22 – Banquet (3)
“It’s been so long since I had a vacation~ Finally, I’ve found freedom~.”
Mariel lying on the bed, swinging her legs, had a look of pure happiness.
Even though she had to soon enter the Grand Palace following the Glesia faction, she couldn’t find a corner of nervousness.
It was because rolling to death in a maze with no bathrooms or restaurants was better than staying in the gallery for 24 hours.
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No wonder my mood was at its worst as I was called to her and personally packed her luggage.
Just when I had managed to break the unpaid slave’s chains and escape, I had to personally hand her the ticket to board the train.
I packed my frilly underwear and clothes with care and repeatedly urged her.
“You must come out within three days.”
“Hmm~ Are you worried about the caretaker? But it’s unnecessary. I am none other than a member of the Glesia faction, requested to cooperate in exploring the maze!”
Seeing her proudly showing off the first-class ticket I secretly put in her pocket through Sera, my blood boiled uncontrollably.
Since it was impossible to access the gallery inside the maze, I couldn’t handle Fadak’s tasks either.
But if I quickly settled on the 11th floor as a member of the advance team, I could block any gaps without a complete formation once I entered.
Although she seemed to want to leisurely explore the maze as much as possible.
“Caretaker, caretaker.”
“Yes, yes.”
“If, for some reason, I can’t come out of the maze… will the caretaker cry?”
It was a subtle tone, as if testing the response.
When I turned my head, Mariel was looking at me from the bed, wiggling her snowy white toes.
Surely she doesn’t know that I am the manager of the gallery?
Since I didn’t bother hiding the fact that I threw the window in the dark forest, it doesn’t matter if she finds out.
But I’ve kept Juddak’s identity a secret throughout my stay at Matap.
There was only one way for her to find out that I am Juddak in the current situation.
After hearing the truth directly from me through the mysterious fragment, “The Clock Tower of Principles,” and then returning.
“No way… Are you really okay?”
I briefly considered the possibility and immediately shook my head.
It was an assumption that went beyond the level of low probability and approached impossibility.
The principle of Mariel that I know now is “not running away.”
The reward for that is “returning to before being attacked if caught off guard.”
I didn’t just designate time-related magic as alchemy in Matap for no reason.
Even if it carries a tremendous burden and is shrouded in mystery, even for a very short regression, it comes with strict conditions and constraints.
She who hasn’t even set foot in the realm of training yet wouldn’t have established a new principle.
So, this is purely out of curiosity, or perhaps another emotion.
“I’m going to catch you.”
If you don’t show up within three days, I’ll come looking for you myself.
My sincere words made her fluttering eyelids draw a graceful curve in an instant, like a butterfly.
“Hmm, is that so? Am I that precious to you?”
It’s unclear how many points Mari got for her answer, but it seemed to be enough to not have to worry about surviving in the maze.
“I have to come back safely,” she said, grabbing her bag and heading towards the maze with a lively smile, following the Glesian school.
And three days passed.
*
—–
“Did you die or something?”
I haven’t seen you on the chat lately…
Should I start running soon?
– “You’re already gone?”
– “Why did it break so quickly?”
– “You really killed it with your overuse.”
– “Really? It’s only been three days since you last logged in?”
—–
—–
“You finally found your freedom and left.”
I believed you would make it!
– “I believed in you too, was there a sense of accomplishment in helping every dawn?”
– “Did you send it? lol”
– “Before you left, you should have revealed Jooddak’s true identity.”
– “Do you still believe that they actually met?”
—–
—–
[Am I trapped in a maze right now?]
No one has come out of the Great Labyrinth since the first day.
Could it be one of them?
– Hm, it’s been three days already, and not a single person?
– Are the recruits this year all incompetent?
– If it’s the Great Labyrinth, it’s just the first trial.
ㄴ It’s tough if you get caught in the mist by bad luck.
ㄴ Even so, there should be some who pass through, right? Many of the major schools have entered.
– If it’s true, I’ll go save them.
ㄴ Seriously, we might lose one slave, but we have to save them.
—–
“We still haven’t received any information about the exit or the mist. If it gets any later, we could be the only ones trapped.”
“Are they trying to claim the loot among themselves?”
“Damn it, those Glesian bastards betrayed us! I never trusted those cold-blooded people.”
“Should we enter now, Lord Arthur?”
In the meeting room where the mages of the Meteor School gathered, there was an intense atmosphere.
It had been quite some time since the advance team entered the labyrinth, but there was still no news of them passing through the 11th floor.
It could be that the strategy was really delayed, but if Glesia had deliberately set traps, it would be a painful loss for Meteor.
The entire faction’s climbing speed was slowing down, and entering the labyrinth without any information would only accumulate damage.
“It’s not certain yet, right? We should wait until we hear that other factions have passed.”
“They might have blocked the entrance.”
