episode_0131

131. Labyrinth City

“You’re possessed?”

“Yeah.”

Everyone looked puzzled at the old man’s words.

“I don’t have any magical knowledge, but….”

Hawk’s next words.

It is said that the more you enter and exit the labyrinths in this city, the more your consciousness becomes immersed in the need to continue exploring.

“If you come into the labyrinth with a strong will or other reasons and are an explorer, there won’t be a big problem, but most people who come to this city.”

“Most of them come for a much better life than the commoners and citizens of the kingdom.”

“Yeah.”

Mr. Hawk nods his head at my words.

I asked Sia to use the blessing of the sea for Claude as well.

Claude, who had been struggling to keep up with the conversation, seemed to recall the conversation from earlier and his expression became serious.

“How much is consciousness buried?”

“You start to take exploring the labyrinth for granted. Like breathing.”

“How long is it?”

“The longer you explore, the more natural it seems to think.”

“Hmm… Well, to that extent, it’s too early to say that the city itself is dangerous…”

“Exchange rate.”

“Ah.”

The exchange rate in this city is doubly fucked up.

I just thought it was a trick of someone who ruled the city with money.

“Well… even if you want to go to the labyrinth, you’d need to exchange at least 30-40 gold per person based on the nearby allied cities to settle down in a quiet place.”

I heard that with about 3~4 gold pieces, you can roughly cover the cost of a garden, a hut, and even settlement costs. The exchange rate is 10x.

“Yeah. In that case, it would be better to open a store or do something else instead of exploring the city.”

“Ah…..”

“At least the city I’ve seen for the past 10 years is like that. It feels like someone… is tempting me into a labyrinth. As if to constantly feed the labyrinth.”

“….”

An awkward silence hung around.

Even Claude, who is always positive and cheerful except for girl problems, has a serious expression.

“The whole city is like that?”

“Yeah. The church, the union, the police…. all of them.”

Let’s think about it.

First of all, combination.

Last time I listened to the explanation of the mentoring program, Mr. Mi-on said that the average survival rate of the explorers was 15-20%.

This is based on all explorers who explored that year, regardless of level.

What this means is that without a mentoring program, the survival rate for novice explorers will hit rock bottom.

Now it seems like the mentoring program was created to attract a steady influx of people.

If too many people die in droves, the labyrinth may be closed off, and if there are just enough people, they will search through various means.

“The mentoring program survival rate is over 60%, right?”

“Yeah.”

Roy, Robin, and Tanya’s cases were just unlucky, but usually when you explore and return through a mentoring program, the survival rate is usually over 60%.

There’s no particular reason for a mentor to kill a rookie explorer in a labyrinth, except maybe because of a woman he’ll sell to a brothel.

But the guys in the underworld are directly involved in trying to sell women like that.

So there is no more merit.

Maybe those guys are connected to the city too.

It seems that the mentors designed the program so that it would be easy to get sucked in by the great imagination that they could become explorers like mentors for beginner explorers, with a fairly large amount of support money and a high magic stone distribution ratio similar to when doing a moderate request or intense exploration.

“Fuck, you’re so evil.”

Depending on whether or not you pass the 4th tier, which is commonly called the middle tier, the party’s reputation and earnings differ greatly.

So, there were many parties that were wiped out on the 3rd or 4th floor, and if you were lucky enough to be the only one to survive, you would take the remaining items or public funds from your colleagues.

Even if you try to leave the city because you feel like you can’t explore anymore… you don’t have enough money, so you end up just staying in the city.

Most people who run stores in the city did not come to the city to start a business.

Most of them were people with a moderate level of 3 or higher, had tinnitus, and were rumored to have been blown up at one point.

“It seems that even if you have a strong will, you can get out of the burial if you receive a mental shock.”

“Usually, that’s how it is. And I’ve seen cases where people who acquired mental eccentricities escaped burial after the eccentricities were removed from the church.”

“Ah….”

And the fact that the union leader’s numerical value for those who saw Hitomi Kaho was 100%… what kind of story is this?

This is a part that is not accessible yet, so let’s skip it for now.

And next is the church.

The divine power and authority taken away by Gaho.

But how can the surviving sect exert influence in this city?

And what the money-hungry priest Julius had warned me about.

