Volume 2 - CH 16

Chapter 16 – I Tried To Capture The Labyrinth At A Tremendous Pace

Beyond the door was a long, narrow passageway. On either side of the wall, there were magic lights at regular intervals, illuminating the surroundings, albeit dimly.

They were probably installed at the time when this place was built.

The fact that they were still in operation 4,000 years later showed just how advanced the ancient civilization’s technology was.

The passageway was gently sloping downhill and curved sharply to the left.

I continued onward with Iris, Lily, and Surara in tow.

At the far end was a large door painted black.

On the door’s surface, there were a number of alphabet-like letters engraved.

“Ancient language. What in the world is written there?”

“I have learned some ancient languages. …But this text is kind of weird.”

Iris and Lily both tilt their heads.

“The calamity cult used a special code.”

Surara, still wearing his glasses, approached the black-painted door and turned his eyes to the words inscribed on it.

“Let me decipher it now. Let’s see…”

“What did it say?”

I also stared at the writing on the wall.

Then [Full Assist] was activated, and in an instant, the deciphering was complete.

“‘No. 3 Underground Labyrinth Worship Center’…?”

“Master-san, have you already managed to decipher it?”

“Kou-san, that’s great…!”

“How about you, Surara-chan? Were you able to decipher it?”

“Yes. It’s exactly as Master-san said, ‘No. 3 Underground Labyrinth Worship Center’.”

“What kind of place is that?”

When I asked him this, Surara responded.

“It’s a pretty big one among the centers of the calamity cult. I’ll explain it to you in a minute.”

The following is a summary of Surara’s story.

The Calamity cult worships the calamities as gods, and according to their own doctrine, they have been building suspicious facilities all over the world.

Among them, the underground labyrinth worship center was very distinctive, with the labyrinth set up to intercept intruders and a worship center at the lowest level.

When the labyrinthine chapel was completed, the believers would go into the chapel and hold a ceremony to praise the calamity.

“Why go to the trouble of building a labyrinth?”

“I don’t know all the details either. But some say that the labyrinths and traps were not only used to repel intruders but also to execute believers who escaped during the rituals.”

“What kind of rituals were they performing…?”

“I don’t want to imagine too much.”

“…It’s scary.”

Lily gave a small shudder.

Anyway, what’s beyond the door was a labyrinth full of traps.

I check the [Auto Mapping] again.

The blue-white window displayed a map of the entire labyrinth, and according to the map, this place had a structure just like a dungeon in an RPG.

There are four floors in total, and each floor is connected by a staircase.

The red light spot indicated that Elder Lich’s location was shining on the fourth floor, the deepest floor.

So the boss character is on the deepest floor, huh?

That’s a common situation.

We were about to enter the first floor, which looked like a huge labyrinth according to the map.

A long and narrow passageway continues, and it is complicatedly divided into two several times in the middle.

The stairway leading to the lower floor is right in the labyrinth’s center, but it seems impossible to reach it by a straight path.

“I feel like we’re getting lost…”

Iris said, looking at the map in the window.

“I wonder how many hours it will take us to get through the whole labyrinth.”

“We cannot afford to be leisurely, can we?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

I nodded at Lily’s words.

Once the effect of the Yggdrasil branch wears off, the curse of the Black Death will turn Surier into a dead city.

We can’t afford to waste time here.

“Hey, Kou.”

Iris said as if a thought had just occurred to her.

“Isn’t [Auto Mapping] supposed to be able to search for routes? How about using that?”

“That’s a good idea. ──But let me try one thing first.”

I said that and took out a huge wooden hammer from my [Item Box].

A hikino wooden hammer.

It is one of the weapons I made with [Creation] when I first transferred to this world and its granted effect is《Wall Destruction S+》. It is said to be extremely powerful when breaking walls.

It was an item of limited use, so it was of little use to me, but perhaps it could be useful.

I pushed open the black-painted door and stepped into the labyrinth.

──In the end, we succeeded in taking a major shortcut.

“Ooooohhh!”

I swing the hammer down, and the labyrinth’s stone walls crumble and shatter like cookies.

It’s quite exhilarating, to be honest.

“Kou-san, you look like you are enjoying it…”

“I never thought of that idea of breaking down walls to move forward…”

“Master-san, you have a non-standard mind, too.”

…Is that a compliment?

Well, it’s Surara, so I’m sure he didn’t mean to offend.

I smiled wryly and raised the hammer ── and slammed it down again!

