98. The Bottom of the Well

“What an impressive haul.”

The frogman Frodo examined the corpses and handed over the items he was carrying with a satisfied expression.

Three bottles of Exir, Killer Bee’s Royal Jelly, and two Spirit Beast’s Hearts.

“Porter, you’re not thinking of hogging all this for yourself, are you?”

“Of course not. These are creatures we hunted together. It wouldn’t be right for me to take everything.”

The corpses I handed over to Frodo were those of the monsters we had hunted alongside the Inquisitors.

They couldn’t be considered solely my property. That’s why I had to share the purchased items with the Inquisitors.

‘If I could give up the three bottles of Exir and the Royal Jelly and take the two Spirit Beast’s Hearts for myself, that’d be ideal.’

In terms of value, the most expensive item was the Killer Bee’s Royal Jelly.

This was an item that could only be farmed on the 7th floor. Eating it raw would boost physical regeneration to troll-like levels, and if brewed into a potion, it could mass-produce top-tier healing potions.

If I took it to the Alchemy Guild, an auction would start immediately. There was no telling how high the bids could go. Since it was also used as research material, if I played the Magic Tower and the Alchemy Guild against each other, I could earn enough to buy a fancy house in the labyrinth city-no joke.

In short, one lump of Royal Jelly was worth the price of a house.

‘But money isn’t what’s important to me right now.’

I could keep freeloading at Yuria’s place for a while longer.

What truly mattered to me now was conquering the labyrinth.

Beyond the underground city, I needed to dominate the 6th floor and break through to the 7th.

Because the moment all the Nightmares of the Labyrinth break free and crawl out beyond the labyrinth city, we’d have no choice but to witness the world’s destruction.

Before that, I had to crawl down to the deepest part and close the door.

“Paramel-nim.”

“Yes?”

“You know how valuable Royal Jelly is, right?”

“Well… I do have some idea.”

I deliberately asked Paramel, the most knowledgeable among the Inquisitors.

At Paramel’s words, Raphael stared at the Royal Jelly with fascination, and Sasalo also nodded in agreement, acknowledging it as a precious item.

“As for Exir, it’s the best item for exploring the Lake Section.”

“What exactly is Exir?”

“If you dissolve just one bottle of this in water, anything with gills-or anything else, for that matter-will instantly pass out. Creatures that breathe through gills won’t stand a chance against it.”

“What about creatures that don’t breathe through gills?”

“Anything that absorbs Exir dissolved in water will immediately collapse. Think of it as a poison specifically designed for aquatic life in the Lake Section.”

Exir was the most crucial item for developing the Lake Section.

According to Olivia, it was a near-guaranteed drop when encountering Frogmen.

With this, the random encounter rate in the Lake Section would drop drastically. Moreover, if we dumped it near a mermaid nest, we could raid their lair without any trouble.

“So, Porter, what are you trying to say?”

“I’ll hand over all the Exir and Royal Jelly to you. In exchange, could you transfer the Spirit Beast’s Hearts to me?”

“Spirit Beast’s Hearts? What are those used for? Are they really worth giving up all this?”

“No, not to that extent, but a Druid I know asked me to bring them if I ever found any. Said they’re used to make some kind of talisman. I thought I’d give one to him for free and use the other to get a talisman for myself.”

“So, you’re giving up three bottles of Exir and Royal Jelly-items that would let us quickly conquer the Lake Section-in exchange for those?”

“Yes. Not a bad deal, right?”

“Hmm. Honestly, I don’t know much about the value of Spirit Beast’s Hearts, so it’s hard to say for sure.”

The Saintess had no idea what Spirit Beast’s Hearts could be used for.

Just as Olivia had said, this was hidden knowledge.

‘If I give a Spirit Beast’s Heart to a Druid, something incredible will happen.’

Of course, the part about making talismans was a lie. Knowing the Saintess didn’t have lie detection constantly active, I spun the tale without hesitation.

‘What I can get is far better than any talisman.’

If I could meet the president of the Druid Society, I’d be able to obtain a ‘pet’ that I could bring into the labyrinth.

‘The reason Olivia insisted I get this no matter what.’

With a Spirit Beast’s Heart, I could summon the soul of a beast.

It meant I could permanently obtain a summon that could be resummoned even if it died. And since I had two hearts, I could summon two pets.

However, as you can see, this information wasn’t widely known.

The Druids might be aware, but it was unlikely the Goddess Church clergy knew about the Spirit Beast’s Hearts.

Archivist Paramel was the most likely to know, but since even he showed no reaction, it seemed this knowledge was limited to Druid circles.

“Very well. Let’s do that. It’s only right that those who need certain items get them. Besides, if you hadn’t stopped me earlier, we wouldn’t have gotten any of this in the first place.”

“Thank you, Saintess.”

After a brief hesitation, the Saintess readily handed over the two Spirit Beast’s Hearts to me.

Since it was the Saintess’s decision, the other Inquisitors didn’t argue. In fact, they seemed pleased to have obtained the Royal Jelly.

“Looks like we’re getting a bonus after a long time.”

“Planning to drink again?”

“As a priest, it’s the height of entertainment. Of course, I’ll eat and drink.”

Raphael looked particularly happy.

Unlike worldly priests, the clergy in the labyrinth city drank and ate meat with gusto.

However, they didn’t indulge in women, drugs, or gambling. Though they enjoyed alcohol, I’d never seen any cross the line completely.

“Then we’ve gotten everything we can here. Should we leave this guy behind?”

“That’d be best. Frodo-nim, let’s meet again next time.”

“Let’s meet again alive.”

We left Frodo behind in the ruined ruins and set off again.

He probably wouldn’t get caught by any heretics.

