[theme music playing]
DELICIOUS IN DUNGEON
We're finally back!
[yawns]
The air up here is so much better than the dungeons'.
[Mickbell] Is this sunrise or sunset?
-[Maizuru] Do not touch the window! -[both gasp]
The spell is still in effect here!
-Kabru. -Hm?
I'm reporting to the Island Lord tomorrow.
I'd like you to join me as a witness.
Do you plan on telling him about everything?
[Shuro] I don't think it's necessary to mention Laios and his party.
Mostly I just don't want Falin to murder anyone else.
That makes sense.
Why don't you use the rest of the day to get some sleep?
[Mickbell] Whoa! See that, Kuro?
[Kuro] Big ship. It's huge.
-[gasps] -[Mickbell] I wonder if the people on it
have lots of money!
-[hurried footsteps] -[both] Hm?
[gasps]
[melancholy music playing]
[Kabru] This isn't good.
Toshiro, we need to see the Island Lord right away.
Is that ship special?
It belongs to the Elves of the West.
[Kabru] That bird figurehead.
Must be the Canaries then.
[Kabru] They appear when dungeons reach a certain level of danger.
When that happens,
their mission is to investigate the dungeon and conquer it.
I've heard rumors that they've been putting pressure on the Island Lord,
but it looks like they're switching to coercion.
How is something like that allowed?
Isn't this a tall-men region?
To the elves and dwarves, races with short lives are like infants.
And sadly, the Island Lord's not very good at negotiating.
[Kabru] Let's hurry.
Hm?
[Namari] Hey!
If it isn't Shuro!
[Shuro] Hello, Namari.
[sighs] Where is Falin?
[sad groan]
Hmm.
Laios and the others haven't given up yet, though.
Is that so?
-Are they still eating monsters? -Yes, they are.
Excuse me, but we're here to see the Island Lord.
Oh, you're out of luck then.
[Namari] Some important people suddenly came to talk with him.
And they've been in there for hours now.
[gasps]
So we're too late.
We have to go inside.
Is that really wise?
[Kabru] If the elves take control of the dungeon, it's over.
The town I'm from also prospered from a dungeon.
[Kabru] One day, monsters flooded the town,
the elves came, and many died.
Why was my family part of the ones who were killed?
My mother was a single parent, did everything she could to raise me.
She didn't deserve to die like that.
[Kabru] I've vowed to never let that happen again.
The system in which a single race holds all the power,
it isn't healthy for anyone.
[soft groan]
Forgive me, but…
I've come here to deliver a report to the Island Lord.
[both groan]
Excuse me.
As you can see, we're in the middle of something.
[Cithis] Come back later.
It's a report about the situation in the dungeon.
[Kabru] Please hear me out.
-Seriously? -It must be important.
[Kabru] Stand your ground.
Make it brief.
Not too long ago, during our exploration,
we encountered a human who turned into a monster.
-What? -[gasps]
Damn it. A Chimera.
[Cithis] It's progressing faster than expected.
See? I told you all!
We didn't have time to twiddle our thumbs and wait for an answer!
Let's give the order to make landfall!
We won't allow that!
[Cithis] The elderly need not get worked up.
Country borders are so trivial compared to the lives of people.
Just who do you think you are? Treating me like I'm old and senile!
Tansu, please, I think we've said enough.
What?
You're a true Island Lord.
Understanding and wise.
[Lycion] Now, if you would please stamp here.
[Mr. Tansu] Don't do it! You can't give in!
Did we actually end up making things worse here?
[Kabru] The truth is…
if I had enough strength to conquer a dungeon,
there wouldn't be a problem.
But I don't.
So I started looking around for adventurers
who were more skilled that I could assist.
However, most of the people I found were self-serving and worthless.
By the time I accepted my fate and tried to conquer the dungeon myself,
I heard rumors about the Touden siblings.
I have a feeling that they were brought up pretty well.
They have good instincts, but no real ambition.
[gold stripper] They're honestly kinda weird.
[Kabru] The more I found out, the stranger they seemed.
Despite not being that strong,
they reached the deeper floors of the dungeon.
They would give money to people with poor reputations.
And their origins and the strange company they kept
were hard to follow.
Still, there's something about the brother
that made me feel he was deeply connected to the destiny of this island.
