Labyrinth Renovation – 031 | Sousaku – 創作

Episode 31: A Tale of a Novice Explorer ②

I lost the courage to resist and just looked up at the huge monster blankly.
The monster was strangely not attacking and was making mysterious movements, such as looking back or over here.
Does it intend to play with us without killing us right away?
Damn it! I refuse to be killed so easily. I'll make it take at least one blow.
The next moment, I mustered up my courage, raised my magical power, and tried to cast a spell. I heard the sound of a human voice.

"Hmm, what's wrong? Is anybody there?”
"Aren't those Ares-kun and Tina-chan? Are you exploring again today?”

Two explorers appeared from behind the three monsters, in a lighthearted manner.
They approached us as if they didn't think the monsters were a threat at all.
What's more, one of them seems to know us, but it's dark and we can't tell from their voices alone.

"W-Who is it……!?”
"Oh, they must have been surprised to see these little ones. That's why I told you, they'll mistake them for monsters."
"You said it was okay because there was no one else here, Fiona!”
"I don't remember that.”

To my surprise, one of the two was Fiona-san, a senior explorer who was supposed to be dead.
The other person was someone I had never seen before, but it seemed like they were quite close.

"Sorry, we scared you both, didn't we? These children are our companions, so don't worry."
"C-companions……? These monsters……? N-no, more importantly, Fiona-san! You're alive!”
"Ah, yeah. Somehow. Are the two of you still working hard on the first layer?”
"Yes, we don't have any companions. But since then, we've been able to use second-tier magic! Me and Tina!”
"Second tier? It's amazing that you've managed to get that far in just the first layer, you two are very talented. If this place was more popular, I think it wouldn't be a dream for you to become high-ranking explorers."

Fiona-san says that, but apart from the time when I was invited to join the stray party, I've been stuck in the first layer for three years. I think anyone would gain the necessary skills by doing that much. I don't think we lack talent, but the reality is that we're still only in the first layer.
Back then, those who were truly talented would quickly descend to the sixth layer and even reach the third tier in magic.

"Hey, hey, Fiona. Are they your friends? Introduce me too."

The black-haired girl with Fiona-san says.
From the looks of it, I think she's the same age as us or younger. She was so neat and tidy that she didn't look like an explorer, and her clothes were unlike anything I had ever seen before. Perhaps she is not an explorer, but rather a wealthy young lady.

"Ah, this is Maho. I think you'll have lots of chances to talk with her, so please teach her all sorts of things."
"I am Maho Saeki. You said earlier that you only operate on the first layer. Why is that?”

If she's asking this, she's probably not an explorer.
The fact that Melquodia suddenly becomes difficult from the second layer is something they will tell you at the purchase place.

"The second layer is where groups of goblins appear. Tina and I are both magicians, so we can't deal with them."
"Hmm, I see! So the second layer consists of goblins. Fuumu? How many of them appear in a group? How big are the goblins? Are they strong?”

Maho asked all sorts of questions that even Fiona-san knew the answers to.
Tina and I answered, but I wondered why she wanted to know such things.
Even so, she has a surname, so maybe she's a noble? I've heard that even nobles sometimes train in dungeons…… Or rather, what are these three huge monsters? She said they were companions, and they seemed to be very fond of Maho.

"……Fuu～, Thank you for the valuable information. I asked Fiona, and I thought the key was what to do with the second layer. I'm starting to get a rough idea of what I want to do. Hey, you guys will be able to make money easily soon, so look forward to it!"
"Ah, but we were talking about moving to another dungeon……"
"Ehh!? That's a waste. Why not give it another month or so, just to see?”
"But we're just……"
"Ars-kun, Tina-chan, if you don't mind, would you believe me? From now on, this dungeon will change. No, I intend to change it."
"You too, Fiona-san."

