The Three Tunnels
After that, we spent another thirty minutes cutting down bat monsters as we advanced. The heat, the humidity, and the constant swinging of my sword left sweat pouring down my neck. I was only the rear guard, yet Victor and Zeke up front had it far worse. Their heavy armor and relentless sword swings made sweat cascade down their bodies like waterfalls. I was starting to worry they were pushing themselves too hard when Victor spoke up.
“Looks like we’ve taken care of most of the bat monsters—they’re not coming out anymore! Whew… Let’s use a presence-blocking scroll and rest here. There’s a small cave right next to us!”
At his words, the tension everyone had been holding finally eased. Their expressions softened. The small cave carved into the wall was just big enough for five or six people. It was a welcome resting spot. Monaka went in first and flopped down.
“Haaa… You guys in front worked hard…”
“You did well too, Monaka.”
Victor, Zeke, and I followed her inside, leaning against the walls to rest. Andrei, the only one still standing, pulled a scroll from his pack and cast a presence-blocking spell over us.
“Haaam… I’m tired. Every time I enter a labyrinth, I lose all sense of time. All this sweating and exhaustion is the worst.”
“……”
—Swish.
“Huh? What’s this?”
“…Use it.”
Zeke handed Monaka a handkerchief. She made a face like she’d just seen something creepy.
“What… You actually carry something like this around? No thanks. I’m not using something someone else has used.”
It was a ridiculously cute, frilly handkerchief that didn’t match Zeke’s appearance at all.
“I’ve never used it.”
“Still not using it.”
“……”
Monaka turned her head away. Zeke frowned, stuffed the handkerchief back into his pocket, and looked away. Watching them, I thought to myself, That handkerchief… is way too cute. It doesn’t match Zeke’s image at all.
Why would he carry something like that? Not that I was judging… It looked brand new. Maybe he bought it as a gift for someone?
…Huh?
Now that I thought about it, Zeke had tried to give the handkerchief to Monaka. A gift he bought… for Monaka?
Hmm…
I glanced at Monaka, half-suspecting something. She was fanning herself with her hand, deliberately avoiding looking at Zeke. When I quietly observed from the side, I noticed her peeking at him through half-lidded eyes, clearly conscious of his gaze. That single observation connected all the dots in my mind.
…Does Zeke like Monaka?
Just as the thought formed—
“…Tch.”
Zeke suddenly stood up.
“Huh? Zeke! Where are you going?”
“Macho.”
He showed something in his hand to Victor, then left the cave.
“As usual, that guy’s a heavy smoker. He was already puffing on Macho before we even entered the labyrinth…”
…What was that supposed to mean? Smoking Macho? What was Macho? Surely it wasn’t the dangerous thing I was thinking of…
“Victor, what exactly is Macho?”
“Huh? You don’t know Macho? That’s strange. Even the professors at Ariel Academy use it a lot.”
“Ahaha, I don’t have any friends and I’m a freshman, so I’m clueless about this kind of information.”
“Tsk… Well, that makes sense! You’re so out of the loop you didn’t even know the rumors about my little brother Barian!”
Victor rested his chin on his hand, gathered his thoughts, and continued.
“People call it ‘Macho’ a lot. Its official name is Mana Herb. It’s made by mixing and grinding various herbs that help restore mana according to a recipe, then rolling it in paper and smoking it. When you smoke it, it temporarily restores mana and relieves fatigue!”
“Ooh…”
Thankfully, it wasn’t what I’d been worried about. Interesting that there were still things in this world I didn’t know.
“Victor, when you smoke it… does it also make you feel good?”
“Huh?”
Victor’s eyes widened.
“How do you know that, little brother? You said you didn’t know what Macho was.”
“Ah, well, I’ve heard about something similar in passing. I don’t know the details.”
“Mm. It does feel good! As the fatigue melts away, your mood improves. But it’s only temporary. Smoke too much and it’ll actually drain your strength—it’s poison.”
“I see.”
While I was reacting with interest, Monaka muttered under her breath.
“There are plenty of other ways to recover mana. Why go out of your way to smoke Macho…”
She sighed and glanced at Zeke outside with a displeased expression.
“Especially that guy—he’s the worst. He smokes all the time. I don’t think he’s doing it to recover mana. It’s for something else. He has no self-control. I hate it.”
Curious, I asked her, “By self-control… does that mean Macho is addictive?”
“It is. People keep chasing that relaxed feeling.”
So it was basically like a cigarette that was good for the body. I was curious, but the addiction part killed any desire to try it.
“You’re back! You’re such a heavy smoker.”
Victor stood up when Zeke returned to the cave.
“Time to get moving. If we rest any longer, our bodies will get too relaxed. We still have to fight.”
“Yes.”
Everyone who had been resting stood up after Victor. We’d rested for about ten minutes. We each picked up our weapons, took our positions, and formed our formation before advancing again.
*
“This is strange…”
Victor stroked his chin, looking puzzled. We had reached a fork in the road. We’d pushed deep into the labyrinth without rest. Everything had gone smoothly, and I thought it would continue that way—until we saw the three branching tunnels.
“The information clearly said there were only two paths…”
Victor examined the three tunnels one by one with a troubled expression.
This is… that, isn’t it?
It was hazy, but I remembered. The breeding season of Ent-type monsters. Ents and monsters that lived in labyrinths or caves dug an extra tunnel during breeding season. If there were two tunnels, they made three. If there were six, they made seven. All to create space for laying eggs. They laid a bunch of eggs in the new tunnel and moved their nest there.
