Chapter 552: Deja Vu (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 552: Deja Vu (1)
It was day 103 in the labyrinth. The number of days we had spent here had already crossed the three-digit mark, and it came time for us to stop our farming session at the library. At this point, we needed to return to Stone Island to greet the newcomers.
I hope a few good ones come down so we can aim for the books that are higher up.
At this point, whenever we used a summoning book, we had to fight against four rank-three monsters at once, and some rank-two monsters were sometimes mixed in too. So long as we had a decent match-up, I figured we would be able to defeat them, but it was impossible to continuously grind through monsters like a well-oiled machine anymore. I played my role as a tank to buy the others time during battle, but that meant I then needed to rest for a while afterward to recover my energy.
Plus we nearly had a death in the last fight...
In any case, that was why bolstering our numbers wasn't just a choice, but a necessity.
After cleaning up our camp and preparing to leave, I felt eyes on me. I turned to see who it was, then noticed Hamsick staring at me from a ways away.
"(Are you leaving...?)" it asked, looking down as I approached. Although our first encounter wasn't a particularly nice one, we ended up becoming friends in the end, and after a few chats during our time hunting in the library, it seemed to have grown attached to me.
"(Ah, don't worry. We'll be back soon. And I'm leaving the golden book here too.)"
"(But you're taking my fountain pen...!)"
"(Haha, friends don't sweat the small stuff like that. Okay?)" When it didn't respond, I added, "(Either way, I'll come back soon, so don't worry.)"
"(Wh-who's worried? Don't come back at all! Things are much better without you people here! Much more quiet!)"
Haha, look at this hamster. I ignored Hamsick's empty words like any barbarian would.
"Lord Baron, everyone is ready to leave!"
"Really? Got it."
We were ready to head out, but for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to move. I turned to the now-quiet hamster and said, "(Hey, Hamsick.)"
"(...What?)"
"(Clean up the books while I'm gone. And even if you're not hungry, eat the jerky I gave you regularly. And if weird people show up, don't let them see you, and hide behind the bookshelves until I get back—)"
"(I'm not some kid! You don't need to say all of that, and if you're going to leave, just leave already!)"
No, but still...
I sighed. Why was I getting so worried? Was it actually me who'd grown attached to it instead of the other way around? "(Well, then, I'm off. Hamsick...)"
"(Yeah...?)"
"(I'll be back soon.)"
"(...Yeah.)"
With that, I turned my back on Hamsick and forced my legs to move, walking past the members of my group who had been watching us from a distance. They parted, shuffling aside so I could get to the front. As I stepped onto the stairs, the other adventurers fell into formation behind me as we headed out and boarded our summoned boats.
A few hours of travel later, we arrived on Stone Island.
"There aren't any traces of any newcomers."
We came early just in case, but as expected, there weren't any adventurers on the island before our arrival. It had only been three days since the labyrinth first opened, and it would have been physically impossible for anyone to finish farming the third floor and come down to this one in that time.
Noticing something in my expression, Erwen asked, "What are you thinking about?"
"It's just, I'm worried about Hamsick."
"I'm really curious what you were seeing, Mister... No matter how I looked at it, its appearance really put me off ever approaching it..."
"What did you say it looked like to you?"
"...A wizard. It had a sunken face that looked more fearsome than a Lich's, and it had a staff with a skull on it. It also made these horrific noises."
Ah, that was right. I had heard as much and just let it slide back then, but now, I found myself revisiting that particular admission.
A wicked wizard holding a skull staff... Wasn't that description a perfect blend of Corpse Collector and Fallen Scholar?
Needless to say, I didn't say that out loud.
"Um...Lord Baron. Could I take my clan members and go to the beach?"
"The beach?"
"It's just... Quite a few things are floating around in the ocean. We felt that maybe we could spend our free time picking some things up..."
"Do as you wish. We won't be doing much other than waiting for a while."
A few adventurers who were bored of waiting around got up, and a handful of the other members joined them over on the beach to pick up debris. The fact that we'd managed to pick up some equipment made from grade-three material on the boat a while back had turned into a big motivator. From that moment on, a certain sentiment started to circulate through the group.
If we got lucky, we could hit the jackpot. We might even pick up equipment used by the ancient heroes of yore themselves if fate allowed it.
Well, if we got really lucky, I guess those things could potentially happen...
To be honest, though, I was a bit skeptical. We had explored quite a bit down here, yet the most expensive thing we'd found was that grade-three armor we picked up.
