- The Dungeon -

This time a dark ceiling meets Taro’s vision, far from the posh furnishings of the chamber of judgement just moments before. It is a cave instead. Stalactites hang from the ceiling, and a general musty humidity permeates the air. Below, the cold floor feels soothing to the touch. However the short lived tranquility is interrupted by the presence of the two story tall horned snake.

“Oh God. I’m dead - *Again*!” he thinks to himself. The snake flicks its tongue a few times. Eyes lock onto the young boy, as the serpent encroaches closer. Her slit pupils narrows as she reaches a point far beyond comfortable for the young man. It tilts its head. Following a couple more flicks of its tongue, the snake recedes into a hole beyond sight. However Taro remains alert. He still feels an ominous pressure from the aforementioned direction; he sits up and peers into the dark tunnel from which the serpent disappeared to. Taro, still fraught with fear, stays frozen, feeling out any signs of movement or sound.

…

Faint footsteps can be heard from the tunnel.
They steadily increase in volume as it got closer.

Taro still felt the piercing eyes of the beast on him, only getting stronger as the sound got louder. The intensity of anticipation grew unbearable. He couldn’t fathom facing his death in such an anticlimactic way. He could only plead with all his might.

“Please! I’ve only just started! Don’t eat me yet! I haven't even met my first love interest!” Taro exclaims, not even looking anymore. He’s already curled up into a fetal position and covered his face with his hands. The entity is before him now.

After a brief moment, he feels a firm nudge from the stranger, flipping Taro from his side like a pill bug laid upside down.

“Hah… get up,” a woman’s voice sighs.

Taro makes a crack through his fingers to take a peek at the speaker. The figure reveals herself to be a rather disappointed looking woman with a hand on her hip. She wears what appears to be a layered dress, almost translucent in color though nearly indiscernible from her pallid skin. Quite beautiful in fact. She has sharp features, long wispy white hair that would flow like silk down to her ankles... Though two distinct horns crown her temples, and her characteristic piercing amber gaze gave her away; despite her appearance.
Undeniably, she was the monstrous snake from a moment's past.

“Pft…” She makes a light scoff covering her mouth. Taro realizes that he haa adopted a pose not unlike a dog showing its belly to display subservience. He embarrassingly scrambles to sit on his knees to not further anger his - so far - generous master. She glares at him.

“I’m not going to eat you…” She became indignant.

“Y-Yes ma’am. Y-You’re correct ma’am. I forget myself ma’am.” Taro grovels further.

“In truth, it’s quite the bother. Humans oft wear armor and wear such trinkets that'd adore getting stuck in between the crevices of my teeth. I'd prefer a fresh boar in all honesty.”

Taro is shaking like a leaf now.

“Yes ma’am. How inconsiderate!”

Upon closer inspection he notices that the ground beneath him were laden with inscriptions. Taro was summoned through of some form of ritual. "Y-You summoned me?"

“ 'You?!', That is how you address me?!" she spits with a venom, "I am Shion Orochi, Dungeon Lord! Yes! I summoned you, mortal! Do you assume I would use the profane arts for a paltry offering?!”

“Ahhh!?” the boy yelps helplessly,

She continues in her own form of assurance. “Serve me mortal, and I give you my word that you will draw breath while you still serve…”

Looking at Taro, her eyes narrow...

“... Though I wasn’t expecting a kappa…”

“KAPPA?! I’M A HUMAN OBVIOUSLY! ARE THOSE LAMPS JUST FOR SHOW?!” Taro couldn’t help but feel irritation at the recent personal attacks on his character.

“... Do I need to reconsider my offer?”

“O-Of course not!! How may I serve you my Lord!”

“...…”

The serpent lowers herself to his eyeline.

“W-What?...”

She lifts a finger under Taro’s chin, guiding his face to meet her terrifying gaze.

“You’re going to help me defend this dungeon.”

......

Taro was shown around to come to grips with his task. The serpent’s domain spanned through a floor of the dungeon, a handful of rooms, and chasms. She would explained the possibility of rearranging its floor plan if needed. The necessity of its maintenance was paramount to her survival. Shion explains:

“Best case scenario is that the adventurers die. That way, their corpses and materials they bring to the dungeon are repossessed into the dungeon's ecosystem.”

A chill ran down Taro’s spine.

“Regrettably, they never stay dead. They always come back.” she adds.

A flicker of relief momentarily washes over Taro.

“And that’s the crux of the problem. Despite the vastness of my power, humans are far more plentiful than they once were. If they so decided to, they could overwhelm my domain with sheer numbers…” She spits out in disgust.

“Sometimes I throw a treasure or two I’ve accumulated from past travelers so they may leave satiated and investigate no further.”

Albeit questions weigh heavily on Taro’s mind. The dead come back? Is this a self sustaining ecosystem? Am I going to have to harm my fellow man? The boy’s brain rushed to find a solution.

“If it’s so dangerous, why don’t you just make the dungeon a series of dead ends? Make it so that there is nothing worth traveling into a dungeon for?”

