Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. – Chapter 39 – A Happy Dungeon Where You Can Forget All Your Worries

Author: Cireng

Chapter 39 – A Happy Dungeon Where You Can Forget All Your Worries

At long last…

The long-awaited day of our cheerful, laughter-filled dungeon expedition had arrived.

Before heading out for the dungeon, I first stopped by the Jewelmaster Guild Headquarters to check on the custom-made item I’d commissioned.

“Ah, perfect timing!”

Guildmaster Tabirek of the Jewelmaster Guild heartily thumped his chest in greeting before bringing over a small box.

“It’s finished! My masterpiece, forged with my very soul!”

There were two astonishing parts to that statement.

“You’ve already finished it? And it’s masterpiece-grade?”

If he were truly such an exceptional jeweler, the Jewelmaster Guild should have already become famous as one of the major guilds.

Had he perhaps purchased another famous explorer’s work?

Sensing my perfectly reasonable suspicion, Tabirek firmly shook his head.

“As I was making it, Lady Solmiran suddenly bestowed blazing inspiration upon both my mind and my hands!”

“Hmm. That sounds exactly like the sort of boast a stereotypical dwarf would make.”

“Kahaha! Just take a look first! Honestly, even I can hardly believe it!”

Accepting the box, I carefully opened the lid.

Inside…

A beautifully folded golden stole rested neatly within.

[Masterpiece – Radiant Faith]

[Communication with deities becomes smoother. You shall no longer suffer from the oracles of the Wise One or those other insignificant evil gods. In addition, it contains an internal subspace capable of storing objects. I thought he was merely an ordinary dwarf, yet he created something like this?]

“So? What do you think?”

“…It’s definitely a masterpiece.”

My mind would no longer suffer mental damage from the voices of evil gods.

Honestly… It exceeded my expectations.

“So Lady Solmiran really did grant you inspiration, Master Tabirek?”

“I told you she did! The One Who Bears the Sun must’ve taken a liking to me!”

“Or perhaps she’s become interested in you.”

There was no reason for the Goddess of the Sun and Craftsmanship to pay attention to me…

Still… It was far more reasonable to conclude that Tabirek possessed greater potential than I’d originally assumed.

It seemed I’d have to remain on good terms with him.

If we continued building our friendship…

Who knew?

Perhaps he’d keep producing masterpiece-grade equipment one after another.

After draping Radiant Faith around my neck, I faced Tabirek and thumped my chest.

“Thank you. I’ll treasure it.”

“What are you thanking me for? I’m the one who should be grateful! Be sure to visit again!I’ll make you another masterpiece next time too!”

After exchanging warm farewells, we left the Jewelmaster Guild Headquarters.

“So… We’re finally going?”

“I’m a little nervous.”

“…”

Outside… The members of my expedition were already waiting.

After exchanging glances with each of them once more…

I started walking.

“Let’s go. And become the promising expedition that conquered a C-rank dungeon with only three people.”

***

“The line’s pretty long.”

Standing on tiptoe to look over the crowd waiting to enter the dungeon…

Pendrick smiled faintly.

“Well… I’ve heard people go to the City of Pleasure more to have fun than for the rewards. I’ve never actually been there, though.”

I forcefully shoved the freshly grilled, delicious-looking lizard skewer I’d just bought from the market into Rosalia’s hand before nodding.

“To be more precise… The reward is having fun. There aren’t any monsters inside that dungeon. It’s filled with entertainment.”

City of Pleasure.

Its current rating was E-rank.

A dungeon modeled after an enormous city…

Filled with nearly every kind of dopamine-inducing attraction that existed in the world.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say people entered it simply to eat, play, and enjoy themselves.

“But… What’s the dungeon’s completion condition?”

Nibbling on the potato skewer I’d handed him… Pendrick frowned slightly.

“Come to think of it… I’ve only ever heard that it’s a fun place. I’ve never once heard anyone explain how you’re supposed to clear it.”

“You want to know why, friend?”

The goblin explorer standing in front of us suddenly turned around and spoke.

[Nosy Goblin Mek Invincible (Goblin, age 25). I trust you’ll recognize what the surname ‘Invincible’ signifies. Get friendly enough to fleece him of his fortune and steal his precious belongings.]

“Because… City of Pleasure is a dungeon whose official completion condition is itself a Hidden Piece.”

Despite the sudden combo of acting overly familiar and pretending we already knew each other…

Pendrick, possessing overwhelming sociability, wasn’t flustered in the slightest.

“Huh? Then does that make it… a Dungeon?” (TL Note: So, a cleared dungeon is 미궁 / labyrinth, and an uncleared dungeon is 던전 / Dungeon)

A dungeon that had never once been cleared was also referred to as a Dungeon.

That was why the final dungeon bore the name Nightmare Dungeon.

“That’s right. It’s a Dungeon.”

“If the completion condition is a Hidden Piece… Then how do people get back out?”

“City of Pleasure is one of the few dungeons where you can leave even without fulfilling the completion conditions.”

“Oh… So that’s why!”

“You can only enter once every ten days. But regardless… You’ll never get trapped inside. That’s why it’s still rated E-rank… Even though not even the illustrious Dungeon Management Corps has the faintest clue how to clear it.”

Perhaps because Pendrick kept asking the perfect questions while giving enthusiastic reactions…

The goblin happily rambled on, even volunteering information nobody had asked for.

“I came here because I want to become the first person ever to clear City of Pleasure.”

“That really would bring incredible fame. If you become the first person to conquer a Dungeon.”

“Exactly!”

The goblin chuckled while clenching his fist.

“Just watch! I’ll become famous as the first explorer to conquer an unexplored Dungeon!”

