Volume 6 - CH 4

"Wait, Alec."

Just as we were getting our gear and about to leave for the Labyrinth of No Return, Jouga came out of the inn.

He was properly equipped with leather armor and his crutches were gone.

He looked like a normal adventurer himself.

I was impressed.

"Hou, The craftsman is very skilled. Has he already made you a prosthetic leg?"

"That's right! Well, he said it still needed some adjustment, so I thought I'd give it a go in combat to get a feel for it."

"Hmm. ......, Then, join Clyde party and try to adjust it on the first layer."

"Wait a minute, you can't get a grip on anything with that lukewarm party. Put me in Alec's party."

"All right. Let's see how good you can be with my eyes."

"That's what I'm talking about! I'm gonna make you a lot of money."

Jouga gave a thumbs-up and smiled, but he was a quick-tempered guy.

"But I'm glad for you, Jouga. You can walk without crutches now."

"Oh, Serina. It took me a little while to get the hang of it, but I'm a genius, and I can do it just fine. Ouch, ouch, ouch."

"Uwahh, that's not cool. It's like a mini-Alec."

Lily said something strange.

"Wait. I wasn't like that at all when I was younger."

"Hee~, really? Yeah, but you're just like him in the way you get carried away and get all uptight."

"I don't think I'm getting carried away."

"Yes, you are. You buys a lot of slaves, and you doesn't give me any points. ......"

Letty says it in a voice that I can barely hear, but she's a persistent guy.

"It's almost like you're messing with me. Let's go.

"Okay."

"Copy that."

"Oohh! Let's go!"

The dungeon is a place where you have to be on your toes, but it's not like you have to be in high spirits before you enter.

It's departure.

"Hey, Alec. Looks like everything is going well."

The soldier standing guard at the entrance of the dungeon said as soon as he saw us.

"I don't know about that."

"Yesterday, two parties were wiped out on the fourth level. It's good that you're showing your face to us like this."

"Well, I suppose so. But don't talk about bad luck on the way out."

"Haha, my bad. Well, be careful.

Down the stairs.

"What was the cause of the annihilation, ......?"

Fianna seemed to be concerned and asked me that question.

"I'm not sure. If you're curious, ask a soldier later. We'll be camping on the third layer this time. Jouga, you get used to it on the first layer, and if it doesn't work, you can go home right away."

"Leave it to me, Alec. I'll show you that I'm fine."

I'm half dumbfounded by this guy's carefree attitude, but I don't feel good if he follows me around unwillingly and without motivation. It's better this way.

"Five goblins!"

The enemy came out as soon as we turned the corner, but Jouga ran in first and swung his broadsword with great force.

It didn't help that he wobbled after the slash, but could he dash?

"Clear!"

The other enemies were quickly swept away by the vanguard, and there was no danger.

"How's it ?"

"Not yet. Next time we'll do zombies."

"Oh, come on."

If he hadn't been traumatized, he could probably account for himself as a warrior. It's an unexpected find. I wonder what Janatha will think when he finds out.

"Are you sure your leg is okay?"

Fianna asked, concerned.

"Of course. It's really amazing. It's a prosthetic leg, right? It hurts a little when I step on it, but that's no big deal."

"Jouga, make sure you customize it for ease of use, and I'll give you the money to adjust it."

"My bad, Alec. As long as I can hold my ground, it's just a matter of my sword skills and body balance. It's not so much about the prosthesis as it is about how I move and how I connect my cuts after I move."

If you've found your own challenges, let's leave it to Juga.

"Then we'll take the shortest route down to the second layer."

"""Roger that."""

Without making any unnecessary stops, we took the shortest route to the stairs.

At the front of the stairs, in the hall with the huge warrior statue, I couldn't help but look back and see if there was a archer skeleton, but no enemy heroes have come out since then.

"Okay, it's zombie, do it!"

Jouga was the first to cut in, and he was very bold. I was worried that he might have been traumatized, but my fears were completely unfounded.

