Chapter 175: A Massive Amount of Meat
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 175: A Massive Amount of Meat
After leaving Moira’s office, I returned straight to the mansion and began preparing to enter the Labyrinth to collect Abilities.
Since I could now access the 5th floor directly, I planned to head down immediately and take Abilities from the adventurers currently inhabiting the golem bodies. I figured I could trade for them by offering to shorten their contract periods or improve their welfare.
Of course, I could just tighten the Spirit Chains and take them by force, but if the Labyrinth’s schemes somehow broke the chains and they staged a rebellion, I’d be in deep trouble. It seemed better to keep things peaceful.
“It’s unfortunate, but putting any more Abilities into you right now is dangerous.”
“Is it because my body can’t handle it? Something like that?”
“Exactly. Unless you undergo more Mana Adaptation, your soul will shatter.”
“...”
As I was changing clothes, Arad, who was spinning a web in a corner of the room, issued a warning.
Currently, I’ve undergone Mana Adaptation about ten times. Simply put, you could say I’m Level 10. Is seven Abilities the limit for Level 10?
“It’s not that. It’s just that the powers of the Abilities you currently possess are too strong. If they were minor ones, you could have consumed more. But you’ve devoured too many exceptional ones all at once.”
“Aha.”
“The Spiritual Eye alone is overloading your soul. On top of that, you’ve swallowed three more Demon Eyes, so you’re in a precarious state. If you eat any more, you’ll experience what you humans call Labyrinth Assimilation.”
Labyrinth Assimilation. It meant being swallowed by the Labyrinth.
It was a symptom experienced by those who gained too much power from the Labyrinth; once assimilation began, they would eventually be consumed and turned into monsters.
It was like a sudden onset of schizophrenia, striking without warning, and no proper way to prevent it had been established yet.
However, if premonitory symptoms appeared, it could be resolved by reducing or stopping trips into the Labyrinth. That was how Moira had quit her life as a delver.
I hadn’t shown any symptoms of Labyrinth Assimilation yet. I needed to raise my level quickly before any abnormalities appeared.
“I guess I need more Mana Adaptation.”
“That would be for the best. If you clear the Snake Nest, you’ll likely be able to adapt to mana quickly.”
I was already planning to head there soon anyway.
Clearing the 6th floor is important, but clearing the Snake Nest is crucial too.
Using the key Prodo gave me, I could now enter the Snake Nest. As long as there was a keyhole, I could access it from anywhere.
The Snake Nest was home to various types of snake-type monsters, and apparently, they gave excellent experience. Better yet, if I brought back snake eggs and handed them over to the Druid Club, they could be raised as familiars for the druids to use. It was a classic case of killing two birds with one stone.
“Then, before we head to the Snake Nest, let’s take care of one more thing.”
“You mean that blind girl.”
“Right.”
Now, I could use Arad to treat Olivia’s eyes. The reason she had gone blind was because of the Ability called Soundwave Detection. I figured if I removed that Ability, her sight would return. She must have been so frustrated, having perfectly fine eyes that just wouldn't see.
I took Arad with me to Olivia’s room.
“Master...?”
“It’s me.”
“Didn’t you say you were going into the Labyrinth...?”
“I remembered something I had to do first.”
“Ah...”
Olivia suddenly grew bashful and fidgeted shyly. Then, she slowly started to take off her outer garment.
“It’s finally... my turn, then...”
“No! Wait. It’s not that.”
“It’s not...? Oh...”
“Don’t be disappointed. I brought something better.”
“Pardon?”
I had Olivia sit in a chair and explained Arad’s role to her.
“So... you can extract the Soundwave Detection I have?”
“Exactly. Once Arad pulls it out, your sight should return.”
“R-really...?”
“I’m telling you. Just a second.”
I placed Arad on the back of Olivia’s hand.
“It’ll sting a little.”
“Yes... it’s okay. As long as I can get my sight back...”
“Arad. If you please.”
Arad, perched on the back of Olivia’s hand, gently bit into her flesh. Soon, a thin thread began to emerge from Arad’s abdomen. That was likely the Soundwave Detection Ability Olivia possessed.
“It’s done.”
“Olivia, how is it?”
“.....”
Olivia blinked a few times, then looked around with an expression that was hard to put into words. The milky haze that had clouded her eyes vanished, replaced by a vibrant spark. She had finally escaped the curse-like Ability that had imprisoned her.
“Ah... haha... hahahaha...”
“Here, a handkerchief.”
“Thank you...”
Tears streaming down her face, Olivia looked around before wiping her eyes with the handkerchief I offered and throwing herself into my arms.
“Now... now I can finally... see the world... So this is what you look like...”
Olivia reached up and traced the features of my face.
“Well, now that you can see, you’ll have to work even harder, right?”
“Sniff... No... thinking about putting me to work in such an emotional moment is a bit...”
“Hey! Now that you can see, you’ve got to earn your keep!”
Olivia nodded with a smile. She had already earned five years' worth of keep by sharing the Labyrinth Walkthrough, but if she could work, it was better to make use of her.
