“It’s a shame, but we have to part ways with you for a bit, Investigator Karen.”
“Since we entered separately, we should exit differently too, to avoid raising suspicion.”
“I’m the one who suggested hiding, so if anything happens, just let me know right away.”
“There won’t be anything that could trouble Jonah.”
“That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t suffer on your own. I might not have much, but I recently found a slope to rely on.”
Now, we had to slowly head up to the surface, reluctantly climbing down from Ellie’s back with tears in our eyes. Ellie, who had been smoking a Mana Herb cigarette and sighing endlessly next to me, tilted her head and asked.
“Are you really talking about me? Even if my arm was fine, taking on the entire temple is crazy…”
“Huh? No, I mean Ellie is Ellie, but I was talking about someone else.”
Saying that, I pointed subtly upward. It goes without saying, but even looking up at the sky from the first floor shows nothing but thick branches and the sky peeking through the gaps.
However, when you consider my past actions, the meaning becomes clear.
“Seriously, you, Jonah, are a saint? I can’t believe it.”
“Of course, I’m not actually a saint.”
“Are you really not?”
“Hmm. If the standard for a saint is a recognized representative of the goddess by the temple, then I’m really not. However, it’s true that the goddess is interested in and watching over me.”
“…Isn’t that being a saint?”
Ellie tilted her head. Karen, who had been listening to this conversation, crossed herself and spoke solemnly.
“That’s the standard of saints from before the Demigod War, something you’d read in fairy tales. In the current age, only the Goddess of Love remains, and she’s concentrating on the labyrinth’s adjustments. Thus, gods can’t roam the earth like in the mythological era anymore.”
“Oh….”
“And Jonah is currently exhibiting a small sanctuary even without divine power.”
“Oh…?”
That was possible thanks to the fully developed Goddess Statue. It wasn’t because I had any special abilities. I intentionally didn’t take it out for fear of being misunderstood as a suspicious toy, only to secretly spread the sanctuary and put it away.
Karen, who firmly believed that the goddess opened the sanctuary because I was struggling, continued with a fervent gaze.
“Even though this labyrinth is near the goddess, a sanctuary usually requires years of preparation and enormous effort to unfold. Even though it’s on a small scale, it can’t be taken lightly.”
“Um, well… that’s true…”
“I’m not trying to deny your thoughts, Jonah. It might be burdensome, or maybe you actually think so, or perhaps there’s a reason for you to say it’s not. However, I just want to let you know that the affection you’re receiving isn’t normal. And you certainly deserve that affection, Jonah.”
“…….”
Karen, saying that, let out a faint smile with a tired expression.
“I’ve said all I need to say, so I’ll be going ahead. As for the person who has become a hostage…”
“Oh, I’ll have a good talk with Lemon and Apple.”
“Then I’ll trust you, Jonah, and go ahead. I will testify according to what we’ve agreed, so don’t worry.”
“Hey, I’m not untrusting about that. You did a great job today, and if we meet again, that’s great… No, wait! That sounds like I’m hoping for trouble. If you’re ever bored, come visit the Fairy and Silver Coin!”
“Thank you. Then, I’ll take my leave.”
With a slight bow, Karen touched the stone tablet and ascended to the surface.
When entering the labyrinth, Karen had to wait and walk around, so this time we were the ones planning to exit later.
We would have to chat for about 30 minutes or so….
“Ellie. Lydia. Once we get to the surface, I want to stop by somewhere before heading home. Is that okay?”
“Is that alright? Even if your body is recovered, your mind must be tired.”
“Jonah, are you planning to stop by Eden?”
“That’s right.”
Having previously saved Lemon and Apple and gone to Eden together, Lydia understood my intent immediately.
As Ellie, who had been tilting her head, seemed to remember something, her ears and tail perked up.
“Oh! Eden is that place that sold cheap but oddly effective magical devices, right? It’s still not out of business? I got really scared when I went there a few times while just about to reach the second floor.”
“You’re too much! Our boss could go out of business any moment, and you’re just taking it lightly?!”
