Extra: How it's Going in Golen (2)

"… We've build a great wall!"

"To think you'd get something this huge made while the village chief was away… you're amaz-nying, Soto-sama!"

"Huh? Didn't you build half of it too, Misha-chan?"

"If you hadn't taught us the Slime-Con method, we would've totally lost, nya…"

The Slime-Con method: a new construction technique where Slime is shaped into a wall, then petrified using a Basilisk's petrifying gaze. It solidifies like plaster.

Misha had been working on the wall with her pride as one of the Four Heavenly Kings on the line, but was falling behind. Then Soto casually showed up and taught her this new technique.

Its durability was far beyond regular plaster. If a Treant was used as the core, it too would turn to stone, saving tons of time. Misha had to bow her head to Dolce to get a Basilisk dispatched, and managing the Treants and Slimes was no small task.

As payment, she agreed to keep any worn-out socks from future jobs and hand them over to Soto.

She also had her socks taken after this job—sweaty and ripe after running around, enough to make you gag just from the smell.

"Thanks to Soto-sama, I barely managed to maintain my dignity as one of the Four Heavenly Kings, nya. Thank you, nya."

"Ehehe, no worries! I'll be properly paid, after all."

Eventually, they got the hang of handling the Slimes and their speed increased. They managed to call the construction battle a draw.

In fact, since Soto had written up a full operation report on the Slime-Con method, you could say Misha was actually the one to win.

By the end, even Kusaan was using the Slime-Con method, turning it into a fierce back-and-forth competition.

"That was a close one."

Misha reflected.

Though, come to think of it, it was Soto who set up this job in the first place—a full-blown match-pump operation.

And Soto had shared the method with Kusaan, just to test how reproducible it was.

Then Soto turned around and sold the finalized Slime-Con method to Amelia, earning a hefty profit.

All things considered, the whole affair was manipulated into a close draw. Misha still hadn't realized she'd been dancing in the palm of Soto's hand the whole time.

"By the way, what about that little hut near the wall? Are you just going to leave it there?"

"Yes! It's still useful, so I plan to turn it into my vacation home!"

"Wow. Well, you even built a basement with the Slime-Con method for storing supplies, so yeah, it'd be a waste to tear it down."

Space wasn't an issue, but under Soto's direction—who insisted there might be monster attacks—they built a basement in a rush and stored materials like Slimes and Basilisks in it.

Now, that entire place had become Soto's vacation home.

"But Soto-sama, isn't that place kinda far from your main house?"

"It's a secret house Papa and Mama don't know about! A hideout!"

"Oh, a secret base, huh. I made one when I was little too—wasn't anything fancy, but I hid my treasures in it, nya."

"Yep! I'm going to hide my treasures here too!"

"Mhm, very fitting for a kid. I like it, nya!"

Misha nodded in understanding—though she did have one small question.

"Huh? But Soto-sama, can't you just hide your treasures in your dungeon?"

"There are some treasures I don't want Papa to know about. I can't hide those in my dungeon."

"You have stuff like that, nya?"

Yes—Soto was a Dungeon Core. And not just any Core—her dungeon specialized in [Storage], perfect for keeping treasures hidden.

Even Misha had traveled from the imperial capital to Golen by entering Soto's [Storage Dungeon] and using the [Cave of Desire]'s functions.

She couldn't imagine any treasure that couldn't be hidden in that dungeon.

"For example, friends! I can't show them my dungeon, but I want a place we can play together! And if we go on adventures in the future, it'll be convenient if it's near the wall!"

"Ohh. I see—yeah, friends are that kind of 'treasure', too. You should treasure them, nya."

Misha smiled warmly at Soto's childlike innocence. Clearly, the little princess had been raised with proper emotional care.

"Oh, and please don't tell Papa or Mama about the hideout, okay?"

"Eh? Why not, nya?"

"Even I should be allowed at least one secret friend my parents don't know about, right?"

"Ahh… yeah, it's kinda annoying when your parents know absolutely everything, nya."

A little phase of mild rebellion.

Misha just laughed—this was cute, really.

—For the record, secretly building a giant outer wall and expanding the village while her parents were away? That was still officially "helping out".

… Misha also assumed that this whole outer wall project must've been part of Kehma's original plans.

It was urban planning, after all.

It wasn't something you could whip up on a whim. And when she asked Kehma's subordinates and fellow Heavenly Kings about the wall, they all said things like "It must be Master's plan", or "Surely it's the village chief's idea", or "Soto-sama is so impressive", or "There's no problem at all…"

… Surely they weren't all just told "I'm helping Papa!" and misunderstood, right? I mean, this was a major project.

It would just be insanity if this all turned out to actually be Soto's own idea.

What kind of kid gets a little authority while house-sitting and uses it to secure funds, gather personnel, innovate new tech, and turn a village into a town while her parents went off on vacation?

And it all started because Amelia, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, turned out to be less competent than expected—an unpredictable, sudden development.

Even Kehma's vacation had been a spur-of-the-moment thing suggested by Wataru.

So if Soto had been preparing for this just in case the opportunity arose…

… And she's a recently-born Dungeon Core!?

What for!?

In the end, Misha concluded that this had to be her "helping out Papa".

"Soto-sama, I hope your friends will be happy, nya!"

"They will! It's our love nest!"

… She probably doesn't even know what that means, Misha thought, smiling fondly at Soto once again.