Several days had passed since Dagaa returned to normal.
During that time… no, actually, I hadn't been to Heizen for even longer than that.
I hadn't gone into the dungeon.
The reason was simple — I got bored.
Honestly, I just got bored of dungeon creation.
Or rather, I'd been doing nothing but dungeon creation for over a month, so I was tired.
I'd thrown myself into it too hard, and now I was completely burned out.
Of course. The dungeon wasn't even in pre-open state yet.
And there was still so much to do.
I had to build a food court, and I wanted to add an auto-repair function too.
But I got bored.
I'd gotten bored.
Plus, there were still so many things to do that it all felt like a hassle.
And I was starting to feel anxious.
Just how long was I going to have to keep building this dungeon?
How far would I have to go before it was done?
It felt like I was running toward a goal I couldn't see.
Well, for all those reasons, I was keeping my distance from the dungeon for now.
Of course. It wasn't without permission.
I had gotten permission from Ishibara and the others.
I left the dungeon in Alexander's care.
What surprised me — or rather, what I didn't expect — was how readily Ishibara said yes.
Apparently, the dungeon's will sometimes just stops doing anything too.
Probably got bored. That was my interpretation.
I figured the whole "incarnation of the dungeon's will" craze probably came from that same place.
Still, just because you're bored doesn't mean you should laze around.
"Oh, right. I forgot."
It hit me out of nowhere.
Right. I should head to the True Dharma chapel.
I'd have them check the capacity of my soul vessel.
"When you think of it, that's the day to do it."
I got ready and headed out.
Hydrangea didn't have just one True Dharma chapel.
The nearest one was... in ruins.
It was a bit far, but now was as good a time as any. I'd go to the biggest cathedral instead.
The park famous for its fountain with the hero statue. From there you could see it — a grand temple encircled by massive columns.
That was the Hydrangea Cathedral of the True Dharma.
Statues of gods sat atop the columns.
"Same as always, tons of people around here..."
The True Dharma faith.
The biggest religion in this world.
The holy site was inside a super-massive cathedral called Juto — the largest in the world.
Every year, a pilgrimage to Juto called the Grand Pilgrimage Festival was held.
Tens of millions of people participated. Absolutely absurd.
You could say just about everyone in this world was a believer.
Other religions existed, but the True Dharma was so overwhelmingly dominant they barely registered.
Well, I wasn't particularly interested.
From what I remembered of my past life, religion never gave off good vibes.
I entered the cathedral.
A massive entrance hall.
Sterile, but clean — you could feel it.
In the center of the hall stood a giant statue of a woman.
Pretty sure it was a saint.
Apparently it had become a popular meeting spot.
Even so, there were way too many people.
That was the problem. Where was I even supposed to go?
Uselessly big, and I couldn't make sense of it.
Man, this was rough.
"Oh my, oh my. If that isn't a lost little bread-bean over there."
"Huh?"
The one looking at me was a Sister.
Pink hair that draped slightly over her cheeks, and large orange eyes.
Her features were sharp and clean, she looked quite young, and she was tall for a woman.
No horns, no pointed ears, and her eyes weren't purple.
She was an ordinary human.
What she wore was Seihou's monastic habit.
A simple outfit with white as its base, accented by black lines.
Over that, she had donned a red cape and a white holy cap on her head.
"Oh my. Is something the matter? Lost little bread-bean."
"Ah, well, I wanted to know the capacity of my soul vessel."
Child bread-bean... that's basically "little lamb," isn't it.
"Oh ho. You wish to know your soul vessel. That is a fine endeavor."
"Uh, yeah. Thanks."
"Hmm hmm. To learn of your soul vessel, you must visit the Hall of Souls. Allow me to guide you."
"Thank you very much."
"Mhm hm hm. No thanks needed. Guiding lost little bread-beans is what a Seihou guide does."
The Sister started walking.
I followed in silence.
We climbed the arched staircase at the entrance and proceeded down the corridor.
As we went further, people dressed similarly to her started to stand out.
Eventually, we arrived before a door displayed on a plate in the Soul Chamber.
"Pardon me. Monk Nyaoshi."
Nyaoshi?
The Sister spoke as she opened the door.
The Soul Chamber was a wondrous space.
At its center was a small spring, and water flowed in a circle around the room from it.
A large egg floated in the spring.
A man stood in front of it. He wore glasses.
He was dressed in black-and-white robes similar to the Sister's.
What surprised me a little were his cat ears. He also had a cat tail.
He was a cat-folk man. So they did exist. He noticed me and gave a slight bow.
"How do you do. My name is Nyaoshi."
"H-hello. I'm Wof."
"Ho ho ho. Monk Nyaoshi. This boy seems to want to know the capacity of his soul vessel."
"How admirable."
"N-nice to meet you."
Monk Nyaoshi smiled warmly.
"Before we learn your capacity, you must take an oath."
"What kind of oath is that?"
"To know the capacity of the vessel of the soul is to know the soul itself. This is information that must be kept confidential."
"That is certainly true."
In other words, the whole privacy deal.
"Yes. Therefore, everything you see and hear within this Soul Chamber will remain within the Soul Chamber."
"So you're saying nothing will be taken outside?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"Understood. Please go ahead."
"I'm sorry about this. It's something I absolutely have to tell everyone."
"No, I appreciate you being upfront about it. It puts me at ease."
So this means it's safe to relax, right.
Monk Nyaoshi gave a small nod.
"Thank you for your understanding. Now then, please place both hands on the Spring Egg."
L-like this?"
I placed both hands on the egg just as I'd been told.
It was smooth to the touch.
"Close your eyes and focus your consciousness on the egg."
O-okay."
I closed my eyes and directed my consciousness toward the egg as instructed.
The egg, huh.
Of all things to end up with, an egg.
Huh. There's a sound. I can hear it.
And a strange sensation was reaching me through both hands pressed against the egg.
A sound from inside the egg was gradually reverberating outward.
This is—
Is the egg hatching?