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Over the Infinite – Chapter 9 (4)

 

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Translator: mii

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I threw away my hatchet and decided to go to the exit again.

As I passed the gate and walked along the long walkway, a similar warp gate awaited again, just like the one after the battle with the Minotaur.

It might be because this was a hidden stage, but they were reusing it too much. The warp gate was exactly the same as the one in the fifth stage.

“Can’t they make something more original?”

I didn’t have anyone to point that out too, huh.

…In the first place, I was the first challenger too.

“Now, the hard and long trial is over.

We have done it. We have accomplished the unprecedented first day clear. We are the record holder. We’re supposed to die, but we didn’t die even once. Ohh, clap clap…”

…Lifeless.

“…Haa.”

Yuki had died. …Damn it.

We were a team of three when we entered the dungeon, but I killed the companion cat ears. I was the only one who was standing here.

Even though it just happened a while ago, I felt like the moment when Yuki and I passed the warp gate in the fifth stage that happened a long time ago.

We had overcome that much hardship, so I wanted to end this together….

The trial had ended now. This hidden stage was just a bonus.

It was impossible to pass through the real goal together now.

I didn’t know how people would get resurrected after they died, but let’s pick up Yuki who should be back now and went to grab some food.

No, I would fall asleep in the middle of eating with my current condition, so let’s sleep first.

But no matter how tired and sleepy I was, I should meet Yuki first… I shouldn’t go home and leave him alone in this flow…

The system message gave me some kind of procedures too, and there were a lot of things that I had to do. Life was hard.

Was this terrible event would also become a joke one day because I stayed alive?

At that time, let’s laugh maniacally at the cat ears who lost to rookies with Yuki.

I’d never met that Dullahan Rofl, but I would invite him. I’m sure he would make that cat ears felt terribly bad.

“Ahh, I’m hungry.”

When I was alone, I kept thinking.

I dived to the gate, still feeling downhearted.

-5-

I thought I would go back to the ground after passing the gate, but I was in a mysterious space again. Stop this already.

There were no ceilings, no floors, and no walls. Just a white space no matter where I looked at it.

On the ground, gridlines divided into squares were spread evenly. It was like a debug room in games or the room used in the practice mode of fighting games.

I didn’t want to recall that white room which was used for mental torture.

“What is this? Another hidden stage? Really, I’m fine with anything. No matter what’s that, bring it on!”

I was no longer afraid of any evil god.

However, I didn’t get any reply. It’s like I was talking to myself.

…So this was not an event?

There was an item that looked like something important nearby. Would I trigger the event with this?

A black pillar stood in the white space, similar to a monolith. After I touched it, a message was displayed.

[Congratulations on the trial dungeon hidden stage capture]

[As a reward to the complete capture, you are entitled to an audience with the Dungeon Master]

[If you are ready, click the OK button below]

The system message that appeared when clearing the dungeon was displayed on a black screen.

“What is this?”

If what written had the same meaning as what was inside my mind, then I could meet the Dungeon Master by touching this?

I had something I wanted to ask, so I wanted to meet and talk to the Dungeon Master someday, but I didn’t think that the opportunity would come this early.

To be honest, I hadn’t prepared what I should ask that person…

Also, I couldn’t imagine just what kind of person was the Dungeon Master.

The Dungeon Master was the person with a great position in Labyrinth City. Probably, he was the person with the most responsibility here. In other cities, he would be noble with their own territory.

Considering the special position and size of Labyrinth City, they might also become the king.

…No. I could say this because I had experienced the extraordinary performance of the Minotaur and adventurers, but this city could afford to conquer this world too, right?

The person who was in the top of such a group… I didn’t know if they’re humans, but Dungeon Master should be someone amazing, right?

I didn’t know how to talk or act around them even if I met such a person. Since they used to be Japanese person, I should just do seiza[1. kneeling with the tops of the feet flat on the floor, and sitting on the soles.], right?

Even so, this was the trial bonus, so I might not need to worry so much since they already knew their audience was an adventurer, right?

I could ask Yuki for a solution at this kind of time if he was here, but… ah, no, he wasn’t the type of guy who would blow a fuse here, huh.

At least it would be nice if they were a normal king, but if it would be dangerous if they were some kind of demon king.

If they told me to wear proper clothes with a haughty attitude while being surrounded by extremely powerful monsters such as dragons, I was confident that I would kneel on the spot.

If Lv100 skeletons that came from another guild was sitting on the throne, I might even cry.

In such a situation, I wouldn’t be able to even ask or interview them. I couldn’t use AoE explosion magic, okay.

Somehow, pressing this was scary.

“…But now that I think of it, they don’t really give me any choice, huh?”

The warp gate was a one-way path, so there was no way to return.

When I looked around, my surroundings were all white. There was nothing beyond the horizon. I felt like I would become crazy if I stared at the other side.

I was confident that I wouldn’t be able to return if I didn’t leave this place. In the first place, there is no guarantee that there was something here. It wouldn’t be a joke anymore if I went missing in this mysterious space.

…I could only go with it, huh.

There was no option to reject the bonus.

Then let’s not become so roundabout and just go with it immediately. Did I have to prepare myself before meeting the Dungeon Master?

…Well, this was not a hidden event like when that cat ears appeared. Since this was a bonus, it shouldn’t be something bad.

For a moment, I imagined the demon king tortured me with a laugh, saying, “This pain is the capture bonus. Just take it, hahahaha…”

…No way, right?

“Okay, here it comes!”

I prepared myself and pressed the button.

At the next moment, the lights disappeared and my view was covered with darkness. When the darkness cleared, the scenery changed.

Rather than me teleporting, it’s more like the destination came to me instead.

“Where is this…?”

I stood at a place that looked like a room in an apartment that I often saw on the earth.

It was the entrance of a small room that might be a 1K structure. I could see the kitchen in front of you. The bathroom I saw next to me had a unit bath structure and a Western-style toilet.

There was even a toilet seat cover.

…This place was not the earth, right?

Not good, it seemed like I was a little confused. Plus, there was a toilet seat cover.

I start to have a suspicion that I had moved to the earth. The atmosphere was so similar to what I had seen in my previous life.

I guess it wasn’t the room where I lived in my last life, since I didn’t live in 1K in the first place.

Now that I think of it, the rental apartment in Labyrinth City might look like something like this.

However, there was a watering hole, so it was not the dormitory room that I was renting.

Why did I come to this place when I was going to have an audience with the Dungeon Master?

I knew that there was someone in the room beyond the kitchen, but was it the Dungeon Master?

I could hear the sound of a TV, some activity noises, and the light from the fluorescent lamp.

…Wasn’t this place a little bit too plebian?

I wouldn’t surprise the person who was living here, right? I had been mustering all of my courage today, to the point that you could even call me as reckless. But this was the place where I couldn’t muster my courage the most.

However, it was also no good to just stand still at this kind of place.

I made up my mind and opened the door.

“Eh?”

Then, there was an ordinary man who was putting hot water in the cup ramen in front of the table.

He was not wearing a gorgeous cloak or aristocratic clothes. His clothes were completely casual, just like what people would wear when they were relaxing in their own room.

Both of us solidified and unable to say anything, looking at each other as if saying, “Who are you?”

…What’s this?

Did I reach the wrong destination?

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