A profound silence, permeating with abyssal demonic power, filled the space.
It was a sacred place, a colossal temple with a white theme. It was filled with pure magic power, silently intimidating anyone who entered.
In the center of this temple stood two humans.
One was a girl in the heart of the temple, bathed in light, offering her silent prayer. Though small, her face, hidden by softly waving silver hair, was beautiful and alluring. Her physique suggested a mature woman, yet a trace of youth remained on her face.
With clasped hands, her posture of unwavering devotion was that of a devout believer.
The other was a man in his mid-fifties, watching her prayer from the depths of the temple. His body was unnaturally thin, and his eyes behind his spectacles were stern.
He quietly descended from before the altar and stood before the girl.
“—The time has come.”
The man spoke to the girl in a stern voice, mirroring his gaze. Hearing his softly resonating words, the girl slowly stood up.
“Everything is prepared. We have poured everything we possess into you. The rest is up to you.”
“Yes.”
The girl accepted his words directly, her beauty unmarred.
“Once it begins, we will be unable to do anything further for you. You will be alone.”
“Yes.”
“You must face a harsh destiny. Many enemies will attack you. You will have few allies.”
“Yes.”
“—Forgive me.”
That last word was a hushed, involuntary whisper. Instantly, the man’s stern expression crumbled. He covered his face with his hands, a pained look as if he could bear it no longer.
“Forgive me… Forgive me. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry! We…!!”
A scream-like voice escaped him. The words of repentance, wrenched out as if he were clawing at his scalp, suddenly cut off. The girl facing him gently embraced him, as if to envelop his body.
“It’s alright. Please, leave it to me.”
Her voice was incredibly gentle, a melody that resonated in his chest. The tormented man, with those words alone, found a sliver of peace. He collapsed to the ground as if his strength had left him.
“With my life, I will save you all.”
The girl gently caressed the man’s forehead, then smiled and turned around. Before her, in the center of the serene temple, stood a grand, colossal, shining door.
“I’m going in.”
With those words, the girl vanished into the depths of the door.
***
“I wish someone would just suddenly appear and coolly save my sister and me…”
Ul voiced a miracle he didn’t truly believe would happen, a wishful thought that sounded like a fantasy. A bitter smile escaped him at its sheer lack of realism.
Who on earth would come to save them?
His family consisted only of his irmã, Akane. He had no other kin.
Before entering here, he had prayed endlessly to the “Spirits,” but whether they would help him was, frankly, questionable. After all, he was Nameless. Nameless due to his weak connection with the Spirits. Nameless because the city had no need for him.
In other words, as always, he had no choice but to handle it himself.
“I’m starving…”
Not being given proper meals was, to be honest, not much different from usual, so this hunger was also par for the course. However, this solo exploration after long hours of work, monster subjugation, and Magic Stone excavation was tough.
His usual work was primarily to act as “bait,” luring monsters towards the subjugation teams. The intensity of this fatigue was simply different.
Thinking about the reason for his fatigue only made him more tired, so Ul shook his head. For now, he needed to concentrate on what was in front of him.
Ul was currently on the second layer of the problematic small-scale labyrinth.
It was a standard [Underground Labyrinth Type], descending like stairs. The labyrinth’s shape was fixed, with no fluctuations. The path to the deepest part of the final layer, the third underground level, had already been explored, and Ul possessed a map of the route, so he wouldn’t get lost.
The problem was that as he descended, the number of monsters clearly increased.
Previously, they were Gremlins, which were just within the capabilities of Ul’s current meager equipment. But now, he was seeing the occasional monster that was beyond his ability to handle. Each time, Ul would deviate from the path, conceal his presence, and desperately push forward, crawling along the ground.
If he continued like this, could he defeat the Master?
It would be difficult. That was Ul’s approximate prediction. His weapon was a single, heavily damaged long spear (which had broken once and been repaired with scraps of his clothes). Honestly, it was far too unreliable.
In this small-scale labyrinth, the monsters were only the lowest rank; at most, there were only Gremlins of the “Thirteenth Rank.” However, the Master might be different. Ul had never seen a Master before, so he couldn’t say.
He regretted his lack of knowledge about labyrinths. Many who chose the “Nameless” occupation aspired to become Adventurers due to the limited career options, but Ul had avoided it (because his good-for-nothing father had dragged Ul and his sister around as an Adventurer), so he wasn’t knowledgeable about the details of labyrinths.
But regretting it now was pointless; his knowledge wouldn’t increase.
All he could do was be vigilant and brace himself.
“…Found it.”
Ul discovered the stairs leading to the third underground level and stepped onto them. Labyrinths, which suddenly appeared throughout the World, being supernatural structures created without any human intervention, often had paved passages and even stairs prepared as if to invite humans deep underground.
It was as if they were meant to lure humans into the depths.
Ul swallowed and continued down the stairs.
The stairs ended. He had reached the third layer. At the same time, this was the end of this small labyrinth.
Unlike the other layers, the third layer was not a maze with multiple branching passages. A large hall lay a short distance down the passage. The hall at the deepest part was quite dilapidated, with broken and shattered pillars. A magical light, a “Magic Glow,” pervaded the entire hall; there was no other light source. Only the remnants of torch sconces were nearby.
There were signs of human use, and not that degraded. Perhaps this labyrinth was not a “Natural Type” but an “Erosion Type” that used an existing structure, and it hadn’t been eroded for long, Ul vaguely thought.
And in its center lay the “Core” that Ul was aiming for.
“…That’s it.”
It was a crystal emitting a purplish-blue glow, obtainable from monsters, but clearly different from the ones obtained from Gremlins. It was twice as large and emanated a brilliant radiance, floating at the center of the hall.
Ul had to obtain that, known as the [True Core Magic Stone].
However, in front of treasure, there was always a guardian.
“Great Fang Boar…”
Pitch-black fur, monstrous fangs extending from its snout, and above all, its colossal body, wide both vertically and horizontally.
Even Ul, with his limited knowledge of labyrinths, knew of its existence as a monster inhabiting the city.
Among the thirteen ranks of monsters, this boar was rank twelve just above a Gremlin, and even one of them posed a significant threat. Its fighting style was simple and direct: a charge with its tremendous weight. That alone was enough, but if hit directly, a human body would “burst.”
Compared to the ones occasionally seen outside the city, this one appeared even larger. Was it a trick of his fear, or did it possess special power as a Master? Ul couldn’t tell.
He had to sneak past or defeat this creature and obtain that [True Core Magic Stone].
“…Is it impossible?”
Ul stated his thoughts frankly.
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