Part 1
Kaga Michio
Levels & Equipment:
Explorer Lv.11
Hero Lv.6
Warrior Lv.9
Swordsman Lv.8
Equipment:
Durandal
Leather Armor
Sandals
When I woke up the next morning, the first thing I saw after opening my eyes
was the sight of Roxanne hugging into my arm as if it was a dakimakura (TL
NOTE: Japanese hugging pillow). In order not to wake her up just yet I
slowly tried to free myself from her embrace and lay her to my side, but her
grip on me was still tight. Now this is what I can call a pleasant awakening.
But wait, wouldn't it be better to say that I didn't have a 「pleasant
awakening」, but rather that my awakening was pleasant because of what I
saw right after I woke up?
Roxanne's skin feels so good with how smooth and pleasant to the touch it is.
The feeling of being hugged by her is also wonderful. I just can't get enough
of that moist, elastic feeling around my arm, but it's not limited to just that
one spot, oh no! Every part of my body that was in contact with her was filled
with the pleasant, squishy sensation. Also, even though she was kinda
pressing down on my arm with her body, it didn't feel like she was too heavy
or that it was starting to go numb, even though we presumably spend the
entire night cuddled like that. I guess that all I can do for the current moment
is to hug her gently and stroke her back, enjoying the sensation of her short,
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fluffy fur.
The only piece of clothing that both of us are wearing are the Pumpkin Pants.
Roxanne did not have a brassiere at all. Maybe they do not exist in this world
at all, or maybe they are just too expensive for everyone to buy them? Then
again, I haven't seen a single one of them at the clothing store where we got
our cloaks yesterday. Well, if it means that I will get to enjoy the feeling of
Roxanne's boobies on my arm every single day, then I guess I have nothing
to complain about, do I?
And then suddenly, my lips have been sealed again.
Roxanne kissed me. Did my sudden movements wake her up after all? Yes,
that is what I am concerned about the most, not about the act of being kissed
in itself, because I was the one who asked her to kiss me everyday before
going to bed and after waking up. To be honest, I didn't really think she was
going to go through with such a request, but apparently she is that kind of
slave who takes her master's orders very seriously. Nevertheless, I allowed
myself to be fully engrossed in the sweet sensation of her soft lips and slimy
tongue. If this is how each and every one of my mornings is going to look
from now on, mornings might become my new favorite time of the day.
「Good morning, master.」
After sucking on my lips for quite a while, those were the words she greeted
me with.
「Thank you. And good morning to you as well, Roxanne.」
It was still somewhat dark outside so I couldn't see her beautiful face clearly,
but I tried to do my best to pay her back for that wonderful good morning
kiss. I have to do it, even if I can't see her properly!
I slowly inserted my tongue between Roxanne's half-opened lips. Slowly and
methodically I found my way around her inviting mouth until my tongue
could envelop itself around her damp tongue once more. I thought she
wouldn't be as passionate about it as she was the first time, but much to my
satisfaction she responded to my vigorous caresses with equal enthusiasm.
So, since she's doing such a thing with me, is it okay for me to think that she
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does not dislike me or those kinds of activities? Well, even if she's forcing
herself to cope with my selfish request, at the very least I do not think the
situation is so bad that she would try to escape from me, and if that's the
case, then I want to push her down, but for now kissing was all I was capable
of, since I was still tired after last night, and I also wanted to use the chance
to have some serious rest now that I was finally given it.
Come to think of it, all I did for the last five days was the same unchanging
routine of going to the Labyrinth before sunrise and making the rounds
around the slums and the brothel district so that I could search for Bandits in
order to obtain enough money to buy Roxanne, so I didn't even have a
moment to truly appreciate how comfortable the lodging here at the Veil
Pavilion is, especially in this double room. I mean seriously, last night after
we were done I slept so well like I never slept before. I am truly glad that I
decided to take this room, and I'm thankful to the Innkeeper for it, but I'll
better keep quiet about it around him. Technically what the guests are doing
in the rooms shouldn't be his business, but one can never be too cautious.
While I was kissing Roxanne, I placed my hand on her head and stroked her
hair. After enjoying their smoothness and fluffiness, I finally let her lips go.
