Chapter 34
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Labyrinth 9th Floor (1)
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'Did I bring it up for no reason?'
Seeing Lilian's frozen reaction, I couldn't help but think I'd stuck my foot in my mouth. But what can you do? I'm curious! Any guy would take one look at a stunning woman with pink hair, horns, wings, and a heart-shaped tail and think "succubus," right?
"........Yes, well. Succubus."
Just as the silence was getting awkward, Lilian forced the words out. She looked like she really hated admitting it, her reluctance plain as day.
"....S-Sorry. I shouldn't have asked something so nosy..."
"No, honestly, anyone looking at me would know I'm a succubus... Haah."
Lilian let out a long sigh, poured herself another cup of coffee, and continued in a tone full of lament.
"Ian. Be honest—what image comes to mind when you think of succubi?"
"Uh? Well.....um..."
"You can say it straight."
"I-I'm not sure if it's accurate, but... something sexual? They feed on men's essence... that kind of race, right?"
"Yes, spot on. Most succubi can survive just fine on men's essence, and in fact, the majority live off semen and essence instead of food. That's why I got so much flak even when I cooked. 'Why would a semen-guzzler know how to cook?' or 'You must spike the food with cum, huh?'..."
Yeah, definitely shouldn't have asked. This coffee isn't spiked with booze, is it? She's suddenly venting her woes...
"But succubi can taste food just fine! We can live off regular meals too! I mean, with all the delicious food out there in the world, why settle for essence?"
"C-Calm down a bit."
"Haah... When I was little, I lived off the essence my mom brought home, but no matter how I think about it, other foods taste way better. My kin called me a freak for it, but in my eyes, they're the weird ones. How can anyone say semen tastes better than black minotaur steak?"
She clearly had a ton of pent-up frustration about her race—she was spilling it all out now. I was a bit flustered, sure, but it was kinda fascinating to listen to.
The succubi in this world were eerily similar to what I'd imagined back on Earth. Not just them—other races matched up weirdly well with Earth's tropes too.
"So I ran away from home and learned to cook. My dream is to make a dish so good my kin admit it's better than men's essence."
"Uh.....I'll cheer you on."
"Thanks."
After unloading all that, Lilian looked relieved as she poured yet another cup of coffee. How many is that now? This stuff really isn't booze, right?
"Um, can I ask something?"
"Go ahead. Spilling it all feels good, actually."
"W-What's the difference between essence and semen?"
"Succubi are born with the ability to manipulate dreams. Essence is a kind of energy we extract when we induce nocturnal emissions in dreams. Semen contains some essence even without the dream intermediary."
Even the dream manipulation matched Earth's image perfectly. I wonder if the other races I've yet to meet will be the same?
"And don't ask if I consume semen. I mean, as a succubus, I'm not repulsed by it or anything, but why eat that when I can have delicious cooking instead?"
"....Wasn't planning to ask."
"Oh, sorry. Most guys who come to the shop asking if I'm a succubus just want to offer their 'services'."
....Is she mad I asked if she was a succubus? Feels like she's subtly shading me.
The vibe got oppressively awkward, so I apologized and hurried out of the shop.
Part of me regretted prying, but I was glad to learn more about succubi. Honestly, as a guy, how do you even resist one?
"You're really going to learn cooking properly?"
"Yes. I'll visit her shop once a week to learn directly from Lilian."
Back at the mansion, I told Alensia about my cooking lessons. Since we live together, I figured I should keep her in the loop if I'd be away.
"I see. In that case, mind if I give you some cooking advice?"
Advice? Alensia's cooking skills are......pretty horrific, but I could at least hear her out.
"Ian, you came to me for advice when you got the [Dragon Poison Technique] skill, right?"
"Yeah. I figured you'd know all about poisons. Didn't you suggest some I could use back then?"
I'd taken down those two thugs in the Labyrinth using the poisons she recommended. But why bring up poison now?
"Ian. You have [Poison Resistance] and [Dragon Poison Technique]. So why not cook with poison, eat it yourself, and train [Cooking], [Poison Resistance], and [Dragon Poison Technique] all at once?"
".......?"
I nearly shot back that it sounded like another one of her insane resistance training ideas, but......actually, it made sense? I'd gained [Dragon Poison Technique] from repeatedly poisoning myself to train [Poison Resistance] anyway... Adding [Cooking] to the mix should work fine.
"....That does sound plausible."
"Mm. Luckily, I have a good poison for cooking."
What the hell is a "cooking poison" even supposed to mean?
I asked just in case, and she said it was a tasteless, odorless toxic herb used for assassinations—perfect for mixing into food without detection. Things had been quiet lately, but she's back at it. I get her reasoning, but she keeps trying to feed me poison whenever she gets the chance to boost my [Poison Resistance].
Still, this time I took her advice without complaint, accepted the herb, and whipped up something simple. I'd just eaten, so dessert it was. Perfect chance to test my newly leveled [Cooking] at Lv. 4 too.
I mixed flour, eggs, sugar, milk, and yeast into a dough and fried it up—basic donuts. While prepping the dough, I added juice squeezed from the toxic herb.
....They say messing with food brings divine punishment. But it's for me, so it should be fine?
