Chapter 97 - Chapter 97: Braised Pork
The railway inside the dungeon had derailed, so we ended up taking on the repair work for it――.
We were attacked by assassins disguised as the official in charge of construction, terrorists stormed the hotel, and we suffered through all sorts of misery.
I thought about leaving because I felt my presence would cause trouble for the hotel, but the hotel itself stopped me from going.
It seems having us here is more beneficial to the hotel.
A few days later, the real official arrived.
A woman with glasses who looked very much like the assassin who attacked me.
No, that assassin must have disguised himself by imitating this woman.
Since she is the real one, after all.
First, it seems they will be checking the site.
Accompanied by a man who looked like the foreman and his assistants, we headed to the scene of the derailment accident.
They were carrying what looked like surveying equipment, probably necessary for creating construction documents.
Well, since this is construction using citizens' tax money, it's unavoidable that they follow proper procedures.
Leading the officials, we dive into the dungeon.
They are all ordinary people, so we adventurers attach ourselves as guards.
The fourth floor of the site has monsters that are strong enough.
If it were just ordinary humans, it wouldn't be strange if they were wiped out in an instant.
We took the train from the first floor and arrived at the second floor.
Next, we took the steam elevator.
The lights equipped on the helmets worn by the officials were glowing, but it seems they are chemical light types after all.
The light is dim, but it's better than nothing, right?
"Onoda-san, the dungeon?"
"I-I've never been here before."
"Aren't you scared?"
"Truthfully, I am scared... but it's work (Kirin!"
Kirin! That part was also quite weak compared to when she showed it on the surface.
It gives a strong impression that she is forcing herself.
"Ordinary people can't see anything in the dark, but high-level adventurers have good night vision."
"Is that so?!"
At my words, she let out a surprised voice.
"Yes, the colors are faint or gray, but you can see well."
"Just being able to see should reduce the fear significantly..."
"Yes. Being pitch black and seeing nothing is indeed terrifying."
While we were talking, we arrived below.
Under the light of fiber optics, we boarded the train on the second floor.
We continued transferring trains from the second floor to the third floor, and finally arrived at the fourth floor.
"Is this the floor where the accident happened?"
"Yes, once you reach the fourth floor, the monsters are powerful."
"Gulp."
Onoda-san is nervous.
This is not a place where a complete ordinary person who isn't even an adventurer should come.
Well, when I first came here, I probably looked the same to other adventurers.
"Darling, how do we move from here?"
"We'll use bicycles."
I took out two bicycles from the Item Box.
"What about the officials? You can't fit four people on the back?"
"Hehehe, I got something good for times like this――Rikisha Summon!"
Since we had trouble moving before, I was thinking if there was anything good, and I saw an adventurer pulling a rickshaw outside the Special District.
When I asked that person, it seems they sell it in the Special District.
I got that and put it in the Item Box.
I connected the backs of the bicycles to the rickshaw frame.
"Here, please ride this."
"W-Will we ride on this?"
"It's quite a distance to walk. If it takes time, the possibility of encountering monsters increases."
"Y-Yes."
"The ride might be rough, but it's easier than walking――probably."
The rickshaw has no suspension.
The bumps on the ground should be transmitted directly as vibrations.
At my words, the officials reluctantly boarded the rickshaw.
Well, they must have thought walking would be difficult themselves.
Kaorulko is riding behind the Princess's bicycle.
As usual.
"Alright, let's go."
"Kyaa!"
"Please hold on tight."
"Y-Yes!"
Making rattling noises, the rickshaw pulled by the bicycle began to move.
Going to the site is easy.
Just proceed along the tracks laid on the ground.
"U, uwo!""C, scary!"
Voices rose from the young man in the rickshaw as well.
Well, since we are moving in the dark, there is fear, but it should be better than walking endlessly in the darkness.
If we walked matching ordinary people, we wouldn't know when we'd arrive.
"We can see quite far ahead, so you're safe."
"Hieee!"
I could hear Onoda-san's scream.
"Gya! Gya!""Gyaa!"
"Oh, they're here already."
Could it be they were waiting for us?
"W-What is it?"
"Monsters."
"M, monsters... hiii!"
The men riding with Onoda-san are trembling with fear.
Will the construction be okay with this?
They probably think they've drawn a bad lot.
Well, there will probably be danger pay.
As we continued moving, a gray shadow with wings spread appeared on the right.
It seems to be flying alongside us.
It approached slowly and landed on my head.
