Round 340

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Crunch, crunch.

Geomdori’s eating show was quite a shock.

No one could tell where its mouth was, but the items made by the cats and gnolls were being absorbed completely.

And with such strange noises, too.

“It’s eating so deliciously.”

Ara drooled as she watched the scene.

Well, Ara can eat anything, so it made sense—But what could it possibly taste like?

“Should our Ara try one too?”

“Ooh! May I really?”

With sparkling eyes, Ara scanned her surroundings.

The cats and gnolls flinched and quickly averted their gazes.

“I’ll eat this one!”

Ara chose a steel plate from the roof and began to chomp on it just like Geomdori.

Watching both of them chew on chunks of metal from either side was quite the spectacle.

Seriously, what does that even taste like?

“Geomdori says it’s finished eating.”

“Not a glutton, huh.”

Geomdori had eaten one claw tool made by a cat, one ornament made by gnolls, and a metal shard.

I wonder if that was enough to satisfy it.

–Mmm, mmm.

“What are you saying?”

–It was delicious.

When I held Geomdori and tried talking to it, I could clearly feel a sense of satisfaction.

I’m glad it enjoyed it.

Meanwhile, Ara was still munching on the steel plate, which caught Geomdori’s curiosity.

–You’re really enjoying that.

“Right? Ara, is it good? What does it taste like?”

At my question, Ara kept chewing while glancing back at me.

“It tastes like metal!”

“Ah… I see.”

Well, of course, but I just had to ask.

Still, I wonder—does metal taste different to Ara or Geomdori than it does to me?

After gobbling up all that metal, Ara patted her stomach in satisfaction.

“A rare delicacy.”

“As long as Ara enjoyed it, that’s good enough.”

And then it happened.

Vrrrmmm—

A strange sound echoed through the air.

Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who heard it, because everyone around started looking around, puzzled.

“What is that sound?”

“I hear it too.”

And then—

[Dimensional invasion is beginning.]

Dimensional invasion? What do they mean by that?

While I stood there panicking, a small portal formed in the air where the sound had come from.

It was right next to us.

“Uh, uhh.”

“It’s… it’s a dimensional invasion, Uncle!”

Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who got the message—Emily looked just as startled.

Unlike us, the kids were simply fascinated by the sudden appearance of the portal.

“It’s a door! May I go through it?”

I tried to say no, but something popped out of the portal before I could react.

“Ah…”

I’d been warned about dimensional invasions, but I never imagined it would happen so suddenly— and right inside our dungeon, no less!

‘Is it a monster? Or a person from another dimension? Are they going to attack us? What should I do?’

While I stood there with a thousand thoughts racing through my head, something finally emerged and looked around.

“So this is another dimension?”

Bold eyes.

A beautiful longsword in hand.

A round face that left a strong impression.

And a body barely the size of a hand.

Huh? Round face and only the size of a hand?

“You must be monsters from this dimension! Come at me!”

Whatever it was, it yelled at us.

We just stood there, dumbfounded, listening to the little miniature… SD character?… human talk.

“What is that?”

Ara asked me.

Even she looked slightly dumbfounded.

“Uh…”

Well, I didn’t know what was going on, but we should at least try talking.

“Hello?”

“You can talk! Are you humans from this world? Ah, you must be giants!”

The tiny one chattered on excitedly, theorizing on its own.

And then, more people began coming through the portal behind him.

“Woooow!”

“Glory to the hero and goddess!”

“We will be victorious!”

Around ten tiny humans rushed in.

And finally, a small woman with wings like an angel appeared with a pop.

–May you have the courage and strength to resist temptation!

Sparkle.

She must have used some kind of magic, because glittering dust was sprinkled over the tiny people.

That made them even more fired up.

“I feel the power!”

“Glory! Glory!!”

As I looked around, I saw all the kids, myself included, watching the scene in a daze.

–?

Then, a cat’s hunting instincts seemed to kick in as it crept up with a wiggling butt and suddenly pounced.

“Nyang-a, don’t!”

“Ahhhh!”

One of the tiny humans screamed as they were tackled.

The little one who came in first, holding the sword, shouted.

“Andreas! No!”

It was a tragic scene.

The one called Andreas was now soaked in cat drool.

Lick, lick.

“Urrgh! Even if I could not go on with you to the end—

It was an honor, hero!”

“Haha.”

Why do I keep laughing?

I’m just at a loss for words.

‘This is what they meant by a dimensional invasion?’

Maybe I’ve watched too many movies.

This wasn’t at all what I pictured.

How are these tiny people supposed to invade Earth, anyway?

At most, they were about the same size as the Alfheim.

Well, to be generous, they were just slightly bigger than the Alfheim. But really, it was barely noticeable.

“Uh, hello, everyone?”

While I stood there dumbfounded, Emily spoke up on my behalf.

The tiny people flinched in surprise.

“We’re residents of this place. May I ask where you all came from?”

“W-We’re from Chiyon!”

Someone stepped forward bravely and spoke.

Then the little one with the sword stood guard, watching us warily.

“I’m Emily. Nice to meet you.”

“H-Hmm. You say you’re residents of this world?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Emily nodded.

The tiny people exchanged uneasy glances.

“Weren’t we supposed to defeat the Demon King of this world?”

“What should we do now? They seem kind.”

“It’s too early to let our guard down.”

“But we can’t just attack them recklessly either…”

They really seemed troubled.

By the way, you all know we can hear your whole conversation, right?

Then the one who seemed to be their leader—the sword tiny one—stepped forward.

“Who is the leader here?”

“I am.”

What’s with these tiny things speaking so casually? Huh?!

I stepped up boldly, which made the sword tiny one flinch.

But he quickly straightened up with pride and said:

“I am Choro, the Hero of Shame.”

