episode_0068

“Whoa-a-a-a-a-a-a-ack!!” “Kya-a-a-a-a-a-ack!” Celin and Saya fall downwards, screaming. Ashel reflexively spread wings of flame on his back, but upon confirming that Rozier was staring with wide, icy-blue eyes from beyond the pit, he gave a bitter smile.

Although the situation was strange, thinking logically, they wouldn’t do something life-threatening just for a club initiation. It was also unlikely that such a dangerous place would be created inside the academy.

So, regardless of being grandly named ‘Temporary Labyrinth’, it was highly likely that below this pit was not very dangerous. It was probably formed by the academy to create a stroke of luck or a special environment, something akin to a training ground if one were to be precise.

‘If it’s a temporary labyrinth, maybe the environment is similar to a real one.’

Ashel, extinguishing his wings and starting to fall just like the other two, thought to himself calmly.

Ashel had heard a lot about labyrinths.

A strange ecosystem born above the underground where the Demon of Stirring is sealed. A land of death where areas are divided as if into floors, and increasingly bizarre creatures and natural environments appear the further down one goes.

An unknown place where no law protects people in that dark underground, and one must rely solely on their own strength and luck to explore.

Currently, it was a place where entry by ordinary people was strictly forbidden. Even for mana users, if their level was insufficient, descending below a certain floor was impossible.

The situation is slightly different if one belongs to a guild, but regardless, unlike being able to enter easily, getting out is an extremely difficult task in a labyrinth. Although the Hargelin family periodically deals with monsters crawling out of the labyrinth, they themselves do not explore the labyrinth itself very often.

Since people die like crazy every time they do, it’s probably unavoidable from their perspective. And entrusting the exploration of the lower floors to labyrinth explorers is quite unsettling, so they take action themselves with the support of the kingdom.

‘It’s a place as dangerous as a demon realm, to the point of being insane. But I heard the 1st and 2nd floors aren’t that dangerous.’

Just how much of a real labyrinth would the temporary labyrinth implement?

Ashel curled up the corners of his mouth in anticipation and surrendered his body to gravity.

Then, at a certain point, snap.

As soon as he felt his consciousness being cut off, his eyes snapped open. As soon as he came to his senses, he sprang up and surveyed his surroundings.

“Ugh… my head…” “Ugh…”

Overall, it was a place similar to a cave. The ceiling was low, and the faintly muttering voices of the two people echoed throughout the round space. It was a synesthetic experience that gave the illusion of having entered a giant cylinder. Ashel narrowed his eyes, tapping the hard floor several times with his foot.

‘My consciousness instantly flew away. Why?’

He had intended to use levitation magic just before landing on the ground, but his consciousness was cut off without giving him a chance. And then, when he came to his senses again, he was rolling on the labyrinth floor in a perfectly fine state.

Without a single scratch.

Shield… it was vague to say it was because of it. A shield can offset physical impact to some extent, but it can’t nullify it completely. If he had fallen at the end of the levitation he felt before, it would have been normal for at least part of his shield to be broken. But the shields he had layered remained in their initial state.

Moreover, even with a shield, it’s impossible to protect one’s entire body from a fall like just now. It would be normal for at least one part, be it limbs or internal organs, to be crushed. But there was nothing of the sort.

“…Hmm.”

A considerably bizarre method of entry. Perhaps one of the conditions for entering the temporary labyrinth was losing consciousness while falling. If a spell had been applied within the falling pit for that purpose, and they were forcibly transferred…

‘That doesn’t make sense.’

Ashel denied the hypothesis that instantly came to mind and shook his head.

If he had lost consciousness due to a spell, he should have definitely noticed the presence of the spell before that. Even if he had been careless, there’s no way he wouldn’t have felt fragments of mana within his sensory range.

Therefore, it was reasonable to assume that something else had manifested, rather than it being caused by magic or other spells.

If it was the result of an ability granted on a racial level, Ashel would not be able to notice it beforehand unless he saw it with his own eyes. So, if one had to be precise, that possibility was the highest.

“Ashel, are you okay? Aren’t you dizzy?”

Just as he was thinking that, Celin, who had been lying face down on the floor, had somehow gotten up and asked. Ashel stopped his distracting thoughts for now, patted her back, and replied.