It feels like the empire is intertwined with the city.

This… I guess I’ll have to somehow get Zion to reveal his identity to me before I can approach him.

Next is the police force or something… It goes without saying that it is up to the city’s own will.

“Oh my… my head’s going to explode.”

“Haha… I guess you have a lot of guesses.”

“I’m the brains of the party, I’ve seen and heard a lot.”

“Sorry Cain. I don’t understand… Honestly, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Okay. Claude, I’ll explain it to you later as easily as I can.”

“Thank you.”

Claude, who used to be the one who would take care of everything at parties, tried his best to understand me this time, and eventually apologized to me.

Okay, Claude. That attitude is enough. At least he seems to be aware that he is the leader of the party, so I don’t think you need to take action.

“I know that Roy and Tanya have different goals, so there won’t be a big problem, and Lauren also wants to learn swordsmanship, so… I don’t think there will be a problem.”

“But wouldn’t it be a hassle to receive Sia’s protection every time?”

“….ha… Kaiin… okay… are you okay…”

Is Haeju’s protection a channeling skill? Sia was talking to me with a smile, sweat dripping down her face, but her hands were still emitting light.

What, you’re still using the guardian deity?

Originally, it was a one-time protection, but it is possible that the protection continues to be used because of the curse or something that is spread throughout the labyrinth and the city.

I quickly took out my notebook and wrote down what I had been talking about with Mr. Hawk so far, then looked at Sia.

“Sia, it’s okay to stop now.”

“Ugh…”

width-

He looked at Hawk while holding Sia, who was about to fall, in his arms.

“I had doubts once, so I don’t think there will be a big problem.”

“Really? If so, that’s good.”

“So….you were looking for that necklace, sir?”

“…….Yeah.”

Mr. Hawk’s voice, which spoke with a cracking sound at the end, was full of regret.

“Our family heirloom… something similar.”

“Yes?”

“It’s like the wedding ring I gave to my fiancé.”

“Your mother gave the ring she got from your grandmother to your daughter-in-law or something like that?”

“Where did that custom come from? Haha!”

Although the old man tried to laugh at my words as usual, his expression was not good.

“The blessing I gained after reaching level 3 after 5 years was immunity to curses.”

“Yes?”

And then the old man’s story continues.

“I told my doubts to my fiancé, but he didn’t believe me.”

“Ah…”

“Did you see what the Lizard Champion is using? It’s some kind of protective gear.”

“Then…?”

“Protect your mind too.”

When I made my fiancée wear the necklace, which was Mr. Hawk’s heirloom, she also noticed something strange.

However, the old man and his fiancée could not leave the city right away.

The party members didn’t understand their sudden decision to leave the city, and most of the preparations for settling down had already been completed.

While preparing to part ways with the party members he had grown attached to for five years, Hawk and his fiancée began to unravel some of the more curious aspects of their experiences over the past five years.

Hawk, who was a young and energetic man at the time, said that although his fiancée tried to dissuade him, he wanted to find out why they had become like this before leaving.

“She tried to stop me at first, but I thought it would be okay if I moved as carefully as possible.”

Content that seems a little closer to the truth but also a little bit roundabout, the day when a half-resigned old man entered the labyrinth for the last time with his party members to explore.

“Portal Invasion.”

“Ah….”

The act of following another party through a portal, either accidentally or intentionally.

Since there are usually security guards standing guard inside the hall, it is considered rare for people to intentionally invade the portal.

“The sight of my colleagues and my fiancée falling, and the last thing I saw as I fell was the armor of the security force.”

“……”

“And when I came to, I was lying alone in the level transfer hall.”

He spoke calmly, but the content was not like that at all.

“Cain, you know that too, right? There’s a story that the remains or items of people who died in the labyrinth are sometimes found in other portals.”

“Yes.”

“When I first came to the city, it was a rumor that had been going on for a long time. So I was in this city for 10 years. My body and mind wanted to kick this damn place right away.”

The voice of an old man trembling while holding a soft necklace in his hand is heard.

“If I don’t find the necklace, I……”

Everyone became silent at the old man’s voice, which was full of sorrow.

“Ha… Right, there were 7 people back then… There are still 7 people now.”

Only the voice of the dispirited old man resonated in the surroundings.