The Beta Floor 101 portal shimmered like a cheap arcade neon sign on steroids, pulsing with golden threads of Veldora's infinite energy. Holographic screens floated everywhere, cycling through custom anime openings that Takumi had whipped up in seconds—complete with over-the-top transformation sequences starring a very smug slime protagonist. The Rail-X miniatures zipped along elevated tracks, bells dinging like slot machines. And in the center of it all, the practice mecha dummy bowed politely before exploding into harmless sparkles because Ramiris had already "upgraded" it with a single hyperactive finger-poke.
Ramiris hovered at eye level with the dummy's smoking remains, wings buzzing so fast they created a miniature tornado of pink glitter. "BEHOLD! The Great Ramiris has turned your boring practice bot into a limited-time explosion event! Admission fee: one compliment and eternal praise for the cutest Demon Lord in existence!" She struck a dramatic pose—hands on hips, chest puffed, one leg kicked out like she was advertising a new gacha banner.
Rimuru floated nearby, tiny slime face already twitching in preemptive dread. "Ramiris… we literally just opened the floor. And thanks to Veldora's supply, everything's free. Infinite energy, remember? No fees."
"Free?!" Ramiris spun mid-air so fast her dress flared like a frilly helicopter blade. "Rimuru, you sweet, naïve little slime! The Great Ramiris knows business! Even with infinite destruction-and-creation juice, we must create scarcity for maximum fun! Otherwise, how will adventurers feel the thrill of 'I spent three hours grinding for this ultra-rare skill'?! Takumi! Back me up! You're a fellow gamer who died for the cause!"
Takumi's voice echoed cheerfully through the shared link, pure otaku solidarity. "She's got a point, Slime Bro. Back when I was alive—seventy-two-hour coding marathons on that isekai VRMMO, mainlining energy drinks, zero sleep—I learned the hard way: players love pain. Stood up screaming 'THAT'S THE GOOD STUFF!' during the anime finale, heart said 'nah' and boom—karoshi. Now I'm a Manas making infinite worlds. Let her cook… but maybe cap the fees at 'one silly pose' instead of actual money?"
Veldora's deep, scholarly chuckle rolled in from his tenth-floor sanctum like distant thunder mixed with manga page flips. "Wise counsel, partner. Probability that the Great Ramiris turns this floor into a gacha hell within ten minutes: 98.7%. I approve. As the shut-in supplier of infinite pure energy, I shall watch from my Fortress of Solitude while providing commentary and emergency ramen refills. Carry on, tiny queen. But remember—true wisdom lies in balanced chaos."
Ramiris squealed so loudly the holographic screens flickered. "See?! Even the big dragon shut-in gets it! Veldora, you're my new favorite big brother! I'm making a special VIP room just for you—walls lined with manga, infinite ramen fountain, and a 'Do Not Disturb' force field that only lets in praise!" She zipped over to the gacha machine, slapped a glowing rune on it, and declared in her most regal fairy voice: "Behold! The Great Ramiris's Super Ultra Mega Skill Pull Machine! One pull = one dramatic fairy dance from yours truly! Prizes include duplicated skills, mecha paint jobs, and… uh… my autograph on a limited-edition plushie of me!"
Shion, who had been cooing over Oni-giri the First (now sporting fairy wings and a tiny crown courtesy of a stray energy gift), clapped with dangerous enthusiasm. "Lady Ramiris! Your business sense is magnificent! Oni-giri, multiply and prepare 'Gacha Special Onigiri'—extra shiny wrapper for rarity!"
Oni-giri bobbed wearily, voice dripping deadpan comedy. "As you wish, Mistress. Though I predict the 'ultra-rare' flavor will mostly be 'regret with seaweed.'"
Benimaru pinched the bridge of his nose so hard it left a temporary indent. "We had one (one!) peaceful prototype test. Now we're running a fairy casino. I'm updating the incident report: 'Chapter 7 – How Infinite Energy Funded a Tantrum Economy.'"
Diablo emerged from his mecha pod with butler-level grace, crimson eyes twinkling with polite menace. "Lady Ramiris, might I suggest a more… refined monetization strategy? Perhaps charging in the form of 'elegant compliments' rather than forcing poor adventurers to perform fairy dances? One does not wish to tarnish the Dungeon's reputation with… squealing."
Ramiris zipped right into his face, nose-to-nose, wings creating a glitter hurricane. "Refined?! Diablo, you fancy demon! The Great Ramiris demands MAXIMUM DRAMA! Watch this!" She snapped her fingers. A second gacha machine materialized—courtesy of her new [Ramiris Protocol] and Takumi's Otaku Art Creation Techniques. It was sparkly, loud, and had a giant fairy queen statue on top doing a victory pose. "Pull one and get a random skill! Pull ten and I'll personally yell 'CONGRATULATIONS!' at maximum volume! Milim, you go first! Loser has to call me 'Supreme Overlord Ramiris' for a week!"
