Earth Dungeon 116.1

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Chapter 116.1. Machinations

Serika calmly surveyed the scattered chunks of flesh, once belonging to former humans, as if they were mere pebbles. She sniffed disinterestedly, "Not very strong, huh? If there were a few more skilled individuals, I could've conducted better experiments. Too bad."

She sighed, looking at the partially destroyed black skeleton. It was more fragile than expected. She had anticipated a more overwhelming force. Another black skeleton appeared next to Serika, seemingly oozing from the space, and casually tossed something it held in its hand. What landed in the pool of blood was the severed heads of snipers who had been attempting long-range shots.

The black skeleton, its eye sockets burning with a pale blue flame, exuding an ominous aura, looked at Serika, but she paid it no mind. 

"Too few skilled individuals. Their movements were ordinary too..."

Carefully avoiding the pool of blood, Serika approached the humanoid who had used martial arts. It wasn't very informative. Regular soldiers with firearms weren't worth considering; they didn't even count in the headcount.

[Synthesis]

She gathered mana and used a skill. Pure white light enveloped the corpses and eventually faded away, leaving the bodies where they were. Selica clicked her tongue at the result, shoulders slumping as she muttered.

"Humans can't be synthesized, no matter how many times I try. And fairies are no good either. Couldn't do it in the past, and it seems there's been no change in the specifications. Crafting seems limited to relationships with monsters and inanimate objects. Maybe I should give up on hoping for changes in the specifications. It's been enough; there's no shortcut."

She sighed involuntarily. If she could manipulate fairies or humans, she could have significantly shortened the time, but it wasn't allowed. Well, it's not that it wasn't allowed; it's just that it wasn't even within the skill's scope. Perhaps it was the limit of the dungeon's power.

"Ah, if only the old facilities were still here... But that was a failure from the start, so relying on them is dangerous. Let's go with a completely different approach."

Looking at the black skeleton, she quickly regained her focus. Long-term planning was necessary.

"At least I made a prototype."

With a yawn, she took out a card the size of a playing card and infused mana into it. The magic tool responded to its power, and a deflated voice emanated from the card.

"Is it over~?"

"Yeah, it's over. You can come now."

The communication card they used to contact each other was the 'Twin Cards'. Although a mobile phone would be more convenient, it's often unusable in many areas, so they reluctantly use it. It costs 30 million yen, but it's not consumable, so it's handy in situations like this.

"Oh, it broke."

While talking to Karin, a cracking sound was heard. Looking at the source of the sound, it was the black skeleton. The damaged black skeleton crumbled like sand, turning into ominous particles that got absorbed into the ground. A few millimeters of black stain appeared on the ground, but Serika crossed her arms, furrowing her brow.

"It's too fragile. Maybe I should reconsider the solidification. And does making flesh even make sense? Well, I want to try it. It might support these fragile bones."

Whispering softly, she raised her hand like a white fish.

[Dollhouse]

With that word, space tore, and a Western-style mansion, about two meters in size, appeared like a toy house. It took a few minutes, just like the item box. The front door creaked open with a sound, and as it opened, light poured out. The black skeleton turned into a black light and got sucked into it.

"Ah, right. Let's make a note of this time. I want to verify how long it takes for the dungeon to generate. It's something I'd like to investigate further."

The surroundings were an open field with a distant view of the forest. It was only natural, considering they chose an uninhabited place.

"I've grown, not lured by curiosity like in the past, experimenting without considering the location. I wonder what rank the dungeons born now are. I should make arrangements to ensure I have the right materials available."

Chuckling, he started walking towards the direction of the faint sound of a car engine coming from afar. Glancing at the ground with black stains, he smiled.

"People like Edison, who made electricity usable, the Wright brothers who created airplanes, scientists like Einstein in physics, and those who researched the theory of nuclear missiles, they're not at fault. At that time, they never imagined how people would use their inventions or theories, and they didn't need to. The research was everything."

Humming a beautiful tune, he watched the approaching car. Hanari had come to pick him up.

"I'm all about research too. Well, for now. If successful, I plan to use it, but while I'm researching, there's no problem being in the position of a researcher. So, even if an unfortunate accident happens, it can't be helped. Failure is the foundation of success."

"Here to pick you up~"

Waving back at his dear friend coming out of the car, Selica waved as well, and they left the scene in the car.

After the girls left, the slightly elevated ground remained.

They drove for a while until they reached the city center. Many cars were on the road, passing by well-polished glass buildings and restaurants with colorful signs. Behind the boutique's glass, mannequins wore clothes that represented this year's fashion.

On the tree-lined street, many people were walking. Salarymen in suits hurriedly walked, students in uniforms nibbled on meat buns while chatting happily, and middle-aged women wearing what seemed like expensive clothes walked with relaxed smiles.

Looking out of the car window, Serika smiled at the peaceful scene and spoke to Hanari, who was driving.

"It looks peaceful here. The people in the inner city."

"These folks are barely middle or lower class. You can tell just because they're not moving around in cars."

"Even if there's political strife, they go with the flow. No need to worry about it. They have a decent amount of money but lack the talent and ambition to aim higher. So, they live with peaceful thoughtlessness."

Serika spoke sarcastically, and Hanari, still driving, couldn't help but smile wryly.