Chapter 10 - The Duke’s Daughter, Auf
“Can’t I just take the spring water home? Are you really telling me to venture into the dark depths of a dungeon? Even commoners are now buying the water from the first floor, aren’t they?”
Auf, the daughter of the Nausa Duke family in the Kingdom of Sepans, voiced her dissatisfaction with a pout.
“Yes... My lady... Even if you were to bring water from the deeper floors back, the dungeon’s mana would dissipate, rendering it ineffective.
The current theory is that only the water from the first floor, being closest to the surface, retains its mana when taken outside.
Therefore, for the second floor and beyond, there is no other way but to visit the dungeon in person.”
“Tch...
So, once you use the first-floor spring, everyone becomes enchanted... and then everyone starts aiming for the deeper layers... huh.
What a cunning and insidious dungeon...”
After listening to the old servant’s explanation, Auf couldn’t help but mutter bitterly.
Born as the third daughter of the Duke, Auf had been a beautiful girl in her childhood.
However, she contracted a disease that caused blisters to cover her entire body. Though she survived, her skin was left with severe, painful scars.
Being of such high status, she was never bullied outright.
However, the pitying glances and the way people tiptoed around her as if she were a fragile object caused her to shut herself away.
For over a decade, she remained secluded in her room, avoiding not only social gatherings but any public appearances altogether.
Despite her seclusion, Auf continued her studies, hoping to one day contribute to her family and kingdom.
Her specialty primarily lay in dungeons.
It was only natural for her to deepen her knowledge about dungeons, as they had the potential to become a key industry for the kingdom.
Moreover, she placed her hopes in the near-supernatural benefits that dungeons could produce, believing they might help heal her skin.
And now, by some twist of fate...
A dungeon capable of creating the miracle she had longed for had appeared in her kingdom.
Her father, the Duke, had ordered the knights to bring back large quantities of the first-floor spring water for her.
Over the years, whenever rumors of a new miracle cure surfaced, her father had spared no expense to acquire them for her.
She had even heard whispers of the exorbitant sums he had spent.
But the results were always the same—nothing changed.
...Each time, she was left with nothing but renewed despair and the guilt of burdening those around her.
This time would likely be no different...
With such thoughts, she initially felt reluctant.
Yet, she couldn’t outright dismiss her father’s kindness...
And so, she submerged herself in the bath prepared for her.
The effects were noticeable from the very first day.
She widened her eyes at the sight—her skin was clearly different from how it was just yesterday.
By the end of the week, after repeated soaks, while not exactly flawless, the condition of her limbs had improved to what could be considered normal.
Trembling with fear, she stood before the mirror she had avoided for years...
...and finally looked at her reflection.
And then, she cried.
Something that had been bottled up inside her for years suddenly burst free.
For the first time in what felt like an eternity—truly, a very long time—
She stood before the mirror and cried her heart out.
“My lady... I’m so glad...
Thank goodness... This time, it was real... I’m so glad.
Father... thank you so much.
Auf! You’re really healed! Congratulations!
Thank you, Sister.”
All the tear jerking moments of family love and emotional scenes repeated over and over.
But, of course, after a few days, everything settled down as expected.
Now, Lady Auf, still dissatisfied, couldn’t help but compare herself to her sister. “My skin still looks terrible compared to my sister...”
She grumbled, before turning to the old servant to ask:
“Can’t we bring back the second-floor spring water?”
Upon learning that it was impossible, she immediately thought, I need to go deeper into the dungeon!
But for a sheltered young lady who had spent nearly a decade in seclusion, this was no small challenge.
Even though the second floor of the dungeon was considered relatively safe...
It’s about as difficult and dangerous as being told to climb to the peak of a barely maintained 200-meter-high mountain, all while fending off waves of aggressively biting raccoons and weasels… or so people said.
Without at least a few armed guards, you’d be walking straight to your death.
The servants watched the scene with genuine joy in their eyes.
For nearly ten years, their lady had shut herself away, withdrawing from the world. Yet now, she appeared in front of others without hesitation, chatted with the staff outside her room, and was even debating—adorably—whether or not to venture deeper into the dungeon for the sake of her skin.
