Side: Meena
After clearing the fourth floor, which was entirely sea, we finally set foot on the fifth floor.
It seems the fifth floor of the Krater Labyrinth is a grasslands area.
“I don’t know how to put it, but it’s calming, yet in its own way, it’s a troublesome floor.”
“Really.”
“Is that so?”
“Compared to the sea, the monsters that appear are easier to predict and fight, aren’t they?”
Reina and Seras tilt their heads at Yamato and Mana’s opinions, but it’s understandable that they don’t grasp it, as Reina has little combat experience and Seras is in a labyrinth for the first time.
“This is the fifth floor, but considering the previous floors, I think at least G-rank monsters will appear here. Not only that, but it wouldn’t be strange for M-rank monsters to appear either.”
“Oh, is that so!”
“In grasslands, there are too many monsters that can appear, so conversely, it’s hard to know what kind of monsters live here.”
They seem to understand with Raus’s explanation, but he’s a bit lacking in his wording.
Still, I think Reina is amazing for understanding.
“That’s right. Also, since there was no land on the fourth floor, we could lower our vigilance in the sky a bit, but with grasslands, it’s not like that.”
As Prim-san says.
We were also vigilant in the sky on the fourth floor, but the only monsters that could attack from the sky were W-rank monsters.
Also, if they were to emerge, it would be from the sea, so as long as we kept a close watch on the sea surface, we could prevent surprise attacks from the sky.
Therefore, our vigilance towards the sky on the fourth floor, while not nonexistent, was not that high.
However, the fifth floor is a grasslands area, and we can see mountains and forests in the distance, so bird-type monsters likely inhabit here normally.
It’s business as usual, so to speak, but since the monster ranks have increased, we must be vigilant.
“You’re going to do some light reconnaissance, aren’t you?”
“That’s the plan. However, this floor also seems as vast as the fourth floor, so it will be more of a ‘on the way’ kind of thing.”
Yamato answers Raus’s question, and indeed, this fifth floor has the atmosphere of a considerably vast floor.
There are grasslands and forests, of course, and a small stream flows nearby, and perhaps there might be a pond or lake as well.
We can see small mountains in the distance, but they look quite small from here.
Ah, we’re leaving already.
Then I will go up to the observation deck.
Flam-san, Lydia-san, and Mako-san have also come up to the observation deck.
At the same time, Yamato is giving instructions to Viola-san at the driver’s seat.
Although it’s a grasslands area, like other labyrinths, there is a proper road, so for now, we’ll be proceeding along it.
Two hours into the fifth floor, we reached the second forest.
The road runs across the forest, so it’s a relief that we don’t have to go through the forest.
However, I was surprised to see a beast carriage parked in this forest.
“A beast carriage means someone has reached the fifth floor.”
“How did you manage to clear the third and fourth floors?”
I agree with Yamato and Prim-san.
To clear the third floor, one must go through the noble district where Amazons nest, and deal with the Amazoness Queen waiting before the Safe Area.
We came to the Krater Labyrinth yesterday, and we defeated the Amazoness Queen, so these people must have succeeded in avoiding her.
Furthermore, the fourth floor requires a ship, so if preparations are not made meticulously, breaking through is out of the question.
“You guys cleared the fourth floor? Wait, aren’t you Wing Crest?”
“Huh? Ah, aren’t you guys from Star Wind?”
They were from Star Wind.
It’s a top-tier hunter raid in Torencia, led by Shuran-Sellschtaal-san, daughter of Certina-Sellschtaal-sama who evolved into an Ancient Lamia, and her husband Kol-Sellschtaal-san, including four High Hunters who also participated in the Allied Forces.
“I see, so it was Star Wind. Then it’s not strange that you cleared not only the third floor but also the fourth floor.”
“It was mostly thanks to Wing Crest releasing information. Kol-san, Shuran-san.”
The hunter who spoke to us, Luke-san, a male High Human, called out to Kol-san and Shuran-san.
