Side: Yuki (Kazuya Torino)
I managed to keep my virtue intact...
After that incident, Aslin and Filia — who had been left alone — came walking down the corridor in tears...
It seems they were terrified when they suddenly woke up and found everyone gone.
That's understandable. Until now, as slaves, they never knew when they might be separated from someone. Even if I had no intention of abandoning them, waking up to find no one there must have been frightening.
Thus, thanks to these two little angels, I was saved that night. I'll have to treat them to something delicious later as a thank you.
Now, the current situation: Everyone has gathered in the banquet hall to discuss future plans.
"Alright, from today, we're going to seriously start deciding on the management of this dungeon. I want to hear everyone's opinions loud and clear, so be ready."
I looked around at everyone's faces.
"As I mentioned yesterday, ultimately, you, the former slaves, will need to take the lead from now on. But if I suddenly told you to do it now, you wouldn't know where to start, would you? Until you get somewhat used to it, I'll lead the meetings. I hope you can bear with me on that."
Ratz and the others nodded.
"Good. First, if we're going to build a village or a town in this dungeon, what do we need? Let's stick to the basics for now. It might be tedious, but we need to list the essentials. In front of you is a stack of... copy paper. Please write down whatever you think is necessary on those sheets. If you can't write, pair up with someone who can. There's plenty of paper, so don't worry about wasting it. Take about 10 minutes to think, then we'll summarize."
By the way, ordinary people in this world generally don't own watches. In villages and towns, time is usually told by the ringing of bells. Clocks are luxury items reserved for royalty or the wealthy. Everyone was surprised by them at first, but since they'll need them, I've been teaching them how to read time since they arrived.
Naturally, the group split into smaller circles. They gathered around those who could write, mostly pairing up based on who they got along with. If someone intentionally joined a group where they'd cause trouble, I'd know they were definitely up to something.
First, Labyris, Aslin, and Filia. These three are a set. No issues there.
Next, Eris, Ratz, and Milly. The educated members. A stable group.
Then, Tori, Riel, and Kaya. The beast-kin group, as expected. I have a feeling they'll provide some unique cultural perspectives.
Finally, Elju, Oriel, and Rurua. The "Princess" group.
Elju is technically a guest from another country and wasn't supposed to participate, but she went out of her way to bow to Milly and the others to be allowed in. Something seems to have changed in her between yesterday and today. Well, with a powerhouse like Rurua there, it shouldn't be a problem.
Oh, and Mobu and his crew are acting as the "listening" party. Since they plan to enter the dungeon as adventurers, they're here for various reasons. I wanted them to pitch in, but they turned me down with a single "Too much work." Still, having an objective perspective isn't a bad thing.
While I was thinking about all this and setting up the whiteboard, ten minutes passed.
"Okay, time's up. Let's see... let's save Eriss's and Elju's groups for last, since they seemed to have written a lot. We'll start with either Labyris's or Tori's group. Who wants to go first?"
"How about this~? I think Labyris-chan's group should go first."
"...Really? Thanks."
Labyris nodded and handed the paper she'd written on to Aslin and Filia.
"Um, okay! We want a place to play! I think it would be so much fun! We want a place like a big square! And we want fields so we can grow lots of yummy food!"
"And we want a smithy where we can make all sorts of things! We'll work really hard!"
The former was Aslin, the latter Filia. It was very much like them—though honestly, those are essentials. While it might sound a bit premature to ask for that in a dungeon that's currently just an empty plain, they aren't wrong for the long term.
"...Typical of them, right? From me, I think we need housing for the people who will live here."
A sensible point from Labyris. Without a place to live, nothing else matters.
"I see, I see. Now, don't just think 'Well, obviously.' If no one speaks up, there's a chance it won't get done. It would be a huge mess if we tried to add housing after people already moved in and the town was built."
I encouraged the others to keep the ideas flowing.
"Heh~ I see. So this is the point of sharing opinions. If you only think by yourself, you'll definitely miss something. And what Aslin-chan and Filia-chan said isn't just about playing; it has other meanings too~"
"Yes. The 'play square' Aslin mentioned can serve as a meeting place or a main thoroughfare for the town. And fields are an obvious necessity now that you mention it. Filia probably wants a smithy because she wants to do the work herself, but as the population grows, we'll definitely need a place to manufacture tools."
Ratz grasped the significance of the meeting, and Eris identified the systemic benefits of the children's simple ideas.
"True, it's a different perspective from what we wrote down. Speaking of which, a question occurred to me about the field and smithy. Can Yuki-san produce consumables using DP? If so, wouldn't we not need things like fields or smithies?"
Milly asked, wondering if I could just supply everything.
