Ch.6262. A Lucky Day

Looking at the noblewoman’s expression, a thought crossed my mind.

‘Did Shiro really not scold the noblewoman…?’

…well, thinking that would mean I’m doubting Shiro, so let me rephrase.

‘Shiro was telling the truth after all!’

Her claim that they just had a conversation was correct.

There was a possibility that the noblewoman actually did get scolded but was smiling anyway due to some insane mental fortitude, but I decided to ignore that possibility.

Because Shiro is a good person.

“Adel.”

Right on cue, Shiro called out to me.

Since I was having confident thoughts about her, I answered with assurance.

“Yes, Shiro?”

“There’s a good spot ahead for setting up our base.”

For reference, we were looking for a place to build a base in the forest.

“Hmm. That looks good. There’s a decent breeze, and we should be able to secure a wide field of vision.”

We needed a place with good wind flow to track the Lesser Griffin’s location.

I don’t think I need to explain why having a wide field of vision is important.

“Let’s build our base here.”

“Okay.”

Before searching for the Lesser Griffin, we set up our base first.

This was because we’d need to stay here for several days.

‘Is it nearby?’

I carefully scanned the surroundings, checking for any black smoke.

Setting up our base in a windy location was partly because of the Lesser Griffin, but the main purpose was to reveal the pursuer’s position.

When the wind blows, black smoke would scatter from its body.

‘Fortunately, it seems to be keeping some distance.’

I ruled out the possibility that it hadn’t entered this space at all.

I had seen black smoke while hunting earlier.

Since one can only use a portal once, it was a given that the creature was here.

‘It might be moving separately.’

This space, created for the Lesser Griffin, boasted a width of several kilometers.

Anyway.

“Let’s get moving then.”

Setting up camp, creating a simple sacred barrier, building a campfire, and so on.

After preparing the basics, we all moved somewhere together.

The pretext for our action was to survey the surrounding terrain, but…

‘We’re going to look for the hidden piece.’

We entered the Lesser Griffin’s space to shake off the pursuer. But that didn’t mean we couldn’t do anything else.

We’ll also collect the hidden piece that exists in this place.

Since only regular mobs appear on the first day and the Lesser Griffin doesn’t show up, there wouldn’t be any issues with our strategy.

‘I’m looking forward to it.’

Feeling a bit of anticipation, I observed Shiro’s expression.

Her face revealed some anxiety.

‘As I thought.’

Recently, Shiro seemed to be feeling impatient.

When I asked her about it directly last night, she only gave a vague answer about it being complicated.

However, I wasn’t so oblivious that I couldn’t figure it out despite what she said.

She was probably worried about falling behind as I moved ahead alone.

Or perhaps she was concerned about holding me back.

She has quite a lot of past issues, after all.

‘Even though we agreed to share the burden.’

In the end, she probably thought it was something she had to resolve herself.

‘But there’s no need for that.’

I promised to live the same life as her.

This will never change and will become a belief deeply rooted in my heart.

But it’s incredibly difficult for Shiro to realize my feelings.

Trusting others isn’t an easy thing to do.

Moreover, believing that someone loves you completely is nearly impossible.

Because we’re human.

Gradually closing the distance and sharing our lives bit by bit might naturally lead to trust.

‘I need to make an effort.’

I will never force the person I love to trust me.

If you love someone, you should prove it through actions and work to eliminate their worries.

…Anyway.

The reason I suddenly shifted from thinking about the hidden piece to this topic was that.

To prove it through actions.

‘The Source from here belongs to Shiro.’

Originally, I had planned to collect this hidden piece when we returned to the Labyrinth.

We were reluctant to enter because we’d be trapped here for a week, and we hadn’t worked together for long yet.

‘But it’s different if we had to come in anyway.’

The original plan is always subject to change.

***

With a specific method, an ordinary 3rd-grade Source can become a decent one among the 2nd-grade Sources.

[Lesser Griffin Soul Source.]

The key wasn’t just the Lesser Griffin’s Source, but its “soul.”

‘It’s true that it would make you incredibly strong if you obtained it.’

Time was tight if we wanted to get the hidden piece too.

We had a total of one week.

Moreover, it wasn’t just about defeating the Lesser Griffin; there was even a gimmick to meet it.

Specifically, its summoning location changes every three hours.

Of course, it doesn’t change across the entire space, which spans several kilometers.

The creature is summoned at only three locations, designated randomly each time.

To visualize it, it’s like this:

When you enter the space, points A, B, and C are randomly designated in the forest, snowy area, or snow mountain.

