Earth Dungeon 34.1

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Chapter 34.1. Dispute

After Sakimori abruptly ended the negotiation and left, Captain Anayama leisurely enjoyed his meal. Eitai was no longer present. Suppressing his anger, he recalled his business and departed with a clear destination.

"Wasn't that deal good enough-nya?"

As the chair creaked, a cat girl with a smug smile sat in front of him, causing him to snort.

Glancing up at Major Kazama, who had been quietly observing, he returned his gaze to his meal.

"If I recall correctly, the genuine article costs 2,000 yen per kilogram of wheat flour and 200 yen per kilogram of vegetables. I will make the necessary arrangements."

While eating his salad, he casually spoke as if engaged in small talk, causing the cat-girl to raise an eyebrow in surprise.

"But isn't it too much for a black market trade of genuine goods-nya? One ton per week-nya?"

"There is no need to worry. Our stock of wheat flour has been rapidly increasing recently. As long as it brings in money, there is no problem, in my opinion."

"Ah, it's for the coupepan-nya? The wheat flour used for making bread is running low, and the stock is increasing-nya. Just a little bit-nya."

He shrugged his shoulders at the cat-girl, who didn't hide her smirk. In reality, the claim of excess stock was a lie.

"He seemed weak and easily deceived. Unbelievable. Does he possess concealment skills?"

Amano Sakimori, his appearance was meager. If they hadn't heard the previous information. They would have scoffed and ignored him.

"Indeed-nyaa. I was also surprised when I saw today's Amano-nya. It's because he acquired the [Aura] skill-nyaa. Yes, I believe he has that kind of skill-nya. Skills like sensing life force or suppressing power-nya. But he doesn't seem like a man who wastes mana unnecessarily-nya."

Karin hesitated with her arms crossed. She couldn't believe that he wasted mana. Moreover, he was heading to a place where conflicts were ordinary occurrences. Did he possess a vast amount of mana? Or perhaps there was a trick to suppressing power?

"He's doing a solo dungeon conquest. The abandoned town gave birth to a monster."

"I heard he cleared it using only a hunting rifle and Goblin King's greatsword-nya."

"He uses the abandoned town as his territory... Should we just leave him alone?"

While ordering additional dishes, Captain Anayama inquired about that dangerous man. It was insane for someone to defeat a dungeon alone. No matter how strong someone was, there had to be times when they fell behind. In the dungeon, they couldn't rest, and their mana would run out. He had achieved that feat, making him a monster. Leaving him alone was dangerous.

"It seems he's just right as a shield for the abandoned town, so just leave him alone-nya. There have been more stampedes lately, and the appearance of major creatures has increased-nya. We can defend the inner town without using the budget. Rather than allowing an unknown man into the inner town, it's better to leave him as the boss of the abandoned town-nya. If a rebellion occurs, we can just kill him. He can't rival the military, after all-nya."

"Last year, there was the Lizard's Grand March, after all. We sacrificed many bullets and soldiers. So we took that direction. In that case, my black market dealings might cause concern too."

Without using the budget, the higher-ups considered increasing the defense capability. It's certainly reasonable. Even if Sakimori could conquer the goblin dungeon solo. He couldn't stand a chance against a fully armed platoon.

Even if he has the power of a monster-level entity. It would be enough to satisfy him by allowing him to take on the boss of the abandoned town. Human ingenuity surpasses the power of dungeon monsters, at least in short-term combat. But humans are inferior to monsters.

The next negotiation with the monster would likely be a proper discussion, thought Captain Anayama as he scooped up the vanilla ice cream that the staff brought to him with a spoon. 

He has had a long association with the Eitai, but in this world, the intelligent and the strong are the ones who survive.

"When it comes to taming stray dogs and wolves, if you're smart, you choose the wolf,"

He would probably never meet the Eitai again. Apologies, he said, putting the ice cream in his mouth. 

Hmm, it's cold.

Leaving the outer city, Sakimori's group leisurely walked through the ruins. Overcoming debris, with Ooki-kun leading the way.

"Um, are they going to attack us? Is it okay for me to be in the front?"

"I'm too weak for that. T-Trust in me, Ooki-kun."

"Yeah, leave it to me, Ooki-kun."

"When it's time to use that body of yours, use it as a shield against arrows."

"Please don't die from taking a single hit."

"Awful! Am I a shield?"

Laughter echoed around as the guards teased, and Sakimori sighed. He's feeling tired of the hunched posture. I always suppress my [Aura], as it seems it weakens my presence when not in use. If he maintains a hunched posture, he appears weak. 

But I'm getting tired of it. As expected, those people seem to be waiting for us.

As we walked through the ruins, passing by the abandoned buildings, I could feel the presence of people hiding in the shadows of various buildings. [Aura] is wonderful. Just by circulating [Aura] within my body, there is no consumption, and it can erase one's presence and sense the presence of enemies.

It's like thermography, even through walls, I can see my opponent's figure. Their sizes vary, but it's like a small margin of error.

[Sakimori-san, as much as I hate to admit it, normally, using martial skills is necessary to conceal one's presence and sense enemies. Besides Sakimori-san, I've never seen anyone who can use it passively.]

[Are you bragging, Shizuku-san?]

Shizuku floated in the air and said with an exasperated expression, but there was no trace of boasting.

[I studied hard to suppress mana consumption. I had secret confidence that it was possible precisely because I had talent in combat.]

Seeing the rarely gloomy girl, I couldn't help but smile. Shizuku looking gloomy is cute too. But he thinks it's something that happens often

[Well, those kinds of things are always broken. Anyway, shall we welcome the opponents who are waiting for us?]

Even if you think my technique is original, surprisingly, others can use it too.

One by one, delinquents emerged from the abandoned buildings. There are 7 in front, 3 in the back, and 12 hiding in the shadows of the ruined building. They're quite cautious, keeping their troops hidden. Moreover, those hiding have taken different floors into account.