They had apparently gone into the forest, but it was almost lunchtime, so they were returning.
We were lucky with the timing.
“Oh, what’s up? Wait, aren’t you Wing Crest?”
“You’re right. It’s been a while, H.R.H. Manalease, H.R.H. Yuriana.”
“Yes, it’s been a while. You’re here too, aren’t you?”
Kol-san and Shuran-san were apparently resting in their beast carriage.
“I didn’t expect there to be a raid already descending to the fifth floor. Was it tough?”
“It was tough.”
The moment Mana-sama asked, the expressions of the Star Wind members became blank.
Ah, so that’s how it is.
“Wing Crest released information, so we were able to get solid intel and prepare meticulously, but it was still tough. Even so, we cleared up to the second floor without any particular problems.”
“The problem was the third floor, and I really didn’t expect to have to deal with the Amazoness Queen. Well, it’s been almost a month since you guys defeated her, so it’s not impossible for her to be there.”
The Star Wind members apparently rushed into the Safe Area while Kol-san and Shuran-san drew the attention of the Amazoness Queen.
We had assumed that would be possible, but it serves as valuable information for the Hunter’s Guild as Star Wind has demonstrated it firsthand.
“So, if you can exploit the Queen’s opening, you can rush into the Safe Area.”
“The Amazons don’t approach the Safe Area, so it was a relief that it takes a considerable amount of time for reinforcements to arrive. Otherwise, we would have given up on breaking through.”
Indeed, on the third floor, not only rare Virgo Amazons but also An Amazoness Princesses were normally inhabiting the area.
The sight of them all attacking at once while stationed in front of the Safe Area would be nothing short of a nightmare.
“As for the fourth floor, we didn’t encounter many monsters, and we found the floor transition circle early on, so we were lucky. However, a ship was essential, so we prepared one in a hurry.”
“Actually, after the victory celebration held in Amister, we stayed for a while. There, I found a ship propulsion device that didn’t rely on familiars and bought it out of curiosity, but I never thought it would be useful.”
“Ah, the hydro-engine, right? It’s certainly convenient. You don’t need to prepare aquatic familiars.”
“It’s better to have one just in case.”
That’s right.
The hydro-engine developed by Yamato is now said to have spread throughout Amister and is actually in use.
They say it has also started to be shared with other countries, but Torencia doesn’t have any large lakes, and the sea has only just begun to thaw, so it hasn’t spread as much as in other countries.
Therefore, Kol-san also said he found it at the headquarters of the Crafter’s Guild by chance and bought it almost as a hobby.
“At the time, I thought he’d bought something useless again. Buying useless things is Kol-s bad habit, but it happens so rarely that I can’t really scold him.”
In a sense, it might be Kol-san’s hobby.
Yamato also collects weapons as a hobby, but he has many weapons he doesn’t use himself, and he’s running out of space in his room, so they’re even discussing renovating part of the second or third floor into an exhibition room.
“On the fourth floor, we were lucky to find the floor transition circle in the first Safe Area. We hunted several Bigfang Whales and Sea Vipers, but we cleared it faster than expected.”
I see.
It must be quite difficult to find a Safe Area isolated in the vast ocean.
However, since Kol-san is a Hydragonewt, he can use Supplication Magic Flying.
So, by occasionally scouting the surroundings from the sky, he searched for the Safe Area.
“I see. So, why are you eating lunch here? Is it possible that there isn’t a Safe Area ahead?”
“No, there’s one about 30 minutes ahead. But this forest is inhabited by Silkest Crawlers.”
“There are Silkest Crawlers!?”
Mako-san, Flam-san, and Fiana-san pounced on Kol-san’s statement here.
But if Silkest Crawlers are inhabiting the area, it feels unavoidable.
“Ah, ah. There seem to be a considerable number of them, and the demand is high, so we’ve decided to hunt them today.”
“Yamato-kun!”
“Yamato-san!”
Mako-san and Flam-san are pressing Yamato.
Yamato seems to be overwhelmed by the unexpected situation.
