Gold Bars

I had asked the veterans about this before.

Whether other mages could make jamming devices too.

If so, couldn't I just trade with them and work around it?

As for that, Mahiro said it was impossible.

It wasn't a matter of me making deals with mages; jamming simply couldn't be sustained structurally.

Normally, jamming works by releasing mana in pulses to nullify magic itself in a single burst.

Making a 'jamming sustain device' sold for points in the dungeon was far beyond the current technical ability of mages.

Of course, Mahiro is different.

That person is the one closest to magic in this world.

Anyway.

After hearing that, I thought.

Wouldn't it be enough to bring in a mage from outside and have them do it by hand?

Not that I meant making a human jamming device or anything.

More like blasting it once with an EMP bomb.

So, in other words.

If Lorencia worked her ass off making some magical safe or whatever, I'd have other people sabotage it the instant it was installed in Dreamland.

That's what I meant.

That's why those veterans called me a real bastard.

They'd install the safe, do backflips on their way out in delight, but the next time they came in, the magical safe they'd worked so hard on and the rulebook made by grinding people to dust would both be completely gone.

Well, I wasn't exactly trying to tease them with false hope.

What can I do when this is the only method I have?

The reason this method works is simple.

A magical safe isn't like communication magic, where if it's interrupted once you just undo it and reconnect, right?

It would probably be maintained like some kind of magic tool or sustained spell, and the moment jamming kicked in, it'd break down like an electronic device hit by an EMP.

This isn't just my speculation.

Mahiro verified it, so I could trust it.

And then.

Those bastards weren't even dungeon masters, so naturally there would be times when they stepped away.

All I had to do was work on it then.

Of course, all of this only works on the premise that there is a mage outside willing to trade with Dreamland.

I know people's hearts very well.

That's only natural, since I'm a person too.

"Restia, do you like money?"

"Out of nowhere…? Who hates money? Of course I like it."

Money is always right!

That's a famous quote left by a crab who runs a restaurant in the sea of some manga.

The only person I can think of who'd deny that saying is the Buddha.

I have money.

More precisely, valuable items I can turn into money.

Knowing this moment would come someday, I hadn't fed the expensive-looking stuff to Malang.

-Kerr-ack!

Hadn't I also given precious metals as gifts to the goblin that had become a daily anomaly back then?

I had stuffed anything that looked expensive into the Core Room.

I was going to turn those things into money and trade with a mage outside.

"Malang."

"Eh?"

Malang brought over the rare items I'd stored separately.

And put them in a backpack before setting it down in front of Restia.

"This is…."

"I need to sell these things, but it's a bit troublesome for me to go outside, so could you sell them for me instead?"

I stared straight at Restia.

She couldn't possibly not know these were loot taken from intruders.

A human like me had died in this dungeon.

At the hands of the being right before her, I was curious how she would react.

"I can sell them for you, but through a normal channel would be difficult. In this case it feels closer to stolen goods, so I'll probably have to visit the black market once. The price might get shaved down quite a bit, and, um, I'm not really familiar with this side of things, so I honestly don't know how much they'd fetch."

She didn't seem to care much.

So I asked why.

I might be your enemy, you know.

Why are you being so nice to me?

"Huh? Why would that be?"

"My reputation isn't exactly good, is it? You must have heard that Dreamland is a nest of demons who can go outside."

Restia blinked.

"Then was the one who really caused the mana storm the dungeon master…?"

"Of course not. It's a rumor."

"Do you intend to harm people outside?"

"I don't intend to. It's not like it would benefit me anyway."

"Then why are you my enemy, Dungeon Master?"

Put that way, I had nothing to say.

"Do you trust me?"

"Yes."

"Why on earth?"

"Because you're my benefactor, Dungeon Master…?"

"There's still the possibility of 'what if.' Aren't you scared?"

"Not at all. I had no idea you were worrying about something like that."

Restia sounded genuinely surprised.

I felt a little embarrassed.

"If you were truly a bad person, then you wouldn't have saved me or the children. I think the people who died in here brought it on themselves. You stayed inside this dungeon the whole time, Dungeon Master. Those people were the ones who attacked first, so why would I be scared of you or hate you for that?"

Restia smiled brightly.

I hadn't expected the day would come when someone from outside would understand the dungeon master's hardships.

"Of course, I'm absolutely not looking down on you! You showed such terrifying power back then, so you're surely even stronger now. But, um, this might be rude to say, but to me you just feel like a good person. You might find it unpleasant, but I think we're friends…"

Friends.

I had drawn a line in my heart.

But she didn't seem to have.

"Personally, I hope Dungeon Master lives a long, long life."

"Why?"

"Because that way Dungeon Master will be happy too, and that's good, isn't it?"

When a friend is happy, you feel happy too.

More than being my lifesaver, if there's anything I can help with, I want to help.

Just like I'd want to help another dungeon master.

"You're a very unusual person."

"Hehe, really?"

"If this conversation gets discovered now, it could be a disaster."

"It won't be found out, so don't worry…!"

That's not what I meant.

Anyway.

"Then let's speak casually."

"Huh?"

"You said we're friends."

"Ah, right. But I'm a little weak when it comes to this sort of thing, so could you drop the honorifics first…?"

"Sure, sure."

Nice to meet you, friend.

In this world, you'll probably be the only human who's friends with the dungeon master.

