I love time travel the most!

"Huh? Huh—"

Kazuma Sato made a sound that was difficult to understand.

It's very rare for the silly goddess to volunteer for an adventure, so there must be a reason why she's so enthusiastic this time.

Don't think about it.

They must be afraid of the high bounty and want to run away.

"No, Aqua, like Megumin, is staying here too."

"Eh? Why?"

Aqua was puzzled. Given her goddess-like nature that counters demons, she should have gone to the dungeon. Why wasn't she allowed to come along?

Unexpectedly, Kobayashi and Sato Kazuma said the same thing: "Sato-kun, please stay here and wait. If it's those other girls, they might do something strange."

As he spoke, he winked secretly.

Sato Kazuma understood and nodded, saying, "I understand. I will stay here."

"Wait, wait! I want to go too!"

Aqua shouted.

Kazuma Sato cursed, "You idiot! Have you forgotten that you're prone to attracting spirits and the like? Don't go and cause trouble this time!"

"how come……"

The silly goddess looked at Kobayashi with teary eyes.

Unfortunately, he wouldn't let her go down this time. In order to get the bounty in the easiest way, he had to eliminate all uncontrollable factors!

Chapter 277 Even a Demon Will Strive for Real Estate

"So, in this case, only Kobayashi-senpai and Darkness will be going inside?"

"It looks like it should be."

After all the calculations, apart from Megumin who can't go down and Aqua who can't go down, and Kazuma Sato who has various reasons to look after problem children, it seems that only Kobayashi and Darkness are left.

"Wait, wait! There's more, there's more!"

Youyou was about to cry.

She was standing right there, but for some reason she was treated like she was invisible.

"Sorry, I forgot."

Kazuma Sato scratched his head awkwardly and apologized, but quickly added, "If Yu-Yu—the Grand Magister—were to go down with us, it would definitely be easier."

"Yes, yes! I will try my best!" Youyou mustered her courage and made it clear that she would try her best.

"Unfortunately, Youyou can't participate this time either."

"...Eh???"

Hearing Kobayashi say that, the girl was stunned.

I'm sorry. Although you're very enthusiastic, I have to ignore your feelings in order to prevent the plan from being ruined.

"Why? I should be the one who's busy..."

Youyou was eager to show off.

Huihui patted her shoulder and said, "Don't rush, there are powerful enemies in the dungeon, which is not very friendly to you. Let's wait outside together."

She spoke very calmly.

Everyone else understood that this little girl simply didn't want Youyou to beat her. After all, Youyou had shone brightly in the dungeon, which meant she was inferior, right? She absolutely wouldn't allow that!

Kobayashi shrugged and said, "Sorry, this is a special case. There will be opportunities for Youyou to take over in the future."

"how come……"

She lowered her head, feeling dejected.

Huihui offered her a perfunctory attempt to comfort her.

While they were finalizing their choices, the other adventurers seemed to have also decided on the members who would enter the dungeon.

There were about twenty people who went in together.

The rest of the people stayed outside to protect Sena and the others who were unable to fight, and to drive away the monsters that kept lurking around the entrance.

The strategy is quite simple: Kobayashi and Darkness, two people who can withstand the explosion, take the lead, and the other adventurers follow behind.

Everyone held an oil lamp, illuminating the dim passages of the underground city.

Kobayashi was no exception.

But he, who possessed night vision, did not take it for himself, but for Darkness, who was holding a longsword and could not be empty-handed.

Holding up the oil lamp, they cleared the way ahead.

Darkness followed behind him, and the other adventurers followed one after another. Although it was a dark and damp dungeon, with so many people around, there was nothing to be afraid of.

That being said, their purposes are different.

The other adventurers are investigating the cause of the monsters and the source of the seal, while Kobayashi is only after the bounty. Therefore, it's quite troublesome for them to follow behind like this.

We need to find a way to get rid of them.

Just as Kobayashi was thinking this, Darkness, with a gust of wind, rushed forward and collided with the masked doll, making a series of explosions and joyful laughter.

