TM-Chapter 22

Tanker Interview (2)

“I’m sorry, but let’s work together next time.”

I had already repeated the same words like a parrot for the fifteenth time.

Because most of the applicants couldn’t even lift the oak barrel.

“Ah! If I try just one more time, I can lift it!”

“I couldn’t eat breakfast this morning. Really.”

“The barrel is a bit strange! Isn’t there gravity magic cast on it?”

“I’m not lying, I can really lift it, you know? I twisted my back on the way here. I’m telling the truth!”

The excuses each applicant made were varied.

The reason they were trying so hard to get into our party was obvious.

‘Because it looks safe.’

When I said I would create a party myself, Professor Isilof was very interested and said it was the first time he’d seen someone like this. He said most people are scared of the labyrinth, so they try to get hired by senior parties.

The adventurers here were the same.

Since our destination was the 1st floor of the labyrinth, skilled adventurers from the 2nd floor and above had no reason to apply because the pay wouldn’t match.

So naturally, the people who would apply to our party would be 1st floor adventurers, and among them, the useful ones already had their own parties.

Then what kind of adventurers were the ones who applied to this hastily assembled party recruitment in just one day and were sitting here?

Most were riffraff.

They were beginners who were scared of the labyrinth but still had dreams of becoming labyrinth adventurers.

But a wizard who beat up Backstab, the strongest on the 1st floor, is recruiting party members?

If it’s someone with that level of skill, wouldn’t they cover for me even if I troll to some extent? If I gain some experience there, I’ll also become a proper skilled adventurer!

……They probably applied with calculations like that.

“I’m sorry, let’s work together next time.”

Of course, I had no reason to accept them.

I had to distinguish between gems and stones carefully. First with the oak barrel, second with in-depth skill interviews.

“Can you use skills like Shield Charge or Taunt?”

Almost everyone failed there.

“Caleb.”

During a brief break, Yernil whispered carefully.

“Actually, I also……”

“Yes?”

“I don’t know how to use skills either……!”

What a big secret you’re confessing, Yernil.

It seemed she was burdened by this demanding interview.

“I think I would have failed the interview too if I had taken it……”

“Yernil will be able to learn how to use skills soon.”

In the game, classes like warriors, archers, and rogues learn skills using fountains they encounter in the labyrinth.

According to the setting:

Just like Wizards, the god of wisdom who bestows magic, there used to be gods of various professions in the old days, but they were all devoured by the labyrinth.

And their techniques sometimes come down like blessings to adventurers traveling the labyrinth, which are the skills that bloom at fountains.

When I played the game, I wondered if there was a reason to make skill acquisition and magic learning different by attaching such settings.

‘Maybe that absurd system was actually historically accurate.’

Of course, it’s unclear whether gods like Wizards actually exist in this otherworld.

“But can we actually recruit party members like this?”

Yernil whispered and asked again.

“Probably?”

I calmly rejected the next applicant. All freeloaders can get off here, everyone.

“Let’s work together next time.”

“Don’t bullshit me!”

Unfortunately, this applicant didn’t back down easily.

It was a dwarf with a flushed red face. He was thoroughly angry and kicked the oak barrel with his foot.

“I don’t know what kind of amazing guy you’re trying to recruit!”

He shouted.

“You guys are also beginners who’ve only entered the labyrinth once!”

Honestly speaking, it was an accurate point.

“It seems like you’re trying to recruit seniors after getting cocky from defeating Backstab by luck!”

It wasn’t luck. And it’s not senior recruitment either.

“Do you think any decent guys would join this kind of beginner party recruitment that opened in just one day!?”

The dwarf pointed at me, and someone grabbed the dwarf’s arm from behind.

“Excuse me for a moment. If you’re done with your business, please step aside.”

It was a tall wizard heavily armed with plate armor, a mace, and a shield.

“Wh, what……”

The dwarf stepped back in confusion. Because he was quite famous. A freelance wizard paladin from Nataniel Temple who was often called to 2nd floor parties.

“Bernard……?”

They’re finally starting to appear!

The people in charge of the gems among gems and stones.

“Ah! My goodness! Backstab is really walking around as an undead!”

The wizard covered his eyes with his webbed hands and shuddered.

“What a horrific sight!”

“Wh, what…… Bernard is applying here?”

