“Don’t mess with me!”
We reached the fourth floor, and I couldn’t help but shout.
“Calm down, Yamato-kun,” Aria said.
“I understand how you feel, though,” Fiana added.
“More importantly, is this kind of floor even allowed?” Yuri questioned.
“Since it actually exists, it’s the only answer we can give,” Rika replied.
Though no one else shouted, everyone else felt the same.
And it was only natural.
“I never imagined the fourth floor would be nothing but ocean…”
Yuri’s statement should be enough to explain.
The fourth floor, ridiculously enough, was an endless sea as far as the eye could see.
The small island we were on seemed to be a Safe Area, but there was no other land in sight.
“Our Multi-functional Beast Carriage has a hull, so we can manage, but it would be tough for other Hunters,” Hilde noted.
“Even if they came this far without prior information, they’d definitely have to go out and get a ship,” Prim added.
Since this was an ocean floor with no land, they couldn’t use familiars or summoned beasts that could fly.
Therefore, they had no choice but to prepare a ship, but ordinary Hunters wouldn’t have a ship readily available, so even if they managed to clear the third floor, they couldn’t advance further.
This was just too much.
“Do they not want this labyrinth to be cleared?” Lydia asked.
“If that’s the case, I’ll smash the Labyrinth Core as they wished?” Yamato replied, seething.
Right now, I truly felt like smashing the Labyrinth Core.
“Although the difficulty is outrageously high, considering the resources one can obtain, we’d appreciate it if you could refrain from doing so…” Hilde stated, her words trailing off.
She clearly felt this was a bit much, too.
“Sss… hhh… Sorry, I’ve calmed down. So, what do we do?” Yamato said.
“What else can we do? We have to deploy the hull,” Rika replied.
“That’s right,” Yamato agreed.
I couldn’t stay angry forever, so I took a deep breath and calmed myself.
Fortunately, our Tree-made Multi-functional Beast Carriage also had a hull, which could be attached to use it as a ship.
We’d already used it once when we took Hilde to Torencia, and I’d practiced sailing it on Lake Alka, so there shouldn’t be any problems.
“The monsters here are bound to be marine species, but there are occasional reports of newly discovered species, right?” Yamato asked.
“Yes, unlike land, it’s difficult to investigate,” Aria replied.
The problem with this ocean floor wasn’t just the need for a ship; it was that the monsters inhabiting it were even more unpredictable than usual.
While the famous ones would likely be present, the issue was that unknown monsters would likely also be present.
The sea was vast, and diving to investigate was nearly impossible, so it was impossible to know what monsters lived there until encountering them.
Because of this, every few years or so, there were reports of new monster discoveries.
“Is that so?” Yamato inquired.
“Yes. Hunters are generally assigned to escort ships, so you can see some details through Questing, right?” Aria asked.
“Ah, I see. If a Hunter encounters a monster they’ve never seen or heard of, the Hunter’s Guild will compare it with their known monster database,” Yamato deduced.
“That’s right,” Aria confirmed.
Mako answered Aria’s question. Even if they couldn’t defeat them, if they could return alive, the information would be brought back.
Furthermore, if they used the Hunter Magic Questing, the monster’s species name and Monster Rank would be determined, so whether it was a new species could be determined without taking too much time.
Individual ships might not have escorts, but noble, passenger, and long-distance fishing vessels always had Hunters as escorts. Moreover, many people on ships were registered Hunters.
Fishermen in particular were Traders, so reports would quickly reach the Trader’s Guild, and sometimes they would consult with the Hunter’s Guild.
“It’s impossible to narrow down the possibilities of what inhabits here; there are too many candidates,” Lydia said.
“Yes. We suspect marine Dragoon species, Saur species, and Whale species,” Rika replied.
“Those three are likely. However, if it’s a Dragoon, they would be M-rank, so it’s debatable whether they would appear,” Hilde mused.
Indeed.
Dragons, with the P-N rank Lesser Dragoon being the lowest class of monster, would otherwise be M-U rank or higher. It was debatable whether they would inhabit the fourth floor.
Given the nature of this labyrinth, it felt like they might be present, which made it troublesome that we couldn’t rule them out as candidates.
“If we could see land, flying monsters might appear too,” Yamato suggested.
“That’s possible,” Rika agreed.
No, even without land, we still needed to be vigilant about the sky.
After all, W-rank monsters have wings and can fly, and Dragoons originally have wings, so even if they were marine species, they could fly through the air.
“Indeed, to assume they aren’t there would be underestimating the opponent too much,” Lydia conceded.
“But more problematic than the sky is what’s in the sea, wouldn’t you say?” Prim asked.
“We can’t see that, either,” Yamato replied.
We could manage the sky watch by staying in the observation deck.
But the sea below was not so easy to see.
We planned to keep watch not only from the observation deck but also from the deck, but there was no way to see beneath the ship.
The Barrier’s Tenma Stone should be able to withstand some attacks, but the monsters that appeared would be at least G-rank, so it would be a bit tough.
“Can the Exploration Tenma Stone be used underwater?” Yamato asked.
“It’s infused with Sonar Wave, Dolphin Eye, and Eagle Eye, so it can be used underwater. However, its range is only 200 meters,” Rika explained.
We had also equipped the Exploration Tenma Stone with Exploration Engraving Magic, but its effective range was only 200 meters.
While 200 meters was useful for detection, high-rank monsters could reach us in a few seconds, so it was far from perfect.
