Chapter 42: The Harmless Dream Labyrinth
Chapter 42: The Harmless Dream Labyrinth
“Everyone, did you enjoy yourselves?”
As we left the casino, I asked the question. The expedition members responded in ways that suited their personalities.
“I’ve been tossed around by worries because of Asmi lately, so it was refreshing to have a change of pace for once!”
“…….”
Pendrick answered with a bright smile, while Rosalia silently nodded.
“You both lost quite a lot, but it seems you still had fun?”
“When every coin is worth one gold, it’s impossible not to enjoy it.”
That was exactly why gambling addiction was so terrifying.
I myself had once become far too absorbed in a pseudo-gambling mobile gacha game. In the end, I had poured my entire fortune into buying books instead, casting away distractions and nourishing my brain.
“Asmi, I’ll attach this to the weight here.”
—Hmm, not bad.
Astrimia seemed pleased thanks to the pretty brooch, so everything we had to do at the casino was finished.
“Then everyone, brace yourselves. Our pleasant leisure time is over. It’s time for an even more enjoyable exploration.”
It was about time to begin the real strategy.
“Where are we going, Captain?”
“Just follow me. I’ll take you somewhere very comfortable.”
I led the members to what could be called the key location of this expedition.
“It’s the starting inn?”
A skyscraper stretching high into the sky.
Even at this moment, explorers continuously entered and exited through the glass front doors.
Once today passed, entry would not be possible again for another ten days, so it was only natural that many explorers were coming and going.
“Would you look carefully at the rooftop for a moment?”
Pendrick shaded his eyes with a hand and looked up.
“…It’s getting taller.”
The hotel-like high-rise building was still increasing in floors even at this moment.
Even in a world where Mysteries existed, it was clearly an unnatural sight.
“This happens because explorers keep entering.”
“Will technology like that be developed a thousand years in the future?”
—Of course not.
The Ego Sword—who had no “head” to speak of yet thought faster than her lover—asked me:
—Kar, is this a world made of illusions?
My lips curled upward.
Not because she was wrong, but because she was rapidly approaching the truth.
“Close. As a hint, recall the method used to enter a labyrinth.”
—…We lay down on a bed like we were going to sleep. Don’t tell me—
“That’s right.”
Pressing my palms together, I rested them against my right cheek and gently closed my eyes.
“The setting of Pleasure Metropolis is a dreamland a thousand years in the future.”
A labyrinth set within a dream.
Astrimia immediately understood what that meant and sighed.
—That can’t be! Spaces like dreams—places that don’t truly exist in reality—shouldn’t normally become labyrinth stages.
“If a dream persists long enough or exerts enough influence that the world’s laws treat it as a real place, it can manifest as a labyrinth.”
—Oh dear…
Pendrick blinked slowly at his lover’s worried voice.
“What’s wrong, Asmi?”
“Pendrick, do you know the basic rule every explorer must remember?”
I asked gently in place of the troubled Ego Sword.
Pendrick seemed to realize something and stiffened.
“…That the environment of a labyrinth will never work in the explorer’s favor.”
“Correct.”
A harmless dream labyrinth where you could simply enter, enjoy yourself, and leave happily.
Something like that did not exist in this world.
“A dream that works against people. Think about what we call that.”
“……”
Pendrick’s posture and demeanor suddenly became serious.
“Now you understand why I said C-Rank was appropriate.”
The moment the veil of happiness covering this city was stripped away, we would taste its endlessly gloomy true form.
Which meant I was already looking forward to it.
“If you’re ready, let’s go inside.”
We returned to the room where we had first awakened.
The red-haired elf who sat down on the bed looked at me and shrugged slightly.
“What should we do now? It’s simple.”
Lying quietly beside Rosalia and staring at the ceiling, I answered.
“We do nothing. For four days.”
“…….”
“I’m serious, so stop glaring. Do you think I’m always joking?”
Nod.
“How can you nod without even hesitating? I mean it this time.”
The first step of exploration to satisfy the clear condition.
Spend four days doing nothing in the room.
“You must never go outside. Even sticking your arm out the window is forbidden.”
“Captain, then do we just wait blankly the whole time?”
I shook my head.
“You simply must not leave the room.”
“What about meals and bodily needs?”
“Hunger, thirst, sleep—everything is an illusion. This is a dream. Just relax and sit idly. It would be nice to chat as well.”
If I had entered alone, my only conversation partner would have been the Eye That Perceives Truth, which would have been awkward.
Fortunately, I had two expedition members and one sword with me.
—Now I understand why the clear condition for Pleasure Metropolis is treated as a Hidden Piece…
Astrimia let out a mental laugh.
—If what you’re saying is true, we’d have to stay in the room for four days. Who in the world would ever do that? Especially since this is a labyrinth people come to enjoy.
For veteran players filled with experimental spirit, the condition was actually simple.
In the game, you could simply leave it running and wait.
But in reality, it was not that easy.
—Isn’t there any way to make time pass faster?
“Chronomancers might manage it, but where would we find such high-level personnel now? Just enjoy the leisure.”
From the subspace of Radiant Faith, I took out a bottle of Abel’s special tea, Flower Garden in the Lake, and lazily swung my legs.
“Just relax like this. Sister, would you like a drink?”
Rosalia accepted the bottle without refusal and took a sip.
After drinking half of it, she took out a poisonous plant she had purchased at the exploration supply shop and handed it to me.
“Is this a return gift?”
Or perhaps she was politely telling me to die.
That didn’t seem likely, so I pretended to munch on the ugly plant the way a cat might bring a hunted animal to a human.