The cooking process itself felt smoother than before. Not super labor-intensive, but I could definitely feel improvement in dough-handling. My handiwork was already good thanks to [Heavenly Touch], but now it felt even sharper. I'd experienced the enhanced taste and smell at the restaurant, so Lv. 4 [Cooking] was confirmed.
I dusted the fried donuts with sugar and took a bite. As always, I habitually activated [Sensory Amplification].
Mm... The sweet, crumbly surface gives way to a soft, tearing texture inside, and as I chew, my tongue starts to feel that stiffening sensation...
[Poison Resistance Lv. 2] effect resists the poison!
[Dragon Poison Technique Lv. 1] effect slightly strengthens the poison.
The message pops up, informing me I've been poisoned. This one's standard even without cooking...
[Cooking Lv. 4] skill and [Dragon Poison Technique Lv. 1] skill resonate.
Huh? Resonance? Like how [Stealth] and [Sensory Block] resonated to give me [Stealth Block]—is a new skill coming?
[Poison Cooking]
Can strengthen or weaken poison in dishes. Enhances poison stealth during cooking.
That's a unique one. Sounds like it's made for poisoning people via food. Even if not, weakening poison could help with toxic ingredients. Any skill's a win.
"How is it?"
Alensia couldn't hold back her curiosity as I stood there munching.
I just smiled affirmatively.
Separate from my cooking lessons, I had no plans to slack on Labyrinth runs.
And today, I was forming a party for the first time in ages. Soloing had been comfy for a while, but to promote to Intermediate Adventurer later, I'd need some party experience anyway.
"Good to meet you. Name's Tral. You're Ian?"
"Yep. Rogue Ian."
........Rogue position.
Originally, I'd tried recruiting as a frontliner like last time, but frontliners are the most common adventurers—high competition, tough to find parties. High-rankers aside.
So after some thought, I advertised as a rogue with [Prospecting], [Stealth], [Trap Disarm]. Hid sketchy stuff like [Assassination].
Beginner Adventurers switch roles often anyway. Lots start with swords but swap to backline out of fear.
This party was four strong, including me.
Orc Tral. Wields a massive two-handed axe. No orc beef this time. He's frontline.
Human Redric. Warrior too. One-handed sword and shield. Learned sword from Swordsmanship Guild, apparently.
Dwarf Urn. Priest of the Fire God. Rumor is all dwarf priests worship the Fire God. Weak on heals, but knows offensive divine spells.
And me. Hid the spatial expansion gem, loaded my backpack moderately, quiver on back, dagger at waist. If push comes to shove, I'll draw sword—but as rogue, relying on [Archery] and [Throwing].
Goal: 9th floor. Hunt Urks for meat. Popular request since it's foodstuff.
9th is a round trip stretch, so camping tonight. Gotta stay alert.
"Return right after camping tomorrow. Labyrinth mutation's coming soon."
The Labyrinth reshuffles periodically. Miss the return window, and you could get lost in the mutation.
"Mutation starts day after tomorrow—come back on time."
Leaving the guide's repeated warnings behind, we headed in. Those words always jinx something. Feels ominous.
"Two approaching from the rear."
"Got it! Volcanic Shot!"
At my signal, Urn chants a divine spell, hurling two fireballs backward. The lead monkey-like monster takes a direct hit and drops dead. The trailing one retreats, so I chuck a dagger at its skull.
-Thunk!
"Kieeeek!"
The dagger embeds in its head; it thrashes in pain before going still. I approach to retrieve it as Redric comes over.
"Hey, Ian. You're better than I thought."
Redric's super friendly—been bantering since intros. Prefer it over stiff formality.
"Half-beastkin? You look pure human, but it can be subtle."
"Human."
"Huh, sharp senses for that. High-level [Prospecting]?"
"No comment."
I flick blood off the dagger and reply nonchalantly. Not explaining everything.
Still, using [Cooking]-boosted smell, amplified by [Sensory Amplification], beats sound-only detection. More efficient.
Prolonged amp gives headaches, but tolerable.
Wanna test [Poison Cooking] too, but not great for monsters—saving it. Try on solo runs later.
Syncing with the party, we reach the end of 7th floor. My deepest so far. 8th is uncharted. Good thing the party's solid.
"Ready?"
Nods all around. Tral leads into the 8th-floor portal.
'.....Huh?'
Did the portal flicker? Nah, imagination?......Stay vigilant.
Labyrinth 8th floor. I'd stuck to 7th max because 8th spawns totally different monsters.
"....Ian, goblins, right?"
"And they've already spotted us."
Goblins are bottom-tier, 1st to 5th floors. Packs are dangerous, but usually 2-3, not too bad (though they got me once).
Spotting goblins on 8th—and a group—means...
"Command unit."
"Goblin Lord?"
"Nah, not that. 8th floor... Goblin Shaman maybe?"
From 8th, leaders with minions or magic-users appear. Goblin Shamans on 8th fit both.
"What now? They know we're here."
"Yeah. Group heading straight for us, no wandering."
Didn't spot scouts, so shaman curse maybe?
"Of all places, right at 8th entry.... Can't retreat to 7th."
"Portal needs time to reactivate. They'll arrive first."
"Lure to narrow spot and crush?"
"No, better open area—snipe shaman from range. Rely on Ian's bow or Urn's spells."
Spectacular welcome to 8th.