Bang!

The stone wall crumbled away with a single blow, and beyond it, I saw a descending staircase.

Now we’ve broken through the first floor.

Not much time has even passed.

If there were a time attack on this labyrinth, this would be the world’s fastest record.

…No. Would we be disqualified for cheating?

Anyway, we headed down the stairs to the second floor.

According to the [Auto Mapping] map, this level consists of three rooms lined up vertically, each connected by a long, narrow passageway.

The room at the end of the stairs was covered with square tiles in a checkerboard pattern of white, black, white, and black…

“It looks like it could be a trap.”

“I know it.”

Surara’s glasses sparkled.

“There are tiles in this room that, when stepped on, activate a trap. You have to walk to avoid them, or the ceiling will fall down on you.

“How do you know?”

“One of the people who created the Helper Slime was a magician who was fighting against the Calamity cult. That person told us about the traps that are often set up in the strongholds of the Calamity cult for the sake of a master who will appear 4,000 years later. …That person also taught me how to distinguish safe tiles, so please wait a moment.”

“In short, we just have to make sure we don’t step on the dangerous tiles, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“I see.”

Iris nodded beside me on my left.

Apparently, she came to the same conclusion as I did.

On the other hand, Lily had no idea what we were talking about and had a curious expression on her face.

“What exactly do you intend to do, Kou-san…?”

“You’ll know it when you see it. Kou can fly.”

“Eh… Don’t tell me you’ve got flying magic…?”

“No, not like that.”

I took out the Flying Potion from my [Item Box] and downed it in one gulp.

A mellow aroma spreads in my mouth.

“Everybody, hold on to me.”

“I’ll take the left arm.”

“Right arm, excuse me.”

“I’ll be on your head, Master-san.”

With Iris and Lily in my hands and Surara on my head, I kicked the ground with a thud.

The effect of the《Wind Blessing S+》lifted my body up in the air.

“Wow, you’re really flying…!”

Lily exclaims in admiration.

We floated in the air and made it to the passageway on the other side of the room without stepping on a single tile.

Naturally, the ceiling didn’t fall down.

The capture is complete.

I deactivated the《Wind Blessing S+》and landed on the ground.

“That was a great trick.”

“I was surprised…”

“That was fluffy!”

Well, now that we’ve saved some time, let’s get cracking and move forward.

The next room is long and narrow, with ten steel turrets on each side, for a total of twenty.

I did a quick [Appraisal] and found that they were all magic laser turrets made of orichalcum.

“What kind of room is this?”

I ask Surara.

“In this room, speed is of the essence. If you don’t go through at once, the magic laser will burn you. So don’t ever stop.”

“Why don’t we just destroy them one by one?”

“Eh?”

With Surala puzzled, I took out a hikino wooden axe from my [Item Box].

This is the weapon that killed Armored Bear with a single blow in my first battle in the other world, and it has《Throwing Critical A+》and《Hit Correction S+》attached to it.

I took a big swing with the hikino wooden axe and threw it with all my might.

“Oryaaaaaaaa!”

The wooden axe flew, slicing through the wind and shattering the orichalcum turret into pieces.

“…Every time I think about it, I think that Kou’s weapons are a cheat in so many ways.”

“How can a wood shatter an orichalcum…?”

It is strange to me too, but I guess the granting effect is that powerful.

Incidentally, I have a considerable stock of hikino wooden axes, and there are nineteen left.

And there are nineteen magic laser turrets left.

…I threw one hikino wooden axe after another, destroying all of the turrets.

“Okay, let’s go.”

We broke through the second room with ease.

On the way, I collected the wooden axe used for the attack and the remains of the magic laser turret in my [Item Box]. They might come in handy later.

We pass through a narrow passageway and head for the next room.

According to the [Auto Mapping] map, this is the last room on the second floor.

The room was about the size of a school classroom. There is a small pedestal in the center, on which a jet-black crystal ball is placed.

The floor was engraved with an hourglass emblem, emitting a mysterious purple light.

The air was heavy and eerie.

“Master-san. It’s a bit difficult here.”

Surara muttered with a frown.

“This whole room is under a high-level curse. I don’t know how effective the spells are, but they are probably quite dangerous. If you pour magic into the crystal ball in the center of the room, the curse will temporarily stop, but one of you will have to be sacrificed…”

“It’s a terrible trap. …Wait a minute.”

I suddenly have a flash of an idea.