"Hehehe, hahahahaha—"

The perverted knight was laughing heartily.

She was constantly swinging her longsword, slashing at the puppets that made no attempt to dodge her attacks.

This is to be expected, since the masked puppets' counterattack method is self-destruction. In other words, they will not only not dodge, but will actively come close.

"Kobayashi, look! He hit it! He hit it! These guys, they can even hit my sword!"

Despite the dust and grime covering Darkness's face and armor, she charged into battle as if nothing had happened, or rather, she seemed to be enjoying it.

What to say.

Even though Kobayashi never mentioned this to her, Darkness was probably still a little bothered by the fact that she had never been able to attack her opponent.

Since that's the case, then just learn an attack skill honestly, and stop clinging to this so-called persistence!

...No, if that were the case, she wouldn't be Darkness.

It sounds a bit strange, but that's her characteristic, her only characteristic besides being a pervert.

Perhaps because the attacks were hitting their targets, Darkness was overjoyed and charged deeper into the dungeon like a heavily armored tank. Moreover, the dungeon, personally constructed by Kiel, was remarkably sturdy, showing no signs of collapse even after repeated explosions.

Just as Darkness was about to disappear from sight, Kobayashi was about to chase after her when a large group of masked dolls suddenly rushed in from all directions.

"Wait! Slow down... Hey, why are there so many monsters?! I'm doomed! Someone, someone help me pull this guy away!"

The adventurers behind them were covered by masked dolls.

boom!

The sound of an explosion came from behind.

Not only him, but other adventurers were the same.

"Wait, don't come any closer! Don't come this way!"

"Don't come this way!!!"

"Damn it, it's going to explode!"

A series of explosions reached their ears, and the faint flashes of light scattered the crowd.

Kobayashi watched all of this silently.

That explosion would have hurt the average adventurer quite a bit. Although I felt bad for them, I decided not to help them so they wouldn't get in my way.

He turned around and quietly left.

The excited Darkness seemed unaware of what was happening behind her, and Kobayashi quickly caught up with her. The two of them rushed to the deepest part of the cave in one go.

With the help of the [eyes], the two arrived at the lower level without any difficulty.

That is, near the room of the lich Gil.

At the end of this passage, outside the room, there was a figure sitting cross-legged in front of the lich's room, diligently making a doll from the clay on the ground.

"Hmm? What's going on?" Darkness frowned slightly and said softly, "That guy, he seems to be the master of these monsters, right?"

"It seems that's correct."

Kobayashi nodded.

The man sitting cross-legged on the ground in front of him was dressed in an evening suit that was completely out of place in the dungeon. He was wearing white gloves on his hands, which were still on, and a mask on his face that was exactly the same style as the masked doll at the entrance.

The mask that didn't cover the corners of the mouth gave off an ominous feeling.

— Barnil, Duke of Hell.

As a high-ranking officer in the Demon King's army, he should have noticed the two peeping, but perhaps he was too focused on making dolls, and he didn't even glance at them.

Upon meeting the person in question, Kobayashi took the initiative.

She walked up to him without any attempt to hide herself, her open and honest demeanor not at all like someone coming to accuse him.

Only when he heard the footsteps approaching did Barnier turn to face them.

I was stunned for a moment.

But soon, his eyes glowed red, and the corner of his mouth, which was partially exposed, turned up slightly, making the ominous aura even stronger.

Then he spread his arms wide and proclaimed, "Oh! Oh! I never thought anyone could reach this place! Adventurers, welcome to my dungeon! I am the root and culprit of evil, a high-ranking officer of the Demon King's army—the Duke of Hell who commands demons! The great demon who can see through all things in the world, I am Barnir!"

"I knew it..."

Darkness raised her longsword, looking at him cautiously. After all, she was a high-ranking officer in the Demon King's army, so nervousness was inevitable. Even though she had been warned from the beginning, she was still the same.

Seeing that the two did not have the expected expressions, Barnier raised his eyebrows... Although most of his face was covered, his eyebrows were still slightly visible from behind the mask.

He indicated that he was very surprised.