From the second day, the Lesser Griffin is randomly summoned at one of these A, B, or C points every three hours.

“The Lesser Griffin’s space has roughly this structure. Of course, the detailed terrain changes each time, so we need to survey it thoroughly.”

Airi said, looking at the noblewoman.

“Heeh~ I see. Is the random summoning the Lesser Griffin’s ability?”

“Yes. That’s how we understand it.”

As you might have guessed from the context, the diagram was drawn by Airi.

She was trying to explain in detail what she had learned from the guild…

“It’s newly summoned at points A, B, or C every three hours. The points on the map are just examples.”

“Ohh… Somehow, Airi’s drawings are easy to understand. You draw well.”

“Ahaha. Thank you for saying so, my lady.”

…?

“Actually, I’ve been interested in drawing since I was young. Growing up strictly in the church, I couldn’t learn or properly draw.”

“But you seem to draw well. Why not try it as a hobby later?”

While the noblewoman and Airi were exchanging pleasantries, Shiro and I shared the same thought as we made eye contact.

-Is the noblewoman messing with Airi?

-No, the noblewoman isn’t that twisted in character.

-…Then she must be sincere?

“…”

“Ah, Adel? You look troubled. Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing’s wrong.”

I easily overcame the crisis and continued walking.

We couldn’t waste more time because we had a long way to go.

“Airi.”

“Yes?”

I had to say this.

“I’ve been thinking… Airi, you seem most suited to be a priest.”

“Oh, is that so? Thank you for the compliment.”

Airi smiled and bowed.

Seeing her react like that made me feel complicated emotions.

It makes me feel even more sorry when she responds like that.

“Adel.”

“…Yes, Shiro?”

“That was a bit mean just now.”

“I’m sorry.”

“…No need to apologize. Adel, I love you.”

Shiro scolded me and whispered that she loved me at the same time.

I was damaged and healed simultaneously.

“…Well, let’s quickly head to the rocky area. We need to survey the nearest terrain first.”

Everyone followed my words and hurried their steps.

It was standard practice to lightly survey the nearby terrain on the first day when the Lesser Griffin isn’t summoned.

‘Conveniently, the locations overlap.’

The rocky area to our immediate left, at the bottom left of the map, was the route to obtain the hidden piece.

‘And since there are four of us, that thing can’t follow us.’

Most systems in the Labyrinth are designed for four people.

That’s why I formed a 4-person party in the game too.

‘The situation isn’t bad.’

Thanks to having exactly the right number of people, we could shake off the pursuer for a while by entering the place to get the hidden piece.

It was a good situation to briefly share information with Airi and the noblewoman, who didn’t know about the pursuer.

‘Good.’

At this rate, it seemed like we could navigate the situation smoothly.

Very smoothly.

***

As time passed…

“Hwaah… I feel like I’m going to collapse.”

While climbing the rocky area, the noblewoman spoke with a strained voice.

Since it would be wasteful to use sacred power in a place like this, we were going with just our physical strength, so it was understandably tough for the noblewoman.

And it wasn’t just climbing the rocky area.

We had been moving continuously for several hours since we started hunting, so it would be strange if she wasn’t tired.

“Shiro, help me…”

The noblewoman desperately called out to Shiro.

“Okay.”

Shiro willingly started carrying her on her back.

“Ugh… I’m sorry for being weak. I really can’t walk anymore…”

“It’s fine.”

Watching Shiro carry the noblewoman, I thought they looked like sisters.

It’s like they’ve become closer since Shiro had that one-on-one talk with the noblewoman.

‘Maybe it’s just my imagination.’

As I continued moving with this slight doubt in mind…

-Rumble.

“…?”

The ground trembled, and…

-Crack, rumble!

With an eerie sound, a massive rock rose from its place.

It might sound odd to say a rock “rose,” but that’s exactly what happened before our eyes.

“…This is disconcerting.”

A rock structure, likely over 3 meters tall, blocked our path.

A Rock Golem, the lowest 3rd-grade monster.

I knew it appeared here, but seeing it in person was quite startling.

“Prepare for battle!”

With only seconds left before the golem activated, we needed to quickly form an appropriate formation, but…

‘Should I call this lucky?’

The probability of a Rock Golem being summoned here was, from my experience, below 1%.

Moreover, to encounter it on the 6th floor, one would typically need to be active for a full week.

“Wow.”

I couldn’t hold back the laughter that was slowly escaping.

I just wanted to get the hidden piece for Shiro, but coincidentally, a creature with a core Source for my build appeared.