I thought [Transmigrator] had a spell-blocking effect and could walk around normally.

Just as I thought that, the [Full Assist] activated, and a voice echoed in my mind.

The analysis is complete.

The spell named “Purple Poison Spell” can be blocked by [Transmigrator].

Apparently, I was right.

If that’s the case, then I know what I have to do next.

“You guys wait here. I’ll go.”

“Kou, will you be all right?”

Iris asked worriedly.

“No problem. The curse won’t work on me.”

“By the way, Kou-san repelled the curse of the Black Death a few minutes ago too.”

“Master-san, come back as soon as you think it’s dangerous.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”

I said this and stepped into the room where the curse is placed.

Silver sparks sparked around my body.

The spell must have been blocked by the [Transmigrator].

I felt as if I were a sparkler.

I walked up to the pedestal and touched the crystal ball.

“Haaaaaaaaah!”

I let the magic flow through me with all my might and energy.

As the crystal ball shattered, and the emblem on the floor lost its luster. The air in the room also felt a little lighter.

“Is this okay?”

“Ma-Master-san, that’s amazing…”

Surara rolled his eyes in amazement.

“It seems Master-san poured so much magic power into it that it completely destroyed the curse.”

“Your power is extraordinary as always…”

“How much magic power do you have, Kou-san…?”

My MP is over 50,000, which is probably equivalent to the magic power of 500 magicians.

Anyway, this cleared the second floor.

Let’s move on to the third floor.

When I checked [Auto Mapping], I found that the third floor consists of multiple rooms and corridors connecting the rooms.

As a gamer, I felt that the structure was very dungeon-like.

The end of the staircase was a square stone room, with passageways to the left and front connecting to the next room.

“Surara, is there a trap here, too?”

“Hmm…”

Surara sounded troubled.

“There doesn’t seem to be any traps, but I have a bad feeling about this…”

“I’ll go first. Everyone stays in the back.”

“Be careful, Kou.”

“If push comes to shove, I’ll just run away with the《God Speed Blessing EX》.”

I answer Iris’s words lightly and step into the room.

Nothing seems out of the ordinary.

“…Hmm?”

I stop in the middle of the room when I think I hear footsteps in the distance.

I listen carefully.

It’s definitely footsteps.

Not one, but several.

They are approaching me.

“Kou-san, from your left!”

“I know!”

In response to Lily’s voice, I held up my left hand.

On my middle finger, the ring of the Flame Emperor Dragon glows red.

Immediately after, a group of skeleton soldiers jumped out from the passageway on the left.

There were three of them in total. They hold swords in their right hands and shields in their left, and their entire bodies exude an aura of black misery.

“””Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”””

The skeleton soldiers let out a horrified scream and attacked me. But before they could, I had activated my magic.

“Fire Arrow!”

Three fire arrows are shot simultaneously from my left hand. They pierced the skeletal soldiers and immediately turned them to ashes.

──Did I do it?

The next moment, however, the blacklight seemed to burst, and the skeleton soldiers regenerated back to their original forms. Then, they quickly picked up their swords and shields again and slashed at me with fluid movements.

“Oops!”

I activated《God Speed Blessing EX》for a moment and quickly jumped backward, then activated [Appraisal].

Skeleton Soldier: A monster summoned by the “Ritual of the Immortal Soldier,” one of the rituals of the Calamity cult. It repeatedly regenerates itself over and over again until its dark power is exhausted. The number of times it can regenerate is approximately one million.

From the description, it is likely that 4,000 years ago, the believers of the Calamity cult performed the “Ritual of the Immortal Soldier” at this place and summoned the Skeleton Soldier.

It is a very troublesome legacy. Being able to resurrect a million times, they are practically immortal, aren’t they?

I have a time limit, and I don’t have the luxury of taking them on properly.

What should I do?

Just as I was thinking, Lily came right next to me and held up her tin cane.

“Light, be the thunderbolt that clears away evil… Holy Lightning.”

Countless bolts of lightning shoot out from Lily’s tin cane, engulfing the three skeleton soldiers.

“””Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”””

A white flash popped.

The body of the skeleton soldier disintegrates in a flash of blinding brilliance, silently melting away. The sword and shield made of orichalcum fell to the ground with a clang as they lost their owner.

There is no sign of resurrection…

Apparently, the blow just struck them down.

Lily explained.

“Holy Lightning, the highest level purification magic of light. It can completely annihilate monsters with regenerative abilities… ignoring the number of times they regenerate the so-called undead.”

