Chapter 39: A Happy Labyrinth Where All Worries Can Be Forgotten
Chapter 39: A Happy Labyrinth Where All Worries Can Be Forgotten
At last, the long-awaited day of cheerful labyrinth exploration arrived.
Before heading out, we first stopped by the Jewelsmith Guild Headquarters to check the progress of my custom order.
“Ah, perfect timing!”
Guildmaster Tavirek thumped his chest with a hearty greeting and brought over a small box.
“It’s finished. A masterpiece made with my very soul!”
Two parts of that statement were surprising.
“You finished already? And it’s masterpiece-grade?”
If he were truly such a skilled artisan, the Jewelsmith Guild would already be famous as a major guild.
Had he perhaps bought someone else’s work?
Sensing my reasonable suspicion, Tavirek shook his head firmly.
“While I was crafting it, Solmir suddenly granted me blazing inspiration for my mind and hands!”
“Hmm. That sounds like something a boastful dwarf would say.”
“Haha! Just take a look first. Honestly, I can hardly believe it myself!”
I accepted the box and carefully opened the lid.
Inside lay a neatly folded golden stole.
《Masterpiece — Radiant Faith》
《Communication with divine beings becomes smoother. You will no longer suffer from the oracles of the Wise One or other inferior Evil Gods. Additionally, it contains a subspace for storing items. Was he truly an ordinary dwarf?》
“How is it?”
“…It really is a masterpiece.”
The voices of the Evil Gods would no longer cause mental damage.
Frankly, it exceeded my expectations.
“Did Solmir truly grant you inspiration?”
“I told you! The one who bears the sun must have taken pity on me. Or perhaps she’s interested in you.”
There were reasons the Goddess of Sun and Craft might notice me…
But it was more reasonable to assume Tavirek possessed greater potential than expected.
It seemed wise to maintain a good relationship with him.
If our friendship deepened, perhaps he would continue producing masterpiece-grade items.
I placed Radiant Faith around my neck and struck my chest.
“Thank you. I’ll make good use of it.”
“No thanks necessary! I should be the one thanking you. Come visit again! I’ll make another masterpiece next time.”
After exchanging warm farewells, we left the guild headquarters.
“Are we heading out now?”
—This is a little nerve-racking.
“….”
My expedition members were waiting outside.
After exchanging glances with them, I started walking.
“Let’s go. We’ll become the promising expedition that cleared a C-Rank labyrinth with only three members.”
“The line is long.”
Standing on tiptoe to look ahead at the queue of explorers waiting to enter the labyrinth, Pendrick smiled.
“I’ve heard people visit Pleasure Metropolis more to have fun than for rewards. Though I’ve never been there.”
I had just forced a freshly bought grilled lizard skewer into Rosalia’s hand.
I nodded lightly.
“More precisely, the reward is the fun. That labyrinth contains no monsters—only entertainment.”
Pleasure Metropolis.
Currently ranked E-Rank.
A labyrinth modeled after a massive city filled with every form of pleasure imaginable.
It was, quite literally, a labyrinth meant for eating, playing, and enjoying oneself.
“Then what’s the clear condition?”
While chewing the potato skewer I gave him, Pendrick frowned slightly.
“Now that I think about it, I’ve only heard it’s a fun place. I’ve never heard how to clear it.”
“You want to know why, friend?”
A goblin explorer in front of us suddenly turned around.
《Nosy Goblin — Mek Invincible (Goblin, 25). Surely you understand the meaning of the surname “Invincible.” Befriend him and steal his wealth and treasures.》
“Because Pleasure Metropolis has its clear condition hidden as a Hidden Piece.”
Despite the sudden familiarity and know-it-all attitude, Pendrick—blessed with overwhelming sociability—remained completely calm.
“Oh? Then does that make it a Dungeon?”
A labyrinth that had never been cleared was also called a Dungeon.
That was why the final labyrinth was named Nightmare Dungeon.
“That’s right.”
“Then how do you exit if you don’t meet the clear condition?”
“Pleasure Metropolis is one of the few labyrinths you can leave even without clearing.”
“Ah, I see!”
“It only opens once every ten days, but you won’t get trapped inside. Even the Labyrinth Management Corps still can’t figure out the clear condition, so it’s stuck at E-Rank.”
Thanks to Pendrick’s well-timed questions and lively reactions, the goblin continued rambling—even sharing information nobody had asked for.
“I came here to achieve the glory of being the first to clear Pleasure Metropolis.”
“That would certainly bring great fame.”
“Exactly!”
The goblin clenched his fist and cackled.
“Just watch. I’ll become famous as the first to conquer an unexplored dungeon!”
So he had come seeking fame rather than fun.
Too bad.
I had no intention of giving him the honor of first clearance.