“I’m fine. Are you?” “I feel like I’m dying… My vision is spinning…” “It’s probably a side effect from the process of consciousness being cut off and then returning. Let’s rest for a bit instead of moving right away.” “Yeah…”

Celin leaned against Ashel’s shoulder and mumbled. Ashel carefully seated her by the wall, brought Saya, who was also complaining of dizziness like Celin, and seated her next to her. Ashel cast all sorts of magic around to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances and sat leaning against the wall.

How much time had passed like that.

“They said it was a temporary labyrinth…”

Celin, having somewhat recovered her senses, tapped her head and uttered.

“Why would something like that be at the academy? In the library, no less?” “Don’t know. It’s probably the creator’s preference.” “Who made it?” “At least not the Dean. The mana I feel is too turbid to be an elf’s.”

Elves inherently possess a pure and refined energy, as pure as they themselves are. But right now, what filled this space had quite a lot of impurities to be called an elf’s energy.

But that didn’t mean it was dirty. It was turbid *for an ‘elf’*, but by the standard of a typical mage, mana of considerably high purity and cleanliness filled the surroundings.

Mana that was faint, as if it could disappear any moment, yet still clearly perceptible to his senses. Ashel had felt mana with such characteristics before.

On the day he first discovered Aleph. The atmosphere of Cromwell’s mana he felt when he resonated his mana with Cromwell’s to check if her words were false, was quite similar to what filled this space right now.

‘But it’s not identical. There’s no possibility that Cromwell created this space. Yet the atmosphere is similar, which means…’

Similar to Cromwell, it was highly likely to be a trace left behind by a high-level spellcaster who had already died.

As his thoughts reached that point, the words that an unknown person had told him a week ago suddenly came to mind.

Among them, the ‘Sage’s Tomb’ which was imprinted first. If that word was meant to inform him that the Sage’s Tomb was at the academy…

“Saya, do you happen to know anything about where the Sage is buried?” “S-Sage? There are hardly any records about the Sage now, so perhaps no one knows where they are buried.” “Really?”

It’s starting to fall into place.

According to the records that remain, the Sage was said to be proficient in a great variety of magic. Among them, it is said that they had the most talent for original creation spells, creating something from nothing. If it was someone like that, the possibility that they directly created such a space and used it as their burial site is quite high.

‘If so, were the things I was told through Aleph then all words referring to things dormant within the academy?’

It’s not certain, but it should be sufficient to be considered one of the hypotheses.

Ultimately, to gain certainty, he had to find the Sage’s remains in this place called the temporary labyrinth. Since tracking mana was impossible, it was something he would only know by descending to the very end of the labyrinth.

A situation where he might gain an unexpected harvest from an activity he thought was just a simple initiation.

Ashel chuckled lightly, put his hand on the ground, and raised his body.

“Let’s go now. It seems we’ve rested enough.” “Ugh… okay.”

Celin got up from her spot, and Saya also got up, brushing off the stone dust from her tail. Ashel rotated his stiff shoulders and raised his mana while gazing at the path that had no end in sight.

It was the start of the full-fledged labyrinth exploration.

***

Regardless of the labyrinth’s notoriety, labyrinth explorers often referred to it this way.

‘An insane maze.’

A space so chaotic that the moment you get lost, finding an exit becomes almost impossible. A place where there are many paths leading down to floors, but strangely, only one path leading up.

Whether the temporary labyrinth inherited those characteristics exactly, many paths leading down were visible, whereas not a single path leading up was found. If it was created to have an environment similar to a real labyrinth, there should definitely be a means to return upwards, but they hadn’t found a single one yet.

“…” “…”

One hour into labyrinth exploration.

They weren’t hungry or thirsty yet, but the fatigue accumulated in their bodies remained.

A cave sealed off on all sides. The high concentration of mana filling the space and the occasional bizarre cries irritated the party’s nerves. They hadn’t encountered any labyrinth creatures yet, but seeing that the cries were getting closer, it would be soon.

And just as expected, something suddenly popped out from around the corner.

-Kke-e-e-e-e-ek.

Overall, it had an appearance similar to a caterpillar. However, the tentacles covering its entire body were all similar in shape to human fingers.

It was made up of two joints, but had no skin. Only fingernails were dangling at the end of the exposed muscles.

Sharp teeth were stuck densely around its round mouth. It looked as if it had evolved to bury its snout in flesh and suck blood.

If its size had been small, it would have been less disgusting, but since it was similar in height to a person, the revulsion surged to his head.

