Chapter 34

Chapter 34

The Labyrinth (3)

After quickly sweeping through the first floor and descending to the second, I was searching for a statue.

It was a statue of the Hero, and I could obtain one hidden piece there.

“I can’t find it...”

I felt I might find it right away, but such lucky fortune did not happen.

Thanks to that, I wandered around the second floor for quite some time.

Along the way, I ran into several students whose names I did not know, but since attacks between people who possessed “entry passes” inside the Labyrinth had no meaning, there was no reason for students to fight one another.

The students’ competition was measured only by who descended faster and deeper.

So we did not exchange much conversation either, each busy going our own way.

Because I defeated every monster I encountered along the way, I rose by one level and became level 19.

Even with a 500% increase in experience gained, it was probably because the monsters’ levels were still markedly lower than mine.

On the second floor, groups of goblins appeared along with the kobolds I had met on the first floor.

They were monsters one could commonly encounter even outside this game.

Goblins could speak.

Just like in the game, they spat out lines like, “There are no women!” and “Kill the men!”

[ Haam, I am bored... Stairs appeared, yet you do not go down. ]

Sierra yawned while lying in the air.

She was suffering from boredom.

If she were watching a tense battle, perhaps it would be different, but since I cut everything down in one stroke, there was not much to see.

Now that I had reached the second floor, I was conversing with Sierra a little only when I felt no presences nearby.

“In the end, the Labyrinth is a ‘dungeon,’ isn’t it? I was wondering if there might be something. Gold and treasure... or special items...”

I whispered to Sierra while avoiding a pressure-plate trap.

[ That aside, you are avoiding traps rather well. Is there some trick to it? ]

Sierra could probably see at least the traps installed in the Labyrinth, so she asked.

“Things like pressure plates protrude a little, so they’re fairly easy to detect. They’re unnatural. In the case of arrow traps, I can feel the wind flowing through the holes where arrows come out.”

In the game, stepping on even one trap caused quite a bit of damage and ruined one’s mood, so I had reached a level where I had some mastery over easy traps.

Like that, after avoiding several traps and cutting down groups of goblins I encountered, I finally saw what I had been looking for.

“The Hero’s statue.”

I walked straight toward the statue.

Looking at it up close, it was a statue of the Hero standing in a solemn pose with the Holy Sword driven into the ground.

[ Ho... a statue? Let us see... It says this is the statue of the Hero. ]

Sierra examined the words written beneath the statue and gave me the information.

Originally, if the player prayed before the statue, they could receive a buff called the “Hero’s Blessing.”

This blessing would probably apply to other students as well.

Well, there would not be many people praying to the Hero... but even if the Labyrinth’s structure changed, it seemed the statue appeared consistently, because this was already widely known information among the senior students.

However, I had no intention of praying ordinarily.

“A gap...”

Touching the floor in front of the statue, I found a faint gap. It was a gap just large enough for one sword to enter.

I drew the cursed blade and inserted it into the gap in the floor.

At that moment, I ended up taking the same pose as the Hero’s statue before me.

—Clank.

As soon as I inserted the cursed blade into the gap, I heard the sound of machinery operating around me.

[ Hmm...? ]

Sierra, watching my peculiar act, grew curious at the sound.

Before long, something small fell from the ceiling in front of me.

I caught it without missing it.

[ It is a necklace... As you said, this place truly does seem to be a dungeon. To think something like this was hidden here. ]

I nodded to Sierra in affirmation.

“Necklace Containing the Hero’s Protection.”

This Epic-grade necklace had the effect of converting the attribute of every attack the wearer made into the light attribute for three minutes, once per day.

Called “Hero Necklace” among users, this necklace allowed one to pour out light-attribute attacks highly effective against demons or undead.

Since there were quite a few demons and undead to face in the game, it could be said to be helpful.

The boss I would meet immediately after the lycanthrope was undead.

I removed the “Vibrant Silver Necklace” I had been wearing and immediately placed the “Hero Necklace” around my neck.

[ It suits you well. ]

Sierra, looking at me, smiled with satisfaction.

“To activate the necklace’s effect, do I infuse mana into it...?”

It might be good to test it in advance later.

In any case, by now, it should be about time for the other students to set up their magic tents and rest.

At this timing, those lucky enough to run into other students tended to rest while standing watch for one another.

Even though time flowed slowly in the Labyrinth, stamina was exhausted just as quickly.

Since one could not face monsters with stamina drained, appropriate rest had to be taken.

Though it seemed like a setting added because the game company wanted to include a camping part.

“Hmm...”