「I would like the two of us to go explore the Labyrinth.」
「As you wish, master.」
With a great lot of regrets, I release Roxanne and decide that it is high time to
get out of bed. Do not worry, Michio. You'll be able to continue this tonight.
And tomorrow. And the day after tomorrow. Unless Roxanne decides to run
away from me of course, which I sincerely hope won't happen.
As I was putting on my leather shoes, Roxanne approached me from behind
and helped me put on my shirt. Oh wow, this feels… unexpectedly good.
Kinda makes me feel like a king, actually.
「Sorry for troubling you with this.」
「It's alright, master. Just let me do this.」
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It might be because I'm not used to such a treatment yet, but this is making
me somewhat embarrassed. Also, during the process of putting my arms
through the sleeves our arms have accidentally collided with one another,
probably because our eyes are not used to the pitch-black darkness that
surrounds us.
「Do you not handle darkness very well?」
「Well, yeah. I'm sorry to say this but I am neither a nocturnal creature nor
can I see in the dark.」
「It's alright. Just don't overdo it and make sure not to push yourself too
hard.」
「Oh, you don't have to tell me that twice, believe me.」
All that is left for me to put on now are the pants, which I sadly had to put on
myself. I also summoned the Item Box and took the Leather Jacket out of it.
Since I bought it, might as well give it a shot at wearing it right off the bat.
「That reminds me: do you know anything about empty Skill Slots,
Roxanne?」
I was interested in them ever since I happened upon them, so now might be a
good moment to ask about it. After summoning the Leather Jacket from the
Item Box I Identified it. Well, what do you know, the Leather Jacket also has
an empty Skill Slot. I just hope that Roxanne won't get confused by how I
called them, but I have no idea how else could I describe them. To me, empty
Skill Slots are exactly that: empty Skill Slots.
「What about it?」
「I want to know if you can place Skills in the equipment's empty Skill Slots,
and how exactly can I do it.」
「In the equipment? I'm not sure I follow, but wouldn't you have to place
them is special pockets or sockets?」
Thank you for the very insightful answer, but that is a definition of a 「Slot」
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taken straight out of a dictionary. Okay, maybe I should try approaching from
a slightly different perspective then. Here goes nothing.
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Part 2
「You can add Skills to equipment.」
「Yes.」
「Can you add more than one Skill into an empty Skill Slot?」
「I'm sorry, but I do not know. All I know is that nothing will happen if there
are no Skills infused with the equipment.」
So apparently it doesn't work like that. To begin with, the Weapons
Merchant was not even aware that something like Skill Slots even existed, so
I can probably assume that the availability of the Skills is not a part of the
public knowledge.
「And how exactly do you add Skills to equipment?」
「Well, normally you just buy weapons and armor that are already infused
with them.」
「Okay, but what if I wanted to do that myself rather than buying them every
time?」
I grabbed the Leather Armor from the Item Box. I wanted to hand it over to
Roxanne, but I cannot see her well because of how dark it still is. For all I
know, she might be changing right now.
「Only a Blacksmith can combine Skill Crystals with Equipment.」
Okay, so it seems like I would have to obtain a Blacksmith's Job if I wanted
to do it myself. Not much, but that's a start.
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「What is a Skill Crystal?」
「Supposedly it is a crystalized accumulation of monster's abilities that can be
found withing the Labyrinths on rare occasions. When it is being added into a
piece of equipment, the wearer will be able to use that Skill as if it was their
own.」
For now it's all pretty much just as I imagined. With that said, let's confirm
one more thing.
「So if there are no empty Skill Slots on the equipment, then it cannot be
infused with Skill Crystals, right?」
「Exactly. Also, it is said that the strength of the Skill's effect once it is
infused into a weapon or armor depends on the quality and condition of the
Skill Crystal that was used, as well as the skill and luck of the Blacksmith
who performs the infusion.」
「Luck? So it is possible to fail the infusion process?」
「Most certainly. Moreover, the percentage of failures seems to be much
higher then the number of successes.」
So it's kinda RNG based. If you won't try it you will never know whether
you will succeed or not, but if you do end up failing, you will probably lose
the Skill Crystal you wanted to infuse. But if that is really the case, then I am
going to have a natural advantage with it since I can use Identify. As long as
I'll be using it, no Skill Infusion will ever fail for me.