What does she mean by changing the dungeon?
The management here is terrible, according to an explorer who came from elsewhere before, so I wonder if that's what's going to change.
Looking over, Tina also looks puzzled.
I've heard that the difficulty level of a dungeon is determined at the time it is generated and cannot be changed afterward, so there are good dungeons and bad dungeons.
And this is a terrible dungeon. At this point, I don't think there's anything you can do about it.

"Hey, Fiona. It seems like they don't believe us at all."
"Well, that's obvious. Even I'm still half-skeptical."
"Don't say such things again. ……Well, I guess the results will speak for themselves. Something like that. Oh, right. Hey boy, there was a treasure chest over there, you know? That type of treasure chest doesn't have any traps, so you can open it safely. If you don't believe me, just take the whole box up to the ground."
"Eh, Maho? Are you really going to tell me that?”
"It's called the first-time service. We have to take good care of our customers. They're going to be regulars now."
"Yeah. Well, it's fine. Ares-kun, Tina-chan. The story about the treasure chest is true, so if you have time, try picking it up."
"R-Right……"

Fiona-san and Maho-san said that and left.
In the end, I couldn't ask about the three giant monsters……

"So Fiona-san…… was alive. Somehow, she seemed much brighter."
"Oh, that's what I thought too. That person seemed really serious, but I wonder if she's a friend."
"I think you're right. She was a mysterious person. So…… Ares, what should we do?”
"What do you mean with what should we do? Which thing?"
"Both."

Going to get the treasure chest?
Staying in this dungeon?
By both, they were speaking about these two matters.

"Let's look for the treasure chest first. You can use magic about two more times, right?"

A little further back, at the end of the path, there really was a treasure chest.
I've never seen that shape before.
We've been here for three years, we've seen a treasure chest or two.
The treasures found in the upper levels are nothing but junk, and there are often traps set up. The risk isn't worth it, so we've never opened them.

"Traps…… They said there wasn't one…… I wonder if it's true."
"I don't think Fiona-san would lie, so it should be fine. Anyway, I've never seen a box like that before. Oh, it's pretty light.”
"I-Is that okay?”
"They said we could take the whole box home. Let's take it slow and open it over there."
"Is it really going to be okay……?"

Tina looks uneasy, but she has never seen a treasure chest like this before.
The surface is smooth and sturdy, yet incredibly light, so even someone like me who doesn't have the “Warrior's Blessing” can carry it with ease.
Just based on the weight, I don't expect much from the contents, but the box itself looks like it could be worth some money.

Once outside the dungeon, we open the chest in the field.
"Oh, wow! Hey, Tina. This is amazing!”
"No way. Are they leather gloves? Don't you have to go to a lower floor to get this?”
"I don't know why, but if we sell this, we can earn about half a month's worth of expenses! Even travel expenses to go to another dungeon――"

Leather gloves are quite expensive. Not only are they difficult to make, but it is also difficult to achieve both softness and strength, so even among the explorers who had come here, almost no one had them.
Even people who occasionally wore gloves did not have gloves with all fingers separate; at most, they had mittens with only the thumb separate. Most people preferred to spend their money on gauntlets or mittens rather than gloves.
Moreover, if it comes from a dungeon, there is a possibility that it has been enchanted with some kind of magic, and it could even sell for more than expected.

"……Hey, what should we do?”

Tina asked me for the second time, “What should we do?"
I think that just these two items, the leather gloves, and the lightweight, sturdy treasure box, are worth at least a month's income.
That girl Maho said she would “change” this dungeon.
No, maybe things really are starting to change.
Because I've never seen a treasure chest like this before.

"……I guess we'll stay a little longer. Since we had some extra income."
"It's only income once it sells, though, right? But I agree. I also want to believe in Fiona-san and Maho-san. We've been here for so long, after all."
"Yeah, that's right. If I hear that it became popular after we split up, I'll want to die."
So we decided to stay in Melquodia, and just a few weeks later, we learned that this decision was not a mistake.