Interlude: ☆OHANASHI☆
Ryu and Ryoma—who had effectively abducted the Dungeon Master—were now holding what could only be described as a very serious “⭐︎OHANASHI⭐︎” inside the chamber where the giant beast dungeon’s crystal core was installed.
The Dungeon Master was seated in a chair.
And above him loomed the two dragons, both wearing disturbingly friendly smiles that did not reach their eyes, leaning in from either side like a pair of predators enjoying a quiet meal.
“Hey, Dungeon Master. We’re friends now, aren’t we?”
“Y-yeah‼”
“That’s wonderful. I’m happy. Ryoma is happy too. I’m sure your friends outside will become our friends as well. They all seem like nice people.”
“Y-yeah‼”
“…But think about it for a second,” Ryu continued, tilting his head slightly. His voice softened—but only on the surface. “Until just a moment ago, you were trying to make Ryoma kill his comrades. You tried to make him kill people who, in the future, would’ve been your friends. You understand how dangerous that is, right?”
“Y-yeah…”
The atmosphere shifted.
Subtly. But unmistakably.
“And I, in my wisdom,” Ryoma added smoothly, “stopped my rampage thanks to Ryu’s quick thinking. So in the end, nothing bad happened. First, you should be grateful to Ryu.”
“Ryu… thank you…”
“Yeah. I forgive you. After all, we’re friends… right?”
Ryu leaned in closer.
Close enough that the Dungeon Master instinctively shrank back in his chair.
“…But if we’re friends,” Ryu said gently, “don’t you think it’s only natural to give a little thank-you gift? For the sake of our future relationship… and for your own little bit of atonement.”
“A… gift…?”
“Yeah. Something that shows your sincerity. Anything I can feel grateful for would do. But ideally… something like your most treasured possession. Don’t you think that would ensure our friendship lasts forever?”
“A… treasured possession…”
The Dungeon Master’s fingers fidgeted nervously in front of his chest, index fingers poking each other as he thought.
“U-um… I do have something like that…”
“Oh? Then why don’t you tell us?” Ryoma prompted gently.
“It’s something really special… I can only make one every ten thousand years…”
““…!?””
Ryu and Ryoma exchanged a glance.
“…And what would that be?” Ryoma asked.
“Dungeon cores. See that crystal over there? I actually have seven more just like it.”
He pointed.
Floating in the distance was a radiant crystal—beautiful, mysterious, and overflowing with condensed magical power.
“If I pour enough magic into one, anyone can create a dungeon. But I don’t have any companions, so I can’t take the core out of here myself. Still… if it’s placed outside, I can freely teleport between this dungeon and any new one created with a core.”
“So in other words,” Ryu said slowly, “if I create a new dungeon and become its master, I can do the same thing?”
“Exactly! As expected of Ryu‼ And if I, the creator, grant you and Ryoma shared master authority in advance, you’d be able to teleport freely between them too‼”
“Ohh… that is convenient.”
“Right? Right? Hehe.”
Ryu’s expression twisted ever so slightly into something far less innocent.
A grin. Sharp. Calculated. Entirely untrustworthy.
“…Then,” he said, “as your first friend, as compensation for your attempt to make my companion kill his allies, and as a celebration of your very first friendship… I want that crystal core.”
“Eh…?”
“If I don’t get it, my heart won’t heal. I won’t be able to move forward emotionally. Look over there—Ryoma looks like he’s dying.”
At the perfect moment—
“Ugh… I… I tried to kill my beloved comrades… cough cough…”
Ryoma dramatically produced ketchup from his item bag and coughed it out like blood, performing a tragic collapse of dignity itself.
“Th-that’s blood…! He looks so pitiful…”
“Right? If we don’t hurry, we might have to leave with our friends. And after finally becoming friends… that would be heartbreaking, wouldn’t it?”
“Th-then that’s no good‼”
Panic set in.
The Dungeon Master quickly opened a spatial rift and pulled out seven shimmering cores.
Seven legendary crystals—each one said to be born only once every ten thousand years.
Ryu and Ryoma immediately switched expressions.
The “dying patient” act vanished. Replaced instantly by satisfaction.
“Ohhh, so that’s a dungeon core‼”
“Dungeon Master. Keeping one spare should be enough, right?”
“Eh? Y-you’re taking six?!”
“Is there a problem?” Ryu tilted his head. “We’re going to be lifelong friends, aren’t we? Isn’t this fine? Right? Come on, Dungeon Master… say it’s fine.”
“U-ugh… you’re kind of scary…”
“Let’s think about it differently,” Ryu continued smoothly. “With this, you gain control over six additional dungeons. Forests, oceans, snowy regions, volcanoes—you can build whatever you want. And you can come visit us anytime. Isn’t that wonderful?”
“T-that’s true, but… six… that’s like… sixty thousand years of my effort…”
Pressure returned.
Quietly. Heavily.
The smiles of the two dragons darkened once more.
“…You don’t really have a reason to refuse, do you?” Ryu said softly. “Think of it as something you made for this purpose.”
“If you refuse now, after attempting to have comrades killed… well, I can’t promise what will happen next,” Ryoma added casually.
“Uuuu… okay… I’ll give you six…”
“Good. That’s our friend.”
“Alright then. Time to go meet your new friends outside.”
“Uuu… my sixty thousand years… gone just like that…”
And so, the Dungeon Master was taken by the hand—
like a captured alien being dragged across an unfamiliar world—
and led out toward the grassy expanse beyond the dungeon core chamber.