Chapter 31

A crustacean the size of a bear charged toward me with the speed of a wolf.

The red monster, shaped like a giant crawfish, swung its pincer-like claws at me. I parried the strike with my sword and tried to slash at its joints.

—But I failed.

At the very last second, the monster twisted its body, forcing my blade to catch on its hard exoskeleton.

“Tch—!”

I clicked my tongue at the numerous disadvantages of our current battlefield. The ground beneath us was a muddy swamp, making every movement feel clunky and off-balance. In contrast, the crawfish monster moved with agile precision, completely ignoring the muck. It was an unfair trade-off.

Sensing that I lacked a decisive opening, I was about to opt for a tactical retreat when Maria’s voice rang out.

“—Firefly!!”

A thin film of flame clung to the monster’s head. Blinded by the fire, the monster instinctively brought both claws up to cover its face.

I wasn’t about to miss an opening like that.

I lunged at the monster, successfully targeting the joints I had missed before and shearing off both its arms. It was easy to aim for the joints of a confused enemy.

Deprived of its primary weapons, the monster let out a shriek. I followed up by driving my sword into every vital spot I could find. I targeted the remaining joints, the thin parts of its limbs, and its sensory organs; since I didn’t know its exact weakness, I simply crushed everything.

“—GGYAAAAAAHHHHHH!!”

Finally, the monster dissolved into light with a final death rattle. I watched it fade, breathing heavily, and let out a wry smile of achievement.

“…Sigh. That was a pain.”

“Congratulations, Master.”

“I told you, stop with the ‘Master’ thing…”

Maria, who had been focused on support from a distance, congratulated me as she approached. After we had acquired our magic, we had headed straight back into the Labyrinth. Now that Maria’s level had increased, we were pushing deeper into the floors without a single worry. My current goal was the 10th floor, where I intended to test the placement of a Connection portal.

As of right now, we had just defeated the boss of the 8th floor through our cooperation. I scolded Maria again for her choice of address while picking up the monster’s drops, but she continued as if she hadn’t heard me.

“You seemed to be struggling a bit. Was something wrong?”

“I just didn’t realize how much of a disadvantage bad footing could be. So, that helped. Your timing was perfect.”

“Oh, please. It seems that’s about all the help I can be in a boss fight, anyway.”

Maria made a slight pouting gesture. It seemed she was still unhappy with my instruction to stay back and provide cover before the fight started. Since I’d let her handle some of the weaker trash mobs with her dagger on the way to the 8th floor, she had developed a surplus of confidence. She likely believed she could have held her own even against this boss.

As expected, a rapid level-up seems to rob any human of their composure. Even with Maria’s thoughtful personality, I could tell she was excited and not quite grounded. Gaining more than double your physical strength and vitality in a few hours was bound to cause some issues.

I still felt uneasy about letting her participate in battles against higher-ranked foes. Even though I was monitoring every move the monsters made with my Dimension magic, there was always the possibility I wouldn’t be able to protect her from a special ability I was seeing for the first time.

“I’m sure you could have handled that boss, Maria. But you never know what a boss might pull. It’s better to wait until your level is a bit higher.”

“In times like that, shouldn’t you just use a slave like me as a sacrificial pawn?”

“You’re not a slave. And I hate that kind of talk.”

I treated Maria like a friend, but she insisted on viewing herself as a slave. If I did as she suggested and she died as a pawn, the self-loathing would make me want to die myself—and she didn’t seem to understand that.

…Wait, no.

Maybe she said it because she understood.

“Sigh. You’re soft as ever.”

“I’m not soft. I just believe in using the right person for the right job. I have other plans for how you’ll work for me.”

“Liar. You’re just overprotective.”

As she spoke, Maria played with her knife, spinning it in her palm and tossing it into the air like a juggler. Her Dex must have increased along with her level. She kept her body in constant motion, clearly eager to test her newly enhanced capabilities.

Unable to ignore her restless attitude, I tried to give her a stern warning.

“I’m not being overprotective. To me, it simply looks like you lack composure right now. If you die easily, I’m the one who loses out. I expect you to work off at least those four gold coins I spent on you.”

“That’s the biggest lie yet. You say so many things you don’t actually mean. You were the one who told me I could run away if I wanted to.”

