Chapter 124 : Chapter 124
Chapter 124 : To the Labyrinth (10)
“Can I...... do that?”
Lion asked with a trembling voice.
The answer to that was decided.
“Of course.”
Creeak, creeeak─
The Scales of Fairness achieved perfect balance.
It was merely a verbal promise, but even that could be a heavier price than anything else to someone.
[The Scales of Fairness have achieved balance!]
[A fair contract is executed.]
.
.
.
[A fair contract has been concluded.]
[According to the fair contract, ‘Demonic Spirit, Lion-Keter’ has become the contractor's kin.]
The contract was concluded.
***
The darkness that filled my entire world receded in an instant, and soon the familiar desert landscape was revealed.
Luna blinked amidst the anomaly that happened for a moment.
Because what was there just a moment ago disappeared.
“......What is it? What happened? Where did Lion go again?”
[I'm here.]
“Kyaak!”
Luna let out a shrill scream seeing Lion appear in a faint form like a ghost.
“D, did you die?”
“No.”
“Then what? What exactly happened? Why is Lion like that?”
That appearance was a bit amusing so I thought about leaving it be, but since she might make a fuss for no reason, I decided to tell her.
“He returned to his original state. In the first place, having a physical form is a more unnatural situation for Lion.”
“I, is that so?”
[I'm okay.]
“Hoo......”
Only then did Luna, who was surprised as if she would stop breathing, sigh in relief.
“Let me tell you first, Lion became my kin as a Spirit.”
“......Huh? A Spirit becoming kin, is something like that possible?”
“It is possible. Usually, there are no Spirits who make such a contract, but the situation is a bit different this time.”
Ordinary Spirits are born from nature or other origins, but Lion was extremely unstable as his origin itself was born from the mixture of Akiro's Labyrinth's laws and Demonic energy.
The reason why the ego that should have been one originally was divided into two must be because of that too.
By choosing Lion as the subject for the contract with the Spirit, Lion was able to seize the initiative over the ego that was divided into two.
In other words, for Lion, it was a contract that wasn't that bad even if he became my kin.
That's why the Scales of Fairness also acknowledged this contract and Lion became my kin.
“Hmm, well, if Cain says so, it must be so. Anyway, everything worked out well now, right?”
“For now, we have to see it that way.”
However, questions still remained.
Looking up to here, it was true that Lion and the anomaly were related, but it was not an exaggeration to say that there was virtually no connection with the Divine Sword.
The secret of the Divine Sword was still unsolved.
“Lion, I'm asking just in case, is there anything you know about the Divine Sword?”
[Divine...... Sword? What is that?]
As expected, he doesn't know.
“No, never mind. Let's keep going.”
Considering there are so many players' eyewitness accounts, the matter about the Divine Sword will naturally be known as we climb the labyrinth anyway.
“Just what is going on....... Anyway, I'm telling you, this place called the labyrinth is really strange.”
Luna shook her head.
“This time is especially severe. Usually, the abnormal phenomena aren't this severe.”
Of course, that is only up to the 2nd floor, and from the 3rd floor onwards, abnormal phenomena incomparable to what happened so far occur.
Especially, up to the 2nd floor, finding the exit isn't that difficult if you set the direction well, but from the 3rd floor onwards, the story is different.
That place has abnormal phenomena too, but above all, due to the labyrinth's own complexity, the problem is that there are those remaining unlike the 2nd floor.
There must not be a few starving players wandering in search of the exit for weeks or months even now.
It was not an exaggeration to say that they were the biggest obstacle arising from the 3rd floor.
The journey continued.
Perhaps thanks to sufficiently replenishing water at the safe zone's oasis, it was much easier than the beginning.
“It's the exit.”
“Ha...... Finally the exit? But we arrived sooner than I thought?”
“Because we hurried. And we didn't meet the smiling man in the mask either.”
“Why are you so careful about that smiling mask man who was written in the manual too? Is he that strong?”
“It's not simply just strength. His ability itself is troublesome. It is best not to encounter him if possible, and not to fight if encountered.”
“Hmm...... Well, okay.”
Judging by Luna's reaction, it was a great fortune not to encounter the man wearing a smiling mask.
Judging by the look in her eyes, if such a thing appeared, she had the spirit to ram into it immediately.
