TM-Chapter 25

Back to the Labyrinth

It’s already been 8 days since I had that showdown with Meldini in the Magic University lobby.

During that time, the labyrinth city Soren had been buzzing with talk about the Magic University’s new student, but this kind of issue dies down quickly.

People went back to struggling with their own survival problems, and now the main issue in labyrinth city Soren had changed.

That was precisely……

“One hour until the labyrinth entry gate opens!”

The labyrinth was opening.

***

What exactly is the labyrinth?

It’s a mystery that couldn’t be solved in the game or in reality.

However, it seems the labyrinth existed even before labyrinth city Soren came into being.

More precisely, the stairs leading to the labyrinth.

Those stairs were also excavated from deep underground where they had been buried. If you go down the stairs about 15 meters, you reach a small clearing, and gates periodically appear in that clearing.

Cross through the gate and you reach the 1st floor of the labyrinth.

“Yernil!”

“Yeeees!”

“Are you ready?”

“Yes!”

Today we’re going back in there.

“Aimus!”

“Yes.”

“Are you ready?”

“Let’s go!”

To be honest, I really fucking don’t want to go.

But what choice do we have? If we stay outside for 2 weeks, the labyrinth will erupt.

“Backstab!”

“Gaaah!”

“You ready?”

“Grrrr!”

I deliberately pumped up my party members one by one to boost our sinking morale.

Let’s do this.

Let’s go in, extend that 2-week lifeline, revive Backstab, and come back out.

Unlike last time when the Magic University unilaterally shoved me in, this time we have plenty of equipment and a complete party, right?

I led my companions to complete registration at the labyrinth management office counter.

“10 minutes until the labyrinth entry gate opens!”

I was getting a bit nervous.

Probably Yernil too…… Huh?

“Yernil, aren’t you nervous?”

She looked surprisingly calm.

Is this really the same Yernil who had a fit and cried when the Goblin stabbed the fatty?

“I just have to listen to what Caleb says, right?”

Yernil replied nonchalantly.

“We’re going to the 1st floor, right? But before, even when there was nothing, I survived by just doing what Caleb told me to do. This time should be even simpler.”

Hmm.

Sorry Yernil.

We’re not going to the 1st floor.

The place where the Soul’s Sanctuary is located is what’s called the ‘point-five floor’.

In the depths of the labyrinth, there are hidden spaces between each layer. The 1.5 floor between the 1st and 2nd floors. The 2.5 floor between the 2nd and 3rd floors. That kind of thing.

The game users called these the point-five floors, and the Soul’s Sanctuary is on a point-five floor.

It’s a shame I can’t tell you in advance since it’s possessed person knowledge.

“Let me just see my wife and kids for a moment……”

Aimus poked my shoulder and pointed toward the entrance of the labyrinth management office.

The monk’s wife was there holding one baby and holding hands with two other children.

I guess a third-rate adventurer’s aged husband, who had disbanded his party and even retired, going back into the labyrinth again must be quite worrying?

I understand.

“Go ahead. We’ll go down to the waiting room first.”

“Yes.”

I left Aimus behind and led Backstab along with Yernil down to the basement.

Past the elevator for parties that had progressed beyond the 2nd floor, to the front of the 1st floor waiting room.

Inside here, there are stairs.

I remember being thrown in here like a pig being dragged to slaughter as a 4-person slave party on my first day of possession.

Back then, I really thought my life was fucked, but this time at least……

Clank.

Praying that nothing would go wrong, I opened the waiting room door.

***

‘What the.’

A somewhat unexpected scene unfolded.

There were already four people inside the waiting room, which was about 30 square meters. Sitting side by side on a bench, staring right at us with eyes as sinister as Meldini fishing for possessed people.

What the hell are these bastards?

We have to wait for Aimus, but those guys are already all here – what are they waiting for?

The gate is already open. Why aren’t they going down the stairs?

‘Don’t tell me.’

No way, surely not.

My heart pounds thump thump with an ominous feeling.

“……”

Among the 4-person party over there, a human warrior armed with heavy armor and a two-handed sword whispered something to a canine beastman.

Covering his mouth and whispering whisper whisper.

I also covered my mouth and whispered whisper whisper to Yernil.

“What did they just say?”

“‘Looks like they don’t have as much as we thought?’ that’s what they said.”

Ah shit, really.

Why do ominous feelings never miss the mark?

‘They’re raiders.’

In other games, when you pick up good items or get expensive equipment, you’d just be happy, but Abyss of the Labyrinth is a bit different.

Party possessions that exceed the party’s power level are very likely to become targets for raiders.

Let me try to guess what’s been going through their heads.

Probably conversations like these have been going on for the past week,

‘Among the Magic University’s slave wizards, there’s one who made big money and got out this time. Seems like he formed a new party and got all his party members completely new equipment.’

‘I heard he got the Elf archer a full set – helmet, armor, shoes, bow, quiver, even special arrows?’

