Chapter 313: Even an Ordinary Explorer
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 313: Even an Ordinary Explorer
“Stop whining. There are plenty of kids here who have it much harder than you. That one over there didn't even know what his parents looked like when he was brought in—and he was much younger than you are now.”
Someone else’s misfortune doesn't make me happy, so why do people talk like that?
“You’ve got your arms, legs, and all ten fingers. Stop acting like you’re in pain.”
To think that it doesn't hurt unless something is broken or severed... that’s such a narrow-minded way to look at things.
“You’re all grown up now. It’s time to leave the orphanage.”
I wonder who gets to decide when someone is 'all grown up.'
“What are you staring at, you idiot? Hurry up and eat so you can leave. There are people waiting!”
“I-I’m sorry.”
Why don't they wash these? This cup...
I’m certain the person before me just used it.
Gulp...
Clatter...
“Ugh... Thank you for the meal...!”
I didn't really eat. My stomach couldn't handle the thin gruel—the first meal I’d had in ages—and I ended up retching it all back up.
“Blegh...!!!”
If you can see, if you can hear, and if your limbs are intact, you aren't supposed to be miserable. At the very least, if you know what your parents looked like, you aren't miserable. If only I had lived with my parents until I was eight. If only I had entered the orphanage a little later.
“Subsidies? That’s going to be difficult. You don't have any Curse Skills or anything, right? There are plenty of easy gathering requests. Even you can do those.”
There is nothing more miserable than an ambiguous misfortune. A misfortune that fails to earn the sympathy of others.
A misfortune that isn't 'unfortunate' enough.
“Why do you keep acting like you’re the only one struggling? I can't hang out with you anymore.”
That’s only because you guys got good skills. You, who left the orphanage in the same year you turned fourteen, were the only ones who got lucky.
“You remember Savera? I heard he died. Consider yourself lucky.”
Why do people keep weighing my misfortune against others?
If I’m in a slightly better state than someone else, does that mean I’m not suffering?
“B-but... you got a good skill...”
“So what? That’s because I did well.”
Then Savera, who was more miserable than me... I guess he just didn't do well enough.
“...I’m sorry.”
“Just go do some requests and try to get a skill or something.”
“Yeah... I’ll work hard.”
“Do a good job. Don't just work hard.”
* * *
“Gah...!?”
“Oh, you’re awake.”
Rita had fainted after Yoo Eon ran for a bit with her slung over his shoulder. He’d thought she would be fine since he’d fed her, but when she fell into a deep sleep, he decided to just pick her up and keep moving.
“Are you okay? Was I going too fast?”
“Ah, ugh...”
The fact that he had run faster while she was asleep wasn't the main issue. While Rita slept, Yoo Eon had been checking her physical condition and treating the areas that looked like they needed attention.
“W-where are we!?”
“The 10th floor.”
“N-no...!”
In Calax, a raid on the Irregular Orc Chieftain usually required three or four Gold-grade explorers, about fifteen Silver Grades, and dozens of lower-tier support explorers.
Even without the fact that it led a massive horde of orcs, the 1st Stratum Boss was a formidable opponent.
“Don't worry. We won't run into the boss.”
“But the Giant Rhino isn't something you can just run away from...!”
Rita scrambled up from where she had been lying and looked around, only to realize something strange.
“The sun is up... Is it still daytime...?”
“It’s still day. You were asleep for about two hours.”
It was the result of meat suddenly entering Rita’s digestive system, which had grown accustomed to nothing but porridge. Her sudden loss of consciousness was also due to the fact that fatigue had already accumulated to its limit in her body.
“You climbed eight floors in just two hours?!”
“Is there a problem?”
For more than half of all explorers, it was normal to not even clear a single floor in two hours. On average, a normal adult male can walk about 4.5 to 5 kilometers in an hour.
Inside a Labyrinth, where the distance to a portal is typically 15 to 20 kilometers, moving while carrying various equipment and engaging in combat only widens that gap.
It wasn't entirely unheard of, though—perhaps for a low-grade explorer who happened to obtain a high-performance mobility skill first.
“Ah...! I have to get the Grace Thicket Flowers!”
“How much is the reward for that request?”
“30 bronze coins...”
“I’ll give them to you. Just follow me.”
“What..? Aven, why...?”
Rita herself had realized something was very wrong now that she was on the 10th floor. She figured that if Yoo Eon hadn't dragged her here while she was unconscious, she might have collapsed on the 2nd floor, but she wouldn't have been in mortal danger.
“B-but where are we going...?”
“The 32nd floor.”
“I told you, we can't! Even the 30th... no, even the 20th floor will be too difficult!”
