Dungeon's Final Boss: Banished by My Boss, the Goddess, to Earth—So I'll Continue My Past Life - 54

Chapter 54: After the Meeting..

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

“Nice to meet you. My name is Shun Ira, and I represent Movements.”

The person who arrived at the meeting—though it was more of a drinking party—was a young man dressed casually. Dark circles under his eyes hinted at exhaustion from too much screen time.

“I heard you were looking for an editing team?”

“Nice to meet you! Alright then, Jiro, I’ll leave the rest to you.”

“Hold it right there.”

As Piroane tried to slip away to the table where Mio and the others were sitting, I grabbed her from behind and squeezed the sides of her head.

“Oww! Oww! That hurts!”

“This is your request, isn’t it?”

“But I don’t understand any of this!”

“Even if you don’t, stay here. Use your head for once.”

“Thinking isn’t my job!”

“……”

“GYAAAH! I’m sorry!”

That was for all the dungeon monsters (my ex-coworker) that have been overworked to the point of exhaustion.

“W-We also handle not just editing, but filming and project planning as well.”

Ira-san pulled up a promotional brochure on his tablet, his face twitching slightly. Still, as he continued his explanation, he seemed to gradually relax.

“By the way, this discussion was about contracts for Piroane-san and Mimimi Amanokawa-san, correct? What about you, Hasegawa-san?”

“Oh, I don’t stream videos.”

“Jiro is too busy supporting me and Mimimi!”

“I don’t mind Mimimi, but I’d really like her to graduate from me.”

“Why are you so cold to me?”

“Are you seriously asking me that question?”

“I’m sorry!”

As soon as I clenched my fist, she immediately bowed her head.

“Anyway, my abilities are more suited for working behind the scenes. I have no intention of being in the spotlight.”

“Then what about something like your past collaboration with Mimimi-san and the others?”

Hmm? It seemed he was trying to get me to do something.

“What exactly do you mean?”

“Ah, as I mentioned earlier, we also assist with planning and consultations, so I was wondering… If we were to ask for your cooperation instead, would that be possible?”

“I’m sorry, but I have no intention of actively appearing in videos. If I were to make an exception, it would have to be worth my while financially.”

“Hahaha! So an S-Rank Awakener has a price tag for their cooperation? Scary.”

“Well, that’s how it is.”

This kind of thing never excited me, making me realize once again that I wasn’t the type of person who enjoyed being in videos. It wasn’t that I had no desire for recognition. I didn’t particularly enjoy being called “Dungeon Ojian,” but I had no aversion to being acknowledged by others. That didn’t mean I wanted to be in the spotlight all the time, either.

“After all, I’m best suited for working in the background.”

“…I see.”

Ira-san nodded several times. Since his job involved supporting video creators, maybe he understood my stance. Or maybe I had been too naive to think that….

The meeting ended with the agreement that a long-term contract would be considered only after evaluating the quality of the upcoming video. I hadn’t been involved in the discussion about how the three-person collaboration would turn out, but…

The day of the livestream. 

『My name is Mimimi Amanokawa!』

『I’m Yune.』

『I’m Yinling Jones.』

『Um, today’s collab is going to be something incredible!』

『Seriously incredible.』

『How did this even happen?』

『It’s Mimimi’s fault.』

『Yeah, definitely Mimimi’s fault.』

『Eh!?』

『It’s because Mimimi unexpectedly showed off her communication skills to us.』

『Well then, let’s do some introductions. Look!』

『Ugh… Here with us is S-Class Awakener Jiro Hasegawa.』

『And I’m Piroane!』

『…Nice to meet you.』

『And now, as for our collab today… Look behind us!』

As the main host, Yinling signaled the camera drone, which adjusted its angle accordingly. Behind the five of them, a large group of Awakeners stood gathered. Not all of them were video content creators. Some had joined simply because they were interested in the event.

『And today! With the support of not one, but two S-Class Awakeners, we’re diving into a dungeon! This is a large-scale exploration event!』

Mimimi, Yune, Yinling, and Piroane moved along with the camera to speak with the gathered Awakeners. I watched them go and let out a quiet sigh.

How did it come to this?

That night, during a drinking party, an instant-clear dungeon appeared, and I had to leave midway. While I was gone, they decided everything without me. Since Piroane had already given her approval, there was nothing left for me to do but handle the aftermath as her designated support.

I shouldn’t have left her alone.

And then there was Ira-san, who must have figured out exactly how to rope me into this while I was away. He was a tricky one, no doubt. Competent, but tricky. There was a theory that successful CEOs had a bit of a psychopath streak… I might start believing in that theory. 

『And so, here we are at a dungeon in ● City, G Prefecture!』

As Yune explained the dungeon details, the four of them returned to the camera.

『This dungeon is somewhat unpopular due to its high difficulty level, but there are rumors that vast magic stone deposits appear here frequently. Our goal today is to verify that rumor and, if possible, complete the dungeon.』

『Joining us is none other than Dungeon Oji-san himself, Jiro Hasegawa, who guided us through the Heiwajima Dungeon last time! And also, Piroane! So, Hasegawa-san, what do you think?』

『Well, considering the size of our group, we’ll proceed cautiously. If things get tough, we can just let Piroane handle the rest on her own. No need for cameras. She’s perfectly capable solo.』

『The cameras are definitely staying!』

『Alright then, for this dungeon, we’ll be live-streaming up to the tenth floor. Anything beyond that will be uploaded later as a video, so stay tuned!』

With Mimimi’s final words, the group set off toward the dungeon.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー