We moved to the campground north of Ikomasanjo Amusement Park.
The area had been closed off to civilians, now filled with prefabricated buildings, serving as living quarters for the Self-Defense Force.
We borrowed one of these units entirely for ourselves.
Defense Minister Uematsu was in the prefab next to us and said we should call him once we made our decision. Now, it was just the four of us.
The atmosphere was heavy.
Hime was the first to break the silence.
「I’m going into the dungeon. It seems pretty clear that Daddy’s been targeted by Danpol. As his daughter, there’s no way I can back out. But the three of you… you only got caught up in this because of me. You don’t have to follow. You’re free to refuse.」
Next, Milk spoke up.
「I’m going too. Papa was cursed by a monster that came out of a dungeon. I know the dangers of letting monsters escape into the world, and we absolutely have to stop that from happening.」
I had a feeling this was how these two would respond.
They’re both strong, responsible women, especially Hime.
Given that her father is involved, there’s no way she’d just walk away from this.
As for me…
「I’ll go grind some levels. We’ve got about 20 hours left, right?」
「You can only do so much in 20 hours, you know. Wouldn’t it be better if—」
「Hime, Milk, I’m going to tell you both my last secret.」
This wasn’t a time to keep quiet anymore.
I explained the truth about PD.
Inside the PD space, time moves at one-hundredth the normal speed. So if I spent 20 hours training there, it would be the equivalent of 2,000 hours.
On top of that, the appearance rate of monsters in PD is five times higher, so in terms of efficiency, it’s even better.
「If I use that 20hrs in the PD for training, I can level up quickly.」
「So that’s the secret to your strength…Ayame, did you know about this?」
「…Yeah. I found out today by accident. I learned a skill called tag along from the bloodsucking flea, which let me cling to Taira and the enter PD with him.」
「Cling to him? So, if we hold hands with you, can we enter PD too?」
「Want to try?」
I opened the entrance to PD in front of them.
As expected, none of them could see the staircase that appeared.
I stepped onto the stairs, and from their perspective, it must have looked like my feet had sunk into the floor.
I held out my hand to Hime.
She grasped it.
I started descending the stairs, but Hime’s feet hung in mid-air, unable to follow me in.
As I thought, holding hands alone isn’t enough to bring someone into PD.
「What if we ripped up the floor?」
「That won’t work. Dungeons are in a separate dimension.」
「Ichino-san! Let me enter PD with you and level up! That way, we’ll have a better chance of destroying the core in the Black Dungeon, right?」
「Are you sure?」
「Yes!」
Her eyes were filled with determination.
Honestly, having her level up would be a huge help.
「So we can’t enter, huh… all we can do is wait for you two?」
「…What a shame.」
Milk said so with eyes full of sadness and Hime muttered while biting her nails in frustration.
「Well, technically, my partner can enter the dungeon with me.」
「Partner?」
「As in… marriage partner.」
「「「――!!?」」」
All three of their expressions shifted in an instant.
「Marriage!? Getting married to Taira!?」
「To think marrying Taira would come with such a bonus… I can’t keep denying my feelings anymore…」
「So right now, the only one who can enter the dungeon with Taira is me…doesn’t that mean….」
Suddenly, Hime dashed out of the room.
Moments later, she returned with three pieces of paper in her hands.
They were all marriage certificates.
Hime proudly held up the three marriage forms.
「I asked the Defense Minister to print these out in a hurry.」
「Wait, what!? You asked the Defense Minister to do this!?」
「I thought about the legal definition of marriage. If it’s a common-law marriage, it’s theoretically possible for all three of us to marry you at the same time. But since we haven’t been living together, no one would recognize us as such just because we’re together today. Submitting official marriage forms is the best option.」
「But Japan doesn’t allow polygamy!」
「True. When it comes time to register us in the family register, having three simultaneous marriage submissions would invalidate all of them, even if they’re initially accepted. But here’s the thing—the moment the marriage forms are accepted, we’re ‘technically’ married. They’ll only be invalidated when the review process deems them void. So I asked the Minister to hold off on the review until after we’ve cleared the Black Dungeon. That way, even under current Japanese law, we’ll technically remain in a polygamous state until the dungeon is cleared. It won’t show up in the official records. I told him it was a precaution, in case any of us didn’t make it back from the dungeon, so that our bonds would be recognized on paper.」
Did… did the Minister seriously agree to that?
Just like that!?
Is this even allowed!?
「Wait a second! Hime is fine with it but what about the others? Are they okay with this!?」
To my shock, Milk and Ayame were both calmly filling out the forms, as if this was just another routine task.
It was like the moment a school exam starts and everyone begins writing furiously.
Ayame doesn’t even need to get married to enter PD with me. She has the tag along skill for that!
「Ichino-san, please fill yours out too!」
「Hime, Ayame, can you two sign as witnesses on mine?」
Unbelievable.
I can’t believe I’m actually filling out three marriage forms.
