Chapter 213: Found You
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 213: Found You
About three weeks later. Early August.
“I haven’t seen much of Yoo Eon lately, have you?”
“Yeah... I wonder if something’s up,” Sera replied in a small, slightly hushed voice to Ravi’s question.
Three weeks had passed since Yoo Eon’s private meeting with Mystery Antoinette, the head of the Antonio Brotherhood. The Dwarf craftsman from the forge had eventually tracked down the Mounted Goat Inn to share his news: his master had passed away from old age.
Ravi didn’t know the full story, but seeing his somber expression, she offered words of comfort. She promised to tell Yoo Eon to visit the forge as soon as he returned home.
However, the Dwarf blacksmith declined, explaining that he was heading off to meet an acquaintance elsewhere. It was then that Ravi first learned that the equipment Yoo Eon currently used was made of Orichalcum.
Ravi had moved. She left her original appraisal office empty, packing up her belongings and moving into the inn. Using the money Yoo Eon had left for her to use whenever she needed, she had funded a small extension in the inn’s backyard, creating a new room for herself and Tresha to share.
Being a duo of an appraiser and an apprentice mage, the room was cluttered with magic tools. A bed for Walter had also been set up against one wall.
Yoo Eon, who had previously been using one of the guest rooms, now had a room of his own thanks to the extension. It was roughly the same size as the others. He had left word to keep it small since he wouldn't be at the inn much anyway, but Sera had insisted otherwise, so it was built to a standard size.
During the construction, the Auntie had asked for a separate room for her father, but after he spent three days wailing as if the world were ending, they seemingly gave up on the idea of him sleeping alone.
The construction was handled by a crew with connections to the Lymain family, and they did a clean, professional job. The new guest rooms were of such quality that they could have easily charged a higher rate for them.
Even after all that, there was money left over to replace the beds and upgrade various aging facilities. But as time passed, Yoo Eon would only slip in during the dead of night to sleep on the first floor of the inn before vanishing again before sunrise.
The Antonio Brotherhood’s movements remained largely unchanged. While the birth of the Adversary was certainly something Mystery Antoinette had been waiting a long time for, it didn't mean she could take immediate action.
She had tried to kill him early on by recruiting low-grade explorers or training skilled assassins to turn loose inside the Labyrinth, but those plans had already failed.
Mystery Antoinette—the Succubus Queen—was aiming to sacrifice life force to summon the true form of her Treasure, a process that would be complete in about a month.
Since it possessed immense mana, summoning it prematurely risked a total offensive from other Orichalcum-grade explorers.
However, without the skills held by the Emperor of Sinew, it was ultimately impossible to truly kill the Succubus Queen. Therefore, starting the ritual after the Adversary appeared wouldn't be a problem.
Judging by the Adversary Yoo Eon’s rate of growth, she decided that her defeat was an impossibility.
*
“Dahlia. Is he still not here?”
“Ah, Senior... He hasn't arrived yet...”
“Hmm, that’s strange. He’s not the type to break a promise so suddenly.”
Three weeks had passed, and the date had arrived for Calax to deploy three Cobalt-grade explorers for a Labyrinth Opening. Normally, a 40-floor Labyrinth Opening was considered a massive event.
Considering that the common monsters from the 3rd Stratum of Calax had combat power comparable to a typical Gold-grade explorer, a Labyrinth Opening—where thousands of such monsters poured out 24 hours a day—was extremely dangerous.
“Has Aven not arrived?”
“No, it seems not.”
“Hmph, what gives? Is he that busy?”
Rubia, who had been Platinum Grade, had recently promoted to Cobalt Grade and was fulfilling her first mandatory deployment for a Labyrinth Opening. Since they had promoted around the same time, she had been assigned to the same Labyrinth Wave defense as Yoo Eon.
Yet, for some reason, Yoo Eon was nowhere to be seen even as the deadline approached.
Calax had ordered three people for this deployment. As far as Rubia could tell, the other person was a Cobalt Grade she didn't recognize.
“Uuugh... Am I not going to see Mr. Aven...?”