-[Kabru] Hey. -The question was…
-[Laios] I'm sorry. I'm in a rush. -…would his role be good or bad.
[Kabru] May I sit next to you?
-To decide that… -[Laios] Thanks for the meal.
-…I wanted to speak with him directly. -[Kabru] You dropped something!
And once I did, I finally understood.
[magical chiming]
He only thinks about monsters.
Therefore, we can't trust him to consider the future of the island.
But there's one thing I can say for sure.
At this moment, among the tall-men,
he's the one who's closest to the heart of the dungeon.
This will more than likely be the first and last chance we get.
So I can't let the elves get in his way.
I'll figure out what to do about him after.
-Enough already. -Huh?
You can do whatever you want.
-[happy gasp] -[Mr. Tansu] My lord!
-I'll let them know to make landfall. -[angry groan]
-[Kabru] Please wait! -Hm?
It's too dangerous.
The types of monsters, architecture, and environments,
all of it is in turmoil.
We're already aware of this.
It's a characteristic of dungeons showing growth.
We have to stop it as soon as possible.
In human terms, a growth spurt.
This is when it requires the most nutrients.
What's all this now?
[Kabru] About 15 years ago,
a dungeon destroyed my hometown.
It was a town called Utaya.
Fifteen years ago?
Then, wouldn't that mean…
No way! Are you the child they say survived that incident?
I did hear that the vice-captain or someone
had brought a young one home with them.
[Kabru] Yes.
They took care of me for several years.
Oh?
You were probably spoiled, but became an adventurer?
It was my dream to join a squad, but I couldn't as a tall-man.
I didn't wanna repeat that tragedy, so I wanted a way to help.
[Cithis] How admirable.
[Fleki] Are you getting enough to eat?
You should go and visit the vice-captain sometime.
[Mithrun] Anyway…
[gasps]
You mentioned "nutrients".
Tell me more.
Well, because of your efforts,
Utaya's dungeon was quickly destroyed. However…
there were many casualties among the soldiers and civilians.
It was due to the dead turning into monsters
and eating the living.
Soldiers were ambushed before they could do anything.
Rely on numbers, and Utaya will repeat itself.
I suggest we seal the dungeon instead.
We can't do anything that will end up feeding it.
I'm pretty sure it's not your intention to cause damage to the dungeon
during combat anyway.
How many people are inside?
[Kabru] The majority of them are on the first floor.
Let's evacuate them slowly.
All humans have some sort of connection.
And I know some people who can definitely help out.
So just leave it to me!
[surprised gasp]
[Shuro] Kabru…
he still ate monsters despite everything he went through?
[Mithrun] Begin preparations…
[shocked gasp]
-…for the investigation. -Huh?
I suspect you're plotting something.
[Mithrun] If that's the case, show me what you've got.
Should anything go wrong, my troops will rush in.
[both groan]
Understood?
Yes.
[yawns]
[Izutsumi groans]
[Senshi] So are they like scrambled eggs?
Huh?
[Senshi] You said before that people compare souls to eggs.
But if you're referring to souls that are mixed together,
then what would that mean in relation to how eggs are cooked?
For example, scrambled eggs, a sunny-side-up egg,
and a poached egg would all have different stories.
Listen, Senshi.
I didn't make that comparison for you to take what I said
and try to make a joke out of it.
[Senshi] Who's making jokes?
I was actually impressed by how interesting a comparison it was.
There's nothing else that behaves in as many different ways as an egg does.
For example, eggs get firm when heated,
but the white and yolk solidify at different temperatures.
Frothiness, moisture attention, viscosity.
And the most interesting one, emulsification.
Even things that don't mix naturally like oil and water,
mix beautifully under the right conditions.
Just like this.
Well, that's…
Wait, souls are actually nothing like eggs!
-[sighs] -Laios, you mind handing me
that bread there?
-[grunts] -[groans] Hm?
[Senshi] It's ready!
SOUL EGGS BENEDICT
So, how are we supposed to eat this?
[Senshi] Pick up the bread with your knife and fork.
Then use the bread to scoop the yolk and sauce as you eat.
[Laios] Delicious as usual.
-[Izutsumi groans] -Hm?
If you don't mind,
could you stop looking around at stuff that isn't really there?
