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TL: ALT
Chapter 172 – Moving (To the Metropolitan Area)
The week after I acquired the rights to manage a local dungeon and tested my Dungeon Management and Dungeon Master skills, I was in the apartment that Haitani-san had arranged for me.
“Wow, it’s huge!”
It was a 2K room in a location within the Yamanote Line, more than enough for a single person to live in.
Of course, the rent was also reasonable, but if I was going to travel to dungeons in different places, I wanted to be picky about the accessibility of my base.
Huh? You’re saying the location of the base doesn’t matter because I have Dungeon Travel?
…Well, that’s true.
Even though Dungeon Travel costs money, with my current income, it’s only a tiny amount that I can easily write off as transportation costs.
However, there are a few problems with this method.
First of all, the money spent on Dungeon Travel cannot be written off as an expense.
There’s no way Dungeon Travel will issue a receipt, and even if they did, it wouldn’t be possible to use it as proof for a tax return.
Next, the travel time on Dungeon Travel is too short, and it will distort my activity history.
Haitani-san said that the government hasn’t really realized my importance yet… but actually, I feel like I’m being watched.
When I was at my parents’ house, my mother said that a strange car had been stopping on the road near our house a lot lately.
My parents’ house is a little far from the residential area.
The road leading from the main road to our house is a private road shared by the neighboring houses, and it is generally forbidden for anyone other than the parties involved to enter.
Sometimes, when construction workers or other people park their cars on the private road without realizing it, the grumpy old lady who lives across the street from our house gives them a good talking to.
It seems that the car my mother saw was first driven away by this old lady.
However, it seems that the car has just moved to the road across from the rice fields that have been left unattended because there is no heir, and it is still around our house as usual.
Of course, it doesn’t stay there all day, and it seems that several cars take turns parking there.
My mother, who is sensitive to changes in our neighborhood, seemed a little nervous.
I couldn’t just leave things as they were, so I used the Dungeon Master’s unique bonus to disappear, and I used the Usurper’s Covert, Enemy Search, and Aura Detection to scout out the car in question.
Enemy Search indicates allies by blue glows and enemies by red glows.
The two lights on the car in question were both gray.
This means that they’re neither friend nor foe.
However, considering that even ordinary passersby are indicated by blue glows unless they mean harm, gray is a color that requires some caution.
The two people in the nondescript old Probox are a young man in a salesman’s suit and an older man in work clothes.
On the back seat are things like cardboard boxes and stepladders.
But whether they’re salesmen or construction workers, it’s strange that they spend all day in a place like this.
What’s more, they occasionally cast sharp glances in the direction of my family’s home.
Both of them hid the earphones in their ears with their hair and sometimes mumbled something.
…Well, I guess they’re government surveillance agents assigned to watch me.
Since my appraisal did not reveal any status, I am sure they are not explorers.
They’re probably public safety detectives from the prefectural police.
Or maybe they’re from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police.
Guarding my family’s home might be a relaxing job, depending on how you look at it, but it also seems incredibly boring and requires a lot of patience.
Just when I thought they’d given up being a home guard, the police sent in replacements.
It would be easy to expose them and get rid of them, but… they’re just doing their job.
If they were hitmen trying to kill me, that’s one thing, but if they’re just doing their job by watching over me, I think it’s best to leave them alone.
Still, I wish they’d put a little more effort into their disguises.
Maybe it’s hard to do in a residential area, but they’ve fallen right into my mother’s surveillance net.
Before long, my mother will probably call the police, and they’ll be questioned by a uniformed officer.
My mother lived her life according to the values of the Showa era when the role of a housewife was to protect the home and the children while the husband worked and earned money outside the home. Therefore, she is very sensitive to things that threaten the home.
…I’ve digressed.
Anyway, there’s a good chance I’m being watched by the Public Security Bureau.
The people watching my family look like they’re just doing their job, but there’s a possibility that they’re decoys.
I think there are only a limited number of people who can follow me without me noticing, but I don’t know about things like hidden cameras, wiretaps, or surveillance cameras.
They should be able to piece together the images from the surveillance cameras at train stations and other public places using AI image processing to figure out my travel route…
Even so, if I were to use Dungeon Travel to teleport from dungeon to dungeon, there would be inconsistencies in the routes and times between them.
If I could not only summon powerful dragons but also teleport, the level of attention I would receive would be even higher than it is now.
…And that’s the second reason why I can’t abuse Dungeon Travel.
The third and final reason… is simply a matter of personal preference.
Jumping from dungeon to dungeon every day, conquering dungeons, and going home―don’t you think that’s a little too boring for life?
There’s no reason why I have to rush to conquer the dungeon.
There’s nothing wrong with enjoying the feeling of travel, including the journey to and from the dungeon.
Dungeons tend to appear in places where people congregate, famous places, and distinctive places with natural scenic beauty.
There are also many places that were considered tourist attractions before dungeons appeared.
In fact, because dungeons tend to appear in large parks, there are apparently many complaints from parents that there are fewer places where they can let their children play in peace…
Many of the A-rank dungeons in various locations are also places that have long been considered tourist attractions and historical sites, so while you’re exploring the dungeons, you can also take the opportunity to do some sightseeing in the area.
I was a shut-in at first.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with seeing a variety of things, even if it’s just to expand your own little world.
As I was thinking about this in my fully furnished apartment, the sports bag hanging from my shoulder shook.
“Oops, sorry. I forgot about you.”
I pulled the zipper, opened the bag, and…
“PYUGIIIIIIIII…!!!”
A little slime popped out, letting out a protest (?) cry.
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