because she had to watch over her.

“…Ugh.”

Sure enough.

At the heavily suppressed sound coming from the bed, Evangeline hurried to approach its side.

“I…”

There was Rita, tossing and turning while mumbling words that couldn’t be properly understood except for the first syllable.

Evangeline’s eye lights trembled greatly as she looked at Rita while wiping away something shiny flowing from her eyes with a soft cloth she had brought in her hand.

“How…”

A weak, trembling voice. And small hands wrapping around her own arms as if cold.

When Rita falls asleep, the ‘ability’ that always envelops her body loses its power. It’s not completely gone so it minimizes reactions, but because of that, her current appearance was even more pitiful.

Doesn’t it seem like she’s suppressing pain?

“I, I…”

[What kind of dream are you having?]

This appearance was precisely the reason why Rita couldn’t be left in the dungeon alone yet.

Right now, it was best for her to move around moderately busy.

Even if she didn’t use her body vigorously, as much as possible within a comfortable level for her mind, so that she could sleep deeply at night without dreaming.

While wiping away the shiny something from her eyes again with the cloth, Evangeline sat by her side and carefully reached out her hand.

Grip…

[It probably isn’t a good story.]

The Dungeon Lord’s body strongly grasps that hand as if finding something to rely on.

A small-sized hand. But a strong grip that doesn’t suit it at all.

Creak…

[I was stupid. It’s okay now. Don’t worry about it.]

Although creaking sounds were coming from her hand, Evangeline had no intention of pulling it away.

Even if it broke.

“…What should I have done…”

[This is how you, and all of you, are here.]

She already knew what Rita would say next.

At this early stage, the dreams Rita has after her mind is strained converge into only one.

A nightmare.

A nightmare about the time when she parted from her family.

Even when she killed someone for the first time, and recently when she bound Sonia and her group to the dungeon.

“How…”

[I don’t even care about it anymore.]

She cried like this in her dreams, shedding tears she hadn’t been able to shed back then.

Those tears that should have been applied as an ointment to the unhealed wound long ago.

And that was an anchor that could keep her tied to herself, who hated the Dungeon Lord until she sincerely reconciled with her.

-…

‘This time, a little more…’

For a while, Evangeline held Rita’s hand, which was grasping her tightly with both of her hands.

‘…May the master please escape from that time a little faster.’

It was a prayer filled with sincerity, not just in appearance.

“I…”

[It’s thanks to all of you.]

A room with only Rita’s shallow sleep as she continues to speak while crying softly, and Evangeline waits as she grasps Rita’s hand until she wakes up.

“Eve…? Why am I here… Ah.”

That static space didn’t last long.

Since this fainting was just due to a sudden mental shock, the Dungeon Lord’s robust body and Rita’s originally flexible mind could quickly exert their recovery power.

“You saw, didn’t you…?”

Nod.

Rita’s face, who guessed what had happened just by Eve being here, was tinged with realization for a moment before quickly becoming comfortable.

Rita, smiling faintly while lying down, reaches out her hand towards Evangeline’s chin.

Evangeline grasps that hand in return, rubbing it against the part of her face where her cheek would have been if her face was intact.

The sight of the small woman and the tall skeleton would have been quite bizarre if seen by a third party, but in their private space, it didn’t matter at all.

Thank you. You protected me again.”

-Clatter.

Above their faces, the indirect lighting provided for sleeping was dimly illuminating them like the sun during an eclipse.

Now, at this moment.

In this small, dark world, there were only the two of them.