Or is there something?
I don't think so.
[Izutsumi] I just thought I felt some kind of presence.
Huh?
[terrified gasp]
Does that mean this isn't a hallucination?
Huh?
[creepy music playing]
Well, when I got mana sickness,
remember when I mentioned I was seeing and hearing things?
That never went away.
Seriously? Why didn't you say something?
Because Chil would just yell at me and tell me I'm sick in the head.
That's because you are.
[dejected sigh]
[Senshi] What are you hallucinating?
Hm? [groans]
Day in and day out, something keeps trying to talk to me.
[Laios] At first, I couldn't tell what it was saying.
But gradually, its voice and shape started getting clearer.
It's pretty scary, so I've been pretending not to see it.
Then you could actually hear me speaking after all.
[groans]
[Marcille] So what did it say?
[Laios] Well, it's not too happy that I was ignoring it.
I wonder if talking to it is okay.
[Marcille] Do you think it's evil?
[Laios] Uh, not sure.
-Possibly? -[ghost 1 grunts]
Hello there.
[Laios] Can I help you with something?
-[indistinct chatter] -Uh-huh.
[Laios] Hmm.
What's it saying now?
[Laios] It's mad at me because I thought it was an evil ghost.
[both groan]
-Also… -[all] Hm?
…it's asking if we've forgotten that it saved us from the, uh, mage.
Huh?
[Marcille] Oh, wait, I remember!
Right. How can I forget that whole thing?
[Senshi] Please give it our thanks.
Hm. Mm-hm.
I guess it wants to introduce us to someone.
[Laios] Thoughts?
It's not the god of death, is it?
Well, we don't have many options, so…
All right!
[Laios] We're ready to go whenever you are!
[eerie music playing]
[scared gasping]
[all gasping]
-[all screaming] -[groans, gasps]
[grunts]
[screaming]
[screeching]
[birds chirping]
[moans]
[both groan]
[soft groan]
Huh? [soft gasp]
-Huh? -[wind gusting]
[shocked gasp]
[Marcille groans]
-[gasps] -[retches]
Wait. What the heck?
Where are we?
-[villager 1] Hey! -Huh?
Out of the road, please!
Is… that a Unicorn?
That clothing…
Did you guys come from the outside?
No, we came from the dungeon and--
[villager 1] I can't believe it!
Uh, come with me!
[tranquil music playing]
[Laios] I have never seen monsters be this docile before.
It's 'cause they're ordered not to hurt us,
-so we can coexist here. -Oh.
That's not gonna be the case for outsiders though.
[villager 1] So make sure you hold on to the stuff I gave you.
-[Izutsumi groans] -Hm?
Izutsumi, something wrong?
Teleportation sickness?
She's probably tired.
[Laios] Is that the Golden Castle?
[villager 1] Sure is.
And the ghosts that brought us to this place,
are they actual residents too?
Pretty much.
Well, the person you're about to meet has more info.
Maybe they'll know why you were chosen.
[villager 1] 'Cause we sure don't.
We were "chosen"?
[villager 1 sighs] This is it.
Just sit tight, okay?
If you're looking for the master, he went to the church.
[villager 1 panting]
-It's them. -Huh?
[villager 2] Those guys?
[villager 1] Guess we came here at a pretty bad time.
-[soft groan] -Until the master comes back here,
why don't you try to relax in the village?
[villager 1] Seems like everyone really wants
to show you their hospitality.
What should we take them around to see first?
The village isn't that special so…
They're all residents of the Golden Castle?
[Senshi] Yeah, but I don't see any old folk.
Honestly, I'd like to see where the monsters are being raised!
[both] Huh?
[Senshi] I wanna take a tour of the fields we saw on the way over.
Huh? That's what you're interested in?
I mean, that's easy enough.
-[all] Hurray! -[laughter]
[Marcille] I'll just wait for them to get back.
Can't leave Izutsumi alone anyway.
I agree.
[Laios] Th--That's a Minotaur!
And it's female!
[awed gasp]
We milk this instead of cows.
Why are you raising monsters?
Oh.
Because normal livestock was hard to get a hold of.
Whoa.
[awed gasp]
[Senshi] Wow.
What a beautiful field.
It's so well-tended too.
Is everything here used up by the villagers?
