Chapter 5 - Chapter 5: Dungeon Special District
I came to Tokyo to make effective use of the power I had suddenly acquired.
There is a massive Special District centered around a dungeon in Tokyo Bay.
With Level 49 power and an Item Box, I should be able to make a fortune――that was the plan!
And with that money, I would renovate my home, and fire!
――That was my plan.
I did look up various things on the net for the time being, but as an adventurer attacking a dungeon, I am a beginner.
There are too many things I don't understand.
For now, I have to go to the Special District and try various things.
It seems there are many scams, so I must be careful.
There is a lot of information on the net, but I don't know if it's true.
As I recalled the painful memories when dungeons appeared in the world, I arrived at Haneda Airport.
My hometown was already cold, but walking through the dimly lit connecting passage, I felt slightly sweaty.
Looking around, almost all machines and equipment were running.
Since the whole world stopped, Japan had almost recovered in just 10 years.
At this time, only Japan and America are countries that have recovered.
Necessary machines are running, but they are saving strictly where they can.
Only the minimum lighting is turned on, and the appearance of Tokyo, once called a city that never sleeps, is already gone.
Planes are flying, but international flights are hardly seen.
Recovery is lagging.
In some countries, it has become an anarchic state.
Only Japan, which recovered from numerous great disasters, has the entire nation working steadily to advance recovery.
The only planes visible are those of American airlines.
As expected of a superpower, their underlying strength is immeasurable.
Having their own oil fields is also super strong.
They come on jet fuel and return on Japanese alcohol fuel; it is a hybrid aircraft.
America, which recovered earliest, also has a mountain of problems.
That country is land-connected to Mexico, so it is troubled by a massive influx of refugees.
The number is said to be 10 million people per year.
If it is that much, they cannot even suppress it.
Once, an American president was mocked for building a fence on the Mexican border, but it is becoming realistic, and construction seems to have actually started.
Well, I can't help but think, "If they had done it back then――".
Many voices like that are also rising from within America.
In other countries besides America, many are still struggling to get back on their feet.
While doing so, GDP keeps falling, and currencies are causing inflation.
Once you enter a negative spiral, it is quite difficult to rebuild, but even so, countries with strong agriculture are managing to hold on in many places.
Countries that were once involved with Japan are now gasping at the bottom of the barrel.
Undeterred, they are sending SOS to us, but Japan is not in such a position.
We are doing our best just to save our own country.
Japan is also still experiencing inflation, but it is far better than the economy dying.
The government is keeping its nerves sharp regarding foreigners entering the country.
Even if ships and planes are not moving, there are those who plot illegal entry, but the problem is not the illegal immigrants.
What the government is wary of are adventurers who might be carrying an Item Box.
If you have an Item Box, you can bring in anything you want.
Living things may not enter, but there are plenty of scary things.
Dangerous drugs, poisons; if living things don't enter, is there no worry about bringing in bacteria?
In the past, the worry about nuclear bombs would have come first, but that worry is gone now.
Because with the appearance of dungeons, the light of atomic power disappeared from the Earth.
Uranium and plutonium do not undergo nuclear fission, so atomic bombs are useless.
Commonly called hydrogen bombs also cannot be used similarly because they use atomic bombs as the ignition line.
Threats by nuclear weapons are no longer usable, and the world's power map has completely changed.
Incidentally, it would be nice if radioactive materials disappeared too, but things that cannot be used in reactors, such as cesium and cobalt, remain as they are.
Each country is keeping its nerves sharp regarding Item Box holders, and adventurers coming from abroad are basically banned from entry.
Moreover, there is something that each country is searching for with bloodshot eyes.
That is――the Appraisal skill.
With Appraisal, you can tell if someone has an Item Box and what their real level is.
You would surely want it to maintain national security.
Well, even if you had the Appraisal skill, I think you would hide it because you don't want to be used by the country.
Perhaps there really are people with Appraisal lurking in the streets.
Well, I came to Tokyo in a rush, but what should I do now?
