Chapter 30
Chapter 30
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: I Want to Go to the 2nd Floor (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
From the start, things were going smoothly.
"Look at that! Didn't I tell you? Things like that don't happen as often as you think."
Right after entering the Labyrinth.
Not a single Goblin shadow in sight, even after scanning the surroundings.
Shruk—
Once safety was confirmed, I immediately unrolled the map of the 1st floor that the armored knight had handed over and checked our position.
"Hm... Near the escape portal. A bit to the west, maybe."
"Huh? What's that? A map?"
Kakchi stared at the map in my hand with a flustered look. Then she pointed to a spot on it with her finger.
"...Three markers here. Is that our position by any chance?"
"Yeah. It is."
'So it increases based on the number of party members.'
When I was alone in the Labyrinth, it showed one. Last time with Jermi, it showed two.
Kakchi's eyes glazed over the map vacantly before greed started to fill them.
"Th-this... It's an artifact..."
Artifact. A precious item that only a handful of blacksmiths or mages could create.
"...An artifact? This?"
I was a bit dumbfounded. In my imagination, artifacts or relics were things like holy swords or demon blades—weapons, you know?
A mere map worthy of being called an artifact?
"Take a look at my map for comparison."
Kakchi pulled out the map from her waist pouch.
The texture and material alone were incomparable.
Even so, I figured the content mattered most and checked it out, but the surrounding geography, terrain, paths, and scale were all a total mess. No comparison possible.
On top of that, Kakchi's map was covered in ink smudges like it was hand-drawn, while mine was pristine, almost like it was printed—far better visibility.
The difference was absurd.
If I'd gotten Kakchi's map back during my trip here, I'd probably have gotten lost and starved to death in the Labyrinth.
"It's barely scraping the lowest grade, but convenience items like maps aren't judged solely by grade. If you auction this off, the starting bid would be at least ten gold coins."
"Gasp—"
I was so shocked I could barely breathe. Felt like my lungs froze mid-inhale.
Ten gold coins? How much was that? No, wait—this? This map was worth at least ten gold coins?
'The armored knight just tossed it over like it was nothing...?'
From the moment I realized I'd traversed the latter half of the 1st floor—which took me days—in just hours, I knew she was no ordinary person.
'She was the type to toss gold coins at a total stranger?'
And not just a coin or two, but a whole heap?
Suddenly, the potions and antidotes she'd chugged like water came to mind. How much had those cost? Hard to even imagine.
Since I received it as a gift, I couldn't sell it. If I ever met her again, I'd return it in as pristine condition as possible.
"Ten... gold coins..."
Jermi's gaze on the map was intense. Any moment now, coins would probably sparkle in his eyes.
"Can... can we just use it once? If I use it, our clearing efficiency would skyrocket beyond comparison."
Kakchi asked with the corners of her mouth creeping up slyly. Her face was full of greed, but she had a point.
'Fucking right she does.'
'No way. After I invested a full two silver coins each in you guys, you're tempted by a measly ten gold?'
But brazenly saying that felt impossible with the impact of ten gold coins looming so large.
It was an enormous sum that even mid-level Explorers couldn't earn in months of work, let alone rookies.
I thought we'd been through a lot together so far, but our party had barely been formed for a month.
'And the biggest reason parties fall apart? Money.'
A single botched settlement could spark division. If someone scored a rare item, haggling over its value could lead to someone storming off.
Such incidents were commonplace, which explained why outlaws were so rife in Labyrinth City.
"Why are you looking at me like that? You don't think I'd steal your map, do you, Master?"
"Yeah, your face looks seriously sketchy right now."
"Heh heh. You're right. I was totally thinking of snatching it. If I ran off with this, you'd chase me down and beat me half to death, wouldn't you?"
But our party seemed a bit different.
"Haaah..."
Kakchi shuddered with excitement, shoulders twitching. Then she suddenly clutched at her solar plexus like her chest was tight.
She was just a pervert who prioritized her own pleasure over money.
"I've received favors from Big Brother that money can't measure. How could I betray you for some gold right in front of me? Besides, without you, I'd never make it to the 19th floor on my own."
Jermi operated on firm conviction.
Even after spotting an item worth at least ten gold coins, no jealousy or discord arose like in other parties.
'For now... pass.'
I had no idea how long this party would last.
But for the moment, I felt good about my low-point investment.
Clearing the 1st floor went incredibly smoothly.
Handing the armored knight's map to Kakchi, who doubled as our guide, boosted our pace to absurd levels.
"Eight Goblins ahead. Charging at us. Time to fight."
When monsters entered Kakchi's hearing range or my perception field, we'd either evade or engage.
Our goal was reaching the 2nd floor, and while monsters didn't drop much there either, from the 2nd floor onward, they had a slim chance of dropping 'soulstones.' That changed the money game entirely.
So we tried to conserve stamina by avoiding fights where possible, but unavoidable battles cropped up now and then.
Still, the fights themselves ended more easily than expected.
Craaaack!