“Ugh, how gross.”

Celin mumbled that and then, without hesitation, chanted a spell above her palm.

The Divine Authority magic she had learned basically required warm-up, but the most basic spells had no limitations on manifestation speed.

Woooong!

Golden mana condensed according to her will, and soon became a single shooting star that pierced through the caterpillar’s entire body.

[성진(星進)]

Kwajik!!

The caterpillar, with a giant hole pierced through its body, fell over while scattering greenish-light body fluid.

It was instant death, without needing to check. Ashel knelt down for a moment and carefully observed the dead caterpillar.

Saya asked him in a flustered voice.

“…What are you doing?” “Just curious. If the temporary labyrinth was made in imitation of a real labyrinth, then the creatures here probably aren’t much different from the real ones. I was just curious how they were implemented.” “…Your peculiar personality is still the same.” “It’s a natural sense of inquiry as a mage.”

Ashel chuckled and replied, then looked down at the caterpillar’s body fluid dripping messily.

Perhaps it was acidic, as a sizzling sound, like something melting, could be heard from the floor where the body fluid touched.

“It’s a creature called a Finger Worm. Both its saliva and blood are acidic, so it’s a native labyrinth creature recommended to be killed with ranged attacks if possible.” “You know a lot?” “I thought it would be good to know basic knowledge if I were to do business with labyrinth explorers. I looked up a lot of related books.”

Celin asked in a surprised voice, and Saya replied calmly. Ashel raised his bent body and wore a bitter smile at the numerous presences he felt from the opposite side.

“Do they also have the characteristic of avenging the death of their kin? They’re swarming over here.” “Their body fluid contains a hormone that calls their kin, so if one dies, the swarm does come running. But they’re not that strong a creature, to the point where I could handle them myself. Should I do it?” “No.”

Ashel shook his head and bent his index and middle fingers.

“I’ll do it.”

The moment he uttered that.

Dark blue lightning flashed around Ashel.

[경뢰(傾雷)]

-Kkie-e-e-e-e-ek!!

The swarm of caterpillars that appeared was swept away by the lightning slanted like a sickle and all turned into ash. They vanished without a trace, unable to leave behind even that proud body fluid.

Ashel shook off the lightning remaining on the tip of his index finger, turned to the two, and opened his mouth.

“Let’s go now. Since we can’t see a way up, let’s descend one more floor for now.” “What if we can’t come back if we do that?”

Celin asked, avoiding the green bloodstains heavily wetting the floor. Ashel pointed at the dark ceiling with his hand and replied.

“‘If you cannot find a way up, it is better to descend. The staircase for returning grows larger the further down you go, so if you don’t want to boil and eat your comrades or starve to death, follow these words.’” “…” “Those were the words of the author of ‘Basic Labyrinth Knowledge’.”

Strangely, the labyrinth’s return staircase had the characteristic of leading directly to the labyrinth entrance, not by going up floors. So, if you couldn’t find the small and cramped staircase at the labyrinth entrance, it was better to go down and find the larger staircase, said Ulfric, the author of ‘Basic Labyrinth Knowledge’.

“So let’s go down. We can’t keep wandering around here forever.” “…You, tell me honestly. You just want to see the creatures living on other floors for yourself, right?” “Since the staircase has already been found, it seems best to go that way.” “Oh ho, not answering? Hit a nerve, have I?”

Celin poked Ashel in the side, laughing lightly, as he continued to ignore her.

Even so, she didn’t oppose Ashel’s opinion. She was a mage, and she couldn’t help it. Ignorant about labyrinth creatures, she didn’t want to miss the chance to see them with her own eyes.

Thanks to this, only Saya felt out of place. For her, who knew about labyrinth creatures and basic labyrinth knowledge, this place was merely a place to prove her knowledge. Furthermore, she wasn’t even a mage, so she wasn’t burning with curiosity like the two of them.

But she also didn’t object to Ashel’s opinion.

A life already owed to him once. For this moment they were acting together, she wanted to be of help to him until the end.

If possible, it would be the same even when they weren’t acting together, as long as he didn’t push her away.

Because that would be the only way to repay the price of her life.

“Saya, let’s go.” “What are you doing standing there blankly! Your name is Saya, right? Let’s go quickly!”

Hearing the voices of the two calling her, she smiled softly.

“I’m coming.”