I bet when Basement Floor One officially opens in the future, there will be some people whose only job is to pick through the debris.
That seemed a little too wasteful for my tastes, but I could see those types of scavengers appearing. On top of that, Stone Island also didn't have any monsters on it. If they could manage to successfully weather the rainy season, farming on this island could become a stable source of income.
Anyway, time is still passing really slowly...
It didn't take long for me to grow bored out of my mind of just sitting around at the starting point and doing nothing. Soon enough, I was joining the other members on the beach to pick up debris with them.
One day, two days, three days...
The 107th day came around. In other words, there were only a few hours left until the first floor would shut down.
...There's no way nobody's here yet. Did the palace really do something? Do they have troops stopping people from coming down?
Anxiety started to take root in my heart. I had spread so much tempting, juicy information that I'd been looking forward to more experienced and powerful adventurers coming down.
But if they still aren't here... then something must have gone wrong up there. Tsk, will I have to clear this area without any new blood?
My stomach churned at the thought as I stared down at my watch.
Noticing something in my expression, Erwen asked, "What are you thinking about?"
"It's just, I'm worried about Hamsick."
"I'm really curious what you were seeing, Mister... No matter how I looked at it, its appearance really put me off ever approaching it..."
"What did you say it looked like to you?"
"...A wizard. It had a sunken face that looked more fearsome than a Lich's, and it had a staff with a skull on it. It also made these horrific noises."
Ah, that was right. I had heard as much and just let it slide back then, but now, I found myself revisiting that particular admission.
A wicked wizard holding a skull staff... Wasn't that description a perfect blend of Corpse Collector and Fallen Scholar?
Needless to say, I didn't say that out loud.
"Um...Lord Baron. Could I take my clan members and go to the beach?"
"The beach?"
"It's just... Quite a few things are floating around in the ocean. We felt that maybe we could spend our free time picking some things up..."
"Do as you wish. We won't be doing much other than waiting for a while."
A few adventurers who were bored of waiting around got up, and a handful of the other members joined them over on the beach to pick up debris. The fact that we'd managed to pick up some equipment made from grade-three material on the boat a while back had turned into a big motivator. From that moment on, a certain sentiment started to circulate through the group.
If we got lucky, we could hit the jackpot. We might even pick up equipment used by the ancient heroes of yore themselves if fate allowed it.
Well, if we got really lucky, I guess those things could potentially happen...
To be honest, though, I was a bit skeptical. We had explored quite a bit down here, yet the most expensive thing we'd found was that grade-three armor we picked up.
I bet when Basement Floor One officially opens in the future, there will be some people whose only job is to pick through the debris.
That seemed a little too wasteful for my tastes, but I could see those types of scavengers appearing. On top of that, Stone Island also didn't have any monsters on it. If they could manage to successfully weather the rainy season, farming on this island could become a stable source of income.
Anyway, time is still passing really slowly...
It didn't take long for me to grow bored out of my mind of just sitting around at the starting point and doing nothing. Soon enough, I was joining the other members on the beach to pick up debris with them.
One day, two days, three days...
The 107th day came around. In other words, there were only a few hours left until the first floor would shut down.
...There's no way nobody's here yet. Did the palace really do something? Do they have troops stopping people from coming down?
Anxiety started to take root in my heart. I had spread so much tempting, juicy information that I'd been looking forward to more experienced and powerful adventurers coming down.
But if they still aren't here... then something must have gone wrong up there. Tsk, will I have to clear this area without any new blood?
My stomach churned at the thought as I stared down at my watch.
Vwoong!
"Portals! The portals opened!"
But then, as if on cue, dozens of portals opened and let a stream of newcomers through.
How should I grill the newbies this time?
I didn't have to think about it for very long. I just needed to take them around Basement Floor One under the guise of teaching them how it worked, and then after instilling in them that this place was quite dangerous, I could get them to sign their souls over to me.
But a moment later, I sighed.
And I was wondering why there was no one until the last day.
I had no choice but to accept that this plan of mine wouldn't work as soon as I saw the newbies.
"Get in formation!"
"Formation!"
I sighed as I watched the group assume formation as soon as they arrived on Basement Floor One.
This is the worst-case scenario.
Far too many priests to be a regular clan, a squadron of wizards in uniform, and even an order of knights in shiny plate mail. Their classes could be separated into three distinct categories, but they all had one thing in common.