「Do you know what the are requirements for becoming a Blacksmith?」
「I am sorry, but I do not know. The only thing that I am aware of is that it is
a race-specific Job available primarily for Dwarves.」
*Depression Intensifies*
Does that mean that I cannot become a Blacksmith myself?! And more
importantly, there are Dwarves here in this world as well? But I haven't met a
single one so far.
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Is there really no way for me to become a Blacksmith? Well, Roxanne did
say that it is a race-specific Job, but I wonder what does that mean, exactly?
Maybe that the specifications or requirements of this Job can only be satisfied
by Dwarves alone, making it impossible for the members of the other races to
obtain it? Well, that sucks.
「I see. So I guess we have no choice but to leave it to a professional to create
the equipment with Skills for us. Not an ideal solution, but what else can we
do?」
「There's one thing you need to know though: most Blacksmiths dislike Skill
Infusion requests. By any chance, do you happen to have a Blacksmith who is
willing to do them among your acquaintances, master?」
「Would it be a big problem if I said that I do not?」
「That depends. When an infusion fails, you lose the Skill Crystals. That is
why most of the Blacksmiths usually do not offer Skill Infusions in their
services, and even if you find the one that does offer it, there's no telling if he
can be trusted.」
That particular tidbit got me curious, so I asked her why that is. But when I
heard the answer, it all made sense to me.
When the Skill Infusion fails, you lose your Skill Crystals. But the thing is:
when you lose them, you have no way of knowing if you lost them due to a
failed infusion, or maybe because the Blacksmith whom you ordered the
fusion from decided to screw you over and steal your Skill Crystals. After
you make the request, there is always a possibility that the Blacksmith might
not even attempt the infusion and pretend that it was unsuccessful in order to
get your items for himself with literally no cost from his side at all. As much
as I don't want to admit it, that does sound like a pretty neat strategy: you tell
the client that you failed the infusion, but in reality you sell the Skill Crystals
you appropriated for yourself, or even better, you fuse the client's Skill
Crystals with your own equipment, which will in turn allow you to sell that
equipment for a pretty hefty sum.
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「Let me get it straight then: infusion of Skill Crystals is nothing but a source
of trouble?」
「That's right.」
「But if that is the case, then wouldn't witnessing the infusion process with
your own eyes solve those problems?」
「Of course it would, but nowadays it's just not worth it. You see, master, in
the past there were many Dwarves who made their fortunes by charging their
clients with an additional fee if they wanted to be present to witness the entire
infusion process. To say that those fees were outrageous would be an
understatement.」
「No shit, really?」
Well, that is certainly one way of committing fraud. Similarly, if a magician
tried to cheat at a card game, I guess very few people would actually be able
to call him out.
「Precisely. Ever since then, people only asked Blacksmiths to perform Skill
Infusions in very rare cases, and Blacksmiths started to turn down such
transactions. When you get the Skill Crystal, you sell it, and if you want
equipment with Skills in it, you buy it from the weapon or armor shop.」
Certainly, if dealing with them resulted only in distrust and suspicion,
avoiding such troublesome work was the most obvious solution to the
problem.
However, that poses a huge problem for me. If I can't become a Blacksmith
myself because it is a race-specific Job and if no Blacksmith will accept a
request for Skill Infusions, then it means that finding a way out of this
particular pickle is going to be that much more troublesome. Even if I use
Identify to reveal if the equipment has empty Skill Slots or not, it won't do
me any good. And here I thought it's going to help me gain some advantage
over the rest of the world. Then again, maybe I shouldn't dismiss it so soon,
because it did allow me to see the Jobs of other people as well as the
locations of monsters and that is something that I have really come to
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appreciate. The question now is: if I cannot obtain a race-specific Job myself
and I don't have any connections with the Blacksmiths at all, then what can I
do to remedy that?
