Entrance to the Labyrinth. I placed one hand on the massive stone slab.
“Shall we get going?”
“Sure.”
Holding Lydia’s hand, I wished to enter the Labyrinth.
Whooo-
As soon as that thought crossed my mind, a deep part of my body began to resonate, and I was soon engulfed in a sensation of being sucked into somewhere.
Is this how it feels to pass through a long tunnel in the blink of an eye?
For a moment, I trembled with an indescribable kind of stimulation that couldn’t be felt in the normal way. Lydia’s voice tickled my ears.
“Jonah. We’ve arrived, so open your eyes.”
“Yep.”
Had I unknowingly closed my eyes? As I slowly opened them, a landscape unfolded that was completely different from Pangrave Square, where we had just been.
A circular grassland spread around Lydia and me. But it was soon blocked by a dense tree sea.
It was an obvious boundary, as if this place was the only safe spot.
In fact, this circular grassland area is called a Safe Zone. It’s a space where monsters can’t enter unless under special circumstances.
There are several Safe Zones on each floor of the Labyrinth, and when you enter through the entrance, you randomly land in one of those Safe Zones.
However, if you wish to move to the same floor while maintaining physical contact, you’ll warp to the same Safe Zone. That’s why Lydia and I just moved hand in hand.
This, too, is part of the rules of the Labyrinth, altered directly by the Goddess of Love… or so the story goes.
“Wow… I knew this in theory, but experiencing it is amazing.”
“I felt the same way at first.”
Lydia nodded with a smile, behind her stood a gray tombstone.
It looked like a 2m version of the stone slab from Pangrave Square. To leave the Labyrinth, you would have to place your hand on that slab again.
Safe Zones were not merely created for a quick breather; they were established for safely commuting between the Labyrinth and the surface.
I let go of Lydia’s fingers, spinning around the slab.
“Let’s see… it should be around here somewhere.”
“I found it!”
Somewhere in the corner of the slab. Written in large numbers amidst the Divine Script that would normally be unreadable, was the number 23.
It meant the 23rd Safe Zone on the first floor. Originally, I had just added that for my convenience, but…
In this world, it is accepted that the Goddess writes the numerical part in a common language for the convenience of adventurers.
Since I thought it was a plausible interpretation, I decided it was such from now on.
“Tap, tap.”
As I was delivering the verdict, Lydia peeked her head around the side of the slab and spoke up.
“Jonah, did you find what zone we’re in?”
“Ah, yes! It looks like this is zone 23, Lydia!”
“23…”
She mumbled softly, reaching for the Multi-purpose Belt strapped to her waist. The belt had several pouches that looked similar, from one of which she pulled out a neatly folded bundle of paper.
Lydia presented the bundle to me. The word ‘1st Floor’ written on the top immediately caught my eye… is this it?
As if to answer my question, Lydia opened her mouth without hesitation.
“It’s the map of the 1st floor. Do you know how to read it?”
“I don’t, but if you teach me, I’ll learn quickly, right?”
I chuckled as I said this, and Lydia stared at my face before unfolding the map in her hands.
The rough oval claimed to represent the land. However, the enormous tree symbol drawn in the center, along with the marked circles and numbers scattered here and there, presented themselves clearly.
“The positions of the Safe Zones and the center won’t change. But everything else inside the Labyrinth changes in real-time.”
Lydia pointed with her delicate finger at the circle marked with the number 23.
“We’re here. Zone 23. In the left corner. Most monsters around here are goblins, so we got lucky.”
“True. The closer you get to the World Tree in the center, the stronger the monsters become, so it’s best to start with the goblins.”
“Yup. Jonah is weaker than a goblin.”
“?”
Weaker than a goblin? That sounded harsh, but thinking about it, it was true.
It’s a setting that a well-equipped goblin’s combat ability is similar to that of an unarmed adult man.
If we fought normally, I’d definitely lose. But if I strike first, things might change.
Even though I thought I could cut through every goblin, the weakest monster on the first floor, I suddenly felt deflated when confirmed like this.
“Kwi kwi…”
As I mimicked the sound of a creature weaker than a goblin, Lydia tilted her head in confusion and continued explaining.
“To avoid losing your way in the Labyrinth, you need to establish a clear route.”
“Just keep moving from one Safe Zone to the next, right?”
“…Have you studied this?”
“Well, kind of!”
Lydia’s eyes widened in surprise. I stuck out my chest and cleared my throat proudly.
