“Alysia!” I called out.

“Hmm? Ah!”

Alysia didn’t need to sleep now that she was a sentient sword. It was for that reason that I was so comfortable going to sleep and trusting in these unfamiliar guards. Even if they failed, she would have been at attention. However, whatever had lulled them to sleep had seemingly managed to obscure his presence from her. As soon as I called out to her, she woke up and noticed him. She appeared in my hand as I leaped to my feet.

The strange man held up his hand. “I’m not here to fight.”

He wore a black cloak that covered his entire body. He had a hood up that kept me from getting a view of his face. He was facing me, but he didn’t have a weapon. Either way, my combat sense triggered and I had a feeling he was a very powerful opponent. If we fought, I wasn’t confident I could win.

Although he said such a thing, I didn’t stop myself from preparing for an attack as I narrowed my eyes. “Who are you?”

“I go by many names.” He spoke slowly, seemingly unconcerned with my aggressive stance. “I suppose the name you would be most familiar with would be Gram.”

“Gram… as in Gram’s Passage? You’re the dungeon master?”

Just because the dungeon was named after him didn’t necessarily mean he was the master, but I guessed this was the case anyway. Who else with that level of power would suddenly visit us like this?

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As I said the word, I could feel the miasma thicken in the room, and I could feel the threat he was giving off.

“What do you want with this place?” he demanded, his voice sounding slightly angry.

I frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Don’t play games with me. I know you’re a dungeon master as well. You’ve entered my home without asking permission or providing a tribute. If you plan to take my dungeon, be prepared to die trying!”

“Woah…” I lifted my free hand. “I’m just traveling through. This is a passage into Dioshin, isn’t it?”

The miasma had increased to a thickness where it wouldn’t be surprising if a monster spontaneously appeared in the middle of the camp. The pressure he was giving off was extreme, and I found it even difficult to stand. I had to change my assessment. This was absolutely a guy I could not fight. Thankfully, after a few tense moments, the feeling started to diminish just a bit.

“You’re not here to conquer my dungeon?”

“No…” I responded awkwardly. “Rather, I didn’t even know I was going to enter a dungeon until earlier today. I’m just traveling through.”

He finally dropped his hand, and the pressure dissipated, causing me to exhale. “The next time you’re going to suddenly enter another creature’s dungeon, you should inform them of your intentions.”

“Ah, I’m sorry. I thought you couldn’t tell. I guess I only recently became a dungeon master.”

“I see… I can tell you’re a newbie. Destroying you would have been simple.” Gram declared, causing my mouth to twitch slightly. “Did you have a tribute? If a dungeon master wishes to use the space of another dungeon master, an appropriate tribute is needed.”

Dungeon masters had their politics as well. I didn’t know if this rule was true, or if he was just using my ignorance to bully me. Either way, he was looking at me with expectation.

“Um, I didn’t…”

His eyes brightened as if he just noticed something, pointing at my blade. “I rather like that thing. I’ll have your sword as my tribute!”

I wasn’t out of danger just yet.