‘Backstab was an exit boss, so as soon as he came out, the Magic University stripped him clean and sold everything. So maybe Backstab’s equipment was also newly bought.’

‘They wouldn’t have dressed up or given anything to an undead, but there might be daggers for Backstab to use in the party leader’s backpack.’

‘They’re going to revive Backstab, right? When they clear the exit room after reviving him, they’ll need Backstab to do his share, so they must have brought equipment.’

‘Even if that’s not there, at least there should be a resurrection scroll in the backpack, right? How much is just that worth?’

‘What about the party’s power level?’

‘A third-rate monk who’s bottom-tier scum even among lower-class adventurers, plus an undead? That’s already two useless members, isn’t it?’

‘Wow, I’m already drooling!’

……Probably something like that?

Since these kinds of bastards showed up quite often in the game, I deliberately came in as the first group right when the gate opened, but they were already here waiting.

Really diligent, aren’t they.

Did they also catch wind of the compass?

Probably not.

If they had, the raider level wouldn’t be just these guys.

And I’ve never shown the compass to anyone, never talked about it, and Meldini wouldn’t either.

As a professor at the Magic University, he knows well the headaches labyrinth adventurers have with raiders, so he wouldn’t carelessly leak information that would make me a target.

“……”

The four members of that party started examining me, Yernil, and Backstab from head to toe.

They’re checking what level our armament is, what consumables we might have. Trying to visualize the battle in their heads before attacking.

Disgusting.

I also started analyzing those four party members carefully.

A human warrior in decent steel armor wielding a two-handed sword, a canine beastman who looks like a rogue type – nothing special so far. It would be hard to break through with Aimus in front. And the dwarf is……

‘A puppeteer?’

That’s a bit troublesome.

Plus, judging by their equipment level, they seem quite skilled. And another concerning point is that they also have a wizard.

“Hello.”

That wizard greeted me.

Maybe mid-to-late twenties? A pretty human woman holding a wand in one hand, shaking it around like she has emotional instability.

“Yes, hello.”

“Are you a university student?”

“Yes.”

“I got expelled.”

And with that, the woman laughed giggle giggle by herself. Her party members next to her also snickered along.

Both in the game and here, there are plenty of wizards who aren’t affiliated with the Magic University.

“What’s in your bag?”

The woman pointed at my backpack with her wand and asked.

“Why are you curious about that?”

“I’m worried about beginners. In case you’re carrying something expensive. The labyrinth is full of raiders.”

“……”

“You guys haven’t met any, right? They don’t bother with slave parties because there’s nothing to gain from robbing them. But this time you might encounter some.”

The wizard smiled slyly and extended her hand.

“If you have anything expensive, should big sister hold onto it for you?”

“We don’t have anything expensive, so we’re fine. Thanks for the advice. The gate should be open, so please go down first.”

“Aren’t you guys going down?”

“We’re still waiting for one more party member.”

“The monk who’s only strong but slow-witted?”

Look at this.

They had analyzed our entire party and were waiting on standby, and they don’t even bother hiding that fact.

“If you received an important mission from a professor, you should have paid more attention to your front line. How dangerous is the labyrinth?”

“……”

“Hijikata from the 3rd floor said he’d jump in even though the pay didn’t match, right? You should have gladly accepted someone like that and asked him to lead the party.”

“Caleb……”

Yernil, who had been confident upstairs, instantly shrank like a chick.

She also sensed these bastards’ disturbing atmosphere. Looking very anxious, she kept glancing at me.

“It’s okay.”

I lightly patted Yernil’s shoulder.

“How close you are.”

That party giggled again.

“Our dwarf is single, so he gets jealous. He might transform into a raider. Don’t provoke him too much.”

And they giggled among themselves again before stopping abruptly.

Because our team’s muscle monster monk had returned.

Of course, that side also knew Aimus was a gym freak, but……

“What is that thing?”

They must be seeing that weapon for the first time.

That would make sense.

Until now, only the wizard who talked as much as the Paladin had been blabbing away while the other three kept their mouths shut, but now all three had their mouths hanging open.

“What kind of monk…… Carries a weapon……”

Our monk had come carrying a very large, thick, and beautiful steel staff. About 2 meters long and, with slight exaggeration, as thick as Yernil’s wrist.

“Is…… Is that a weapon?”

The human warrior frowned and asked.

“Yes.”

Aimus replied.

“Originally, the monks who train Kalung on Mount Dalai learn staff techniques when they’re young.”

“But they all only used their fists.”

“Due to religious sectarian issues, the policy was set for them to only use fists after coming of age.”

“But you’re allowed to use an iron staff?”

“I’m a monk who broke his vows.”

That’s why he’s married and has three kids.

“For this adventure, I’m accepting the party leader’s recommendation to try using this.”

In the game, to get a Kalung training monk to wield a staff, you had to succeed at a high-difficulty persuasion roll.

