DBOFS 97

Chapter 97

“You smell sweet.”

Thud—A dull shock echoed through my heart.

I turned around just in case, and sure enough, his red lips were parted as if he might drool, revealing sharp fangs.

‘No, these damn S-rank guys…!’

How on earth did he know?

I guess since they were all top-tier figures in this world, their sense of smell wasn’t something to mess with.

“Ah, really. Fine, fine.”

I comforted my aching stomach and reluctantly dug through the torn hem of my skirt.

‘Ugh… my precious sweets….’

What I pulled out was a snack pouch. This silk pouch with preservation magic had been prepared by the previous duke himself.

‘Here, Jade.’

‘Huh?’

‘…Whenever you feel a bit hungry on the way, take one out and eat it.’

Inside the pouch were desserts loaded with sugar and sugar-candied fruits. Perfect for my taste!

‘Your Grace…!’

‘If you don’t want to eat it, throw it away, or feed it to that Harris fellow.’

‘Throw it away? No way! I’ll devour it all!’

‘…Good. From now on, eat well and don’t go hungry.’

Huh? I’ve never gone hungry. I was about to say that, but then I realized exactly what the previous duke meant, and I froze.

‘Oh my, he still remembers that day?’

The day I was dragged around, unable to eat anything from my true nature.

I had long forgotten about it. Since then, the main residence always prepared lavish meals for me, and desserts filled my mouth before I even realized I was hungry.

But apparently, the previous duke still felt bad about that day; his expression was serious.

‘So this is what having a grandfather feels like.’

It was a strange feeling.

Honestly, I wasn’t used to the concept of grandparents. I had never properly met either my maternal or paternal grandparents.

When I was very young, my patriarchal father and paternal family demanded a divorce from my mother after seeing a son born to his mistress, claiming he would carry on the lineage. My maternal side was basically estranged from the start.

So, even when I saw someone’s grandfather or grandmother, no memories came to mind. I didn’t get sayings like “K-grandma and grandpa would never let their grandchild starve!”

But…

‘If anything tough happens, don’t suffer alone. Tell that Harris fellow everything.’

‘…Your Grace.’

‘You’re his fiancé… well, guide, so he’ll do anything for you.’

His firm hand holding mine, the worried face urging me to eat well—it made my heart flutter.

It felt like just yesterday he had treated me so poorly he wouldn’t even greet me.

‘…I’ll eat well. Thank you.’

My heart felt bittersweet, like eating dark chocolate. It wasn’t just desserts for the journey; it was a gift of thoughtfulness.

‘So precious.’

There were plenty of my favorite sweets inside, but I had saved them all during the past few days of the journey.

And now, after this unexpected mishap, I wanted to save them even more in case of emergency…

“…You could just give it to me.”

My stomach ached so badly I felt tears of blood might fall. After Harris, that killer even detected my emergency snacks!

“What?”

“Here.”

Fine, showing off would be wasteful! I placed the treats on the duke’s hand with a bold gesture.

“Here, two. Two should be enough, right?”

Even giving him two was a generous offer.

What kind of snack is this! Harris, my beloved subordinate, maybe—but Duke Eindelta is practically a stranger.

‘Especially since I saved him, I should be the one eating them!’

But the two tiny financiers on his large white hands looked absurdly small.

‘Hah, even if they look small, they’re high-calorie! It’s fine!’

I stared at him pleadingly, but the duke’s gaze was blank. His face stiffened, as if he had not expected this.

Is he silently judging me for giving him only two?

“Ah, fine. I’ll give you more.”

Unable to bear the pressure, I opened the pouch and began placing the snacks, one by one, onto his large palms.

However…

‘You damn pig.’

I looked up at the duke, stunned.

Shamelessly, his expression still seemed incredulous.

I’d almost given him everything, and yet he looked like that!

“No! There’s no more!”

Shaking hands, I clutched the figs financiers I had been saving.

‘I won’t give these up; I’m hungry too!’

The previous duke had originally given them to me! I had to eat at least one!

I hurriedly stuffed one into my mouth, fearing it might be taken.

“…!”

Perhaps the shock of suddenly falling into a dungeon, and running into Duke Eindelta of all people, had left my body tense and exhausted.

“It’s really… so delicious…”

I almost cried. Sweet energy overload!

“…Hah,”

Perhaps finding me amusing, alone, crying over sugar, Duke Eindelta suddenly burst into laughter.

“Puhahaha!”

Yeah, laugh, laugh. Better than making a weird face.

Sure, reacting this seriously to just snacks might be funny.

‘But I’m serious.’

This isn’t just a dessert. It’s a special memory item the previous duke prepared!

Besides, unlike Duke, I’m not an S-rank superhuman. I need to conserve food and energy for later.

And now I was about to give it all away. This is what “saving up ends badly” feels like.

“…I see.”

Duke, having laughed like crazy, wiped his tears.

“This is why I couldn’t lock you up.”

What is he even saying now? I nervously checked my pouch to see if there were any chocolates left, eyeing the treats the duke had grabbed.

“Are you going to eat them or not?”

Or hand them back.

I reached out. I did want some back, but I also wanted to change the topic.

‘Lock me up?’

What? Who would think this is some dark adult imprisonment story? This is a fantasy adventure!

Luckily, my sensible judgment steered the topic back to snacks.

“I’ll eat them.”

“Cheh…”

Watching him quickly devour all the desserts, I couldn’t hide my disappointment.

“Delicious. Really good.”

“Of course. The chef of the Godwin family made them… Wait, with your heart pierced, how can you even eat?”

“I’ll help you too.”

Duke Eindelta’s extraordinary physiology was suddenly forgotten.

“You’re sticking close to Harris Godwin for another reason, right?”

Duke smiled. Jade’s slightly stiff expression was pleasing to him.

This situation had caught him off guard.

He had been casually observing Jade when suddenly a dungeon appeared before the monsters poured in, swallowing her.

‘Why?’

Curiosity had brought him here, but he was attacked before he could do anything.

‘And, of all things, at the relic.’

An attack from a sacred relic was deadly, even for his duplicate. He might have been crushed and destroyed.

Being a duplicate didn’t lessen the pain. Half-dead from the critical hit, Duke pondered through the agony.

‘How can such a dungeon exist?’

According to research at the magic tower, dungeons form when another world invades a gap caused by a fractured realm.

The other world seeks human lives, so dungeons usually start at a manageable difficulty.

The so-called “gatekeeper monsters” are threats but not deadly, giving challengers a sense of accomplishment and tempting them deeper.

‘But this dungeon…’

Worked the opposite way.

Duke was an S-rank superhuman. Even his duplicate being hit critically at the start was unusual.

‘In other words, an Unknown Dungeon.’

An extreme dungeon defying the norms of ordinary dungeons.

‘Anything could happen there.’

He glanced below.

Bodies scattered beneath the broken temple’s marble pieces. It was easy to imagine their horrific end.

‘Because they’re killers too.’

Duke smirked, understanding the deep-rooted hatred and malice against humans.

‘Though I didn’t expect it to attack this much.’

He subconsciously touched his empty chest.

If he had been critically hit like this, what had happened to the other victim, Harris Godwin?

Perhaps he wouldn’t die easily?

Gray irises sparkled with excitement and anticipation.