Chapter 33
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: Anything?
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War was over, and Labyrinth City's streets were already buzzing with festival vibes.
Commander Ian had far more procedures to wrap up than the other mercenaries, so he returned to the inn a bit later than his crew.
The battle had wrapped up around afternoon, but by the time Ian finished everything and got back, it was evening.
As the inn door swung open, the red sunset spilling over the walls poured into the place.
Ian's eyes took in the rowdy scene on the inn's first floor.
With the alert lifted, they'd jumped right back into dinner service today.
To celebrate surviving that grueling war against the monsters, the mercenaries were already throwing an early evening bash with booze flowing.
The innkeeper spotted Ian and offered a free drink, but he turned it down and headed up the stairs.
Up the stairs...
Ian didn't head to his usual room. Instead, he turned in a different direction.
He stopped in front of one door and knocked carefully.
It was a squad member's room he had no real reason to enter normally.
Hearing the knock, the door cracked open after a moment.
Rin peeked out cautiously from inside.
"Captain..."
"Sorry, I'm late. How's Mika?"
"Same as before. I thought she'd bounce back after some rest..."
The room's atmosphere hung heavy.
Stepping inside, Ian saw Mika lying there, unable to move a muscle.
Mika, bedridden and under Tanya's care, lifted her head.
"Mika. You okay?"
"M-my body... won't move..."
Mika, who'd briefly raised her head, let it drop again with an exhausted look.
Watching her, Tanya asked Ian with a worried face.
"Why's Mika like this? Is it an illness?"
"Hold on... Let me check."
Gazing at the prone Mika, Ian's status popped up in his vision.
He instantly knew the cause.
The Labyrinth's energy has eroded [Mika].
[Erosion +11]
Due to erosion, [Mika] has received the Labyrinth's curse.
[Curse: Stamina -8]
The penalty value you get from entering the Labyrinth.
Erosion.
Exploring the Labyrinth builds up erosion in various situations.
Like this time—getting hit by a monster's pattern that inflicts it was one such cause.
This erosion imposed various penalties on mercenaries, called "curses."
Mika's erosion was on the very low side, and "stat reduction" was the weakest curse among them...
But for low-level Mika, it was a massive hit.
It was the mod's doing.
The mod added more monster types, so balance-wise, erosion monsters that shouldn't appear early got mixed into the first wave.
...Mods are like that.
Forcing extra elements onto the base system.
Sometimes, stuff that shouldn't happen at that time or in that situation pops up.
Ian checked Mika's current stamina...
1.
Her max stamina was abnormally low, so even slight movement would exhaust her.
"Captain. Do you know what's causing it?"
"...Yeah. I do."
"Really? Phew... That's a relief. So how do we fix it? I'll go buy whatever we need."
Rin sighed in relief at Ian's answer.
But knowing what it was didn't mean he could fix it.
Ian's expression stayed grim.
Tanya's face darkened as she read his look.
"Captain? There's a way to treat it... right?"
"Huh? If you know the cause... can't you treat it?"
Tanya's question made Rin realize something too, staring at Ian.
Ian lowered his head and began explaining Mika's condition to the three as simply as possible.
The Labyrinth's curse. Erosion didn't decrease naturally; it could only be purified through special means.
That's why challenging the Labyrinth required thorough prep, and post-expedition, it meant hefty costs and long recovery times for treatment.
The problem was...
Erosion unlocks with Labyrinth challenges.
So do the ways to resolve it—they're timed for when you enter the Labyrinth.
Goddess statue, holy relic, blessed gear, high priest's purification prayer, alchemist's potion, purification spring inside the Labyrinth...
All of them impossible to get right now.
"Goddess statue...?"
"Holy relic?"
"High priests... even normal folks rarely meet one in a lifetime..."
The three's faces hardened at Ian's listed treatments.
Items they'd never heard of, no clue how to obtain.
No need for more details—they got that everything Ian said was practically impossible.