Light magic works well on the undead. This is a familiar setup in fantasy games and anime, but it seems to work in this world as well.

To be honest, it helped me a lot because it is hard to defeat skeleton soldiers a million times.

“Thank you, Lily.”

“No, I’m just glad you’re okay, Kou-san.”

“Lily, you’re amazing!”

“I think we should stick together from here on out.”

“Iris and I will be in the vanguard to buy time, and Lily will use her magic to finish them off. Is that okay?”

“No problem.”

“I-I’ll do my best…”

“Master-san, what about me?”

“Surara is also in the rear guard. Look around the entire battlefield and let me know as soon as you notice anything.”

“Yes! I’ll watch you closely with these glasses!”

“Yes, I’m counting on you.”

I pat Surara on the head and then collect the orichalcum swords and shields left behind by the skeleton soldiers in my [Item Box].

You never know what will come in handy in this world.

Well, then, let’s get going.

…Just as I thought that, I heard the inorganic voice of [Full Assist].

Data analysis of the undead name “Skeleton Soldier” has been completed.

The forced purification process using Yggdrasil branches is now feasible.

It seems that [Full Assist] was analyzing the battle just now.

Forced purification process, huh?

It sounds like a strong word, doesn’t it?

The method of execution is very simple: just bring the Yggdrasil branch into contact with the skeleton soldier’s body. That’s all you have to do to trigger the purification process.

Next time I encounter a skeleton soldier, I will try it.

I take out the Yggdrasil branch from the [Item Box] and hold it in my right hand.

Seeing this, Iris said.

“Hey, Kou. Isn’t that the branch you used to suppress the curse of the Black Death?”

“Yeah. Apparently, it can also purify the skeleton monster… skeleton soldier.”

“It can do that? That’s an amazing branch…”

Iris sighs in admiration.

I have to admit, I, too, am amazed at the Yggdrasil branch. I didn’t expect it to be so useful, even though it is still in the raw material stage.

My expectations for what kind of items I can make out of it with [Creation] are only getting bigger.

Well then, let’s move on.

According to the [Auto Mapping] map, the room on the left was a dead end.

We took the front passage and stepped into the next room. It was a square stone room with narrow passageways on each side.

Skeleton soldiers popped out of the left and right corridors simultaneously, one by one.

A chance to test the Yggdrasil branch.

Iris and I look at each other for a moment.

“You take the right side.”

“I understand.”

No further words were needed. I took the Yggdrasil branch and started to run.

My target was the skeleton soldier on the left.

“Gaaaaahhhh!”

The skeleton soldier let out a cry and swung down its orichalcum sword. The slash was quite sharp, and a direct hit would have cut me in half from the skull.

But it was too late.

I avoided the slash just in time and pushed the Yggdrasil branch against the skeleton soldier’s sternum.

The forced purification process is executed.

A flash of green popped.

Pop! The skeleton soldier was gone before it could make its final scream.

No resurrection occurred. It was a scene that could only be described as a forced purification.

Iris, holding the Dragon God’s shield in her left hand and a large red spear in her right hand, crossed over to the other skeleton soldier with light steps.

She moved with fluidity, her pony-tailed red hair fluttering as she moved.

Her figure was dignified and very beautiful.

I was tempted to admire her but now was not the time.

“Iris!

“Yes, please do the rest!”

Just by calling her name, Iris seemed to have guessed everything. Breathtaking coordination is probably what I would call it.

Iris pushed the skeleton soldier away with a thud using her left-hand shield and then back-stepped away.

I run past her and quickly approach the skeleton soldier.

“Got it!”

“Goooooo!”

When the skeleton soldier regained its stance, I had already pressed the Yggdrasil branch against its ribs.

A flash of green popped, and the skeleton soldier disappeared.

No enemy reinforcements appear…

For the moment, we can assume that the place is safe.

“Thanks, Kou.”

“Nice moves there, too.”

Iris and I raised our left hands to each other and gave each other a vigorous high-five.

“Master-san and Iris-oneesan, you’re breathing perfectly together!”

Surara shouted happily.

Behind him, Lily looked surprised.

“Kou-san, that branch is so powerful…!”

“I was surprised too. I didn’t expect it to be over in an instant.”

“I’ll try my best to chant faster, too.”

Lily seemed to be competing with the branches, her eyes shining with motivation.

“Lily-oneechan! An ancient magician told me that fast speech is the best way to speed up your chanting!”