“This is troublesome. The final tunnel was supposed to lead to the Giant Ent, but now I’m not sure if the information is accurate.”
The information was probably wrong. Like I said, they would have moved their nest. So we needed to explore the area to find the real nest.
…The place with no presence is most likely the Giant Ent queen’s nest.
Ent-type monsters normally hid in places with lots of presences, but during breeding season they became sensitive and stationed only the minimum number of soldiers near their nest. That meant the other tunnels would be swarming with the maximum number of monsters.
Should I move a little?
While Victor, Andrei, Zeke, and Monaka were holding a confused meeting, I walked up to the three tunnel entrances. I closed my eyes, crouched down, placed my hand on the ground, and calmly circulated my danjeon.
—Shuuu…
“Huh? What’s Sian doing right now?”
Monaka looked confused as she watched me leave the formation.
“Tch, what can a kid do? Let’s just keep talking.”
“Hey, why do you have to say it like that…”
Zeke cut Monaka off and resumed the meeting.
…I ignored them and focused on circulating my danjeon. The mana presences beyond the tunnels, hidden in the darkness, connected to my hand like threads.
…Thirty. No, at least fifty.
I felt a lot of presences from the first and third tunnels. The second tunnel had noticeably fewer, but that alone wasn’t enough to go on. I kept sensing the presences and paid attention to their movements.
……
A few minutes passed. I focused on where they moved most frequently, which areas they avoided, and how they formed groups. The only clear clue I got was that a large number of monsters were avoiding the second tunnel.
That alone gave me solid information. But I needed to be thorough. Finally, I examined the condition of the ground near each entrance in turn.
The first and third tunnels have very uneven floors, like a lot of monsters have been walking through them… Hmm.
The second tunnel was also bumpy, as expected, but it had fewer broken or deeply gouged spots.
…I had my answer.
I walked back to Victor’s group, who were still in their meeting.
“I’m telling you, let’s go with the second one!”
“No, it’s the third.”
As expected, Victor and Zeke were arguing. Victor wanted the second tunnel. Zeke wanted the third.
“There’s a headwind coming from the first and third! If we fight in those conditions and we’re wrong, we’ll be screwed when we have to come back!”
Victor said.
“No. It’s definitely the third tunnel. The presences I feel are no joke. They must be gathering forces to protect the Giant Ent queen. There’s no need to think any further.”
Zeke said.
Zeke’s reasoning made sense too… but that was only true outside of breeding season. Right now, the nest was probably in the opposite place from what Zeke thought…
Monaka and Andrei were wavering, unsure whose opinion to follow.
…No choice, then.
I butted into their circle.
“I agree with Victor.”
I said it casually. Zeke’s expression instantly turned hostile.
“…Stay out of this, kid.”
“Kahaha! What’s wrong, Zeke? He might just agree with me!”
Victor laughed brightly and turned to me.
“So! Little brother Sian! Why do you want to go with the second tunnel?”
“If we keep fighting in the tunnels with headwinds like the first and third and they turn out to be wrong, we’ll run out of stamina on the way back. It would be better to try the second tunnel first, and if it’s wrong, regroup and challenge the labyrinth again.”
“Kid. So you’re saying we should retreat just because of a mere Giant Ent? The Adventurer’s Guild will call us a ragtag party!”
Zeke’s displeasure was obvious.
“I understand what you’re saying, Zeke. But what if the second tunnel is the correct one?”
“Ehh? Sian, do you know where the Giant Ent’s nest is?”
Monaka approached with curious eyes.
“I don’t know for sure, but I have an idea. It’s because of the breeding season.”
““Breeding season?””
I continued explaining to the confused group.
“Yes. Ent-type monsters dig an extra tunnel during breeding season to lay their eggs. I heard that during that time, they station the minimum number of soldier ants near their actual nest.”
“Wow… Sian, you’re amazing. Where did you hear that information?”
“I happened to learn it from an adventurer I know.”
“You’re the best! Then we don’t have to fight anymore?! Sian is the greatest!”
Monaka linked arms with me again. I was used to it by now. She was probably just that kind of person.
“…Then what are you going to do?”
At that moment, Zeke walked up to me with heavy steps, his face twisted in anger.
“What?”
“If we go to the second tunnel and there’s no Giant Ent, what are you going to do?”
“……?”
…Was this guy crazy?
Zeke glared down at me, trying to pressure me. I had only given a reasonable opinion for the sake of the party. And now he was openly picking a fight? What was his problem?
If he was going to act like this, I had nothing to say to him either. I met his hostile gaze with a calm, expressionless face. Then—
“Hey, Zeke! What are you saying to a kid?! Sian, don’t worry. This big sister will take care of it.”
Monaka hugged me protectively and snapped at Zeke.
“Um… Sorry to interrupt the mood, but I also think the second tunnel is the right choice. I’ve used up a lot of mana casting light magic on the way here…”
Andrei also showed signs of exhaustion, following the atmosphere.
“Then we have no choice! Let’s go with the second tunnel like I said. No more fighting! Come on, forward!”
Victor, now backed by the majority, shouted cheerfully with a bright smile.
“Yeah, yeah! Let’s go with the second tunnel first! Who cares about party reputation? Our lives are what matter, right?!”
“……”
“……”
With Monaka adding the final push, everyone who had been frozen in place began moving silently toward the second tunnel.
But then—
Grind…!
From somewhere nearby, I heard the faint sound of teeth grinding. No one else seemed to have heard it. I looked toward the source.
“……”
“……”
And there, beside me, was Zeke—his face even more twisted than before—still glaring at me from the corner of his eye.