The dwarf’s anger was instantly controlled.

As I said again, since we’re going to the 1st floor, the pay doesn’t match for tankers from the 2nd floor and above.

However……

“Nataniel! Is this really what you desired? I cannot believe the church approved this!”

I believed that undead Backstab would draw aggro.

Especially from the Nataniel Church.

In the game too, the Nataniel Church is hostile toward necromancy. I don’t know how Isilof sweet-talked the temple into joining this project.

‘There’s no way they just handed over the corpse and ended it.’

I thought it was highly likely that Nataniel Temple would send someone. To monitor whether this project was really proceeding properly.

“Nataniel! I will follow the church’s commands!”

Then why didn’t I go to Nataniel Temple to ask if there were no applicants, and instead held party recruitment at the Adventurer’s Guild?

There were two reasons for that.

First, even if I had visited the temple, they probably would have told me to conduct party recruitment officially at the guild.

“Please give me strength so I can win this contract, Nataniel!”

Because Nataniel is the god of monetary transactions and contracts.

The church absolutely detests things like, people knowing each other casually like acquaintances, somewhat haphazardly, through connections, and such.

And looking at it, the temple sent someone whose level matched mine perfectly.

Right. That’s how it should be. That’s proper personnel allocation.

Good. If I make connections this time, I might be able to use them consistently like Emma from Virtanen’s party?

“Radiance Power!”

But wizard, isn’t that a bit unfair?

Paladin Bernard cast a buff on himself that enhanced strength by +3 points and jumped onto the stage.

He instantly picked up the oak barrel and threw it vertically to the ceiling.

“Now I will show you the sacred power Nataniel has bestowed upon this paladin!”

He armed himself again with his mace and shield.

He’s useful.

Let me see what his skills are like.

“Sentinel’s Shield!”

Bernard thrust his shield forward with force. Then a huge protective barrier appeared centered on the shield and enveloped Bernard.

“Punishment!”

His attack power is excellent too. When he infused divine power into his mace and struck down, the oak barrel was smashed to pieces.

Huh?

Wait, no.

“We need to interview the people behind us with that oak barrel……”

“Arrow of Evil Destruction!”

Bernard didn’t care and this time fired a radiance laser(?) from the tip of his mace, burning the wall.

“How is it! I will bless your future and complete the journey together to put that poor undead to rest!”

“Wait a moment.”

A human man stepped forward boldly from behind. Judging by his appearance, he was from the East. Even more eastern than Windham.

“You can’t put him to rest. We need to resurrect him.”

In the game, I thought it was just a race made with Asian motifs, but seeing him in person, he looked Asian.

And……

‘He’s from the 3rd floor?’

You can estimate just by looking at his equipment level. He’s a two-handed sword fighter who mainly uses the 3rd floor as his stage.

“I’m the swordsman Hijikata.”

Indeed, as befitting a 3rd floor adventurer, he was overflowing with leisure and stepped over the smashed oak barrel crunch and offered me a handshake first.

As if interviews were meaningless with this level of gap.

Well, he’s not wrong.

“Are you going to apply? The pay doesn’t match for recruiting a 3rd floor adventurer.”

“I don’t need the pay. I’m not interested in the 1st floor. But I’m interested in this mission from Magic University itself.”

Hijikata said.

“I have a friend who went missing in the labyrinth too.”

The second reason I didn’t visit Nataniel Temple and instead held a party recruitment at the Adventurer’s Guild.

Among competent adventurers, there are often those who have missing comrades.

“If you can really resurrect that Mister Backstab, then there’s hope for my friend too, right? So I want to take on this mission.”

I had opened party member recruitment targeting people like this, but……

‘It’s ambiguous.’

In this case, it’s a proposal that’s both good and bad.

If a 3rd floor fighter takes the front line, honestly, I can make it. In that aspect, it’s good.

But the probability of the fighter joining my party again after the mission ends is close to zero.

“We’re looking for comrades who can work with us consistently in the future, not just this one mission.”

“Backstab is bait and your real intention is to find useful 1st floor comrades?”

“It’s not bait. We will definitely accomplish Backstab’s resurrection. We took that mission seriously too.”

“Hmm……”

Hijikata stroked his scratchy chin that seemed to have been shaved about three days ago.

