Ch.1919. Criminal

The next day arrived.

Thanks to Airi’s generous help, we were able to rent equipment identical to what we had been using before.

So, with Shiro’s body recovered, we entered the forest again.

‘She’s being too generous.’

It was like watching a spectacular withdrawal show from a broken ATM.

“…This seems a bit suspicious,” Shiro muttered as we passed through the forest.

Since we were well past the point where Level 2 mobs could pose any threat, I answered with some leisure.

“Are you talking about Airi?”

“Yeah. She’s been a bit strange since last time.”

I somewhat agreed with Shiro’s assessment.

They were a large guild directly connected to the imperial family, and Airi was a priest belonging to that guild, so the possibility of some strange crime was almost non-existent.

But seeing how well she was treating us, we might get entangled in some troublesome business someday.

“Still, if they’re offering, we should accept.”

I took it to mean that Airi was overestimating us.

She probably saw us as talents capable of growing to the middle floors or beyond.

“I think it’s better to take it positively.”

After that, Shiro muttered to herself with an unpleasant expression, but I steadfastly moved forward.

‘It’s a bit annoying.’

She might not trust the priest named Airi.

A heart once wounded doesn’t easily open its doors again.

“…Still, for the time being, we’ll be together, just the two of us.”

Just as Shiro’s quiet muttering reached my ears—

-Gulp.

A blue liquid flew from the bushes and landed in front of us.

‘A slime.’

The impact was so great that I forgot what Shiro had just said.

Slimes were monsters that appeared with very low probability on the second floor, but they were essential for the Source Tree I was hoping to develop.

‘Please be a Source.’

As I was about to hunt the slime with that thought—

-Slash!

A man who emerged from the bushes struck down the slime with an axe.

Simultaneously, a blue sphere floated above the smashed slime.

“What’s this garbage Source… Oh, there were people nearby. Are you hurt anywhere?”

A brown-haired man wiped the sweat from his forehead as he spoke.

Judging by how the slime burst in one hit, he seemed to have lost some health from fighting until just now.

“…No, I’m fine.”

Unfortunately, this slime already seemed to have an owner.

“Haha! That’s good then. I had almost caught it, but it escaped too quickly. Sorry about that.”

Following him, two women who appeared to be his party members showed up.

A mage and a priest. Not a bad party balance.

“Shiro, let’s go.”

Since the mob was being hunted by someone else first, I had no choice but to give up on the Source.

As I was about to move on with disappointment, they began discussing the Source.

“Of all the Sources to appear, it had to be from a slime?”

“I know. There’s no one who would want it, so let’s just stay here and guard it. It would be a shame if someone else mistook it for a different Source and consumed it.”

…Is this for real?

A slime’s Source is quite valuable.

It’s a material used to complete almost all final versions of Source Trees, so it’s best to obtain it before entering the middle floors.

‘But these people don’t seem to know that.’

They might know that Sources can transform under specific conditions, but they wouldn’t have as much knowledge as a gamer like me.

In this world, the probability of Sources appearing is low, and there are few opportunities to experiment directly on people.

So this party doesn’t know the value of the Source,

and that was an opportunity.

“Shiro, would it be okay if I talked to those party members for a moment?”

“Sure. Of course.”

Shiro readily agreed, and I carefully approached them and spoke.

“Excuse me, hello.”

“Huh? Didn’t you already leave?”

The brown-haired man looked at me with a friendly gaze.

If it had been an ordinary Source, he would have glared at me and driven me away, but since it was a slime, he didn’t seem to care much.

That’s better for me.

“Are you hurt or something?”

“No, that’s not it. I was wondering if I could absorb that slime’s Source.”

“…What are you saying right now?”

His expression was filled with bewilderment.

“You want to absorb a slime’s Source, even though it’s Grade 4? Do you know what ability the Source provides?”

“Yes. It basically has no physical enhancement, and it allows you to liquefy a part of your body like a slime, right?”

It turns a fist-sized area into liquid for 3 seconds, reducing damage to that area by 3 percent.

In other words, it’s trash.

“…And you still want to consume it?”

