“Wait.”
“What’s wrong? Did you forget something?”
I went back yesterday because of that, but today I believe I haven’t forgotten anything…
More than that, I have this feeling that something might go wrong if I keep going like this.
Could it be my intuition as a hero? Anyway, it feels like there’s an ominous atmosphere coming from the dungeon today, more than yesterday.
“No, let’s move forward.”
But today, I need to take on the dungeon.
The progress on my exploration has been slower than I expected.
Perhaps it’s because I’m not familiar with dungeons, but my physical condition has been off, and I’ve made a lot of small mistakes.
Each time, I turn back, but there’s no time left now.
I’m staying at an inn that’s tough but managing within the dungeon, but soon I might not be able to pay for it anymore.
In other words, my funds are running out.
So, even though I feel uneasy, it might just be my imagination, and I keep moving forward.
“If we go back now, the people at the castle will give us that awful look again.”
“Even though we’re doing our best.”
“They only care about results. That’s why they keep favoring Kunimatsu, and it’s frustrating.”
Yes, that’s why we should at least secure the same position as Kunimatsu. To do that, this dungeon’s exploration is the easiest one.
I continue moving forward, shifting slightly to the left and right, but still heading straight ahead.
When I passed through a corridor, I entered a room that seemed like a rest area.
“This is a good place to rest for a while.”
“Yeah. We’ve been walking for so long, I’m exhausted.”
Indeed, for us, just progressing through the dungeon is quite exhausting.
Fighting is one thing, but we’re also not used to exploring dangerous places, so both our minds and bodies are worn out.
“But since there’s a rest area here, it must have been used by someone before.”
“There are a lot of people digging stones, so it might be a mine.”
“That could be it. Since it was discovered recently, it was probably used a long time ago but abandoned and forgotten.”
Maybe the dwarves discovered it.
If the original owners were also dwarves, they might not know about this place because it could have been an ancient mine.
As we were discussing that, the uneasy feeling I had suddenly intensified.
Something was wrong. Was my condition getting worse? No, it wasn’t that. It was more like a vague, unsettling atmosphere that couldn’t be expressed in words…
“Takemi! The door!”
I turned around at Arata’s words, but it was already too late.
The door we entered through had disappeared.
There was no other exit in the room.
“We’ve been trapped… Completely sealed in.”
“Trapped? By whom?”
“I don’t know. It could be remnants of the Demon King’s army, or perhaps other races who are trying to capture reincarnated people like us.”
Given the situation, it was probably not for a good reason.
Just after that, a large number of cages descended from the ceiling, and my unease grew even more.
I had to protect both Arata and Yuka in case things got worse.
…In the worst case, as the hero, I might have to fight with the resolve of sacrificing myself.
◇
“So, the facilities or rooms, and even the paths, can be reset, right?”
“Yeah, if you’re just erasing them, it doesn’t consume magic power.”
“Then, if we create a lot of rooms, paths, and doors, and erase them after intruders pass through, it would allow us to separate them or trap them, right?”
“…I see.”
If Rigma’s idea can work, we might not even need traps for capturing them.
I decided to try it right away and reset the path that the reincarnated hero seemed to have taken.
“Reset.”
“…It disappeared. The room next door.”
“Oh… no.”
It didn’t work. Perhaps distance reduces the accuracy.
That would be a problem. This time, it was only a room that disappeared, which didn’t matter. But if an entire floor that I poured magic into disappeared, it would be a disaster.
If the entrance inn disappeared, it would be a catastrophe.
“Although we could gain a lot of experience temporarily, in the future, the number of people using the inn might decrease, and worse, it might even lead to fewer visitors to this dungeon.
Also, Karmal will probably scold me.
He’ll say not to waste the employees I’ve carefully trained.”
“It doesn’t look like it’s going to work. Things aren’t going as smoothly as I’d hoped.”
“The idea was good, though… Ah, that’s right.”
That gave me an idea.
A trap to capture those heroes.
Those guys were quite troublesome when I actually tried to capture them.
They seem to avoid danger as a policy, and if they encounter even the slightest risk, they turn back.
Maybe it’s the power of the hero, but they even retreat at the slightest suspicious presence.
If they keep escaping so easily, capturing them will be a real challenge.
“Maybe I’ll use excess magic for a trap this time.”
“Even so… it’s hard to time it perfectly for a vanishing effect. It seems practically impossible, right?”
“Yeah. It’s impossible. So, I’ll make them stay still for a while.”
Those guys usually take a break right away.
They’re cautious and don’t rush forward aggressively.
So, if there’s a convenient place to rest, they’ll probably stop there for a while.
“First, I’ll create rooms with normal magic, except for the doors.”
Once that’s done, I’ll replenish the magic recovery potions that Primilla gives me regularly.
Since they recover more magic than I have, I can use the excess magic to my advantage.
“Next, I’ll create the door with excess magic.”
“I see.”
“After that, I’ll make it a place where they can relax, and they’ll probably fall for it.”
I asked Karmal to move some of the inn’s supplies.
Since it was simple physical work, I asked Ripianem, who eagerly agreed and happily got to work.
…It might have been tough for her with no work to do.
“Now, all we have to do is wait for those three to enter.”
Ideally, I’d like to set up traps and monsters, pretending it’s a resting area, but I held myself back.
Kazama, the hero, is quite powerful.
He likely has some kind of danger-sensing or intuition.
If I wanted to capture Kazama, setting up dangerous traps beforehand would be a bad move.
“They’ve entered. Just like Rey predicted, it looks like they’re going to rest in that room for a while.”
“Now, we’ll see if they’ll stay until the door disappears…”
It looks like they’re fine.
Thanks to the reassuring environment, they seem to be getting cozy with each other.
At this rate, they should stay in that room until the door disappears.
“Oh, it’s starting to disappear. This time it took a little longer.”
“Yeah. It seems that the time it takes to disappear varies with each creation. It will probably be impossible to plan and use it strategically in the future.”
But this time, it’s enough.
Kazama and the others will panic once the door disappears, but by then, it’ll be too late.
I’ve isolated them in the room. Now, I can set up traps freely.
“Cages. Cages. Cages.”
I planned to place as many capture cages as possible on the ceiling.
…Or at least I wanted to.
“Hey, all the cages are going in the wrong places.”
“Your aim is off.”
“Ugh… As expected, setting them up remotely is really difficult.”
My magic power should be high… and I should be able to control it, right?
Or could it be that this is more of a technical issue?
When I glanced at Ripianem, she smiled gently and placed her hand on my shoulder.
“I understand, Lord Rey. Controlling power is truly difficult, isn’t it?”
“Just like Ripianem…”
But for me, it’s fine if I do it up close.
“Anyway, I’ll go set up the cages.”
“…Don’t take the route where other intruders might appear. Ripianem and Primilla , please stay on guard.”
“Yes.”
“Understood!”
Ripianem was eager and ready for action, as she was being given more opportunities to help.
Still, it seems that Fiona is still worried about me.
It’s true that the opponent has some of the hero’s power, and they’re also a reincarnated person.
But honestly, unless I face them directly, I don’t think there’s any danger…
◇
“Well, it’s nice to be worried about.”
In front of a room with no exit, I finally created a large number of capture cages on the ceiling.
By manually activating them, even Kazama and the others couldn’t manage it.
With that, the capture was complete. Their fate will likely be left in Fiona’s hands from now on.