"Gya!"
"Hey, spare the top of my head. It's heavy."
"Gyaa! Gyaa! M, monster!"
I thought it was a harpy's cry, but it wasn't.
Glancing back, a harpy was perched on the rickshaw frame.
It was Chichi, the large-breasted one.
"Hey, come over here a bit."
"Gya"
Chichi came close to me, traveling along the frame.
"Is, is it safe?!"
"Yes, this harpy is a bit special. We're good friends."
"...I, I can't believe it..."
Well, it might look that way to ordinary people.
To me, she's just like a pet.
Even wild wolves or brown bears can get used to people.
――Though I don't know when they might return to the wild and attack.
"If it's a harpy, even if it attacks, you can easily drive it off."
"P-Please."
While doing such things, we arrived at the site.
It's exactly as it was when we were derailed and thrown out.
In the depths of such a dungeon, no one can move anything.
"If we had a hand-cranked trolley or a bicycle running on the tracks, we could move faster."
"If we allowed that, it would hinder the railway operation."
"Well, I suppose."
If an accident happens, they'll say it's the government's responsibility.
Even though everything in the dungeon is self-responsibility, causing trouble for other adventurers is a problem.
I took out the officials' luggage from the Item Box.
"Shall I turn on the light?"
"Please."
"Kaorulko, can you ask for magical light?"
"Yes――Light, Light"
The blue magical light appearing above revealed the overturned locomotive and passenger cars.
"Ooh~"
"Yes, yes! There's no time to be impressed. Start the survey immediately."
"Yes"
The men were measuring the ground with tape measures.
Some were using cameras mounted on tripods.
"Is that a film camera?"
"Of course, digital can't be used here."
Well, only I can use it.
Nowadays, AI can easily tamper with digital pictures, so film cameras are more useful as evidence.
After taking photos, they started the survey.
"As for the locomotive, it will be recovered, but shouldn't the passenger cars be left as they are? They will be absorbed into the dungeon soon."
"Well... if we carry them out, we have to cut them, right?"
"Yes, they won't fit in my Item Box as they are."
"We'll consider it."
It seems they don't need my help, so I decided to feed the harpies.
"Here, it's chocolate."
"Gya!""Gyaa!"
As expected, they seem to be listening to me because they are lured by the sweetness of the chocolate.
"You guys, keep watch from above to see if other monsters are coming."
"Gya!"
I petted the harpies, and since their hair had grown long, I cut it.
I also got special scissors for haircuts.
The blades are jagged, so they don't cut in a straight line like normal scissors, resulting in a natural look.
"If you do it well, I'll give you something delicious again."
"Gyagya!"
The harpies that finished eating the chocolate flew into the darkness.
"Monsters are really tamed, aren't they?"
Onoda-san is surprised by the relationship between me and the harpies.
"Haha, they seem to be special. Their eyes and noses are good, so they tell me immediately when other monsters spawn."
"Amazing! Like reconnaissance aircraft!"
"That's right, they also guide the way in the dungeon. I've been saved many times. Right, Princess?"
"...Gugu."
It seems she doesn't want to admit she was saved by the harpies.
For a while, I watched the officials work.
I have no idea what they are doing, so I can't help.
"Gya! Gya!"
Above, the harpies started making a commotion.
"Enemies are spawning! Everyone, stop work and hide behind the passenger cars!"
"Y-Yes!""Stop! Stop!"
Being alert to the surroundings, something large flew in.
It was an attack.
"Oh, that was dangerous!"
Ahead of that danger was Onoda-san.
I quickly ran to her and flew with her in my arms.
"Kyaa!"
A giant rock landed where she was.
"Sorry. It was an emergency evasion."
Holding her, I landed.
Even through the work clothes, her body was surprisingly plump.
Maybe she's the type that looks thinner when standing.
"I-I see."
"Don't sue me for sexual harassment later for touching your body."
"I-It's okay."
The work in the dark must have been quite stressful.
With the monster attack on top of that, she seems a bit panicked.
"Buh! Buh!""Buhii!"
From the darkness, a giant monster with a pig face and a club appeared.
"Hiii!"
Seeing the huge monster, Onoda-san screamed.
She clung to my neck.
"An Orc! They use throwing weapons too! Princess! Please!"
Without harpy reconnaissance from above or good night vision, we might have been caught by surprise.
"Muu!"
The Princess is in a bad mood.
Probably because I'm holding Onoda-san.