"How's it?"

"Well, I'll give you credit for your courage, but that's not enough. You need to think of a safer way to fight as a party."

"Yeah? Whenever an enemy appears, kill it as quickly as possible. That's all we can do, right?

"You know, ......, well, that's fine."

A warrior in the vanguard and a leader in command have different roles.

"Meena, follow his back if he goes too far into it."

"Yes, Master."

"─ You're kind after all, aren't you?"

Shrugging her shoulders, Serina said, but I thought different.

"You know, I'm just trying to keep the party safe, so don't make any weird assumptions."

"Oh, ......, I see, I see."

"It's good to help each other out. Next, let's go. Next."

So far, so good, .......

"All right. Let's head for the third layer."

We're going to explore the third layer as originally planned.

"Damn, it's spitting threads again. Letty, burn it down."

Jouga was very concerned about the spider's thread, but I guess it was more a matter of feeling uncomfortable than not wanting his movements to be tied up.

"Yes, yes. Ah, here we go."

"Hmm? You can create flames without casting a spell, right?"

Jouga noticed that Letty is a bit of a disappointing high-level mage, so she can use no-chant spells. Usually, though, the spells are unnecessarily long.

"Only if it's a weak technique. I can use it with no chanting."

"Hmm? I thought you had to cast a spell."

"Normally, yes. But! Because I'm a genius mage!"

"Ohh! I'm a genius swordsman too. I know what you're talking about!"

"Whoa, that's annoying."

Lily frowned, but I felt the same way.

"Letty, Jouga, you're not allowed to talk to each other."

"Why not?"

"That's horrible. That's arrogant."

"Because, you're being too loud. Let's go."

I silenced them and continued the search.

After a day, we decided to set up camp in a small room we found.

Of course, since we were in the labyrinth, we didn't have a tent, but just a blanket that we had stored in the item storage.

"I didn't expect to find silver coins in the treasure chest, though. I've made a lot of money today."

If Jouga had known how much the jewels would sell for, he would have been a little more pleased, but that's okay.

"The order of the lookout was the same as always."

Since there are so many of us, we'll take turns in pairs and spend the night together.

"Hey, listen, Alec."

"What is it, Jouga?"

"I'm thinking of buying a nice ring and asking Fianna to marry me if I win the arena."

Juga talks to me about something I don't care about. Sure, Fianna is nice to Jouga, but she's a cleric who's nice to everyone, so I don't think she has any special feelings for hi,.

I thought he had given up on the penetration story, but he's a man who never learns.

"Fuwah... well, have it your way."

I said, biting back a yawn.

"Oh, yeah. I'll do whatever I want."

"Better not, Jouga, Alec's gonna root for you and stab you in the back."

"Yeah, yeah."

"What?"

Nene was saying "Congratulations, congratulations" in her sleep, but is she dreaming of Fianna in her wedding dress?

...... This is stupid. Go to sleep.

"The stone floor really hurts my back, you know."

The next morning, Serina said as she stretched lightly. Jouga had said before that stones were the enemy in this dungeon, but it seemed he was talking about whether or not you could sleep on a stone floor.

"Then why don't we bring a cot?"

I said with a straight face.

"Huh?"

"Haha, that's good. You can always sleep well. In the dungeon."

Jouga laughed it off as a joke, but I was serious.

"You might be able to do that if you break the parts down into smaller pieces. ......"

"Is there a problem, Fianna?"

"No, the idea of bringing a bed into a dungeon..."

"If there's no danger, we should try some things. The only danger I can think of is that it might feel too good to wake up."

"─ People carrying wood can't fight, you know?"

Serina pointed out, but of course.

"I'll hire a dedicated porter. We have plenty of them."

"No, well, if they're okay with it, then fine."

"I'm sure they won't complain if we give them a proper escort. I'm worried about the others, so we'll have our own party to escort them."

"Yeah, I understand."

