Dungeon's Final Boss: Banished by My Boss, the Goddess, to Earth—So I'll Continue My Past Life - 3

Chapter 3: The Dungeon’s Aftermath

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The Black Minotaur was confused.

What’s going on?

Everything felt completely different. It couldn’t put strength into its body. The battle axe it had once swung effortlessly with one hand could now only be lifted with both hands. The steel-like muscles that had easily deflected enemy weapons and attack magic were now being sliced through with ease by its enemies. Everything was different.

It was weaker.

Why?

It had become the final boss and the minotaur was experiencing its first battle in that position. It had only been a few days since it drove out that accursed lazy dragon. And yet…

“GROOOAAAHH!”

A spear pierced its heart, and flames engulfed its body.

No, no, no! This can’t be happening!

This had never happened before. Had it really grown weaker?

Why?

Or… Was that not it? Could it be that it had only remained strong because that lazy dragon was there?

No, no way! Impossible!

“This can’t be happening!”

With that desperate scream, the Black Minotaur’s head was sent flying. That day, in a certain otherworld, the legendary dungeon that had remained undefeated for a hundred years vanished.

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I wonder if they’re doing alright.

Exhausted from gathering information on my smartphone, I found myself reminiscing about my old workplace. Not my company on Earth, but the dungeon.

“They probably won’t last long.”

The Black Minotaur, who had been entrusted with the role of the next final boss, had never understood why it was strong in the first place. Dungeon monsters only grow stronger under certain conditions. First, they must actively participate in battle. Second, those under their influence must engage in combat.

These two conditions had to be met. Simply holding the title of final boss wasn’t enough to make one stronger. Just waiting in the final chamber wouldn’t make one stronger.

So, I had devised a strategy. Though, calling it a strategy might be an overstatement. All I did was distribute support magic to every monster in the dungeon. Weaker buffs for those in the early floors. Stronger ones as for the ones in the deeper floors. And for the Black Minotaur, the last wall before reaching me, I had cast extremely powerful support magic to enhance it.

By doing this, I ensured that the condition of “having those under its influence engage in combat” was met, allowing me to continuously accumulate something akin to experience points from across the dungeon and grow stronger. The Black Minotaur, who only ever thought about fighting, never understood this concept. Putting the Black Minotaur’s lack of knowledge aside, why hadn’t our superior, the goddess, realized it either?

No, if she had understood that concept, she wouldn’t have fired me in the first place. She must have simply seen me as an expensive, inefficient monster and chosen to dispose of me.

For me, her decision was a stroke of luck amidst misfortune. No, perhaps it was an unexpected blessing. Either way, that goddess knew nothing.

“Is she the type to never read the manual?”

I unintentionally ended up comparing my previous life to a game. But come to think of it, I hadn’t played any games in a while. I couldn’t remember anything about my job, yet I somehow remembered trivial things like this. How did that even make sense? Well, in any case, it was about time I put my thoughts on finding a good income into action. Being unemployed was one thing, but I didn’t have the mental fortitude to stay calm while having no income.

One way to earn money was through dungeons. The reason why the goddess had sent me back to this world was because this world had dungeons too. After gathering information again using my smartphone, I found out that dungeons had first appeared on Earth about twenty years ago. They emerged in various countries, and along with them, people awakened to special abilities. These individuals were able to function even in dungeon environments, where the air was saturated with high concentrations of magic energy. Of course, that wasn’t all. They also possessed abilities far beyond those of regular people, and some even gained the ability to use magic.

The world was swept up in both fear and excitement over this sudden turn toward fantasy setting. These individuals came to be known as “Awakened,” and as the world started to realize the uses for the magic stones retrieved from dungeons, their importance grew as well. Now, twenty years later, prejudices against Awakened had largely settled down, and they were treated much like celebrities or athletes.

That much, I understood.

“Alright, first things first. I need to get my hands on some magic stones.”

Unfortunately, I didn’t have any magic stones. Not to mention, even if dungeon monsters fought each other, magic stones wouldn’t drop. Dungeon monsters also couldn’t touch the magic stone veins that existed within dungeons. That domain was strictly reserved for the higher entities that ruled over dungeons.

But what about now? I’ve been released from my status as a dungeon monster. Would I be able to obtain magic stones now?

I needed to check that fact first.

“Let’s see, the closest one around here is…”

This one.

The Kichijoji Dungeon. I decided to head there.

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“Hello, viewers! Good evening! Your ever-energetic magic-stone-mining idol, Mimimi Amanogawa, is here!”

“Good evening! Bringing my voice right to your side, it’s Yune!”

“Good evening! Exploring dungeons with full energy, it’s Yinling Jones!”

The three women excitedly stood in front of the camera on the first floor of the Kichijoji Dungeon. Their goal was to stream their dungeon activities on a video-sharing platform. They were so-called dungeon streamers. Commonly referred to as D-Tubers.

In the past, they had to carry cameras themselves or hire an Awakened cameraman, but thanks to advancements in technology, autonomous tracking camera drones had been developed for easier livestreaming. Each of them spoke to the drones they had prepared.

“And so, today I’ll be collaborating with Yune-chan and Yinling-chan as we head down to the tenth floor of the Kichijoji Dungeon! Apparently, a magic stone vein has been restored down there. My magic-stone-mining idol blood is boiling with excitement!”

Saying this, Mimimi tightly gripped her signature weapon—a pickaxe.

: There it is! Mimimi-chan’s plated pickaxe! lol

: Mimimi-chan’s pickaxe is gonna breathe fire again today!

: Wait! Lol! In that case, what makes today’s stream different from the usual stream? The other two are gonna get left behind! lmao

: For real!

“That’s right! So today, all three of us are going to showcase what makes each of us great! That’s why Mimimi is going to do her best to highlight the awesomeness of dungeon miners too!”

: Got it, makes sense.

: Yune is famous for the way she sounds in battle, and Yinling is the type to throw in unnecessary action moves while traveling through dungeons. (arms crossed in the background while nodding)

: Don’t call it unnecessary, lol.

: That’s right! Yinling’s butt clad in skin tight leggings is the best!

: If we’re talking about plainess level, our Mimimi-chan takes the crown.

: For real!

: Nah, Mimimi-chan has the ultimate weapon, so she’ll be fine!

: True that.

“Alright, let’s give it our all!”

“Yay~!”

“Ohhh!”

With Mimimi’s voice leading the way, the three of them descended into the Kichijoji Dungeon. Sometime later, in this dungeon where only Awakened individuals were allowed to enter, something invisible slipped inside unnoticed.

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