"Nia Rafdonia...!"
They had the mark of the palace on their chests.
After setting up their formations, the man who looked to be their commander noticed me and walked over to say hello. "It is truly an honor to meet you like this, Baron Yandel! I never could have imagined that I'd encounter you so soon, but it's truly a relief to see you alive!"
"Who... are you?"
"Ah, it seems I haven't introduced myself. I am a member of the First Royal Guard, Zylan Ebost."
"Any relation to Baron Ebost?"
"He is my older brother."
Okay, so the one silver lining was that the commander wasn't too high status. He wasn't even a baron, but the younger brother of one. If I managed to do a good enough job of leveraging my position of baron, I could probably manipulate this guy as I saw fit.
"Ah, and I am the deputy commander of this expedition group."
My hope was shattered the moment those words left his mouth. "Deputy commander...?"
"Yes. Could we step back a little? The second group is going to be entering soon."
I took a dazed step back at his request.
Vwoong!
The sky lit up once more as dozens more portals opened and dozens more adventurers entered the basement. After that, yet another round of portals opened up.
Since the portals opened three times, and sixty people came in each time...
That meant 180 people. Forget expedition group, expedition force was a far more accurate description based on sheer numbers alone.
However, the real problem lay elsewhere.
"Nia Rafdonia! All 180 members ordered by the palace have safely arrived at our destination, Commander!"
The commander received a report the minute he stepped foot on the island.
"We don't currently detect any dangerous entities in the vicinity, and our highest priority target, Baron Bjorn Yandel, has been found. He has a total of thirty-eight members, and excluding the seven from his Anabada Clan, the remaining members seem to be from the Hektz Clan and the Armin Adventuring Group, who entered during the first and second waves!"
Vwoong!
"Portals! The portals opened!"
But then, as if on cue, dozens of portals opened and let a stream of newcomers through.
How should I grill the newbies this time?
I didn't have to think about it for very long. I just needed to take them around Basement Floor One under the guise of teaching them how it worked, and then after instilling in them that this place was quite dangerous, I could get them to sign their souls over to me.
But a moment later, I sighed.
And I was wondering why there was no one until the last day.
I had no choice but to accept that this plan of mine wouldn't work as soon as I saw the newbies.
"Get in formation!"
"Formation!"
I sighed as I watched the group assume formation as soon as they arrived on Basement Floor One.
This is the worst-case scenario.
Far too many priests to be a regular clan, a squadron of wizards in uniform, and even an order of knights in shiny plate mail. Their classes could be separated into three distinct categories, but they all had one thing in common.
"Nia Rafdonia...!"
They had the mark of the palace on their chests.
After setting up their formations, the man who looked to be their commander noticed me and walked over to say hello. "It is truly an honor to meet you like this, Baron Yandel! I never could have imagined that I'd encounter you so soon, but it's truly a relief to see you alive!"
"Who... are you?"
"Ah, it seems I haven't introduced myself. I am a member of the First Royal Guard, Zylan Ebost."
"Any relation to Baron Ebost?"
"He is my older brother."
Okay, so the one silver lining was that the commander wasn't too high status. He wasn't even a baron, but the younger brother of one. If I managed to do a good enough job of leveraging my position of baron, I could probably manipulate this guy as I saw fit.
"Ah, and I am the deputy commander of this expedition group."
My hope was shattered the moment those words left his mouth. "Deputy commander...?"
"Yes. Could we step back a little? The second group is going to be entering soon."
I took a dazed step back at his request.
Vwoong!
The sky lit up once more as dozens more portals opened and dozens more adventurers entered the basement. After that, yet another round of portals opened up.
Since the portals opened three times, and sixty people came in each time...
That meant 180 people. Forget expedition group, expedition force was a far more accurate description based on sheer numbers alone.
However, the real problem lay elsewhere.
"Nia Rafdonia! All 180 members ordered by the palace have safely arrived at our destination, Commander!"
The commander received a report the minute he stepped foot on the island.
"We don't currently detect any dangerous entities in the vicinity, and our highest priority target, Baron Bjorn Yandel, has been found. He has a total of thirty-eight members, and excluding the seven from his Anabada Clan, the remaining members seem to be from the Hektz Clan and the Armin Adventuring Group, who entered during the first and second waves!"
"I see."
The commander approached me, his silver hair swaying behind him. His almost ghostly pale face was one I was all too familiar with. Though he had aged about twenty years since I last saw him as a young man.
