Chapter 20: The Abandoned Prince Enters a Hot Spring
Wandering the Dungeon for several hours.
I was heading for the deepest part of the Dungeon, avoiding combat with monsters as much as possible.
It’s not that I couldn’t fight by chipping away at the enemy’s health with zombie attacks, but that would take far too much time.
Except for situations where combat was unavoidable, I ignored the monsters and pressed on.
“Whoa, it’s beautiful.”
After advancing through the cave for a while, I came out into a wide area.
Should I call it an underground lake?
Stalactites stretched from the ceiling towards the ground, and beneath them, a large lake spread out.
The Blue Magic Stones at the bottom of the lake were shining, making it seem as if the lake itself was glowing.
“Hm? What’s this? Is this lake… hot water?”
No, rather than hot water, this is…
I approached the lake and sniffed the air, my nose twitching.
There’s a faint smell of sulfur.
I became certain. There’s no doubt. This lake isn’t a lake.
“It’s- it’s a hot spring!!”
Seriously?!
Thanks to Alkalion, I was able to build a bath in the Imperial Castle, but…
To think there’d be a hot spring inside a Dungeon.
“I want to get in. I really, really want to get in. But this is a Dungeon. Getting stark naked is dangerous.”
But then, a thought occurred to me.
Thinking about it calmly, my only weapon is a single dagger, and frankly, it’s already half-blunt from the few fights I’ve had so far.
Whether I ignore the hot spring and press on, or get into the hot spring, the level of danger doesn’t change.
In that case, healing my mind and body in the hot spring before moving on might restore my mental state and perhaps even increase my travel speed later.
At times like these, I’m confident in my quick decision-making.
“Alright, let’s get in!!”
I immediately stripped bare and dived vigorously into the hot spring.
Oops.
Good kids shouldn’t imitate diving into a hot spring like that, okay?
I’m a bad kid, so it’s okay for me.
“Haaah, it’s so warm~”
Hot springs are wonderful.
…Hmm. Five and a half hours from the Imperial Capital, and six hours diving into the Dungeon.
It’s a bit much to spend half a day just to come here for a dip.
Isn’t there some way to draw this hot spring water out of the Dungeon?
No, that’s probably impossible.
Monsters appear in the Dungeon, and even if I went to the trouble of building facilities to draw the hot spring water outside, they’d just get destroyed somewhere.
If I want to use this hot spring, I’ll either have to spend half a day coming here or just live in this Dungeon.
“Come to think of it, who was that person Alkalion mentioned, the one living deep within the Dungeon?”
Anyone living in such a dangerous place must be quite the eccentric.
Rosemary seemed to have come here on errands a few times, but I missed the chance to ask her what kind of person they were.
Rosemary, I wonder if she’s okay?
“No, I’m not strong enough to worry about others. I should focus on myself. …Hm?”
A sudden sense of unease.
I can’t put it into clear words, but I definitely sensed a human presence.
The human presence was on the other side of a rock shadow.
A human being in the deepest part of a Dungeon like this… is no ordinary human.
Paying close attention, I peeked beyond the rock shadow.
However, there was no one there.
“…Was it just my imagination?”
“Peeping, eh? I’m not impressed.”
“!?”
Suddenly spoken to from behind, I instinctively turned around.
There stood a naked beautiful girl—no, a beautiful young girl.
She was in the middle of tying up her long, glossy black hair with a cord so it wouldn’t soak in the hot water, revealing her armpit.
Combined with her doll-like cute features, there was a somewhat criminal aura about her.
Her age seemed to be around ten.
She had the fair, soft, and squishy skin characteristic of a young girl, making me want to poke her cheeks.
Wh-what’s with this girl? Sh-she’s cute…
“Wh-who are you?”
“Washi wa… well now, let’s say I am the master of this Dungeon. This is Washi’s bathing place. You have some nerve trespassing without permission.”
“Ah, s-sorry!!”
Seriously?
Hm? Does that mean… this girl lives in the Dungeon?
Does that mean she’s the person I’m looking for?
While harboring some doubts, I figured I wouldn’t get anywhere just thinking about it, so I decided to ask her directly.
“Um, could it be that the person living in the deepest part of the Dungeon is you?”
“Indeed. I am one who has lived in this Dungeon since ancient times. And you, lad? Who might you be? You’ve trespassed upon Washi’s favorite place without permission. Depending on your answer, Washi will show no mercy, you hear?”
Goosebumps ran down my skin with a shiver.
The beautiful young girl’s golden eyes glared at me sharply, as if to shoot me dead.
They held such clear killing intent that even I, confident in my ability to endure and heal any attack with ‘Complete Regeneration,’ felt a premonition of death.
I have to explain the situation.
This young girl is probably the person Alkalion mentioned, the one living in the deepest part of the Dungeon.
If I avoid saying anything foolish and just tell her I’ve come on an errand for Alkalion, things probably won’t get too bad.
