"Goodbye, Mr. Loulan. I wish you a safe journey!"
"Goodbye, Mr. Maven. The Corisu family's hospitality was truly wonderful. Thank you for giving me this opportunity. See you again!"
"See you!"
After bidding Maven farewell, Loulan headed out of the city with a bounty notice and a letter of authorization in his pocket.
Before leaving, he also glanced back at the noble district's scenery and reaffirmed his determination to buy a house there.
There was no deeper reason. Living there was comfortable, and he wouldn't have to wake every morning to the stench of assorted excrement and lose his appetite for breakfast!
This goddamn otherworld didn't even collect its rubbish until before lunch! Only after experiencing it firsthand could he appreciate how precious an ordinary life in his previous world had been.
...
The Darkest Dungeon was fairly far from the city, and at least five buffer checkpoints had been established along the road to ensure the main city had enough time to respond if the dungeon erupted.
Thanks to the travel documents the noble had given him, Loulan received the green light at every checkpoint. The soldiers merely glanced at the seal before letting him through.
Starting at the third checkpoint, Loulan noticed one patrol after another along the road leading to the Darkest Dungeon.
Some were regular soldiers in light armor or heavy plate, while others were adventurers who had accepted related commissions. The latter made up roughly seventy percent of them.
Beyond the sixth checkpoint lay a market established before the Darkest Dungeon by adventurers and various human and humanoid races.
It had taverns, brothels, casinos, inns, an Adventurers' Guild, and other facilities. There were even merchants hawking wares from stalls, making it look every bit like a small town.
Many adventurers sought "treatment" here for the "illnesses" and "stress" caused by entering the Darkest Dungeon. That was how the town had come into being.
But this wasn't Loulan's destination. He passed the path into town, continued straight along the main road, and eventually saw a great mountain enter his field of view.
That was the site of Coldiron City's third Darkest Dungeon—Secluded Tower Mountain!
【What a spectacular sight. It looks over three thousand meters tall? I heard it's a hollow mountain filled with floors connected by spiral staircases. That's how it got its name.】
Loulan raised his head and gazed at the colossal mountain looming before him. Its slopes were barren, covered only in earth and rock, yet a mysterious power made them as hard as refined iron.
Even if someone destroyed the mountainside through brute force, strange laws would swiftly repair it. The dungeon's "local specialties" that escaped during the process would also cause considerable havoc, making it a disaster rooted to one spot!
And that wasn't the full extent of this dungeon. No adventurer had yet discovered how deep it extended underground. They only knew its depths held a terrifying darkness even more dangerous than the "boss" room at the summit!
"Greetings, adventurer. Please present your bounty commission and the noble's writ."
At the entrance to the enormous stone gates beneath the mountain, a heavily armored cavalryman stopped Loulan in advance, greeted him, and requested his documents.
Without the slightest hesitation, Loulan took the two prepared documents from his pocket and held them directly before the slit-like visor of the cavalryman's helmet.
【Can he really see through that? It's literally just a slit!】
"Everything is in order. May the God of Light bless you, brave adventurer."
The cavalryman nodded slightly, placed his right fist over his chest, and struck it twice with two clangs. Only after taking seven short steps backward did he turn and return to his post.
Loulan said nothing. He put the documents away and saluted the man. His manners had been impeccable! He had even offered a blessing! Loulan couldn't help but respect him.
"Haa..."
Loulan took a deep breath. Although the dungeon gates faced the blazing midday sun, not a single ray of light penetrated the interior. It resembled a bottomless black hole that inspired instinctive dread.
His body trembled faintly. The greatest difference between imagining something and witnessing it was the fear of the unknown versus the arrogance born from what one believed one knew.
Loulan's identity was perfectly ordinary. He was simply an ordinary person with a little more courage than most, someone capable of overcoming fears he had yet to face with his cheat urging him onward.
But when the unknown truly appeared before his eyes, he grew afraid. Fear seized him, triggering the most primal of physiological responses—terror!
【You are entering a Darkest Dungeon.
Dungeon Name: Fungus-Corpse Imperial Mausoleum
Current Difficulty Zone: Medium/Apprentice
Current Objective: Explore ninety percent of the rooms in the area
Reward: 7,000 gold coins, 10 star crystals, 1 unknown rare-grade relic】
Humanity's hymn is the hymn of courage. Overcoming the dual pressure on his body and mind, Loulan stepped slowly into the black void.
Before he even opened his eyes, he discovered two screens within his consciousness.
One displayed the dungeon's difficulty. The other showed the familiar "Provisions" interface!
In the game Darkest Dungeon, this screen appeared only after the player had assembled a party and was about to set out on a dungeon expedition. It was accompanied by the "inventory" that held the items one could carry.
Because he had installed mods, Loulan's inventory had a full thirty slots with unlimited stacking! Of course, they could store only items supplied by his cheat.
At that moment, time seemed to stand still. Loulan knew he wouldn't be deployed into the dungeon until he finished selecting his provisions.
"Fungus-Corpse Imperial Mausoleum? Is that this dungeon's true name? It sounds disgusting..."
After complaining, Loulan turned his attention to the provisions.
His current gold, the cheat's currency, was zero, so naturally he couldn't buy provisions. But there was no need to panic! He had the divine power of mods!
A row of free supplies poured into his "inventory." They were enough for a four-person party to explore a medium Apprentice dungeon. Whenever he wished, he could pull them from his "four-dimensional crotch" and use them!
"Enter!"
With that word, a crisp "click" rang through the empty room.
Loulan was deployed inside the dungeon. Until he found a "door" through which he could leave, he would remain trapped here!
But did that matter?
"It doesn't. When I charge into the darkness like an ant, my cheat will break me free of the encirclement and restore the light! Show me your limits, Girl Dungeon!"
As Loulan murmured, clack after clack echoed down the dungeon corridor.
He understood that he had awakened the monsters. If his cheat wasn't powerful enough, he would die here immediately!
【Star Crystal Shop:
Oni Girl's Amulet. Price: Free.
Oni Girl's Delusion. Price: Free.
Pactmancer's Blood. Price: Free.
Pactmancer's Storybook. Price: Free】
"Buy, buy, buy!!!"
"ROAR!"
The roar came with a howl of displaced air from the darkness. The lightless dungeon launched its deadliest attack upon the intruder!
"SWISH—"
In the opening that followed, a silver-white gleam sliced through the dark. Thus, light and a spark of fire were born in the dungeon's depths!
Loulan saw the monster attacking him.
"BLEURGH—!"
He vomited. The overwhelming physical revulsion made him spew stomach acid and breakfast alike!
Human bones, rotting flesh, decayed skin, fungal threads, mites, slime, blood, the stench of fish...
"Fuck your... bleurgh—your *ing Darkest Dungeon!"