Chapter 40

The Labyrinth of the Earth. Also known as the Underearth Labyrinth of No Return.

I’d at least heard the name. It was a dungeon discovered five years ago. It was a notorious place where not a single person had managed a successful conquest—in fact, it was whispered that the vast majority of adventurers who set foot inside never came back.

“A rematch, then.”

Brad was the one who muttered it. He wore a fierce expression, his eyes narrowing as he let out a sharp, jagged smile.

“That’s right… Brad was a survivor, wasn’t he?”

Eni spoke in a voice so low it was meant only for my ears.

“I look forward to it.”

Henya smiled with a sticky, lingering coldness that brought a snake to mind.

“So, why exactly do you want us to conquer a dungeon with such a nasty reputation?”

Jin asked the question that was on all our minds.

“Hmph, it’s quite simple. As you mentioned earlier, an unconquered, high-difficulty dungeon has the power to draw a crowd. However, in the case of this particular dungeon, things went too far. Now, adventurers have grown hesitant to even step foot inside. That is precisely why I was able to purchase an unconquered dungeon for a price I could actually afford.”

Generally speaking, unconquered dungeons—especially those rumored to house Holy Relics from the era of legends in their deepest depths—fall under the direct management of the Royal Family. This is true in almost every country.

However, it seemed the Labyrinth of No Return had been put up for sale. Likely because no one was willing to attempt it anymore.

“There are even rumors floating around that it’s cursed and everyone who enters is doomed to die, or that an unknown monster called a ‘Shadow’ that manipulates space itself prowls the halls. People say it’s an impossible dungeon where only death awaits.”

Bent shrugged before continuing.

“Incidentally, the rumor about the ‘Shadow’ monster started because adventurers were found dead inside what were clearly sealed, locked rooms.”

Bent cast a quick glance toward me and Kijiitsu.

I see. Now I understood why he had recruited detectives. If something were to happen during our conquest, he expected us to solve the mystery properly instead of letting people blame it on some “unknown monster.”

“Adventurers are a superstitious lot; it’s a dangerous profession, after all. Many of them refuse to enter such an ill-omened place. Because of its survival rate, the Labyrinth of No Return is estimated to be at the highest difficulty level. If someone were to conquer it and return alive, adventurers would come flocking back.”

“So even though an ‘unconquered’ dungeon becomes a ‘conquered’ one, its value actually goes up. And you plan to use that dungeon to turn a profit. I see. The logic is simple enough,” Jin said insolently.

“…That’s all well and good, but…”

Henya made a grasping motion, as if reaching for something.

“The real question is whether a conquest is even possible. If it’s a problem that can be settled by cutting it down, I can handle anything, but…”

His sword.

He was likely reaching for his blade out of pure instinct.

“What do you mean? It’s a dungeon, so obviously it can be conquered,” Eni said, looking suspicious.

“Well, that’s not necessarily true! I guess it’s only natural that little Eni wouldn’t know, since she’s never actually tried it.”

Mora spoke with a cheerful, bubbly grin.

“Perfectly put. You are the best person for this, after all. You were the discoverer. There may be some here who don’t know the specifics. Please, give us a brief explanation of that dungeon.”

Bent gestured toward her with an open palm.

The discoverer?

“Huh? Me?”

Mora looked taken aback by the sudden nomination, but being the simple-natured type, she quickly shifted gears.

“Alright then, I’ll give you the broad strokes.”

She cleared her throat.

Five years ago, it was by pure coincidence that the group including Mora discovered the dungeon.

Their objective had been to excavate the earth in the Qua region. Qua was a territory dominated by mountains, but they weren’t digging into the peaks; they were focused on the ground situated in the valleys between the mountains.

Since they were digging in the valleys rather than the mountainsides, it wasn’t a mining operation.

The Qua region was known as one of the most earthquake-prone areas in Pace. It was said that the crust had been undergoing constant shifts ever since the Holy Spirit Era and even before.

Naturally, there were countless legends claiming that “something” was buried beneath the soil of Qua.

Mora had been hired as a Digger to excavate a site pointed out by folklore as the location of an ancient, buried temple. The employer was a historian, and the excavation was purely for academic research.

However, they found nothing.

They expanded the search area, but still found nothing. They dug even deeper, but still, nothing appeared.

Just as everyone in the group was about to give up, convinced that no such temple existed, they found something deep within the earth.

A broken structure buried far underground. A section of a stone wall.

Thinking it was the temple, the group excitedly dug around it, only to realize it was something else entirely.

Even then, no one suspected it was a dungeon. The reason was simple: it was broken. A portion of the outer wall—what would be the very top of the dungeon—was shattered, cracked, and ruined. Operating under the prejudice that dungeons were indestructible, they assumed it was merely an ancient ruin.

The group initially intended to survey it from the outside, but they gave up on uncovering the whole thing due to the structure’s sheer scale, especially its depth. The natural next step was to check the interior, but they couldn’t find a single entrance. Mora, a veteran of countless life-or-death struggles as an adventurer, resolved to break in through a crack in the outer wall at the shattered summit. It was only after she dove inside that the true nature of the building was revealed.

The first thing Mora saw after entering through the breach was an interior just as devastated as the exterior.

The inner walls were cracked and splintered, choked with inflowing soil; it was a grizzly sight.

Amidst the debris, Mora found a cracked crystal rolling around like a clod of earth.

She stood dazed for a moment, not understanding what it signified.

But in the next heartbeat, it all clicked.

