Chapter 12 — E-Rank Labyrinth: Fire Ant Nest (4)
Chapter 12 — E-Rank Labyrinth: Fire Ant Nest (4)
Bang, bang, bang!
Marlin swung the pickaxe against the wall.
Her posture was clumsy, so the efficiency was poor. Still, because the overwhelming strength of a tiger beastman was behind it, the work progressed quickly.
However, making a fourteen-year-old do this kind of labor felt a little harsh.
I couldn’t help but feel like a villainous employer exploiting child labor.
“Kar… do thieves normally have to mine with pickaxes too?”
“Take pride in it. You’re becoming one of the few thieves capable of handling physical labor with style.”
“I’m so proud!”
Crash!
The pickaxe struck the wall particularly hard, scattering stone fragments everywhere before lodging into the rock.
Marlin bent forward for a moment to catch her breath, then approached the wall and perked her ears.
“…There’s empty space behind here. So there really is a passage.”
“Did you not believe me until now?”
I answered calmly while installing sharp spider threads along the path we had come from.
After placing the same trap on the opposite side, my head throbbed painfully.
《Remaining Mental Energy: 25/100》
Glossary - The Evil God, Your M…
Exactly as calculated, only the appropriate amount remained.
If I abused Mysteries now, I would receive a full gift set of mental disorders.
I can block about three attacks.
My Mental Energy wasn’t insufficient, but just in case I closed my eyes briefly and meditated to recover a small amount.
In labyrinths, only explorers prepared for sudden crises survived.
“Almost through!”
When Marlin shouted, I opened my eyes.
A large crack had formed in the wall.
“Keep digging. Give me the bag.”
“I’m tired!”
“Just a little more.”
I slung the leather bag over my shoulder.
At that moment, the sound of approaching Fire Ants reached us.
They were already close.
Marlin flinched and gripped the pickaxe shaft, swinging with all her strength.
The full force of a young tiger beastman.
Crash!
At last the sturdy stone wall collapsed, revealing a passage beyond.
Unlike the ant tunnels carved through natural caves, this place was covered in soil.
《A path leading to a region beyond the Fire Ant territory. The humidity is high, the soil damp. The tunnel is narrow with a low ceiling, making movement difficult.》
《But seriously… how did you even figure this out?》
“We did it!”
“Well done.”
I rubbed Marlin’s shoulders briefly before giving orders.
“Get inside quickly. Unless you want to be eaten.”
When she turned toward where I pointed, her eyes widened.
—Grrr!
—Krrr!
The Fire Ant swarm had already arrived nearby.
Some ants had learned the weakness of my traps—melting the spider threads with flames from their eyes.
“Drop the pickaxe. It’s too heavy.”
“Yes!”
Even while discarding the pickaxe, Marlin managed to kill one Fire Ant with the throw before entering the narrow passage.
Because of her smaller frame, she only needed to bend slightly.
I followed behind, walking hunched over.
“Kar! Grab my tail!”
Marlin stopped ahead and stretched her tail backward.
When I grabbed it, the tail wrapped around my arm and began pulling me forward.
“How is it?”
“Thank you.”
A labyrinth could be cleared alone, but cooperation made everything easier.
That was why even high-level explorers formed expedition teams.
Unless one had severe social issues, there was no reason to face every danger alone.
“Ugh, it’s getting narrow!”
The secret passage grew tighter the farther we went.
Now even Marlin had to crawl.
—Grrr…
To make matters worse, Fire Ants entered the soil tunnel behind us.
They couldn’t rush in all at once, but they followed single file, trying to bite my backside.
“Kar! You have a way to lose them, right?”
“No.”
“Then we’ll die!”
Marlin’s tail tightened around my arm.
“Your words are too harsh. Wait a moment.”
The leading Fire Ant finally caught up and bit my ankle.
At that moment I activated the new Mystery granted by Lidni.
A thin membrane seemed to cover my entire body.
The ant bit down.
Flames burst from its eyes as well.
“…Hmm.”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Don’t turn around—keep moving.”
Gritting my teeth, I stabbed the ant between the eyes with spider-thread spikes.
One wasn’t enough.
After the third spike, it finally collapsed.
I pulled my foot free.
Despite being bitten and burned, my ankle looked perfectly intact.
