episode_0136

“Jack the Gambler, well, he has various aliases besides that, but he’s somewhat famous, for starters.”

“I had no idea?”

“He’s famous among the soldiers who arrest criminals and at poker venues.”

“That outstanding and formidable 8th-floor explorer is subdued so easily?”

“Mr. Ivan, put your hand on your heart and think about it. Isn’t the prepared Mr. Ivan capable of handling even a 7th-floor boss-level monster right now?”

“That’s true.”

“More than that, he seems to be awake. I can see him trying to untie the rope, you know?”

Grace looks at Jack, who is draped over Cailick’s shoulder.

But to me, he just looked like he was sleeping.

When Grace lightly tugs his ear, cold sweat runs down Jack’s forehead.

“Anyway, it’s far to the safe zone, and we also need to stop by the gem zone.”

At my words, Cailick placed Jack down in a sunny spot.

“Hehehe.”

Jack starts smiling obsequiously with a friendly smile.

Anyone would think he’s an overwhelmingly weak person captured by a strong one.

How many people among us could defeat Jack?

Well, anyway, the violent subdual earlier wasn’t actually intended to take him away.

It was to establish dominance by giving a certain level of threat.

Whether that worked quite well. Jack became very cooperative.

“Ahahaha, as expected, the talent who will lead the next generation, Mr. Ivan Arcana! Have you finally decided to speak with me?”

“Actually, we’re explorers, not soldiers who protect perverts.”

It’s necessary to catch looters who are always a threat, but there’s no reason to go to the trouble of catching just ordinary petty criminals.

Grace also said he was just a harmless swindler. Since there are no good people among those who enter gambling dens in the first place.

Of course, the words ‘harmless swindler’ don’t quite align. For now, what’s more important is that we get information and that person gets a chance to clear their name.

“You know the location of the gem flowers?”

“I found them while searching the cracks in the cave to raid the looters’ hideouts!!”

“You said the looters made you an offer earlier. Then you must know who’s above them?”

“Unfortunately, I don’t know that. In the first place, anyone who could give such orders would have made sure not to be easily discovered.”

Well, I didn’t expect him to know that much anyway.

Anyway, it seems like some kind of conspiracy is going on on the 7th floor.

Should we leave the 7th floor quickly?

At that moment, Jack’s already red eyes became even redder.

“Still, as an 8th-floor explorer, I can provide all the information needed for the 7th-floor promotion certificate! First, I’ll guide you to the gem flowers! In return…”

“Don’t take me to the knights? Understood. Anyway, he seems to know more than typical looters. We’ve captured a few prisoners, so they’ll figure it out.”

“So, the deal is struck?”

“Yes.”

“Then untie this for me. I don’t particularly like having both hands tied. Haha!!”

Indeed, for someone who gambles with poker, it would be inconvenient to not have both hands free.

But he won’t stab us in the back and run away, right?

“Hey. I said I won’t run away. Even looking like this, you need a certain amount of credibility to gamble! To fleece suckers, you need to gather players…”

“Grace. Untie him.”

“Yes.”

I cut him off appropriately so as not to get drawn into his pace unnecessarily.

Grace quickly tried to untie the rope that bound Jack.

“Ta-da!! I’ve already untied it all!”

Jack, who had already completely untied himself, raises both hands and smiles.

“…Well, I figured that much.”

While I was speaking, his hands were fidgeting, so I had anticipated it, but.

Is it right to go with him? We won’t get pickpocketed, will we?

However, it’s not good for us to stay on the 7th floor for a long time either, so getting information is good.

In the end, I have to trust Grace, who is also a player.

“Looking at this, you’re the vegetarian from District 11, aren’t you?”

“…Jack.”

“You’re quite famous in our district too, you know? Chewing on nothing but greens and with those sleight of hand movements…”

“Shall I kill him?”

“Enough. Let’s go for now.”

I should quickly meet the promotion requirements and get out of here.

He doesn’t seem like a good person to be involved with for long.

*

As Jack joined, the party’s atmosphere became very lively.

