第３６掘：メロン＆うさぎVSモモ (Part1)
**Dungeon Floor 36: Melon & Rabbit vs. Momo**
It had been a while—though, strictly speaking, only about 20 days.
The round trip to the Royal Capital took ten days. Following the recent commotion, the fake Elju and Seraria had returned to the capital, and in their stead, Mauve and his group had returned.
In the meantime, I’d had some fun tinkering with my DP.
I’d "graciously accepted" the 400-strong elite force, primarily composed of Roschur’s Royal Guard. It was a delicious acquisition.
Seraria seemed to be doing fine; I could tell she was in high spirits from our very first greeting. It was irritating, though.
I had expected her to struggle a bit more, but it seemed she possessed a fair amount of charisma and capability.
"I’m listening to your report. Go ahead."
*“...What’s with that? We haven’t seen each other in a while, and you’re already being cold?”*
What a pain... as usual.
"I’m not being cold. Just as you’ve been busy, I have to listen to your report and manage the dungeon. You might be getting a breather on Seraria’s side, but for me, the real work starts now."
*“I suppose that’s true. Fine. To start, the number of immigrants to the dungeon will be about 300, all slaves. Sorry, but I’m the only one who knows the situation on your end, right? The council wouldn’t allow me to just dump refugees into a dungeon, so we decided to send slaves as the vanguard.”*
"Those slaves aren't criminals, are they? It’d be a pain if I had to keep a constant watch on them."
*“You don’t need to worry about that. Even if we call them slaves, they’re just people who were sold off during the recent conflict. They’re no different from refugees. You know why we’re sending them to you as slaves, don’t you?”*
"...Because they’re from the Gartz Kingdom, right?"
*“Exactly. If they were refugees from Roschur, we’d have to avoid selling them as slaves as much as possible. It’s a national embarrassment to admit we turned our own people into slaves during the conflict. That said, I’m sure quite a few were sold just to put food on the table. But the majority are likely from Gartz. Holding onto them as refugees could easily become a seed of conflict, and by pushing them onto you, Yuki, we can claim we protected their citizens with sincerity if things go well. If it fails, the seeds of conflict are gone anyway. It’s a win-win, isn’t it?”*
Seraria wore a look of distaste, yet she stated the facts clearly.
She was solid when it counted. Personally, I rated Seraria higher than Elju.
"So you’re counting on me to handle the labor and costs of management by offloading them onto me. It saves you the trouble of developing the land yourself. For Roschur, it’s the perfect way to get rid of a nuisance. What else?"
*“Also, you understand that I will be the public ruler of that dungeon, right?”*
"Naturally. I wanted the official recognition of the Roschur Kingdom. It would be a huge problem if someone other than Seraria came to claim authority. That’s all according to plan."
Exactly. That was the significance of Seraria’s presence for this dungeon.
Official recognition from the Roschur Kingdom. A stamp of approval from the Second Princess. There was no better endorsement.
Because of this, rather than me shouting "It’s safe here!" on my own, the country and others would perceive it as a very safe place.
In other words, it created a situation where people would naturally gather.
Furthermore, with Seraria’s name attached, petty nobles wouldn't even be able to intervene.
It was convenient for future developments.
*“Well, it’s just for show. You’re the real ruler, Yuki. I’m going to take it easy. Besides, my direct-command unit will serve as the dungeon’s guards and escort the slaves. As long as it’s not unreasonable, you’re free to use them through me.”*
"Heh, I appreciate that. Are you sure you can trust me?"
*“What are you talking about? You went out of your way to hold back and drive away the army that came to the dungeon. I understand that you don’t do things without a reason.”*
Seraria was by no means stupid—though she did seem to have some strange, self-imposed policies regarding combat.
"Anything else?"
*“Let’s see... since it’s technically land development, I’ve secured the nominal funds and supplies. In terms of capital, it’s about 300 platinum coins. It sounds like a lot, but it’s nowhere near enough for development. Building a standard house takes about one to five coins, and a noble’s mansion takes 10 to 40. And that’s assuming carpenters and materials are nearby. It’s a funding shortage to build homes for 300 people, and that’s the end of the financial aid. As for supplies, we have enough materials to build about 30 simple houses. It’ll barely be enough to house 300 people. Regarding food, we have the bare minimum—about 15 days' worth. It took 10 days to get here, but that was moving as a small group or an army; moving with immigrants will make 15 days very tight. You’ll need to start hunting the moment you arrive, or you’ll starve. The only saving grace is that there will be no tax collection for about five years.”*
"So, on paper, they’re basically being told to go die. Couldn’t you have squeezed more out of the council?"
*“Perhaps. But I thought this was just right. It’s not fun to have them meddle later after we’ve developed the place thanks to their support. Conversely, I can use this disadvantageous situation to fend off future interference. Or what? Are you saying you aren’t prepared to support 300 people and us?”*
"No, I’m prepared... but I suppose it’ll be just enough. I was thinking of asking you to pad the aid, but hearing you say that, it sounds like a bad move. Well, either way, there will be meddling, but we should minimize the factors that invite it."
There was a downside to relying too heavily on Elju’s support, after all. Not that I had high expectations to begin with.
*“What? Was there some other aid you wanted?”*
"...I’m planning to create an employment system within the dungeon using money. How much would it cost to employ all 300 people for a month?"
*“Ah, I see. You don’t intend to keep them as mere livestock using your Dungeon Master abilities. That makes sense. You won’t be there forever, will you? A place that stops functioning the moment you leave is too terrifying for anyone to live in. You’re trying to create a flow where the residents can sustain themselves, right?”*
"Exactly. So, what do you think the cost would be?"
*“Hmm, this might not be a perfect reference, but our unit’s monthly salary is three to five gold coins. A regular soldier gets three, a vice-captain gets four, and a captain gets five. Didn’t Elju tell you? A standard four-person family can get by on one gold coin.”*
"I’m just confirming. If I get the numbers wrong, the difference in commodity prices could lead to a disaster."
*“That’s only natural. Understood. I’ll look into the standard wages.”*
"By the way, will the unit’s salaries be paid properly?"
*“Of course. Even if their loyalty is high, some soldiers support their families with that pay. The plan is to have a request form sent to the dungeon every month detailing how much to send. Along with other reports. Well, since they won’t have much use for money in the dungeon, unless they’re single, they’ll likely have the pay sent to their families. They won’t have to worry about food, after all.”*
Hmm, wait. Isn’t this a great chance to earn foreign currency?
"Hold on a second. Make sure the unit members have a certain amount of funds on them."
*“What do you mean? It’s not like there are shops in the dungeon, are there?”*
"No, I’m planning to build them. You know how it is. If you have DP, you can manage most things. I’m thinking of selling the shampoo and conditioner Seraria liked—in limited quantities, of course—in the dungeon."
*“What did you say!? That’s a huge deal. If it were me, I’d bring a fortune to buy them. But it’s not just that, is it?”*
"Of course. I’m building an employment system. I plan to sell consumables, clothing, and food as well."
*“...If you do that, they won’t have to worry about starving while they’re clearing fields or hunting. But are you sure? If luxury items like that shampoo, conditioner... or soap start spreading, unsavory characters will gather from all four corners.”*
"It won’t happen overnight. Nothing starts unless you gather people, and no one approaches a place with no specialties. Well, I’d like you to keep things quiet for the two or three months it takes for those former refugee slaves to settle in..."