I’d heard his stealth abilities were exceptional. He wouldn’t be detected easily.

“Porter, spread the Exir.”

“You’re using it right away?”

“Of course. How long will the effect last?”

“At least five hours. It could last up to ten in some cases.”

“That’s enough to find the entrance to the layer split. What are you waiting for? Go ahead and spread it.”

“Yes.”

Following the Saintess’s order, I opened a bottle of Exir and poured it into the water.

Now, this area was safe.

For at least five hours, no aquatic monsters would attack us.

---

Thanks to Exir’s effects, we could explore the Lake Section comfortably.

There was no sinister writhing in the water, and no fishmen hurling bone harpoons at us.

I don’t think I’d ever traversed the labyrinth this pleasantly before.

“Over there, there’s something. It looks like a well.”

After walking deeper into the Lake Section for about three more hours, we discovered a massive hole. This seemed the most suspicious.

The enormous hole was a well-like structure, and thanks to the piled-up rocks higher than the water level, it seemed unlikely any water would enter.

“I wonder how deep it is.”

“It’s an incredibly large hole.”

“I can’t see the bottom. Do we have to go down there?”

“It’s terribly dark…”

The Inquisitors frowned as they peered into the hole.

Soon, Raphael picked up a pebble and tossed it down.

“I hear a faint sound. There’s a bottom.”

There seemed to be a bottom, but…

“Are we sure this is really the entrance below the layer split?”

Paramel voiced his doubts.

Was this really the right place to descend?

“This is the most suspicious spot we’ve found so far. Of course, there might be other entrances.”

“Well, let’s go down for now. We’ve spent the whole day searching the lake, and this is the result. We can’t afford to waste more time.”

At the Saintess’s words, the rest of the party stopped objecting.

So we really had to go down there. Damn it.

‘I should take out a teleportation scroll just in case.’

If things went wrong and I fell, I could tear the scroll before hitting the ground and die from the fall, teleporting to another location instead.

Better to use a teleportation scroll as an escape route than to die from falling.

Even if inter-layer movement was impossible, movement within the same layer was allowed.

‘I could teleport right in front of the transfer stone in the Plaza Section and escape upward from there.’

I’d stumbled upon an escape plan.

If things looked dire, I could teleport to the transfer stone’s location and make a quick getaway.

“Here, take this rope.”

“Ugh. Rock climbing at a time like this.”

I tied the rope I’d brought along and distributed it to the party.

It was long enough to descend about ten floors, so it should suffice.

“Um, I have acrophobia…”

“What kind of man is afraid of heights? You’re too timid.”

“Ugh…”

At Raphael’s words, Paramel sniffled and tied the rope around his waist.

So this was how the rope I’d brought just in case would be used.

“Everyone, is your rope securely tied?”

“Yes, but Saintess, aren’t you going to tie yours?”

“I’ll be fine.”

“…?”

Everyone except the Saintess tied the rope around their waists.

We were about to climb down the wall.

If the rope turned out to be too short to reach the bottom, we’d agreed to climb back up.

“Then I’ll see you down below.”

“Huh? Wha-?!”

The Saintess jumped down immediately.

Like a skydiver.

“W-what if she dies?!”

“It’s fine. She always does this.”

“Huh?”

“She has an ability that negates fall damage. If needed, she can also use the divine art ‘Angel’s Wing’ to land softly.”

“Wow.”

This was a maneuver only the Saintess could pull off.

Unlike the Saintess, overflowing with divine power, the rest of us couldn’t afford such antics, so we quietly began climbing down the wall.

‘This is exhausting.’

It felt like we’d been descending forever. Sweat poured from my body like rain.

I genuinely thought I might die from exhaustion.

But we’d already come too far to give up now, so I gritted my teeth and kept climbing down.

If the rope turned out to be too short, we’d have to climb all the way back up from this height.

Please, let that not happen.

“Porter-nim. We’re here.”

“Huh? Oh! We really are.”

Thankfully, the rope wasn’t too short.

All of us made it safely to the bottom of the colossal well.

The bone-dry ground. Cracked earth was visible. It was starkly different from the damp Lake Section-this place was extremely arid.

“Saintess!”

“You’re here. Here, catch.”

“Eek!”

The Saintess playfully grinned as she tossed a heretic’s head toward us.

‘How many did she kill?’

Around the Saintess lay a pile of fallen heretics.

It seemed she’d wiped out all the heretics here the moment she landed.

From their lack of movement, they were likely dead.

Except for one.

“Tell us where the Blue Apostle is. Who’s guarding him? How many are with him? Spit out everything you know.”

“Guh… Kill me… just kill me, you bitch…”

After showing us the heretics’ corpses, the Saintess resumed her work.

Namely, pulling out the teeth of the surviving heretic while interrogating him.

“I’ve been pulling out his teeth one by one, but he won’t talk.”

“Hmm. Saintess, you’re still not very good at torture.”

“Am I not?”

“Let me handle this.”

Sasalo stepped forward.

Pulling out a tool from his robe, he dragged the last heretic to a corner.

His title was Torturer, after all. Whatever happened to the heretic, may he rest in peace.

Though it probably wouldn’t be peaceful.

“Porter, is Map Creation working?”

“Ah, hold on… Yes. It’s functioning normally.”

“That’s a relief.”

The place we’d descended into was a circular space with four entrances leading elsewhere.

All four entrances connected to a maze. This marked the true beginning of our pathfinding.

But with my Map Creation and the Saintess’s Sinner Tracking, we should be able to head straight to where the Blue Apostle was.

“Then let’s get more detailed information from that heretic before moving on.”

We could take a short break while Sasalo extracted information from the heretic.