I had obtained the necklace, but I had not yet met the lycanthrope.

“Judging from the signs, it seems to be on a lower floor...”

The location of the next hidden piece was the twelfth floor.

The lycanthrope would be within the tenth floor.

Unlike other students, thanks to Reina’s bracelet, I was not particularly tired.

“Should I descend to the third floor?”

Thinking that, I planned to go down the stairs I had seen earlier.

From far away, I sensed one presence approaching this place.

Judging by the sound of footsteps, it was not a monster but a student.

“Ah... Why is the path so difficult, really?”

But the grumbling voice coming from over there was familiar.

If it had been Eisel or Kaen, maybe, but if it was her, this was certainly a chance meeting.

“Miss Yuri?”

I was the first to call out to her, who had her head lowered.

“Zeto?”

Soon, Yuri lifted her head and called my name.

After confirming it was me, she immediately ran toward me.

“What would she do if there were a trap on the way...”

Yuri, who safely arrived before me in one breath, had eyes shining brightly.

“Zeto, you were still on the second floor too?”

“Yes. Miss Yuri, it seems you were also looking for hidden treasure?”

“Mm, well, yes...? Though I haven’t found it yet.”

Yuri gave an awkward answer while twirling her hair.

I already knew Yuri had not been looking for something like treasure.

She was weak with complicated maze-like things.

When the player first entered the Labyrinth, there was a scene showing the other characters’ reactions to the Labyrinth.

In it, Yuri cast fire magic at the wall.

Together with the line, “If I burn down the wall, that’ll be the end of it, right?”

...Of course, the wall did not break.

“...Still, I didn’t think we would meet like this. How about we form a party? Looking at other students, they’re going around together... and I want to rest in a tent soon, and we’ll need a watch too.”

Yuri moved a little closer to me and proposed forming a party.

There was no issue with students who got along joining forces in the Labyrinth.

If anything, it was actively encouraged.

Senior students formed parties from the very beginning. First-years were simply at the stage of gradually learning the trick.

I did not particularly need to rest in a tent. I had enough stamina.

However, when Yuri asked to form a party with that face, I could not think of a reason to refuse her directly.

“Let us do that. Are you perhaps very tired right now?”

I first checked Yuri’s condition.

Judging by how worn out she looked, it seemed she had struggled from the first floor and barely descended to the second.

“Yeah, can we rest right now? I’m tired from wandering around everywhere. They did say stamina gets drained easily... What about you, Zeto?”

Yuri sent me a desperate look.

“I’m fine. Then I will stand watch first.”

“Thanks, Zeto. I’ll stand watch next.”

Yuri said this to me.

“I don’t really want to spend enough time on the second floor that there will need to be a next watch.”

When the time came, I would vaguely brush it off by saying it was fine.

Thus, we decided to set up the tent at a suitable place.

“So this is the Hero... I wonder if his appearance was reproduced exactly?”

Yuri murmured while looking at the Hero’s statue.

We decided to set up near the statue. It was a decent spot with quite a bit of space.

It was time to set up the magic tent.

Yuri took the tent from her backpack.

When she placed the small magic tent, which had reduction magic cast on it, onto the ground, it quickly unfolded on its own, and a large tent appeared.

“I saw it in the last class too, but it really is fascinating.”

Yuri smiled softly while looking back and forth between the tent and me.

When I examined the inside of the tent with Yuri, it was quite cozy.

There was no bed, but I saw several blankets that looked warm.

The magic tent was an item owned by the academy and lent to students, so it could not be sold outside, but if one were to put a price on it, it would surely be quite an expensive item.

“Then I will go stand watch.”

I said this to Yuri, who had been examining the tent.

I had already cleaned up the area around here, but the monsters in the Labyrinth regenerated, so someone had to stand watch.

“...Thank you. Thanks to you, Zeto, I can rest at ease.”

“Then please rest.”

Yuri looked quite exhausted.

It seemed not only her stamina, but also her mind, had been worn down.

“Even with the bracelet, will my stamina drop a lot if I don’t rest at all?”

I left my backpack inside the tent, came out, crouched nearby, and waited.

[ Now I see why women gather around my disciple. Needlessly kind... ]

Sierra approached beside me where I sat and spoke to me.

Judging from her expression, for some reason, she seemed sulky.

Now that I was with Yuri, I could not answer her.

Still, if Sierra continued talking, I would not be bored.

“It seems impossible to meet the lycanthrope today.”

Still, I had found the hidden piece, so things were flowing according to plan.

***

“To think I’d meet Zeto.”

