"Uh, um, so..."

Damien, who hastily teleported to the basecamp at my call, wore a bewildered expression.

"Are we going in there?"

"Yes."

In front of us, a magic portal scattered golden particles in all directions.

It's the door leading to the 'Golden Room' that Grandma Coco opened for us.

It feels alien compared to the teleportation gates we've been using, so Damien seems a bit nervous.

"And, is it just us? What about Juju?"

I answered Damien's question coolly.

"I didn't call her."

There's no particular need for a mage in this dungeon.

"Is it because she doesn't seem to be in good condition?"

"That's part of it..."

She inherited her grandmother's Gold-Fever trait.

And this is the Golden Room dungeon. If we brought her along, there'd be chaos. It's wise not to take her along.

'In fact, we don't even need knights here. Damien alone is sufficient.'

Damien could probably solo this. It's not that it's difficult, it's just an event dungeon with annoying gimmicks.

I equipped Damien with a magic gun and ordered Lucas and Evangeline to carry large empty sacks.

Lucas and Evangeline, being told to enter without a sword or a shield, seemed anxious.

"Master, wouldn't it be better if we also carried weapons?"

"Right! We don't know what might jump out at us inside!"

"It's fine, it's fine. No need for that. If you carry it, you'll just regret it because it's heavy."

"Huh? It's heavy?"

"By the time we come back, those sacks will be full, and carrying weapons will make it even heavier."

Lucas, Evangeline, and even Damien all wore puzzled expressions.

I ignored them and took the lead. They'll understand once we get there.

"Let's go! To loot!"

I was the first to dive into the entrance of the Golden Room.

Flash-!

***

[Now Loading...]

[Tip - Wow! Golden Goblin!] (TL Note: Author played a bit too much D3).

...

I always get subtly annoyed when I see that tip. Is this normal...?

***

With the end of the teleportation, it was a spacious, dome-shaped room.

Shiny, shiny.

All sides shone as if they were gilded. It felt as if gold had been painted all over.

"Wow?!"

"What is this?!"

The party members who followed me were startled. I rubbed my eyes sore from the golden light and explained.

"This is an event dungeon, the Golden Room. The rules are simple."

Just then, a cluster of light flashed on the other side of the room, and three monsters appeared.

Keekee!

Keekeekee! Keekee!

The tiny three monsters let out sharp and annoying laughter.

"...Goblin?"

Evangeline, who had noticed the identity of the monster, was suspicious.

"Is that a goblin?"

"It's a goblin, but a bit different."

"Ah, right. The skin is shimmering gold."

These were goblins, monsters that lived in groups and were fast, although individually weak.

They're a kind of goblins, but these creatures are a different breed.

"They're Gold Goblins. Particularly mad for gems and valuable items among all goblins..."

Whoosh!

Even before I finished speaking, three Gold Goblins kicked off the ground, beginning their terrifyingly fast dash along the wall.

"...Fast, sturdy, nasty little bastards."

"..."

"..."

Lucas and Evangeline stood gaping at the almost imperceptibly fast goblins.

Simultaneously, a system window appeared before my eyes.

Ding!

[Event Dungeon - Chamber of Gold]

- Capture the Gold Goblins!

- Time remaining: 59 seconds

"The rule is simple. Capture these bastards within the time limit, and you get items."

The time limit is one minute.

Three Gold Goblins are scampering around the room.

Damn fast and damn sturdy.

Typically, you barely manage to catch one, and if you're lucky enough to herd them, two would be the maximum.

"Damien."

We, on the other hand, have a cheat.

"Snipe."

"Yes!"

Damien, pulling out his magic rifle and assuming a sniper stance, took a deep breath, then

Bam!

He fired.

The magic bullet precisely hit the trajectory of one of the goblins dashing along the wall,

Thud!

Skree-?!

Piercing through its chest.

Instead of blood, the Gold Goblin sprayed gold coins around as it crumpled to the ground.

"Nice shot!"

The Far-Sight is utterly insane, and I love it!

Chattering away, the two knights by my side were having a conversation.

"Really, each time I see it, it's astounding. How does he hit them?"

"Hmm. Damien and I, along with Prince Ash, have been comrades since our frontline base, experiencing life and death together. Our depth as party members differs from you, miss."

"Wait, why is this guy picking a fight out of nowhere...?"

I snapped my fingers at the bickering duo.

"Enough chit-chat, knight duo."

The knights, their eyes wide, looked at me. I grinned and gestured towards the corpse of the Gold Goblin.

Flash!

Swoosh-!

As soon as the death verdict appeared, the corpse of the Gold Goblin turned into light, spewing out a heap of sparkling items.

"..."

"..."

To the duo gaping at this spectacle, I snapped my fingers again.

"Gather."

Even as we were doing all this, Damien didn't pause, repeating his targeting and sniping.

Bang!

Croak?!

Crash-!

