"You reached the 45th floor today? That's great, Mister Roost!"
I scratched my cheek. It's always embarrassing when someone claps and praises you like this.
"Ahaha, it's not that great. Most people my age could easily reach that floor if they just gave it a try."
But the lady serving as the receptionist of this Dungeon shook her head in response.
"That's because they use Gemguns, not traditional weapons like the one you used..."
Gemgun.
Created by combining elemental gems left behind after defeating monsters in Dungeons with gunpowder firearms, this new generation of weapons has become the most popular choice for adventurers in this world since its introduction.
Gemguns are practical, highly customizable, and powerful.
People who don't possess magic can unleash firepower equivalent to magic by using this weapon.
But there's a reason why I don't use a Gemgun for Dungeon diving.
First, Gemguns are costly.
As a commoner, I wouldn't be able to afford even the cheapest one.
Of course, I could buy one if I sold my house and drained every single asset my family has, but that seems unnecessary.
Not only can I still dive into Dungeons without a Gemgun, but this world is also already doomed from the very beginning, so…
Why waste money, right?
What's more...
"Well, I just like my spear much more."
The lady receptionist sighed when she saw me signaling toward the spear hanging on my back.
"You could afford one after you reached the 20th floor and started harvesting more and more gems, couldn't you? Why not buy one? Who knows when it might save you while you're deep inside the Dungeon..."
"Ahahaha..."
I couldn't argue with that, Lady.
'But I have my reasons for saving money, you know?'
...
Sixteen years ago, I was born into this world as a newborn baby.
My name is Theo Roost.
I am the son of a fallen aristocrat who specialized in culinary arts.
After my father was accused of corrupting the King's breakfast and executed, my young mother fled the Capital and worked hard alone in this Dungeon City to feed me.
Needless to say, yes, I was reincarnated into this world.
At first, I thought this world was just a simple, random world with a fantasy setting, similar to the backgrounds used in games and stories set in a medieval, magical era. But then I looked up and saw a literal floating steel island hovering above the city.
Then I realized.
This world was familiar to me.
I knew about this world.
Because I used to play inside it as a player until now.
Gem of Ahlia.
An RPG fantasy romance game with favorability-based mechanics where you are also given great freedom to explore the world beyond the Academy, which serves as the main backdrop for the game's stories. The incredible combat effects and experiences offered by this game have always attracted players.
In the game, the player acts as Ahlia, a commoner who rises from the lowest status to be welcomed as a student of the Academy, the most prominent educational institution in this world.
All because she possesses a special magic, which is then called Gem Resonance, which allows her to interact with elemental gems in the purest form of communication and unleash their full potential.
For this world, which is still in the early stages of discovering the value of the elemental gems dropped by monsters in Dungeons, her ability is seen as a doorway to open new potential and paths that humanity should explore. In short, she is important, so they value her greatly.
Naturally, to gain more favors and benefits from this little girl with great power, the rulers swarm her with calculating smiles and shady motives.
Some will try to kidnap her, while others will send their sons to befriend her, seduce her, or even scam her.
It's as if Ahlia has become the center of the world.
The gameplay was to protect her while developing her power and relationship with the target interests.
Yes, it was an otome game.
I am a man, but I played it, also yes. But it couldn't be helped. This game is just too good to reject. And I am not the only man playing it.
But here lies a problem.
The Dungeons are actually dormant higher creatures that landed on this world after being attacked by stronger beings. They fell asleep in hopes of replenishing their life force by absorbing this world's mana. The monsters they created were merely tools for this purpose.
However, humans have continuously slain these "tools" for years and decades, non-stop.
At first, these creatures did not see humans as significant at all. They ignored the humans who harvested small amounts of mana when they killed their monsters and the condensed life force that would drop every time they killed their monsters, as humans seemed as insignificant as bacteria to them.
But over time, they began to grow irritated by humanity's continuous "plundering" behavior.
In the future, they will rise from the mountains, the seas, the meadows, the sands, and the earths where they have been sleeping until now. All for one and only purpose: The elimination of Humanity.
In the game, there is Ahlia, or the Player, who can communicate with the condensed Life Force of those creatures. This ability will also allow her to engage in conversations with these entities.
This opens up the possibility for both parties to reach a peace agreement, enabling them to coexist peacefully until the time comes when these beings leave this world to continue their eternal journey.
Even if coexistence isn't attainable, Ahlia's unique ability would allow humanity to learn more about Life Force and develop a weapon capable of destroying or completely eradicating a Dungeon.
But this world is not a game.
Here, there is neither Ahlia nor the Player.
So… yeah....
...
Anyway, leaving that obvious matter aside for now.
At first, I was despairing of my grim fate, wondering what I could do to prevent the impending doom.
Ultimately, though, I am not Ahlia or Player, so my options are limited. After attempting to think of alternatives for Ahlia's existence in this world, I gave up and instead focused on enjoying my second life in this place filled with magic and wonder.
I even enrolled in The Academy, the same Academy often mentioned in the game.
Two years ago, I received their invitation after I cleared the 25th floor of that dungeon I used to dive in.
Now, I am not just a random NPC but rather a student A at the Academy.
I was born with a magic called Levitation. With my mana, I can levitate things and people for a designated duration. Since then, I have trained my magic at the Academy, using their vast records about magic as references for how to apply my abilities in battle and daily life.
Without Ahlia, I thought this world would become a quiet and peaceful place, waiting for its doom, but I was wrong.
I stopped before the door of my house. From outside, I could already hear vague murmurs of conversation.
There were two people inside.
One of them, of course, was my mother.
But the other one...
With a sigh, I pushed open the door.
Noticing my entrance, two pairs of eyes glanced in my direction.
Then my gaze met hers—those scarlet eyes.
She started fidgeting the moment she saw me, possibly from embarrassment, guilt, or even nervousness. After all, I saved her yesterday. In short, she was blushing.
"I'm home..." I muttered softly.
"Welcome," my mother replied with a gentle smile.
Though hesitant, she still followed my mother and welcomed me.
"We—welcome home... M-mister Roost..."
Her eyes were unfocused when she squeaked it out.
Well, if I were in her position, I might react the same way. After all, she was a proud noble lady until just yesterday.
Tizmilly Fallburn.
That was her name, before she was reduced to just Tizmilly after being discarded by her family following the cancellation of her engagement to the crown prince of the Empire.
In the game, she was known as the Tragic Villainess.
Why? Because she didn't deserve what happened to her.
I initially thought that without Ahlia around, she would be doing just fine with the prince, but it turned out to be completely wrong. The prince still brought another girl to yesterday's graduation ceremony, just as he was supposed to do with Ahlia in the game.
The other girl was someone I had never seen in the game—truly a strange turn of fate. Perhaps Tizmilly was always destined to end up like this.
That being said, as a player of Gem of Ahlia, I knew her character well.
She was actually a serious and dutiful girl who wanted to be a fitting partner for her fiancé. For that purpose, she trained and learned as much as she could from a young age, ultimately rising to the top of the Academy as the top student with perfect grades in most fields.
Unfortunately, this made the prince feel inferior beside her.
That inferiority led him to approach Ahlia in the game, and in reality, he still found himself attracted to other girls even without Ahlia's existence.
I felt pity for Tizmilly, so I brought her to my house.
Not for any malicious intention, of course.
This world is doomed anyway, so out of spite, a thought crossed my mind after I saw Tizmilly's fall.
That's why I canceled my plan to buy a Gemgun with my savings and instead invested in a building on the main road.
Because before we all die, I thought it would be fun to open a restaurant with this Villainess!