If I go to the Special District as is, will things work out somehow?
"It's no use thinking about it. For now, I'll go and see..."
Entering the airport toilet, I took out the backpack I had put in the Item Box.
Entering the Special District empty-handed feels unnatural somehow.
A toy bat is stuck in as a weapon, but I won't be stopped by this.
I left the airport and headed for the pier.
The scent of the tide drifted on the wind, but perhaps because I grew up in the mountains, I couldn't stand this smell.
When the world stopped, Tokyo's sewage treatment also stopped, so it was said to be quite terrible, but now it's normal.
Roads are not connected to the Special District; you must go by boat.
This is probably to isolate it in case of emergency.
Both the government and ordinary citizens fear the monsters coming out of dungeons and the adventurers who make a living by defeating them.
It is a popular profession, but many people dislike it.
Well, it's not exactly proper.
Even though they are monsters, they are killing living things to make money.
Around the pier, there used to be factories, parks, and warehouse groups, but new land reclamation has created a large town.
It seems to be used for transporting supplies to the Special District and as a shopping place for adventurers.
After all, things inside the Special District are said to be ridiculously expensive.
There are many hotels and inns.
It seems some people commute from here to the Special District.
I boarded a white, flat boat that can carry about 100 people.
Under the blue sky, swaying on the waves along with the sound of pop-pop diesel engines.
The boat's engine has also reverted to the Showa era.
Since large ships do not come in as before, Tokyo Bay is peaceful.
The fact that Japan can manage even without imports from foreign countries is thanks to the materials produced by dungeons.
I can see a small hill from here too, but the dungeon is underground.
"Are you going to the Special District?"
While looking at the mountain where we were going, I was suddenly spoken to.
Turning around, a refreshing-looking young man of about 20 years old.
"I think if you got on this boat, that's the only possibility..."
"Haha, that's true."
"I thought about becoming an adventurer at this age."
"Is that so! I'm thinking the same thing."
He looks like he found a comrade.
"You're young, so there should be other jobs..."
"I thought about taking a leave of absence from university to earn tuition fees."
"Oh~ That's admirable."
There are jobs, but only primary industries, and inflation is currently progressing.
If you go to the employment office like in the old days, you get told, "If you want a job, go to the dungeon."
Well, if you're going to do farming or fishing, the dungeon pays more, but...
It involves danger, after all.
Well, speaking of danger, fishing is also sufficiently dangerous.
Or, the current star profession is technicians.
In this twisted world, magic stones from dungeons have become substitutes for semiconductors, and research is being done on converting them to other things.
For example, lights using magic stones, power sources using magic stones, and so on...
"It's truly beyond human understanding that an unknown space spreads out below there."
"Yes..."
There is a dungeon under the Special District, but it seems physically not connected to this world.
Since there is a dungeon in Tokyo Bay, if you dug a horizontal tunnel all the way, seawater would come out, but――it doesn't.
When you enter a dungeon, it connects to another space.
"Even scientists from all over the world research it, and it seems they don't understand it well."
"It's like an alternate dimension space that appears in SF."
And――where do monsters and dropped items come from?
Where do they disappear to if left inside the dungeon?
"Status, levels, skills that improve human abilities, it's just like a world in anime or manga."
"But since it is right before our eyes, we have no choice but to accept it."
"Yes."
"For now, unless we rely on that dungeon, we are in a state where we cannot live."
"Yes..."
His expression was dark.
He probably doesn't want to become an adventurer very much.
Unlike me, he is seriously worrying about his life.
I can't say arrogant things to such a kid, and I'm not such a great person either.
If anything, I'm a man who falls into the category of a good-for-nothing.
While talking to the young man, we arrived at the Special District.
Along the reclaimed land, white circular wave power generation devices floated.
The diameter is about 10m――many of them lined up.
Not only in Japan, but the world's power situation is not very good.
It must be the same inside the Special District.
To secure even a little power, they are also doing wave power generation.
Crossing the gangway, I stepped onto the concrete pier.
