Side: Mako
“I see. So, whether the period until the A-rank Guardian revives is truly six months is something we’ll have to confirm again,” I said.
“There’s bound to be some variation, so we can’t make a judgment after just one confirmation, but it’ll serve as a good benchmark,” Yamato replied.
The night after Yamato and the others returned from the Solpreza Labyrinth, we gathered in the living room on the second floor of the main hall after dinner to discuss the day’s events.
“That’s true. But the Hunter’s Guild sure knows how to play their cards right. They feed information to unions with Ancient Class members and entrust them with appropriate investigation and subjugation. Well, the materials from Gold Dragoons are enticing, so the competition will likely be fierce.”
As Mana-sama said, the Hunter’s Guild doesn’t have to pay rewards if adventurers undertake investigations and subjugations voluntarily.
Moreover, Gold Dragoons are Dragoons of all elements, and there are no other monsters like them at the moment, so many unions are likely targeting them. Since they are nearly 20 meters long, a single one provides a substantial amount of hide material. However, there are over ten unions with Ancient Class members and dozens of Ritters, so it seems like a scramble for a while.
“It likely depends on the monsters from the 12th level onwards in the Krater Labyrinth. However, the 10th level is a snowfield, the 11th is a castle interior, and the 12th is underwater. The variety of monsters appearing there is a problem, isn’t it?”
“In the case of the Krater Labyrinth, it depends on how many levels it has, right?”
As Prim and Meena pointed out, it definitely depends on the number of levels in the Krater Labyrinth. If there are 13 levels or more, the nature of those levels becomes an issue, but if they exist, they are sure to be nests for A-rank monsters. In that case, since rare and anomalous species of Dragoons are A-rank, the possibility of them inhabiting those levels is high.
Oh, come to think of it, have there ever been reports of an anomalous species of Gold Dragoon?
“Come to think of it, it just occurred to me, but Gold Dragoons are rare species, aren’t they? Do they have anomalous species?”
“Anomalous species of Gold Dragoon? No, I’ve never heard of it.”
“Me neither. Mana-sama?”
“I’ve heard rumors that they do exist, but I can’t recall which labyrinth it was. I don’t think it was Amister, though.”
So they do exist. The evolution of Dragoons is more diverse and mysterious than other monsters, so I couldn’t be sure.
“They do exist. What are they called?”
“I believe they were called Elementary Dragoons. It was just a rumor, so it might be something else, but…”
Elementary Dragoon. I had assumed they would be metal-based, especially with Divine Metal, but I didn’t expect them to be of that type. However, they seem to be a barely confirmed existence, and Mana-sama only heard the rumor years ago, and the Hunter’s Guild has no records, so she looks a bit worried. If they do exist, it’s certainly in the deeper levels of a labyrinth, so just confirming their existence would take a considerable amount of time.
“There are so many labyrinths, and we have no idea where they might be.”
“We can exclude the already cleared labyrinths, but there are still quite a few uncleared ones, right?”
“Yes. I think there were close to twenty.”
“If we include newly generated labyrinths, that number might increase a bit.”
The number of uncleared labyrinths is decreasing, but there were still nearly twenty. This includes the Krater Labyrinth, Gagun Labyrinth, and Varie Labyrinth, but most of them were high-level labyrinths. Then there are unconfirmed and undiscovered labyrinths; if we include those, the total would likely be close to thirty.
“Investigating nearly twenty labyrinths just to see if an Elementary Dragoon exists isn’t just a matter of effort, is it?”
“Indeed. Dragoons inhabit most labyrinths.”
“There are labyrinths where they don’t exist, but in those cases, the Guardians are P-rank, or rarely M-rank, right?”
“Yes. If there’s an A-rank Guardian, they will definitely inhabit it, but you won’t know until you go near the deepest level.”
That’s true. Investigating a single labyrinth can take anywhere from a few days to over a month, and when you have over ten of them, with the possibility of more appearing, it’s impossible to estimate how long it would take just to investigate. We can’t dedicate ourselves solely to investigations, so it would likely take years. It’s impossible to focus only on labyrinths, and I doubt other unions would accept such a request, even if it were an assignment.
“Hey Yamato, weren’t there requests to clear not only the Krater Labyrinth but also the Gagun and Varie Labyrinths?”
“There are. However, since the Krater Labyrinth is young and many hunters are entering it, the risk of a labyrinth flood is low. And since the Gagun and Varie Labyrinths have just experienced labyrinth floods, their urgency isn’t particularly high.”
“Ah, that’s right, I forgot.”
Indeed, while requests have been made, they aren’t explicit, designated requests. They’re more like appeals. If the urgency were high, they would have already been cleared, or the Alliance would be attempting to clear them.
“And if it were urgent, Raus and the others would have been contacted, wouldn’t they?”
“Of course. Ah, speaking of which, wasn’t the labyrinth practical training supposed to start tomorrow?”
“Eh? Really?”
Yes, as Mana-sama mentioned, the labyrinth practical training for the General Academy is scheduled to start tomorrow. It’s a three-night, four-day event. Since all the royalty have also requested to participate, Associate Order’s Master Miranda will be accompanying us from the Order’s Guild. The plan is to go up to the 10th level, and with Raus-kun and the others present, even if anomalous or catastrophe species appear, they should be able to defeat them without any problems.
“All the royalty are participating? They requested it, not forced, right?”
“That’s what I heard.”