"So... what do we do?"
"......"
Ian, who always had easy answers no matter the question...
Stayed silent this time.
"If we can't treat this, Mika..."
Rin's words trailed off unfinished.
Without treatment, no more mercenary life.
No one said it outright, but they all pictured the grim outcome at once.
Couldn't think of treatments, but they could guess how this ends.
The simplest solution...
Firing her.
Mika was a dime-a-dozen E-rank rookie mercenary.
Plenty to replace her, so injured ones unable to fight got severance and cut loose. Done.
Anyone could think of it...
And it happened all the time in this industry.
Was it heartless?
If you chose this life, you accepted it—one of the most common ends for mercenaries.
Count yourself lucky you kept your life.
Ian, who'd averted his gaze, looked up.
Mika had propped herself up in bed, watching him anxiously.
...Can't do that.
Game or reality aside.
Even if it was a game, Ian had never used his mercenaries that way.
"There's one way."
"Huh? Really?"
The heavy mood shattered; Rin snapped her head up.
Captain always knew all the answers, giving solutions every time trouble hit.
Of course he'd know this too!
Rin jumped to her feet in joy.
"Knew it! Captain would know! What do we do?"
"Step out for a bit."
"...Pardon?"
Ian's finger pointed at Rin, then Tanya beside her.
"Gonna tell Mika only. You two wait outside while we talk."
"Huh? Rin maybe, but... me too?"
"...What’s that mean, Tanya?"
Tanya clamped her mouth shut, realizing her slip, but Rin grabbed and yanked her cheeks.
"Eep! Owowow!"
"Why can't you tell us?"
Rin grilled Ian while pinning the squirming Tanya, but Ian shook his head firmly.
...That's his "no way" face.
Sighing at Ian's resolve, Rin finally gave up and stood.
"Fine, I'll ask Mika later. That okay?"
"...If she tells you."
"Got it. We'll be downstairs. Tanya, out."
"Hngaaah..."
Rin dragged Tanya out by the cheek, pouting a bit.
Now the room held only Ian and Mika.
Mika waited tensely for Ian to speak, wondering what this private method could be.
Gazing down at her, Ian pondered how to explain without misunderstanding, then spoke.
"Mika. It might sound weird. Don't get the wrong idea."
"Yes. If it cures me, I'll do anything!"
"Anything, really?"
"Yes!"
Mika nodded firmly, face set for any hardship.
This game had a system called Potential.
Player characters don't get traits on level-up.
Instead, this Potential system let them acquire trait-like abilities.
Unlike combat skills or specialized traits for mercenaries.
Commanding mercenaries, overseeing battlefields, reading situations, overcoming bad luck.
Not just frontline fighter prowess.
Talent as a squad leader, a hero.
That was Potential skills.
[Remaining Potential Points: 7]
This Potential points system was rare in a game where most growth was random—letting you invest directly in desired skills.
Choices could max party strengths or cover fatal weaknesses. Crucial.
He hadn't spent a single point yet, saving them.
Ian's style: hold till the end, then after party completion, design synergistic combo and invest.
Safest way to minimize random risks on high difficulties.
Ian's Potential page opened before him.
[Honor] [Will] [Adventure] [Courage] [Strategy] [Insight] [Heaven's Luck]...
Dozens of Potential options listed.
But... not what he needed now.
Ian flipped pages a few times.
The far back.
Dark, sinister sentences utterly unlike the front pages appeared.
[Corruption] [Subjugation] [Blind Faith]
"......"
Yeah...
True to the 19+ mod's purpose, beyond combat/growth traits...
It stocked traits for seducing, corrupting, training mercenaries.
Front traits made you a superhuman commander.
These turned you into a trainer who could easily claim your mercenaries.
...One here could cure Mika right now.
[Psychological Dependence]
- [Potential: Blind Faith] trait
- Removes a certain amount of negative effects from sexual partners.
- Slightly increases target's affection when removing negative effects.