"I'll make something delicious with that Orc! How about braised pork?"
"Eh?! What's that, sounds delicious..."
The one who reacted was not the Princess, but Onoda-san.
"..."
Silently, the Princess charged at the Orc, jumped!
In one strike, the pig face was split in half.
Dodging the swinging club with light, light movements, she jumped.
The second one, the pig face was split in half again.
She seems to be trying not to damage the body to make it into meat.
If the internal organs' dirt gets on the meat, it can no longer be eaten.
"A, amazing!"
I put the surprised Onoda-san down behind the overturned passenger car.
By then, all the Orcs had been defeated.
"Princess, thank you."
I stored the rolling monsters in the Item Box.
Let's have them turn it into meat at the camp along the way.
I called out to the harpies above.
"Hey! Are there any other monsters?"
"Gya!"
"Seems like there aren't――I've eliminated the monsters."
"A, thank you."
Onoda-san, who had fallen on her bottom, bowed politely.
Did her legs give out?
"After being scared like that, work won't progress, right? Shall we take a short break?"
"Y-Yes."
I took out canned coffee from the Item Box.
"Oh, if civil servants receive things from ordinary people, isn't that bribery?"
"Uu..."
As expected, everyone looks like they want to drink.
"Well, in the depths of such a dungeon, no one is watching."
I handed coffee to everyone.
"I-It's only this time!"
Onoda-san emphasized, but the male workers didn't seem to care much.
"Ha~, thanks.""It really comes out of nowhere~""I want some too..."
"It's not just the Item Box. To easily take down such a huge monster..."
"Hiring a Princess-class adventurer wouldn't be easy."
"Cost, time, and negotiations... Ah."
At my words, Onoda-san held her head.
"Adventurers are often people with quirks... dealing with them is quite difficult."
"Uu... Basically, officials are disliked in some places..."
The fact that Onoda-san murmured that means she must have been told various things.
"Gya!""Gyagya!"
The harpies landed there.
They jumped around and flew into my chest.
"Good, good, you did well. Eat, eat, eat chocolate."
"Gya!"
I petted them and gave them chocolate.
After that, the work proceeded smoothly, and the survey seems to have ended safely.
They have to write documents reporting what happened to the accident vehicles, where they are, the damage situation, etc.――and various other things.
In response, it proceeds with a report like "With this construction method, the budget will cost this much."
It would probably take more time, but this restoration work seems to be the top priority.
The Prime Minister is even involved directly.
It must be troubling in various ways.
Since the work was finished, I put everyone back on the rickshaw and returned to the camp on the fourth floor.
"I'm sorry. Are you in a hurry? I want to make the Orc into meat."
"I-It's okay. It's faster than scheduled."
She probably thought it would take more time.
Well, normally, just moving takes a considerable amount of time.
I looked for someone to buy it and took out the Orcs.
The Princess and Kaorulko are in the darkness.
If they are there, it will cause a commotion.
"Oh, the master of the Item Box."
"Did we have a request before?"
"No, I just happened to be watching nearby."
"I want to sell two and have one made into meat."
"In a hurry?"
"Yes, please cut the ribs."
"If so, how about exchanging it for meat that is already prepared?"
"Show me some meat."
"Yes."
I smelled it――it's fine.
Since the Princess carefully defeated them, I can't stand being forced to take inferior meat.
"I-It's okay! I won't make a mistake with top rankers."
"Sorry."
He divided it into small portions.
"Master, are you guarding those guys?"
He pointed at Onoda-san and the others.
He might have mistaken them for tourists who paid a lot of money or something.
"They are officials. They came to investigate the railway restoration work."
"Oh! I see! Then please fix it quickly."
"So it affects your business?"
"Of course!"
Without the railway, they would have to carry it by hand.
Moving would be dangerous, and the camp at the end of the fourth floor and the start of the fifth floor would be practically unusable.
So, the fact that ordinary people and civilians can move safely is a big deal.
The meat was wrapped in paper and divided――though it was still in the state of rib meat with bones attached.
In the past, there was a convenient thing called a convenience store bag, but now it costs a certain price.
Of course, paper is expensive too.
"Here, a souvenir for Onoda-san and the others."
The young men reacted.
"Is this Orc meat?"
"Yes, yes, it's freshly killed. It might be more delicious if aged..."
"Orc meat is a luxury item, isn't it!"
"Well. I think it's delicious as spare ribs. Here, as a souvenir."
"Uhyo~"
The men happily put it into their backpacks.