It was nothing short of a heartwarming sight.
However, at this moment, Auf was thinking more deeply about the Hot Spring Dungeon than anyone around her realized.
Dungeons were entities that lured humans deeper with their desires, only to kill them.
This Hot Spring Dungeon was no exception, but its manipulation of human desires was far more cunning than most.
It dangled the promise of beauty, but to achieve greater beauty, one had to venture deeper into the dungeon.
And once those who sought beauty obtained it, they flaunted it in social circles, enticing more nobles to delve into the dungeon’s depths.
This kind of psychological manipulation wasn’t entirely unfamiliar—similar tactics were used in the worlds of fashion and jewelry.
But what made this dungeon particularly insidious was that it couldn’t be overcome with mere wealth or power.
If it were a dungeon that simply offered exquisite clothes or jewels, one could just throw money at the problem and let adventurers handle the danger.
And yet, this dungeon had the power to lure even noble ladies who would normally remain in the safety of their chambers...
No, even Her Majesty the Queen herself could find herself drawn deep into its dangerous depths.
It was like the unscrupulous merchants who had once sold her father fraudulent remedies.
It went beyond simple desire.
It created a sense of necessity—“I have no choice but to buy this because I can’t do without it.”
It manipulated social pressure—”What kind of person wouldn’t try to obtain this for their daughter?”
Like an invisible force, it ensnared the mind with the fear of judgment, compelling people to spend vast sums of money.
It was not quite there yet, but she could clearly see a future where it would be.
At this rate, the reason for venturing deeper wouldn’t be a simple desire to become more beautiful.
“As a noble lady, I must go, or else it would be shameful not to maintain my beauty.”
An era would come when people’s mindsets were rewritten in this way.
This was exactly the kind of tactic a deceitful merchant would use.
Most dungeons in the world were simple-minded.
In my dungeon, gold awaits! Jewels abound!
So come on in!
That was about the extent of their dim-witted intent.
Look, shiny stones! You guys like these, right?
That was the kind of vibe they gave off—spitting out heaps of worthless, clear junk stones, with the occasional decent gem mixed in.
Most dungeons operated on this kind of simplistic, almost brainless reward system.
Even the long-standing No-Hunger Dungeon in this country was no different
It was just a typical dungeon with a childish twist—
“We’ve got food too! So come on in!”
But in the last fifty years, some newly emerged dungeons were clearly different.
The Gem Dungeon in the Kingdom of Kenma, for example, didn’t just drop random shiny stones found in traditional dungeons.
It was as if some entity that fully understood the value of gemstones was deliberately determining what kinds of jewels monsters drop.
Then there was the Thread Dungeon in the Kingdom of Dolpins.
It produced thread and fabric of a quality impossible to achieve on the surface.
Clothing made from its fabrics had now become a status symbol among royalty and nobility, something they simply couldn’t do without.
Moreover, sails crafted from these dungeon-produced fabrics boast unparalleled quality and strength, significantly boosting Dolpins trade capabilities.
And arrows shot from bows strung with this dungeon’s strong yet supple threads can reach nearly twice the distance of conventional bows.
The Thread Dungeon had now become a powerhouse—bringing staggering benefits not only to culture and trade, but even to warfare.
Merchants flocked to it daily, and high-value transactions never ceased.
Recently, more and more dungeons have been emerging where an entity—something that could be called the “will of the dungeon”—seems to understand human habits and culture, tailoring its rewards accordingly.
This Hot Spring Dungeon was likely one of them—a dungeon with the knowledge and intelligence to comprehend human society.
...And such dungeons always brought immense wealth to their countries.
But... in return, they also created immense distortions, as those consumed by their desires spiraled out of control...
Auf shuddered at the thought of such a future.
...Anyway.
Should I venture to the second floor before things get out of hand?
Or should I wait until it’s safer and more accessible?
“...I suppose I’ll need to train my body first.”
She knew this dungeon would eventually bring calamity.
Yet, she couldn’t bring herself to give up on her desire for beauty.
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