“Choro? I’m Lee Kyu-seong.”

We exchanged names.

Then I generously offered a handshake, and the small Choro grabbed one of my fingers and shook it.

“Nice to meet you. Sorry if we startled you.”

Hearing Choro’s apology, I felt my heart melt a little.

“It’s okay. It happens.”

“As I said, I’m a hero. I came to this world to defeat the Demon King.”

“…I-I see.”

“So, let me just ask—do you know where the Demon King of this world is?”

At Choro’s question, all the kids suddenly turned to look at me.

Why are you all looking at me? I’ve been nothing but nice to you!

“Umm, well.”

I tried to play dumb—

And that’s when Mammon, Ras, and Frey came out from inside.

–Are these new members, Grand Lord?

–Looks like my subordinates have grown in number again.

–Wow! They’re the same height as me!

Frey, have you no shame?

Still, to be fair, these new ones are just a tiny bit taller.

While I was thinking that, the tiny angel with wings on the opposing side suddenly shouted in surprise.

–You all!!

What?

Could she know our kids?

–Ugh, what were their names again?

–I’ve never seen them before.

–No, remember? They used to always beg us to play with them.

–Doesn’t ring a bell.

Wait—Mammon does seem to remember something?

That’s when the winged tiny one yelled out:

–The Seven Sins! You dreadful demons! So you were here all along!

What is with this tiny girl?

I looked to Mammon for an explanation, and he gave me exactly what I wanted.

–She was one of the kids who constantly begged to play with us. They called themselves the Seven Virtues, I believe. They used to pull all kinds of tricks, wanting to be seen as our equals.

“The Seven Virtues? This winged tiny girl?”

I asked in surprise, and the winged one yelled out:

–How rude! I am not a winged tiny girl, I’m Verna!

“Ah, sorry.”

Yeah, I’d be mad too if someone called me that.

I quickly bowed my head in apology.

She looked a little less angry afterward.

–So, what are you doing here?

–Our home was invaded by beasts. As a result, we undertook dimensional migration.

–In exchange, we agreed to defeat the Demon King of this world.

As she spoke, Verna’s eyes narrowed.

–But why is it that only Mammon remembers me? Ras, why don’t you remember me?

–I do not bother to remember lesser beings.

Ras straightened his back proudly as he said that.

Verna grabbed her neck in exasperation and muttered:

–Sigh, you’ve always been like this.

–Anyway, if you’re all here, then that must mean the Demon King is nearby as well…

Verna’s eyes darted around until they landed on me.

–You said earlier that you were the leader, right?

–And Mammon referred to you as Grand Lord.

“Uh…”

–You must be the Demon King!

Verna shouted while pointing a finger at me.

All the tiny people immediately tensed up.

“It—it’s the Demon King!”

“P-Prepare for battle!”

Watching their ridiculous antics, I had no idea how to even respond.

“Lee Kyu-seong Kyu-seong is the Demon King!”

Ara shouted proudly.

Verna tilted her head at the sight.

–That way of speaking…

At that moment, Choro pointed his sword at us.

“So you were the Demon King after all. I almost got fooled. You terrifying creatures.”

Okay, fine, let’s say I am the Demon King. Which I’m not.

But seriously, where do you get the confidence to try and fight me?

“I won’t let you lay a hand on mister!”

Emily stepped forward, holding Geomdori in her hands.

But there was absolutely no seriousness in her face.

In fact, she looked thrilled.

–Ah! That sword—could it be?!

Verna gasped when she saw Geomdori.

–You’re the fallen hero!

“That’s right!”

Emily delivered her line with gusto. She was clearly having the time of her life.

So, the fallen hero and the dimensional invasion hero now pointed their swords at each other.

“I shall purify you, fallen one!”

Choro charged in first.

Whoa, he’s actually pretty fast?

Despite his small size, Choro moved swiftly as he dashed in. That jump power was something else.

‘Well, in their world, he’s probably pretty strong.’

Maybe he’s about as strong as a Level 9 Awakener from our world.

His spinning sword strikes looked quite flashy.

Of course, Emily didn’t panic at all and met his attack head-on.

“Ōooo!”

She even shouted a battle cry—something she normally never does.

“Waaah! That’s so cool!”

Clap clap clap.

Next to me, Ara clapped in delight as she watched the fight.

Yeah, watching a fight calls for snacks.

I quickly asked the breeding tribe rabbits to prepare a few treats.

Using ingredients from the village storage, they whipped up some food right away.

Munch munch.

Slurp.

“Kyaa.”

Truly spectacular—the battle of heroes.

As expected, Choro didn’t stand a chance against Emily.

Still, Emily held back just enough to make it look like an even match.

Gulp.

“You can do it, Hero!”

The little people cheering for Choro were adorable.

Tsk, I kind of felt bad—it felt like teasing.

Emily must’ve sensed that too, because she suddenly turned a bit more serious.

“E!!”

“Guhh!”

Choro was sent flying.

He fell to one knee with a frustrated expression, stabbing his sword into the ground.

“Why would someone with such great strength become a servant of the Demon King?! Why?!”

Moved by his passionate outburst, Emily replied coldly, still playing her role.

“Does power need a reason?”

“Grr! True power comes with responsibility!”

“But I’m still stronger than you.”

“Guhh…”

Choro looked like he was about to cry out of frustration.

Emily, caught up in her performance, suddenly dropped character at the sight.

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

“Are you mocking me?!”

Grrrrrgle.

Suddenly, a loud stomach growl echoed through the air.

Everyone watching immediately knew who it came from.

Blush.

Choro’s face turned bright red.

Guess he was really hungry.

“Uhh, how about we eat first and then talk things over?”

Let’s eat first.

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