Episode 15. Labyrinth (1)
Early in the morning, Lilia and I headed east through Labyrinth City toward the Labyrinth. We finally arrived at the entrance on the eastern side.
"Whoa, it's packed with people."
"Y-yes, it seems they open in the morning, so that's probably why, Rike."
The area in front of the Labyrinth was swarming with folks. There were ordinary humans, beastkin, elves, goblins, orcs, and all sorts of other races. Goblins and orcs are monsters, right? Not here—they're full-fledged intelligent beings. It varies a bit depending on where they live, sure. Anyway, most people were clearly adventurers, but mixed in were folks loaded down with gear like merchants. They were the so-called Labyrinth merchants, the vital supply line in between. Their prices were several times the market rate, but beggars couldn't be choosers, so they were indispensable.
"Hey, Lawrence, you got a week's worth of supplies ready?"
"Of course. I've got at least two weeks' worth stocked."
"Thorough as always."
"Gotta be thorough, or you die in the Labyrinth."
"Right, then let's get moving."
By the way, Labyrinth merchants usually traveled in guilds—that was the rule. Sure, solos existed, but they had to be golden goblin-level badasses, so they formed these alliances to keep the trade flowing. But monsters in the Labyrinth? Isn't that dangerous? Naturally, they hired adventurers for protection.
Guess those are their guards.
A group of rough-looking adventurers in decent leather armor and weapons hovered near the merchants. They definitely stood out. Thinking that inwardly, I turned to Lilia.
"Lilia, let's get in line."
"Y-yes, let's do that. R-Rike."
Oh, and Lilia was using formal speech with me. When I asked why the sudden change, she said it just felt more comfortable out of nowhere, so I shrugged and accepted it. Felt kinda nice, like having a beauty as my personal secretary.
Pointless thoughts aside, we joined the queue. Soon enough, it was our turn.
The soldier guarding the entrance approached me. "Where to?"
"First floor. We're beginner adventurers."
"Got it. That your party member?"
"Yeah, she is."
"Alright. Good luck."
With that dry response, he jotted something on a paper and shouted, "Two for the first floor!" while gesturing us in. Following his lead, Lilia and I stepped forward. Our vision shifted to a cave-like tunnel, and after a bit more walking...
"Whoa—!"
A vast plain and blazing sun greeted us. As I gawked around in awe, Lilia smiled softly at me.
"W-welcome to the Labyrinth, R-Rike."
Her words made it sink in. I'd finally made it to the Labyrinth. I was still pretty pathetic, but someday, no doubt about it.
I'll clear the depths.
With that resolve burning inside, I walked with Lilia as we'd planned beforehand, searching for a safe spot.
Adventurers have a saying: the Labyrinth might be bigger than the entire continent combined. In other words, it's another world unto itself.
Half right, half wrong. Yeah, it's disgustingly huge—practically half the planet—but calling it one world? Nah. It's better to think of each layer as its own separate world. One floor's scorching hot, another's freezing cold, some are humid, others vibrant. Each layer's environment is so wildly different that lumping them into one "world" feels off. Most folks treat each floor like a distinct realm, but given their insane sizes, it's not entirely wrong either.
Why bring this up? Simple reason.
—Hiiiing!
"Hahaha! Follow me!"
"Aigoo, miss! Be careful!"
"Adventurers! What the hell are you doing?!"
"Ah, just stay still, damn it!"
What the fuck are those idiots?
We'd walked a bit looking for a safe base when we spotted them.
Bringing horses into the Labyrinth? Lunatics.
Sure, the first floor was a wide-open plain where horses weren't a total hassle... but
The very next floor's a dense forest—you can't even ride there without dodging goblin poison darts.
Horses were only good on grassland floors like this one, and even then, they didn't help much with conquering.
Not that they help here either.
This place was slime central. And these slimes were the small, bargain-bin size you see everywhere. What good's a giant horse against that?
"Uahaha! Here comes the hero!"
"Aigoo, young master!"
Just clowning around like morons.
"Th-they're such idiots."
If even airheaded Lilia called them that, they were definitely not right in the head. We watched for a bit, then slipped away. No point tangling with those types.
But as we tried to leave...
"Hey, you there!"
Some sharp-eyed bastard spotted us. I grabbed Lilia's arm and bolted. No more bullshit today. Sure, you could call it running, but glancing at that tomboy pulling the horse... who knew what she'd do? I'd dealt with her type in my past life—girls who thought the world revolved around them. Total pain-in-the-ass vibe. Getting involved was a guaranteed headache passive skill. Even if she let us go, no guarantee her mercenaries would.
Bottom line: running was easiest. Lilia seemed to agree, not resisting as she fled with me.
"Someone's there! Chase 'em!"
"Beastkin! Move your ass! Run!"
Pursuit came, of course. But
Eat this.
I hurled a vial of my homemade potion—nose-burningly pungent—and shook them off.
"Huff... huff..."
"Phew, after that run, I doubt they're still chasing."
"Good... good."
We ended up at a riverbank—with a nearby cave, no less.
"We can make a temporary base here and rest, R-Rike."
"Yeah, looks solid."
Lilia eyed the scenery and approved; I agreed. Bases were key since the Labyrinth was too massive to clear in a day—efficiency demanded setting up camps and hunting around them.
Decision made, I prepped. Pulled a small bottle from the subspace pouch my master gave me and chucked it into the cave.
—Whoosh.
—Crash!
Glass shattered, and the cave rumbled.
"Kieeeek!"
"Grrrrraaah!!"
"Kiek!"
Monsters and critters inside bolted out from the stench. How? Tweaked an existing recipe—added a few herbs, and boom, great results.
Monsters gone, I told Lilia, "Let's crash in there."
"Uh, y-yeah."
Beastkin noses are sensitive, but for humans, it was just a faint funky whiff—like construction paint. The cave was cozy enough. Minus the recent monster grime and animal corpses, it was livable.
Yeah, gotta clear the carcasses.
After tidying up, it was perfect for two—hell, luxurious. Perks of having a subspace; maximizing it was just smart. Not because I wanted to play natural interior designer or anything.
Anyway, base secured. Time for the main event.
"Alright, temp base is set. Lilia, let's go hunt some monsters."