Chapter 4

“Umm… when you say you’re going to fix the dungeon, is there something broken?”

“…Everything.”

The Demon Lord responded to my question with an extremely displeased look.

At first, I thought maybe I had upset her by asking a strange question, but it seems that wasn’t the case.

“Everything has been destroyed… Ah, I hate this. Just thinking about the cleanup makes me want to lock myself in this dungeon for about ten thousand years…”

It seems like she’s at a loss for what to do, overwhelmed by having too much to handle and not knowing where to start. It’s like the last day of summer vacation when you haven’t done any homework and now don’t know where to begin.

“So, if you could just block the entrance, that would be fine. I’ll take my time… maybe in about ten thousand years, I’ll get around to it, when I feel like it.”

He’ll probably never get to it. Also, being stuck in here for ten thousand years would be a big problem.

First, I’ll do as I suggested to the Demon Lord and block the entrance with a wall. If she even thinks I’m a little bit useful, then I’ll consider it a win.

“Alright, I’ll seal it with a wall.”

I choose to create a wall, positioning it neatly to block the entrance.

Good, now… there shouldn’t be any new intruders coming in… hopefully…

“Oh? This is more impressive than I expected. With this, it should… huh, did, did you die!? I didn’t say you had to risk your life for this!”

Oh no. I hadn’t thought about my remaining magic…

The Demon Lord, thinking I died, frantically begins to panic.

It’s strange… even someone so strong would be like this in a panic. It’s a rare sight…

“Wh-what is this person…?”

It seems my words were more than just confident. I was able to instantly create a solid dungeon wall, making it much harder to breach.

Well, in the case of a human hero or the strongest beastmen warriors like before, they’d probably break through, but still, the difference with or without this wall is huge.

“…Looks like you’re not dead.”

There’s still life energy and magic, and breathing too. It seems I just lost consciousness.

Maybe my magic ran out?

“Still… even knowing I’m the enemy of the world, you still want to serve under me…?”

I felt a strong resolve in his eyes back then.

Was it because he’s a demon? No, since I became the Demon Lord and the enemy of the world, all demons not in my service have defected to other species. I remember that some even went as far as defecting from me and seeking help from other species.

“This is the first time… Since I became the Demon Lord, you’re the first to want to join me.”

Unfortunately, I don’t have any allies left. Most of my strongholds have likely been destroyed or repurposed. This underground demon realm that remains has been completely destroyed by the heroes.

“I have only you now. So, please wake up soon.”

…That’s not it.

He probably just thought I would be useful for fixing the dungeon. If I can create a wall in an instant, I might be able to fix the other destroyed rooms as well. I could be of use in various ways.

So, there’s no special meaning to this. What an excuse… this is…

“You’re really awful, you know that?”

Come to think of it, I never even asked his name.

I want him to wake up soon so I can ask him various things…

…But it’s really just to learn more about my subordinates.

◇

“Ugh… where is this?”

The rough stone walls came into view. Ah, right… this was the dungeon.

I must have lost consciousness again after creating the wall without enough magic.

“You’re awake?”

Ah, that’s right! I collapsed because I was trying to show the Demon Lord something useful.

“Y-yes!”

“Are you feeling any discomfort? If you’re feeling unwell, don’t push yourself, okay?”

“N-no. I’m fine! I just ran out of magic, I think!”

This is bad. If I’m told that I can’t have subordinates who can’t manage their own health, I’d be in trouble.

Fortunately, my magic has recovered a bit, and although I’m not at 100%, my body doesn’t feel fatigued.

“I suppose I haven’t introduced myself yet. My name is Fiona Silvana. I am the Demon Lord.”

A name… she has one.

Well, of course, she must. But since this is a game world, I had only ever heard her referred to as the Demon Lord by her friends, so I didn’t know her name.

Still, it’s quite…

“That’s a cute name.”

“Wha!?”

Oh no! That was such an impudent comment, it was disrespectful!

“I meant it in a good way!!”

The万能 (万能 –万能 meaning “万能” or “all-purpose”) phrase to turn a misunderstanding into a compliment! Please save me!

“…I-I see. Well, it’s fine.”

Phew… that was close.

Wait, I had her give her name, but I haven’t given mine yet. That’s disrespectful too.

Thinking this, I hastily introduced myself.