“Then let's move on.”
“What kind of place is the 3rd floor?”
“A place where war never ceases.”
“......Can't we just leave? I feel like my back hurts suddenly.”
Feigning illness that wouldn't work anywhere.
“You can go back, but if I die here, the remaining Destruction Dragon's Demonic energy can never be removed again.”
“......Ah geez, your threat is quite bloody. I didn't intend to go anyway?!”
“That is fortunate then.”
At that time, Lion, who was listening to the conversation from the side, said in a transparent form.
[I, I won't let that happen! I will protect you no matter what happens.]
“Okay, thank you.”
[Hehe.]
Like that, after the brief squabble ended, Luna and I entered the 3rd floor in earnest.
[Entering the 3rd floor of Akiro's Labyrinth.]
The 3rd floor of Akiro's Labyrinth was a wide-open plain where the night sky was revealed.
It is unknown how the night sky is visible in the labyrinth which should be underground, but in the first place, Akiro's Labyrinth was not a space where general common sense or laws applied.
One just had to accept it as such.
At a glance, the plain wide open to the far horizon and the relatively cool weather might seem better than the 2nd floor's desert climate, but from the 3rd floor onwards was a section where substantial threats existed, not just environmental factors.
“Hmm, it looks peaceful for a place where war never ceases?”
“Because it is still the entrance. Since those wandering on the 3rd floor cannot find the entrance let alone the exit, it is not strange.”
“......That sounds like a very dangerous remark, are we okay?”
“Not yet.”
“Wait, what do you mean not yet! Say it with certainty!”
“Probably.”
“Same difference!”
[P, please stop it, you two......]
While engaging in a squabble that wasn't really a squabble with Luna like that, my gaze accidentally touched the sky.
The moment I saw that, I had no choice but to stiffen as I was.
“......Huh? What's wrong?”
And soon Luna, who shifted her gaze, also stopped.
“Ca, Cain! There! Above!”
“I am watching.”
I know now.
How so many players could witness the Divine Sword Levatein.
That was because the Divine Sword Levatein was floating above that sky.
“That...... is it, right?”
“Yes. It seems correct.”
Brilliantly emitting radiance.
Divine aura felt at a glance.
Pure white blade without a single speck.
All that information was saying that the Divine Sword Levatein floating up there was real.
“How on earth is that over there? Cain, don't tell me you caught the Destruction Dragon and threw away the sword in the labyrinth?”
“Would I do that?”
“Then what is that?”
“I don't know either, since I came here to know that in the first place.”
Luna spoke in a reluctant voice.
“Is that...... real?”
“We will know if we check.”
I reached out my hand as I was.
[Activating ‘Weapon Summon(??)’.]
[Personal weapon is summoned.]
[Summoning weapon, ‘AKR-74 Assault Rifle (GF-40 Grenade Launcher Combined)’.]
“......Why that suddenly?”
“Because there is something I have to check.”
The thing that bothers me the most in pulling the trigger is, as expected, the gunshot.
Because we wouldn't be the only ones here.
‘For now, nothing is seen on the horizon.’
It is unknown how far the gunshot will be heard, but even if the gunshot is heard at a distance beyond the horizon, they won't be able to realize that it is a gunshot.
Since a gun was that alien of an object in this world.
Clack─
The trigger was pulled, and soon along with the soaring flame, the bullet rushed towards the Divine Sword Levatein.
Swish─
However, the fired bullet passed through the Divine Sword Levatein too futilely as it was.
“As expected, it has no substance.”
“You mean that is an illusion?”
“For now it seems so but...... it is questionable why the illusion of the Divine Sword Levatein appeared in this place.”
At this rate, doesn't it seem like we have to go to the 5th floor of the labyrinth to confirm the truth about it.
It wouldn't be just a feeling that I feel like the labyrinth is calling the player.
‘For now, there is no choice but to keep climbing.’
I intended to break through the 5th floor of Akiro's Labyrinth once anyway even if it wasn't for the Divine Sword Levatein, but at this rate, I couldn't back down.
“Let's camp here for today first.”
“Huh? Not moving? Didn't we rest not long ago? Can't we move more? Are you tired? Cain was a weaker man than I thought.”
