Chapter 60
Raer had been wary of Calix ever since he said he would clear the dungeon.
She had seen many lords throughout the world.
But this was the first time she had seen a lord challenge a dungeon himself and deliberately court death.
She acknowledged that his knowledge of dungeons was extraordinary.
But if he knew so much about dungeons, he could simply share that knowledge with other adventurers and have them clear it instead.
In her view, there was only one reason he did not do so.
‘He must want to become a hero of the West by showing everyone that he can clear a dungeon himself.’
He had provided soldiers to assist with dungeon management, something no one else had done.
That alone would be enough for countless bards to spread Kron’s fame throughout the West.
But if the lord himself stepped forward to clear the dungeon as well, it would mean the birth of a new hero.
On top of that, Lord Calix had already become a hero of the people through ‘countless reforms,’ ‘Dreyhart’s emancipation of the slaves,’ and ‘the condemnation of the Mad Lion.’
If he added dungeon clearing to that reputation, he might grow beyond a grand lord and become a power in his own right.
There was nothing wrong with a lord harboring ambition.
Even if that ambition was hypocritical, it had helped the world, so she could understand it well enough.
The problem was that Sharen was involved in that ambition.
From what she could see, Sharen was already completely smitten with that lord.
She was making the same lovestruck expression as her mother had, so there was no way Raer could fail to notice.
If he was using Sharen for his own ambition, Raer thought she had to step in herself and stop him.
“What is your purpose in clearing the dungeon?”
“My purpose in clearing the dungeon… As I told everyone, it is to help the people of the West.”
“Lord Calix, I am not asking about such a superficial reason. I want to know the ‘truth’ of why you are challenging the dungeon.”
As she spoke with Calix, Raer began detecting mana.
Through years of training, she had learned to sense whether someone was lying by detecting the fluctuations in mana she felt during a conversation.
It was not one hundred percent certain like a blessing, but it was still enough to discern the other person’s true feelings.
“I do not understand. Tower Master Raer, as far as I know, the Red Magic Tower will not suffer any losses from my clearing the dungeon.”
“Sharen is my disciple. That alone is reason enough.”
Raer was officially Sharen’s teacher.
That alone was sufficient reason for her to ask Calix this question.
At Raer’s words, Calix pondered for a moment and then sighed.
“Haa… I understand. I will tell you and you alone, Tower Master Raer.”
Calix’s expression turned truly serious.
Raer grew slightly tense at that expression and waited for his answer.
“The real reason I am challenging the dungeon is…”
“The real reason?”
“It is my hobby.”
“…Your hobby?”
At Calix’s words, Raer thought there must be something wrong with her ears.
Had these damn ears of hers grown too long, causing her to hear him incorrectly?
As she was thinking that, Calix spoke.
“Yes, I enjoy clearing dungeons. That is why I challenge them.”
Raer felt as though her mind had gone blank at Calix’s words.
Although she knew it was rude, she asked him directly.
“You… Do people around you often call you crazy?”
“Not often, but I heard it recently.”
Calix remembered what Rana had said to him yesterday.
Raer was honestly flustered.
“Your hobby… That is an answer I never would have imagined.”
She had expected ambition, greed, or something of the sort, but a hobby was truly beyond her imagination.
But Calix answered with complete seriousness.
“All living things live for pleasure. For me, that pleasure just happens to be ‘dungeon clearing’.”
At Raer’s reaction, Calix instead answered more enthusiastically.
“Have you never felt proud after taking a risk to learn new magic and succeeding in learning and using it?”
“That…”
“I am certain you have. I am not a mage, but I know that one has to be that obsessed with magic to reach the position of Tower Master.”
At Calix’s words, Raer remembered the moment she had learned Ranix’s Flame for the first time in her life.
It had certainly been the moment she had felt the greatest joy in her entire life.
“I am much the same as you, Tower Master Raer. The only difference is that my passion is directed at dungeons.”
Raer could not sense any fluctuations of mana in Calix’s words.
That meant he was speaking sincerely and wholeheartedly.
The reason was baffling yet strangely convincing, leaving Raer even more bewildered.
“Fine… I will believe that what you say is the truth. But remember that if you ever sacrifice Sharen, I will not forgive you.”
“That will never happen.”
Calix answered firmly in response to Raer’s words.
“Just as Sharen is a precious disciple to you, she is a precious vassal to me. I will never sacrifice her.”