We admittedly waste quite a lot of it.
But if we didn't have fields to keep us busy,
we'd have nothing to do.
[villager 3] It's mostly in appearance, but we try to mimic surface life.
Really?
[worried groan]
Izutsumi, are you okay?
[breathes softly]
[Marcille] At least she doesn't seem sick, I guess.
[Marcille groans]
-Sorry. We don't mean to interrupt but… -Huh?
-[quirky music playing] -Hm.
Dresses?
Exactly!
They're dresses we made by hand.
We've got so bored of modeling them ourselves,
we need the fresh face of an outsider to do it.
Sure if you want me to.
[villagers squealing happily]
Which should we try?
It has to be the red one.
You'll have to forgive us.
Our dresses might seem a little old-fashioned from your perspective.
I'm sure it's fine.
[ethereal music playing]
[all exclaim]
[Marcille] Somehow, this is different than what I expected.
Guess this is what happens
when you've been isolated for a thousand years.
[villager 4] Try this on next!
[Chilchuck gulping]
[loud exhale]
This is great!
I'm pretty picky about my alcohol, but this isn't bad at all.
Happy to hear.
I've been serving it to my orc customers,
and this recent batch is really popular among them.
Yeah, I bet.
Oh, what about wine? Do you make that?
Well, I do, but it's much newer than making ale.
Been doing that 400 years now, so making the switch has been tricky.
[Chilchuck] That long, huh?
Sounds pretty established.
What generation are you?
I started it when I was 600, so first generation.
-[Chilchuck] Come again? Hm? -[hurried footsteps]
Chilchuck. Guess what?
They let me milk a Minotaur!
-[Laios panting] -[Chilchuck] Hey, good for you.
Keep that to yourself next time.
-[Senshi] This place is incredible! -[both] Huh?
They completely succeeded in cultivating monsters
and made it an art!
Do you see that?
[Senshi] It's the biggest Dryad garden I've ever seen!
The Minotaur had four nipples like a cow!
-[garbled chatter] -I'm not feeling so good.
That was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
You really missed out.
By the way, where did the other two go?
What's with the weird non sequitur?
-[Marcille] Uh, we're over here. -[heels thudding]
[playful music playing]
[soft groan]
[Chilchuck] What in the hell are you wearing? Playing dress up, huh?
D-Don't misunderstand!
I was asked to wear this, I swear.
Actually…
This was the tamest one I tried on.
NOT TAME
Marcille, you, uh…
Uh, yeah, Laios?
[Laios] You have any clue why she's stuck to you like that?
Oh, that-- that? Right, yeah!
I have no idea. That's so weird!
[sighs] It's like she's switched brains with a child or something.
-[groans] -[grunts]
Oh!
-No! -Huh?
[Marcille] Lots of barriers have been cast here
in many different layers.
And it seems like it's affecting Izutsumi in some way.
It's because she's half-monster, right?
[Marcille] Yeah.
But I've never seen a barrier make monsters not aggressive before.
[Marcille] I really wish I could decipher this.
But I don't know most of these characters and I don't have time to learn!
Why the hell do these things have to be so hard to read and secretive?
Anyway, this really is an amazing place.
[Marcille] Under different circumstances,
I wouldn't mind staying here forever.
Same here.
[Chilchuck groans]
-[door creaks open] -[both] Hm?
[villager 5] My apologies for the long wait.
It isn't much,
but we've prepared a warm meal for all of you.
This way, please.
-[door creaks open] -Huh?
[man] Uh, welcome, everyone.
I've been wanting to meet you.
I'm Yaad. It's a pleasure.
You already know of Delgal, yes?
[Yaad] Well, he's my grandfather.
Delgal…
[Yaad] Please, feel free to take a seat.
You're wondering why I've called you here.
This will take some time to explain.
Let's eat first.
VEGETABLES IN SLIME ASPIC BEEF RIB STEAK
BLADE FISH LOAF POTATO AND RABBIT SOUP
Uh, is this meat?
Yes! As your party had specifically requested,
we prepared Minotaur meat.
[both groan]
Does everyone in the village routinely eat monsters too?
There are some who do,
although we don't really need to consume food.
[both] Huh?
[Yaad] Our sense of taste has completely dulled.