His eyes showed a mixture of wonder and fear.

From his perspective, it might feel like I’m asking to eat garbage that he was about to throw away.

“Well, you can absorb it. You all agree, right?”

“Yes! If Hagen says so.”

“I was going to give it away even without Hagen’s opinion.”

Fortunately, the female party members also agreed with the axe man’s words.

“Then come here and absorb it.”

“Thank you.”

I placed my hand on the blue sphere, and it immediately entered my body.

Perhaps because it was such a weak Source, there was no resistance when it was absorbed into my body.

“May I ask your names?”

I bowed to them once more and asked for their names.

“I’m Hagen, the mage here is ‘Daz,’ and the priest is ‘Berry.’ What are your names?”

“I’m Adel. The elf behind me is Shiro.”

After a brief introduction, we coolly went our separate ways.

‘Hagen, Daz, and Berry, huh.’

They were a party whose names I wouldn’t likely forget.

***

Anyway, we headed to the third floor as originally planned.

Initially, we had intended to skip the third floor and check if our skills would work on the fourth floor, but now the situation had changed.

“Let’s focus on hunting Lizardmen. Thinking about it again, it might be good to secure proper equipment, and Lizardman Sources are quite useful.”

Now that I had obtained a slime Source, I needed materials to synthesize with it.

“Sure. Not a bad idea.”

“Thank you so much. Next time, let’s get a Source suitable for you, Shiro.”

“…Okay.”

Later, I recommended a Source that Shiro should absorb, and she accepted it lightly.

‘Maybe she can’t refuse?’

Lately, her trust in me seemed suspiciously high. It was probably just my imagination.

We easily cleared the second floor and stood before the portal to the third floor.

“We found it sooner than expected.”

It took about 8 hours, I guess.

Together, we stepped into the portal.

-Whoosh.

A cool breeze of mana blew through, and

“It’s definitely hot.”

The lush forest scenery had somehow changed to a volcanic area.

The third floor, the Labyrinth of Aries.

“I’ll use the heat resistance scroll first.”

“Okay.”

I took out a scroll from my spatial pouch and tore it.

Just before tearing it, I hesitated momentarily as the price of this scroll came to mind, but since it wasn’t something I could sell anywhere anyway, I used it decisively.

This was originally a Polaris Guild exclusive scroll.

‘If I tried to sell it, I’d be tracked down.’

A translucent red circle formed around me.

Like a poison resistance scroll, it grants heat resistance to designated targets within the circle.

“Let’s move.”

“Okay.”

As we walked, I looked around.

A volcanic area where it was questionable if life could survive.

While high-stat middle-floor explorers might manage, people like us would struggle to even breathe without heat resistance buffs.

That’s why priests became almost essential companions from the third floor onward.

“Let’s skip the base camp over there and start hunting right away.”

Lizardmen groups appeared throughout all volcanic areas of the third floor.

Since we had already faced them before, we handled them easily while moving around the third floor.

After about 3 hours of this,

Shiro and I were now standing in front of a cliff leading to the latter part of the third floor.

It was about 20 meters wide.

Beyond this cliff, numerous third-floor monsters, including Lizardmen, would come rushing in without pause.

“We’ve already reached the latter part. Should we rest a bit here and then head back?”

There are about 3-4 types of monsters coming from there, and the quantity is too much.

While it would be optimal for quickly obtaining Sources, entering in our current tired state would be reckless.

“Okay.”

Shiro nodded and knelt on the ground. She then took out a cloth and began wiping the blood from her sword.

‘Since it’s safe here anyway, let’s take a good rest.’

This was a zone where monsters didn’t appear, and moreover, people heading to the fourth floor wouldn’t come here now.

According to the rules of the fourth floor, if you finished the previous Labyrinth cycle on the fourth floor, you’d start from the fourth floor in the next cycle too.

“Haah.”

Sitting on the ground, I looked down.

The value of the mana stones we obtained today would be around 150,000 Ars.

If we maintained this pace for 14 days in the Labyrinth, that would be 2.1 million Ars.

Considering that a four-person party hunting on the third floor for two weeks earns an average of 1.6 million Ars, this was an impressive achievement.