As it turns out, there is one more possibility available for me: get myself a
Blacksmith as a Party member. But I fear that just getting him as a simple
Party member might not be enough to eliminate the possibility of him trying
to scam us. Unless…
「Getting myself a Blacksmith, huh?」
「Hmm?」
「No no, it's nothing.」
At first I wanted to ask her about her opinion on getting myself a Blacksmith
as another slave, but at the last moment I decided against it. Since I just got
her as my first slave yesterday, mentioning getting another one so fast after
purchasing a first one might have been a full-blown display of extremely bad
taste and a lack of tact. I should go straight to the Slave Merchant with that
particular matter. Another one will be how much money he's going to charge
for it this time.
Feeding Roxanne with an excuse for me to go out, I made my way towards
the door, relying on my intuition throughout most of the way.
「Can I open the door?」
「Yes, I'm done changing, so it's fine.」
I waited for her reply and opened the door leading to the corridor.
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Part 3
「Roxanne, when we'll go to the Labyrinth, make sure you'll be wearing the
Leather Armor, okay?」
「Yes, I will definitely do so, thank you very much.」
I grabbed my socks and put on my Leather Shoes, and then I glanced at the
water basin on the floor. Last night we used it to clean ourselves up
afterwards, so the remaining water was tinged with slight traces of both red
and white. If I just leave it lying around as it is, the Innkeeper or the cleaning
crew will surely connect the dots when they comes around to clean the room,
figuring out what we were doing last night, and I don't want that to happen
under any circumstances, so I did the only sensible thing I could do: grabbed
the basin, headed to the toilet on the corridor and dumped all of the water
there. We definitely could have saved that water for later, but it'll be better
that way. Now that the evidence has been disposed of, I don't have to worry
about anyone finding out.
When I got back to the room, the light of the lamps hanging in the corridor
illuminated Roxanne. She was now fully clad in the Leather Armor, just as I
instructed her to be. And I have to say… I didn't expect it to look quite like…
that. Roxanne herself informed me that every piece of armor is magically
enchanted to fit itself to whoever is wearing it, but in Roxanne's case it
looked less like an armor and more like a corset, visibly exposing the chest
area. Well, of course it did. It had to do so to fit itself to Roxanne's figure
after all.
This… this might be dangerous for me. For all kinds of reasons. Really,
really bad.
「Uhm… just a suggestion, but maybe you should try wearing a jacket over
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it?」
「I'm sorry. Usually, Leather Armor is not something worn by women.」
Roxanne apologized, but I really don't think there was any need for her to do
so. If anything, I should be the one apologizing for not realizing something
like that sooner. In fact, I will just do it right now!
「No, you don't have to apologize for anything, since me and my lack of
common sense are clearly at fault here, so from now on, if I'm about to make
another blunder like that, feel free to stop me, alright?」
「U-Understood! If that is your wish, then I shall do exactly that!」
And so I helped Roxanne put on the jacket. Now her curves will be hidden
from the eyes of everybody else on the streets, and I will no longer be at risk
of getting distracted by her boobs in the Labyrinth. Two birds killed with one
stone. Now I just have to get the backpack on my back and the Copper Sword
at my waist and I'm all geared up and ready to go.
Ah, but wait! There's one thing I have forgotten! We haven't formed a Party
yet!
I believe it should be here in the menu under the Party Organization section.
But how do I even use this? I have no idea because I haven't teamed up with
anyone up to this point. Literally.
When I tapped on the Party Organization, I was asked to specify a target, so I
specified Roxanne.
「Oh.」
Roxanne twitched a little all of a sudden. It would seem that she has been
successfully added to the Party. Am I assigned to it by default? I tried
selecting myself and assigning myself to the Party formation.
「Ah…」
「Oh…」
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…. I found out that the Party has been disbanded.
I guess that was to be expected. I am a Party Leader, so it would stand to
reason that if the Leader leaves the Party it's going to get disbanded.
Party Organization is a feature that allows the formation of the Parties
between the Leader and the members that have to be selected. If the Leader
leaves the Party, then the entire thing will be disbanded. Note for the future
taken.