In a way, it’s also natural.

Considering the talkativeness of our party, Cailick and Luca are basically not very talkative.

Noah gets inexplicably tense when entering the labyrinth, so his words sharply decrease. Only Grace, the guide, talks all day long.

I’m not particularly talkative either. It felt quite quiet.

“Ah, more than that, to ascend to the 7th floor so quickly, fitting your reputation as a supernova, is the Archmage’s disciple truly different?! It took me about 2~3 years to reach the 7th floor!!”

“Isn’t reaching the 7th floor in 2~3 years also an absurd speed?”

“After that, I just stayed on the 8th floor for a while, so this is as far as I go, I guess. More than that, this time…”

Jack, moving his mouth as if he cannot tolerate empty audio.

But it didn’t particularly make me feel bad.

Life in the labyrinth is mostly spent moving, and topics for conversation to pass the time are always welcome.

It’s even said that explorers who have never met before will ascend together just to have a conversation.

And this way, we also get information.

As we walked like that, we eventually reached the gem zone.

The habitat of the gem turtles we encountered by chance while fleeing.

Just as expected. It was still full of gem turtles.

The difference from then is that we are currently looking at the turtles from the passage above.

“What’s written on the promotion certificate is still about discovering the gem zone, right? How to prove that is what’s important.”

“That’s right. The guild investigator said…”

“What?! Even a guild investigator came to the 7th floor?! I didn’t expect them to act so quickly. They’re usually slow, so is there something they’re latching onto?”

“Let’s leave that story for later for now. So, the gem zone…”

“Ah! The gem zone. First of all, you don’t need to defeat all the gem turtles. What’s important is the proof. What’s the most noticeable thing in the gem zone?”

Jack, starting a quiz out of the blue.

While I was making a dumbfounded expression, Luca answered.

“…Isn’t it the gem pillar in the center?”

“Correct! Clap clap!! I will give candy to the Fox Beastkin who answered correctly!”

Jack suddenly flicking a candy with his hand.

And Luca, catching and eating it with astonishing movement.

I unconsciously wiped my forehead.

And Cailick, who was next to me, was the same.

The army’s discipline is waveri… no, it’s not.

Around the time we were failing to adapt to this never-before-seen type of human.

“The gem in the center is different from the gems in other parts of the gem cave; it’s possible to mine it. Of course, if you take it out, it turns into an ordinary stone after not long.”

“That’s the proof that you’ve found the second gem zone.”

“Yes.”

“Then we won’t necessarily need to fight the gem turtles.”

Defeating that many gem turtles is a difficult task, but secretly inserting something into the gap and taking a piece of the giant gem in the center is an easy task.

“Changing the deck… would be a big risk.”

Originally, I could change to the Rogue deck, use Stealth, break it piece by piece, and take it, but.

Unfortunately, the moment I change the deck, the magic circles I’ve accumulated throughout the day disappear completely, so the risk is large.

If so, I need to play a different move.

“What’s the original standard strategy?”

“The gem turtles sleep when it’s time, so you can sneak in then and mine it.”

“Ah……”

A method much easier than expected.

As expected, information is this important.

“If we wait a little longer, they’ll sleep.”

Waiting 3~4 hours in the labyrinth is considered a fairly short time. So we decided to wait.

“Ah, more than that, this time in District 3 where I’m staying…”

Fortunately, there was a storyteller, so it wasn’t boring.

Had about an hour passed like that?

“…An explorer team is approaching.”

Grace quickly stands up and becomes alert.

At that sight, we also quickly stand up.

After waiting for a moment, a party appears at the end of the passage.

They had silver explorer tags around their necks.

Silver explorer tags were visible around our necks too.

“Ah, surely you guys too…?”

“That’s right.”

We gained companions to wait together for the gem turtles of the gem zone to fall asleep.

“You’re entering and leaving the 7th floor three times for promotion?”

“This is normally typical. Having enough information to know everything at once is only possible with connections.”

The explorers look at Jack as they say this.