“It is not because I am tired, but to find the path, we have to spend today here.”
“What does that mean?”
“You will know if you wait.”
We cannot find the path on the 3rd floor of the labyrinth even if we move recklessly anyway.
The keywords to break through the 3rd floor are patience and observation.
Therefore, rather than moving impatiently, it is better to take it easy and wait for the time slowly.
“Don't do that and explain a bit. Why can't we move right away?”
“On the 3rd floor, there is no way to directly know the path. The compass doesn't work either, and there is absolutely no way to distinguish east, west, north, and south.”
“......Then how do we find the exit?”
“That is why I said we have to wait. If we wait here, something will be seen in the sky.”
Luna whined.
“Don't do that and tell me refreshingly. What appears exactly?”
“Monstrous Bird.”
“Then do we just have to follow that Monstrous Bird?”
“No, they only wander their territory, they don't guide the path directly. To find the path, we have to use another method.”
“What is that?”
It seemed Luna had no intention of backing down before I told her the method.
“After waiting at the entrance and observing the movements of the Monstrous Birds appearing in the sky, we have to move to the place where their territories overlap. And we have to wait there until the Monstrous Bird appears again.”
“......Why is it this complex? Is there no other method besides that?”
“There isn't. That is why so many people wander the path on the 3rd floor of the labyrinth, because it is a structure where you cannot find the path again if you press the first button wrong.”
Of course, a very small number might have reached the exit by chance while wandering vaguely, but that is only an extremely rare example of being lucky.
The majority of players were fated to starve to death while wandering the labyrinth endlessly.
“......I'm asking just in case, there are plenty of dangerous things besides finding the path from the 3rd floor, right?”
“Finding the path is rather on the easy side. Actually, there are not a few people who were swept by the labyrinth's laws and forced to wander the path even while knowing how to find the path.”
“Haa......”
As the rough explanation of the situation ended, Luna also prepared for camping quietly without pestering anymore.
“Ah, Lion, can you eat something like rice in that state?”
[I can eat, but it doesn't have much meaning. Nutritional supplementation is also impossible, so it is closer to the concept of burning food with Demonic energy.]
“Really? That's a shame. We have to save food here, but when we get out, let's eat lots of delicious things?”
[Okay.]
A peaceful atmosphere continued.
If there was one regretful point, it was the point that this place called the labyrinth was a place that did not allow peace.
Right, just like now.
“Ah, as expected, I knew there would be one or two around this point.”
“Damn it. You won again? Isn't this cheating?”
“Yes, if you lose, quietly hand over the money. You get utterly wrecked every day, right?”
Vulgar laughter heard from somewhere.
Despite clearly guarding the plain always, the fact that they approached this close meant that they used the blind spot of the senses in some way.
‘Mental type won't work on me, so is it magic that deceives sight.’
No, perhaps they moved while covering themselves with something like a camouflage net classically.
Because the simplest method sometimes becomes a very effective means.
One thing certain was the point that judging by the aura emitted by those who revealed their appearance now, they were absolutely not rabble.
‘They aren't lost. They came to know the location of the entrance.’
And that wasn't very good news for us.
It would be different if they were rabble wandering the path, but coming knowing the path inevitably meant they possessed qualifications worthy of that.
“Now, gentlemen wearing plague masks, sorry to visit as uninvited guests, but shouldn't we live too? If you hand over all the food and water you have, we will go back quietly.”
“Yeah, it's been over a few days since we had a proper meal. My stomach is screaming that it's hungry.”
The uninvited guests who suddenly visited our campsite offered a proposal that was utterly unacceptable just like all uninvited guests encountered in the labyrinth.
Luna's voice looking at them hardened stiffly.
“......Those people are strong.”
“Looks like it.”
Both were at least level 7 or higher.
No, since one of them looked to be level 8 or higher, it wasn't strange for Luna to show this reaction.
“Why are guys of your level doing something like looting? Don't you have enough ability to break through the 3rd floor?”
“Huh? Ah, was it that kind of talk? It's not strange either.”
A man with a large scar drawn on his face grinned and said.
“Because I like killing people.”
I knew those words.
These bastards......
“Hall of Subjugation.”
“Correct!”
A huge explosion that occurred simultaneously with that covered us.