With that in mind, let's try that again. Once again I formed a Party with me as
the Leader, and then chose Roxanne, praying that this time everything will be
as it should be and our Party will be formed properly, without Roxanne being
kicked out of my Party.
「Uhm…」
「Sorry. I'm experimenting a little, so please give me a moment.」
「I see.」
I have to select her as a Party member without kicking myself out of it at the
same time. I'm a little worried if I'll be able to do it properly this time, but
let's be positive here. Alright, here goes: Party Organization, select target,
Roxanne. Okay, looks like this time I was able to successfully add Roxanne
to the Party. Now that it was done, I also saw some curious words in the
corner of my eye.
「What is this Party Effect?」
「If you have more than one person in your Party, then Movement Magic will
transport all the members, not just the caster himself. Even if you lose sight
of your Party members, you will be able to locate them without issues. I was
also told that the Experience gained from defeating monsters is being shared
between all the Party members.」
「Shared experience, huh?」
Does that mean that earning EXP points will be that much easier when you
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are in a Party? And also, I wonder if the EXP will be distributed evenly
between all the Party members?
「Yes. Since the gained experience is shared between the Party members, the
nobles have adopted a certain strategy: They form a six-man Party with the
newborn child as the Leader and they enter the Labyrinth with it so that it
could effortlessly gain experience since its early days to ensure its growth.」
Now that's what I would call foul play. As expected of nobles, forcing others
to do all of the heavy lifting for them so that they could hog the profits all for
themselves.
「Huh? But then, when such a child grows up, there won't be any need for it
to go into the Labyrinth anymore…」
「Most of the nobles continue to utilize that strategy by making use of the
multiple of their vassals, but there are also people who never entered the
Labyrinth even once in their entire lives.」
Really? But then, if they won't even go to the Labyrinth themselves, then
what's the point… unless…
「Is it possible… to continue sending only your vassals or servants to the
Labyrinth and live by leeching the profits they have made in there, without as
much as lifting a finger yourself?」
「Uhm… I, well…」
「Ah! No, please, do not get the wrong idea. I'm not asking about it because I
want to send you to the Labyrinth by yourself. I would never do something as
scummy as that!」
I fully grasped the gravity of my words only after I have spoken them out
loud.
What would happen if you could just send your slave to the Labyrinth and
then just take the money they earned there and the valuables they found for
yourself? That would be, from a lack of a better word, quite a lifehack, but
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not of the good kind.
「Such a strategy could theoretically be used to increase your Explorer level,
but you don't hear about people utilizing it in such a way all that much. You
must have heard what happens when someone finds anything valuable in the
Labyrinth, right? They are being disposed of then and there, so as you can
see, sending someone to go there…」
Is less than an ideal scenario. I guess that's true enough. But at least now I
know a lot more about it.
「All right then. Shall we go?」
「Yes, let's go.」
We left the room, after which I closed it shut and we made our way down the
stairs. As usual, I left the key with the Innkeeper at the front desk. Yes, just
like usual. It might have been only a few days since I have arrived in this
world, but this process has already become a part of my new daily routine.
「Careful now.」
We went outside of the Veil Pavilion. It was still pitch-black.
「Come with me for a second.」
I grabbed Roxanne's hand and dragged her along with me. I took her to an
alley behind the inn, hoping that there will be no one there at the moment.
Once I confirmed that the coast was indeed clear, I used Warp. The visibility
was rather poor here, but I managed to place it on the inn's wall without any
major difficulties.
「There, all set.」
「Huh?! U, Uhm…」
Roxanne looked like she wanted to say something, but before she could voice
her concerns properly I simply dragged her with me to the other side of the
Warp portal, into the Labyrinth.
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Part 4
「Looks fine to me.」
「Eh? Ehhh?! Ehhhhhh?! This is… the Labyrinth?!」
Roxanne seemed to be more than a little confused. But once she had a good,
long look around and realized that we were indeed in the Labyrinth she
immediately calmed down and returned to her usual, stoic expression. I
would even go as far as to say that she's gotten unexpectedly serious and just
a little bit scary, just like when we were talking about going to the Labyrinth
back at the inn.
