My Refrigerator Turned Into A Dungeon
Tsuchinoko "Anyway, including those matters, shouldn't we take a break first to discuss?" "Yeah, let's do that." Nina-san suggested a break at just the right moment,

Tsuchinoko "Anyway, including those matters, shouldn't we take a break first to discuss?" "Yeah, let's do that." Nina-san suggested a break at just the right moment, so I went along with it and moved upwind where the scent of blood couldn't reach. I left the corpse disposal to the Red Slime and took a breather with some still-warm tea from my canteen. "Goblins overrunning the place... What a headache-inducing problem." "Yeah." Goblins. In European myths and legends, they're classified as evil fairies or malicious spirits. Though not widely publicized, it's said that governments worldwide have been capturing and researching monsters that spilled onto the surface during the Stampede. According to those studies, goblins are indeed highly reproductive creatures. "What should we do... Hey, what do you think, Egetsu-san?" "Hmm... Ideally, we'd exterminate all the goblins roaming the mountains and destroy the dungeon that's their source. But can we actually pull that off...?" "True, whether we can handle it or not—that's the question." "No way~" The problem of dungeon monsters possibly breeding on the surface. This has been discussed in various media before. A familiar and famous example would be the violent beast rats. Their surface breeding has already been confirmed. But unfortunately. They've made their habitat deep in the underground sewers, making it impossible to deal with them properly. Even in the city, local governments place poisoned bait in areas likely to be their territory, but the results aren't promising. Other places like bodies of water or deep mountains where human interference is difficult are highly likely to become monster breeding grounds. In fact, monster sightings are frequent in the rivers flowing through the city. The Tama River is now called the "Tama-zon River," while the Arakawa and Edogawa have been nicknamed the "Aral River" and "Edor River." Worst of all, since I was personally attacked by a giant crocodile in the Edogawa, if those things started breeding, it'd be a real nightmare. Yeah, invasive species have been a recurring issue, but when the invaders are monsters, the threat level is on a whole other scale. "...But you know? We've been doing incredibly well so far, right? I'm sure we can handle it alone. Bring it on—oni or tsuchinoko or whatever!!" Uh, Serai-san. Oni are one thing, but are tsuchinoko even strong...? "But do those kinds of monsters even really exist? They're famous by name, but..." Well, getting too deep into serious talk will just wear us out. Let's lighten the mood with a different topic. "Hmm, now that monsters like goblins are confirmed to exist, the possibility of those other creatures being real has increased too. But before dungeons appeared, most sightings were probably just misidentifications, don't you think?" "Eh~, really?" Well, saying that, I'm now somehow married to inexplicable beings like an oni woman and a Japanese wolf girl. "Hmm, well~. For example, with the tsuchinoko, I'd say the 'wet cat misidentification theory' is the most plausible." "Eh, a CAT? Mistaking a snake for a cat??" When I brought up the tsuchinoko = cat theory, Serai-san tilted her head in confusion. "Yep. Both cats and snakes have vertically slit pupils that let them see in the dark, right? So their eyes look similar. And if you think about the tsuchinoko's described features..." "Eh~, I don't remember any of that." "Then I'll look it up for ya. ...Let's see, body length 30-80 cm, colors like dark brown, black, gray, yellow belly with spots on the back... Wow, pretty detailed." Nina-san took out her comm device and read out tsuchinoko info. Surprisingly, she seems interested in this stuff too. Or maybe she's just humoring me for a change of pace. "Thanks, Nina-san. But those traits could also describe a cat, right?" "Oh, now that you mention it, yeah." "But look! It says the body's about beer-bottle sized with a triangular head poking out! And it snores too!" Intrigued, Serai-san sat next to Nina-san and read from the device. "Serai-san. If a wet cat curled up in a box from the cold, wouldn't it look just like that? And when cats purr, doesn't it kinda sound like snoring? Their hissing also goes 'shaa!', which some say mimics snakes." "Ehh~...! But cats and snakes look totally different!"

     

"Hahaha, that's why it's a wet cat. A soaked cat looks completely different from usual." "Now that you mention it, yeah. Cats getting shampooed look like different creatures." "Right? Imagine being alone deep in the mountains and seeing a cat drenched from rain or dew. Its fur would be plastered flat, which could easily look like glossy scales. Plus, the preconception that 'there's no way a cat would be out here' would distort your perception." "Hmm, well, when you put it that way..." "Most sightings are just brief glimpses anyway. If someone had five or ten minutes to observe it properly, they wouldn't make that mistake." "True. With that much time, you could tell if it's a snake or cat." "Exactly. A wet cat jumping in tall grass with its legs hidden could look like a bouncing tsuchinoko. One running downhill might resemble one rolling away. And again, the 'no cats here' bias would warp perception. Just a theory, though." "Fufu... 'The ghost revealed as withered susuki.'"

     

"O-oh, that's an interesting phrase, Nina-san." "When little kids helped at shops, older guys would often say funny stuff to 'em. Probably heard it then." I see. Growing up interacting with adults other than her parents must be why Nina-san seems mature for her age. "Hey, you weren't just thinking about my age, were ya...?" "Eh, ah, no! You, Rua, and Serai-san are the same age, right? I was just impressed by how knowledgeable you are!" "Really? If you say so." Ugh, Nina-san's scarily sharp today... But that phrase uses "withered tail flowers," not susuki or willows.

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