“Fast-speech, you say?”

“Yes!”

Surara nodded, opened his mouth wide, and said,

“Red water strider is delicious!” [T/n: He said amenbo akaina oishi.]

“Red water strider is delicious…?”

“Are you eating it?”

Iris couldn’t help but put in a tsukkomi.

Perhaps the correct phrase is “amenbo akaina aiueo,” which is a vocal exercise, not a rapid speech exercise. [T/n: Click HERE for more info.]

After that, we continued to follow the shortest route to the downstairs, looking at the [Auto Mapping] map with my eyes to the side.

Each time we stepped into a new room, a number of skeleton soldiers attacked us, but we were able to get through them smoothly, thanks in part to the forced purification process of the branches.

Eventually, we reached the room before the last room.

Skeleton soldiers attacked… or no.

We had killed about 30 or more of them, and they must have been wiped out by now.

“Ara…?”

Iris suddenly shouted as if she had noticed something.

“Hey, Kou. There wasn’t a single trap on this floor, was there?”

“Certainly, yes.”

“Could a skeleton soldier be a replacement for a trap…?”

Lily tilted her head.

“But I have a feeling that if they are going to intercept an intruder, it would be better to place the skeleton soldier and the trap together in the same room.”

“In that case, though, the skeleton soldier is likely to get caught in the trap.”

Based on the battle so far, I think the skeleton soldier is not that clever a monster. Therefore, it seems highly likely that they will inadvertently self-destruct in a trap.

“Anyway, the next room is the last one. Let’s be on our guard.”

We step into a narrow passageway. We went straight ahead, but then we came to a turn to the right.

It’s a little scary not being able to see what’s ahead.

I have a bad feeling about this.

I looked back at Iris, who seemed to be feeling the same thing I was, and said

“It kind of makes my skin tingle. …How about you, Lily?”

“I feel a lot of evil.”

“Master-san. Maybe there is a lot of undead waiting.”

“That’s a possibility.”

I nodded to Surara’s words.

After breaking through the third floor, we’re on the fourth floor, where Elder Lich is located.

It’s kind of… a standard thing with a large number of supporting characters waiting in front of the boss character.

I quietly stick my head out of the corner and look over there.

The distance to the last room is about ten meters. And inside the room, skeleton soldiers were gathering in droves.

There were probably more of them than we had defeated so far.

After thinking for a while, I said to the others,

“I’m going to surprise them from the front. At the count of five, I want you all to come with me.”

“Kou-san, isn’t that called a frontal attack, not a surprise…?”

Lily makes a calm comment. Beside her, Iris nodded in agreement.

“So you’re going to use the《God Speed Blessing EX》, right?”

“How did you figure that out?”

“We’ve known each other for a long time. If you attack at super-speed, that’s certainly a surprise attack.”

“That’s what I mean.”

“Be careful, Master-san.”

“Thank you, Surara. Well, I’m off.”

I told him that and ran out of the turn.

As soon as I ran into the last room, I immediately activated《God Speed Blessing EX》.

My concentration explodes, and my thoughts accelerate. In a world that seemed to stand still, only my body moved normally.

I look around at my surroundings. More than a hundred skeleton soldiers were waiting in ambush in the room.

With this number… I can do it.

I set up the Yggdrasil branch and turned it into a gale.

“Haaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!”

I swung the branch, and swung, and swung, and kept on swinging.

Then, I stopped just before the stairs and deactivated《Godspeed Blessing EX》.

The next moment, the time that had stopped began to flow.

Popopopopopopopopop!

Over a hundred flowers of light bloomed at once. The scene was fantastic and beautiful.

“…Phew.”

Is this a total annihilation?

No, there were only three of them left in the corner of the room.

“””Shaaaaaaaaaa!”””

Skeleton soldiers rush toward me with their orichalcum swords at the ready.

I didn’t move on purpose.

There was no need to move.

“──Holy Lightning!”

Lily, who came later, brandished her tin cane. A bolt of lightning shot out from the tip of the tin cane, obliterating the three skeleton soldiers.

“Lily, nice follow-up.”

“Thank you very much. …I did my best for a bit.”

Lily rushed toward me and bowed her head.

Iris and Surara also came up behind her.

“This must be the end of the third floor.”

“Master-san! We’re almost there! Let’s do our best!”

“Yeah, you’re right. Let’s have a strategy meeting while we wait for our magic to recover.”