第８５３堀：蒼乃底へ (Part1)
Side: Yuki
"......I'd laugh if the core floated up now."
"Don't even joke about that. If that happened, it would just be a huge hassle."
I replied with an exasperated sigh to Taiki's unfunny joke.
If I saw the core bobbing up to the surface, I'd instantly lose all motivation.
After all the meticulous preparations we'd made, there's no way it could be called off for such a ridiculous reason.
"It's a joke! See, it's fine, it's sinking properly."
"Right. Still, we'll have to properly investigate such things in advance from now on. Even if it doesn't float, it could still be carried away by the tide despite its weight."
"Ah, places with strong currents. That's certainly possible."
"It's a classic cause of maritime accidents."
"I recall being dragged down, or rather, that's actually due to ocean currents too, isn't it?"
"Exactly. Some people think ocean currents only exist offshore or on the surface, but there are also currents that flow towards the seabed."
If you get caught in one, you'll be dragged straight to the seabed.
In such situations, instead of trying to swim against the current upwards, it's crucial to swim sideways to escape the current's range.
"Master, the seabed is in sight. It'll be touching down soon!"
Just as they were talking, the core seemed to have reached the seabed.
I paused our chitchat and peered into my Call interface.
Then...
A command appeared:
[Do you want to make this entire area a dungeon?]
"Phew. Looks like dungeons can be created even underwater."
"Right. But wasn't the condition for creating a dungeon that people could enter and exit it?"
"Ah, it just means there needs to be an accessible passage. It doesn't say anything about the presence or absence of oxygen."
"Ugh, isn't that just splitting hairs?"
Indeed, judging by the Call screen, the 'Dig Here, Woof Woof' system was operating normally.
It didn't seem to recognize this as cheating or a violation.
That useless goddess, Luna, she really overlooks things like this.
There's a chance it's intentional, but if I say that, she'll just get carried away, so I'll ignore it.
"It's not splitting hairs. It just means there need to be people who would try to explore the sea. Or rather, if you think about it that way, since we can't replenish DP from adventurers, a dungeon in the sea might be meaningless to begin with."
"Ah, I see. Dungeons are originally for earning DP, after all. In the sea, at best, there are sea monsters, but they don't exactly flock to treasures or anything."
So, in that sense, it's usually meaningless, which is why Luna left it alone.
People who willingly venture into the sea for adventure probably only exist on Earth, if anywhere.
Even on Earth, they're an overwhelming minority. Only a handful of scholars or adventurers aim for the seabed.
Furthermore, in this world, there are overwhelmingly dangerous monsters, so there's even less incentive to create a dungeon in the sea.
In fact, this world hasn't even reached the point of venturing out to sea to seek new lands.
Even the surface of the sea is still largely unexplored, so the chances of an underwater dungeon being discovered are infinitesimally low.
Well, whether on Earth or in this world, it's a place only accessible to wealthy dilettantes.
"Alright, if we're going to start dungeonification, what kind of dungeon structure should we go with...? What do you girls prefer, Aslin?"
"Hmm. I'd like something like an aquarium!"
"Indeed! I want to explore an underwater cave!"
Oh, no, I understand the sentiment, but do we even have a dungeon design like that?
I thought perhaps someone might have created one without my knowledge and searched through the blueprints, but as expected, I couldn't find anything like it...
"...It would be nice if we could do what those two are asking, but there's no such design, Yuki," Labyris informed me.
"Right. For now, Yuki-san, how about a dungeon that allows us to descend along the blue hole?" Shera suggested, offering an alternative.
"Hmm. In that case, let's make the side along the blue hole out of reinforced glass so we can see into it."
"Yay!"
"It's an aquarium!"
"No, sorry to burst your bubble, but I don't know how much of that we can actually do. It's just a temporary, simple creation for now."
With the dungeon concept decided, I clicked the "create dungeon" button, and in less than a minute...
A message appeared:
[Dungeon Constructed]
And a 3D map of the newly created dungeon was displayed on my Call interface.
"No abnormalities. No water leaks. Now, just set up the traps, connect the gates... and done."
"It's done?"
"I want to go quickly!"
"Hold on, hold on. Before we enter, we need to investigate the terrain and creatures around the dungeon first."
I don't think it's likely, but in the unlikely event that there's an unexpectedly powerful monster, there's a possibility it could attack the dungeon.
If that happened, it would be very problematic for this dungeon with its weak defensive facilities, so we need to investigate first.
I operated the Call screen to investigate the surrounding terrain, and immediately, the surrounding terrain data and biological reactions appeared...
*Beep beep beep beep beep...*
And, unexpectedly, there was a mountain of biological reactions.
"Wow. As expected of the sea. It's a treasure trove of life."
"There are so many!"
"So many, indeed!"
"This is a bit much... How about we narrow it down?"
"Right. How about just monsters?"
"Good idea. Let's limit it to creatures that contain magic stones. That way, it'll only show monsters."
When I added the conditions and performed the search, the number decreased sharply...
But still, there were so many reactions left that they couldn't be accurately counted with just a quick glance.
"There are surprisingly many monsters. Does this blue hole have magic power within it?"
"That much is completely unknown. For now, by setting up the dungeon, the magic power has dispersed. We can't measure its previous state now. Should I have done that?"
"Nah, I don't know about that. In that case, we would've had to send someone into the blue hole."
As Taiki said, sending people in without dungeonification would involve considerable danger.
Well, if Shera were to be snatched up by other monsters, I don't think I'd be *that* sad, but then Aslin and the others might start saying they're going to rescue her.
"You're right. Well, what's done is done for this time. Let's consider it next time."
"Right. Should we organize an underwater exploration unit by then?"
"The formation is a tricky point. Perhaps the Sahagins. Anyway, let's put aside such detailed future plans for now and move via the gate."
"Yes!" they chorused.