“Maybe they’re deliberately taking their time before coming out in front of the exit…”
“But even if they couldn’t pass, if there’s a real problem in the labyrinth, that’s a bigger issue.”
“Then what should we do?”
The internal situation of the labyrinth is unknown even to the administration of Matap.
Once you pass the 10th floor, it is impossible to enter unless you are a high-ranking wizard residing in the upper floors or a pure-blooded family, the pillars of Matap, who are willing to take off their shoes.
Should he trust Glaesia and wait, or should he go in?
Or should he give up climbing and wait for the next major labyrinth to open?
Arthur, faced with an unexpected variable, felt a chill run down his spine.
“What will happen to those inside if a week passes like this?”
Standing in contemplation, he heard a question and lifted his head.
It was Clarke, who had been constantly looking at his position notes from the back seat.
“If they hold their breath until the moment the labyrinth closes, they will be transferred to the 9th floor.”
“What if they die?”
“That’s the end of it.”
“….”
After hearing the answer, Clarke didn’t return to his seat but went outside.
Seeing that, Arthur paused the meeting for a moment.
As I hurriedly stepped out into the hallway, I caught sight of him, his long cloak draped over his shoulders, trying to leave the Meteor Guild.
He seemed to be walking leisurely, but no matter how fast I increased my pace to catch up, the distance between us didn’t seem to narrow.
“Hey, Clark! Where do you think you’re going?”
“I don’t think things will be resolved this way. It’s not just the Meteor Faction that made a promise to me, so I want to go and see for myself.”
Even as he spoke of entering the labyrinth alone, his attitude was calm and composed.
With his magical skills that ranked third in the Magic Academy, it wasn’t unreasonable for him to have confidence in himself.
But Arthur thought it was dangerous.
Not only would the sunlight magic be ineffective against the monsters, but the labyrinth was also designed to mentally overwhelm the wizards.
Above all, if even Clark were to be sent away, the Meteor Guild would practically be unable to pass the tenth floor.
Convincing him here and now was the top priority.
“If the window is a problem, I’ll leave it behind.”
“Don’t do that. Just wait a little, I have a plan in mind.”
“What is it?”
“We’ll borrow the power of adventurers.”
Even if they were only silver-ranked, they had superior tracking abilities compared to wizards, and they also had countermeasures in place for unexpected variables.
Of course, they would still have to climb the tower, but with the full support of the Meteor Guild, they would quickly eliminate any obstacles.
If they could complete the requests from the 3rd to the 9th floor as quickly as possible, they could reach the 10th floor before the labyrinth closed.
“Two days should be enough. It’s the method we used when there were many missing persons in the labyrinth in the past.”
“….”
“Why?”
“Sorry, then just go ahead.”
However, after hearing Arthur’s explanation, Clark hesitated for a moment and took out something hanging around his neck to show it.
Confirming the color of one of the five dangling plates, he immediately ran to the conference room.
*
If the hierarchy of wizards is divided into a total of ten, the adventurer’s rank consists of only five.
Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum. The remaining one was made only in three pieces and shared among colleagues.
Arthur, confirming that he possessed the mark of a Gold-ranked adventurer, decided without hesitation to enter the labyrinth.
As the only wizard with adventurer experience, it was the right choice to exclude those with lower ranks.
“You’ve entered.”
“I don’t see any signs of battle?”
“Because we’re still at the entrance. Let’s move forward first.”
“Hmm, the fog…!”
At the entrance of the labyrinth, where the air felt damp.
As the fog spread, the appearances of those who were together were dyed in forms similar to beasts.
The first curse that made it difficult to distinguish between humans and monsters, allies and enemies.
Fortunately, it was not a type that posed a direct hindrance to the battle.
“Arthur, are you okay?”
“Why are you suddenly taking a picture with a location note…?”
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“Huh? N-nothing! It’s nothing, so don’t worry about it!”
Although it could be something for someone else. Anyway.
We were walking, illuminating the path with magic, when we suddenly discovered something approaching us from this side.
At first glance, it was hard to tell if it was a demon or a human, but as it got closer, it started shouting.
“Please, save me!”
“What’s going on?”
“Come this way!”
The meteor sorcerers noticed him and became cautious, checking if there were any other enemies nearby.
Quietly, I raised my spear from behind.
“Ugh, ugh…!”
“Kluck?”
“What is this!?”
An unidentified enemy, who was only a few steps away, was hit by the spear and flew away.
When everyone turned around in surprise, I touched the blood and guts scattered on the ground.
The black ash and liquid imbued with magic power started to emit smoke as soon as they touched my fingertips.
“What, what is this?”
“What on earth…?”
“Don’t be surprised, listen.”
The spirit of death and venom that only those filled with hostility towards humans can emit, even from the tiniest speck of existence.
“It seems like the gate to the afterlife has opened here.”
The reason for the attack was because he didn’t have the location note, but even if he did, it wouldn’t be something that the demons in the labyrinth would produce.