“Hey, why are you crying! He’ll definitely show up, so don't worry!”
She was a strange person who claimed to be a fan of Yoo Eon.
Left with no choice, the two set out on the expedition without him. The Northwest Branch Guild was scrambling to find a Cobalt Grade or higher explorer to replace Yoo Eon as quickly as possible. The Southwest didn't have many Cobalt-grade explorers to begin with.
“Oh? When did this person’s grade go up so much?”
“Hm? Who is it?”
A management staff member at the Northwest Branch Guild was scanning the roster when they spotted a familiar name.
“Sio? I’ve never heard that name before.”
“It’s a pseudonym. You don't know who this is?”
A female explorer listed as Platinum Grade. The staff member who found the name looked around cautiously before leaning in to whisper into their colleague’s ear.
“It’s the daughter of the Lymain family. Lady Theodora.”
“Ah, I see. That’s why she used 'Sio'.”
“I’m sure she was only Silver Grade the last time I checked.”
*
Rubia and Rike took a Gateway to the city nearest the Labyrinth Opening, then traveled by carriage for about a day to reach the site.
It was now early August, and rain was pouring over the forest. Dark clouds hung low, and the heavy downpour significantly obscured vision and created a constant roar of noise.
A danger zone had been established in a 5km radius around the Labyrinth, with patrols circulating to prevent unauthorized entry. Since this was her first Labyrinth Opening, Rubia had heard plenty of stories from senior high-grade explorers back at the Mayerbridge Union.
“Hehe, Hero Rubia is on the scene!”
Rubia was the type to think that fighting in the rain made everything look cooler.
While a Cobalt-grade explorer could run faster than a carriage, they were traveling as escorts for the transported supplies. A Labyrinth Opening involved hundreds of explorers holding the line against a Labyrinth Portal in the wilderness for an extended period.
“We’re heading in from the 30th Floor! It starts tomorrow.”
“I see...”
This was the reason it took three weeks. The Labyrinth Opening had already begun, and since Cobalt was a high grade, they were joining the fray starting from the 30th Floor.
Labyrinth Openings progressed through the strata in order, so for the first ten to twenty days, even Iron- to Gold-grade explorers from the surrounding areas could hold the line. It was considered poor strategy to exhaust high-level personnel from the very beginning.
“The Sword Saint skill?! That’s amazing!!”
“Yes... so I’ve been told...”
The fan of Yoo Eon with the strange way of speaking was named Rike. She was a woman with a gloomy impression and shaggy navy-blue hair who had somehow obtained the Sword Saint skill and become a high-grade explorer.
She hadn't originally intended to be a professional explorer; she had apparently stumbled upon the skill while entering a Labyrinth to gather herbs. Specifically, she mentioned finding it in a small, obscure Labyrinth in an unremarkable village.
She had come to Calax during the festival and had become a fan after seeing Yoo Eon there.
“Back then, Aven went like this! He grabbed an Orichalcum Grade by the collar and said, ‘Hey you, you wanna die, punk?!’”
“Sniff... That’s so cool...”
Rubia and Rike quickly bonded as Rubia shared a somewhat fabricated version of the events at the Guild Headquarters. Rike mentioned she was interested in joining the Mayerbridge Union, so they seemed to get along perfectly.
“You’re the ones from Calax, right? It’s time to get ready.”
“Yes! Understood!”
“Uuu... I don't want to fight...”
“But if you work hard, you can make a ton of money.”
“Ugh... I want to get the fighting over with quickly...”
Rike’s hands trembled as she gripped the sword at her waist. Her goal was a swift retirement.
“We’re starting soon—!! Everyone, check your gear—!!!”
Around midnight. With a margin of error of about ten minutes on either side of the transition between AM and PM, the next stage of the Labyrinth Opening began.
What was pouring out now were the monsters of the 30th Floor. And the 3rd Stratum Boss entity.
*
A messenger announced the start of the wave to everyone using voice amplification magic. Immediately, explorers of Cobalt Grade and higher, gathered from all over, gripped their various weapons and prepared for the long battle ahead.