“F-fine, fine! We’ll hunt Silkest Crawlers too!”
“Alright!”
“Thank you very much!”
Mako-san nods with satisfaction, and Flam-san and Fiana-san hold hands and rejoice.
But there’s a problem.
“I understand how you feel, but Silkest Crawlers are G-U rank, so they’re a bit difficult for us to use.”
“Ah, if I recall correctly, it was concluded that even G-rank monsters cannot withstand the magic power of Ancient Class, wasn’t it?”
“That’s right. So, even for everyday wear, it’s best to use monster materials of P-rank or higher, otherwise, you have to replace them constantly, which is very troublesome.”
During the Solemnne march, we conducted experiments to verify what rank of monster material could withstand the magic power of Ancient Class.
It has been found that S-rank monsters cannot withstand it, while M-rank monsters can be used without problems. Only G-rank and P-rank monsters were the subjects of the experiment.
However, the results showed that G-rank materials, while not as bad as S-rank, caused fluctuations in magical power. P-rank materials didn’t flow as much magical power as M-rank, but they didn’t cause fluctuations in magical power.
Therefore, it was concluded that Ancient Class is suitable for at least P-rank materials, and if possible, M-rank or higher materials.
As Mana-sama mentioned, Silkest Crawlers are G-U rank monsters. Therefore, even for everyday wear, we Ancient Classes have to use them while being conscious of magical fatigue and degradation, so we can’t really bother with designs.
It would be nice if there were P-R rank Grand Silk Crawlers.
“Then, wouldn’t the forest beyond the Safe Area ahead be good? There were quite a few Grand Silk Crawlers there.”
“Really!?”
“Yeah. It was too much for us, so we hunted about five and then retreated.”
The reason Star Wind hunted the Grand Silk Crawlers with a bit of effort was to tailor and present clothes to Shuran-san’s mother, Kol-san’s Master, Certina-sama.
Certina-sama is also an Ancient Lamia, so she must be having trouble with everyday wear.
Although the results of the magic durability experiment for materials came out recently, they could have predicted that G-rank materials were unsuitable during the march, so Kol-san and the others were somewhat aware of this.
That’s why they probably hunted Grand Silk Crawlers.
The silk produced by Silkest Crawlers and Grand Silk Crawlers becomes fabric for the highest quality clothing.
Even the thread from S-N rank monsters, Crawlers, is traded at a high price, but due to the rank issue and the fact that they only inhabit forests, threads from higher-ranked or rare species are not readily available.
Therefore, crafters will gladly buy them, even at a high price.
Helios Orb’s fabrics include many made of cotton and hemp, but even more common are fabrics woven from the silk spun by Caterpillars.
Caterpillars are T-rank monsters, and although they are small monsters about 20 cm in size, their silk is quite strong. Therefore, many seamstresses have familiars or Summon Contracts with them.
Moreover, it seems that it’s easy to evolve into the rare C-R rank monster Wool Caterpillar, and some have even evolved it into the B-I rank monster Angora Caterpillar.
Although they are lower rank than Crawlers, Angora Caterpillars are An and are rarely seen, and fabrics woven from Angora Caterpillar silk are often traded at higher prices than fabrics woven from Silkest Crawler silk.
Fabrics woven from Crawler silk are considered high-class even for normal species, but for higher-ranked or rare species, they are sometimes traded for Divine Gold Coins.
About 50 years ago, an M-I rank monster, Royal Crawler, was defeated. The fabric woven from the Royal Crawler’s silk was presented to the Amister Royal Family, and the hunters who succeeded in defeating it were awarded 5 million El in addition to their rewards.
I don’t expect there to be Royal Crawlers, but I would like to secure some Grand Silk Crawlers if possible.
The main use is for our everyday wear, so we need to hunt a considerable number of them.
Materials that can withstand the magic of Ancient Class also include fabrics made from the Fusang Tree, which grows in the Gagun Great Forest, so it might be a good idea to visit the Gagun Great Forest sometime.