Combat didn't feel foreign anymore. Swinging the axe and ending lives had become familiar sensations.
With unhesitating movements and a quality axe, handling eight charging 1st-floor Goblins was a breeze now.
Spluuurt!
"Hoo... hoo... heh heh. You little shits..."
I watched Jermi poke at a Goblin's temple with his spear tip.
He'd leveled up. The experience buff was clearly accelerating his growth—no doubt about it.
'Grow big and strong, my stock.'
"Th-this is the first time we've cleared the 1st floor this fast."
Maybe recalling her treatment in Deluna's party, Kakchi spoke with a slightly excited flush.
"Get used to it. This is how it'll be from now on. Unless we get even faster."
"Huh? From now on... forever...?"
At my words, Kakchi flashed a strangely suggestive smile.
Her sticky gaze lingered, so I averted my eyes awkwardly.
"We're near the 2nd-floor portal anyway, so a short break before heading down sounds good."
I nodded at Kakchi's suggestion.
Smooth. Couldn't be smoother.
We crossed paths with other Explorers occasionally, but no provocations or trouble.
"Good luck out there, rookies."
"Cute. I remember my newbie days..."
Some parties even greeted us warmly first.
Were we perhaps only seeing the hopeful highlights of the Labyrinth right now?
Manageable monsters, tough but doable Labyrinth life, friendly Explorers, and the treasures and riches that were the Labyrinth's true flowers.
If it kept showing only its good side, even fresh Explorers might think, "It's not so bad after all," and dive right in.
I felt almost ridiculous for constantly reminding myself to stay alert—the 1st floor was that uneventful.
Slap!
"Wh-why'd you slap me? Is your hand okay?"
"Big Brother... hitting your helmeted head with your hand like that..."
"...Never mind. It's nothing. Let's keep going."
I punished my momentary lapse in vigilance and refocused. No matter what, never let your guard down. That's how you get got.
"Ah. We're here. This is the end of the 1st floor's depths."
I halted and took in the sight ahead.
The long corridor was blocked by a wall.
And right before that wall stood a blue portal.
"From the 2nd floor on, there'll be red portals next to the blue ones too."
There was only one way to move between floors in the Labyrinth.
'Cross the portal at each floor's end.'
Typically, the end of a floor had two portals.
The blue descent portal, leading deeper underground.
The red ascent portal, bringing you one floor closer to the surface.
No ascent portal on the 1st floor. Instead, it had the white escape portal connected directly to the surface.
Other floors lacked such a convenient direct-to-surface portal like the 1st floor's escape one.
'One of the reasons Labyrinth runs suck.'
Go down to the 2nd floor and want back to the 1st? Clear to the 2nd floor's depths and take the red ascent portal.
Does that end it? Nope. You drop into a random spot on the 1st floor and head to the escape portal again.
A brutal structure blatantly designed to screw over Explorers.
That's why most Explorers deliberate endlessly before venturing deeper, even if confident.
One wrong judgment, diving to a floor beyond your level, and you might never see the surface again.
And along the way here, we'd gained certainty.
2nd floor? Totally doable.
Not arrogance. Confidence forged in battle.
By the point we'd repelled over a dozen charging Goblins without a scratch, we'd already outgrown the 1st floor.
"Master. Come on. We're all ready."
Kakchi, holding Jermi's hand, reached out to me.
Suddenly, I recalled tripping into the Labyrinth.
Back then, panic from the sudden situation left me thinking only of fleeing to survive.
But now was different.
I had a clear goal: find my little sister and return home.
With a solid objective, no wandering lost.
Explore the Labyrinth.
Persist in this deadly place to achieve my purpose, heading back in.
"Let's go."
I took Kakchi's hand and stepped through the descent portal.
Whoooosh—
A slight floating sensation, and the scenery shifted in an instant.
From the 1st floor's rough cave-like feel to something more Labyrinth-proper.
Like man-made architecture: clean walls, floor, and ceiling with slight gaps like stone tiles.
Torch-like fixtures embedded in the walls ensured good visibility.
'Wait.'
That's when I sensed something off.
'Was the float time always this long?'
I glanced down. Not high at all. A jump would land me in a second.
But my feet still hadn't touched ground.
I'd felt this eerie calm before.
'Right after entering the Labyrinth and facing that Goblin!'
Without that bizarre composure then, I'd have frozen and died.
'This happening again means something like the Goblin encounter?'
But no enemies in sight. What danger was this?
'Ah. Traps.'
Kakchi's words flashed through my mind. The 2nd floor's main theme was traps.
Thud!
"Okay, landing—!"
The moment Kakchi's voice rang out and our feet hit the floor.
Click.
The stone floor depressed inward, like triggering a mechanism.
"Huh."
Sure enough.
Shrieeeeeek!!
Dozens of arrows rained down from the ceiling toward us.
"Oh shit."
Instinct screamed: can't dodge. The arrows rocketed straight for our heads.
Ah. Figures. Things had been too peaceful till now.
```