But this time, he just took it when I offered.

He only worried whether it would be okay since it’s a weapon he hasn’t used in a long time.

“Our party leader is a very smart person.”

No matter how low-class and third-rate he was, experience and career can’t be ignored.

“Smart enough to turn the tables and rob mediocre raiders.”

He instantly recognized that these bastards were raiders.

As expected, brother monk! You may not have hair, but you have sense!

“……”

The wizard smiled nastily.

“Good luck.”

And they went down the stairs first.

***

“It wasn’t because I sensed the atmosphere – I heard their conversation outside.”

The monk said as we entered the labyrinth.

“They were openly picking a fight.”

“Why would they do that?”

Yernil’s face was filled with worry.

“Maybe they were unexpectedly really worried about us! Warning us to watch out for raiders!”

At the same time, her hope circuit activated.

“That doesn’t make sense. Their expressions were already drooling from the start.”

“B-but if they were going to raid us, there’d be no need to deliberately create such a threatening atmosphere, right? If I were part of a raider party, I would have treated you guys kindly instead. If they threaten us, we’ll deliberately avoid them in the labyrinth.”

There was some logic to it.

But that’s what third-rate raiders do, Yernil.

“They threatened us on purpose.”

Aimus caught on.

“Why?”

“So we’d tremble and drain our energy by being on guard in all directions.”

“Ah……”

And they can chase us anytime.

Why?

Because the canine beastman’s racial trait is scent tracking.

No wonder he was sniffing like crazy as soon as I entered the waiting room. He must have been trying to memorize our scent.

“Raiders are most dangerous on the lower floors. There are more raiders too.”

Aimus, the leader of a third-rate party with expertise in getting robbed, explained.

“Because if you go to the deep floors, only adventurers with a lot of experience are there, so there’s some guarantee. But on the lower floors, all kinds of people gather, so there are many raiders too.”

That’s also true, and to add one more reason – on the lower floors, the profitability of raiding adventurers is better than labyrinth exploration.

“……”

Yernil became completely tense.

“Yernil.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t be too scared.”

There’s no need to tense up your shoulders already. It’s true that they’re a considerably skilled party, but we’re also pretty solid now.

If they attack head-on, it’ll be hard to break through Aimus. And if they follow behind us, Yernil will detect them.

And when battle breaks out, I’ll flip the hourglass and use Dust Explosion.

“Let’s focus on our adventure.”

Worrying and agonizing and draining our own energy is exactly what they want.

“Grrrr.”

Backstab also seemed to agree with my words as he shuffled forward.

***

Reality always lacks more plausibility than drama.

Have you heard that saying?

Ever since Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk had a keyboard battle on Twitter and exchanged requests for real fights, I’ve kept those words deeply engraved in my heart.

But I didn’t expect this.

“Please, please!”

It’s that wizard from before.

She’s now bleeding from her head, trembling shivering, and desperately begging in front of us.

“Save me!”

Kneeling down and rubbing her palms together.

After exploring the labyrinth for about two hours with Backstab in the lead, we suddenly encountered her.

She came running from ahead wailing, then really stopped in front of Aimus who shouted for her to stop, and started pleading with tears.

The reason she ended up like this is……

“We were attacked……”

The wizard’s face had completely lost that leisure from the waiting room and was filled only with terror.

“It’s a 2nd floor party! They’re chasing me right now, please!”

“Don’t be ridiculous!”

I won’t be fooled, you fucking bitch.

“How can we trust you? Weren’t you also trying to raid us?”

“That was……”

I expected her to deny it, but the wizard readily admitted it.

“I’m sorry…… Really sorry……”

She said while crying sob sob.

As if she deeply regretted threatening and picking fights with us in the waiting room, pulling at her own hair.

“We were wrong. Just save me, please! Caleb! I’ll fight on your side! Please!”

“Back off!”

“If I go back, I’ll die!”

“……”

“Caleb……”

Even Aimus, who had expertise in raiding, was flustered and didn’t know what to do. Yernil is…… Shit, she already lowered her bow. Yernil! Get it together!

No.

I’m the problem. I need to get it together first.

‘Caleb, you crazy bastard!’

Why is that wizard still in front of us? It’s fucking suspicious!

What would it have been like if this were the game?

If it were the game, we wouldn’t have had a chance to exchange this many words in the first place.

I would have cast Lightning Shock long ago and either killed her or chased her away.

Indeed, Developer difficulty is the highest among this damn game’s many difficulty levels.

It’s too different from the game.

It’s not looking down from a quarter-view perspective, but seeing directly from a first-person viewpoint – facing that face covered in tears and snot, bleeding profusely while begging to be saved, it’s hard to easily cast a spell.

Even though I know in my head that’s the safest path.

“I’ll only count to three.”

But I need to get my head straight.

“Go back right now.”

A moment’s hesitation and misplaced sympathy here is a ticket to the express train to hell.

Trusting anyone carelessly is insane.