I was aware that I was not dreaming. The situation was incomprehensible, and so I had to start by sorting through what I did comprehend. At times like these, wondering “why” was not helpful, as there usually wasn’t an answer. While recalling the robotic voice from earlier, I mapped out the pieces of information inside my head and determined their respective priority levels. After all this, the most important-sounding keyword naturally floated to the top.
“Exactly what is the Dungeon System?”
“The Dungeon System is a part of the natural law of this universe, which also goes by the name of ‘World Order.’ No one knows the reason for the System’s existence nor its aim. Please just think of it as a natural phenomenon, just as how water flows from high to low.”
To sum up what Akane-san then said, these spaces called “dungeons” that existed in a different space or dimension had begun appearing in our world for an unknown reason.
“In the next year, an additional 665 dungeons will gradually appear, spread out over ten waves of sixty-five or sixty-six each. As dungeons are drawn to people, all of them should be appearing in places where large numbers of people are gathered.”
“Right, so that’s why the voice mentioned ‘one revolution.’ Moving on. I will now go over what my understanding is. If any part of it is wrong or if you are able to elaborate in any way, then please let me know. When I hear ‘dungeon,’ I think of a gigantic cave filled with ferocious monsters that assault humans. Is this the case here?”
Even though I did not play computer games, I wasn’t entirely unfamiliar with the word “dungeon” in the gaming sense. At the very least, I knew that this was a word commonly associated with the fantasy genre, with one example being the “Something Quest” game that had been a huge hit around thirty years ago.
Akane-san nodded in response to my question. “That is correct. The only difference is that these are not caves but other dimensions.”
“I see. Leaving the thing about other dimensions aside for now, please tell me what you know about these dungeons. For example, if I killed one of the monsters inside, would I get anything? It’s the characteristics and rules of the dungeons that I want to know most right now.”
“As you wish, Master.” Akane-san bowed. “Then allow me to share my knowledge. First, I shall go over the difficulty ranking of the dungeons. The lowest difficulty is D, and the highest is S. There are only seven Rank S dungeons. The next difficulty, A, takes up around 10% of the total number, which means there are anywhere from sixty to seventy of them. B and C make up the bulk of the dungeons at around 70% of the total, leaving the last rank, D, at around 20%. Each dungeon’s ranking is determined by its number of floors and the strength of the monsters that appear inside. However, not all dungeons within the same tier are alike. For example, there are Rank B dungeons closer to being Rank A, Rank C dungeons closer to being Rank B, and so on. Additionally, a dungeon’s ranking is also greatly affected by the kinds of rewards that it generates.”
“I want to hear more about specifically what kinds of rewards there are. Would they be ‘magic stones’ or ‘monster materials’ like the genre commonly posits, or are they something else entirely?”
“There are indeed such cases, but for civilized societies, the most common reward would be money.”
“I’m sorry, what?”
Money? If I defeat a monster, a Yukichi would appear? For a split second, my mind ground to a halt.
“The general criteria that dungeons use when deciding rewards is ‘something that is of value to the world that they have appeared in.’ In some worlds, that would be food, water, air, or any other number of things. However, for civilizations that have progressed to the point where they understand the concept of ‘money,’ that becomes the default reward most of the time. That said, there are exceptions, too, of course.”
The development often described in light novels, where the fact that killing monsters yields money leaks and incites mobs of civilians to flood into the dungeons to strike it rich, was very much not what I was imagining. If a cash-generating dungeon appeared, the government would definitely step in. Currency issuance was an economic policy. How much money was printed would affect employment rates, the prices of commodities, and exchange rates. There was no way that a country would just open up a dungeon that would be pumping unknown amounts of cash into the economy.
“If the Dungeon System thinks that it could attract people to enter the dungeons by generating money, then it is a defective system. There is no way that countries would leave these dungeons be. Without a doubt, countries would move to clamp down on them, instead sending their police force or their armies inside to shut them down. Not that I know how effective automatic rifles would be against monsters...”
“The Dungeon System grants autonomous control to the dungeons, such that it could be said that each dungeon is an entity with the ability to think for itself, decide what kinds of monsters it contains, and what rewards it generates. As such, it is very possible for rewards other than money to be dropped. However, what you mentioned about sending in armies to shut down the dungeons would most likely not work. After all, it is impossible to bring outside weapons into a dungeon.”
“Hm? What do you mean? Weapons can’t be brought in?”
“Yes, that is correct. So now we get to the most important part of the System. I shall now explain about the cards.”
Akane-san drew one of the kunai from her waist, then showed it to me. Abruptly, the kunai turned into a card. It looked like a sleight of hand trick.
“This is no trickery. It is a part of the Dungeon System. When I said that it is impossible to bring weapons into a dungeon, it is because anything that the dungeon determines to be a weapon would be converted into a card just like so. In order to restore a cardified weapon, it needs to be brought back to the ‘Safety Zone’ that is located at the entrance at Floor 1.”
“If weapons can’t be brought in, then how are we supposed to fight inside the dungeons?”
“There are two ways. One way is for you to acquire weapons inside the dungeon and fight in person. The other way is to order servants — such as myself — to fight on your behalf. There is no other way. If you choose the first, you will have to first start out fighting with only your bare fists, gradually proceeding deeper in until you find a weapon. The only weapons that can be brought into a dungeon are ‘dungeon-made’ ones.”
“I see. And the ‘servant’ that you mentioned as the other way?”
“When monsters in a dungeon are defeated, there is a chance for them to turn into a card that can then be picked up. These are ‘servants.’ Servants can be summoned only inside of dungeons. Once summoned, they can be ordered to fight on their Master’s behalf. There are a few other ways of obtaining cards, such as by freeing spirits that had been sealed away or by dealing with Peddler, an otherworldly merchant who wanders throughout the dungeons.”
“I see. So it’s basically a choice between becoming a fighter or a summoner. So then, what about you? Why are you here, even though I haven’t done any fighting yet?”
“Master, you are the first person who has come into contact with the Dungeon System. As the reward for being the First Contacter, I believe you must have received several perks. Please say ‘Status Open’ out loud.”
“Uh... Status Open.”
Abruptly, a black screen roughly fifty centimeters tall and thirty centimeters wide appeared before my eyes. There were white words on the screen.