第５０掘：より良き生活の為に (Part1)
**50th Excavation: For a Better Life**
**Side: Narjia**
"...And so, due to the miracle of the late Lady Elju, this dungeon has become the first in history to be operated by human hands. Currently, Lady Seraria, the elder sister of Lady Elju, holds the highest authority, and for the time being, Labyris here has been entrusted with the supreme authority of the dungeon in her stead."
"...Nice to meet you, new residents of the dungeon. My name is Labyris, and I am the chief administrator of this dungeon's operations. You may wonder why someone as young and inexperienced, and a girl at that, is serving in this role. It is because it was the dying wish of the late Lady Elju, who gave this dungeon a new life. The town you are about to live in is unlike any other place you have known. While I am the administrator, I am not a ruler. This is a town where the people who live here can convey their own will to the town itself. In other words..."
Right before my eyes, Eris-san, whom I spoke with yesterday, and Labyris-san are explaining the purpose of the dungeon's operations to the new arrivals.
In other words, they are explaining it to us, the Fairy race.
However, the way they are explaining it, the content of the speech—it’s all very well thought out.
I had heard the policies and objectives at yesterday's meeting, but I was wondering how they would explain it to the others who knew nothing at all...
By using the late Lady Elju as a shield, they are claiming that this place is safe—a town of the people, by the people, for the people.
I see. There is no room for opposition here.
If anyone were to object, they would be going against the dying wish of Lady Elju, and those who complain that Labyris-san is too young would only be proving that they do not view others as equals.
In short, the fact that this young girl and the moderators are women acts as a wedge to suppress dissent.
At the same time, those who have complaints have no choice but to voice them right here. And in a very disadvantageous situation, at that.
In a sense, this is a screening process—a sifter—to determine who can live here.
Off to the side, the real Dungeon Master, who is standing by with the other representatives, is lazily... sleeping.
...Well, I suppose it can't be helped.
Yesterday, the clock ended up ticking past midnight.
Surprisingly, the women standing here as representatives were all former slaves; they have never acted as administrators before.
This means that Yuki-san is the one who trained them to be capable of this.
If it were me, there is no way I could do it.
Even though we haven't finished selecting the next Elder, the idea of raising nearly ten new administrators from scratch is fundamentally impossible.
Yuki-san might look like he’s slacking off, but judging from my own experience, he was likely the busiest of us all.
As I think about this, a stir rises from the crowd.
"...This is a skill as a Dungeon Master. As you live in this dungeon, a very small amount of DP will be generated—1 DP per person every 10 hours. I used this DP to create a sword, but it doesn't have to be this. You are free to discuss and produce various things that are convenient for daily life. Furthermore, the method for using DP has already been granted to the representatives of each race. Elder, Narjia-san, could you please come to the front?"
"Yes."
As planned in yesterday's meeting, I step out in front of everyone in the village to perform a demonstration.
"Everyone, as you have heard, I have received Master authority from Labyris-san and have been given the right to use DP. However, as you know, this is not for personal gain. It is for us to think together and make our future lives better. Currently, I have been given 1,000 DP. This is the amount of DP we would earn in about 10 days. First, to prove that I can use DP and as a token of my trust in all of you, I have received this 1,000 DP. I will use 285 DP of this to create something that can only be obtained in this dungeon."
I open the operation screen and produce what I had planned.
It is ice cream. 5 DP each, with a spoon.
I immediately have everyone take one.
"This is a food called ice cream... well, it's a type of sweet. We deliberated yesterday and took the liberty of choosing something that we thought would make everyone happy. The way to eat it is..."
In front of everyone, I open the lid, scoop it with a wooden spoon, and eat.
...Mmm, delicious.
It’s my second time, but I still can't get enough of it. To think such a sweet exists...
Moreover, what I am eating now is vanilla, but they say there are dozens of other flavors...
Honestly, I want to use the skimmed DP to conquer every single flavor.
By the way, you might wonder why we, the Fairy race, who have high MP, are also calculated at 1 DP per 10 hours.
It is because we needed to align with the average of the others.
Since it is planned to be publicly stated that humans absorb an average of 1 DP every 10 hours, if we were to increase the DP the Fairy race could use simply because we have more MP, it would create a disparity between races.
In other words, it would create a hierarchy of superior and inferior.
From the outside, it might look like the Fairy race, which converts more MP into DP, is at a loss, but it would be a bigger problem if that caused a rift with other races or discouraged immigrants from coming.
Therefore, we reached the conclusion that for all living beings in this dungeon, it would be fixed at 1 DP taken every 10 hours.
"Huh? If it's 1 DP every 10 hours for living beings... wouldn't it be better to summon monsters with DP and increase them a lot? Then we could eat ice cream all we want, Elder!!"
One of the villagers who was happily eating ice cream says this as if it were a brilliant idea.
"Ah, I didn't explain that part. The modified pillbugs that arrived yesterday have been placed under the control of the Dungeon Master. However, DP cannot be absorbed from those modified pillbugs. This is the same for the monsters currently guarding this facility and the dungeon."
"Ehh, why is that?"
"As you know, monsters placed under the control and protection of the Dungeon Master obey orders. Do you know why?"
"...Why is that?"
"It is because when they are placed under the protection of the Dungeon Master, they no longer need to eat. Monsters originally occur naturally in magical hotspots and engage in predatory behavior to supplement their magic power. However, under the protection of the Dungeon Master, they can use the efficiency with which they convert their own MP into DP to maintain themselves. Of course, the stronger the monster, the greater the MP required for maintenance, but it is generally within the range of their own conversion efficiency. If there were a monster that didn't eat and didn't die, perhaps you could absorb DP from it, but..."
"Aw, I guess it doesn't work out after all."
I, too, had actually thought of the same thing and pushed for a "Monster Domestication Plan!!", but it was easily rejected.