“It is indeed a bit iffy,” Lydia agreed.
“That’s why we have no choice but to constantly strengthen it with Mana,” Yamato said.
“That’s the only way, I suppose,” Rika replied.
We would fully utilize the Barrier and Exploration Tenma Stones, and I would reinforce the Beast Carriage, including the hull, with Mana Ring.
Fortunately, the Beast Carriage was made of Jade Silver and Tree-made materials, so I could use all my Mana while reinforcing it without any problems.
In fact, it was designed with that assumption.
Well, there was no point in just talking here, so we should get going.
The small island with the Safe Area was only about 100 meters in diameter.
However, there was no sandy beach around the island, and it was a sheer cliff about a meter above the sea surface.
Presumably, it was designed to be used for launching ships, which was quite infuriating.
“Alright, I’ll deploy it,” Yamato announced.
“Yes, please do,” Rika replied.
After releasing Jade, who had been pulling the Beast Carriage, I activated the Telekinesis Tenma Stone in the cabin.
At the same time, I took out the hull, which was stored in the rear deck’s storage space.
The hull was 25 meters long, so if I didn’t activate the Telekinesis Tenma Stone first, I wouldn’t be able to float it properly on the sea, and I might even get crushed by it.
After floating the hull on the sea, I moved the main body of the Beast Carriage and connected it to form the bridge of the hull.
Once the main body was safely on top of the hull, Fiana then invoked the Craft Magic Locking via the Lock Tenma Stone to secure the connection.
From the outside, it looked like a robot transformation.
“It’s done. I think it’s fine, but are there any problems?” Yamato asked.
“No, none at all,” Rika replied.
“If there’s a problem, it’s that our first proper cruising cruise is in a labyrinth, isn’t it?” Lydia mused.
Yeah, I thought so too.
“Once we calm down, we can have fun somewhere appropriate,” Yamato suggested.
“That’s right,” Rika agreed.
That was also true.
“Then, let’s set sail,” Yamato declared.
“Yes. An entire floor that’s all sea, it’s actually quite exciting,” Aria said.
“It’s a shame we’re short on time,” Mako and Prim lamented.
Less than ten minutes after setting sail, we were attacked by monsters.
What appeared was a G-U rank Monster, a Bigfang Whale, a whale with enormous fangs.
All Whale species, including the S-N rank Fang Whale, were over 30 meters long.
The Fortress Whale we defeated in the Solpre Labyrinth was 100 meters long.
The Bigfang Whale was similarly large, well over 50 meters.
And there were three of them.
“A Bigfang Whale,” Yamato noted.
“I didn’t expect them to attack from the front. I thought they’d come from underwater,” Lydia said.
I thought so too.
That’s why I had thoroughly reinforced the hull with Mana, and we were using the Exploration Tenma Stone.
If they charged at us from underwater, the hull might be intact, but there would be a high chance of capsizing.
It was good to be vigilant.
“Well, even if they’re troublesome due to their size, they’re still just G-rank, aren’t they?” Prim remarked.
As Prim said, even though they were colossal, about 50 meters in size, they were still G-rank monsters.
After all, it only took me, Mana, and Meena forming a greatsword by imbuing our swords with elemental magic and slicing them in half.
Mana’s Sterling Divider was using the elemental magic of her summoned beast, but this time, I was using only my own Mana.
“You should give that greatsword a name already. Don’t you think?” Lydia asked.
“Most people who evolve to Ancient Class do, don’t they?” Mako added.
At Mako and Lydia’s suggestion, I realized that we never actually gave it a specific magic name.
Or rather, some people might have developed it as their Unique Magic, so there was a possibility it already had a name.
“Then, for the Wing Crest’s exclusive name, how about Grand Sword?” Yamato suggested.
“No, I think unifying the name would be difficult, as Mana, Meena, and I are all using magic suitable for us,” Yamato replied.
“Ah, I see,” Mako replied.
I thought Mako’s suggestion was indeed valid.
However, since we were all using different elemental magic, having the same name didn’t feel right.
“Then how about adding the elemental magic name if it’s one element, Twin if it’s two, Tri if it’s three, and Force if it’s four?” Yamato proposed.
So, that would be Grand Fire Sword, Grand Light Sword, Grand Twin Sword, Grand Tri Sword, and Grand Force Sword.
It wasn’t bad, but it felt a little lacking in impact.
“I don’t think it’s bad, but I’d like to think about it a bit more,” Lydia said.
“Yes. If we’re going to make it a Unique Magic for Wing Crest, we already know which elemental magic to use,” Mako agreed.
Mana and Rika, who would actually use them, were enthusiastic about Mako’s idea, and Meena seemed to agree as well.
There are six people in Wing Crest who use swords: myself, Mana, Meena, Rika, Raus, and Lydia. Four of them, excluding Rika and Raus, have evolved to Ancient Class, and their suitable elemental magic is known.
Furthermore, my, Mana’s, and Rydia’s aptitudes are similar, but Meena’s is a bit different.
Therefore, even without unifying them, if someone were to use wind and lightning elemental magic, it would be better to group them, such as Grand Storm Sword.
Also, if the name Grand Sword were settled, it would be easier for everyone else to name theirs in a similar fashion.
No, I think it’s fine even if it’s not just swords; using Grand Sword for other weapons might be okay too.
In fact, Prim uses it like that.
