Chapter 31 – Labyrinth Ministry

Rеturning tо mу оriginal form, I bеgаn hеаding hоme.

The Grеаt Shinjuku Flaming—what inсredible nеws vаluе thаt wаs.

I figurеd the internеt would be аbsоlutelу buzzing… but whеn I сhесked.

Тherе was nothing flоwing оn thе intеrnet at аll.

“Informаtion contrоl is in еffect. What the hеll is this?”

Оn the train ride back, I сhеcked various news sitеs.

Nо new informаtion.

I thоught thеrе wоuld be Tsubuyaki frоm peорlе who werе аt thе scenе on Tsubuуakix too… but thоsе were disарpеaring onе after anоther.

“Whаt in thе world is going on?”

The dоubts I felt wеrе сleаred up bу а mеssage frоm the Аnсiеnt Witсh whо had соntаctеd mе on LUINE.

‘It’s the Labyrinth Ministry. They have the authority to intervene in all Dungeon-related incidents within the country.’

“That’s absurd. I thought this country was a democracy.”

To my reply came a calm response.

‘The world has been in a state of emergency for thirty years now. Everyone’s rights as human beings are restricted. The world is run in such a way that people don’t realize it.’

“Whoa! So without even realizing it, I’ve been living in a dystopia…”

‘More importantly. You engaged the Witch of Flame, didn’t you? My Familiar informed me. Well done… surviving without any special preparations.’

“Ah, well, I just ended up provoking her… I didn’t think she’d be that short-tempered.”

‘She is the most aggressive of the Witches. Precisely because of that, she underestimated you and came to Japan alone. Let’s devise a strategy. Now that you’ve survived, she should be fixated on you. And since you only caused a bit of a stir, it won’t become a major topic of public discussion. Just be careful not to overdo it.’

That’s a scary message.

The Labyrinth Ministry.

I knew the country had such a ministry, but I didn’t know it was a secret police-like organization.

I don’t know any details about the Labyrinth Ministry.

But I understood one thing: if I pissed them off, it would be bad.

And probably… as long as I’m clearing Dungeons, the Labyrinth Ministry will be on my side.

“So that means… it’s still best to lure the Witch into a Dungeon and defeat her there. It has the effect of gaining Concurrent Viewers, and in a Dungeon, Listeners will also recognize the Witch as a Demon. It should be easier for the Labyrinth Ministry too, so various problems are less likely to arise.”

Thinking this over, I searched for potentially useful videos on Awatube.

As expected, Awatube is far ahead when it comes to Dungeon clearing Streams.

It’s probably the most mainstream, but above all, the sheer volume is immense.

Quantity guarantees quality.

This is the best place to search.

It seems my Account still can’t be revived, though.

I’ll have my Listeners gather information for me later.

My strategy is to create conditions where the Witch’s flames cannot burn… or cannot exert their full power.

And my hand consists of floating Magic.

Float, Accel, Spiral.

How can I use these to seal away a superior Witch?

Gather Concurrent Viewers in a Dungeon, enhance the Magic’s effects…

Suppress the power of flame.

I need to find a Dungeon that meets those conditions.

Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, new Dungeons are born daily in this country.

Among them, ones that match the conditions…

That intersection Dungeon from the other day would have been perfect.

As I was lost in thought, I realized we were nearing my home station.

That’s when I got a message from Mashiro.

‘Let’s have dinner together, Senpai!’

“Oh, right, it’s already evening…”

I do feel hungry now.

After agreeing to join her, Mashiro decided to come meet me at the station.

She still hasn’t found a job, huh.

Or rather, since it’s almost Christmas, companies probably aren’t in a hiring mood.

“Senpai, were you out? You should’ve invited me too.”

She’s pouting a little.

“Nah, it was just some errands, nothing major.”

“…Could it be you went to see a girlfriend or something?”

“I’m proudly single, you know.”

“Really? Hah-hah, it must be lonely with Christmas so close~. Alright, your kind kouhai will take you out for a dinner date!”

“Ooh, I’m so lucky to have such a kind kouhai.”

And so, the two of us headed to a family restaurant.

The town we live in is technically Tokyo, but it’s quite suburban.

For places to eat, there’s only family restaurants or privately-run diners.

We decided to order some Christmas special menus.

“Mashiro, don’t you have anyone to spend Christmas with? Oh, wait, is this sexual harassment?”

“If I did, I wouldn’t be coming to eat with you, Senpai!”

“Now that you mention it…”

“Now that I mention it, what?! Ugh!!”

Mashiro then proceeded to gulp down the vegetable juice she’d gotten from the drink bar.

“More importantly, Senpai, while I was following Little Spice’s Streams, other people’s Streams started getting recommended to me.”

Ah, that’s right.

She’s one of my Listeners.

“Lately, it seems there are Dungeons connected to Otherworlds popping up here and there.”

“Huh.”

That’s news to me.

My head’s been full of Witch countermeasures, the collab with Charaway, and monetization.

My antenna’s been down.

I need to be more aware.

“Places with high ceilings, like lofts or atriums, when they undergo Dungeonization… apparently they connect to the sky of an Otherworld. See, ever since Kiraboshi Hazuki-chan encountered one of those Dungeons, other Streamers seem to be running into Otherworld Dungeons more often…”

“Mhm, mhm… mhm…!?”

‘Master, this is!!’

“Did I just hear someone’s voice?!”

“It’s your imagination, your imagination. Mashiro, show me that, the thing you’re looking at on your phone right now, it’s an Otherworld Dungeon, right?”

“Ah, Senpai, you’re too close, too close…! Whoa—”

“And here I carried a drunk Mashiro all the way home, and now you’re saying this…”

“Ugh, I still curse myself for being unconscious during that. Here, look. It’s a loft room that underwent Dungeonization, the ceiling opened up, and you can see the Otherworld sky.”

The video on Mashiro’s phone showed a purple sky.

Two moons, giant winged lizards flying around.

And the Streamer peeking outside witnessed stone-built towns and castles…

This is it.

This is exactly the stage to lure in Witch Freya and take her down.

If I throw her into the Otherworld and clear the Dungeon, I can erase her!

“Thank you, Mashiro! I’ve got a clue!”

“Huh, huh, huh?!”

When I grabbed her hand and shook it vigorously, Mashiro turned a little red and tilted her head.

“I-I’m glad if I could be of help.”

“Yeah. So as thanks, dinner’s on me. Actually, some money came in recently.”

“Really?! Then I’ll order an extra one of these special strawberry parfaits…”

That’s a cheap Reward…!