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"There are quite a lot."

"Because a lot of intruders came in."

"…More than the goblins and trolls I lured in back then?"

"There were so many that it's not even comparable."

Restia hoisted the heavy backpack onto her back.

Actually, the most valuable thing is the escape scrolls.

But those would obviously give away their source, so she could end up in a difficult situation.

"Heave-ho, you're working hard too."

"What can I do? I've just accepted it now."

Restia giggled.

"It feels kind of strange."

"Hm?"

"When we first met, I was sure I was dead for good, but I never dreamed things would turn out like this."

Same here.

Who would've guessed it would turn out like this?

Even Oblivion probably didn't know.

"Are the other dungeon masters like you?"

"Hm?"

"I heard dungeon masters can communicate with each other. Was that a little too sensitive of a question…?"

If it's hard to answer, you don't have to.

Well, I think it's fine to say this much.

"They're no different from you all. They're just like other people. I think each of them is a very distinctive person."

I shook my head and opened my mouth.

"Sounds like they're good people."

"Right."

"Aren't you lonely?"

"A little? But it's okay since I can communicate with the others."

It would be a lie to say I wasn't lonely at all.

Still, it's okay.

I have the gallery.

Because the people in the same situation as me always support me and worry about me.

"That's a relief."

"Right."

"Is there anything else I can help with?"

"Hmm."

I brought up the matter of mages.

"A mage who can help with jamming?"

"Yeah."

Then I explained the detailed conditions.

Simply put, it was this.

A capable person willing to cooperate with the dungeon master would do. (I'd pay in money, and since most of the communication would go through Malang anyway, I could block off any variables in advance.)

"It's not something I need right away, and since there's a location-shift cycle, it might become meaningless later anyway, but I thought it would help me to know in advance."

I said it was okay to tell them about my identity.

After all, if I hid that, the deal wouldn't even happen.

"You don't have to refuse. This could be very dangerous for you too, so think of it as great if it works out and fine if it doesn't."

Then Restia thought it over carefully.

She said she'd look into it.

"Thanks."

"Hehe, compared to what you've done for me, it's nothing."

"Then I'll have to work you harder later."

"Th-then. I'll do whatever I can."

"I'm joking."

Restia isn't my minion.

Asking a busy person for favors is one thing, but only once or twice.

I was at least a little ashamed.

I wouldn't ask for anything more than this. Probably.

"Then see you in a month…."

"Yeah."

Restia went outside.

Come to think of it, hadn't she said she was training?

"Why was she wearing makeup?"

It was a sudden thought.

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A month later, Restia came back.

"I'm here."

"I know."

"Gah…!"

I was already waiting at the entrance.

Because I'd set Restia as a minion, I could share vision with her.

"What the heck, how did you know?"

"Think of it as a dungeon master's power."

"What an amazing power. Anyway, here."

Restia set down thirty 1kg gold bars.

So this is the amount she got from selling them to a black-market dealer.

If I'd obtained those things through a proper channel,

and sold them to a regular merchant, I'd have gotten a better price.

It was a shame, but it was still a considerable amount of money.

"I got as much as I could."

Restia put a hand on her hip and looked proud.

Well, I did see Restia flustered in front of the black-market dealer she met for the first time through the surveillance camera, but let's gloss over that.

"Wow, that's really amazing."

That feels kind of soulless…

I paid her three gold bars as an errand fee.

Restia's eyes went wide.

Gold is expensive.

Because it's shiny and useful in all sorts of ways.

"W-wait, no, no, I don't need this much."

"Why?"

Those three gold bars I'm giving you now are worth more than everything Restia has earned so far working hard.

"Just take it. I'll work you harder later."

"Ah, seriously, my heart's pounding… okay."

"So what happened with the mage?"

"Ah, well…"

"It failed, didn't it?"

"Yeah."

I already knew.

What a shame.

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Kingjjang Evil Spirit : Let's turn Restia into a super soldier, yeah.

Kingjjang Evil Spirit : If the Magic Hero beats her into shape Spartan-style for a year, I feel like she could be made usable somehow...

As if.

Rejected.

ㄴShibgan Love Dog : Fuck no, absolutely not!!!!!!!!!!

ㄴShibgan Love Dog : You want me to keep that fox bitch next to Newbie for a whole year?????

ㄴShibgan Love Dog : Absolutely not, total opposition, if that happens I'll start a hunger strike today

ㄴAnt Queen : You won't die even if you don't drink blood anyway lol

ㄴShibgan Love Dog : Shut up

It wasn't exactly because of love or because she was a menhera.

Well, maybe if it were someone with nothing else to do.

But in many ways, she's unqualified to be employed as an anomaly.

"I wanted to help. Sorry."

"It's okay."

I was already grateful just for the thought.

Now it was time to say goodbye.

I waved to her.

"What's your name?"

Restia, who was about to leave, asked.

A name, huh.

At first it was just a nickname I came up with casually,

but now this feels more like my name than my original one.

"Newbie."

"Thanks for telling me, Newbie. See you next time."

Right. Restia.

See you again next time.

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Restia left.

I released the minion setting the moment she left.

"Uuugh…"

There was nothing I had to do right this moment.

I could just hole up in the Core Room and browse the gallery if I wanted.

Still, I should look for a method outside once.

Because it's better to prepare early.