Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. – Chapter 20 – E-Rank Dungeon – Earth Elf’s Tomb (1)

Author: Cireng

Chapter 20 – E-Rank Dungeon – Earth Elf’s Tomb (1)

“…”

For the first time since we’d met, an obvious change appeared in Rosalia’s eyes, which had maintained the exact same expression all along.

If I were to interpret what that look meant, it would be this:

“Have you lost your mind?”

“Kar, have you gone crazy?”

Marlin also cried out in alarm, thumping my back repeatedly with her tail.

“No. I’m perfectly fine.”

My mind had never been clearer.

I was far too busy enjoying an exciting dungeon expedition to have time to go insane.

“Then… are you trying to die while perfectly sane?”

“Of course not. If I’m going to die, I’d rather end my life in an S-rank dungeon.”

“…”

The silent pressure contained in the gaze Marlin directed at her benefactor evolved to a whole new level.

If I kept teasing her, she might become so ungrateful that she’d actually attack me.

So I quickly activated a Mystery.

Whoooosh.

A thin, intangible membrane enveloped my entire body.

[Veil That Defers Wounds].

A Mystery that slows the rate at which health decreases.

“Now you may cut me with your dagger. Don’t just slash me normally… please use ‘that Mystery’ applied to dagger techniques. And don’t forget to adjust the power so that it hurts excruciatingly without actually killing me!”

The assassin elf stared at me silently for quite some time before pulling out a crimson dagger whose blade was as red as her hair and eyes.

Compared to the ceremonial dagger I’d given Marlin as starter equipment, this weapon was in a completely different league.

It had no name, but its quality was flawless.

Slash.

Rosalia’s hand disappeared for an instant before reappearing.

The next moment, agonizing pain erupted across my neck.

Not only my neck, even my entire body was throbbing with sharp pain.

“…Hmm. You didn’t really have to cut my neck. You don’t happen to dislike me, do you?”

“Kar, are you okay…?”

“If we don’t hurry, I might not be. Hand me a health potion.”

My obedient assistant immediately pulled a potion from her leather bag and handed it over.

As I calmly drank about three mouthfuls, a wound slowly materialized across my neck, blood streaming down from it.

“Y-You’re bleeding!”

“Could you get one of those empty vials we bought earlier and collect it?”

“O-Okay…”

Only after the vial had filled with blood did I finish drinking the remainder of the potion.

The wound completely healed, and the bleeding stopped.

The agonizing pain throughout my body, however, remained unchanged.

“Done. Let’s go.”

“…But if all you needed was blood, couldn’t you have just cut your thigh or something?”

“I wasn’t doing it for the blood. Shouldn’t you be at the point where you calmly accept whatever strange thing I do by now?”

“How am I supposed to casually accept someone suddenly asking to be stabbed?!”

She had a fair point.

Without saying anything further, I simply turned around and headed toward the ruins.

“Look at him running away because he has nothing to say!”

As Marlin laughed triumphantly, I quietly pushed her hat upward so it sat crooked on her head.

Rosalia silently followed behind us.

Though the ruins the only structure in the vast wasteland looked perfectly intact from afar, once we approached, it became obvious that nearly half of them had collapsed.

“Marlin. The moment we enter through that entrance, we’ll become targets for the monsters. So stop fooling around and take this seriously.”

“As long as you stop saying weird things first.”

“Fair enough. I’ll be careful too.”

After reassuring my assistant, I turned to the taciturn assassin.

“Big Sister, please don’t intervene. Stay hidden inside my shadow.”

“…”

“Why? If you kill everything, neither Marlin nor I will be able to grow our souls.”

When companions with a large level gap hunted monsters together, all the experience went exclusively to the higher-level member.

It was a system designed to prevent players from power-leveling a single fast-growing character while letting everyone else ride along.

“Marlin and I plan to reach Level 2 today. So I’d appreciate your cooperation.”

“…”

“Instead, you’ll step in if things become dangerous? I have no objection to that.”

“No, seriously! How are you carrying on conversations this smoothly?”