"Ah~ This is the Special District."
Just looking from here, it is cluttered, with buildings piled on top of buildings.
In one word――chaos.
It reminds me of the Kowloon Walled City I saw in old photos.
Building standards laws and such laws do not apply to the Special District.
The police do not intervene, and once you step foot here, everything is at your own risk.
"Um, if you are registering as an adventurer, shall we go together?"
"Well. First of all, that is necessary."
I decided to go register as an adventurer with the young man I was talking to.
I asked for his name for the time being.
"I am Mochizuki."
"I am Niwa."
"Niwa-san?"
"Well, it might not be a very common surname."
"Yes."
Using a smartphone navigation, we headed for the registration place.
I became a high level, but there are good things too.
No matter how much I walk or run, I don't get tired easily.
Even if I get tired, I recover immediately if I eat.
On the other hand, the amount of food I eat has increased greatly.
The fact that I can eat means that my body has become young to that extent.
Also, the allergies that had plagued me for years seem to have disappeared.
I had rhinitis from pollen and house dust, but that has stopped too.
Probably, even if it is the cedar pollen season in Tokyo, I won't get hay fever.
To be honest, just this makes me consider maintaining these status points.
If I just continue as an adventurer, I can enter the dungeon in the undersea tunnel near my hometown.
I just need to maintain a minimum level that eliminates allergies.
"Oh~ It's like I entered a game."
Men in armor holding swords, women in robes, people like a fantasy movie or game movie walk through the town.
Without being transported to another world, I can experience another world sensation...
"Is, is that so? I don't know..."
I am a generation that lived watching old games and anime, but he is different.
A generation whose world collapsed when they were elementary school students, and they had no time for that.
Quite realistic, and does not hold illusions about fantasy.
Since everyone was busy just eating, comics, anime, movies, and such professions almost stagnated.
It was not a time to write comics or novels.
Anyway, you have to produce food or you will die.
Recently, those industries have finally started to flourish again.
When you become wealthy, people next seek entertainment.
TVs that used to be broadcast have declined as they were, replaced by the internet.
"Hmm."
I glanced at the stalls lined up on the street.
Various things were lined up, like a post-war black market.
"There are many foreigners too."
"Look, this place is like extraterritorial jurisdiction..."
"Oh, I see."
Among them, what caught my eye was the business of charging smartphones.
A signboard said 3000 yen for 10 minutes――expensive!
Although Japan has recovered, the power situation is a bit shaky.
This is because oil imports cannot be done satisfactorily, and nuclear power generation has also stopped.
Honestly, in rural areas where electricity is produced and consumed locally in rivers, the situation of being able to use electricity freely continues.
If fusion power generation is put to practical use, the power situation will improve at once, but...
I also searched for inns.
It seems the average price for a rough inn with just a bed is about 10,000 yen per night.
Compared to that, the demand for electricity seems strict, but I can't help but use a smartphone.
I suppose I have no choice but to use the charging business.
I turned off my smartphone power.
"An inn is 10,000, smartphone charging is 3000――and since food costs are needed, I have to earn about 20,000 yen a day to avoid a deficit?"
"It seems so..."
Mochizuki-kun looked worried.
"I see――it's quite hard."
In the countryside, you can cultivate various things yourself and prepare a certain amount of food.
"It seems there are people sleeping and staying inside the dungeon."
"Is the security inside okay?"
"Well? Also, it seems you can save on food by eating monsters."
"Oh, I see."
Monster meat is also one of the important resources coming out of dungeons.
There are some that are no good, but most seem edible.
Well, in the Dark Ages, meat was a super luxury item, so compared to that, monster meat is welcome.
Ah, by the way――my Item Box is full of bears.
If I'm going to eat monster meat, I feel like I should eat a bear...
First, I have to drain the blood and butcher it.
Can I ask a monster dismemberment business to dismember a brown bear...?
All of this is a story after actually diving into the dungeon.
"It's over here."
Turning the corner of a building piled up crookedly.
"I see."