"Onoda-san, please have some too."
"B-But, this is bribery..."
"It's okay at this level."
"But, if you gradually get trapped like that..."
"It's very delicious."
"It has high ratings on the net too..."
"Yes, yes, there are people cooking it in videos too."
"Uu..."
She is struggling greatly.
"Well, during your off time, shall we eat braised pork made with this?"
"T-That conversation we had just now..."
"Yes."
"Uuu..."
She is struggling more than before.
She's so serious.
She was worried terribly, but it seems a conclusion was reached.
"S-So, please."
"Understood, haha――well, shall we go back?"
"Yes."
Everyone went back into the darkness――transferring the steam elevator and railway, we returned to the entrance hall.
"Ha~, this place feels much brighter."
Onoda-san looked up at the ceiling lights.
"We can see even in the dark, so there isn't much change, except the colors becoming more vivid."
"I see."
"You will plan the construction schedule from now on, but please consider being attacked by monsters like today."
"Y-Yes."
"Sometimes many come out, and dealing with them fills our hands."
"I-I see... Ten or twenty?"
"Sometimes that happens."
"Understood."
"Well, you might be in a hurry for the construction, but please stay safe."
"Yes."
Everyone went outside and parted ways with Onoda-san and the others.
"Muu"
"What's wrong, is the Princess still in a bad mood?"
"Daisuke-san, don't spoil the Princess."
"Muu"
It seems she doesn't like that I was getting along well with Onoda-san.
"Come on, let's go back to the hotel and make braised pork."
"Daisuke-san, can you cook?"
"Yes, I made it when I lived alone."
"Amazing!"
For some reason, Kaorulko is very happy.
Maybe she likes braised pork?
Speaking of which, the hotel's room service doesn't have braised pork.
――And so, we bought ingredients at the market, but what's missing is just ginger and eggs.
Right, I'll add star anise too.
Actually, I should use soy sauce and sake, but I'm lazy, so I'll use commercially available soup stock.
After buying the ingredients and returning to the hotel.
"Isn't I the only one cooking in the hotel kitchen?"
"It might be so."
"First, wash the rice."
"Are you cooking rice?"
"No, boiling the meat in the rice washing water makes it tender."
"I see!"
Kaorulko is impressed.
After washing the rice and getting the washing water, I took out a huge pressure cooker from the Item Box.
Since we're going to eat it, I can make a lot.
If I put it in the Item Box, it can be preserved too.
While boiling a lot of eggs, I also cut the meat peeled from the ribs into pieces and boiled it in the washing water.
To soften the meat and remove excess fat.
Boil in the pressure cooker, open the lid and leave it for a while――repeat boiling.
"Kaorulko, help me peel the boiled eggs."
"Yes."
After that, I added ginger and star anise to the eggs and meat and boiled them with the commercial soup stock.
"It smells good~"
Kaorulko is wandering around the pressure cooker.
She seems to be looking forward to the braised pork more than the Princess.
Soon, the Princess started wandering around with her too.
She's a bit annoying.
"By the way."
I separated the meat from the ribs, but there is still meat attached.
I took out a gas stove from the Item Box and tried roasting the bones.
A sizzling sound filled the room with a fragrant smell.
"This smells good too!"
"The truly delicious parts are near the bones."
Using a knife, I scraped the roasted meat off the bones and served it on a plate.
For this, simple garlic powder, salt, and pepper should be fine.
When I brought out the plate, the two of them ate the meat with their hands rudely.
Thinking they were eating vigorously, they were drooling and in a daze.
"Umaa~~""It's delicious!"
"A lady from a good family wouldn't eat like this."
"No, shouldn't adventurer meals be like this?"
"Well, it's more fitting if it's full of wild flavor, haha."
After that, the finished braised pork was also well-received.
If I leave it alone, it seems like they will eat it all, so I secured some for later and some to give to Onoda-san.
――There were various troubles, but it seems the construction preparations were ready in about ten days.
During that time, I gathered food and supplies at Haneda.
From the events so far in the dungeon, I realized that no matter how much food you have, it's never a problem.
Anything can happen――that is the dungeon.
I heard from that sister over there that many petitions have come to the Special District government asking for the railway to be restored quickly.
Since I am waiting for the construction, the Princess and others are not diving into the dungeon and staying in the room.
The Princess looks bored, but Kaorulko seems to be doing the accumulated office work.
Everything is ready――finally, the construction is about to begin.