Skree!

One shot, one kill.

Damien's magic bullet, precisely piercing their weak points, made it eerily easy to defeat all three Gold Goblins, which typically raise your blood pressure trying to catch.

Just after the last goblin had crumbled to the ground, spraying gold coins.

Ding!

[Event Dungeon - Chamber of Gold]

- Capture the Gold Goblins!

- Time until the room closes: 4 minutes 59 seconds

Bam-bam-baram-bam~!

A fanfare sound was played to celebrate the total clearance of the event dungeon. Thank you for your congratulatory gesture.

Coins like a shower of rain littered the spot where the goblin had perished, and jewels and items were scattered all over.

"You're the best, Damien."

I gently tousled Damien's head, who was busy whistling. He chuckled in embarrassment.

"Now, let's collect quickly~ We'll be forced to leave in 5 minutes."

They won't let us leisurely take everything; 5 minutes later and it's a compulsory exit.

Startled at my words, Lucas and Evangeline hastily began to shovel coins and jewels into their sack.

Damien also promptly started picking up shimmering things from the ground.

I only plucked the expensive-looking items from the pile of coins and gems.

It was impossible to take everything anyway, so it was better to just take the valuable ones.

Clang.

"Oh."

There it was.

I carefully picked up a magic core shining in gold.

[Standard Special Rank Magic Core (SSR)]

A great find.

I carefully slipped the SSR-grade Magic Core into my inventory. I thought at least one would appear.

I searched in case more had appeared, but that was the only SSR-grade Magic Core. I found two more of SR-grade.

In the blink of an eye, 5 minutes had passed. A door, identical to the one we had entered from, opened in the corner of the room. I clapped my hands.

"Alright, everyone, stop collecting. Let's get ready to leave."

"Urgh, there's still so much left."

"It is a pity not to be able to take all..."

"We have more coins with the Prince. It's okay, let's go."

As Evangeline, seeming regretful, swept up the coins at her feet,

Flash-!

The golden door in the distance enlarged as if it were the mouth of a monster, swallowing us whole. What the heck?!

And so, we were forcibly ejected.

***

When we came to our senses, we were at the base camp.

"... So this is how they make you leave."

As I was still reeling, I heard Evangeline’s scream. What was going on?

"My coins..."

The coin in Evangeline's hand was split in half.

Did they only leave that one because it was the last one she picked up? The Golden Room sure was strict.

"I'm beginning to understand Granny Jupiter a little..."

Evangeline, placing the now-heavy sack on the ground, whimpered.

"I never knew coins could be such beautiful objects. I was half-mesmerized."

"But don't sneak and hide like Jupiter. I'm going to distribute your share, so hand everything over for now."

"Ugh."

Evangeline promptly pulled out a few coins from her pocket with a click of her tongue.

This kid, she didn't just understand Jupiter, she was beginning to resemble her.

Lucas, with a confident face, handed me his sack.

"I, Lucas, did not indulge in any dishonest or corrupt acts. All my wealth is yours, my lord."

"You, sometimes it's okay to be a bit naughty, you know."

This was a disease, a disease! Too upright for his own good! Stop living righteously! Steal some coins!

"Your Highness, umm..."

Finally hesitating, Damien extended something toward me.

"Can I have this?"

"Huh? What is it?"

Upon receiving it, I found it was a finely crafted glass lens.

"I can see far off things quite well. But each time, it drains my focus."

Damien explained, looking a little embarrassed.

"But if I were to make a scope with this, I think I'd be able to see more comfortably..."

"..."

I nodded and handed the lens back to him.

"Add some gold coins to this and keep it."

"Huh? Oh, no! The pay you've been giving me is more than enough!"

"Enough my ass. Hey, if you're a mercenary, it's fine to desire more compensation."

But don't become like Jupiter. Be somewhere between Jupiter and Lucas.

Anyways, since I had scooped up some gold coins and jewels, I decided to give out bonuses to the party members.

I'd count the gold coins after we returned to the mansion.

As a gesture of thanks for Grandma Coco opening the gate, I handed over a jewel, then approached the blacksmith Kellibey.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

He had already stoked the fire in the forge and was fanning the flames. He seemed full of eagerness to work.

"I've brought it."

I placed three magic cores on the workbench next to Kellibey.

These were standard high-class magic cores I'd gotten this time.

And two gargoyle chieftain magic cores from the last time.

In total, three SSR grade magic cores.

"...You are a thoroughly prepared friend. Not just green, but sky blue."

Kellibey, who was examining the magic cores in his hand, curled up the corners of his mouth.

"Good! Now, there's only the final ingredient left."

I nodded my head.

"The dark crystal."

"Do you know where to find it, sky blue sprout?"

"Of course."

I looked towards the darkness outside the base camp.

"A boss monster nearby carries it in its stomach."

Leaving the base camp, into the next region.

It was time to set off on a free exploration.