A few days had passed since Hangyojin was born in this dungeon.
Hangyojin had already become quite accustomed to the dungeon and was getting along well with the other monsters.
As I headed to the hot spring, I found Hangyojin’s shark relaxing in the water with a goblin.
“Ahh. The hot spring feels nice,” the shark said.
“Even Hangyojin can go into hot springs,” I remarked.
“What? Just because I’m a fish, you think I’ll boil if I get in the hot spring? I’m half-human, so this temperature is fine for me,” Hangyojin responded.
Hangyojin. Is it cold-blooded or warm-blooded? Well, considering it’s half-human, and if it’s regulating its body temperature in the hot spring, it seems more like a warm-blooded creature?
I’m curious about its biology, but maybe I shouldn’t think too deeply about it.
“Can I join you in the hot spring?” I asked.
Since I had come all the way to the hot spring, I decided to join in.
“Ah, Evil Ham-sama. Please, go ahead,” the shark and the goblin made space for me, and I entered the water.
“Shark, how’s the fish farming going?” I asked.
“Yes, by properly managing it, the number of fish is increasing,” the shark replied.
“That’s good. Do you think we can have enough fish for everyone by the next harvest festival?” I asked.
“It depends on the growth speed of the fish, but I believe we’ll make it. There’s variation in the growth rate between individuals,” the shark explained.
Well, that’s natural. Even within the same species, growth rates can vary.
I don’t quite understand why, but it seems that having Hangyojin around is beneficial for fish farming.
“Shark, what exactly is your job in the fishing pond?” I asked.
“Evil Ham-sama, that is a trade secret. It’s a method passed down in the Hangyojin clan, and I cannot disclose it,” the shark replied.
We’re in the same dungeon and, in a sense, part of the same organization, but it’s turned into a trade secret.
Well, maybe the Hangyojin have their own unique reasons for it, but I can’t help but be curious.
“If it’s a secret, I won’t ask again,” I said.
“Yes, I would appreciate that,” the shark responded.
It’s not good to force someone to reveal something they want to keep secret.
The harvest festival day arrived. This time, thanks to the efforts of Ryuzetsu, the Human-eating Flower, and Shark, the Hangyojin, a large amount of food had been gathered.
To celebrate, we decided to have another festival.
“Grilled fish is delicious! I’m so happy to finally eat it! I didn’t know it could taste this good!” one monster said.
“Yeah, it’s amazing! What is this flavor? It feels like exactly what my body was craving,” another monster exclaimed.
The grilled fish seemed to be a hit with the monsters. Shark smiled happily, watching their reactions.
“The fish I raised is delicious, right? Don’t hold back, eat as much as you want!” Shark said.
“Hey, Shark, can I ask you something?” I asked.
“Yes, Evil Ham-sama. What is it?” Shark replied.
Asking this felt like it might be ethically questionable, but… well, I guess it’s fine.
“You’re Hangyojin, right? Half-fish, yet are you okay with your fellow fish being eaten?” I asked.
“Ah… It’s fine, right? I’m half-human, and fish eat fish, so it’s not a big deal,” Shark said.
I guess that makes sense? There are carnivorous fish, so maybe it’s not technically cannibalism.
“If I wanted, I could even eat humans,” Shark added.
“Hey, don’t do that,” I warned.
Is the reasoning that since Shark is half-fish, it can eat humans without issue? Well, it’s not that strange; monsters eating humans isn’t exactly rare.
Even so, perhaps because I was once human, I can’t help but feel a strong aversion to eating humans.
“Cough, cough…”
Gito, the human, reacted to our conversation.
“H-Hey! Don’t even think about eating me,” he said.
“Hahaha, don’t worry. As long as you’re on Evil Ham-sama’s side, I won’t eat you. Plus, with the Human-eating Flower around in this dungeon, it’s not a big deal anymore,” I replied.
“How rude. Not all of us enjoy eating humans!” Gito retorted, with the Human-eating Flower protesting.