Milim, still bouncing in her own pod, grinned like a kid handed free candy and a flamethrower. "You're on, shorty! But if I win, you have to let me blow up one whole room—artistically!"
"Deal!" Ramiris high-fived Milim so hard both of them spun in opposite directions like deranged pinwheels. "Takumi! Make the pull animation extra flashy! Add sparkles, dramatic music, and a voice line of me saying how great I am!"
Takumi laughed, already coding mid-conversation. "You got it, Fairy Overlord. Pulling from the Creative Repository—mixing your dungeon logic with every gacha anime trope I ever debugged. Animation rendering… now. Infinite energy means no cooldowns, so spam away!"
The machine whirred. Lights flashed. Ramiris hovered behind it like a game show host on ten energy drinks, striking pose after pose—peace sign, wink, dramatic hair flip (even though her hair was short and spiky). "Come on, come on! Give me an SSR! I mean—give the player an SSR! The Great Ramiris never loses… except when she does, but then it's part of the fun!"
The result popped out: a shiny card labeled [Minor Mecha Pilot Buff]. Milim cheered. Ramiris threw her hands up in mock despair. "NOOOOOO! It was supposed to be ultra-rare fairy wings! Rimuru, fix it! Use your slime powers to rig the machine! I'll pay you in… hugs! And one (one!) free dance!"
Rimuru's slime form wobbled with laughter he couldn't contain. "Ramiris, you're the one who designed it. And no rigging—Veldora's infinite supply is for everyone, not just your ego boosts."
From the sanctum, Veldora's voice boomed with wise amusement. "Hah! The fairy's greed is most entertaining. Probability of her declaring bankruptcy in imaginary currency within the hour: 76%. Takumi, save the footage. We shall title it 'Great Ramiris vs. Her Own Brilliant Idea.'"
"Already clipping it, Dragon Bro. Adding slow-mo on the tantrum spin. This is better than any isekai comedy OVA I ever coded."
Ramiris puffed her cheeks into maximum pout mode, then immediately brightened like a light switch. "Fine! New rule! Every tenth pull gets a free hug from the Great Ramiris herself! Who wants to test it?! Diablo, you look like you need fairy affection—come here!"
Diablo took one elegant step back, gloves adjusting with perfect timing. "I am… honored. However, my duties require me to maintain a three-meter radius of dignified distance at all times. For aesthetic reasons."
"BOO! You're no fun!" Ramiris zipped toward him anyway, only to get gently booped away by a polite energy barrier Takumi had just gifted the demon as a "courtesy skill." She bounced off it like a pink ping-pong ball, giggling despite herself. "Okay, fine, that was kinda cool. Takumi, you're the best Manas ever! We're co-owners of this floor now. Fifty-fifty! I get seventy percent for being cuter!"
The group dissolved into laughter—Shion cackling while Oni-giri face-palmed with tiny hands, Benimaru muttering about needing a new title ("Head of Anti-Gacha Task Force"), Milim already pulling the machine again while yelling battle cries.
Rimuru hovered closer to Ramiris, patting her head gently. The fairy queen leaned into it with a contented buzz, her hyper chaos momentarily softening into genuine joy. "You know… this floor is amazing because of you. Infinite energy, infinite fun. Just… maybe dial the entrance fees back to zero before the adventurers riot?"
Ramiris grinned, fangs peeking cutely. "Only if you promise weekly playtests! And Veldora has to visit once! I'll make the ramen fountain dragon-shaped!"
Veldora's reply was warm and theatrical. "We shall see, tiny queen. For now, the shut-in dragon supplies the power and the wisdom. Takumi and I shall refine the code from here—after the next episode, of course."
"Takumi. Adding 'Ramiris Tantrum Dampener' as a hidden safety skill. For everyone's sanity."
As more holographic fireworks (now with built-in safety timers) lit the floor and the mecha pods resumed their elegant-chaotic spar, Ramiris floated beside Rimuru, wings slowing to a happy flutter. The unique dynamic clicked deeper than ever: the wise, funny otaku dragon supplying endless possibility from his manga cave; the reincarnated programmer adding creative spark; and the Great Ramiris turning it all into pure, greedy, adorable mayhem that somehow made Tempest feel more alive.
The Dungeon hummed with new life—gacha machines spinning, Rail-X models racing, and one very loud fairy queen already planning "Floor 102: Even More Mecha and Even More Praise for Me!"