Effective.
《[Membrane That Defers Wounds] — First-Tier Mystery. As long as mental energy remains, no attack can immediately destroy your body.》
A Mystery that prevented injury by consuming Mental Energy.
However, it did not eliminate pain.
And although the body appeared intact, damage accumulated slowly.
If you weren’t careful, you could still die.
Which was why I had prepared healing potions.
“First one.”
I drank a vitality potion and crawled forward.
Soon another Fire Ant bit my thigh.
I handled it the same way and drank another potion.
《Is this really a proper method? Surely the pain must be unbearable.》
It was indeed painful enough to make tears flow.
But pain didn’t matter.
As long as I lived.
Bite.
Another Fire Ant attacked.
I crushed its head with my foot and stabbed it repeatedly.
Then I drank another potion.
My head throbbed.
My legs burned and ached.
Yet I was still alive.
《Next time please attempt a safer strategy….》
Ignoring the text, I continued crawling.
Then Marlin suddenly stood up ahead.
“Kar! There’s a wide space!”
She climbed up first and pulled me up.
Above us stretched a wide corridor.
“This is the final stretch.”
I took out the shell we had bought earlier and stuck it onto Marlin’s jaw.
Then attached one to my own face and lifted the exhausted girl.
—Grrr!
The Fire Ant swarm soon appeared behind us.
But the chase was already over.
“Hold tight.”
I recalled the swift movements of the Sneaking Ghoul and dashed forward.
“Whoa!”
The monsters fell behind instantly.
The effect of Ghoul Mobility was fully active.
“Careful, Kar!”
Even I struggled to control the speed.
My agility had increased but my strength hadn’t, so carrying Marlin was difficult.
“Kar, we lost them! We’re safe!”
“That’s a premature conclusion.”
“Do you know how to swim?”
“…Why are you asking that now?”
“Why else?”
The end of the tunnel appeared.
Before the effect of Ghoul Mobility ended, I jumped with all my strength.
Below us was a vast underground lake.
Splash!
“Ahhh!”
Marlin panicked when we plunged into the cold water.
Then her eyes widened.
“Why can I breathe?”
“Because of the shell.”
“A tool that allows underwater breathing and speech. Thank the Enchantment School of the Library Magic Tower.”
Without this preparation, explorers would either drown or be forced to retreat.
The designers had a particular sense of cruelty.
“Try swimming yourself instead of clinging to a fragile cultist.”
“I can’t.”
“Then stay here. I’m leaving.”
“Just swim already!”
With Marlin clinging to my back like a bag, I slowly descended underwater.
Soon a tunnel appeared near the lakebed.
We’re here.
Passing through it, we surfaced again.
Colorful fish swam past us.
“I’ve never seen fish before.”
“Next time I’ll take you to an aquarium.”
“With Abel!”
“Of course.”
We climbed out onto the shore.
“So why does the ant labyrinth connect to a lake?”
“Because the ant colony happened to dig into a tunnel connected to the lake.”
Then I noticed something near the exit gate.
A red ring.
《First-Tier Artifact — Spark of Glory》
《Allows the emission of a small flame. A decent reward.》
I picked it up.
Dizziness struck due to Mental Energy exhaustion.
Marlin lay beside me.
“The sky… it’s full of dark clouds.”
Outside the labyrinth, the sky was black.
“This place replicates the Western Continent in the distant past.”
An era when Evil Gods possessed power equal to the good gods.
I took out the Ancient Black Relic from my bag.
A heavy rectangular metal block.
Not a simple ingot.
A pedestal.
《I know exactly what you intend to do. Do not do it!》
“I will.”
At the base of the tallest tree by the lake was a hollow.
Inside stood a statue.
An eagle with wings spread wide.
The Hidden Piece.
《Ancient idol depicting the filthy Sky Sovereign, Sue’je. Representing that disgusting god with an eagle is an insult to eagles!》
Sue’je.
An Evil God of violent thunderclouds and authority.
A required preparation for becoming a cultist of the polluted sky.
I connected the statue to the pedestal.
The eagle’s eyes glowed black.
Perfect.
I picked up the completed idol and turned back to Marlin.
“Let’s go.”
E-Rank Labyrinth — Fire Ant Nest.
Clear Complete.