We only stayed one night this time, but next time we'll stay a few more nights so we don't have to waste time going back and forth.

"Oh, Alec, I thought you were dead."

Once we were on the ground, a soldier gave us a little extra concern.

"Sorry about that. I was going to spend the night down there and then go home."

"It would have been nice if you had told me that first. If you hadn't been a day late, we would have applied for a rescue team."

The soldier said, "So that's what gatekeepers are for."

"We won't be back for another three days, so there's no need."

"Well, most of them do, anyway."

When I returned to the inn and was about to go to sleep, Ada, the landlady, greeted me with a sullen look.

"Alec, there's trouble."

"Ahh? What happened?"

The landlady pointed upstairs without saying anything, but I could hear the shouting from upstairs.

"That's why I was against it!"

"No, you agreed with me in the end!"

Someone is arguing, but I don't give a damn what the bastards are arguing about.

"That was Clyde's voice, wasn't it?"

Serina said.

"Hmm?"

If it's a guy from our Clan, I'm wondering as a hired hand what he's struggling with.

"It can't be helped. Meena, follow me."

"Yes, master."

"I'm coming with you."

"Me too."

I don't think it would make much sense for the onlooker Lily to come along, let alone for Serina.

When I went upstairs and opened the large room Clyde and the others were using, I found that a fighting had already started.

Good grief.

"That's enough! Explain the reason for the fight, Clyde."

"Well, it's ......."

Clyde turned his gaze away from me, and fell silent.

"Marth is dead."

Another guy says.

"Ahh?"

"Hey, what do you mean?"

Serina asked back, as if she didn't want to hear it.

I mean, who is Marth?

"Meena, can you bring me the list from my room?"

"Yes, Master."

Meena brought me a list of names, but it was Clyde's party members. I don't remember anyone with that name. I can't even remember his face, but I can't have my slaves killed so easily.

I had Clyde and the other party members explain to me that they had also gone to the third layer. I hadn't noticed them at all, but in that spacious labyrinth, it would be possible to explore without seeing each other. No, it's not that it's possible, it's just that it's less likely that we'll see each other.

Half of the party was stuck by the spider's thread, and when they managed to defeat it, one of them had passed away.

"Clyde, I don't remember giving you guys permission to go to the third layer. What's going on?"

"'No, Alec-san, you said we could earn our keep down there, didn't you?"

Clyde confirmed.

I remember when he came to ask me about it and I told him about the 20 gold leader's allowance. at that time?

I allowed him to go as far as the second layer, but he thought the third or fourth layer would be fine.

Good grief, ......, I should have been more clear in my instructions about the layers.

I didn't think the spider would be much of a threat either.

However, if your party doesn't have a wizard for a rearguard, the danger level will probably go up.

"It seems that there's been a misunderstanding. It was the second layer that I authorized. I don't blame you for that because I'm at fault, but besides that, didn't you make poor decisions as a leader? Both in the battle and in the decisions made on the third layer."

"Yes, that's the part ...... , but I didn't expect the one who holding the torch to be hit by the thread there."

"That's where you're naive. It's a good idea to have two people holding the torch so that you can deal with whatever happens. If you can't handle it, then it's too early in the hierarchy."

"Oh, I see, two people? That's a lot of money for torches."

"It's a necessary expense. If you want, I'll pay for it. Use more than one."

It's a life-threatening price. If you can buy it with two torches, it's cheap.

"Roger that."

"I'll cut your leader allowance in half for three months. If you don't like it, you'll be replaced by someone else."

"No, Alec-san, I failed this time, but let me do it. I'll do better next time."

Clyde, who looked straight at me and made a mysterious face, seemed to have something on his mind. Well, I'll beat the crap out of anyone who's happy about a dead party member.

"Of course. Anyway, don't let someone dead again, okay? Even you guys too?"

"""Yes, sir."""

The other members of the team nodded with serious faces, so I hoped they wouldn't make the same mistake again.