Rosalia quietly raised a thumb in approval and then began chewing on a poisonous mushroom.
“…Ugh.”
Her expression twisted as the poison took effect, but soon after she displayed a bright eye-smile I had never seen before.
“That brooch suits you well, Asmi.”
—Really?
Meanwhile Pendrick sat quietly on the sofa near the window and began speaking softly with Astrimia.
For a labyrinth expedition, it was a surprisingly peaceful time.
One day passed.
“Sister, your skin is turning blue. You should probably slow down.”
“…….”
—This is actually pleasant, just talking like this.
“Indeed.”
Two days passed.
—Ah! Why are you eating poison too, Kar?!
“I was bored.”
—Then stay bored! Your skin has turned blue!
“Perhaps living as a blue person sometimes isn’t so bad.”
Three days passed.
“Everyone, start preparing yourselves.”
And finally—
The fourth day arrived.
At the moment dawn began to rise in the sky outside the window, the dream city beyond suddenly plunged into darkness.
Nothing could be seen.
Nothing could be heard.
A silence so profound it felt oppressive.
“…Captain.”
Standing by the window, Pendrick trembled and stepped back.
Within the darkness submerged in silence—
An unimaginably gigantic eyeball was staring at us.
Meeting the gaze of those eyes, which seemed to embody terror itself, I slowly stepped forward.
“Now the real beginning starts.”
C-Rank Labyrinth.
Nightmare World.
“Commencing exploration.”
The silence was suffocating.
The world had been swallowed by stillness.
The sound of Pendrick swallowing felt as loud as thunder.
Within the crushing quiet that tightened around our consciousness, the enormous single eye continued staring without looking away.
《King of the Dead (? Level)》
《A giant of unimaginable size. Due to the difference in level, detailed information cannot be read.》
A monster far stronger than even the maximally empowered Corrupted Statue of Metherd.
Merely exchanging gazes with it filled the entire body with pressure.
Its overwhelming presence gradually crushed the mind.
“…This is dizzying.”
Leaning against the wall to remain standing, Pendrick whispered.
“…….”
Even Rosalia’s complexion had turned noticeably pale.
Moments like this were when the expedition leader had to act.
“Drink this.”
I distributed mental barrier potions purchased from the exploration supply shop.
When entering Nightmare World, the gaze of the King of the Dead gradually eroded the mind. These potions prevented that effect.
“I feel like I can breathe again…”
Pendrick smiled weakly as his complexion improved.
“So that’s why you bought nine of those expensive potions?”
“Yes. That eye alone can inflict mental shock just by looking at us.”
“As expected, Lady Lidni knows everything!”
“Don’t relax yet. If more than four days pass here, mental collapse will occur that even the potions cannot stop.”
It was essentially a time limit.
If we failed to clear the labyrinth within three days, we would die.
“But there’s no need to worry.”
Tearing down the obstructive curtain, I met the eyes of both expedition members and smiled.
“This is a C-Rank labyrinth, but as I said earlier, if you come fully prepared it is closer to D-Rank difficulty.”
Unlike the relatively smooth clear of the Banquet Hall of the Bloodbirds, however, this one would involve some hardship. I chose not to mention that.
Adjusting the pace of truth was necessary to maintain motivation.
There was one encouraging fact.
“Fortunately, we don’t have to fight that monster. Strictly speaking, it’s safe as long as we don’t provoke it.”
The King of the Dead.
A Level-9 monster.
A terrifying enemy normally found only in A-Rank labyrinths, but it had only recently awakened and was still groggy.
Unless attacked first, it would not assault us.
It would simply stare at us uncomfortably.
“Our objective is to find a very small piece of land emitting white light—the only such place in this dark land—within three days.”
Its location was completely random.
If lucky, we might find it within a day. If unlucky, we could wander fruitlessly for three days.
“Put these on.”
From my subspace I distributed dark robes purchased along with the potions.
《Exploration Tool — Curtain of the Night Sky》
《When worn in dark environments, it reduces visibility and makes the wearer difficult to detect.》
They were not masterpiece-grade—just ordinary equipment—but still useful.
Pulling on the robe, I stepped onto the window frame.
“We’re moving.”
I jumped outside.
My feet landed on a surface that was difficult to see.
It could support my weight, but it wasn’t ground.
Fwaaah.
When Astrimia—held in Pendrick’s hand—released a faint starlight glow, we finally saw where we stood.
A vast expanse of cold blue.
At first it was too large to recognize properly, but after staring for a while the shape became clear.
—…It’s a hand.
The hand of the King of the Dead.
More precisely, the palm.
The room we had been in now rested upon the palm of the silent giant.
“Let’s go.”
There was no time to hesitate.
Even I had no desire to die in a C-Rank labyrinth, so I led the way down the massive arm.
“Astrimia, extinguish the light. We must move as stealthily as possible.”
—Understood.
In the suffocating silence we reached the bend of the arm.
Then—
Without warning, several figures appeared from the opposite side.
“…Foolish.”
An enemy approached, visible only as a vague outline.
A priest wearing ceremonial robes.
I could not see clearly, but I had a partner who could easily pierce the darkness.
《Priest of Lonely Silence — Demon (Level 4)》
《A cultist who wields annihilating flames and the power that reverses death. As a demon, it grows stronger by feeding on negative concepts, granting it superior physical ability.》
A demon cultist.
In reality, a weak combination doubly burdened by prejudice and hatred.
But within this labyrinth, it symbolized authority and power.
Nightmare World was a possible future where demon cultists and black mages had completely conquered every intelligent species on the continent.