It seems they are mistaking that we are easily promoting using connections with an 8th-floor explorer.

Nevertheless, Jack smiles brightly as if it doesn’t particularly matter.

“Anyway, Grace. I’m bored, wanna play a hand of poker?”

“I’m not very good at poker. In District 11, there are other card games…”

“Nah, we won’t be betting money anyway. Let’s just kill time among fellow players.”

“Then, may I join too?”

The explorers quickly starting to play as a poker game unfolds in an instant.

Well, that’s better than just spacing out for several hours.

Of course, I still have something to do.

『It’s your turn. Draw 5 cards.』

I need to keep engraving magic circles on my body.

Of course, there are limits to the skin, so I can’t fill it completely, but contemplating removing low-cost magic and engraving better cards is quite good for passing the time.

Time quickly flowed by.

Before we knew it, it was time for the gem turtles to sleep.

But.

“Why haven’t they fallen asleep yet?”

The gem turtles were ardently gobbling up the growing gems.

Furthermore, gem disease began to appear here and there among them.

“Maybe it’s because of the interference from the gem diseases.”

Jack also speaks with a feeling of not knowing well.

“But eventually, if we wait longer, they’ll sleep.”

After all, monsters in the labyrinth also act like living creatures, so there must be a time when they sleep.

“Let’s set up a night watch and get some sleep.”

“That would be good.”

“Then I will look for a crack in the cave.”

As soon as the agreement was made, the explorers quickly started their tasks.

As expected of explorers who have reached the 7th floor, even though they are people they’ve met for the first time, their cooperation is better than expected.

Immediately, one explorer finds a suitably wide crack in the cave.

“It’s quite spacious, and it wouldn’t matter if two parties were together in this.”

As both guides simultaneously gave their approval, they immediately began to unpack their belongings there.

In an instant, our party lit an eternally burning something or other bonfire. We also cooked stew, and now camping is done by professionals, true professionals.

However, while we were doing that, Jack was quietly staring at the cave wall.

I immediately approached him.

“Is there a hideout hidden by looters here too?”

“Looks like it.”

“How do you distinguish that?”

“Just a feeling, I guess. Something about the cave is strange, isn’t it?”

Jack, who immediately reached a suitable location, takes out a scroll from his pocket.

However, the Archmage’s Tower’s mark was not written on that scroll.

If a typical wandering mage made it, there should also be the Magic Association’s mark.

“That……”

“Ah, I know a guy among the black mages, you see.”

I wondered how he opened a path to the black mage’s hideout.

Immediately, Jack unfolded the scroll, and as soon as its light disappeared, his arm slid into the hideout.

“But, we don’t know, and there’s another party we don’t know.”

“…? Just put everything you need in subspace and let the rest be? Even looking like this, I know a lot, so I know valuable things at a glance.”

Ah, he’s not taking everything, just picking out the important stuff?

That is truly reasonable.

“Still, it would be too unethical for me to go in alone, so let’s go in together.”

“Okay.”

I immediately entered the hideout with Jack.

I could hear the voices of the bewildered explorers behind us, but.

For now, let’s take what we need to take first.

Jack’s red eyes momentarily shine even redder.

After that, he sighs and says.

“There’s no one inside? If this is the case, I should’ve just come in alone…”

No, surely he didn’t just bring me as a bodyguard?

As I glared slightly, Jack hums a tune and enters the interior, as if he hadn’t said anything at all.

I follow behind him.

The hideout was unfortunately very dark because there were no gems.

[Ignition]

I activate one of the engraved magic circles to make flames bloom in the air.

Furthermore, that’s not the end.

Whereas in the past it ended with creating flames in the air, now I can maintain the generated flames.

“Mages are good, as expected.”

“Open the door.”

Jack, who immediately lightly struck and broke the lock with a shield, opens the door.

Until then, I thought nothing would happen.

Until I saw the inside of the hideout.

“”……””

We immediately closed our mouths.

Because there were 16 naked human corpses in the hideout.

Furthermore, 16 corpses that were completely dried up, as if something had sucked out their insides.