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Tl: Sam

…

　A super-massive dungeon had appeared in Hokkaido.
　It was while I was eating dinner at home that I learned of that information.

“A new dungeon in Hokkaido this time, huh? They’ve been increasing again recently.”

　Watching the news on TV, I muttered that to myself.
　At Dojima-san’s request, I often explored newly born dungeons.

　Because information on what lies inside a newly born dungeon is unknown, it is dangerous unless you are a veteran explorer.
　Up until now, personnel from the Ministry of Monster Control conducted the First Attack of a dungeon, but lately, because they’ve been short-handed, that work has often been passed over to me.

　Well, streaming a new dungeon gets a great reaction from the viewers, so I don’t mind. Plus, if I work hard, it reduces the burden on Amatsuki and Rin. It’s well worth the effort.

“Hokkaido! Warawa knows of it! It is definitely a cold place!”
“Oh, you know it well.”
“Fufun, Warawa is growing day by day as well.”

　Puffing out her chest as she said that was the elf princess, Lilicia.
　Having come from another world, Lilicia was currently thoroughly enjoying her shut-in life. Lately, it seemed she had learned about online games from Dagosuke and was playing them enthusiastically.
　Apparently, she had started playing games to increase content for her streams at first, but now she was completely hooked and obsessed.
　She seemed pleased because everyone in the game gave her the ‘princess treatment.’ To think a genuine princess would get so thrilled over princess treatment in a video game was quite a pathetic story.

“So, are you going too, Big Bro? To that Hokkaido dungeon.”

　The one who asked was Dagosuke, the fish-man who had also come from another world like Lilicia.
　Hoshino was visiting her family’s home, and Amatsuki and Rin were away on duty, so only Lilicia and Dagosuke were at the dining table.

　Come to think of it, this room had a higher ratio of otherworlders. Even if you searched the entire world, this was probably the only place like that.

“Hokkaido, huh. I’ve never been, so it might not be bad to check it out.”

　Having become an explorer right after graduating from middle school, I had no memories of traveling far away. I had never even been on a school trip.
　One might wonder if I had traveled far for work, but dungeons where powerful monsters appear are mostly around Tokyo, so there was plenty of work right around here.

　’Sweet gigs’ like surveying small-scale dungeons formed in rural areas were never handed to a corporate slave like me. Even I wanted to do that kind of work once in a while.

“Oh, are you going to Hokkaido!? Warawa will go as well! I wish to try this thing called… soup curry!”
“No, you can’t go, Lilicia. Leaving this place too far would be bad, after all.”
“What did you say!? Surely a little bit should be fine!”

　Lilicia protested.
　I felt bad for her, but there was no way I could take her to Hokkaido when she was under government protection.

　Recently, light outings had come to be permitted, but going out of the prefecture was still out of the question.

“That’s why I’m saying it’s not a little bit. It might be hard to tell on a map, but Hokkaido is pretty far, you know?”
“I will be a good girl, so please, Tanaka! Just a little! Just the tip is fine!”
“Where on earth did you learn those words!?”

　Probably the stream viewers, huh?
　Taking advantage of Lilicia’s pure heart to teach her all sorts of weird things. I definitely don’t want a princess who only speaks internet slang. It feels disrespectful to whatever other elves might be in the other world too.

“Well, putting the Princess aside for now. Wouldn’t it be better to ask Master Dojima about it, Big Bro?”
“True. The Ministry of Monster Control is short-handed too, so if they’re in trouble, I might as well help out.”

　…And so, having such a conversation, the three of us ate our meal.

◇　◇　◇

“Ah, that matter, huh…”

　The next day. When I went to Dojima-san’s office in the Ministry of Monster Control and asked about the Hokkaido dungeon, unexpectedly, Dojima-san let out a sigh with a troublesome expression on his face.

　I had fully expected him to happily ask me to take the job, so I wondered what happened.
　It seemed like there were some complicated circumstances.

“What on earth happened? Was there some kind of problem?”
“Yeah… Actually, regarding that Hokkaido dungeon, the one conducting the First Attack isn’t our Ministry of Monster Control, but another guild.”
“Heh, that’s rare.”

　First Attacks were mostly conducted by personnel from the Ministry of Monster Control, though sometimes guild-affiliated explorers would do them.
　However, that was supposed to be a rare case. Even though they could commission me now, why had it been decided that a guild would do it?

“First Attacks are dangerous, but in exchange, it’s easier to obtain good materials and treasure. After all, you get to enter a place that no human hands have touched yet. That’s why guilds always want to do First Attacks. Up until now, they put up with it because our Ministry of Monster Control handled it, but… lately, I’ve been entrusting most of them to you.”
“Eh, so you mean complaints arose because you left them to me?”
“That’s how it is. Because complaints came in from many guilds, it ended up being decided that the Hokkaido dungeon would be handled primarily by guilds. Before I even realized it, the talks had progressed to a point where even I couldn’t stop it… Sigh, there are too many selfish people, it’s a real pain.”

　Dungeons are treasure troves of resources. Various vested interests were intertwined.
　It seemed all those troublesome matters piled up and brought about this situation. The adult world was truly a hassle.

“And that’s how it is. Normally, I would have wanted to ask you, Tanaka, but this dungeon has left my hands. You should just take it easy at home.”
“No, I’ll go too. Even if other guilds are participating, you’d feel more at ease if I went, right, Dojima-san?”
“That may be true, but our Ministry cannot issue a commission, you know?”
“Yes, I understand. That’s why, this time, I will participate through my guild.”

　Lately, I often did work for the Ministry of Monster Control, but my guild was an independent corporate guild unrelated to the Ministry.
　There shouldn’t be any problem even if it was a guild-led dungeon exploration. Well, a few complaints might be raised, though.

“…Is that alright with you? Exploring a dungeon alone would be much easier for you, wouldn’t it?”
“I don’t mind. I’d hate it even more if casualties came out of this, after all.”
“I owe you one. If you’re going, Tanaka, I can rest easy as well. If there’s anything you need, don’t hesitate to ask.”

　And so, it was decided that I would dive into the dungeon alongside explorers from other guilds.
　Come to think of it, this might be my first time riding an airplane. I’d ridden on top of a stealth fighter before, but well, that doesn’t count.

　Having never even experienced a school trip, I waited for that day with a slightly excited heart.

……

Tl Note: Birthday of mine is on Tuesday. Will probably leave a pile load of chapters for that day

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