“…”

Come to think of it, I believe I did say something like that…

Since the memory hit home, I was unable to offer a rebuttal. We talked a fair amount while exploring the Labyrinth, but I had yet to win a single argument against her. It was partly because Maria was eloquent while I was socially awkward, but the main problem was her Keen Eye skill. She was so sharp with her points that it felt like she was reading my mind.

As I was sulking over my defeat in our verbal sparring match, my Dimension search picked up a monster.

“Ah, there’s a monster around the right corner ahead. Think you can handle this one, Maria?”

“It’s here? Leave it to me!”

It was a common four-legged, beast-type monster. Knowing that the beast types on the 8th floor didn’t have any special abilities, I decided to let Maria use it for practice.

A Rank 8 monster: the Bound Dog.

For a Level 7 explorer, this was a creature that would typically be difficult to defeat without a party to surround it.

“Here I go—!”

In contrast to that common knowledge, Maria charged in with nothing but a single dagger and her own two feet. I followed close behind to provide backup.

The Bound Dog reacted with feline agility to the human launching an ambush from around the corner. With a beast-like motion, it leaped backward to dodge Maria’s opening strike. Absorbing the momentum of its retreat with all four legs, it prepared to lunge at the vulnerable Maria, whose swing had hit nothing but air.

I observed the scene without panic. I could tell that Maria, too, could see the Bound Dog’s charge coming.

As the creature lunged, Maria jumped.

She placed a hand on the Bound Dog’s back and vaulted over it. Not only that, but she managed to slash its back mid-leap.

The Bound Dog ignored me—despite the distance I was keeping—and repeatedly lunged at the enemy right in front of it: Maria. Its speed was something an ordinary person wouldn’t be able to track, and it was certainly far faster than Maria’s current physical movements.

And yet, it couldn’t catch her.

Maria’s physical stats were average for Level 7, or perhaps even slightly below. The only reason she could contend with the Bound Dog’s speed was entirely due to her skills.

Keen Eye saw through the Bound Dog’s psyche, never missing a twitch. Hunting guided her toward the most efficient body movements and methods of attack.

With these two skills combined, she struck the monster’s weaknesses with pinpoint accuracy. By the time its series of lunges ended, the Bound Dog’s body was a wreck. Faced with Maria’s fighting style—which focused solely on severing vital tendons—the beast’s vaunted speed had utterly vanished.

Finally, after being scorched by her fire magic, having its tendons cut, its eyes blinded, and its heart pierced, the monster breathed its last.

Maria was strong for her stats. It was a bit sad to compare her to myself or Dia, but she was clearly far more capable than the average explorer. Maria had finished off an 8th-floor monster without me having to lift a finger.

“…Haa… haa… I’m sorry. That took a bit of effort.”

“No, for your first day, that was amazing.”

“I’ve always been good at dealing with beasts. Though, in the village, I only ever dealt with small animals…”

“I see. That explains it.”

That explained why she had the Hunting skill.

“In the past, even if I could see the movements, my body couldn’t keep up. But it’s different now. My body feels light, and I can feel the strength welling up. It’s incredible. I can actually fight a beast as terrifying as this.”

Maria flicked her blood-stained dagger with a look of enjoyment, shaking off the gore. She seemed to feel a sense of accomplishment from defeating the monster. She was likely naturally suited for the act of “hunting.” Now that she had the benefits of Level 7 and a body that moved as she willed, it felt like her talent was truly beginning to bloom.

In the exploration that followed, leaving things to Maria caused no issues. Even when facing special enemies immune to physical attacks, she would use Keen Eye to identify the threat before using magic, making it a non-issue. If anything, her abilities shone brighter against specialized enemies. Watching her select the most effective attacks based on her insight reminded me of my own tactics.

In this way, our new party cleared the 8th floor and reached the 9th. However, at the 9th floor, we began encountering monsters Maria couldn’t handle alone. If an attack simply wouldn’t land, even Maria’s good eyes couldn’t save her. In those cases, I would have Maria provide support with Firefly while I handled the combat.

We hunted monsters as we went, confirming that Maria’s support was effective, and eventually reached the 10th floor.

The floor guarded by Alti. A room of roaring, magnificent flames.

After confirming no one else was around, I approached the fire for my experiment.

“Alti, can you hear me? Alti.”

