Chapter 20 Do We Really Need To Fight With Everyone?
Day 2 of the Labyrinth Exploration.
The team ≪Labyrinth Conquest Team≫ and the 4 members of [Four Great Families of the Seals] had already reached the 16th floor.
From the 16th to the 20th floor, the labyrinth becomes a scorching hot desert-like layer, but here, day and night exist just like on the surface. Currently, fake stars floated in the sky, and the temperature was rapidly dropping.
However, compared to the blistering heat of the day, it was somewhat better.
In a corner of the desert area on this night, we were resting.
We had a bonfire, ate, and were sleeping in the sleeping bags. Right now, we were all gathered around the bonfire, not sleeping yet, and the scene was no different from a camping trip on the surface.
No, it might be even more comfortable than camping on the surface.
The reason was that we didn't need to take turns keeping watch.
"It's really amazing, isn't it? The magic tools of the barrier..."
≪Iron Wall Alliance's leader, Garon Gasterk, said with admiration.
Garon was a large, muscular man with a gentle face. However, as an Expert Explorer, he wore thick metal armor and carried a huge shield, and yet, he didn't show any signs of fatigue even after walking for 2 days.
"Well, it's expensive, you know."
Eva Kirke replied with a tired face to Garon's words.
Not just Eva, but all 4 members of [Four Great Families of the Seals], who were being protected, were exhausted. Even Ryan, who had been enthusiastic about fighting monsters before, was now lying down, looking tired, and staring at the bonfire with empty eyes.
It wasn't like they had done anything special.
They had just walked from the 1st floor to the 16th floor, protected by the members of ≪Labyrinth Conquest Team≫.
However, in the labyrinth environment, where they were constantly under tension, and had to walk a long distance, it was a considerable burden for Eva and the others, who were physically no different from ordinary people.
"Princess, you seem very tired. Shouldn't you rest now?"
"Don't call me 'princess,' Garon. And, let's take a break soon."
Eva replied with a wry smile to Garon's 'princess' address.
Although not of royal blood, Eva was the daughter of a noble family and it wasn't unusual for her to be called 'princess.' However, only those close to the Kirke family would address her as such.
In reality, Garon was from a family that served the Kirke household, and the Iron Wall Alliance, an adventurer party, was also supported and raised by the Kirke family.
Therefore, Garon and the Iron Wall Alliance were, in essence, in a master-servant relationship.
"Exploring is really tough, isn't it? Just walking through the labyrinth is exhausting..."
"Haha, well, yeah. But I think this exploration is going to be relatively easy."
Garon chuckled in response to Eva's complaint.
"I guess it's because we have the boundary magic tools, right?"
"Yes, of course. And with the Storage Ring, we don't need to carry our luggage around, which is a huge help."
Garon showed off the Storage Ring, a decorative ring without any ornaments, on his arm.
The reason Eva and the others could set up camp without worrying about monsters in the labyrinth, where monsters roamed free, was because of the boundary magic tools.
The boundary magic tools could create a barrier, blocking entry and exit, and also made it impossible to see inside from the outside.
It was an extremely expensive magic tool, one that even royalty couldn't buy easily, except for Necronia.
And on top of that, there was the Storage Ring.
This magic tool could store items in a subspace, and was one of the support items given to each member of the Labyrinth Conquest Team by the Four Great Families of the Seals.
The value of the Storage Ring varied depending on its subspace capacity, and the ones given to the team members were the lowest quality, but still had a capacity of 3 cubic meters (≈ 106 cubic feet).
It goes without saying that it's extremely expensive, a magic tool that even kings and nobles from all over the world would drool over. Giving 51 Storage Rings to someone else? That's impossible unless you're one of the [Four Great Families of the Seals].
That's because creating a magical tool like a Storage Ring or a barrier requires spatial magic.
And the only ones who can use spatial magic are the blood relatives of the [Four Great Families of the Seals] from all over the world. This spatial magic is the reason why the [Four Great Families of the Seals] can maintain the barrier of [God's Remains Labyrinth], why other countries' kings and nobles respect the [Four Great Families of the Seals], and why they have an extraordinary source of wealth.
"Well, but, I guess the biggest reason is... them, right? I never thought I could get this far without fighting even once."
Garon's gaze drifted away, and Eva followed it, letting out a dry laugh with a distant look in her eyes.
"Ah, yeah... I was surprised too, in a different way, that is."
The 2 Swordsmen they were looking at were training inside the labyrinth.
Aaron Gale and Fiona Ackerman were their names.
To be precise, Aaron was giving Fiona a mock battle training. And the 3 of them ―― Logan, Io, and Ail ―― were watching the training with great interest.
"I never thought they'd start fighting one-on-one halfway through..."
Eva remembered the journey up to the 16th floor.
For Logan and the others, the monsters on the lower floors were probably just boring opponents. At first, they had all worked together to defeat the monsters that appeared, but after a while, Aaron said,
"Hey, do we really need to fight with everyone?"
And Logan and the others agreed.
"Yeah, no way."
"Yeah, that's right. So, how about we take turns fighting one-on-one? That way, we can conserve our energy too."
"Hmm... Solo combat, huh. The problem is that the enemy is too weak, but it might be more interesting that way."
Logan agreed to Aaron's proposal, thinking it would be entertaining.
In hindsight, it was still a breeze for them, but for Eva and the others who had little to no combat experience, it was no joke.