Aside from that, we have no real appetite to speak of.
Such is the curse of immortality
that the mad mage cast on the people of this village.
[Senshi] Hmm.
Do you know why the mage would do something like that?
No.
When I grew old enough to know what was happening,
the mage was already in a state
where communicating with him was difficult.
But please, don't let our problems stop you.
Go eat up to your heart's content.
We may not get hungry,
but simply being able to watch others eat still brings us joy.
[Marcille and Chilchuck] Well, now I definitely can't say
that I don't really wanna eat this.
Grandfather…
[Yaad] For as long as I can remember,
he always blamed himself for being the one who made the mad mage
become obsessed with black magic.
So in order to look for help, he headed to the surface.
Perhaps you know, how did he fare up there?
Well, from what I've heard,
he was seen emerging from the underground cemetery.
[Marcille] He claimed he was the king of a ruined country,
and would give his entire kingdom to the one who defeated the mad mage,
then turned to dust.
[Yaad] Is that so?
He's finally been released from his agony.
Knowing this brings me solace.
[Yaad] Many people have attempted to escape the curse
by leaving the village.
However, none have succeeded.
And their physical bodies are lost as a result.
[Yaad] Without a body, you gradually lose yourself,
become an evil ghost, and then are unable to return here.
I'm sure you've encountered these ghosts before.
[Laios party] Yeah!
We attacked them with holy water
and then made a sorbet out of them!
So, anyway, you never told us why we were called to this place.
The prophecy.
[Marcille] Prophecy?
Indeed.
[Yaad] "One shall arrive at the village with winged sword in hand,
they will be the hero who will defeat the mad mage
and set us all free."
[Chilchuck] Winged sword?
Does he mean Kensuke?
Well, there are wings on it, although…
Wait! This lion face wasn't on here before!
[Laios] When did…
[happy gasp]
[Yaad] The Winged Lion is our guardian deity.
He was imprisoned at the very bottom of the dungeon by the mad mage.
However, the Lion still guides us by telling us prophecies
by way of our dreams.
And those prophecies are why my grandfather left for the surface.
-[Yaad] Sir Laios. -Hm?
There's more to the prophecy.
"With the winged sword in their hand, the hero will defeat the mad mage,
and thus rise as the country's new king."
[stifled laugh]
[Marcille] Wait! You can't be serious!
[Chilchuck] He just picked up that sword by complete accident!
It was no accident.
The fact the sword is in this room with us means it was something preordained.
[both groan]
-Now, Sir Laios… -Hm?
[Yaad] Can you please promise me something?
Promise me you'll defeat the mad mage
-and free everyone in this village. -[horrified gasping]
Huh?
But I…
-[groans] -[Laios] Uh…
[breathes softly]
Can you please let me think about it?
You've gotta turn him down.
[Chilchuck] Why bother giving them hope like that?
'Cause I can't flat-out refuse.
Kensuke, when did you even get like this?
Huh, buddy?
[Laios] Maybe it was when you got eaten by the Dungeon Cleaners.
I was actually so nervous during all that.
I couldn't really taste any of the food they made for us.
-[groans] -You've got some nerve, you know that?
-Specifically requested by the party, huh? -[pained grunt]
It really didn't have that much flavor to begin with.
[both] Huh?
[Senshi] He said they have no appetite, so they don't need to eat anything.
I think it's safe to assume that's why they're not very good at cooking.
I just realized something.
[Senshi] The people in this village…
They don't really need to tend fields and use dishware,
so why bother keeping them around?
What was the point in wasting all that energy
to continue maintaining them for the last thousand years or so?
[Senshi] I reckon it's 'cause they actually do need those things.
It helps them keep their sanity
and gives them a reason to live.
[both sigh]
-[Senshi] Laios. -Huh?
[Senshi] When we were with the orc chief on the third floor,
I still remember exactly what you told him.
[Laios] Huh?
What did I say again?
[Senshi] Well… [groans]
…make sure you take the night to think about it.
[Laios sighs]
Do you mind if I sleep in here too?
Go sleep in the room they gave you.
But I don't wanna be alone in there!
[Marcille] And Izutsumi is being weird.
Come on, scoot over.
[Chilchuck] Just sleep on the floor!
[Laios] His hands were so cold.
[closing theme music playing]