Labyrinth Renovation – 024 | Sousaku – 創作

Episode 24 – It’s outside!　It’s another world!

"W-Whoaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! It's outside! This is amazing! It smells! I can feel the wind! The world is alive!”

I ran around screaming, rolled around on the ground, and soaked up the sunlight with my whole body.
Even in another world, the outside was the same. The sunlight, the blue of the sky, the green of the forest, the whiteness of the clouds.
The temperature was perfect. It seems that the time we came out of the dungeon was around lunchtime. The sun was almost directly overhead.

"Fiona～～～～～～! We made it out～! Where is the town? Is it close? Let's hurry up and eat some meat! I don't mind fish! I want to eat some fresh vegetables too, don't you? Waha hahahaha!”
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, if you say it all at once like that, it's hard to understand! But I do think I'd like to eat meat. The rice balls were delicious, though."
"I've brought rice, so we can cook it whenever we want～～～～. Ahahahaha! I want to eat rice with fresh side dishes!”

My excitement was through the roof.
Because things went from “I'm sorry, you might not be able to use the transfer monument” to “I guess you can use it after all”.
My mood literally went sky-high after being dropped into an abyss! A full 95 stories high!
That's why I couldn't be happier.
Above all, what matters is that we were able to go out together!

"Oh, but now that I think about it, I don't have any kind of citizenship. Do you think it's a bad idea to go into town?”
"Eh? Why?”
"Why? Won't I be stopped at the entrance and asked questions like 『Who are you?! Where did you come from?! What are you here for?! 』 by a stern-looking guard?”
"Hm, hmmm～. Maybe in a really big city, but it's fine where I live."
"Is that so?”

Hmm? There's such a huge dungeon here, so I was picturing it as being a little more developed, but it's not.
Well, Fiona also said it was an unpopular dungeon, but it's not just a “bit” or that kind of level of unpopularity, it's completely empty to begin with, so it's genuinely unpopular.

"Even so, I can't believe there's not a single person here."

There were some buildings around, but it was rather bleak. The area was quiet and there were no people.
The labyrinth had a raised ground with a stone-walled entrance, and according to Fiona, this was something that suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"The Great Labyrinth of Melquodia was created recently... well, it's been five years now, but it was created suddenly. So, when the first new labyrinth was created after a long time, there was a rush of people at first. They tried their best, but…… the monsters are strong and it's difficult, so it's not very popular.……"
"Hmmmm. So, in short, it's not very appetizing, is it?"

I suppose there are other better places.
If you're going to risk your life, there's no need to purposely choose the difficult route…… It's a matter of life and death.
Even more so if there is nothing nearby.

When I looked around, there were a reasonable number of buildings that didn't seem to be used by anyone, and there were also some abandoned buildings that looked like they used to be stalls, or huts, which gave the place a kind of run-down tourist spot feel.
Even the main street was fully paved with cobblestones, creating a sense of sadness at the effort that had gone into it.
Mm-hmm. It is indescribably sad. This other world sure is a harsh place.

"To begin with, why were you hiding in such an unpopular dungeon, Fiona?”
"Didn't I tell you? This is the only place within our territory, and with me being the third daughter, I didn't have anything to do, so I had to make money……"
"Uh? What's with all these words that seemed to imply a lot of information? Territory?”
"Oh, I see. I'm sorry. I didn't know if I would be saved, so I forgot to tell you. I'm a sort of an aristocrat…… or rather, I'm from the family of the local lord."
"Ehhhhh!? Is that so!? Fiona, you idiot, why didn't you tell me something so important!?”
"I mean, what's the point in saying it? Considering the situation…… Besides, I'm just Fiona, a mere explorer."
"Well, I understand what you mean, but……"

I haven't really talked about my life to Fiona either……
Well, in a situation in which life or death was at stake, what did it matter which family you were from?

"Well, then I guess you should go back home and report on your survival. I'll be waiting around somewhere."
"Eh? Why? Come with me! You helped me out, Maho, so I want to thank you!”
"There's no need to thank me. We were able to save each other, so we're even."
"We didn't save each other! I was helped by you! Because…… Because it was my fault for summoning you, Maho."

Well, when she put it like that, it was true, but Fiona didn't specifically summon me by name, so it was more like an accident.
But I guess she can't think so pragmatically as to say she doesn't need to be thanked just because the two of us helped each other.

"Well then, I guess I should accept the invitation. Do nobles live in castles or somewhere like that?”
"Hahaha, I wouldn't live in a castle. It's not like I'm the King."
"Is that how it works?"

This calls into question my views on medieval fantasy.

"So, that means you also have a family name, Fiona. You said that nobles had family names at the beginning, right?”
"Oh, did I not tell you that, too? Well, it's not really a family name, but rather the name of the land that has been ruled by our family for generations."
"Ahh, and what is it?”
"Dharma."
"Uh? Sorry, what?”
"Don’t you mean my surname? My full name is 『Fiona Lux Dharma』."