“Still, last time they made a new product—a portable safe zone kit that can be set up anytime, anywhere!”
“Oh, now I’m curious. The safe zone kit was just recently started by the Mage Tower in collaboration with the Workshop Union. It must have been challenging to make it usable at a decent price.”
“Exactly! But our boss managed it. It’s less than half the price! Portability, stealth, and even the durability doesn’t fall too short!”
“And when you get inside, you end up with unexplained rashes all over your body, and the mana consumption to maintain it is astronomical—other than those minor drawbacks, it’s perfect!”
“…That’s trash.”
“Is that so?”
“I said this wasn’t right, but the stubborn boss went ahead.”
Although I retorted out of anger, Lemon and Apple quickly changed their approach to fit Ellie’s indifferent response.
It’s not that they were scared to see Ellie in a fight; it’s just that it truly was trash…
Being in the labyrinth means you have to be cautious about even breathing.
It’s fine if it’s in the upper levels, where the map has already been made, but as soon as you go to the mid-levels, the map is incomplete and you often have to face things directly.
You might inadvertently get poisoned by something, or monsters could rush at you by hearing your breath, or you might find yourself in a bizarre space where you can’t breathe in at all when you try.
A place where anything could happen, so you always have to be on alert in the labyrinth.
The only place you can relax is the small sanctuary formed around the stone tablet.
But what if that sanctuary is too far away? Or you might just unlucky and not find it for a long time?
In that case, you would have no choice but to resort to camping, which is even more dangerous.
Thus, the portable safe zone was devised.
To sum it up, artisans design a blueprint for an assembly house, and mages cast spells on the materials to program them to be assembled in a specific shape, then distort the size with space magic so it can be carried small—that’s the portable safe zone.
In an instant, a small but sturdy house is erected on empty land, surrounded by all sorts of concealment magic so it can’t be seen—this is the high-level, comprehensive magical device that is starting to emerge one by one these days.
They promote it so hard that every time they visit the Material Selling Guild, they demonstrate it directly or forcibly hand you a flyer, so there’s no way to forget it.
It’s indeed impressive that the boss directly made something like this by himself. If I were to compare it to Earth, it’s like the local hardware store owner tearing apart the latest electric car and then making something similar.
However, I can’t just admire it purely… the side effects are too severe.
In a labyrinth where breathing becomes a struggle, to get rashes and not rest properly in a safe zone you set up is absurd, not to mention that the mana consumption would retire your party’s mage or exhaust the mined mana stones completely?
That’s just trash. No matter how much I cherish Eve, there’s no justification for that.
With a deep sigh, I patted Lemon and Apple’s shoulders.
“You guys did a great job. But there’s also something I want to share with the two of you… and above all, there’s that debt I owe to Eve from last time.”
“Ah.”
“The appraisal dagger.”
I had promised to use the World Tree’s power once for Eve instead of the production cost.
I never thought a power that would help her grow would come out, but… still, I can make plants grow to some extent now, right?
I should reveal a bit of what the ability is and tell them to call me if they need anything.
As I nodded in my mind, Lydia, who had been fidgeting with her toes, looked up.
“Jonah. If you’re feeling uneasy going alone, I’ll go with you.”
“It’s fine. I need to go alone for this…”
Saying that, when I shrugged my shoulders, Ellie and Lydia looked uncomfortably worried for some reason.
It didn’t seem like they were simply worried about what I had just fought for my life against, but something different…
“Gasp! Ellie, Lydia! Don’t worry! I’m just going to talk business, not to fool around!”
“W-Who said anything?!”
“Well, I don’t worry about that. But if it’s about business, shouldn’t I or Ellie-senpai go with you even more?”
Having yelled out as if she’d been stepped on, Ellie denied it vigorously. Then, perhaps disturbed by Ellie’s loud voice, Lydia covered her ears and continued speaking.
Chuckling at their reactions, I replied.
“It’s really nothing to worry about. And I’ll be back early, so Ellie, you get ready to grant me that wish of mine.”
“Ah.”
“…Were you serious about that?”
“I’m always serious.”
I’ve even got my wish planned out.
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