Chapter 198: 16th Floor (5)

Chapter 198: 16^th
Floor (5)

Balkan
recalled the story he had heard while standing guard at the party.

It
was just a few weeks ago.

-Crackle.
Crackle.

In
front of the bonfire burning dry firewood, Jubeel suddenly opened her
mouth, setting the mood.

“That
day was truly horrible.”

“Here
we go again. Being dramatic.”

“I
only do milk drama. Listen. That day was truly horrible.”

Despite
Lammel’s retort, Jubeel rested her chin on her hand and recalled
the memory with a serious expression.

When
she was part of some nameless party.

“At
first, I was happy. My god. Who would’ve thought we’d discover a
relic storage.”

Her
party had accidentally discovered a relic storage near the upper
floor.

For
an explorer, finding a relic storage is tremendous luck.

What’s
the reason why the vast majority of explorers enter the labyrinth?

Strong
and excellent blessings? Sure, that’s part of it. Pick one good
blessing and your life is set.

But
surprisingly, few people devote themselves to the labyrinth solely
pursuing strength.

Quite
a lot of explorers don’t enter the labyrinth with the purpose of
exploring its depths or seeking their own enlightenment.

The
reason why ordinary people look up to the labyrinth is simply, money.

Countless
treasures, dazzling jewels, mountains of gold…even if they can’t
amass that much they can easily solve modest money problems from
tomorrow’s meal expenses to overdue rent, weapon repair costs, and
savings for the future.

They
hunt monsters in the labyrinth, advancing through endless traps that
block their path and putting up their lives as collateral that cannot
be returned.

“But
we found a relic storage? Holy fucking sex. Amazing luck came to us.”

It
has been statistically proven that relics obtained after clearing the
boss room at the end of a relic storage are more valuable than other
relics found during labyrinth exploration.

“Whether
it was beginner’s luck or not, we were able to advance quite far into
the relic storage. Since the difficulty of relic storage is
proportional to the floor. It was fucking hard but not enough to die
from.”

Jubeel’s
party quickly advanced through the relic storage, breaking through
various traps and monster encirclements.

Then
in the boss room they entered, they faced the gatekeeper monster
guarding the relic.

“Ugh.
It was fucking tough. Two party members died but what can you do? All
we could do was bury them. At least we got the relic…”

But
what came next was the problem.

Excluding
Jubeel, the three surviving party members looked at each other.

If
they sold this relic and split the money?

It
would be decent, but they’d still have to continue exploring with
their lives as collateral.

What
if one person was removed here?

The
money they’d receive would increase significantly.

What
if another person was removed?

It
would increase exponentially.

What
if one more person was removed?

End
of hardship. Beginning of happiness.

The
bloodbath for a golden future began.

Before
they knew it, two people were dead.

Jubeel
blankly stared at the party member pointing their blade at her while
holding the relic.

At
that moment, facing her former companion who still gripped their
sword with trembling injured hands and showed killing intent towards
her, Jubeel left the relic storage by herself.

There
were no other party members behind her anymore.

“Well,
that’s just how it was. I’m happy being with you guys. When I’m with
you, I don’t think about things like that.”

While
the vast majority of explorers move for money, this party had less of
that tendency.

They
were people who knew how to lend a helping hand to each other’s
crises, the kind that other explorers deliberately ignored living
their lives.

“When
I became an Ain, everyone ran away though.”

“Ahem.
Hem hem!! That’s different! Ah geez. The mood is ruined. I’m sorry!
Hehe milk squirt!”

“Arghhhh!
Jubeel!!! Put those milk jugs away!!!”

Just,
that kind of thing happened.

***

“Master.”

“What
is it?”

“Why
did you suddenly step forward?”

I
asked her as we passed the entrance of the relic storage and walked
down the long corridor.

Idelbert
had ordered me to traverse the 16th floor alone.

That
order must have included dealing with various variable situations one
might face in the labyrinth.

For
instance, encountering outlaws attempting robbery or rape, falling
into traps impossible to escape alone or suddenly discovering the
entrance to a relic storage.

“Hm.
Why? Do you think I would covet the relic?”

“No.
There’s no way you would desire such things, Master.”

Idelbert
possesses power and wealth befitting that magnificent mansion.

She
wouldn’t covet a mere relic found on the 16th floor.

“I’m
purely curious. Why did you suddenly tear off the relic storage door
and take the lead?”

Until
now, Idelbert had followed behind me, but now I was following behind
Idelbert.

It
was evidence that Idelbert was more aggressive than me in advancing
through this relic storage.

“Disciple.
Look over there.”

Idelbert,
wearing a grim expression, pointed at the wall of the relic storage.
My gaze followed Idelbert’s hand to face the wall.

“What
do you see?”

“Well,
just ordinary stone slab walls…”

As
I was about to say what I saw, I frowned.

There
were tiny holes visible between the stone slab gaps.

Like
a mechanical device, it precisely bore the familiar form of a trap.

“…It’s
a poison needle trap.”

“Yes.
I don’t need to explain why the mechanism is sticking out of the
stone slab, right?”

The
reason why traces of the activated mechanism remained so clearly.

“…Because
it has already been fired?”

“Correct
answer. There are no poison needles left in there.”