“Since I can see now, please give me some paper and a pen... It’s best to write down the walkthrough before I forget anything...”
“Got it. I’ll get them for you right away.”
Until now, she couldn't write anything down because she couldn't see properly, but now that her sight was restored, she needed to quickly transfer the Labyrinth Walkthrough from her mind onto paper. Before she forgot any more of it.
“Since it’s in English, I won’t be able to understand it anyway.”
“Would you like to study English with me while we’re at it...?”
“Ah, forget it. Why would I learn English?”
“Hehe.”
Olivia began to fill the notebook I gave her with the knowledge she possessed. It was packed with small tips for Labyrinth life and knowledge about the things found on the 7th floor.
“Now that I can see... it feels like the world has become clearer. Thanks to that, I’m starting to remember things I had forgotten.”
“Soundwave Detection really was no different from a curse.”
“For me, it was...”
Once she finished writing the walkthrough, Olivia expressed her desire to enter the Labyrinth.
“Um... I want to go back into the Labyrinth...”
“Want to try the 5th floor?”
“Yes! I feel like I could manage the 5th floor systematically...”
With Olivia’s knowledge of the Labyrinth, she could probably manage the 5th floor better than I could. She likely knew more about the Labyrinth than I did.
“Alright. Let’s go in together.”
“Yes!”
Since I had already adjusted the mana concentration on the 5th floor, it would be fine to enter immediately. I took Olivia with me and entered the Underground City.
*
“Exterminate the monsters!!!”
“Level up! Level up!”
“Uh... what is that...?”
“That’s Yuria and Lady Leah.”
“....”
As soon as we entered the 5th floor, we saw Yuria and Lady Leah slaughtering monsters. After I taught her the term 'level up,' the Lady was shouting it like someone possessed while killing monsters, and Yuria was also swinging her sword, butchering them.
“Move them quickly! The corpses are piling up!”
“When is this ever going to end!”
“I don't know! Just keep moving them!”
Nearby, golems were hauling the dead monster carcasses to the Dismantling Shop, where the staff separated the meat, hides, and bones. It was running almost like a factory. I didn't even have a clue how to handle that much meat.
The hides could be tanned and exported, but could the Labyrinth City really consume all that meat?
“Well, no one’s going to die of starvation here.”
“It looks like all the butcher shops are going to have to close down...”
“The workers at that Dismantling Shop are all former butcher shop employees. I’ve already recruited them. Success in reducing the unemployment rate.”
“Aha...”
I was now in control of the Labyrinth City’s meat supply. Of course, it was being distributed through Campbell’s Merchant Association, so I wasn't pocketing all the profit, but the income from the meat was still staggering.
“The day has come when commoners can eat Minotaur meat.”
“Wow... but...”
“Yeah?”
“I think I could make that factory even more systematic...”
“Really?”
“Yes... if you leave it to me... I can make the processing faster and more efficient.”
Olivia watched Yuria and Leah killing monsters and replied that even more systematic industrialization was possible.
“This is crazy. I’m so excited.”
“Hehe... but even if we make the factory more systematic... can we really sell all of that...?”
“It’s not like there’s no way.”
I checked the Transfer Stones gathered in the Central Section.
There were 13 general Transfer Stones. One was directly connected to the Labyrinth City. And there were 22 Transfer Stones whose destinations were unknown.
“One of those must lead to the North.”
“Where the Yetis came from...?”
“Right. I wonder where the other 21 lead. One is probably Keislan.”
There was also the Transfer Stone discovered in the forests of the Keislan Kingdom. Yuria had gone to deal with it, but the Kingdom’s people ended up seizing it. No one had entered through it yet, but we never knew when they might.
“If we use them right, couldn't they serve as long-distance transport?”
“We’ll have to categorize the Transfer Stones properly, then...”
“Exactly. It means we could turn the Central Section into a trade hub. Olivia, do you want to manage it?”
“Is it okay if I do...?”
“I think it’ll be fine. I’ll assign a few Gold Badges to you. Manage it well. The more money, the better.”
“If you entrust it to me... I’ll do my best.”
“Then I’ll have to get permission from the Three Villainesses first.”
I did need someone to manage the Underground City while I was down in the lower floors. I could trust Olivia. After living with her for several months, it wasn't hard to see that she was quite meticulous and had an excellent memory.
Her blindness had been the only issue, but now that she could see, she’d handle whatever I gave her just fine.
“And keep up with your instrument practice as a hobby.”
“Of course...”
Now that I had secured a manager for the Underground City, it was time to enter the Snake Nest in earnest.
The team joining me in the Snake Nest this time consisted of Maximus, Chloe, the hunter Kairan, the warlock Ulysses, the mad bard Joshua, and Abram.
It was a team composed entirely of Platinum Badges or those with equivalent strength.
The fact that our healer was the combat-specialized Abram made the composition feel slightly lacking, but given how incredible the members were, I figured it would be fine.