“My name is Izumi Reiko! My race is… a demon?”

“Why are you unsure…? Izumi Reiko… It really sounds like a name of someone who’s been reincarnated.”

“Um, my first name is Reiko, so if it’s hard to say, feel free to call me whatever you like…”

“Okay. Then from now on, I’ll call you Reiko.”

Since she said it sounds like a reincarnated person’s name, I guess that means reincarnated people in this world are mostly Japanese.

That goddess… What kind of grudge does she have against Japan…?

Could it be because she’s from the country that made the game?

“Reiko, I understand you can repair the dungeon with your reincarnation power. What else can you do besides making walls?”

“Well, I can make floors.”

“…Anything else?”

“I can make ceilings too.”

“I see… That means you could probably fix the rooms that were destroyed.”

I’m glad. I was worried that if I couldn’t do much, I might be discarded.

If I were to create a room, I would need four walls, a ceiling, and a floor. At the very least, that would consume 6 mana. If I added a door, I would need even more mana for that.

In other words, I don’t have enough mana to even create one room.

“Uh, Demon Lord…”

“It’s Fiona.”

“…Fiona-sama.”

“Well, it’s fine. What is it?”

She corrected me to call her by her name… I wonder if it’s because of the good meaning behind my compliment earlier.

I was too scared to call her without an honorific, so I added ‘sama’ and was somehow given a passing grade.

“My magic is low, so there are limits to what I can do.”

“I see… That means we either need to increase your magic or supply it externally.”

Increasing it… the most straightforward way would be leveling up.

Although my status doesn’t show my level, considering the original game, it seems likely that monsters in this world can be defeated to raise levels, too.

And external supply… Since I’m called the Dungeon Master, I wonder if I could use the dungeon’s magic somehow.

While switching through screens, I noticed a few things.

First, the gray icon in the back of the dungeon had disappeared. Actually, the icon had changed to a blue one.

In other words, by continuing to run away, I had reached the back of the dungeon where I had seen that gray icon. That gray icon was probably Fiona-sama’s.

The color change… Could it be because she’s now an ally?

Perhaps the beastmen’s icons changed color when they became enemies, but I was too busy running away to remember clearly.

Come to think of it, the beastmen’s icons are gone now.

In the map, there are only icons showing me and Fiona-sama.

Did the beastmen’s icons disappear because they died?

Also, the number ‘0’ displayed at the top-right of the map has changed.

The number has changed to 50—what could have caused that?

“Did something happen?”

“Ah, well… it seems that the numbers on the dungeon map have changed since I last looked.”

“…The map? It seems I can’t see it. So, is that your power as a reincarnated person?”

“Wait, you can’t see this screen?”

It seems that the map, status, and menus are only visible to me.

If Fiona-sama can’t see it, then no one else can either.

“But, about the dungeon map and the numbers… How did they change?”

“Yes. At first, it was 0, but now it’s 50.”

“0… Could it be the dungeon’s magic?”

“Wait, the dungeon has magic?”

“Yes. I’ve said it several times already, but it was completely destroyed by the heroes, and the dungeon itself died at one point…”

Ah, Fiona-sama looks a little sulky again.

I might get caught in the crossfire if her mood worsens, so I need to find a way to cheer her up.

“Then, I’ll fix the dungeon for you, Fiona-sama!”

“I-I see… For my sake, huh?”

Good, hearing that the dungeon will be fixed seemed to improve her mood.

“Ahem, well, it’s likely that the dungeon’s magic became 0 when it died. Then, it absorbed the magic from the corpses of the heroes I defeated and revived somehow.”

I see, the dungeon came back to life by using the magic from the dead heroes’ bodies.

“And, I also absorbed the magic from the corpses of the strongest beastmen warriors I just defeated. That must be why the dungeon’s magic increased.”

So, it seems that if someone dies in this dungeon, the dungeon can use their body to absorb nutrients and grow stronger.

If that’s the case, then the dungeon should continue to grow as long as creatures are defeated in it.

Actually, there was also a change on the menu screen.

Path Creation: Magic Consumption 5

This menu has changed to glowing text, different from the wall creation option.

I thought it was because my magic recovered, but considering my usual recovery speed, it’s happening too quickly. Maybe I can select these menus by using the dungeon’s magic instead of my own…