The Way to Absolute Dungeon Administration – There Is No Reason To Meet With the Opponent! - Volume 02 Chapter 15.1: Doppelgänger

Volume 02 Chapter 15.1: Doppelgänger

Side: Asrin

Today, I worked hard with Onii-chan again.

As a reward, Onii-chan gave me my favorite ichigo ice for dessert after dinner.

“It’s delicious~ Right, Labiris-chan?”

“Yes, it is.”

“It’s yummy, Nii-sama!!”

Yesterday, I was surprised when Labiris-chan slapped Eris-neechan’s cheek, but there must’ve been a reason.

Because the Labiris-chan eating ichigo ice now is so kind.

Eris-neechan also apologized to us for some reason I don’t understand.

I don’t think she did anything wrong, though.

But everyone’s getting along now, so it’s fine, right?

They’re all eating dinner so happily.

Yup, it was worth working hard to make dinner!!

These past few days, Onii-chan’s been teaching me how to use the kitchen (?), and I’ve been studying to make tasty food!!

But from now on, I’ll have to study things like math (?) and other stuff.

It’s hard, but I’ll do my best.

Onii-chan and everyone will be happy, right?

Labiris-chan said, “A good woman can do all sorts of things.”

So I’ll work hard to become a good woman.

I’ll become a good woman, marry Onii-chan, and “beep” and “zwoosh” and “kaboom” to make a baby.

My body’s not grown-up yet, so Onii-chan doesn’t seem to feel lust for me, but I’ll become all bouncy like Labiris-chan soon!!

As I’m thinking about this, Lulua-sama starts speaking loudly enough for everyone to hear.

“Everyone, may I have your attention?”

Her voice draws everyone’s eyes to her.

“I… want to return to Litea Holy Nation. I know it’s terribly rude to ask for your protection only to make this selfish request, but I’ve realized something. I’m still a citizen of Litea. And I was a Saintess. Even if it means my death, I need to correct Litea Holy Nation’s mistakes. Please, allow me to leave.”

I don’t understand the complicated stuff, but Lulua-sama wants to go back to Litea, right?

Then I think she should go back.

Unlike us, she has a place to return to, so that’s gotta be better.

But everyone’s gone quiet.

Milly-san’s making a really scary face. Why?

“Hey, Onii-chan. Lulua-sama has a place to go back to, right? If she can return, that’s better, isn’t it? Her friends are probably worried about her.”

I say this, tugging on Onii-chan’s sleeve.

“Yeah, Asrin’s got a point. What do you all think?”

Onii-chan pats my head and asks everyone.

“Well, if she wants to go, there’s no reason to stop her.”

“If that’s the answer she’s settled on.”

“…Good riddance to the baggage.”

“Lulua-sama’s face shows resolve. Stopping her would be pointless.”

“I won’t stop her. It’s about her own will.”

“…I don’t care.”

Everyone agrees to let Lulua-sama go.

But Elju-neechan, who was close to her, looks a little sad.

“Lulua-sama, but then…”

“Elju-sama, no. Lulua-sama has her own path to follow.”

Elju-neechan tries to stop Lulua-sama, but Oriel-san scolds her.

“Elju-sama. There’s a high chance I’ll die. But I have to do this. I can’t leave it to anyone else. I believe my purpose as a Saintess lies here and now. Don’t worry, I’m not going without a plan.”

“Huh!? Lulua-sama, you might die!? No way!! We just got to be friends!! Onii-chan, can’t you help her!?”

Hearing the word “die” from Lulua-sama, tears spill from my eyes.

“Yeah, it’d be a pain if she died after we went through the trouble of saving her. How about this? If you agree to my proposal, I’ll help you out.”

“Onii-chan!! Don’t be mean to Lulua-sama!!”

He could just help her normally, but Onii-chan’s being a bully.

“Asrin, it’s okay. Yuki’s just talking about protecting Lulua-sama.”

“Really?”