Well… I already knew about the Safe Zones in the Labyrinth and the exploration methods, but still.
Shrugging my shoulders, I got close to Lydia, almost touching her sturdy armor with my cheek.
“…Huh?”
Perhaps due to the sudden closeness, Lydia seemed startled and tried to pull back, but I didn’t care and leaned in closer to reach for the map.
Suddenly, Lydia looked like someone caught doing something bad—fidgeting around. I grinned as I said to her.
“I won’t tell Ellie anything, so please stay still. It’s hard to see the map, you know.”
“Poor Ellie. With a guy like this…”
“Can you stop talking like I’m some sort of seducer? I’m just after Ellie’s body and wealth, that’s all!”
“That is precisely a seducer.”
“Hey, I’m just a pet snake at most. I wouldn’t abandon Ellie just because she’s a little poor.”
Is it because this is a gender-reversed world? Both Ellie and Lydia seem to think everyone is just after wealth. I clearly mentioned ‘body’ and wealth, though.
Ellie was originally a character I painstakingly created. Now she’s a person, but still, I feel a lot of attachment to her.
How could someone like Ellie ignore me just because I’m a little short on cash? That’s impossible for me.
Ignoring Lydia’s subtle glances, I studied the map intently, tracing my finger.
Starting from zone 23, I charted a winding line through zones 17, 6, and 92, all the way to zone 40 and asked,
“What do you think? I designed this route aiming for the wandering goblins.”
The first floor has goblins, of course, but also “Hollow Goblins”, Iron Wolves, Giant Mantises, Hobgoblins, and various other monsters.
But all I could handle were goblins… specifically, the weakest ones known as wandering goblins.
Those critters were weak enough to get discarded from their horde and mostly moved alone.
Lydia scanned the path my finger traced on the map for a moment. After a while, she nodded.
“Well done. You’ve covered half of map reading.”
“What’s the other half?”
“Not getting lost. Ambushing before getting ambushed. Avoiding traps. Being wary of other adventurers.”
Is that really just the art of surviving?
While I blinked in confusion, Lydia took out a palm-sized compass from her belt and showed it to me.
“This is a compass usable in the Labyrinth.”
“It points toward the center layer instead of north?”
“Yep. On the 1st floor, it will always lead towards the World Tree.”
Each layer of the Labyrinth contains the remains of a god. Thinking about the Labyrinth’s creation, this makes perfect sense.
And this compass has the property of leading one towards those remains. Thanks to that, I won’t get lost on my way to the next Safe Zone.
…Of course, this strategy is only feasible once the map creation is complete on the upper layers.
Even in the mid-layer, most areas don’t have complete maps, and when you reach the deep layers, just finding a new Safe Zone earns you a substantial reward from the guild.
But do we really have to go down to the deep layers? It’s enough to live comfortably wandering around the mid-layer…
No, thinking that far ahead is probably too early. Shaking my head, I dismissed these unnecessary thoughts and checked my gear.
I checked the armor’s laces, readied wooden arrows on the Wrist Crossbow in my left hand, and held the dagger Lydia lent me in my right.
Lydia, satisfied with my preparation, nodded while holding the compass and map.
“Since this is your first time in the Labyrinth, I’ll handle finding directions, spotting traps, and keeping an eye on other adventurers… the little things.”
“If you do all that, what will I do?”
“Kill monsters.”
Lydia continued in a serious tone.
“Monsters are living beings too. Many hesitate to wield their weapons.”
“Ah-ha?”
“…but I doubt you will hesitate.”
“Flattery will get you nowhere.”
“……”
Lydia looked me over with the gaze of someone who had seen a dangerous person before, but soon sighed and pointed to one side of the forest.
“That way. Move at your own discretion, but stop if I tell you to.”
“Got it.”
Picking up my weapon, the confidence that had dropped to the floor flooded back.
Moments ago I felt dejected being told I was weaker than a goblin, but… no matter how weak I feel, I’m not your average weakling.
I was the one who designed their habits and weaknesses. There’s no way I couldn’t take down a wandering goblin!
Grinning, I headed in the direction Lydia pointed.
“Stop right there, little Juji!”
“Keekyaaaa!”
“Hand over the seed, goblin!”
“Don’t come swinging your breasts at me!!”
“I’ll be kind since it’s my first time too, gob!”
“I don’t need a goblin maiden!!”
What the heck.
Why is this goblin in heat or something…?
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