“They’d start tunneling through the walls. Human avarice is far more insidious than the fear of death or pain.”

She sits on a rock. Taro asks gingerly.

“So, what is it you’re asking of me exactly?”

“The end goal…” Shion narrows her eyes. “Keep them away from me. I sustain this domain, its inhabitants. If I go… -ah”

As she was explaining, a round creature hopped onto her lap. It was a rotund teal ball of what looked like jelly. Two nubs sat atop its head. Their noseless faces were simplistic yet expressive. This one was beaming.

“Too often humans circumvent all my defenses. I need counsel. - Specifically your outsider knowledge gives me an edge.” She continues, petting the orb while he nuzzles her with a relaxed face, not unlike a cat. “This little guy is one of them... Hm. It may be a good time to take stock of our resources. Come along Taro.”

“Mhm…” Taro follows.

Shion took her new protégé to a large atrium. With a whistle, the slime she was holding jumps from her arms and takes a position in front of the two. Shion sneaks a peek at Taro.

From there, two more slimes hop their way to the line formation.  Taro notices that slimes emit cute 'hyup! hyup!' noises as they hop. Finally a red one horned girl stumbles out from one of the halls. It was obvious she had just woken up and was yawning. The oni scratches her stomach as she approaches the roll call.

“And this is my brigade!” Shion says triumphantly with an exhale from her nostrils.

...

“(WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING SO SMUG ABOUT?!!)” Taro screams internally.
“(AFTER ALL THOSE AIRS YOU PUT UP-
DOMAIN THIS -
HUMAN AVARICE THAT -
YOUR DEFENSE FORCE CONSISTS OF FOUR LOW LEVEL MOBS??!!)”

He musters the courage to ask a confirmational query“...Uhm… This is every-?...”

The red girl interrupts rudely “Shioon, why’d you call everyone? Are there intruders?”

“Ah, no. Actually -” Shion responds, still pleased with herself.

“And what’s up with the kappa?” - This comment sets a fire ablaze in Taro’s maiden heart.

“KAPPA?! YOU BRAT! IS YOUR BRAIN STILL ASLEEP?! I'M OBVIOUSLY A HUMANN!!! YOU'RE JUST CANNON FODDER!!!”

“Uwahh! It got mad?!” the red oni said, startled.

“Now, now let’s calm down!” Shion attempts a feeble effort to deescalate. Taro, erstwhile is bearing teeth like a gorilla to intimidate.

“S-Shut up! Idiot! Stupiid! Idiot!” The oni run off hurling insults at the supposed kappa.

“Only stupid people call other people stupid! Stuupid!” Taro shoots back, interestingly -to Taro this feels like the first argument he “won” since post mortem. Some strange sense of pride in besting a child in a verbal argument glows within his bossom.

Though he suddenly feels an immense pressure from behind, ending his short lived victory.

”...Servant…”

“Y-Yes ma’am…”



Thus Taro’s first task as dungeon manager was to apologize.

......

Approaching the oni’s room. Taro recites the apology template that he often uses when quarrels occur with his mother.

- Sorry (Even though it was your fault)
- I won’t do it again (I got into trouble because of you)
- Let’s get along(Know your place from now on okay?)

“Alright! I think I got it down! This’ll be a cinch!” With overwhelming and unfounded confidence Taro opens the door to the girls’ room.

“Hello, I’m here to apologize.”

“Haah?...” The oni lazily turns to barely acknowledge the young man.

She was lying down on her stomach. Her hair done up in two twin tails, it was a cool silver parted in the middle or as much as it could with her one horn. She wore simple rags. The oni’s chin rests on one of the slimes that was in the line formation at the atrium. She pouts returning to her activity(which consists of looking at the wall).

“Good. It was your fault.”

“H-Haha… Yeah, it won’t happen again…”

“Yeah. Yeah. It better not. I could’ve gotten in trouble if you kept it up.”

Taro had veins growing on his temples.

“… I hope we can s-still be friends.”

“...” The oni girl remains silent for a moment.

“Well…” she suddenly stands to meet Taro. Her height being slightly taller than Taro's. Though that's not saying much, “I am your senior after all… I’m Akari,”

Taro’s eyes were bulging out from their sockets now.

“I may have overreacted… I should’ve set an example for my underlings after all.” she proudly proclaims. “Are you ok? You’re breathing a bit weird...”

“Pay it no mind… Your reverence may address me as Taro.”

Surprisingly the peace offering had lifted the mood in the young girl. She pulls an arm around Taro.

“If you’ve ANY questions don’t hesitate ka- er, human! Big sister will guide you!” She grins pointy ear to pointy ear to the prospect of having an underling.

Taro just gritted his teeth. “Haha…”  

“How old are you anyways, Taro?” She continues,

“17.”

For some reason this gave her pause.

“Haha… I must’ve heard that wrong.”

“… Anyways! As your senior in this dungeon! Feel free to rely on -!”

She suddenly releases Taro. Her expression became stiff.
“Let’s go, Taro.” 

“?!”

“Adventurers are here.”