I Run the Protagonist’s Favorite Café in a Hopelessly Depressing Game World - V1 Chapter 11

The Dungeon Vanishes

I leap into the sky, still cradling Sophia in my arms.

The ground splits open from the shock, raining down hellish boulders the size of people.

I make it back to the surface without taking a single hit.

“…………”

I gently set the stunned Sophia down on the ground.

Her mouth opens and closes like a fish, but no words come out.

No. She probably can’t speak.

Her eyes are filled with confusion.

“You… that magic power…”

“Aoi Komeiji. Or the world’s strongest witch. Either answer works, right?”

“…It’s beyond comprehension.”

Sophia frowns, creasing her brow. She stares at the ground and closes her eyes.

“…I see. The world’s strongest witch. I was wondering what the headmaster was thinking, sending a guy over, but yeah. If it’s Aoi Komeiji, she probably knows her, and he’s definitely not lacking in power. That makes sense.”

Still, she never imagined the true identity would be a guy.

Sophia lets out a long sigh.

“…………”

I look away. It feels awkward.

I’d spun a bunch of lies to convince her, but pinning the blame on the innocent headmaster doesn’t sit right with me.

So I scratch my cheek and start, “Um…”

“Actually, the stuff about the headmaster was a lie.”

“Huh?”

Sophia’s eyes go wide.

I’d heard that the cost of her magic had stripped away her human emotions, but from the way she’s reacting, she can still show pretty normal feelings.

“I came to your lab of my own free will. …Well, I’m not even sure if it was my own will. I was just out for a walk, and before I knew it, I’d wandered inside.”

“So it was pure coincidence?”

“Yeah. No reason to lie about it at this point, right?”

I shrug.

…Everything I just said was the complete truth, but when I look at it calmly, the whole situation sounds completely unbelievable. “I was out for a walk and accidentally ended up here.”

I mean, that’s the only way to put it, but whether it’s believable is another story.

I figured Sophia would definitely be suspicious—

“…Yeah, I guess so.”

After a short silence, she lifts her gaze.

There’s no doubt in her eyes.

“Coincidence. Or maybe fate. How we describe the things that happen in this world is up to each person, but if you’re the world’s strongest witch, maybe finding a lab I hid with everything I had is as easy as spotting it on a stroll. If you couldn’t do at least that much, you probably wouldn’t have the luck needed to use powerful magic over and over.”

Sophia sighs again.

“But it’s still hard to swallow. Or maybe ‘hard to accept’ is better. This was my secret base that I poured more than ten years into.”

“I’m really sorry about that…”

“It’s fine. You didn’t do it with any bad intentions.”

Besides, if the world’s strongest witch had actually meant harm, I’d probably be sinking in a pool of blood by now.

She says something pretty grim.

…Huh? Is that the image people have of me?

I’m supposed to be a loving witch who believes in love and peace.

Looks like I seriously need to think about my reputation.

The sudden weight of it all makes me press my forehead and look up at the sky.

A clear blue sky stretches out above us—well, it’s just a projection on the barrier, but still. Not a single cloud.

“…What’s that?”

And then.

In one part of the flawless blue sky.

There’s a hole.

“The dungeon… disappeared?”

The tower that had been sealing the hole in the barrier.

The dungeon that had been keeping enemy invasions out.

It’s completely gone, without a trace.

Seeing that scene brings back a memory from “Witch or Something.”

The event where Sophia, the creator of Shikiko Komuta and Tamaki Omuta, strips the two of their humanity and turns them into literal machines for killing monsters.

The dungeon’s collapse.

The dungeon panic as everything falls.

I’ve mentioned it before, but… even though the name sounds game-like, the reality of the dungeon isn’t bright at all.

Its true nature is a hole in the barrier.

Long ago, an incredibly powerful monster opened the hole, and it was forcibly covered over with magic.

It looks like a tower-shaped building, but because it was created by magic, it automatically repairs any damage. Depending on how you look at it, it’s basically a living monster’s nest.