“Just because we’re carnivorous plants doesn’t mean we eat insects all the time. Similarly, Human-eating Plants don’t eat humans unless absolutely necessary,” the flower explained.
“Hey, hey. Can we not talk about eating humans while we’re eating?” Gito said, his face turning pale.
Well, I can understand why that would be an uncomfortable topic during a meal for a human.
The conversation turned to this because I had brought up the topic of Hangyojin’s cannibalism, so I feel responsible for it.
Aside from the talk about eating humans, the harvest festival was still a success.
The most important achievement was securing enough fish for everyone. I hope the Hangyojin continue to focus on fish farming.
After the harvest festival, thanks to the satisfaction of many of the monsters, my DP grew significantly.
With this, the range of things I can now do has expanded. But what should I focus on next?
Until now, I’ve mostly made decisions on my own, but maybe it’s time to reflect the opinions of the people?
“Little Ham, is it possible to conduct a survey of the dungeon’s monsters?” I asked.
“A survey? It’s not impossible, but what should I survey?” Little Ham responded.
“I want to know if there are any complaints about current life in the dungeon, or any suggestions for improvement. Could you gather that information?” I asked.
With these suggestions, I planned to develop the dungeon further. DP naturally accumulates as the monsters live their lives.
However, if the monsters are not satisfied with their lives, the amount will decrease. On the other hand, if the monsters are satisfied, DP will inevitably grow.
“Understood. The survey might take a few weeks, but is that okay?” Little Ham asked.
“Yeah, that’s fine,” I replied.
The feedback from the ground is important. There are places that decisions from the top can’t reach.
While Little Ham conducts the survey, some of his other tasks will be delayed.
I’ll cover for him by doing some work, but it seems like it’ll be tough for a while.
A few weeks later, the results of the survey came back.
“Yes, Evil Ham-sama. The survey is complete. I’ll present the findings now,” Little Ham said.
“Great, let’s hear it,” I responded.
“First, I’ve summarized the number of monsters who are satisfied with their current life in the dungeon,” Little Ham said, handing me the materials. I looked at the graphs presented.
57% of monsters are very satisfied with their dungeon life. 23% are satisfied. 8% are neutral. 7% are somewhat dissatisfied. 5% are very dissatisfied.
About 80% of the monsters are satisfied, but there are still some with complaints.
It seems that it’s difficult to satisfy all the monsters.
“Do you know the reasons for the dissatisfaction?” I asked.
“Yes. Even though Evil Ham-sama’s education has been thorough, a number of monsters can’t forget their memories of attacking humans,” Little Ham explained.
“Hmm, well, raiding villages is an efficient way to plunder a lot of things,” I mused, though putting ethics aside for the moment.
“It seems there are monsters who believe they’re meant to fight,” Little Ham added.
“Yeah… Some monsters are probably just itching to show off their battle skills, and they might feel like they’re wasting their potential,” I acknowledged.
However, I can’t allow them to raid human villages again. That’s not something I can agree to.
But it’s true that something needs to be done to channel the monsters’ desire for battle. What should we do?
“What do you think, Evil Ham-sama? Should we restart the raids on human villages?” Little Ham asked.
“Hey, we’ve worked hard to build trust with Gito and the others. I can’t just throw that away,” I replied firmly.
“But if we continue like this, the monsters who are dissatisfied…” Little Ham said, trailing off.
“Listen, Little Ham. It takes time to build trust, but it can be lost in an instant. I value the trust with Gito and the others. I cannot destroy that,” I said.
“Well… then how do you plan to address the monsters’ desire for combat? You can’t just have them fight each other,” Little Ham pointed out.
That’s true. Having monsters fight each other in the same dungeon would be pointless.
“Hmm? Wait a minute… Little Ham, I think I might have an idea,” I said.
I had come up with a brilliant plan. With it, I might be able to reduce the dissatisfaction among the monsters in the dungeon.
