—
As Will and Shuna were discussing, the petite demon girl, Angie, ca wobbling over with a tray in her hands.
Carefully, she climbed a makeshift staircase of stacked boxes at the corner of the table.
Watching her unsteady steps, Will couldn’t help but worry she might drop the tray.
But surprisingly, she seed quite skilled at this. Despite her shaky movents, the tray remained perfectly balanced, not a single drop spilled.
“Sorry to interrupt, here’s your order.”
“Super Delicious Supre Sheep Brain!”
A plate of blackened, soft, brain-like matter, with folds resembling the surface of a walnut, was placed in front of Shuna.
“Freshly Baked Butter Bread!”
As for Will’s bread…
It could hardly be called “freshly baked.” Its hard, blackened crust looked like it could peel off in layers, and the butter was nowhere to be seen. The entire thing looked intimidating.
“Your dishes are served! Please enjoy!”
After setting the plates down, She gave them a deep bow.
Her horns, polished to a gleaming shine, caught the light as she bent over.
“Enjoy… enjoy this? Really?”
Will picked up the knife and fork provided. The utensils were surprisingly well-made and immaculately clean.
It made Will wonder if using such fine cutlery for this kind of food was a disservice to the utensils.
“It’s actually pretty good. Don’t let the appearance fool you—the taste is decent.”
Shuna casually scooped a spoonful of the soft brain matter, its texture still clinging to so of the mbranes, and held it out toward Will.
“Wait—”
Before Will could ntally prepare himself, she fed him a bite.
But…
It was delicious.
That was Will’s first impression.
Although the flavor wasn’t as refined as the gourt als he was used to as a noble—it lacked the ticulous touch to completely remove any gaminess—it carried a surprising warmth, reminiscent of rustic, ho-cooked als from his past life.
“Well… let’s try the bread then…”
Will took a bite of the bread. Though it was a bit hard, it was unexpectedly rich with the aroma of baked butter, bursting with flavor.
“See? Their food only looks unappetizing. Once you try it, it’s actually pretty good.”
Shuna smiled as she took another bite of the sheep brain.
Just as she finished speaking, the little demon from earlier popped her head back up, her horns peeking over the table.
“Th-thank you for enjoying the food! So, um, could you… maybe leave a bigger tip this ti? Last ti, this lady was defeated three tis on the third floor. Could you aim for three defeats on the fourth floor this ti?”
“…?”
Will’s face twisted in confusion.
What kind of bizarre request was this?
Did they want them to… act as punching bags?
“Sure, no problem.”
Shuna, seemingly enjoying her al, scooped another bite into her mouth and agreed to the request without hesitation.
“You actually agreed?!”
Shuna raised a finger to her lips, signaling Will to stay quiet.
“Wonderful! As the boss said, couples are the best custors. The n always try to show off and spend extra money!”
“……”
Will couldn’t shake the feeling that the “boss” of this place had so seriously questionable business practices.
And…
“Excuse , but let’s set aside the whole ‘couple’ thing for a mont. Didn’t you notice which one of us is the ‘man’?”
“Huh?!”
Angie looked back and forth between them.
She stared particularly hard at Shuna’s chest.
“Sorry! For demons, recognizing human genders is like humans trying to tell a dog’s gender—it’s impossible without… um… a closer look! At least, that’s what the boss says. I’ve never actually seen a dog.”
At that mont, Will couldn’t help but think that, no matter how much these demons excelled in “custor service,” they were still demons—mischievous little tricksters at heart.
But Shuna… why was she smiling so happily?
She seed to be enjoying being mistaken for the “man” in the couple…
Wait, what?!
Will felt a sudden chill down his spine, then quickly dismissed it.
No, no, just his imagination. Right?
“But after this, can I et your empress?”
Angie’s expression turned a bit awkward, her ears twitching up and down.
“We’d love to take you to see her… but Lucifa isn’t in the dungeon right now… Maybe you’ll run into her sowhere else?”
“That’s fine. I have plenty of ti.”
After Angie slowly disappeared from view again, Shuna turned to Will.
“But you’re in a bit of a hurry, aren’t you?”
“What’s the deal with this dungeon? What does ‘defeated’ even an… could it be…”
“Exactly what you’re thinking. Want to give it a try?”
The plates were now empty.
Shuna’s gaze seed to be hinting that it was ti to “pay the tip.”
—
They proceeded like any normal dungeon raid, finding the door to the first floor—which looked more like a small door leading to the restaurant’s kitchen—and then moved on to the second floor.
With a welcoming parade of little demons, they reached the third floor.
And then…
The fourth floor.
The answer Will had been piecing together beca increasingly clear.
No…
Rather than finding the answer here, it felt more like connecting the dots from the “early Chapters” of the original story—
Where did the endless resources in dungeons co from?
Why were these valuable resources so generously given to adventurers?
And… what did adventurers an to the dungeon itself? Why, in the original story, did the empress take every floor and every challenger so seriously?
The answer lay within this “strange” Tenth Demon Castle—
“Excuse , are you here to pay your ‘bill’?”
Waiting for them on the fourth floor was a little demon holding a hamr made of cotton candy.
Like the other demons, he had small wings and a pointed tail that ended in a heart shape.
But he seed a bit shy, fidgeting nervously. His purplish-red face didn’t show a blush, but his deanor made it clear.
As for the hamr…
It looked like a decorative prop from an amusent park, light and completely harmless.
In this regard, it was entirely unlike the dungeons Will had experienced before.
“Y-you can just walk this way, and I’ll be gentle. You won’t feel a thing, I promise.”
Thump!
Thump!
Thump!
The cotton candy hamr lightly tapped their heads, releasing a sweet aroma of actual cotton candy.
—
Their strange dungeon adventure ended with the two of them standing outside the dungeon entrance, having “failed the dungeon challenge.”
“Who would’ve thought my first, second… and however many tis I’ve ‘failed a dungeon’ would all happen here.”
Shuna stretched lazily, as if she were already used to it.
At the entrance to Tenth Demon Castle, one side was lit by the glowing sign of the dungeon, while the other side faced the quiet streets of the town—where the residents, with no outside visitors or entertainnt, went to bed early.
“So, what do you think, smart little Will? After this experience, have you figured sothing out?”
From the shadows, Will stepped forward.
“They’re… farming combat stats.”
“Exactly. That’s one of the secrets of dungeons, Will. Aren’t you curious? How do dungeons operate? Why do they welco adventurers to explore them? And where do the rewards they give adventurers co from?”
“It’s because…”
…
“Because they need the energy generated from adventurers’ battles to expand the dungeon downward.”
A voice interrupted their conversation, erging from the shadows cast by the glowing lights.
It was a girl.
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