Chapter 5 - Peta-chan
“Two female knights, fully naked! Thank you so much!”
On the first day of opening, when two burly old men came to investigate, I thought, “Ugh, are these old guys really going to be the first to bathe in my hot spring? Gross!”
But, as expected of seasoned adventurers with a refined sense of caution, they only took some of the water back to test for toxicity and didn’t actually bathe in the spring.
What calm and precise judgment!
Well done! Truly veteran-like old men! You can go home now.
While pondering such trivial thoughts, I watched the adventurers’ movements from the monitor in the master room.
And then, today! Finally, the female knights I’d been hoping for came to investigate and even took a proper dip in the hot spring! Nothing could make me happier.
“Huh~? You can see the intruders’ positions and movements in real-time? What even is this? I don’t get it... It’s way too convenient... What’s going on...?”
For an otherworldly being—no, an otherworldly Core—the concept of radar and surveillance cameras is incomprehensible. Being able to watch adventurers in real-time from the master room seems to be beyond her understanding.
Normally, the most you’d get is a map of the dungeon with the number of intruders and the types and numbers of monsters you can deploy.
If you want to know what the intruders are saying, it comes out as a massive tome that no one really wants to read.
Hmm, tough life, huh, fellow dungeon managers of another world?
“Hey, Peta-chan, is this good enough for the early stages?”
“Well, the first dungeon always has weak profits. Wild animals that wander in are usually the main source of income.
Otherwise, it’s used as a training ground for rookie adventurers or, if you’re really lucky, soldiers from some country might station themselves here for management purposes.
Oh, and dungeons have the ability to absorb impurities from outside and convert them into points, so if it gets used as a garbage dump by a town, that’s a huge win!”
Being treated as a garbage dump is something to celebrate...? What a strange perspective.
By the way, Peta-chan is the name I gave her.
When I asked her name, she said Dungeon Cores don’t have names, so I gave her one.
Flat-chested, so Peta-chan it is! (TL/N: Flat-chested in Japanese is ‘petanko,’ thus the name.)
When I first suggested the name, she said it sounded weird and didn’t like it...
But in my world, “peta” represents size—specifically, something incredibly large!
Mega... giga... tera... and then peta, which is 1024 times larger than tera.
So, it means something unimaginably huge!
When I explained that, she cheerfully replied, “I am Peta, Master!”
And so, she became Peta-chan.
So cute.
“Still, as expected of a world where people fight in armor all day... their skin is really rough...”
It’s incredibly rude to say this while peeking at the female knights bathing, but honestly, their skin is in bad shape.
In this world, bathing probably isn’t a daily routine, and they spend all day walking around in poorly ventilated armor under the blazing sun.
From the perspective of a modern Japanese person, their skin isn’t just rough—it’s been completely transformed by their wild lifestyle.
I’ve never seen women with skin like this in my previous life.
However! Those struggling with rough skin are the perfect test subjects! As ideal customers for my rejuvenating hot spring, they must be treated with the utmost care and sent home looking flawless.
That’s how this hot spring dungeon will gain its reputation.
Still, they’ve been soaking for hours. Are they okay?
...Oh no, they’ve overheated and are now sprawled naked on the rocks. Fully exposed. Thank you very much.
I zoom in on their bodies to examine their skin closely.
...This is purely for confirming the effects of the hot spring. Nothing indecent, okay?
I thought Peta-chan might give me a disapproving look for this, but she’s just watching with a neutral expression. Apparently, peeking at bathers isn’t a problem for a Dungeon Core.
“Wow... this is amazing... The rough, dry skin is clearly becoming moisturized... They must be feeling the effects...”
Well, they’ve been soaking for hours, so they’ve definitely noticed by now.
They’ll probably come back for more... hopefully.
“The 230 Dungeon Points gained from the two adventurer-like old men and these two female knights just about cover the cost of producing the hot spring. So, it’s break-even.”
“Hey, Master... aren’t you spending way too many points on the hot spring?
Early dungeons are basically trash, you know?
After the initial investigation teams come a few times, they usually get ignored.
If you’re just breaking even at this stage, that’s bad news.
If you get stuck in the early stages and can’t build the second layer, it’s game over, you know?
Hey! Do you get it?!”
“Don’t worry... people will come. They’ll definitely come back... again and again.”
“Really~? Just to soak in hot water~? I don’t get it~???”
Peta-chan looks at me with a completely baffled expression.
But hidden within her confusion is a glimmer of hope—like she thinks I might actually pull something off.
Maybe it’s because she’s seen how easy dungeon management is with this ridiculously convenient window interface.
“Just relax, they’ll definitely come...”
And the very next day, it happened.
Nearly a hundred female knights swarmed the dungeon.
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