With this many Expert explorers gathered, fighting low-level monsters, they didn't think they'd get hurt, but they still wanted to be as safe as possible. After all, they were amateurs.
But in the end, no one got even a scratch, and they made it this far without a hitch. Logan, of course, and Fiona and Aaron, who usually explored solo, were overwhelmingly powerful and annihilated the monsters.
Eva's worries were unfounded, it seemed. But she couldn't help feeling anxious.
And to make matters worse, they had too much free time, so they were even practicing now.
"So... Garon, what do you think of Mr. Aaron?"
Eva asked in a hushed tone, not wanting others to hear.
Garon looked surprised but also whispered back,
"Do you suspect him? We investigated his background beforehand and concluded he was no problem, didn't we?"
"I'm not suspecting him. It's just that he's more likely to hold a grudge against them, so it's clear. It's not that; it's about his actual abilities."
Eva had thoroughly investigated Aaron when they brought him into their group.
As a result, she judged that the possibility of him belonging to the enemy camp was extremely low. Moreover, after sharing the truth about Stampede and the enemy's information, as well as their own strategy, he didn't do anything suspicious.
If Aaron Gale were part of the enemy camp, he would have definitely made contact to gather information, but that didn't happen.
Eva's own instincts also told her that Aaron was not on the enemy's side.
But, she still had doubts about whether he was a member of "Extreme Sword" or not. Those doubts had only grown stronger over the past 2 days of searching.
Garon also voiced his thoughts, which seemed to support Eva's speculation.
"He's incredibly strong, to say the least. I mean, he's a bit too strong."
"You're talking about the incident with ≪Balmung≫, right?"
"Of course, that's part of it, but even on our journey so far, he's been abnormal."
"Did something happen? I saw him take down all the monsters on the way with just one swing of his sword, but isn't that the same for Logan and the others?"
Eva recalled the battle scenes from their journey.
To be honest, from her perspective, both Aaron and Logan were too strong, and she couldn't really tell the difference. She thought they were amazing, but...
"Well, since we're still in the lower levels, it's hard to gauge their strength in battles against weak monsters. That's some amazing technique, but... what really impressed me was the Elder Treant battle."
The 15th floor guardian, Elder Treant.
It could manipulate the roots of the earth to bind its enemies and attack them, and it could even use advanced wind magic. It was a troublesome monster.
But what made it truly troublesome was its enormous size. Elder Treant was like a giant tree, and even combat Jobs with fire magic couldn't take it down without a magician. It was difficult to defeat.
On the other hand, if there was a magician who could use fire magic, it would be relatively easy to defeat, but there was also the troublesome aspect that only magic stones would drop, and no other materials would be obtained.
Of course, at first, ≪Sage≫ Io Suleiman tried to take it down with magic, but Aaron stopped him.
"No way, a Swordsman would fight alone just to get a rare drop... Ah, Mr. Aaron is also a renowned wood sword craftsman, right? I don't really get what it means to be a renowned wood sword craftsman, though..."
She gazed into the distance, recalling her memories.
One piece of information that came to light when she investigated Aaron was the title "Wood Sword Meister".
He's one of the few craftsmen who can create a wooden sword by carving and decorating the core of an Elder Treant, and he's extremely famous in the industry. On top of that, he even has clients from other countries and the head of the Gridavor family, which left Eva in awe.
What's with the woodworking industry, anyway?
"There are even a few fans of his in the Labyrinth Conquest Team, you know. But what surprised me was the way he took down Elder Treant..."
"Ah, yeah..."
As she was told, she couldn't help but recall it again.
Aaron's method of taking down Elder Treant was incredibly simple when put into words.
He seemed to instantly close in on Elder Treant from a distance, and by the time he did, his sword was already buried deep into Elder Treant's trunk.
And before Elder Treant could even counterattack, a massive explosion occurred, centered around the sword that was stabbed in.
The Elder Treant, with a huge hole bored into its trunk, split in 2 and was reduced to magical energy.
"Even now, I still can't understand what he did..."
From Eva's perspective, it was as if Elder Treant's trunk suddenly exploded and was defeated ―― that was the correct sequence of events.
But Garon, an Expert explorer, seemed to know more details.
"First, he used the [Blink] skill to rapidly close in from a distance. Then, he used the [Aura Blade] to deeply stab his sword into the hard trunk, and finally, he finished it off with another skill... I think it was probably an [Aura Burst]-like skill that exploded the aura, but the power was too high to be believable... Maybe he used the same skill multiple times in an extremely short period, or maybe his skill level was high enough to increase its power..."
Garon explained, but then trailed off, lost in thought.
Then, he snapped back to reality and continued.
"Anyway, he's an Expert explorer with extremely high-level skills. There are hardly any people who can do something like that..."
"Oh, Garon, can't you take down Elder Treant by yourself?"
"It's possible to defeat them. However, as a Unique Job of the Shield Knight system, it'll take some time to get there. To be able to defeat Elder Treant in such a short time... that's something only someone like Mr. Logan or Mr. Io could do."
"Yeah... that's true."
A person with the same level of skill as the Holy Sword Logan.
There might be people like that in the "Extreme Sword" group.
(If I could negotiate with "Extreme Sword" and recruit them as allies... we might be able to put an end to the long war surrounding [God's Remain]...)
With that kind of power, we might be able to eradicate the pests infesting Necronia once and for all.
Eva thought so.
And the next day, Eva and the ≪Labyrinth Conquest Team≫, led by her, naturally broke through the 20th floor and reached the 21st floor.
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