「Yup. This it the first floor of the newly-discovered Labyrinth just outside of
Veil.」
「But Dungeon Walker should only be usable inside of the Labyrinth. If it was
Field Walker then you would probably be able to use it from inside the city,
but then it shouldn't be possible to enter the Labyrinth directly with it.」
I see. Well, that was something that I was already aware of, but now I at least
got confirmation of my suspicions. So if you use Field Walker, you would be
able to go near the Labyrinth, but not inside of the Labyrinth itself. It also
checks itself out with what I saw during my first expedition here: that one
Party of Adventurers that materialized that black portal wall on a tree near the
entrance before they proceeded inside.
「So that's how it was.」
「But master is an Explorer, so you shouldn't be able to use Field Walker at
all!」
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It's natural for her to think like that, since Explorer was the First Job I had
written on my Intelligence Card when she saw it back at the Slave
Merchant's shop.
「You're half right, but also half wrong. That was not Field Walker just now.
It was a type of Movement Magic called Warp.」
「Warp? I have never heard of such magic.」
So I guess that Bonus Spells are not all that well known here.
「It is a spell that only a few people beside me can use, so I would be grateful
if you could keep it a secret for now, alright?」
「Y-Yes, of course!」
「Good to hear it.」
It's great that she agreed to keep this matter under wraps without any
additional convincing.
「You're amazing, master.」
Wow, she's certainly not one to mince her words, huh? But it's great that she
understands it, and yet she's still being respectful and kind towards me.
「You think so? Nah, you're giving me way too much credit.」
I gotta say though, being praised so much by a cutie like her is not a bad
feeling at all.
I took a Leather Helm out of the Item Box and placed it on Roxanne's head,
staring into her beautiful, glittering eyes. The only downside was that the
helmet covered her head completely, hiding the cute doggy ears from view. It
seemed like a huge waste to me, but I guess in Labyrinth safety should
always come first above all else. That said, I also wore a Leather Helmet
myself.
「Uhm, was the thing you took the helmets out of an Item Box, or perhaps
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something different? Because the way you used was a little strange.」
「No, this is just an ordinary Item Box, nothing else to it.」
「Ah, I see?」
Roxanne tilted her head to the side as if she was contemplating something. I
always thought that this was just an ordinary Item Box, but maybe it was
really something different entirely?
Next I took out the Leather Mittens and gave them to her along with a
Wooden Shield. As for myself, I wore the Leather Gloves, took out my
Durandal and that was the end of my preparations. I could see that Roxanne
was eyeing Durandal quite intensely, but she wasn't saying anything. Was
she staying quiet because she didn't want to say something that I as her
master might have taken for an insult? In that case, let's make it a little easier
for her.
「By the way, take a look at my sword. What do you think about it?」
「It a wonderful weapon. And beautifully crafted at that.」
She sure is quick to comment on such things.
「Say, Roxanne? Have you ever been to a Labyrinth before?」
「Yes, but only about three times.」
「Are all the Labyrinths like this one here?」
Since she already has some experiences with Labyrinths, might as well take
advantage of that and get as much information about them as I possibly can.
Although, maybe I should limit myself to asking about specific things that
might be the most important for us right now, in this very moment in order
not to be too hard on her with all that 「please teach me!」 stuff.
「Yes, they are, but that is something that you might have already know this
since you are an Explorer, master.」
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「No, it's okay. When it comes to the Labyrinths, I haven't been to that many
of them myself.」
「Is that so?」
Okay, so maybe she will have to tell me everything she knows after all.
「Uhm, so… monsters are not going to attack us in this room out of the blue,
right?」
「That's right. Monsters do not appear in small rooms that can be moved to by
using Dungeon Walker, but I have no idea if master's magic is going to
follow the same rules.」
「I think we will be fine. This is the entrance to the Labyrinth's first floor,
after all.」
I pointed to the black wall behind us. Right now it serves as both the
passageway to the entrance and the way to the other floors.
「Yes, it would certainly seem so.」
「Alright. Now that we're here, let's try going a little further in.」
「Yes, leave everything to me, master!」
「Ah, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but the monsters on this floor all die in a
single hit, so you don't have to be so nervous and keep your guard up all the
time.」
「A single… blow?」
Yup, a single blow, baby (Durandal's single blow that is.).