This was the remains of a Return Stone. A Return Stone that had been utterly destroyed.

Why were there no entrances? Because the entrance had been at the very top, of course. A dungeon is a place where you enter from the peak and delve deeper and deeper. Since the entrance section had been pulverized, no doorway could be found.

How could a dungeon be destroyed? It’s true that with current human technology, we can’t even analyze the substances that make up a dungeon, and we can barely leave a scratch on the walls. However, while human hands fail, it is not strange for a portion to break when faced with the immense natural power of crustal movement and earthquakes.

Naturally, once they realized it was a dungeon, they weren’t foolish enough to press on alone without preparation.

The group, Mora included, returned to the surface and reported the buried dungeon to the state. Thus, rumors of a new dungeon—the Labyrinth of the Earth—began to circulate among adventurers. At first, it was spoken of as a dangerous place where Return Stones didn’t work, yet a hopeful site where precious treasures might still sleep. Within a year, it was known as a cursed labyrinth where almost everyone who challenged it died.

Mora finished her tale.

“To be precise, saying the ‘majority’ of challengers die is incorrect. It’s nothing more than a rumor.”

Hunt brushed back his bangs as he offered a supplementary explanation.

“We knew the lack of Return Stones made the conquest incredibly dangerous. Furthermore, once we confirmed that monsters equivalent to those in the deepest levels of intermediate dungeons appear as early as the first basement floor, the Labyrinth of the Earth was judged to be of the highest difficulty tier among all known dungeons. Of course, that was a comprehensive judgment including factors like the inability to use Return Stones. Regardless, adventurers are cautious by nature. Most turn back after the second or third floor and return safely. You were one of them, weren’t you, Jin?”

“I don’t go looking for trouble. I dove in right after it was discovered, but I retreated immediately once I realized it was too risky. Some people laughed and called me a coward, though.”

Jin closed his eyes, stifling a wry smile at the memory.

“Every last one of those ‘brave’ types ended up dead.”

There was an unmistakable note of mockery in his voice. It was a sneer he tried to hide, but it bled through anyway.

“Except for me, I suppose.”

Brad spoke up, his eyes darting quickly around the room. The suspicion and caution inherent to the man seemed to manifest in his very movements.

“Ah, yes, Brad. Allow me to introduce him: he is the sole survivor to have seen the fifth basement floor of the Labyrinth of the Earth and beyond.”

Bent clapped his hands.

“I made it to the tenth floor, hit a dead end, and came back. Everyone else died the moment I took my eyes off them. They dropped off both on the way down and on the way back.”

“I’ve heard that story. That’s why I asked my question. If it’s a matter of cutting something down, fine.”

Again, Henya made that presumably unconscious gesture of gripping his hilt.

“But this ‘dead end’ bothers me. The entrance was destroyed by shifting earth, right? Is it possible the dungeon itself was so badly damaged that further progress is impossible? In other words, could it be unconquerable?”

“I think we’re okay on that front!”

Mora thumped her chest.

“I’ll skip the technical jargon, but the reason the entrance area broke was likely because the rest of it didn’t break. The dungeon was so incredibly sturdy that it barely deformed at all. So, when the massive force of the crustal shift hit the whole structure, it didn’t bend; instead, the energy couldn’t escape and gathered at the entrance—the structurally weakest point—until it just couldn’t take it anymore and…”

Mora made an exploding gesture with both hands.

“By the way, this isn’t just my opinion. It’s a theory developed alongside several experts. Just putting that out there.”

“I’m not one to back up a mole-woman, but she’s likely right. The entrance is a mess of rubble and dirt, but once you get down there, it’s pristine. It’s a perfectly normal dungeon. It was a dead end for us, but I suspect there was a gimmick involved. However, after half the group died in ways I couldn’t explain, I wasn’t in the mood to stand around solving puzzles. The survivors decided to head home.”

“Strange ways to die?”

The phrase caught my attention, and I voiced my doubt.

“They just… died, one by one. I still don’t know what it was. A ‘Shadow’? A monster that manipulates time and space? Hmph, it sounds ridiculous, but I can see why people would want to believe it. One comrade would vanish and turn up a corpse; another would lock himself in a small room out of fear, only to be found dead in a room that should have been empty. It was… strange.”

I felt a chill run down my spine—not so much at the story itself, but at the dreamy look on Brad’s face and the nostalgic tone of his voice.

Perhaps it’s the nature of an adventurer to process even the deaths of their comrades as a fond memory or a grand tale of adventure. I wouldn’t know.

“That’s enough for now. A brief explanation is all we need,” Bent called out, cutting off Brad’s reminiscence.

“Now then, let’s have the final confirmation. Will you all accept the request to conquer the Labyrinth of the Earth—the Labyrinth of No Return? If anyone wishes to refuse such a dangerous job, speak now.”

As he spoke, a bold smile played on Bent’s soft cheeks, clearly believing no one would back out.

His prediction held true.

Brad and Jin were grinning.

Shirona, Kijiitsu, and Watch didn’t change their expressions.

Henya and Eni, sitting beside me, narrowed their eyes sharply.

Not a single person refused.

I couldn’t bring myself to say “I’m out,” either. Though in my case, it was simply because no one else was quitting, and I couldn’t bear to be the odd one out. My old Japanese tendency toward social conformity had flared up. If even one other person had said they wouldn’t take the job, I would have jumped on that bandwagon in a heartbeat.

But, for better or worse…

Putting our individual motives aside, all of us who passed the qualifiers were now committed to challenging the Labyrinth of No Return.