The miraculous mobility to break through eight floors in two hours was impressive, but Rita didn't think that moving well necessarily meant one could fight well. Furthermore, the 2nd Stratum was the infamous Ant Paradise.
It was a horrific stratum where animals, domesticated under the leadership of the Swarm Ants, labored for the ants for eternity.
“Swarm Ants, huh? I guess there’s a queen then.”
“O-of course there is...! If a human gets caught, it’s all over!”
Whether he cared about Rita’s feelings or not, Yoo Eon’s mind was occupied with the thought of plundering the ants' efficient means of communication. He had recently found himself in need of that kind of ability, but the only swarm-controlling function he had was something similar to the war hormones he’d obtained from the Orc Chieftain.
Up until now, he had been conducting most of his communication through verbal dialogue, which had a high cost in terms of understanding.
“Rita, don't worry.”
“W-wait! Just a second!! The meat!! I’m going to throw up the me—”
Before Rita could even finish her scream, she was pulled into the portal to the 11th floor, held firmly in Yoo Eon’s arms.
* * *
“Flight magic...?”
“Mmm, it’s probably something like a levitation skill.”
“Whoa...”
Contrary to Rita’s fears, nothing happened during the early parts of the 2nd Stratum. Worker ants crawling on the ground were visible here and there, but they were merely busy carrying berries.
The ants' territory was narrow, and aside from the ants, there were only common beast-type monsters, so it wasn't threatening at all.
The problem started from the 14th floor.
“An ant is riding a vulture.”
As ants mounted on flying monsters began to take to the skies, attacks started coming toward Yoo Eon, who was floating in the air. There were no attacks powerful enough to cause a real problem, but the issue was that Rita’s fussing had restarted.
“W-we’re going to die! We have to run!”
“You bit your tongue.”
“Urgh?!”
“Keep your mouth shut. I’m going to move a bit faster.”
“Mmph!!”
It seemed impossible for Rita’s body to endure supersonic speeds. Yoo Eon figured she could probably handle around 180 km/h.
At that speed, they could clear several floors in an hour.
From the 16th floor, Elite Soldier Ants the size of a human torso appeared, along with 'Ant Drones' that flew with their own wings and shot poisonous needles from a distance.
On the 18th floor, Soldier Ants began to pour down like special forces units from the backs of 'Carrier Ants'—massive, elephant-sized creatures that maintained a slow, sluggish flight.
“W-what is happening right now?!”
“Nothing’s happening, so just keep your eyes closed.”
Even so, an ant was just an ant. Even if the clicking sound of hard mandibles snapping could be heard nearby, they couldn't keep up with his speed, so they couldn't land a single hit.
He figured he could just catch the Queen Ant, the ruler of the swarm, and then head up to the 3rd Stratum.
‘There are people.’
In the distance, he saw an explorer party holding a high-ground position on a hill. Seeing as they were on the 18th floor, they were likely a well-known party in Mascena.
“Rita, open your eyes for a second.”
“Huh..? R-right now?”
“There are people over there. I was wondering if you know them.”
“It’s too far, I can't see well...”
Rita squinted her eyes, which she had been keeping tightly shut, and peered at the explorer party in the distance. They were occupying the high ground of a narrow hill, clashing with Soldier Ants crawling up from below.
A Carrier Ant was moving some distance away from them, but at its current pace, it would arrive within thirty minutes. The hill looked too narrow and dangerous for them to hold off the Soldier Ants descending from above.
“A-ah...!!”
“What is it? Do you know them?”
“It’s the White Star’s party!”
“White Star? Ah, the Cobalt Grade.”
“What should we do?! We have to go down and tell them...!”
Explorers in rural cities definitely had somewhat inflated grades. Even if swarm-type creatures were difficult for a small number of explorers to handle, he hadn't expected them to be struggling on the 18th floor.
However, he had to admit that the 2nd Stratum of Mascena was somewhat malicious. It was rare to find an environment where combat continued so relentlessly without a break.
“Should I save them?”
“O-of course! If we quickly request support from the guild... if only the Red Star could come...!”
Apparently, the Red Star was an explorer who used wide-range fire magic. Unfortunately, the White Star was a fellow Cobalt Grade but a typical explorer who used a sword. That meant she wasn't suited for one-versus-many combat.
“I wonder if they’re trustworthy.”
“Huh...?”
The secret Yoo Eon had told Rita to keep wasn't the fact that he was an Orichalcum-grade explorer. He was going to break through to the 32nd Stratum at a reasonable speed, and he had told her to keep the fact that he had gone to the end of the Labyrinth a secret.
Rita had no mana, so as long as she kept her eyes closed, she wouldn't know what he was doing right next to her. But even if her grade was inflated, a Cobalt Grade was still a Cobalt Grade.