I heard the same. If they had strangely refused to participate, we would have had to arrange separate security and guards within the academy, so in a way, this is helpful. The number of students participating in this labyrinth practical training is fewer than expected, at 73. However, with 3 accompanying teachers, 12 Order members including Miranda-san, and 9 hunters who received escort requests, a total of 97 people. Therefore, two Multi-functional Beast Carriages from the Order’s Guild will be used. Considering that, the number of people is just right. However, we cannot borrow the Order’s Guild’s Multi-functional Beast Carriages indefinitely. Also, if we can travel with one vehicle rather than multiple, it would be safer for the students. Perhaps we could donate a large Multi-functional Beast Carriage. Well, let’s think about that slowly.
“Wasn’t the labyrinth practical training supposed to be in the Float Labyrinth?”
“Yes. The plan is to go up to the 10th level. With four Ancient Class members accompanying us, as long as they don’t act recklessly, there shouldn’t be any lives lost.”
“Raus and the others’ Licenses have also been published, haven’t they?”
Yes, indeed. The Float Labyrinth is a cleared labyrinth with 18 levels, and the monsters that appear are mostly low-rank, making it easy for Ancient Class members to clear it alone. That’s why we haven’t been there. However, up to the 3rd level, only I-rank monsters appear, and even on the 10th level, the number of B-rank monsters is small, making it a low-difficulty labyrinth that is popular among beginners and aspiring hunters. Therefore, even for students with little combat experience, the risk of losing their lives in the lower levels is low, as long as they don’t do anything exceptionally reckless. Of course, evolved species occasionally appear, but that’s why Orders and hired hunters are present as guards. As long as they don’t act on their own, they should be fine. There are some suspicious individuals, but Yamato-kun warned them sternly before, and they were told that if they mess up again, they’ll be expelled without question, so I’d like to believe they’ll behave themselves this time.
“The labyrinth practical training, it’s ultimately about hunting monsters in the labyrinth, right?”
“That’s the main part. There’s also camping in the Safe Area, but I believe they’ll also experience camping outside the Safe Area for one day.”
“Ah, Rebecca mentioned something like that. Night watch is mandatory both inside and outside the Safe Area, but she said that since there aren’t many significant monsters, she might doze off.”
“No, that’s a huge problem! And even if for Rebecca there aren’t any significant monsters, for the students, there are plenty of significant monsters! If you doze off during night watch, you’ll definitely get a penalty!”
Of course. Going up to the 10th level of the Float Labyrinth means at most B-rank, and rarely S-rank monsters appear. To an Ancient Class member, they are just monsters they can defeat with one hand. That’s why Rebecca is being so careless. However, for students who are Normal Class and only around level 20, even I-rank monsters can be a threat, let alone S-rank. Within the Safe Area, there’s no risk of being attacked, but if they camp outside the Safe Area, even with guards, it’s not strange for the students to have sleepless nights filled with tension. Therefore, if Rebecca, one of the strongest assets, were to actually doze off, as Yamato-kun says, it would be unforgivable not to impose a penalty. Even so, a minor penalty would be meaningless, so we’d have to consider something special.
“Rebecca understands that, so I think she’ll be fine. If she were to actually do something like that, she wouldn’t know what kind of punishment awaits her.”
“As her Master, I would never forgive her. If she were to do such a thing… now, what should I make her do?”
Yes, as her direct Master, Prim would say that.
“That’s scary. But if Rebecca hears Prim-san saying that, she definitely won’t fall asleep, right?”
“Yeah. I’d be too scared to do that too.”
Of course. I wouldn’t forgive her either. However, Rebecca understands that it’s necessary, even if she complains, so she won’t slack off on her night watch.
“Ah, speaking of which, I heard that the 15th level of the Float Labyrinth is a snowy mountain level, and that Snow Drops inhabit it.”
“Seriously?”
“Ah, that’s right.”
Huh, Snow Drops lived in the Float Labyrinth? I knew they lived in some labyrinth, but I didn’t realize one of them was the Float Labyrinth. Snow Drops are deer-like monsters that inhabit the permanently snow-covered mountains in the Mylight Mountains. They are delicate monsters that get burned easily without snow, making their materials unusable. However, their meat is incredibly delicious, far beyond what you’d expect from a B-rank monster, and it’s a winter specialty in Feel. Despite this, Snow Drop materials are rarely distributed in Float. Mana-sama explained the reason.
“However, they inhabit the deep 15th level, and the Float Labyrinth, except for the indoor levels, is quite vast. Also, the 12th level is a tunnel level where Beast Carriages cannot be used, so it takes days to reach. Furthermore, in that tunnel level, various puppets inhabit it: Iron Puppets, of course, but also Mithril Puppets, Crystal Puppets, and Adamantine Puppets.”
Yes, Amister is a producer of magic silver and crystal silver, and there’s also a mine where Adamantine Steel can be found. If the tunnel level where puppets with those bodies inhabit is shallower than the snowy mountain level where Snow Drops live, then naturally, hunters would hunt there. Moreover, since the 13th and 14th levels are also indoor levels, the inability to use Beast Carriages is likely another reason why people avoid it.
“Aren’t there Hail Dias?”
“Since the number of Snow Drops themselves is small, Hail Dias are rarely seen. As for rare species like White Tear, I don’t think there has ever been a single sighting.”
With G-R rank monsters never having been sighted, and even S-U rank being rare, if we were to go, it would truly be only for Snow Drops. In that case, it would be better to look for another labyrinth. I heard that Hail Dias and White Tears can be found somewhere in the Bulgur Labyrinth.
Well, I don’t know if we’ll go, and even if we do, I think it will be a long time from now.