The Labyrinth was extremely complicated.

I had tried using fire magic to see if I could pierce through the walls, but naturally, the walls were not pierced.

Even descending from only the first floor to the second had been hard.

Facing traps or monsters was on the easy side, but finding the way down took a long time.

I had vented my anger after so long too.

The goblins I met on the second floor shouted, “A woman!” and came toward me with their tongues sticking out, so I could not not vent.

I wanted to rest deeply.

Both my stamina and mental strength had been worn down to nothing.

Edward was malicious.

He had not told the students that they could form parties.

“No wonder. The senior students I passed were all grouped together.”

After entering the Labyrinth and thinking carefully, I realized that if I set up a tent alone and rested deeply only to meet a goblin, something terrible would definitely happen.

After all, I had never gone to a dungeon like this. I lacked knowledge.

In any case, I had to run into another student.

But because I had lost time, the other students had already gone down to lower floors, so it was difficult to meet people.

In the middle of that, I met Zeto.

Zeto did not seem to have been unable to descend because he had difficulty finding the path, like me.

He looked quite relaxed.

Treasure.

Edward had said there would be things like that in the Labyrinth, but I had not thought he would be looking for it from the second floor.

I had assumed that there might be some once we descended a little farther.

It was a part that revealed Zeto’s meticulous personality.

He must be protecting me outside.

A friend to whom I could entrust myself with ease.

I thought it was a good thing that I had grown close to Zeto.

“I’m thirsty...”

I rummaged through my backpack, trying to find the water bottle I had packed.

“Mm...”

I shook the bottle I took out, but it was already empty.

I had run out of the water I brought.

I poked my head out of the tent.

I saw Zeto sitting outside the tent.

I carefully asked him.

“Zeto, do you perhaps have water left? I ran out...”

I knew very well that I was shameless for trying to drink his water when he was already standing watch in my place, so I shrank back.

But Zeto looked at me and smiled gently.

“It should be in my backpack. There should still be quite a lot left.”

“Thanks. It feels like I’m only relying on you...”

“It’s all right.”

After hearing Zeto’s words, I quickly pulled my head back inside.

Friend.

He was surely my friend, so why did I feel strangely embarrassed whenever I saw his smile?

“Huuu...”

With Zeto’s permission, I rummaged through his backpack.

There were many miscellaneous things in Zeto’s backpack.

He was thoroughly prepared.

I also saw the needles used for the acupuncture he said he was learning, and things that looked like medicinal herbs.

“What is this...?”

While rummaging through the backpack because I could not see the water bottle, I spotted some kind of flask.

“Potion of Charm...?”

That was written on the flask’s label.

“Why does Zeto have this?”

Potion of Charm.

It was a potion whose name I had never heard before.

From the name alone, it looked like a potion that could charm the person who drank it.

“Who is he trying to charm...?”

A deep question arose.

I could not picture Zeto buying this kind of thing at all.

But it had come out of his backpack.

“Then Zeto has a woman he wants to charm... who is it?”

Who had he bought it for?

Was the potion effective?

Many thoughts brushed through my head.

“Surely not.”

Edward’s first class came to mind.

It said the one with the highest intimacy with Zeto was me.

“The person he wants to use the Potion of Charm on... surely isn’t me...?”

Recently, I had eaten with Zeto often. Thanks to that, I had been able to grow closer to him.

I did not know.

It was a useless thought.

Because Zeto and I were “friends.”

...In any case, it was Zeto’s item.

I carefully put the potion back into his backpack and only then found the water bottle.

“Don’t mind it. It might not be me.”

But if it was not me, then who on earth was it?

I opened the water bottle and drank only enough to wet my throat.

“Oh...”

My body froze while holding the bottle.

While minding the Potion of Charm, I had put my lips on “Zeto’s water bottle” and drunk from it.

Since it was Zeto’s water bottle, he would have drunk from it with his lips on it.

And I had put my lips to that same bottle and drunk from it.

“Th-this is... indirect...”

My face grew hot.

I could not bring myself to say the last word.

Because Zeto had sharp ears, and he might hear everything.

For some reason, the mouth of the water bottle in my hand looked moist.

I put the water bottle into Zeto’s bag and hurriedly lay down on the bedding, pulling the blanket over myself.

“Even if we are friends, he is the opposite sex, so I keep noticing him...”

Even though Zeto had not come into the tent, I wanted to hide the way I looked right now.

“I should rest well while Zeto is standing watch for me...”

Was it because I had used a lot of fire magic?

Even though that should have had absolutely nothing to do with it, heat kept rising through my body.