We are using navigation, but there is only one place where old-generation semiconductors survive.
That is space.
It seems that if you leave the Earth, you can escape the disturbance of physical laws caused by dungeons.
There seems to be a plan to launch a supercomputer into space using this, but it will be a while before that happens.
Maybe a supercomputer using magic stones will be made someday.
For now, the navigation works.
Communication satellites are usable, and undersea cables are alive, so information from America comes in well.
Japan is an ally of that country, so we are recovering in a two-person-three-legs state.
Once, Taiwan was also an important country for semiconductors, but recovery is lagging.
This is because the conversion to magic stones is not going well, and there is confusion due to a massive influx of refugees from the continent.
Japan has a strength in that it is separated by the sea in such cases.
"It's here."
"Hmm, it's quite a distance."
"Yes."
We arrived at the government office where adventurer registration is conducted.
This place looks like a government office; it doesn't seem to be piled up in disorder.
A normal four-story concrete building.
In fantasy comics and anime, registration is done at a guild, but this is not such a system.
I entered the government office with Mochizuki-kun.
Inside, many window counters were lined up, separated by transparent plastic.
For power saving, there are few fluorescent lights.
"Welcome."
A woman wearing a navy blue uniform and glasses handled us.
Of course, they are civil servants.
"I want to register as an adventurer."
"Yes, please fill this out here."
I was handed a tablet and wrote in the necessary items.
Next to me, Mochizuki-kun was doing the same procedure.
"Today, do you have a National Card?"
"Yes."
"Please submit it together."
I had checked beforehand that a National Card was necessary, so I brought it.
We don't place our hands on crystals to measure levels like in comics and anime.
There is no fighting the guildmaster to measure actual ability, nor aiming with magic.
It's a bit disappointing, but it can't be helped.
Wouldn't it be better to have such an event even as a game?
――I thought, but maybe only old men would like it.
A generation after the world stopped wouldn't know such conventions anyway.
After submitting the documents and sitting on a chair to wait, the adventurer card was ready in about 5 minutes.
This is a provisional license for the time being.
If you defeat a monster and status appears, full registration becomes possible.
When exchanging things that came out of the dungeon, it is all recorded here.
Payment is all electronic money linked to smartphones.
The government is actively promoting electronic money because they don't want to use resources with banknotes and coins.
Usually, transactions are made using adventurer cards, but it seems barter between adventurers is also taking place.
When exchanging for money, a 20% tax is deducted.
Weapons and armor can be picked up inside the dungeon, so it seems you can't count them as expenses.
For that reason, adventurers usually do not file tax returns.
Well, if it ends with a 20% deduction when exchanging, that is simple and fine.
If you hate taxes being taken, you could just keep bartering.
I don't think you need to be that stubborn...
"This is a map up to the 4th floor, and this is a book of monsters."
I received a map about A4 size from the staff, but it is bound and thick.
Even looking at this, the dungeon seems to be quite large.
Looking at the monster book――it describes monsters appearing in the dungeon and how to deal with them.
It feels like a game strategy guide.
The 1st floor of the dungeon seems to have slimes and rabbits as the main enemies.
Rabbits seem edible――or rather, rabbits were often caught in my hometown too.
Well, these are probably not normal rabbits, but monsters.
"Also, since this is provisional registration, please come again for full registration when a monster is defeated and status is displayed."
"I understand."
Even if you defeat a monster, some people do not get status.
Those people are considered to have no aptitude and cannot be fully registered.
Well, I already have status displayed, so it doesn't matter.
Also, it seems there are people who say they have status and register fully even though no status has appeared.
Since there is no Appraisal, it is only based on the person's declaration.
Are they making a living in the dungeon without the benefits of leveling up?
I was told to install a notification app from the government office.
It seems to be mandatory.
Important notifications will come from the government office.
Well, it won't be useful if you are inside a dungeon.
The procedure was finished, so the two of us left the government office.
"What will you do, Niwa-san?"
"I'm going to the dungeon as is. I want to feel what kind of place it is with my own skin."