I spoke to the flames as if I were making a phone call. I felt Maria looking at me like I was a crazy person, but I ignored it.

“Hey, Alti. Are you really listen—”

『Yes, I can hear you. This is my home, after all.』

The flames I addressed shifted into the shape of a mouth and replied. Behind me, I heard Maria let out a startled “Eh?!”

“I was half-doubting it, but you really do respond.”

『Of course. However, my main body is a bit busy. Sorry, but make it quick.』

“Got it. I’m thinking of placing my magic here. Do you mind?”

『The Dimension magic we were talking about earlier? I don’t mind. I’ll prepare a spot for you.』

As Alti spoke, a section of the fire vanished, creating a path.

『I’ve created a space at the end of that path where there is no fire. Give it a try.』

“I will.”

I walked down the path and chanted my magic in the flame-free space.

“—Magic: Connection.”

I visualized it. A mass of purple mana, the construction of a magical door. The mana leaking from my palm gathered, mimicking the shape of a door—and then vanished without stabilizing. I simply couldn’t keep the spell anchored.

“Dammit… Alti, the mana in this room is too strong. I can’t form the door.”

Part of the problem was that Connection was too fragile. Because of that, the barriers on the “Main Path” interfered with it, making it impossible to maintain the door. Anywhere else, it would be destroyed by monsters. That was why I had targeted the 10th floor—a region where neither barriers nor monsters existed—but my expectations had been betrayed.

『Mmm. I’ve been trying to divert the mana, but it’s not working well. This room is the very proof of my existence. Putting out the fire is one thing, but punching a hole in the mana itself is difficult.』

“Is there anything you can do? Whether or not I can place this here makes a huge difference.”

To me, the Labyrinth up to the 10th floor was losing its value. I had used it today because Maria was with me, but I likely wouldn’t need it starting next time. I wanted to shorten the travel time as much as possible.

『Muu… I’m sorry, it seems impossible. It’s the same as asking me to stop breathing.』

“I see…”

Alti informed me of the impossibility with an apologetic tone. Then, she offered an alternative.

『However, Teida’s room might work. After all, the master is gone. There’s a high chance the room’s mana has dissipated.』

“Teida…? That would be the 20th floor. That’s a bit far…”

『For you, Christ, the 20th floor should be no distance at all, right? Just go and give it a try.』

“Don’t make it sound so easy. Besides, Maria is with me today, and we’re short on time.”

『Hmm. I see.』

“But I’ll try it another day. Thanks for today. I’ll at least give you my thanks for that.”

『No, thanks are unnecessary. It’s only natural for collaborators to help each other. If you need anything, feel free to rely on me again.』

With that, the mouth in the flames lost its shape and returned to ordinary fire. I had learned that I couldn’t use Connection on the 10th floor. My next target was the 20th.

“Are you finished, Master?”

Maria, who had been quiet in the back, spoke up.

“Yeah, I’m done. For now, I’ve finished what I can do today.”

“Was that voice… Alti-san from lunch?”

Even though she was speaking through the flames, her tone was no different from her main body. Since I had been calling her by name, there was no point in trying to hide that the master of the flames was Alti.

“Yeah, it was Alti. She’s a specialist in fire magic, so she can do things like that.”

“Calling this a ‘specialist’ doesn’t even cover it… Just who on earth is she…?”

“I don’t know the details myself. She’s a mysterious one, but her knowledge is the real deal. When it comes to the Labyrinth, no one can touch her, so she’s perfect as a consultant like this.”

I decided to keep the fact that Alti was a monster to myself. Since we were technically collaborators, I wanted to refrain from spreading any information that might be harmful. Above all, I was terrified of what would happen if I were found out.

“Heh… a consultant…”

Whether she sensed I was withholding information or not, Maria only gave a short acknowledgment. If Maria was fine with that, I wouldn’t explain further. I did a quick status check and decided to end the exploration based on my remaining MP.

“Alright, let’s head home.”

“Oh, are we going back already?”

“Yeah. My MP is running low.”

“I see. In that case, please leave the monsters on the way back to me.”

Maria still seemed to have plenty of energy. Since Keen Eye and Hunting were passive skills that didn’t consume MP, that made sense. Considering my Dimension magic constantly drained MP, it was a very enviable situation.