Monsters are constantly pouring in through the hole in the barrier.

If the dungeon sealing that hole vanishes, what happens?

The answer is unfolding right now.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!?”

“Help… help meeeeeee!!”

“It hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts it huuuuurts!?”

“Mom!!!!!!”

“You at least… run—!”

“Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!?”

Screams echo across the entire royal capital.

The sounds of people being crushed, toyed with, and having their blood sucked.

The sounds of humans being slaughtered.

—The countdown to humanity’s destruction.

“No way… how can this be happening…”

Sophia, standing beside me, mutters in a daze.

My true identity doesn’t matter anymore.

The scene in front of us. This unbelievable reality.

The suffering of the people crashes against our eardrums like a muddy torrent.

—The dungeon was created by magic.

But that alone doesn’t fully explain it.

Magic doesn’t last forever in the first place.

It’s momentary, fleeting, a miracle that lasts only an instant.

It’s a demon’s power that grants the user’s wish in exchange for a price.

The longest magic can keep going is around ten or so seconds. There’s no way it could keep a hole in the barrier sealed for thousands of years.

In short, the dungeon is a contradictory existence.

—However.

What if the user, the witch, kept casting the magic nonstop?

What if she kept paying the price ever since the dungeon was created?

The existence of witches is a symbol of humanity’s sins.

But maybe the dungeon itself is even more sinful.

“Buried deep underground in the dungeon are things that were once witches.”

“What are you…”

“Witches who became human pillars to protect humanity and stop the monsters from invading. Victims forced into that role. Living sacrifices. They can no longer be called human or witch… but they were tormented by eternal suffering.”

They couldn’t die.

They couldn’t even move freely.

They spent thousands of years inside dark coffins.

The dungeon existed thanks to the devotion of those who were once witches.

“But it’s finally over. The witches have been released from their suffering. They’ve paid the full price. That’s why the magic, which was the result of that suffering, has been undone, and the dungeon has disappeared.”

Screams can be heard.

Blood sprays stain the sky.

Monsters keep pouring in through the hole in the barrier.

Countless, overwhelming numbers of demons.

“Sophia.”

“You’re going?”

“Yeah. I am the world’s strongest witch, after all.”

“Then I’m coming too.”

“Huh?”

I turn around without thinking.

She should have heart failure from the cost of her magic.

Fighting monsters should be almost impossible for her.

“I told you, didn’t I? I’m not afraid of dying. I’ve even lost the emotions to feel fear. …It’s true I can’t do intense exercise anymore, but if I focus on this one moment, I can still kill monsters. I’ll probably die doing it, though.”

It’s a noble resolve.

A witch who sets the perfect example.

A witch who protects humanity and never thinks of herself.

I hesitate for a moment—then realize that even my hesitation would trample on her feelings, so I shake my head and face her directly.

“I respect you.”

“Oh my. Being respected by the world’s strongest witch… I guess I’m not completely washed up yet.”

“After the battle’s over, if we’re both still alive, let’s talk.”

“I can’t imagine you losing your life, but… yeah. I’ll drop by the café.”

“Sorry it’s in such a remote spot.”

I shrug modestly, and Sophia purses her lips.

“Such a mean way to put it. Were you worried about that?”

“Nah. It’s just the truth.”

That shop really is in a quiet back alley, so calling it remote is completely accurate. I actually chose the location on purpose. No reason to worry about it. No reason at all… but still.

“We don’t get many customers, but I’m confident in the coffee.”

“…If I’d known things would turn out like this, maybe I should’ve ordered a cup when I went to pick up Shikiko and the others.”

“You can drink as much as you want from now on.”

“…Yeah. I hope so.”

Sophia shakes her head with a bitter smile.

“Well then, let’s go.”

“Yeah.”

We dash off to kill the monsters.

…Well, I’ll have to grab my mask before the fighting actually starts, though.