"Is, is that so――can I go with you?"
"Hmm, that's a bit, please excuse me. I also want to try doing it solo."
――Or rather, I don't want to be seen using the Item Box while together.
"Is, is that so..."
He looked disappointed.
No, I don't dislike him, and he is probably anxious too.
I understand that――but it is for the Item Box.
While talking to Mochizuki-kun, I was surrounded by three men.
They have serious leather armor and swords at their waists, so they are probably proper adventurers.
Though with a lot of thug flavor.
"Hei hei~ Are you a newbie?"
"Yes, the one who just registered."
"We are a bit short on money. Can you lend us a little?"
"N, Niwa-san!?"
Mochizuki-kun was scared, but compared to me who fought a brown bear in the Testing Land, it's nothing.
"What is this? There are no level measurement or aiming events, but there is a thug harassment event?"
"Ahh?! "We are from the Black Dragon Guild, you bastard!" "Just shut up and give us money!"
"Oh, I see――so they are targeting newbies who aren't in any guild because it becomes a problem to extort adventurers belonging to some guild."
"Old man, you get it~" "Hahaha."
The men showed nasty smiles.
I took out the toy bat from the backpack on my back.
It is a toy, but the inside is packed with iron sand.
"Hahaha! A toy bat?! "Old man, is your head okay?!"
I flashed the head of the man on the far right, who was completely off guard, with the bat.
I honestly don't know how strong my Level 49 power is, so I tapped it as gently as possible.
Even so, it was quite fast.
"Eh?!"
The butt of the man who was punched fell down with a thud.
"Hey hey! Getting punched with a toy and falling from the butt?! "Gahaha!"
I don't know what's going on, but I punched the heads of the men laughing hysterically in succession.
The opponents could not respond to my movements at all.
Everyone fell on their butts right there.
"Y, you?! Nya... nya...?" "Orran, nya... "Poppe..."
They seem to have concussions.
The men's speech is slurred, and they cannot even stand up from the spot.
The terrifying thing about this plastic bat with iron sand is this.
A bat with mass deforms, and the impact is easily transmitted to the brain.
If you cause a concussion, you can also incapacitate them right there.
However, concussions are quite dangerous, and sequelae may remain, so caution is needed.
Well, since I came to the Special District where the police don't function to hunt beginners, if that happens, it's their own fault.
Before that, if they are high-level adventurers, they might recover immediately.
In otherworld stories, you could beat them up here and rummage through their equipment, but I can't do that here.
"Then, goodbye."
"Oi! Mareee!" "Hemeee!"
The men were flailing trying to stand up, but they probably can't move properly.
If it's a concussion, resting is better for them.
"Niwa-san, you are strong!"
Mochizuki-kun seemed excited.
"I won't go with you even if you praise me."
"Is that no good?"
"Please excuse me."
"..."
"Compared to those guys just now, it seems better to join a guild somewhere soon."
"Yes..."
When the two of us headed for the entrance of the dungeon, many stalls were lined up.
Stores grilling kebab-like things and skewers were lined up.
A good smell drifted around.
"That's monster meat, isn't it?"
"Probably."
"Well, as long as we are here, we have to get used to that."
"But the taste doesn't seem bad."
"Oh, I also read the articles on the net."
Besides food, what stood out at the stalls were chemical lights.
Electrical lights cannot be used inside the dungeon, so these are used.
Burning things are no good either, so torches are out.
Acetylene lamps using carbide also seem no good.
Chemical lights that used to be sold at 100-yen shops cost 1000 yen each... expensive!
Handheld lamps made by enlarging chemical lights are also sold.
If you pour two bottles of liquid into the lamp, the light turns on.
Of course, it is expensive.
Entering by form is okay, but I don't have a lot of money.
While saving, I will need to try and error to see what the dungeon is like.
I buy one chemical light.
I can see in the dark for some reason, so I don't need it, but it would be easier to see if there was even a little light.
"Alright!"
Gripping the light, I decided to try entering the dungeon.