However, for some reason, I couldn’t move my mouth as I wanted.
No, I know the reason.
I was instinctively terrified of the young girl before me.
My lips trembled with fear, and I couldn’t form words properly.
I was scared.
“Silent, are we? Well, no matter. Washi is not as soft on humans as that child, you see.”
Saying that, the young girl grabbed my arm.
Her strength was unbelievable. And immediately after she grabbed me, a strange sensation assaulted me.
“Ghh, poison!?”
“Kukuku, Washi enjoys seeing humans suffer. Now, what kind of face will you make, lad?”
“Guh, UOOOOOOOOHHHH!!!!”
“Hm. Where are you going, lad?”
I dashed from the spot, rushing towards where I had hastily scattered my clothes.
I picked up the dagger I had left there.
“Hoh? You intend to fight Washi while afflicted by poison?”
That’s not it.
I’m not brave enough to defeat an enemy when my own life is on the line.
The reason I came for the dagger was for treatment.
The poison injected by the young girl was different from normal poisons; it would take time to heal with ‘Complete Regeneration.’
I tried to detoxify it the moment I was poisoned, but there wasn’t much of a response.
This was a gut feeling born from using ‘Complete Regeneration’ for about twenty years.
Dying from the poison would be faster than healing it with ‘Complete Regeneration.’
Following suffocation and being buried alive, this was a new pattern that might lead to death.
On the other hand, while this poison was difficult to heal with ‘Complete Regeneration,’ it seemed to take time to spread throughout the body.
In that case, I’ll sever it before the poison spreads through my whole body.
“Ghh!!”
“Mph!?”
I severed my own arm with the dagger.
On the battlefield, when I suffered injuries severe enough to shatter bones, there were several times it was faster to regrow a limb from scratch.
So, even with a somewhat blunt blade, severing is possible. It’s a matter of experience.
It hurts so much I feel like I might faint, but it’s far better than dying.
“…Astonishing, lad. You severed your arm before the poison could spread and regenerated it? You’re like a lizard, aren’t you?”
“Pant, pant, pant…“
It hurts.
I regrew my arm instantly, but the phantom sensation lingers, and it feels disgusting.
More importantly, the problem is that I haven’t escaped the crisis yet.
The young girl before me completely sees me as an enemy. If I beg for my life, I wonder if she’ll spare me.
“Hm. Lad, you…”
The young girl’s gaze gradually shifted downwards.
At the end of her line of sight was my beloved sword, and my beloved sword was preparing for battle.
When living creatures sense death, an instinct to leave behind offspring kicks in.
I was no exception.
Moreover, there was a splendid female before me, albeit in an immature body.
While terrified of the being before me, my instincts recognized her as a female.
What a contradiction.
“Pfft, kukuku.”
The young girl laughed.
It was a mocking laugh, as if teasing me, making light of me.
“Don’t tell me, lad, you’re aroused by Washi’s body? What an outrageous pervert we have here, eh?”
“Th-that’s…”
“Fine, fine. It’s been a while since Washi had such a good laugh. Washi will make a special exception and let you go. However, letting you go for free would be boring.”
Saying that, the young girl approached me step by step.
As I backed away, I stumbled and fell on my butt, looking up at the young girl from below.
From a low angle, at the completely nude young girl.
I gulped involuntarily, feeling both fear and arousal simultaneously.
Th-this camera angle is too lewd!!
“Why don’t we have a match, lad?”
“A m-match?”
“Even you wouldn’t want to die without knowing the taste of a woman, would you, lad?”
Eh, no, I actually know the taste of girls quite well, though.
Ah, right. My appearance is that of a child, so she thinks I’m a cherry boy!!
“The terms of the match are simple. You and Washi will couple, and whoever finishes first loses. If you win, Washi will let you go. If Washi wins, you die. Understood?”
“I-I understand!!”
“Kukuku, then let us begin, shall we?”
I’m a man too, after all.
In a pure deathmatch, I’d definitely lose, but in that kind of battle, I have a chance to win!!
I’ll make this bratty girl, who’s completely underestimating me for being a virgin, understand her place!!
This is absolutely not cheating.
This is a means to protect myself, and by no means is it cheating.
And so, with that resolve, I—
―――――――――――――――――――――
Afterword
A Trivial Little Story
Author: “I want to die while sniffing the armpits of a crazy, black-haired noja loli brat and poking her squishy cheeks. Armpits, spelled with 腋, not 脇, you hear? This is important.”
Re: “Operator-san, it’s this guy.”
★Announcement☆
I’ve started posting my new work, ‘The Former Strongest Villain Mage Masters Life Magic and Makes a Comeback as the Most Sinister with Outrageously Broken Abilities!’ If you have the time, please check it out. I plan to make this one quite quirky as well.
If you thought, “I want to visit a Dungeon hot spring,” “Autotomy, lol,” or “This afterword is overwhelmingly creepy, lol,” please leave your thoughts, bookmarks, ★ ratings, and reviews.