Labiris-chan says this, and I look at Onii-chan’s face.

“…Ugh, with Asrin like this, I’ll just say it straight. If you succeed in reclaiming your position, you stop any invasion of this dungeon. And you provide diplomatic support. Honestly, if you die, our plans go kaput, so take bodyguards and a trump card.”

Onii-chan raises his hands like he’s giving up and says he’ll help Lulua-sama.

“…Yes, if I can reclaim my position, of course. But who as bodyguards? And Litea’s situation won’t be overturned easily, no matter what tricks we use.”

Lulua-sama, eyes wide with disbelief, voices an honest question.

“Don’t be so shocked. It’s not just about guarding you. There’s more to it.”

Onii-chan gets that mischievous look on his face.

I love that face.

Onii-chan’s mischief always makes everyone smile.

Like when he first gave us ice cream.

“First, for bodyguards and information gathering, I’ll send Mauve, Raya, and Curse.”

“Got it, leave it to us.”

“A long trip, huh? Been a while.”

“Understood.”

When Onii-chan calls out, Mauve-ojichan and the others respond.

They’re super strong, so Lulua-sama will be fine!!

“And for the trump card… or rather, someone with a lot of cards to play.”

“Huh?”

Lulua-sama looks confused, wondering who it could be.

I don’t know either. There’s only the people here, right?

Then maybe that strong, kind goblin-san? Or the squishy slime-san?

Oh, it’s gotta be that super strong-looking Blood Minotauros, Mino-chan!!

“Hey there, nice to meet you.”

The door opens, and a man walks in.

He looks younger than Onii-chan. He’s shorter, too.

Blonde hair. Kinda feels like Onii-chan, maybe?

…Huh?

“Onii-chan… right? That guy.”

Everyone’s wary of the stranger, but my words make them look surprised.

Because, because, that guy’s movements and vibe are exactly like Onii-chan!

“Whoops. Labiris didn’t catch it, but Asrin did, huh?”

The other Onii-chan in front of me pats my head.

Yup, that pat is definitely Onii-chan!!

“…What’s going on?”

Lulua-sama glares at the real Onii-chan, who’s sitting with his eyes closed, not moving.

“Oh, could it be a doppelgänger!?”

Elju-neechan shouts, like she just remembered something.

“Correct.”

Onii-chan claps his hands in praise.

I clap too.

“Elju-neechan, that’s amazing!!”

“Yup, yup, your big sister’s awesome!!”

Elju-neechan hugs me and spins me around.

Lately, I’ve been sleeping with her or Onii-chan, so it’s been all sorts of fun.

“Now, shall I explain? First, about doppelgängers. Mauve and the others probably know the most about monsters. Can you share what you know?”

“Y-Yeah. You’re really Yuki, huh? Got it.

…A doppelgänger is a tricky monster that lives in specific regions or dungeons above a certain difficulty. Usually, when a party gets split up by traps, it mimics a teammate’s appearance and ambushes them.

But it only copies appearance, not memories. Normally, anyone diving into a dungeon of that level would notice something off, like a teammate acting strange, and deal with it. As for combat strength, it can somewhat mimic the movements of the person it copies, but that’s it. In adventurer guild terms, it’s about Rank 4, right?”

“Yup, I’ve fought a doppelgänger before too. Not that strong, right?”

Riel-chan agrees with Mauve-san.

Yup, doppelgängers are monsters good at mimicking, huh?

But wait, Onii-chan’s doppelgänger doesn’t look like him at all?

“Hmm, so that’s the general understanding. Let me tell you about the doppelgänger traits I’ve researched. In short, if their level is high enough, they can perfectly mimic or transform, including copying memories completely.

But they deliberately avoid that. If they copy memories fully, they usually betray their master. Or rather, if they copy everything, they forget they’re a monster. So they intentionally limit memory copying. Think about it: if a fake Mauve, stronger than the real one, was made and worked perfectly, what would happen?”

“It’d be useful, right?”