“Big Sis, is what Kar’s saying actually true?”

Rosalia silently looked at Marlin before activating the Mystery [Shadow Kin], disappearing into my shadow.

“What did she just say?”

“She scolded you for not even being able to tell that much.”

“Quit messing with me!”

“This time I was actually telling the truth…”

Was this how the boy who cried wolf felt when the wolf finally came?

Reflecting on my shameful past of constantly lying without remorse, I entered the ruins through the entrance where one of the supporting pillars had collapsed.

“Take out your masks. Give me mine too.”

Even though we were indoors, cool gusts of sand swept through the interior.

The sand was even more harmful than yellow dust and fine particulate matter concentrated together.

Inhaling it would inflict continuous damage over time until death.

“Cough… O-Okay!”

After putting on masks that served no purpose beyond protecting our breathing, we advanced deeper inside.

Pillars stood along the walls at regular intervals.

At the innermost section stood a stone statue whose upper body had partially collapsed.

[A statue erected by the foolish Earth Elves who worshipped the God of Nature, Meterd. Its ruined appearance suits it perfectly. I miss those days!]

Behind the statue stretched a narrow corridor.

Darkness and blowing sand severely limited visibility.

“…This feels ominous.”

“You have good instincts.”

The second basic rule every explorer must learn:

In dungeons, darkness is your greatest enemy.

Just like before, I lit a candle and fixed it onto Marlin’s hat with spider silk before proceeding slowly.

“I’ve been thinking… Wouldn’t it make more sense if ‘you’ carried the candle?”

“You’re right.”

“…Did you seriously make me wear it for no reason?”

“Sometimes living without thinking too much makes life richer.”

She aggressively tried to rip the candle off and shove it into my hands, so I hurriedly soothed her as we walked.

The corridor was just wide enough for Marlin and me to walk side by side.

Murals covered both walls.

[Paintings left behind by the nearly extinct Earth Elves. They’re obviously about worshipping the God of Nature anyway. Too annoying to examine. Explanation omitted.]

“Don’t be lazy. Take a proper look. You should at least earn your keep.”

While ordering my grumbling right eye around, Marlin also began studying the murals carefully.

“It’s kind of hard to make out… They seem to be praising the god they worship… But parts of them have been painted over in black.”

[A mural boasting about how dignified and noble the God of Nature, Meterd, is. I knew it. However, Meterd himself, the very subject of the praise, has been completely covered over.]

After walking a little farther, an unusually large black bird came into view.

It was an eagle.

The symbol of Sue’je.

[Filthy storm clouds have covered Meterd’s majesty. A hobby of Sue’je, Sovereign of Defiled Authority.]

Earth Elf’s Tomb took place during almost the exact same era as the Fire Ant Cave.

An age that could truly be called the Age of the Evil Gods.

Nowadays, they ranked lower than stray alley cats.

But back then, even the God of Nature couldn’t casually ignore an Evil God.

Crackle.

Apparently pleased to experience those glorious days once again, Sue’je sent a current of positive emotion through the mark.

The lightning was noticeably fiercer than it had been outside.

“O Highest One who dwells above all others… That stings quite a bit. Please cherish your lovely cultist.”

Inside Earth Elf’s Tomb, which recreated the flourishing era of the Cult of the Defiled Sky, even Sue’je, who normally shrank timidly before the Good Gods, could exert tremendous influence.

If used properly, it enabled strategies impossible for any other class.

—Leave.

When we were nearly at the end of the corridor, a voice suddenly echoed.

‘It’s about time.’

I spoke to my little assistant, who was confidently marching ahead.

“Marlin. There’s still one downside of this dungeon I haven’t mentioned.”

“…What is it?”

Her tail shot upright as she gripped her dagger.

Based on past experience, she’d apparently realized nothing peaceful was ever going to happen.

Whoosh.

The moment we left the corridor, the candle that had been burning perfectly until now suddenly went out.

“Earth Elf’s Tomb is excellent in almost every way. But it does have one unfortunate flaw.”