“Then will you recruit that wizard? Honestly, isn’t he too noisy?”

“What!”

The wizard got indignant.

“The words that come from this paladin’s mouth all represent Nataniel, so don’t even dream of committing irreversible rudeness!”

His tongue is a bit long.

“Caleb!”

This time, a somewhat nostalgic face appeared.

“Virtanen?”

“Huh! What’s this situation? If you needed a warrior to take the front line, why didn’t you contact me?”

“Because Virtanen already has a party.”

“He’s making his own party.”

Hijikata pointed at me with his thumb and said,

“Ah. It’s not just temporary employment? You’re actually founding a party?”

“Yes.”

“I see……”

Then suddenly Virtanen’s face became incredibly disappointed!

Can a person’s expression become this gloomy?

“I’ve been dreaming of bringing you into our party all along.”

“I’m sorry……”

It’s not my fault, but seeing that expression somehow makes me feel guilty.

“It’s fine! As an adventurer, it’s good news that one more excellent party is being created.”

Virtanen cleared his mood with a cough.

“Caleb. Be careful. The labyrinth is full of crazy people! You can consider half of the other parties as enemies. There are even guys whose purpose is to attack other parties and steal their money.”

So having one more trustworthy party is actually something to be happy about, the dwarf muttered and explained at length.

“Sorry to interrupt the conversation.”

The wizard interjected again.

“So are you recruiting me?”

Well.

What should I do? Honestly, it’s not bad, but it’s a bit disappointing.

I wish I could wait just a little longer.

“Wait a moment!”

Suddenly someone else rushed into the interview hall.

“Oh!”

Everyone didn’t show much interest, but I was surprised and flinched.

No, this is an even rarer type than a paladin!

‘Monk!’

The ‘Strength Monk’ was the main tanker I used when I cleared Turn-Based Master difficulty.

He was out of breath from running all the way here and was panting.

“Interview please…… Let’s do it.”

“The interview is over.”

The wizard pointed to the smashed oak barrel remains on the floor.

“No! Please let me at least take the interview! Please!”

He had circumstances where he absolutely had to join this party.

“Backstab is……”

The monk shouted.

“He was my comrade!”

***

Mister Backstab.

Once called the strongest on the 1st floor, the man with the most promising future at the Adventurer’s Guild.

He began gaining fame when all his party members were down and he defeated a Black Hornet by himself.

And that day, the monk who owed his life to Backstab expelled Backstab from the party.

“Sorry, but you and we don’t fit together.”

Monk party leader Aimus Lenik said seriously.

“You can go to the 2nd floor too.”

“……”

“We’re half-wits who keep wandering around the 1st floor.”

Actually, Backstab was someone who performed more than his share even when he entered 2nd floor parties.

“That was just a temporary mercenary job, but when you came back, they told me to let you go……”

Among third-rate adventurers, there’s one cruel moral code.

Namely, letting go of talented comrades quickly.

“You can go to the deep layers.”

They had grown quite fond of each other after exploring the labyrinth together for over three years, but everyone knew. Backstab didn’t fit in that party.

He was young and strong. Clever and agile, with excellent skill execution.

But the monk was already in his mid-40s.

Maybe for wizards or priests, but for classes that use the body, age is also important. Anyone could see that the monk was already past his prime.

The gnome wizard Hersel was a perpetual failing student at his hometown’s Magic University.

“Lenik is right. Backstab. You should go to the 2nd floor. You should have stabbed us in the back and left long ago. Why aren’t you living up to your name?”

While throwing jokes, Hersel’s eyes were moist.

The Elf druid Kaelin was an idiot who still hadn’t made a spirit contract.

“I…… I honestly don’t want to part ways……”

She was more honest than the monk or gnome wizard. While issuing an expulsion order, even if only formally, to a comrade they’d grown fond of for so long, Kaelin cried sniffling.

“But I think this is right. Backstab. This is as far as we go.”

They were friends who had grown very attached.

“Stay healthy even when you go to the 2nd floor.”

Hersel handed over a nice belt. It was a farewell gift.

“I’ll miss you.”

Kaelin gave him a bomb that could be attached to the belt as a gift, tears welling up. She told him to throw it at enemies when in danger.

“You’ll do well on the 2nd floor too.”

Party leader monk Aimus Lenik gave him a dagger as a gift.

