“Her neck is steady now, isn’t it? I wonder when she’ll start crawling.”

In the reception room of Seriana’s home, I watched the babies sitting on the bed with childproof rails and was surprised by how quickly they were growing.

Most of the time, I only saw them being held or sleeping.

Although they couldn’t sit for long periods yet, they were able to sit briefly on their own by leaning forward.

Well, it’s been about half a year since they were born, so this is probably normal.

When do babies start crawling, though?

I tried to recall my previous life, but my memory was vague. I think it was sometime after six months, but I wasn’t certain.

I decided to ask Elena, who was sitting on the sofa a little distance from the bed.

This world has shorter pregnancy periods, so maybe the growth rate of babies is different here as well.

“That comes a bit later. But for someone who claimed not to be good with babies, you’ve gotten quite skilled, haven’t you?”

I see… so the growth speed might not be too different after all.

“…I’m not sure if we should call that ‘caregiving,’ though.”

Elena complimented my improving caregiving skills while Seriana, pointing at my tail and the 【Floating Orb】, added:

“If you don’t stop behaving like that, people might think this is normal. Now, come over here.”

“Urgh…”

She had a point. Floating mid-air and using both hands and my tail to play with toys wasn’t exactly what you’d expect from a normal human.

I didn’t know the official name of the toy, but it made sounds when shaken—like the rattles in my previous life. I had been cheerfully shaking it like a maraca, but I figured I should stop now.

“Lady Sera, thank you for helping. You can go have tea with the madams over there.”

The nannies, struggling to hold back their laughter, approached us.

“Alright, I’ll leave it to you.”

I handed the toy to them and moved to join Seriana and the others.

◇

More than a month had passed since the dungeon’s appearance, and we had almost completed mapping the shallows and upper levels.

As such, today was a rest day for exploration.

Both the shallows and upper levels had a straightforward path heading north to the next floor. The compass remained stable, so there was little chance of getting lost as long as we were prepared.

Additionally, any accidents were being mitigated by keeping adventurers stationed within the dungeon through the efforts of the local clans and warrior guilds.

The dungeon’s forest-like areas had limited visibility, but since the floors were open structures, this approach worked.

For adventurers, working closely with the lord brought many benefits, but it also meant taking on responsibilities like this.

…Well, our early access to lucrative information was one such benefit, so it balanced out.

Thanks to these measures, Seriana’s concerns about potential chaos during the dungeon’s initial public opening were largely resolved.

The shallows’ relatively manageable structure made it easier to provide support if needed.

While it was impossible to prevent all deaths in the dungeon, we could at least retrieve bodies before they were absorbed by the dungeon.

Visibility was a challenge in certain areas, but we could manage with enough manpower.

The upper levels were interesting, especially the small ponds along the eastern and western routes.

Like the plants in the shallows, they contained trace amounts of magic power. However, there were no monsters, and the water was safe to drink.

Though resting in the passageways was difficult, utilizing these ponds could enable longer hunting trips.

Eventually, we would share information about the deeper levels. For now, though, this early access was a significant advantage.

Comparing it to dungeons in Zelkis or the royal capital, this one seemed much more accommodating. However, if someone died inside, it would create problems. Adventurers needed to earn profits and contribute to the territory.

Ideally, adventurers would explore actively, make a lot of money, and sell holy coins to the lord.

The dungeon’s management, part of the lord’s education, included learning about operations, teamwork with the knight corps, and coordination with the Adventurers’ Guild.

Liesel would manage it skillfully, no doubt.

And then there was the mid-level.

We had approached the passage leading to the mid-level a few times but hadn’t ventured further.

The monsters there were far stronger than those in the shallows and upper levels, and the ominous atmosphere had led us to halt further exploration.

For now, we were awaiting information from Zelkis and the local Adventurers’ Guild.

Though the dungeon in Riana remained a secret, there were predictions about what lay ahead.

In old books about dungeons, there were occasional references to boss-like entities.

Even Zighart, who had explored numerous dungeons, hadn’t encountered such beings, but they did appear in stories set in the dungeons he had visited.

While it could be dismissed as fiction, the possibility of one-time occurrences couldn’t be ignored.

If such creatures existed, they would likely be dealt with by a select exploration team before the dungeon was publicly accessible, keeping the information from spreading.

I believed it was possible, and the others seemed to agree.

Regardless, we would face whatever lay ahead soon.

Imagining the battle to come, I couldn’t help but look forward to it.

A boss fight… how exciting!

“Hehehe… ouch!?”

Lost in thought, I laughed to myself, only to have Seriana flick my forehead.

“Don’t move.”

“Yesss…”

I obediently rested my head back on her lap.

—————————————————————————————————————————————

Sera – 【Hideout】+1 【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】・【Floating Orb】【Shadow Sword】【Crimson Bee Needle】【Fairy Eye】【Dragon Lung】【Amber Sword】【Danrem’s Thread】【Serpent Tail】【Ankle Bracelet】・48 cards.

Seriana – 【Area Identification】・【】・28 cards.

Elena – 【】・【Green Fang】・1 card.

Alec – 【Strong Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・2 cards.