So… He hadn’t come here to play.

He’d come seeking glory.

How unfortunate.

I had absolutely no intention of giving up the honor of the first clear.

“This is getting me fired up too!”

“Good luck, friend. My name’s Mek.”

“I’m Pendrick.”

“Please do your best too, Explorer Mek!”

While Pendrick and the goblin exchanged words of encouragement…

The long line shrank surprisingly quickly.

Before long…

It was nearly our turn.

I gazed upon the building into which countless explorers were entering.

An inn shimmering like a mirage.

The entrance leading to the dungeon that opened only once every ten days… City of Pleasure.

“Next ten! Go on in.”

At the attendant’s words…

The explorers, ourselves included, streamed inside.

The inn’s first floor… Was simply a tavern.

Though hardly an ordinary one.

The tables and chairs slowly rippled like shadows.

“Uh… I thought entering the inn meant we’d entered the dungeon. It doesn’t?”

“We have to go to the guest rooms first.”

We climbed to the second floor and entered one of the open rooms.

Aside from the fact that everything gently shifted as though it might disappear at any moment…

It looked no different from an ordinary inn room.

“Now… We do this.”

Throwing myself onto the middle of the bed… I patted both sides.

“Let’s all lie down together.”

Any expedition entering the City of Pleasure had to consist of exactly three people.

Not because of some dungeon mechanic.

Simply because… The bed was too narrow.

“You just close your eyes. That’s how you enter.”

“This feels strangely different.”

“…”

Three fully grown adults are lying together on one bed.

Somehow…

It felt pleasantly similar to going on a picnic I’d never actually experienced.

After counting to three together… We all closed our eyes simultaneously.

“…We’ve arrived.”

Suddenly…

We found ourselves standing upright inside the room.

The room itself looked exactly the same as before.

Just an ordinary guest room with no remarkable features whatsoever.

Except for one crucial difference.

The interior no longer shimmered like a mirage.

Instead… It had become an entirely ordinary, stable, and boring room.

“Oh… This is amazing.”

Pendrick laughed aloud after pulling back the curtains to look outside.

Since it was my first time seeing it in person as well…

I eagerly looked through the window.

Towering skyscrapers stretching endlessly into the heavens…

Luxurious signboards dazzling the eyes with vibrant colors…

It was a city overflowing with vitality.

[E-Rank Dungeon – City of Pleasure]

[Its completion conditions remain unknown, but because one’s life is never truly endangered, it is merely classified as E-rank. Though famous as a place people visit simply to enjoy themselves, surely you know the hidden secret. Uncover the truth and delight the Wise One!]

Even without being asked…

I fully intended to do so.

Lord Lidni constantly suffered from an unquenchable thirst for fresh knowledge.

That was why He demanded His believers actively pursue truths they had never before known.

There could hardly be an act more fitting to satisfy the Wise One’s longing…

Than uncovering Hidden Pieces.

Tap.

Rosalia pressed down on my head to lower it before checking the scenery outside herself.

Then lightly smacked the back of my head.

She wanted us to head outside.

“Yes. Since we’re already here… Let’s start by taking a look around the city.”

Thus… The Moon Expedition’s very first expedition with Pendrick as a member… Began with a stroll.

After leaving the inn… I turned around.

The building we’d exited towered toward the heavens.

Calling it an inn hardly fits anymore.

It looked more like a luxurious hotel.

Pendrick, who had come from the comparatively underdeveloped Eastern Continent…

Had already been startled by its sheer size.

Then he learned… It was actually one of the ‘shorter’ buildings in the city.

He was stunned a second time.

“It feels like we’ve come to some completely different fourth continent… There are so many people…”

The streets bustled not only with explorers…

But also with the dungeon’s NPC citizens, commonly called Specters of the Dungeon.

My Eye That Sees Through Truth displayed information for every single one of them.

The resulting flood of messages gave me an immediate headache.

“Captain… What time period are we even in? Everything here feels so unfamiliar.”

After Pendrick asked…

Rosalia’s ears perked up slightly as well.

She was curious too.

I flicked my right eye, silently telling it to stop displaying messages.

Then I answered.

“The scenery shown by this dungeon… is the future. One thousand years from now.”

Dungeons recreated particular locations that existed in the past…

The present… Or the future.

And… The era in which the City of Pleasure existed… Was a full one thousand years ahead.

“A thousand years…”

“…”

The sheer scale of it left both of my companions speechless.

“Actually… The fact that it’s the future isn’t the important part.”

Only the Ego Sword remained calm.

“The real question is… Which possible future does it represent?”

“Exactly. Your intelligence is every bit as beautiful as your blade.”

“Naturally.”

Astrimia accepted my obvious flattery as absolute truth.

Pendrick grinned foolishly while repeatedly nodding beside her.

“…”

Walking beside the couple…

Rosalia promptly moved over to my side instead, shaking her head.

“Future-based dungeons… Are they created by unraveling one thread from countless possible futures?”

“That’s correct. There are futures where technology advances to this extent. There are futures where the Valterium Empire never unifies the continent. There’s even a future where every real historical figure has their gender reversed.”

“Then… We can’t claim this dungeon represents ‘our’ future.”

“Exactly.”

While continuing to lavish praise upon the brilliant sword…

I looked around the city.

A paradise where every aspect of the city existed solely for humanity’s happiness and enjoyment.

A dream city where smiles of joy overflowed from every passerby.

Once you enter this dungeon… You forgot every worry and every concern…

Until you uncovered its hidden truth.

“Before we begin the real expedition… There’s somewhere important we need to visit first.”

We’d continued walking while talking.

Before we knew it…

We’d arrived at our destination.