Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Lea
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The two from the Dawn Guild naturally stepped inside once I cleared the path for them.
I seated them in suitable spots, then took a seat across the table myself.
"First off, sorry for coming so late at night. It's just been hard to find the time. But we prepared a small gift, so please understand."
"Yes."
My nonchalant response didn't sit well with her, apparently. Lea twitched the corner of her mouth in irritation.
She closed her eyes for a moment, as if swallowing her anger.
She must have expected me to grovel or something.
The Dawn Guild was one of the two largest guilds in Labyrinth City.
As its vice-master, most people probably bowed and scraped to Lea...
But me? Why should I?
After stewing in silence, Lea gestured to Humphrey beside her, who handed something over to me.
"This is an elixir that the Dawn Guild is currently producing."
This must be the 'small gift' she mentioned.
I set the box containing two elixirs down in the corner of my lodging.
I could check it later after they left.
"I've heard reports about you from Humphrey, the leader of Dawn Elite Team 1, quite often. Reaching the 3rd floor just a month after arriving in the labyrinth... Honestly, I didn't believe it at first, but now that I've seen you in person, I do."
"Yes."
No need for empty flattery.
Considering her real personality, I could tell right away that her earlier words were just meant to butter me up.
Humphrey, for all his fancy titles like 'Dawn Elite Team 1 Leader,' was just sitting there mute beside her.
It was obvious how she treated him.
"Since we're both busy, let's get to the point."
Things were dragging on, so I made my intentions clear.
At my blunt attitude, Lea let out a slight sigh.
She didn't seem offended, though.
"Actually, there was something suspicious in our team leader's report, so I came to check."
Lea flashed her eyes, gearing up for the main topic.
"I've told you everything I know."
"Ah, we've reviewed all the information you provided. We confirmed there were no issues. However..."
Lea's gaze slithered over me again like a snake.
"You sold the location of a treasure chest on the 1st floor—one that hadn't been found in three years. And right when the Dawn Guild was scouting the area nearby, you just happened to be there. You just happened to run into Humphrey and sold him the info first."
Lea paused, watching my reaction.
Seeing none, she continued.
"You must be incredibly lucky. I'm jealous."
She finished, staring me down as if expecting a response.
From what I gathered, the treasure chest's location was newly discovered after three years.
In truth, I'd sold the info to Humphrey right before it could be spotted.
But Lea seemed suspicious of even that.
So... putting it together, she had questions about the source of the info or something more.
"I'm pretty lucky."
No real reason to answer.
I gave a perfunctory reply.
Unable to hold back any longer at my response, Lea stood slightly and pressed on.
"That's fortunate, then... Rain, you seem to have a close relationship with the city guards."
"Not really."
"Don't you chat often with the Guard Captain?"
"A couple of times at most."
"Then... you didn't hear about the treasure chest location from the Guard Captain?"
"...Is this conversation important?"
"Yes. If there's a rat in the house, you have to find it before the whole barn gets stolen."
There was an edge to her voice as she probed about the guards.
I knew she disliked the city guards, more or less.
But I wasn't close to them.
"No. I found it by chance."
I drew a firm line, ending the discussion.
I had no intention of joining any faction, so misunderstandings like this were a hassle.
They could just leave the money and go.
As if reading my thoughts...
"That's a relief, then. Ah... come to think of it, we haven't paid you the informant reward yet, have we?"
Lea grinned slyly and gestured to Humphrey.
He pulled two heavy pouches of platinum coins from his pocket dimension pouch.
"Normally, for a 1st-floor treasure chest, it's 3,000 to 5,000... But your info was detailed, so we added a bit more. 8,000 platinum coins. Yours."
No sooner had Lea spoken than Humphrey set the pouches down in front of me.
The heavy clink of coins echoed through the room.
Now we're talking.
I'd explained all the gimmicks related to the treasure chest, so I expected a bit extra... but this was more generous than I'd thought.
I accepted the platinum coins without hesitation and stored them neatly in my inventory.
No reason to turn down what they offered.
Now it was clear—they'd come to pressure me in case I was cozying up to the guards, and to make their presence known.
From the vibe, if I'd admitted to being close to the Guard Captain, they'd have paid less...
"Then, we'll see you again. If you have any good info, come find us anytime. We'll reward you appropriately."
Lea gave a small smile and wrapped up.
Confirming I'd taken the payment, she stood as if that was that.
Humphrey followed suit.
I escorted them to the door.
Good info, huh.
One thing came to mind.
On the 4th floor of the Labyrinth Dungeon, the boss appears in only one of two places: the hidden labyrinth or the normal labyrinth.
However, after defeating the boss in the hidden labyrinth, the next one respawns guaranteed in the normal floor.
Since I'd taken down today's boss in the hidden labyrinth, the next would definitely appear in the normal floor.
Currently, people unaware of this were using the 4th-floor boss room as a rest or maintenance area.
So when the next boss spawned, it could cause a major incident.
I had to report the boss spawn anyway, so selling this info to the Dawn Guild as a bonus...
It'd prevent the accident and net me some coin.
As Lea turned to leave, I opened my door and called out.
"One more thing. I have other information."
"Oh? What kind of information?"
"It's about the boss. Maybe a new one... Interested?"
Lea halted, her face lighting up with interest at my teaser.
"I'm interested, sure... But what is it? I've probably hunted more bosses than you... If it's something I already know, I can't offer much reward."
"That won't be the case. And you can pay after confirming."
Lea blinked, puzzled.
But I'd mentioned a reward, so...
"The 4th-floor boss is coming soon."
I relayed it casually.
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Having finished their talk, Lea and Humphrey exchanged brief farewells and left Rain's house.
"Humphrey."
"......"
"Oh, right."
Lea placed her hand over Humphrey's mouth.
With a sizzling sound, his mouth slowly opened.
"So, what do you think?"
"...About the 4th-floor boss?"
"Yeah."
In a week, a boss would appear on the 4th floor.
That was what Rain had said, adding he'd collect his informant fee a week later once proven, before closing his door.
"...I don't know."
"Right?"
Normally, Lea would have brushed it off.
There were no reports of a 4th-floor boss so far.
All info from its initial discovery had been lost.
However...
"It feels oddly unsettling... What happened to the supply depot we built in the 4th-floor boss room?"
"We're moving materials for recent maintenance work."
"Stop the construction for now. Pull out the weaker ones ahead of time."
No bosses appeared on the 4th and 5th floors.
If that long-standing rule broke, it would spell serious trouble for the Dawn Guild.
They were using the 4th- and 5th-floor boss rooms as temporary supply depots, selling food and such to others who reached them.
It was still in testing, so profits weren't huge yet.
But they were just starting to invest, so now was the time to pull back if needed.
"For now... have the rest hold for about a week. And..."
"Prepare for a boss raid?"
Lea sighed softly and nodded faintly.
Boss raid prep cost a fortune.
At least defeating it yielded items for multiple times the recovery.
Even without items, the combat experience was valuable.
But if they prepped and nothing showed... she didn't know what she'd do.
Such thoughts swirled in Lea's mind.
Still, they had to prepare for the worst.
She ordered the withdrawal from the business in the 4th-floor boss room while simultaneously prepping for a raid.
"Well, if one really appears, it'd be a big deal. Right?"
"......"
Humphrey shut his mouth familiarly.
No point in saying what he couldn't back up—it was always him who suffered.