‘Maybe it’s okay to continue like this.’

Shiro and I were already approaching middle-floor level.

Even at this rate, over 1 million Ars would fall into my hands every month.

Once we use up all the scrolls, we’d need to bring a priest into the party, but if we eventually become stronger in a stable manner, we could live in wealth and prosperity for life.

“…Shiro.”

Feeling like I might get caught up in such thoughts if I kept thinking alone, I called her name as she sat quietly with her eyes closed.

“What?”

“Shiro, why do you climb the Labyrinth?”

“Because I want to become stronger. What about you?”

Her purple eyes gazed at me.

The sharp gaze I had seen during our first meeting had become so familiar that it now felt cute.

As I maintained eye contact with Shiro, I realized that my worries were trivial.

“I have a dream.”

I answered with a much lighter heart.

To reach the twelfth floor and return home.

Thinking about it, it wasn’t much, but that was my goal.

Therefore, I will climb the Labyrinth.

“…That’s a good goal.”

She nodded as if she understood.

There were other reasons besides returning home, but I didn’t bother to add them.

It sounds cooler this way.

‘The atmosphere is nice.’

It felt like we were on vacation at a hot spring resort.

I heard there’s a famous hot spring in Plaza 6, maybe we should visit sometime—

-Whoosh!

An arrow grazed near my right arm.

Since monsters don’t appear in this area, that was clearly a PVP action.

“…Who’s there?”

I looked in the direction the arrow came from.

“Oh, what? It’s you?”

A familiar yet arrogant voice was heard.

Behind me, a bald man with a spear was approaching.

“…It’s Mr. Bold.”

The name of the spear-wielder, which matched his appearance perfectly, was Bold.

He was the leader of the party I had been in before.

“Did you change your weapon?”

“Yeah, the axe didn’t suit me, so I switched to a spear. By the way, you remember me?”

Behind Bold, an archer and a priest appeared.

The priest was unusually dressed like a regular explorer, with his belt loosely fastened.

“Hey, it’s nice to see you here. It’s been a while since you’ve seen our party members too, right? Say hello.”

“…”

“Huh? Did you forget their names but remember mine?”

The guy showing an unpleasant smile as he spoke to me.

‘As if I could forget your names.’

My first fixed party.

They were guys who secretly committed all sorts of crimes.

Especially that priest, who, unlike his profession, had a thing for women.

I left the party without being able to report them due to lack of evidence, which has become a regret now.

“So, what business do you have?”

“Oh, nothing much. Just came by because I was glad to see you. Looks like you quit being a porter and became an explorer? Did that elf buy all your equipment?”

After saying that, he tried to touch the shield in my hand, and I swatted his hand away.

“…You’ve become a bit feistier since I last saw you?”

“I suppose so.”

The guy rolled his eyes wildly. It was a habit he showed when angry.

“Well, anyway, that’s not the main point. I saw from a distance that the elf is pretty? As an apology for hitting you just now, could I borrow that elf for one night?”

So that was his goal.

“No.”

“Come on. Why are you being like that between us? Don’t tell me you already have plans for tonight? Seems like the elf is completely into you?”

They openly mocked and ridiculed me.

“Honestly, I think we’d do better. Don’t you agree? Are you afraid she’ll be taken away if she gets a taste of us?”

“…Are you going to keep talking like that?”

“Wow. That’s a bit harsh.”

After showing a smile, he became serious and whispered just loud enough for me to hear.

“You know what? We just ate a woman and threw her to the monsters. We’ll do the same to that elf bitch. If she resists too much, this time we’ll cut off her limbs—”

-Boom!

I struck his face with my shield.

“You… bastard!”

Despite the sudden attack, he quickly got up and extended his fist. He was indeed strong for his build.

He might even be able to aim for the fifth floor if he tried.

“Shut up.”

I was already prepared to draw my sword.

-Stab!

The blade pierced his neck, and as I pulled my hand back, he collapsed lifelessly.

“I can’t stand listening to this shit anymore.”

If you’re a criminal, just shut up and live quietly.