#1176 The Ones Left Behind

I am the Butler Lifeless King.
I proudly serve as the foremost subordinate to Lord Alexander, the mighty dragon.

The reason I cast aside my humanity and became a being that will never die is all for Lord Alexander’s sake.
It was too difficult to serve him in a human form, so I chose to live eternally, as I could only endure serving the eternal one in such a way.

And thus, after using forbidden arts, I began my service to Lord Alexander, and several centuries have passed…

Today, he is once again seated in his dungeon, ruling over it from the top.

***

"…Hahhh."

We are at the highest level of Lord Alexander’s dungeon, the Mountain of the Sacred White Maiden.
Naturally, it is where he, the so-called final boss, resides.

Lately, he’s been away a lot, so it’s been a while since my master has settled here like this.

It feels nice to have peace and quiet again.

"We’re finally able to relax. This is such a peaceful feeling."

It seems Lord Alexander shares this sentiment as he transforms into his human form and leans comfortably back on his throne.

"Recently, my residence has been quite noisy. Once the source of the noise is gone, it feels peaceful here again."

Indeed.
The noise he refers to must have been caused by the angel, Songokufon, and the Primordial Dragon, Typhon.

Those two were rather… childish, to say the least. They were both hot-headed youths.
It was a rare period for Lord Alexander, as normally only mature, seasoned beings gather under his wing. It was a bit unusual having such noisy ones around.

Now, though, they’ve both left this place. Typhon has been assigned to manage a sub-dungeon elsewhere, and Songokufon has gone to the Mermaid Kingdom to learn proper behavior.

Thanks to their departure, peace has finally returned to Lord Alexander’s domain.

"Hahhh, Butler. Could you brew some tea?"

As you wish.
Would you prefer the highest-grade green tea that the elves have been supplying?

"Yes please. Humans down on the surface are truly creating new things at an astonishing rate. It’s a clear sign of progress."

Though it seems like most of those advancements are coming from that farm…

At any rate, I follow my master’s request and begin to prepare the tea.

I learned the proper method for brewing from the farm. I boil the water, let it cool slightly, and then pour it over the tea leaves, waiting until the last drop is poured as the leaves unfurl.

The tea is presented, and Lord Alexander takes it, savoring it with pleasure.

"…Hahhh, but it sure is peaceful. It’s been so noisy around me lately, but now it’s so quiet, I almost feel like my ears are hurting from the silence."

Hah.

"It’s nothing to make a big deal out of. The noise started with Songokufon and Typhon’s arrival, but before them, this place was always peaceful. What we’ve been experiencing recently has been the exception."

Yes, that is correct.

"Yet… I can’t shake the feeling. Even though things have returned to normal, there’s an odd discomfort, like something doesn’t feel right."

…
Pardon?

"I know in my mind that this peaceful, quiet time is what’s natural for me. But I can’t help this itchy feeling… like I’m sitting in a place that isn’t quite right, that’s a little off-balance…!"

Lord Alexander?
What’s troubling you, my lord?

"Ah, Butler, I’ve gotten too used to that noise, haven’t I? …Do you think they’re doing all right? I wonder if Songokufon is causing trouble at her new place?"

Well...!

"The same goes for Typhon. I hope she hasn’t eaten something weird and gotten sick… When she was here, I could always keep an eye on things. But if I’m not there, and neither are you, it’s a bit worrying… Did I send them off too soon?"

My master, Lord Alexander, is worried about the two young ones?!

"Well, I know the Saint is looking out for Typhon, and the mermaids are taking care of Songokufon. I don’t doubt them, but still… I can't help but feel restless."

Lord Alexander!
This is just your pure concern, isn’t it?!

"Hmm, I can’t help but worry. You know what, Butler? Let’s go check on them. We’ll go see them, prepare yourself."

Please wait, Lord Alexander!!!

It’s only been a week since they left!
It’s not like anything’s going to change in that short time!

Besides, a week is nothing for humans, and for dragons and undead like us, that’s practically the blink of an eye!
If we rush over there now, they’ll probably be confused and wonder what we’re doing!

"But I just can’t shake this feeling of unease. The only way to calm this worry is to go and check on them!"

No! We should wait a bit longer!
Let’s at least wait a month, Lord Alexander!

But that’s it! The silence is the issue!
When there’s no sound, wind, or stimulation, the mind starts to notice even the smallest things!
When I think back to how loud those two noisy ones were not long ago, the contrast is almost unbearable!

It’s the sound!
Here, in the Mountain of the Sacred White Maiden, Lord Alexander’s home, there needs to be vibrant, lively noise!

In that case, it’s my duty to provide that. I, the Butler Lifeless King, will make some noise and stomp around for my lord’s sake!

Yah!
Boom, boom, boom!
Harem, harem, harem!!!

Yarensooran, sooran! Chaos, chaos!!! Wi-Fi!
Mmbam bam bam! Megasa megasa! Kita-kita!!!

"…Butler."

Yes, my lord!

"That’s too loud."

My sincerest apologies!!!

Hmm… Perhaps there is a difference between the noise made by an old man and that made by a beautiful maiden...?!

Is this what they mean by “cute girl privilege”?

But at this rate, Lord Alexander will be overwhelmed by loneliness and sadness.
I can’t stand by and let my master suffer.

What should I do?
Wait, how are the adventurers on the surface handling things?

Perhaps it’s those adventurers who could bring some entertainment to Lord Alexander during these quiet times.

Lately, the number of dungeon crawlers has decreased, which has caused some concern. That’s why we’ve been thinking of building a new dungeon...
But with the recent Comeback Campaign☆ Six Days of Crawling Bonus Distribution, we’ve been able to bring in a lot of new adventurers.

Surely, one of them should be able to make their way to Lord Alexander by now, right?!
And since Songokufon isn’t around, the difficulty level should be much lower!

"Hah hah hah! Those fools won’t know what hit them when I blast them with my Mana Cannon!!!"

Ahhh!
Songokufon?! Why are you here?!

"Why am I here? How rude! There’s no place like home, and this is where I belong!"

I would have referred another place, frankly…!
But wait, didn’t you go to the Mermaid Queen to learn common sense?!

"Exactly! So, I trained under Queen Puffer, and after just a little while, she gave me her blessing! Now I’m back safe and sound!!!"

Already?!
That was way too short a training period!

What could you have possibly learned in such a short time?

"Oh, Songokufon, you returned sooner than I expected! How was your training? I trust you didn’t cause any trouble?"

And with Songokufon’s return, Lord Alexander seems to perk up!
He really did miss her, didn’t he?!

"Hahahaha! Now that we’re all here, let’s go check on Typhon! We’ll even bring her some of her favorite food as a gift!!"
"Sounds great! And while we’re at it, let’s take over as the temporary bosses in her dungeon!"

If the angel and the strongest dragon are temporary bosses, the difficulty will spike to hell mode…

But I’m glad.
Just having Songokufon back seems to have lifted Lord Alexander’s spirits.

It seems that the presence of those noisy girls is becoming more and more important to him.

For my lord's sake, I’ll have to do my best to keep things lively around here!!!