One day, after speaking with Plumbum herself, I went out into Tetramine. With the advent of Plumbum weapons, all kinds of merchants had flocked here, supporting the expansion and renovation of the town. But I found the increase of adventurers incongruent with that.
Curious why, I cocked my head in the now-bustling downtown.
“Mr. Ryota!” Dale called out to me while I walked. He was practically drenched in sweat, and his slightly messy hair stuck to his forehead. To me, he looked overwhelmed by work.
“Dale… You look busy.”
“That I am! Thanks to you, adventurers are moving in every day. Today, I have a meeting regarding expansion of the town’s residential districts.”
“Wow. More hopefuls, huh?”
“All thanks to you, of course.”
“Because of the Plumbum weapons?”
“No, that’s not the only reason.”
“Oh?” I cocked my head again.
Dale’s eyes were respectful, like those of a fan waiting for their favorite idol’s appearance. “It’s because of Ryota’s Majesty. We’ve found that using that to defeat a monster guarantees a drop.”
“Oh, really?”
I see. That matches Plumbum’s image of me.
“They’re guaranteed to drop every thirty monster kills, which puts Plumbum among the most efficient dungeons to farm. That’s led to many move-in requests from adventurers.”
“Aha. That does sound like a good deal.” I tried imagining the feeling. If I could have a guaranteed win once every thirty tries on average, then that would make me more efficient, yes, but it would also motivate me more. “If I were them, I’d save up a bunch and use them all at once.”
“Some adventurers do exactly that.”
“I bet.” Now I understood their feelings even better.
I see. No wonder they’re getting popular.
“Again, it really is all thanks to you, Mr. Ryota. Thank you very much!” Dale bowed so deeply that his body was at a right angle.
Suddenly, a man came running over. When he saw Dale, he beelined toward him.
“Th-There’s big trouble!”
“What’s the matter, Pierre?”
“Th-The dungeon master. It’s appeared!”
“What?!”
“I’ll go take care of it,” I said, and ran straight for the dungeon Plumbum.
The faster you can kill a dungeon master, the better. One Repetition would take care of it since I’d killed it before, so I knew it’d be best if I went.
I entered Plumbum and went down through the empty floors. But I happened upon Prince Ryo just in time…to see him being beaten. An adventurer─or rather, their Ryota’s Majesty items─had done it.
It was a bizarre sight. Over a dozen Prince Ryos were beating the tar out of the dungeon master, who was also a Prince Ryo.
The dungeon master version was stronger, but he was far too outnumbered, so he was defeated in no time by the Ryo mob.
☆
That night in my mansion’s salon, Neptune said with a big smile, “I heard about that little showdown. The prototype versus a mass-produced army, eh?” The way he said it made it sound like a mecha anime. “You’re the dungeon master. You vanquished the dungeon master. Yet the real you is nowhere to be found. Isn’t that funny?”
“I guess it is.”
“I have to thank you, too. This whole turn of affairs has boosted Plumbum’s reputation.”
“Ah, right, you had investments in Tetramine. But why did its reputation improve?”
“Dungeons where the dungeon master doesn’t pose a threat are few and far between. Plumbum now has a system where they don’t have to rush to hire someone to kill the dungeon master when it appears. A safe and stable dungeon to farm, indeed.”
“…Guess that would make it more popular.”
“But you really are amazing, friend.”
“Hmm?”
“Every single time, you go above and beyond expectations.” Neptune’s smile broadened even more.