Chapter 1 "Because We're Friends"
Hello this is a new works, I hope you read and like it...
My name is Aaron Gale, and I'm 15 years old.
I live in the the world's largest city [Holy City of Necronia], which has the largest labyrinth. I work as a labyrinth explorer.
I've only been doing this job for half a year, so I'm still considered a rookie.
But, my friends and I ―― we call ourselves the "Sword of Glory" party ―― have become pretty famous in the explorer community.
We're a team of new explorers, but our name is already well-known. Recently, people have stopped making fun of us because we've accomplished so much.
We've already cleared the 9th floor of the labyrinth, and now we're trying to conquer the 10th floor.
The 10th floor is like a huge wall that separates beginner explorers from intermediate ones.
Many explorers get stuck on this floor and can't move forward.
But if we can clear it, our future as explorers will change completely.
So, we're really pumped up and ready to do this!
"――Aaron!"
"Leave it to me!"
We're in the final room of the 10th floor, also known as the "Boss Room". We're about to face the last challenge to become intermediate explorers.
The boss is like a guardian, a monster that protects the stairs to the lower floors.
There are many names for it, but it's basically a huge creature that guards the way down.
The guardian of the 10th floor is a massive 'Minotaur', a creature with a human body and a bull's head.
It's over 3 meters tall (≈ 10 feet) and has muscles like steel.
It's holding a huge axe that looks like it's made of iron, and it can swing it around easily.
This creature doesn't use magic or special skills, but its axe attacks are super powerful and can kill us, a low-level explorers, with one hit.
It's a formidable opponent.
We need to be really careful and focused.
But I'm not going to give up.
I trust my leader, Lion, and I'm ready to follow his instructions. Now, I dash forward when the minotaur is shouting loudly.
"――GRAAAAWR!!"
The Minotaur swings its axe down from above, but I jump to the side and avoid the attack.
It's a strong attack, but it's also easy to read, so I can dodge it.
At the same time, a massive lump of iron, as big as a house, hit right next to me and crashed into the ancient stone floor, making a deafening explosion-like sound that shook the entire room.
But I didn't flinch.
My spirit, fueled by battle excitement, turned even the fear of death into thrill.
Right after the attack, the monster froze for a split second.
I couldn't let that chance slip away.
I was already close enough to grab the monster's massive body.
"SLAAAASSSHHH!!"
Swordsmanship――[Slash]
I swung my long sword, which was covered in a blue aura, and it shone brightly in the dim underground.
Even without armor, the monster's muscles were so strong that it could deflect arrows and swords. This was the Minotaur, a powerful monster.
But my sword, which was empowered by the aura many times over the sharpness of the slash, dealt a devastating blow that cut deep into the Minotaur's left leg.
Blood gushed out, and the Minotaur let out a painful roar.
Its leg was crushed, and now it couldn't move anymore.
"Yes! Everyone, attack!"
On Lion's command, our whole party launched a full-on attack.
Arrows rained down, piercing the Minotaur's eye, and a fireball engulfed its body. Our friends, armed with aura-infused spears, struck from the sides, and Lion delivered the final blow, slicing the Minotaur's head off.
It was all over.
The Minotaur, considered the first major obstacle, had fallen before us, the "Sword of Glory" team.
"That was easier than expected."
"Nice job, Aaron!"
"Yeah, it was a piece of cake for me."
"No way, I saw my arrow pierce the Minotaur's eye! That was probably the finishing blow!"
"Shut up, the Minotaur wouldn't die from that!"
We joked around, relieved that the battle was over.
As we stood there, the Minotaur's massive body began to dissolve into magical energy.
Unlike monsters on the surface, those in the labyrinth don't leave behind corpses. Instead, they're broken down into magical energy and return to the labyrinth.
But something remained.
One thing was the magical energy.
When a monster dies in the labyrinth, some of its magical power is absorbed by living creatures nearby, usually the explorers who defeated it.
By absorbing the monster's magical power, we explorers can increase our own magical capacity.
Magical power is like the energy we need to use magic and skills, so the more we have, the better. The amount of magical power we have is like a measuring stick to see how strong we are as explorers.
Another important thing is the magical stone.
It's the main reason we explorers venture into the labyrinth, and it's also a material used to make magic tools and potion.
When we defeat a monster, it always leaves behind a magic stone.
But that's not all ―― sometimes, the monster's equipment or body parts can also remain.
"Oh, the battle axe has dropped."
Lion looked at the spot where the Minotaur had disappeared and said happily.
True to his word, the battle axe that the Minotaur had been using was still there.
Sometimes, when defeated a monster, its weapons, armor, or even parts of its body can remain behind. Labyrinth explorers can take these items back to the surface and sell them for money.
"A rare drop! This is a good start."