"I remember seeing you at your ceremony from a distance," said the man, "but I didn't get a chance to converse with you."
The commander of the First Royal Guard, and the palace's top dog who held the title of Knight of Light.
"Nice to officially meet you, Baron Yandel. I am Jerome Saintred."
Aka the same guy I met while active in Noark twenty years ago under the guise of an iron mask.
"Y-Yes," I stuttered, "it is nice to meet you for the first time! Hello! I-I am Bjorn, son of Baron Yandel!"
He probably wouldn't recognize me. Right?
On an unrelated note, there was a phenomenon called the spotlight effect, where a person assumed they were being noticed more than they actually were.
Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump!
So even though I was sure that he wouldn't recognize me, my heart began to race.
"...Son of Baron Yandel? That's a bit of a peculiar introduction."
All right, it seemed that he hadn't noticed anything yet.
I huffed to myself. I'd ended up blurting out whatever came to mind because I was so caught off guard. "I get that a lot," I said, answering in the calm, nonchalant tone that characterized the barbarian people. Then I quickly got to work sorting this out.
Jerome Saintred. About twenty years ago, he had gone down to Noark to acquire the Fragment of Records Stone, forcing me to fight him.
Even setting aside the fact that I was nervous about him possibly recognizing me, this was approaching the worst-case scenario. This guy was a count, meaning my strategy of using my position of baron to bully people was now off the table.
I didn't expect them to send such a big fish into a place with no obvious escape route yet.
No matter how I looked at it, this was out of character for the palace. I had expected them to take the back seat and be cautious like usual.
Regardless, I tried to laugh off my surprise. "Haha, in any case, it is great to encounter someone from home in a place like this! Is the city okay?"
"The city? Naturally, the city is safe under the protection of the palace..."
"That's good! Well, we'll be heading out now, then," I called out casually in farewell, already walking in the opposite direction. "You guys enjoy your adventure! Stay safe! What are you all doing? Get ready to leave!"
However, he suddenly appeared right in front of me like he had teleported. This was the rank-three movement ability Light Gateway, which I had seen him use before. "Your Lordship, where are you going?"
"Oh... I'm a bit hungry..."
"Please forgive my rudeness. Your rations must be depleted. But do not worry anymore—we have plenty of supplies."
Okay, so that's how you're planning to chain me to you?
I dropped the friendly act and lowered my voice. "Count Saintred, get out of my way," I demanded, donning a frigidity that drew a line in the sand.
This guy didn't seem to care about my obvious displeasure, though, as he continued without missing a beat. "That won't do. You were the first adventurer to ever enter this floor, and one of our squadron's goals is to rescue you, Your Lordship."
"You're acting like I requested a rescue."
"You are that much of a precious treasure to our kingdom, Your Lordship. Please understand just how big of a loss it would be if we were to lose you."
"So? What's your plan?" I asked bluntly. "I am currently the leader of a clan, but you're going to privately conscript me into your expedition group by force? On whose authority?"
Despite the hint of contempt in my voice, Saintred didn't seem upset at all. Instead, he smiled. "Well, to start, I have no authority to forcibly conscript you into the military. There is a law that we can draft adventurers in times of disaster, of course, but that law doesn't apply to our kingdom's nobles—like a baron such as yourself. However..."
He pulled out a scroll from his pocket like he had expected me to argue with him from the beginning. I could tell exactly what it was the moment I saw it.
"This is a royal decree," he said.
In other words, if I didn't follow whatever was written on that roll of paper, I would be branded a traitor.
"Hear this, Bjorn Yandel, Baron of Rafdonia." He opened the scroll and read its contents with solemnity and gravitas. "These are chaotic days where wicked traitors act without abandon. The light of the palace will always protect this beautiful city and its citizens without fail, but false rumors have swayed some adventurers toward the side of temptation, and it would be a great loss to our fair city for these people to disappear."
Since the palace set the standard for etiquette, the document was quite wordy.
"As such, I as the monarch have concluded that these circumstances cannot be allowed to stand and have thus sent in my stead this expedition group..."
But if I had to summarize the whole thing in one sentence, it'd be:
"Baron Bjorn Yandel will join the First Expedition Group and will act 'under' Commander Jerome Saintred to chart all unexplored territory and find a way to return to the city."
Aha, wow. This is fucked.
"I see."