“Fine… I will believe you, Lord Calix.”
She could somewhat understand Calix’s claim that dungeon clearing was his hobby, but she did not completely believe it.
Still, at the very least, the look in his eyes when he said Sharen was precious to him felt sincere.
She decided to try believing in that sincerity.
* * *
The next day came.
I gathered the equipment necessary for clearing the dungeon, including a bow.
Once I had gathered everything and looked in the mirror, I looked just like a ranger.
I look pretty cool.
I struck a few poses in front of the mirror and enjoyed a brief fashion show.
“My lord, it is time.”
“Wh—! Y-yes, I know.”
“?”
My brief fashion show came to an end when Rana suddenly entered.
I hurriedly left the tent with Rana.
I looked around as we made our way to the dungeon gate.
It seemed as though there were more people around than yesterday.
“There seem to be more people than yesterday.”
“They say they are soldiers from other territories. Apparently, they sent soldiers little by little after seeing us.”
“They just want to take credit…”
“Exactly. How petty.”
Apparently, since we were the ones taking the lead, they had sent soldiers so they could make a show of supporting us.
Those damn bastards should have sent them sooner. Just as I was starting to get irritated, I saw another group of people I had never seen before.
They were carrying lutes (bard instruments).
“Aren’t those bards?”
“Yes, they are bards.”
“Why did they come here?”
“They heard that you were going to clear the dungeon, my lord, and came here because of it.”
“Ah.”
I learned later that my music sold extremely well among the bards.
It seemed they had rushed here to be the first to turn the news that I was creating another sensation into a song.
They looked like YouTube ambulance chasers.
When we arrived in front of the dungeon gate, everyone was already waiting.
Sharen was there as well, fully armed.
In addition to her red staff, Sharen wore leather clothing that was easy to move in and had scrolls strapped to her body in case of an emergency.
“You really prepared thoroughly, Sharen.”
“I have to protect my lord. This level of preparation is only natural.”
Once we had finished preparing, Tower Master Raer approached us, attached the Third Eye, and activated it.
After confirming that Sharen’s and my fields of vision were linked, she spoke.
“Then, as planned, we will handle the dungeon’s screams that occur while you clear it.”
“Yes, please do, Tower Master Raer.”
“Please take care of us, Master.”
The more a dungeon is cleared, the more minor monsters it scatters around its surroundings.
People called that the Dungeon’s Scream because it seemed as though the dungeon was screaming.
“Sharen, if anything happens… use the return scroll. Do you understand?”
“That will not happen, Master.”
“At times like this, you are supposed to just say you understand, you damn disciple.”
I remembered from the setting guide that Raer and Sharen were related by blood.
Maybe that was why. They looked more like a mother and daughter than a master and disciple.
“Then let us depart.”
“Yes, my lord.”
I headed toward the dungeon gate.
As I approached, a bluish-green gate opened, and the dungeon activated.
Everyone around us looked worried, so I spoke to them.
“Do not worry, everyone. I will clear it easily and return.”
I said that to everyone and lightly leaped into the dungeon.
The dungeon’s chilly mana enveloped my body.
That familiar chill… It was time to return to being a Dungeon Master.
* * *
The moment Sharen entered the dungeon, she felt a sensation of floating, much like teleportation magic.
But the sensation was far rougher, and she briefly lost her balance, landing in a very flashy fashion.
“Kyaaaaaaak!!!”
Splash—!
Feeling that she had fallen into a puddle of water, Sharen hurriedly raised her head.
She had been taught that one must not let one’s guard down for even a moment after entering a dungeon.
When she hurriedly lifted her head, five goblins were already slowly approaching her.
Thinking that she had to protect her lord, Sharen hurriedly tried to use magic.
But…
“Calm down, Sharen. It is not time to use magic yet.”
“What?”
Before she knew it, Calix was standing beside Sharen and stopping her from using magic.
He immediately drew an arrow and took aim.
His target appeared to be the goblin chieftain behind the others.
Creeeak— Fwip—!
Thunk—!!
“Kieeeeeeek!!!!”
Calix’s arrow pierced straight through the goblin chieftain’s head.
Once their leader died, the goblins turned into blue mana and disappeared, and the locked door behind them opened.
“First room, clear.”
Calix looked exactly like a skilled hunter.
Our lord was this kind of person?
At this new side of Calix, Sharen momentarily thought she had fallen under an illusion spell.