—And as she had declared, Maria handled almost every monster on the way back. There were a few dangerous moments, but with my backup, she reached the surface without any major injuries. We immediately headed to exchange today’s loot for cash.

Maria was stunned when she saw the amount of money we received. Since she had earned the equivalent of several months’ living expenses in a single day of exploration, it was likely inconceivable to her based on her common sense until now.

“—T-This is amazing. I knew Labyrinth magic stones were expensive, but I didn’t think it was this much… So this is the reality of being an explorer, the high-earners I’ve heard rumors about…”

Maria muttered as she stared at the pouch of money in her hand.

“Yeah. It’s almost weird how easy it is to make money like this…”

Listening to Maria’s words, I realized that this was an income that should normally be impossible. And since I had the chance, I wanted to share that feeling with her.

“You can have half, Maria.”

“Eh?”

“You helped me out, so I was thinking of splitting it fifty-fifty…”

“No, no, no! That’s crazy! Everything was thanks to you, Master! This only happened because you were there!”

Maria shook her head and thrust the money pouch back at me. But I felt no attraction toward this small amount of change. Between the money from boss hunting and the money from defeating Teida, my sense of financial value had been completely warped. I figured it was better to follow the opinion of a “normal” citizen like Maria rather than my own.

“I guess half is a bit much. Then, how much do you think is fair, Maria?”

“No, I belong to you, Master, so there’s no talk of wages or anything… Just being allowed to stay here is enough…”

Maria said she didn’t want any money as if it were the most natural thing in the world. She still wouldn’t drop her stance of being my slave. I had brushed it off as a joke this morning, but it was becoming a problem if she was this stubborn.

I had no choice but to confess my own feelings.

“But I hate that. You should know by now, right? I’m not the kind of person big enough to keep a slave. I want us to have a more casual relationship.”

“…That’s not true. You are a person of great character, Master. You’re not ordinary.”

Despite my honest plea, Maria wouldn’t accept it. I couldn’t agree with the idea that I was someone of “great character.” If I were, Maria wouldn’t be in this position in the first place. But I also had a feeling that if we argued here, I would be the one to lose. My track record in the Labyrinth had been abysmal.

“Fine. Then let’s meet in the middle. Is that okay?”

“In the middle?”

“You risked your life to help me today. I want to avoid having you work for nothing.”

“That’s true… especially that thing this morning, that was awful.”

“Right? So, I’m not asking for fifty percent, but I want you to take at least a little.”

“…Alright. If you’re going to go that far, I’ll take a little.”

Maria steeled her resolve and agreed to take a wage. Taking a deep breath and trying her best to look arrogant, she named her price.

“In that case… hand over about five copper coins.”

Five copper coins. The price of a single meal.

This girl has no idea…

Maria responded to my silent protest with a smirk. No, maybe she was saying it because she knew. I shrugged my shoulders and entered the negotiation—the casual banter—she wanted.

“No way, copper coins are out of the question. A few silver coins is more appropriate.”

“What kind of noble are you? That’s impossible. At most, ten copper coins.”

“Then one silver coin. I’d say that’s the bare minimum.”

“If I have to go up, then eleven copper coins.”

“That’s only an increase of one coin… Meet me in the middle more than that…”

“Hmm. Fine then, fifteen.”

“Take eighty copper coins. Don’t forget this is compensation for risking your life.”

“You’re right. It’s because I risked my life that it’s fifteen coins.”

“No, raise it at least a little. We’re supposed to be meeting in the middle here…”

“I suppose I have no choice. Then twenty—”

“Finally, you’re starting to move. Then—”

Our half-joking negotiation lasted for a long time. Maria seemed to enjoy this kind of talk, holding out as long as she could until we reached the house. In the end, she accepted the copper coins from me with an exasperated look, and I felt relieved knowing she could now do some personal shopping.

Right after that, I prepared to leave Maria at the house. Just before I could, she asked where I was going. When I told her I was “doing menial work at a tavern,” she gave me the most exasperated look of the day.

“You’re earning this much money, so why are you making pocket change doing chores…?”

She had a point. But somehow—I didn’t want to admit she was right. I explained the importance of gathering information at the tavern to Maria and headed for work.

Maria remained utterly dumbfounded until the very moment I left.