When I relit the candle, the tiny flame flickered as though it might die out at any moment.

Standing right beside Marlin… was a charred humanoid figure.

“Aaagh!”

Letting out a bizarre scream, Marlin hurriedly swung her dagger.

Slash.

Even in her panic, she accurately targeted the neck.

A horizontal wound appeared across the enemy’s throat.

The blackened figure staggered briefly before collapsing forward.

“That scared me… What ‘is’ this thing?”

“An Earth Elf roasted by Lord Sue’je’s lightning.”

[Earth Elf Cinder Corpse (Level 1)]

[Though already dead, it revived of its own will and now wanders the surface as an undead. It reeks of that disgusting Sue’je’s influence.]

“This dungeon belongs to the Horror category. These things will keep popping out to welcome us.”

A dungeon where monsters suddenly emerged from darkness to startle explorers.

However, since it relied almost entirely on cheap jump scares, I refused to recognize it as a proper horror dungeon.

After all, even if the thing jumping out were an adorable bulldog or pug, anyone would still be startled if it suddenly appeared from complete darkness.

“…Wasn’t this supposed to be an easy, straightforward dungeon?”

“It is.”

“You just walk around killing the occasional monster that pops out. By the way, I specifically brought candles because portable mana lamps would make it too unscary. Smart, right?”

“…Really?”

“No. Mana lamps simply don’t work here.”

The dungeon had to be conquered relying solely on a tiny candle flame.

“Let’s keep moving. Follow me.”

“How do you even know the way…? …Actually, never mind.”

“Lord Lidni told you, didn’t He?”

“Of course.”

Moving slowly out of consideration for the nervous Marlin, I took the opportunity to brief her on today’s objective.

“As I said before entering, clearing the dungeon requires defeating the Boss Individual. It’s located deep inside. This dungeon has four underground floors.”

“So we’ll find the Hidden Piece before killing the boss, right?”

“Looks like you’re ready to become independent. But let me warn you. We’re taking absolutely everything worth taking before we le–”

—Leave.

Mid-sentence, a pitch-black monster suddenly dropped from the ceiling.

“Die!”

Marlin reacted instantly, decapitating the Earth Elf Cinder Corpse in a single strike.

“Very brave.”

“…Honestly… It’s not nearly as scary as I expected.”

“Right? What kind of horror dungeon is this?”

“It’s nothing special.”

I pretended not to notice her quietly wrapping her tail around my arm.

Carefully advancing while occasionally dispatching undead that leapt out at us, we eventually reached the staircase leading underground.

Now the real challenge was about to begin.

“Watch your step.”

The moment we descended to the first basement level and stepped onto the floor… the already pitiful candle flame shrank even further.

‘It should be appearing about now.’

Scratch. Scratch. Scratch. Scratch.

Something was rapidly approaching us from deep within the darkness.

Marlin lowered her stance, squeezing my arm tightly with her tail.

“It’s probably just another burned corpse, right?”

No.

“Kyahahahaha!”

An elf with wildly disheveled hair came crawling toward us on all fours while laughing maniacally.

[Earth Elf Cultist (Level 1)]

[A cultist of the Defiled Sky who abandoned the God of Nature and pledged allegiance to Sue’je. Its mind has completely melted away, making conversation impossible.]

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Senior.”

I hid the horrified Marlin behind me, stared directly into the approaching monster’s eyes, and extended my left hand.

“Please become your junior’s experience points.”

“KYAAAH!”

Even with its sanity completely destroyed, my insolent remark apparently offended my crazed senior.

It leapt forward and sank its sharp teeth into my left hand.

Crunch. Crunch.

Despite the effects of [Veil That Defers Wounds], my health plummeted rapidly.

“Grrrrrr…!”

Then, while busily chewing through flesh and bone… the Earth Elf suddenly let out a bizarre scream and began convulsing violently.

“W-What’s happening?!”

Taking a recovery potion from Marlin’s leather bag and drinking it, I calmly watched the monster collapse.