If he used mana, there was no way they wouldn't notice. He doubted whether that four-person party would keep their mouths shut even if they found out about him.
“L-Lady Valeria... she saved me....”
“Who’s Valeria?”
“The blonde woman standing in the front line. I almost died, but she even gave me an Elixir...!”
“Is that so?”
* * *
Flap, flap! Flap, flap!
“E-everyone...!!”
In the midst of the noisy battle, a small voice drifted in from the distance.
“Another explorer?!”
Lona Bishuter, the White Star of Mascena, heard the voice while struggling to hold back the legion of Soldier Ants.
A girl was flying toward them, dangling from the talons of a small bird of prey that possessed a unique, never-before-seen black glow.
“Who... who is that child?!”
She looked filthy even at a glance, and though it was hard to tell from a distance, she seemed small in stature. A frail girl with meager equipment.
“Girl! How did you get here?!”
“I, well... that is...!?”
“Ah! You’re that Iron Grade from a few days ago!”
“Lady Valeria! Hello! I’m Rita! Thank you for saving me last time!”
A shockwave from Valeria’s fist pushed back the Soldier Ants surging up the hill like a wave, creating a brief moment to breathe.
“How did you get here?!”
“That’s...! There’s something I have to tell you...!!”
When Rita couldn't speak properly because she was out of breath, Valeria calmly knelt on one knee in front of her and placed a hand over Rita’s heart.
Flash...!
“There, you’re calm now, right?”
“W-wow... how...?”
If they didn't reorganize quickly, the Soldier Ants would swarm them again.
The reason the Soldier Ants' offensive was unusually powerful today was due to an Irregular Queen Ant created by the Labyrinth Master in response to Yoo Eon’s mana. However, there was no way for them to know that.
“Ah, that’s right! Ah, ugh...”
Even now, Rita was half-doubting herself. Of course, from Rita’s perspective, Yoo Eon was a kind person who had fed her delicious meat.
He was the owner of a mysterious ability that allowed him to climb to the 10th floor in two hours, and he even had a flight skill... Thinking about it now, perhaps that flight skill was the truth behind his mobility?
Her mind was a mess. After agonizing for a long time, Rita’s filter broke, and the words tumbled out of her mouth.
“H-he said to get down!”
“W-what...?”
“He said he’ll save us, so get down so you don't get caught in the storm!”
“Who? Who said such a thing?”
Lona, one of only two Cobalt-grade explorers in Mascena, felt her head go numb for a moment. She was the peak of Mascena, the strongest. Who on earth was going to save her?
And to send such a scruffy messenger.
“I-I don't really know either?! He just told me to get down and hold onto the grass or something?!!?”
Rita looked like she didn't quite understand what she was saying herself. The members of the White Star’s party quickly scanned the surroundings, but they didn't see anything in particular.
“T-the person over there!”
“There’s no one...”
Yoo Eon was certainly floating where Rita was pointing, but he was invisible, hidden by Lilith’s illusion.
“E-eh..? He’s right there....”
Skreeeeeee!!
Kieeeek!
The bone-chilling sound of the mandibles of the Soldier Ants that had crawled up again snapping together echoed.
While they were listening to Rita’s nonsensical gibberish, their precious time to regroup had completely vanished. Yet, they couldn't exactly scold Rita right then and there.
Only Rita, who was the only one who could see him, watched Yoo Eon in despair.
“Rita! It’s dangerous, get inside!”
Valeria felt something was strange about Rita, who was staring blankly into the air despite her shout. The moment she turned her eyes to follow Rita’s gaze—
“H-he’s there! He’s there, Captain!”
Just then, Lilith’s illusion unraveled, and Yoo Eon’s figure became visible to them as well.
And then.
Rumble...!!!!
The sky darkened in an instant.
Clouds dyed crimson, and the earth vibrated.
“What in the...!”
As Lona Bishuter quickly lowered her stance and looked around, she saw all the Soldier Ants frozen in place.
Before long, dozens of cyclones began to form across the vast expanse of the 18th floor, sweeping up the massive swarm of ants and lifting them into the sky.
The sight of an estimated tens of millions of ant monsters being sucked into the sky, swept away by the massive storm.
Rita watched Yoo Eon, whose appearance had changed at some point, and searched her memory.
Even in a town like this, far removed from other cities, people had been buzzing about him for a while.
A monster-like appearance, overwhelming martial prowess.
The one who had personally wiped out the illegal cartel that had been infesting a quarter of the Great Labyrinth City and had brought an early end to the overwhelming Hollow Breeze of this term.
She definitely remembered hearing about him.
Even an ordinary explorer like herself knew.
The title given to him with both fear and awe.
“Manmagyeong...?”