“I bought it quite expensively! It’ll tear through Black Hornet eggshells in one strike!”

Lenik unilaterally broke the contract with Backstab.

Paying the penalty fee himself and setting Backstab free.

“Go to the 2nd floor.”

They expelled Backstab.

***

The incident happened three weeks later.

Someone tumbled out of the 1st floor labyrinth exit gate with serious injuries.

It was the half-wit druid Kaelin.

Unable to find new party members and playing with three people, they had cleared the exit room, but were ambushed by raiders who targeted their exhausted moment.

‘Please help……!’

Kaelin went up the labyrinth management office stairs, clutching her torn lower abdomen where intestines were spilling out. Requesting help and fainting.

The exit gate was already closed. Three magic stones thrown in by the raiders were rolling around.

The 1st floor labyrinth entrance gate was open.

Backstab rushed in without looking back……

“What……”

Monk Lenik witnessed an amazing phenomenon occurring in the 1st floor labyrinth’s exit room.

When the exit room is cleared, the labyrinth structure changes. And a new exit room appears somewhere. That’s a fact everyone knows. However……

“The exit room…… Appeared again in this same place……?”

Even for the raiders who were killing Hersel and threatening Lenik, that situation was shocking.

An exit room door had appeared behind Lenik’s back.

“An exit room appearing inside an exit room?”

But the really amazing situation started from there.

Click!

Suddenly the exit room’s doorknob turned.

It wasn’t opened by an adventurer. It just opened by itself from inside. The exit boss had directly opened the door and came out.

The 1st floor’s strongest, consumed by madness.

“Hahahaha!“

That chilling laughter that anyone could tell was inhuman. Crazed eyes and the Labyrinth Master’s mark stamped on his forehead.

The raiders froze momentarily, and Backstab cut one of their throats with Leap Ambush.

“Aaaagh!“

“It’s a monster!”

The following thrown knife pierced the second raider’s heart.

“Hahahaha!“

Backstab grabbed the third raider, flew with Shadow Leap, knocked him down, and repeatedly stabbed his chest.

Blood spurting like a fountain.

The scene instantly became chaotic.

The last remaining raider trembled shaking and drew his bowstring, but Backstab became invisible.

“Wh, where are you! Where!”

Behind the raider’s screams, monk party leader Aimus Lenik limped forward.

Into the exit room where the door had opened.

***

“I ran away.”

He said.

“I couldn’t talk about it because I lacked courage all this time.”

He sat down on the floor and grabbed his head.

“I was so scared I wasn’t in my right mind! Backstab really looked like a monster then. I panicked and rushed into the exit room Backstab came from. The gate was already open inside.”

“……”

“I went through there and ran away to town. When I came, Kaelin was already dead.”

Hmm.

In the game, there’s a technical term for that.

‘Wandering boss.’

A boss that comes out of the exit room and roams the field.

But this is my first time seeing a wandering boss appear on the 1st floor? Usually you have to go down to the deep layers below to occasionally encounter them.

“Not a single day has passed since then that I haven’t regretted.”

For the monk, that incident became a huge trauma. Not because he almost died……

“What if I…… Hadn’t I abandoned Backstab then?”

“……”

“Couldn’t I have prevented Backstab from falling to an exit boss?”

Honestly, I don’t know either, but it probably wouldn’t have mattered. If he came out of the exit room, that means he’d already become an exit boss.

But even so, the monk’s guilt doesn’t lessen.

“Maybe that exit room appearing behind my back…… Perhaps…… Maybe……”

If they had explored normally, the possibility of Backstab saving the monk’s party was close to zero. The labyrinth is enormously vast, and entry points are random.

“To save us…… Did Backstab sell his soul to the Labyrinth Master?”

“……”

“If that’s why the exit room appeared behind my back…… If he came after selling even his soul to save me, but I ran away alone…… Then I……”

The bottom tier of a third-rate party.

Even ordinary citizens below average have dramatic tragedies. Though no one would care.

And middle-aged men in their 40s can cry too. I saw it sometimes when I worked at a company.

And now too.

“……”

The monk looked up once at the undead Backstab, then burst into sobs and covered his face. Shoulders trembling with tears.

“Graaah?“

Backstab obliviously just kept chewing on Yernil’s hair.