As one of our companions said, it is rare for a Minotaur to drop its battle axe. The weapon is too big for most humans to wield, but high-level explorers can use it normally. It also has considerable value as scrap metal.
"Alright, let's keep this momentum going! We should at least check out the 11th floor, right?"
"Yeah, we'll save the actual clearing for later, but let's just take a quick look."
And so, we decided to just explore the 11th floor for now before heading back to the surface.
We gathered the Minotaur's dropped items and were about to set off when Leon said.
"Wait a minute. I think I might have learned a new skill from that last fight."
"Really? I had a feeling I did too."
"I'll check it out too."
For us "fighter" explorers, battling tough enemies not only levels up our jobs but also allows us to learn new skills.
Even though we defeated it easily, the Minotaur was definitely a strong opponent. If we had been hit by even one of its attacks, one of us could have been killed.
So, it's not weird if the job grows stronger when one defeats an enemy.
When a job grows, it means their physical abilities get better, or they learn new skills. It's like getting better grades in school because you studied hard and learned new things.
But, it is not possible to confirm it with clear numerical values or letters, as with magical power. However, there are 2 special cases where one can see tjeor job growth clearly.
One is when you can 'evolve' your job.
This means your current job has reached its limit, but you still have room to grow as a person. You can make your job evolve by doing a special ceremony at the church.
When this happens, a white mark will appear on the back of the left hand. But, if the left hand is missing for some reason, the mark will appear somewhere else. y the way, the shape of the mark is determined by the type of job.
The other special case is when a "black" mark appears on the back of the left hand.
Just because someone can evolve their job doesn't mean everyone can do it.
A job is a special power given to people by the gods to help them fight against monsters. But, there's a big "difference" in people's talents and abilities.
How far one can grow their job, what skills they can learn, and how many times they can evolve it ―― all of these things depend on individual talent.
Most people can only grow their job to an "intermediate job" that has evolved from the "basic job", and then it stops.
Only a few people can grow their job to an "advanced job", and even fewer can become super talented and get a "unique job".
How strong one's job is affects how well they can fight, and what skills they can use. So, how far they can grow their job is the most important thing for an adventurer like us.
But, not everyone can become super talented and get a "unique job". In fact, very few people can even get to the "advanced job".
Most people are stuck at an intermediate, and some might even get stuck at the basic job.
When someone reach their limit and can't grow anymore, it's called 'talent limit.' And when they reach their talent limit, a black mark will appear on the back of their left hand.
"Hey, Leon."
"Huh? What's up, Aaron?"
"Yeah, just listen to this, everyone."
"What's going on?""
I was grinning from ear to ear as I turned to my friends, the amazing team from the "Sword of Glory" guild.
"Remember, we've been through a lot together, right?"
"What's with the sudden nostalgia?"
"Did you hit your head or something?"
"On the day we registered at the Explorer's Guild, we just happened to meet and formed a party together."
"You're not listening to what I'm saying."
"At first, we had our differences and even fought. But we were bound together by strong friendships and never gave up."
"Why are you started talking about that?"
"We used our friendship and hard work as our weapons to overcome any obstacle and achieve victory And today, we finally broke through the 10th floor, which is considered the intermediate wall! I think we're the best team ever! The best party ever!!"
My passionate words made my friends glance at each other, looking a bit embarrassed but smiling.
"Heh, what's up with you?"
"Isn't that obvious? We're the best team, after all."
"There's no party better than us."
"Let's keep moving forward together. We can conquer this labyrinth no matter what!!"
My friends' passionate words made me nod in agreement.
I felt a warmth in my chest. Yeah, we're the best team ever.
So I asked,
"Hey, are we really good friends?"
"What are you talking about, Aaron? Of course, we are."
"Don't be silly. We've been friends for a long time, haven't we?"
My friends' words made me feel relieved.
Then, I didn't have any worries. We're good friends, and that's all that matters.
"Yeah, hearing those words made me feel better."
I nodded and continued,
"By the way, it's not a big deal, but..."
"What's up?"
"I think I've reached my limit for my skills."
I showed my friends the mark on the back of my left hand.
It had a "black" mark on it.
My job is a "Beginner Swordsman."
Usually, as a beginner fighter, you can learn around 5 skills, but I've only learned one, [Slash].
On the other hand, my friends have already learned 3 or 4 skills and are close to advancing to an intermediate job.
Comparing myself to my friends, who are growing faster than me, I've been thinking, "Maybe I'm not good enough" for a while now.
But, to be honest, it was way too early. I mean, getting a basic job with only one skill? That's super rare, in a bad way. It's like a joke.
To be clear, I was shocked. I thought it was some kind of prank.
Normally, this would be a crisis that could get me kicked out of the party.
But, don't worry about it. There's no problem.
Because, we're friends!
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)