Mauve-ojichan says.

I think so too.

If it’s stronger than me, it’d help out, and it’d probably be fun, right?

“Mauve, what if there’s a weaker, useless fake of you?”

“I’d get rid of it if it’s in the way… Oh, that’s it.”

“Exactly. A doppelgänger that perfectly mimics would try to replace the original. It’s a fake, but better than the real thing. No reason for it to stay a fake forever, and not much reason to work with the original either. Ever heard of someone living happily with a doppelgänger?”

“Nope.”

“Right. Take your fake, for example. It’d feel like Raya or Curse stole the real you. Even if it’s a perfect copy, it’d take serious mental strength to handle being called a fake by people you think are friends. That’s rough.”

“Yeah.”

“So that’s why they don’t fully mimic. They skip memory copying and take single commands for convenience, like Mauve said—impersonate a teammate to take out intruders. You can control them after full mimicry, but the original memories make them unstable.”

I don’t totally get it, but if there was a stronger fake me, would it say, “You’re not worthy of Onii-chan!!” and push me aside?

Hmm, I think I could get along with it, though~

“And another doppelgänger feature: possession. I can directly control it. But while I’m doing that, the real me can’t move, as you see. Elju’s fake was controlled like this too.”

“Oh, I see. But that appearance? It’s nothing like you, Yuki-san.”

“It’s simple when you think about it. Doppelgängers can mimic anything, even specific body parts. Sure, an exact copy moves more naturally, but this body’s smaller than mine. It took some getting used to when leveling it up for perfect mimicry.”

Wow, Onii-chan can move a different body. That’s amazing!!

Wait, so if this other Onii-chan is here, does that mean…

“C-Could it be? That Yuki-san is the trump card?”

Lulua-sama’s eyes widen in shock.

“Nah, this body’s just one of the cards. The trump card’s impact depends on when you play it. This body can die without issue, and it won’t reveal the dungeon’s involvement. Mauve and the others will focus on gathering info. I’ll be your main bodyguard in Litea.”

“What!? But if it’s revealed as a monster in a holy place, my position will be in danger!!”

“Yeah, I get that, so I’ll work in the shadows. Just to test, is there a holy spell that reveals monsters?”

“There is…”

“Try it. If it exposes me, I’ll stay in the shadows. If not, I’ll guard you directly.”

“I’m not responsible if it fails! Holy light, reveal the form of evil!! [Light Shower]!!”

As Lulua-sama casts the spell, beautiful light fills the room.

“Hm, no problem.”

“What!?”

“Well, there’s a few reasons, but probably the level difference.”

“Level? What’s your level!? I’m an Archbishop at 44, third highest in Litea!!”

“Uh… yeah, sorry about that.”

Onii-chan shows Lulua-sama the doppelgänger’s status.

Name: Yuki

Race: Doppelgänger

Status: Monster, Possessed

Gender: Male

Occupation: Curiosity Seeker

Age: 0

Lv: 238

HP: 6020

MP: 23200

STR: 2740

DEF: 1400

INT: 6920

AGI: 3032

LUK: 120

Skills: Well, a bunch of stuff

“O-O-Onii-chan, that’s amazing!! Like a legendary hero!!”

“Holy crap, that’s insane. As expected of a Dungeon Master. How did people even beat other Dungeon Masters before?”

“H-How… did you reach a legendary level…?”

“Well, before meeting up with you all, I had some free time. I tested my dungeon with the doppelgänger. No traps, just straight-up battles. I didn’t use my trained monsters, of course. Wanted to see how levels worked. Fought goblins normally, killed defenseless dragons with high-powered weapons, and it just kinda happened.

Levels go up pretty easily, huh? Feels like you absorb something from defeated monsters. So, Labiris and the others could level up fast too, though without real combat experience, it’s just raw levels.”

Wow, so I could hit level 100 and get super strong soon?

“…What even is my life…?”

For some reason, Lulua-sama looks downcast. Why?