“Oh, now I feel motivated too!”
“Good luck, friend. My name’s Mek.”
“I’m Pendrick. Best of luck to you as well!”
While they exchanged friendly encouragement, the long line moved quickly.
Soon it was our turn.
I looked at the building countless explorers were entering.
A shimmering inn, flickering like an illusion.
The entrance to Pleasure Metropolis, which opened only once every ten days.
“Next ten people, enter.”
At the staff member’s call, explorers—including us—poured inside.
The first floor looked like an ordinary tavern.
Except the tables and chairs slowly shifted like shadows.
“…I thought entering the inn would mean entering the labyrinth.”
“First we must go to a guest room.”
We went up to the second floor and entered an open room.
Aside from its faint, unstable flickering, it looked like any ordinary inn room.
“Now we do this.”
I threw myself onto the center of the bed and patted the spaces beside me.
“Let’s lie down side by side.”
An expedition entering Pleasure Metropolis had to consist of three people.
Not because of a labyrinth mechanic.
Because the bed was too small.
“If we close our eyes, the labyrinth entry will activate.”
“This feels strangely different.”
“….”
Three adults lying together on a bed somehow felt like setting off on a picnic.
We counted to three and closed our eyes.
Then—
“We’ve arrived.”
Suddenly we were standing in the room.
It looked the same as before.
An ordinary inn room.
But there was one crucial difference.
The interior no longer flickered like an illusion.
“Wow, that’s impressive.”
Pendrick pulled back the curtain and laughed.
I also looked out the window with excitement.
Towering skyscraper-like buildings.
Brilliant signs of countless colors.
A city overflowing with vitality.
《E-Rank Labyrinth — Pleasure Metropolis》
《Though its clear condition is unknown, it is considered E-Rank because lives are never threatened. A labyrinth famous for entertainment. But you likely know the hidden truth. Reveal it and delight the Wise One.》
Even without the request, I intended to do exactly that.
Lidni always thirsted for new knowledge.
That was why followers were encouraged to pursue unknown truths.
Discovering Hidden Pieces was the perfect act of devotion.
Thump.
Rosalia pushed my head down slightly to look outside the window herself.
She tapped the back of my head.
Meaning: Let’s go outside.
“Yes. Since we’re here, let’s explore the city.”
Thus began the Moon Expedition’s first exploration with Pendrick.
And it began with a stroll.
When we stepped outside and turned back, we saw the towering building behind us.
More like a hotel than an inn.
Pendrick—who came from the less developed Eastern Continent—was shocked by the building’s size.
Then he was shocked again when he learned it was actually considered small here.
“This feels like a completely different continent. There are so many people…”
The streets were crowded with explorers and NPC citizens, known as the spirits of the labyrinth.
My Eye That Perceives Truth kept displaying information nonstop, giving me a headache.
“Captain, what era is this? Everything looks unfamiliar.”
Pendrick’s question made Rosalia’s ears twitch with curiosity.
I tapped my right eye to stop the messages.
Then answered.
“This labyrinth shows a world one thousand years in the future.”
Labyrinths reproduced specific places from the past, present, or future.
And the time represented by Pleasure Metropolis—
Was one thousand years ahead.
“…A thousand years.”
“….”
The scale stunned both of them into silence.
—The important part isn’t that it’s the future.
Astrimia spoke calmly.
—The question is which possible future this represents.
“Correct. Your intelligence is as beautiful as your blade.”
—Naturally.
Astrimia accepted the compliment sincerely.
Pendrick grinned foolishly beside her.
“….”
Rosalia immediately moved back to my side.
—Labyrinths depicting the future usually represent one thread of many possible futures, correct?
“Exactly. There’s a future where technology advanced like this. Another where the Valterium Empire never unified the continent. There’s even a future where the genders of historical figures are all reversed.”
—Then we cannot claim this is truly our future.
“Precisely.”
While praising Astrimia’s wisdom, I looked around the city.
Every element existed solely for human happiness.
A paradise of joy.
A dream city where every passerby wore a bright smile.
Inside this labyrinth, one could forget all worries—
Until discovering its hidden truth.
“Before we begin the real exploration, there’s an important place we must visit.”
While talking, we had continued walking.
Soon we arrived at our destination.
Near the central plaza.
A magnificent structure.
A temple.
《Temple of the Order of Lonely Silence》
The reason I obtained permission from Valentin the Perfect-Toothed Paladin to enter a different labyrinth was precisely for this place.
The deity worshipped here was remarkably noble.
The Watcher of Lonely Silence.
The Evil God of gloomy twilight and cyclical death.
Leria.
“O Leria, devourer of solitude and seeker of darkness—your small spark stands before you.”
The third Evil God I would serve—
Was waiting for me.