Once upon a time, after some legendary heroes wiped out a bunch of kingdoms with a little thing called mutually assured destruction, wars between nations became as rare as humble pie at a dragon’s birthday party.

The knights, certified human butchers courtesy of the kingdom, lamented the loss of foreign game. “How are we supposed to chop things up now?” they whined, turning their eyes below ground for new snacks.

Those pesky demons had a military base originally meant to be destroyed on sight, but now it was a lovely little dungeon—a monster-infested amusement park for knights!

Starved for the thrill of battle and bloodshed, these knights busily convinced their lords, “The team needs experience! Can’t you see that tunnel is the answer?”

“Why not investigate first instead of just destroying everything?” one sensible knight suggested.

Since it was clear that robbing goblins wouldn’t really help level up, and wars were off the table, they figured they might as well hunt demons and monsters for practice.

“If that’s what the majority wants, I guess we can’t help it. We’ll review it positively,” the king sighed.

After all, the royalty and nobility were worried that these restless knights might start a civil war. Better to stick them underground, right?

And so, the demon gateways became real-life training grounds and hunting spots for the knights.

Finally, when the dungeon opened for hunting:

“Haha! It’s finally open!”

“Everyone, stand back! The glory of leaving the first footprint in a new era belongs to me, Leonhart!”

“Oh no! We have to hurry, Sir Eric! If we don’t go now, those young lads will snatch up all the juicy prey!”

“Exactly! There’s no way I’m missing this opportunity as a knight!”

With the enthusiasm of a dog in heat, the knights dove into the dungeon, smashing monsters into bits, quite literally.

Their pent-up aggression became a storm of blades, and the poor monsters that crawled out of the opening stood no chance against their charge.

“Look at this! They have everything—weapons, food, gemstones! What is this, a treasure trove?”

“Well, there’s something missing… like, oh, I don’t know, their lives?” another knight replied.

“Haha! True that! They definitely don’t have lives!”

The first dungeon to ever open, a 15-floor wonder, turned into a bloodbath overnight, and the knights returned home, dripping with satisfaction and loot.

Such excitement sparked rumors spreading through the kingdoms.

“Hey, did you hear? They found some rare treasures in that demon gateway!”

“Hahaha! Behold! I’ve killed some demons and laid my hands on this ultimate demon sword! The power of Scope-Nung!”

It didn’t take long for tales of riches buried in the dungeons to spread far and wide.

And these tales transformed every dungeon into a hotspot for anyone dreaming of quick riches.

“Where did you find this spellbook? In the dungeon? No time to waste—call the instructors! I need to check it out myself!”

“A relic lost a thousand years? Why is it there? No time for questions—send the paladins to recover it!”

Always hungry for precious magic, the mages darted to the dungeon upon hearing news of the spellbook. Meanwhile, the priests were lured by rumors of lost relics.

“Hey, have you heard? Those dungeons are paying off these days!”

“Seriously? The Limes are apparently spending all their time there, making ten times more than when they were just wandering aimlessly!”

“Is it really that good? Hmm… Since I’ve given up mercenary work, I have nothing to steal or use my blade on. Maybe it’s time for us to check it out?”

And thus, the mercenaries turned unemployed because of peace began lurking around dungeons, leading to the birth of future adventurers known as dungeon crawlers.

◆◆

“—Do you understand so far? Next, let’s talk about the classifications of dungeons.”

Suddenly, an impromptu lecture on dungeon studies kicked off.

The mother, upon discovering that the prince had ordered the elimination of dungeons, sat us at the table and began pouring out knowledge like a professor.

No breaks, a solid three-hour lecture, and at the end? Group assignments and reports!

‘I wonder if that professor is still alive?’

Rumor had it that some students and assistants had been secretly scouting out the professor’s resting place. But now, stuck in this world, I had no way of knowing what happened.

“Cough, cough…”

“Pay attention. Sir Siegfriede. Every bit of knowledge is like a lifeline in the dungeon,” she emphasized sharply.

“Ah, e-excuse me…”

Frida, having just stifled a yawn, jumped at her mother’s reprimand and quickly diverted her gaze, a tiny tear forming in her eye cutely.

“…Are you tired?”

“N-no, just a little…” Frida hastily denied it.

I leaned in to whisper, wondering if she might have had a rough night, but she shook her head vigorously.

Because our faces were so close, I practically brushed her ear with my lips.

“Ugh…”

A small earlobe slipped between my slightly parted lips, surprising us both. Frida shivered, and I instinctively licked my lips, as if something had made contact.

So, that’s what Frida’s ear tastes like. A little sweet!

I thought it would taste bland or salty, but oddly enough, it had a hint of sweetness.

‘Why is it sweet? Did I accidentally lick some sugar off her ear?’

I truly could not get a grip on what was happening.

“Cough, cough, so for mid-level dungeons, they’re typically divided into five categories… in cases where… the probability of encountering the same monsters…”

Maybe out of shock from our slightly inappropriate moment, my mother coughed softly, her cheeks a tad redder than before.

“…”

What was I doing? It felt like I was in the back row of a lecture, participating in shenanigans.

No, Mom, I didn’t mean for that to happen! It was purely an accident!

I deeply stared into her serious face, silently pleading my case with my eyes. This was embarrassing to voice out loud.

“Um, probability of encountering…”

…Should I have spoken up?

I think my mother saw my desperate gaze completely wrong, as she turned her gaze away, now red-faced.

Then she continued, “The probability for….”

Wait, why is she touching her ear now?

As if she had forgotten where her fingers were going, my mother kept fiddling with her now-red ear. I found myself at a loss for words, taking a deep breath.

Stop with the seduction!

If we weren’t technically mother and son, I’d swear she was trying to seduce me!

“The probabilities are quite high, so we should prepare for…”

She stopped abruptly as soon as her fingers brushed against an earring, smiling bashfully like a schoolgirl.

“…Huh.”

Seeing Frida clench her teeth and let out a mysterious sigh was oddly chilling.

◆◆

Despite the small incident, Professor Veloren’s dungeon studies continued on without a hiccup.

I listened attentively while Frida watched our mother silently, her neck tilted slightly.

She didn’t seem focused on the lecture; her gaze and posture screamed that she was daydreaming.

Maybe she found the sudden history lesson as boring as a sopping wet sock?

Well, I suppose that makes sense.

I, on the other hand, found the previously vague backstory quite fascinating.

‘Could it be that Mom completely forgot that Brunhilde was a knight of the realm?’

To put it bluntly, there wasn’t much point for a former royal knight and hero to listen to these basic things.

I mean, surely a royal family wouldn’t be as dumb as a rock. They’d have instilled basic knowledge of dungeons long before a hero’s party even formed.

As for me, I had no knowledge of anything beyond what wasn’t written in the book, so I wouldn’t know, but for Frida, this class must be ridiculously repetitive.

Of course, it is true that our dear Frida had the setting of being unable to properly defeat a single mid-level dungeon… but that was a discussion for practical skills, not theories.

Her theoretical knowledge was likely fine, so she should have already known everything my mother was explaining.

With that in mind, it made sense why she’d seem so bored.

Repetition is the most boring thing ever, after all.

I, for one, was simply enjoying my first real lesson, but if I had already known this stuff, I’d find it hard to keep it exciting.

Whether I should feel grateful for that is a whole other question.