NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 306.2
Chapter 306.2. New Earth With Dungeon
Hmm, I tilt my head, wondering what to eat, when I spot a shop and decide to eat there. It’s an oden place with a “Lunch Special” sign on the sliding door. It’s getting warmer, so I won’t be eating oden much longer.
I slide open the glass door and enter. The oden shop has a deliberately old-fashioned feel, with a red lantern hanging at the entrance. Inside, a bare light bulb dangles from the ceiling, and the corners are slightly dim due to insufficient lighting.
“Welcome!”
“Ah, it’s crowded.”
Many customers are seated inside, and it seems there’s no room, so I consider going elsewhere.
“It’s okay. There’s a seat over there.”
A young waitress notices me and guides me to an empty seat. The old wooden table and round stools are quite charming. As I sit, the waitress hands me a menu.
“I’ll have the 8-piece set.”
“Got it.”
I order without hesitation, and the waitress bows before heading to the kitchen. Her demeanor makes me tilt my head slightly.
“Hey, have we met before?”
“If you’re hitting on me, you should observe your target better. I’m already married and very much in love with my husband.”
The waitress replies expressionlessly, a silver ring glinting on her ring finger. Though she looks like a child, I’m surprised she’s married and laughingly apologize.
“I wasn’t hitting on you. Maybe it’s just my imagination. My bad.”
“Maybe we met in a past life. I’ll bring your lunch shortly.”
The short-haired waitress jokes, her sleepy eyes meeting mine as she lightly bows and heads to the kitchen. I thought I’d seen her before, but maybe it was just my imagination.
The lunch arrives quickly. Daikon radish, egg, hanpen, chikuwabu, and four other items, along with rice and miso soup. Biting into the daikon, I find it flavorful and delicious.
This place is a gem, I think as I eat, noticing the TV in the corner showing important-looking people discussing something.
“The Day of Darkness. That’s what everyone calls it, but what actually happened back then?”
A reporter-like man asks a smug middle-aged man, who responds pompously.
“Everyone remembers being enveloped in darkness back then. The general theory is that it was the result of an experiment by some research facility to release the energy accumulated in the world. The frequency of dungeon appearances and the strength of monsters were too harsh for humanity. The experiment was meant to gradually adjust them to a more manageable level.”
“I see. So that’s how we got to the current world.”
“Exactly. Unlike three years ago, when shallow dungeons and strong monsters appeared, most dungeons now have deeper layers, and monsters grow stronger the deeper you go. The structure of the layers has also changed. Of course, there are exceptions, and dungeons occasionally appear in towns as before, but they’re quickly destroyed by the military or adventurers. Now, dungeons in the outskirts are treated as resources.”
“Dungeons have changed. And with the Core Store allowing us to utilize them as resources, life has changed significantly.”
“It’s an unprecedented seller’s market. With the current labor shortage, every company is…”
As I eat my oden, I notice other customers watching the TV and commenting.
“Popular jobs have changed from back then. I never dreamed there’d be a job like adventurer.”
One man speaks nostalgically, and his companion laughs.
“There was never a time when job postings were overflowing. Well, I’m aiming to be a golden adventurer.”
“First, you gotta reach bronze rank.”
The men laugh heartily. Indeed, adventurers still exist.
Dungeons have also changed slightly from before. The difficulty has shifted from nightmare mode to normal mode.
In the end, I didn’t resurrect the dead or free Earth from dungeons.
It’s my ego. As the Dungeon Master, I could have reset everything. I could have revived the dead and returned the world to one without magic, skills, or dungeons.
But I didn’t. Because people have survived in this world with dungeons. Humanity has adapted and survived in this world of magic and skills, where dungeons appear and monsters kill neighbors.
I couldn’t erase their efforts and hardships, and returning to the old world without dungeons would only cause trouble now. So, I just slightly lowered the difficulty of the current system. I changed it to the specifications the TV anchor mentioned.
Human hope. Resurrection potions are found in the deepest layers of dungeons teeming with S-rank monsters, and in chests on floors with A-rank monsters, there are rare potions that can rejuvenate you by one year.
Of course, some may lament and wish for the old world. That’s why this is my ego.
I’m the savior of a world that lives and breathes dungeons. That’s who I am.
Would I return such an interesting world to its original state? Sorry, but I don’t want to. That’s the truth.
From now on, there will be joys and sorrows. Unlike the old world, this will be a world where life is cheap. A world where you can aim for success. Humans, take your sword and stake your life to delve into dungeons. Whether your future holds glory or death depends on your skill and luck.
That’s the shape of Earth now.
A new world coexisting with dungeons.
Earth with Dungeon. That’s the name of this world.
“Thanks for the meal.”
After finishing lunch, I pay and head to the adventurer guild.
Of course, I don’t forget to stop by the cake shop.