"I could do that.But then this wouldn't function as a village or town. If people don't have to work, they're no different from livestock. In the beginning, when the migration starts, I'll use DP to supplement what's missing, but I don't intend to let everyone rely on it forever."
"Hmm, I suppose... but if Onii-san provides for everyone, wouldn't that guarantee a lack of conflict? It would be a paradise. People would be safe and fed without working. Even if they become lazy, as long as they drop DP for the dungeon, isn't that fine?"
Ratz was suggesting the easy path.
"That only works as long as I'm alive and present in this dungeon. If, by some miracle, I were to die or leave this place..."
"...This paradise would collapse in an instant. I see. So you want the residents to be somewhat self-sufficient and able to protect themselves from the start?"
"Exactly. It's better for them to recognize that they are protecting this place rather than just being protected by it. That way, they can handle themselves when the time comes."
"Understood."
"I'll decide the extent of my own intervention after all your opinions are out. It would take too long if I commented on every single point."
Everyone nodded. For now, I started jotting the current ideas down on the whiteboard.
"Next up, Tori's group. Are you ready?"
"Yes! Okay, so, I think everyone would be really happy if there was an open-air bath like the one we used! It felt amazing, it'll definitely be popular!"
There was a brief silence. It was a bit out of left field compared to Aslin, but it was certainly a necessity.
"...I see, a recreational facility. We provide places for people to spend money, like a theater or a bathhouse. Hmm, that way we can collect actual currency from the outside in addition to DP. Tori-san, that's brilliant. There's a lot of merit in building various entertainment facilities. If we run them, they become 'public works,' which makes it easy to show the benefits of living here to potential residents."
"Eh? E-Eh? Um... I didn't really mean it like that..."
"Hahaha! It seems Tori had a different goal in mind. But I agree with her; people will love it. Say, Eris, what if we gave the residents special treatment? Like half-price entry. That would increase the number of people who want to move here, wouldn't it?"
"I see. Ratz, you really show your background as a merchant. But how would we verify who is a resident..."
Eris and Ratz dove deep into the logistics, leaving a bewildered Tori behind.
"If you're making an open-air bath for the town, you must stock plenty of alcohol! If you have that, no one will have anything to complain about!"
Milly blurted out, leaning over the table... Calm down.
"Eris, Ratz, that's enough for now. We aren't done with everyone's opinions. Milly, you too, settle down. I'll write it down: Open-air bath (Alcohol mandatory). Okay, next is Riel and Kaya."
I hurriedly wrote Open-air bath (Alcohol mandatory) = Entertainment Facility on the board.
"I want a place where people can exercise, like an Adventurer's Guild. Maybe a training ground?"
"...I want a place with lawns or grass. Cities are usually nothing but dirt... it feels suffocating."
Riel's point made sense. A training ground... how should I handle that? As part of an Adventurer's Guild, or something else?
But Kaya's point—what did she mean by dirt being suffocating? Is this like the modern Japanese sentiment about wanting more greenery?
"Ah, I understand what Kaya means."
"I agree~"
"I was thinking the same thing."
"What do you mean? Is it something important for beast-kin or elves?"
Eris, Ratz, and even Oriel had spoken in agreement.
"Ah~ Onii-san is human, so you probably don't feel it much..."
"For Elves and Beast-kin, our natural habitat is the forest—places overflowing with green."
"If you were born in a city, you probably wouldn't feel out of place. But for someone like me who grew up in nature... life in the Royal Capital was, to put it bluntly, stifling."
"I see. So the environmental difference is too extreme?"
"Well, it's not like we'd die from it... but it's the reason most Elves and Beast-kin live near forests."
Ah, so greenery is even more vital to them than it is to modern Japanese people. That's a blind spot I hadn't considered. I don't want people living here under constant stress. Kaya's opinion was a real find.
I scribbled on the board: Greenery (Vital).
"Okay, let's move to Eris's group."
"Yes. I've been very impressed by the ideas so far. Meetings are indeed important. With that in mind, I shall state my opinion."
Eris stood up, drawing everyone's gaze.
"First, the most fundamental thing: we must decide on which floor of this dungeon the village or town will be built, exactly where, and how large it will be. Otherwise, we won't know where to place the housing or the baths. I humbly suggest that our first step should be land selection."
"""Ah."""
Everyone who had given an opinion froze.
Right. This was the most important part. They had given great ideas, but we had to get the basics down first.
They were learning as they went, doing this for the first time. It might look clumsy or childish to some, but everyone starts somewhere. There's no shame in it. They just have to learn from here.
However, I had already decided on one thing for myself.
I will use DP to provide every single household with a toilet and toilet paper. From a hygiene standpoint, I absolutely refuse to have people just "letting it go" wherever they want in this dungeon.
With that noble vow reaffirmed in my heart, the meeting moved on to the final group.