Since Rubia’s Strength Stack Skill had a clear penalty time, her plan was to participate vigorously during the waves where boss and mid-boss entities appeared.
“Hyaaah—!!”
“Uuuugh... This is so hard...”
Rubia fought while swinging a massive hammer that was nearly as large as her own body. Since she was short, the hammer looked even more imposing. In the air, other high-grade explorers from different towns were flying using various skills, calmly engaging in close-quarters combat.
The strongest explorer in this Labyrinth Wave expedition was said to be a Palladium-grade explorer from the Wispales region. Since Rubia and Rike had only been active as explorers for a short time and hadn't interacted much with other regions, they didn't recognize the name or face.
Besides, the heavy rain had eliminated the usual opportunities to gather, laugh, and socialize.
—Rumble...!!!
As the battle dragged on, people began to withdraw from the front lines one by one.
In reality, the duration of actual combat inside a Labyrinth is very short. Most high-grade explorers tended to favor "selection and concentration," becoming extremely powerful for a short burst while their combat power plummeted during normal times.
There were mana-reinforced barricades stretched out at a wide distance from the portal spewing monsters, and structures designed to lure the monsters into narrow passages.
Mages were helping by binding the monsters' feet or raising earthen walls to reinforce weak points, but explorers whose muscles were fatigued from the prolonged battle were prone to making mistakes.
“Pant... pant... 12 more minutes... I’ll have to burn another stack...!”
“D-Do your best...!”
Rike and Rubia, who had found common ground, fought hard back-to-back inside the barricade. If things got dire, the mages’ emergency extraction devices would trigger, whisking them outside the barricade the moment they reached the point of exhaustion.
—Slap, slap!
Rubia set her hammer down for a moment and slapped her cheeks twice. Just as she was about to use another stack—
—Focus!! The boss entity is coming out!!!
Other explorers who had been conserving their strength entered the barricade, warming up and preparing themselves. It was the timing for Rubia and Rike, who had been busy thinning out the mobs, to pull back.
“Yes! I saved a stack!”
“T-Thank goodness...”
Since it was the first Labyrinth Opening for both of them, the senior explorers were showing them some consideration.
Thus, according to the original schedule, the boss entity was supposed to appear within about ten minutes.
“Wait, something’s wrong...?!”
“Everyone, stop! Something is coming—!!!”
A massive surge of mana settled thickly over the entire forest. The mana measuring devices prepared by the mages of the Page of Arcana began to fluctuate wildly. Agitation spread among the explorers, and trouble brewed just before the expected boss appearance.
—Crash!!!
“Barricade at 11 o’clock!! Collision with monsters—!! We need backup!!!”
To prepare for unexpected situations, the circular barricade surrounding the Labyrinth Portal was restricted to a minimum diameter of about 2km.
Naturally, it was difficult for news of what was happening on the other side to be transmitted in real-time over such a distance. To make matters worse, the rain continued to fall relentlessly, obstructing their vision.
“You two! Go support the 11 o’clock position for a bit!!”
“Huh?! Me?!”
“Hieeeek...”
Rubia and Rike hurried toward the 11 o’clock barricade. As if they had a specific purpose, an unnervingly large number of monsters were continuously streaming toward that position.
“What is that?!”
“I-I don't know either...”
Monsters poured out in droves, slamming into the barricade. Rubia and Rike rushed in to help, but they were insufficient to hold back the mass of monsters.
—Boom!!!
Rubia was struck head-on by a charging beast-type monster and sent flying. Her grip failed, her hammer tumbling away, and blood flowing from her forehead blurred her vision.
“Ugh... That hurts...!”
They hadn't yet stopped all the monsters trying to break through the barricade. In the distance, Rike was still fighting.
“I-I have to get up...!”
As Rubia forced her fallen body up and looked toward the sky—
“Huh...?”
Something was floating in the distance, high in the sky.
Someone was flying rapidly toward them, flapping wings and clutching a sword wreathed in blue flames.
“He... He’s here...!!”
At Rubia’s cry, Rike’s gaze turned toward the heavens.
“Found you.”