What kind of madness is this? And then I noticed how they had all signed each other’s witness sections: Hime and Ayame on Milk’s form, Hime and Milk on Ayame’s, and Milke and Ayame on Hime’s form.
This is insane, even if it’s for the sake of saving Japan!
「Taira, just so you know, I’m not doing this because it’s my duty. I’ve loved you for a long time. Though I know you didn’t realize it.」
Wait, what?
Milk, you always said you’d only date someone stronger than Gyuuzou-san!
「Milk-chan! That’s not fair! You promised we wouldn’t try to outdo each other! I’ve been in love with Ichino-san ever since he saved my life. He looked like a shining prince to me then, and those feelings have never changed. Ichino-san, please marry me!」
「Seriously, Taira? You’re so dense. I’ve spent so much time with you, and it’s not just about how long we’ve known each other or love at first sight. I’ve always believed that the only partner who could walk alongside me is you. Now, sign this.」
Hime said so, pushing her marriage form toward me with a determined look.
I… I’m such an idiot.
How did I not realize their feelings until this moment?
I signed Hime’s form first.
「Hime, you’ve always been there for me. Whenever I need advice, I go to you. Even though I sometimes treat you like a kid, you’re the one I rely on the most. And your goal to be the best in the world… I’ve always admired it. Honestly, I’ve been jealous of you at times because you’re so cool. Hearing you say you want me as your partner means so much to me. Thank you. I love you. Will you marry me?」
Hime gave me a bright smile and replied, ‘I do’.
Then I turned to Ayame’s form and signed it.
「Ayame, from the moment we met, I felt this need to protect you. You always called me your prince, and maybe I got a little too caught up in that image, thinking I was your knight in shining armor. But that was wrong. You’ve been fighting your own battles against that curse the entire time. You’ve always been smiling and strong in front of us, but I know how much pain you’ve been hiding. From now on, I want you to lean on me when things get tough.」
「…Yes.」
「Thank you, Ayame. I love you. Marry me.」
And now, it was time for Milk.
I glanced down at her marriage form, already filled out except for my signature, and let out a deep sigh.
「Taira, why are you sighing? Why only with me!?」
「No, it’s just… I feel like such an idiot for going around in circles all this time.」
I replied, looking at her directly.
「You always said you wouldn’t date anyone unless they were stronger than Gyuuzou-san, didn’t you?」
「Well, yeah… Papa did say that. But I used it as an excuse to turn down confessions from guys I didn’t like. I never intended to date anyone other than you, Taira.」
「Then you should’ve told me that… I took your words seriously and made it my goal to surpass Gyuuzou-san as an adventurer.」
「What?」
「I’ve liked you since elementary school. Marry me.」
I said, signing the third marriage form.
What a terrible way to confess.
Proposing to three women at once… how could I have let things come to this?
But now that I knew they were all serious about their feelings, it meant I had to face the inevitable: after this whole mess was over, I’d have to make a choice.
Two of them would end up heartbroken, and that weighed heavily on me even now.
-0-
With the three marriage forms in hand, we headed to the Defense Minister’s office to submit them.
「I’ve been granted extralegal authority by the government, so I can officially accept these. Though I didn’t expect to use my power to process something like this.」
「And now, we’ll discuss the compensation for taking on the Black Dungeon. First, as an advance, we’ll need a year’s worth of food supplies for the dungeon, plus a minimum of fifty sets of clothing for each of us, including undergarments. Don’t ask what we’ll be using them for. And the top-tier equipment the government has prepared for us? That’s not a loan; it’s a gift. Consider it part of our advance payment.」
「Understood.」
「Next, we’ll need access to all dungeons under government control that aren’t open to the public. For completing the dungeon, the success reward will be 3 billion yen per person—tax-free, of course. I could ask for more, but consider the difference a favor we’re doing for the government. Prepare the contract in writing. I’ll send someone over to work out the details with your staff.」
Wait, what!? A 3-billion-yen reward for each of us, and they still owe us a favor? Even Ayame’s eyes were going wide with disbelief. She’s just as much a commoner as I am, so this was probably way beyond her understanding of money.
But the Minister merely gave an amused smile, as if he’d been expecting this, and nodded his agreement.
「Finally, the four of us are going to head into that prefab room over there, and until 12:30 p.m. tomorrow, no one is allowed to enter. We’ll be holding a private strategy meeting. The supplies I just mentioned? Have them placed in front of the prefab immediately. Every second counts.」
「I’ll do my best. We appreciate your cooperation.」
The Minister said, extending his hand for a handshake, which Hime accepted with a confident smile.
-0-
We returned to the prefab, and as soon as we stepped inside…
「I can see it.」
「Yes, the staircase.」
「This is the dungeon entrance Taira told us about.」
It seemed that the three of them could see the entrance to PD as well.
Incredibly, that absurd marriage trick had worked—the PD now recognized them as my partners.
We had 19 hours left—no, with the cutoff time of 12:30, we had 18 hours and 30 minutes. How much could we level up before the clock ran out? That would determine how well we’d fare in the Black Dungeon.
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