The commander approached me, his silver hair swaying behind him. His almost ghostly pale face was one I was all too familiar with. Though he had aged about twenty years since I last saw him as a young man.
"I remember seeing you at your ceremony from a distance," said the man, "but I didn't get a chance to converse with you."
The commander of the First Royal Guard, and the palace's top dog who held the title of Knight of Light.
"Nice to officially meet you, Baron Yandel. I am Jerome Saintred."
Aka the same guy I met while active in Noark twenty years ago under the guise of an iron mask.
"Y-Yes," I stuttered, "it is nice to meet you for the first time! Hello! I-I am Bjorn, son of Baron Yandel!"
He probably wouldn't recognize me. Right?
On an unrelated note, there was a phenomenon called the spotlight effect, where a person assumed they were being noticed more than they actually were.
Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump!
So even though I was sure that he wouldn't recognize me, my heart began to race.
"...Son of Baron Yandel? That's a bit of a peculiar introduction."
All right, it seemed that he hadn't noticed anything yet.
I huffed to myself. I'd ended up blurting out whatever came to mind because I was so caught off guard. "I get that a lot," I said, answering in the calm, nonchalant tone that characterized the barbarian people. Then I quickly got to work sorting this out.
Jerome Saintred. About twenty years ago, he had gone down to Noark to acquire the Fragment of Records Stone, forcing me to fight him.
Even setting aside the fact that I was nervous about him possibly recognizing me, this was approaching the worst-case scenario. This guy was a count, meaning my strategy of using my position of baron to bully people was now off the table.
I didn't expect them to send such a big fish into a place with no obvious escape route yet.
No matter how I looked at it, this was out of character for the palace. I had expected them to take the back seat and be cautious like usual.
Regardless, I tried to laugh off my surprise. "Haha, in any case, it is great to encounter someone from home in a place like this! Is the city okay?"
"The city? Naturally, the city is safe under the protection of the palace..."
"That's good! Well, we'll be heading out now, then," I called out casually in farewell, already walking in the opposite direction. "You guys enjoy your adventure! Stay safe! What are you all doing? Get ready to leave!"
However, he suddenly appeared right in front of me like he had teleported. This was the rank-three movement ability Light Gateway, which I had seen him use before. "Your Lordship, where are you going?"
"Oh... I'm a bit hungry..."
"Please forgive my rudeness. Your rations must be depleted. But do not worry anymore—we have plenty of supplies."
Okay, so that's how you're planning to chain me to you?
I dropped the friendly act and lowered my voice. "Count Saintred, get out of my way," I demanded, donning a frigidity that drew a line in the sand.
This guy didn't seem to care about my obvious displeasure, though, as he continued without missing a beat. "That won't do. You were the first adventurer to ever enter this floor, and one of our squadron's goals is to rescue you, Your Lordship."
"You're acting like I requested a rescue."
"You are that much of a precious treasure to our kingdom, Your Lordship. Please understand just how big of a loss it would be if we were to lose you."
"So? What's your plan?" I asked bluntly. "I am currently the leader of a clan, but you're going to privately conscript me into your expedition group by force? On whose authority?"
Despite the hint of contempt in my voice, Saintred didn't seem upset at all. Instead, he smiled. "Well, to start, I have no authority to forcibly conscript you into the military. There is a law that we can draft adventurers in times of disaster, of course, but that law doesn't apply to our kingdom's nobles—like a baron such as yourself. However..."
He pulled out a scroll from his pocket like he had expected me to argue with him from the beginning. I could tell exactly what it was the moment I saw it.
"This is a royal decree," he said.
In other words, if I didn't follow whatever was written on that roll of paper, I would be branded a traitor.
"Hear this, Bjorn Yandel, Baron of Rafdonia." He opened the scroll and read its contents with solemnity and gravitas. "These are chaotic days where wicked traitors act without abandon. The light of the palace will always protect this beautiful city and its citizens without fail, but false rumors have swayed some adventurers toward the side of temptation, and it would be a great loss to our fair city for these people to disappear."
Since the palace set the standard for etiquette, the document was quite wordy.
"As such, I as the monarch have concluded that these circumstances cannot be allowed to stand and have thus sent in my stead this expedition group..."
But if I had to summarize the whole thing in one sentence, it'd be:
"Baron Bjorn Yandel will join the First Expedition Group and will act 'under' Commander Jerome Saintred to chart all unexplored territory and find a way to return to the city."
Aha, wow. This is fucked.