The
trap in the relic storage wouldn’t have activated by itself.

The
current situation meant one thing, this relic storage was already
half-conquered.

There
might be prior visitors who closed the storage entrance to keep the
relic for themselves.

“Above
all, the smell is fishy. Eight or nine out of ten times, there are
bad ones hiding.”

Bad
ones, huh.

Though
it was close to intuition, since it was Idelbert’s words, it
probably wasn’t wrong.

I
thought it might be similar to the smell of demonic energy (magi)
that Bunny mentioned.

“Seeing
how the storage interior is intact, the boss room hasn’t been cleared
yet. Suspicious.”

Relic
storage develops cracks when the boss room is cleared, and completely
collapses after a few days.

But
the stone slabs of the corridor we were walking through were pristine
without a single crack.

“So,
you mean someone might be intentionally not clearing the boss room,
using the relic storage as a hideout?”

“Yes.”

Idelbert
said with a confident tone.

Who
would be crazy enough to use a 16th floor relic storage merely as a
hideout?

At
least I didn’t know anyone who would pull such a crazy stunt. It
wouldn’t be ordinary outlaws either. Unless it was clan-scale.

“A
few months ago, I received reports that a worshipper of Sloth was
conducting vile experiments in such secretive places.”

Sure
enough, the name of a big shot came up.

“The
bastard was conducting experiments forcibly breeding male explorers
with monsters. Despite worshipping the demon of Sloth, they were
diligently evading pursuit and conducting all sorts of bizarre
experiments while changing locations.”

We
couldn’t be certain if the Sloth worshipper was really here, but if
they were, the situation had become a bit troublesome.

“I
took the lead just in case…”

Idelbert
glanced at me, then quietly returned her gaze to the front.

“Looking
at it now, it seems it was a futile action.”

I
silently raised the corner of my mouth into a smirk.

So
what if such a bastard was doing bad things here?

Having
entered the labyrinth, I’m always prepared to die.

Even
when facing a crisis, just crush it head-on.

Pain
that doesn’t kill me only makes me stronger.

That’s
why Idelbert brought me to the 16th floor in the first place.

“Still,
I saw Master’s heart caring for her disciple. This unworthy disciple
is touched.”

“…Ahem.
Ah, just watch ahead properly.”

Idelbert
turned her head away sharply while swishing her tail.

We
continued advancing through the relic storage corridor while
surveying our surroundings.

After
walking for about 30 minutes past the corridor where all traps had
been activated.

At
the end of the corridor, there was a cliff with a small wooden pole
placed there.

When
I poked my head over the dark cliff, I could faintly see the floor
far below.

“Looks
like an elevator to get down there.”

“Let’s
ride it. Doesn’t seem to be any other passage.”

-Clank.
Rrrrrr.

When
Idelbert pulled the wooden pole, the stone elevator began rising.

-Click.

The
elevator stopped right in front of the cliff, and we carefully
stepped onto it.

-Tap!

Idelbert,
who had also boarded the elevator, seemed familiar with this kind of
structure and pressed the stone plate in the center of the elevator
with her foot.

-Screeeech!

Then
with a spine-chilling chain sound, the elevator began descending
again.

As
we went underground, deep darkness and unpleasant air began rushing
in.

The
smell of semen and sticky dried blood incense filled the damp and
humid air.

Squelch,
squelch–

Occasionally
the sound of flesh hitting flesh and.

“…”

“…”

The
breathing sounds of those barely alive could be heard simultaneously.

-Grip.

I
firmly gripped the artifact hand axe and extra-large axe in both
hands, preparing for battle.

-Screech.
Click.

Finally
when the stone elevator touched the ground.

-Whoosh!

There
were small candles stuck in the walls all lit up at once,
illuminating the surroundings.

“…”

Idelbert
and I quietly swallowed.

We
expected the center of the relic storage to be something like a
dungeon where monsters appear in swarms, but a completely different
scene entered our eyes.

No,
compared to what we were seeing now, monsters appearing might have
been better.

Why?

The
moment I saw this place, I thought it looked more like a science
laboratory than the labyrinth.

There
were various samples and beakers on surrounding tables, papers with
writing, thick and diverse books.

And
four huge iron cages located in the center of that space.

“…”

“…”

Men
who had collapsed without moving inside entered our view.

My
eyes met with one of the men.

Empty
eyes that seemed to wish for death coexisted with lips curved in
pleasure, having become an idiot.

-Squelch.
Squelch.

The
man’s body was shaking little by little.

Of
course, he wasn’t moving on his own.

“Gruk.
Guk.”

A
Bone Jaguar was mounted on his body, extracting semen.

“Gruruk,
Grek!”

“Grururuk-“

Inside
that cage, two Bone Jaguars, monster seeds born superior with the
man’s sperm mixed in, were waiting for their turn.

The
situation in other cages wasn’t much different.

Monsters
including small wyverns were mixing bodies with men, frantically
producing monster seeds.

And
beyond those trapped in such cages a woman in full plate armor caught
our eye, collapsed and bleeding heavily in front of the relic
storage’s boss room.

“Please,
save-“

That
explorer who had told us the location of the 16th floor portal was
desperately reaching out towards us.