Fiona's last name was the same as that famous Hardware Store.

◇◆◆◆◇

"Whooooaaaaa! It's a town! It's a person! It's another world!”
"Stop it, Maho. This is embarrassing!”
"Well, I mean. How can I not get excited about this?!”

Even if this wasn't a different world, but Earth, I think I would have been just as excited.
There is human activity. I never thought this would make me so happy!
I like Hardware Stores, and even though I wasn't that desperate at the bottom of that dungeon, it's still natural for humans to live under the sun, on the ground.
Seeing this obvious fact with my own eyes, my brain! My cells are so happy!

"So, what are we going to do? Is your house close by, Fiona?”
"Mm-hmm. Right there."
"So, this is the most prosperous town in the territory, huh?"
"Right. But isn't all countryside like this?”
"Well, I guess…… I won't deny that."

That said, I haven't seen any other worlds, so it's inevitable that I'll be talking about things from an Earth-based perspective. However, there are not many shops, but there are many private houses, and the boundary between the town and the farmland seems to be vague.
It had the feel of a town that had grown up from a village that had formed around a river.
But it's a clean town that isn't too littered. I like it.

"Don't you have to report your survival to a place like the Adventurer's Guild first?”
"Eh? Did I talk about the guild?”

Oh, so it does exist.

"You didn't, but I thought it might be something like that."
"We only operate the store portion of it, where you can sell things. Normally, the word “guild” refers to a government-run administrative office, but we don't have one yet. Well, it would take a long time to explain."
"Oh, I want to know, I want to know."

I'm a bit interested in the stories around the guild.
I wonder if the guild will help me find a job.

"When a labyrinth is born, it's a rule that you have to report it to the king, and at that time the 『operating method』 is chosen. Either we manage it ourselves and pay the country a fixed amount of magic stones, or we entrust the management to the country."
"Oh, that's how it works. So, I guess you decided to try running the place yourselves, Fiona?"
"Yeah…… But it was much harder than expected. If there are no explorers, then we won't be able to obtain the magical stones that we have to hand over to the country."
"I see what you mean. I'm starting to understand where this is going. So, you were trying to help out by doing a little bit of exploring, Fiona?"
"I guess that's how you could put it, in plain terms."

It's not clear how much expertise Fiona's country has regarding labyrinths, but it seems that trying to manage things on your own territory alone is unexpectedly difficult.
Actually, this place is practically deserted.

"Why won't you just outsource the operation to the government?”
"It's…… not like that's impossible, but there'd be hardly any return to us. The management fee and dungeon usage fee just about break even. The government takes almost all of the profits."
"I see. Then, we'll just have to try our best ourselves, right?"

According to Fiona, when the country is commissioned, the 『Labyrinth Administration Bureau』 and the 『Temple of Luknuwis』 will come and start operating, using their own super-powerful party of explorers to search as far as they can and figure out what kind of labyrinth it is to some extent.
Furthermore, they also buy up magic stones, manage and train adventurers, and even attract explorers from outside, so it seems that it is not completely without benefits in terms of the development of the territory.
However, if you do it yourself, you can get all the profits.
"What is the Luknuwis Temple? A place for praying to God?”
"There are high-ranking priests who can lift curses, cure poison and paralysis, and also, although it's very expensive, they can even bring people back from the dead."
"Revival. ……Revival? What? Like the resurrection of the dead?”
"Yeah, right?”
"Truly…… a different world……"

I feel like an idiot for getting all excited thinking "It's almost the same as Earth!”, after getting outside.
Things like a dead person coming back to life…… No, isn't it fine? Even if me or Fiona die by accident, we can just come back to life again, right? This is the best! Is this for real?

"……Aren't there any disadvantages to this? It is okay? Reviving someone……"
"If you fail, you'll just turn to ashes. And if you fail to resurrect someone and they turn into ashes, their soul will disappear."
"Ashes……?"

What the heck is that? As I thought, that was just too good to be true.
Let's be careful not to die. Although it goes without saying.

"Oh, there is a temple in this town too. I think I mentioned this before, but they can check how far the labyrinth acclimatization has progressed. But there are no high-ranking priests who can handle revival magic, so... when running a dungeon without the involvement of the government, this is actually the biggest problem. If you die from being attacked by a monster, you're gone for good and can't be revived."

Dungeon exploration and death go hand in hand.
Whether or not you have that insurance would certainly be a big factor.
According to Fiona, if you make a large donation and even build a more splendid temple, a high-ranking priest will come. It seems that even if the operation is outsourced to the government, the government just pays for it, so it is a necessary expense in any case.
It's a cruel world out there.