「Well then, let's go!」
「Uhm, before we go any further, I would like to borrow a Magic Crystal
from you, if it is not a problem of course.」
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Roxanne stopped me before we even got out of the small entrance room.
「Eh? What?」
「A Magic Crystal.」
「Magic Crystal?」
「Yes, a Magic Crystal.」
Roxanne nodded her head silently.
「It is a crystal made from the magical power that is stored in the bodies of
monsters. If you possess one, then the magic will slowly transfer to it upon
the monster's defeat. Magic Crystals that have enough magical energy stored
inside them can be used as the energy sources for various establishments, like
Guilds, temples and the like.」
「Can't I just hold onto it instead?」
「If you do not have the Magic Crystal on you while defeating monsters, then
their magical power won't be accumulated in it.」
Seemed kinda far-fetched to me, but it won't make me any difference since I
don't even have such an item on me right now.
「In other words, if you have that Magic Crystal on you, it will continue to
gather the energy from defeated monsters each time you slay one, correct?」
「Yes, that is exactly right.」
「While we're on the subject, do they sell for a high price?」
「I believe they are the most wanted item from the Labyrinths, so that makes
them quite valuable.」
Say what?! Now I just feel like I've been robbed! And also:
Have I been a huge fucking dumbass this entire time?! I was, wasn't I?
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Part 5
「Ha, haha, hahahahahahaha… I see… *sigh*…」
「Ah, no, don't take this the wrong way, master. While it's true that Magic
Crystals can be sold for a very high price, filling them completely takes a
huge amount of time. No one will be able to sell more than a few Magic
Crystals across the span of their entire life, so even if you don't have one
with you now, it is not that big of a loss as you seem to be thinking it is. So…
don't let it get you down.」
Is she actually trying to comfort my stupid ass? That is so sweet of her.
「So? How can we get our hands on this Magic Crystal?」
「Normally they can be found in the chests found in Labyrinths, but the
Adventurer's Guild also sells the depleted ones.」
「Then we'll go do that later. As for the ones found in chests, I can't say that I
saw any during my previous forages here.」
Yes, I don't think I ever happened upon an item like that when I was grinding
the money to buy Roxanne. But now that I think about it, maybe there was
something like that here, but I just ignored it because I didn't know what it
was?
「This Labyrinth has been discovered only recently, correct?」
「That's what I heard. Supposedly it has been discovered only a few days
ago.」
「In that case I don't think we're going to find any Magic Crystals in here. It
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takes a long time for the magic to gather and the crystals to materialize.」
Then I probably didn't miss any of them. Good to know.
「Is there any other way of getting money in the Labyrinth other than looting
monsters and collecting the power in Magic Crystals?」
「We could always try finding treasure chests.」
Treasure chests, huh?
「Regrettably, I haven't seen those around here as well.」
「That's because they rarely appear in newly-found Labyrinths like this one. I
heard that they are the most common in the ancient Labyrinths.」
「Oh really, that's a shame then, but nothing we can really do about it. Let's
just go and focus on finishing this run safely, okay? Now, where should we
go from here?」
Now that I also know that I didn't miss any treasure chests due to my own
negligence, I can fully focus on going forward without worrying. Onward
ma….!
「Master, wait!」
But once again, Roxanne stopped me before I could so much as set foot
outside of the room.
「What is it, Roxanne?」
「There is a monster nearby. To the right.」
「Oh? You can sense them?」
「Not sense, but I can smell them.」
What the hell? I can't smell anything out of the ordinary in the air.
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「Does you being able to do that has anything to do with you being a
Wolfkin?」
「Precisely. Even among other Wolfkin, my nose is said to be particularily
sensitive, so detecting monsters through smell is my specialty.」
「That's amazing!」
「Thank you very much, master.」
I followed Roxanne's advice, and instead of heading straight like I initially
wanted I chose to go through the passageway to the right, and sure enough,
not even a minute of walking down the right pathway and a Needlewood
appeared right before me.
「Wow, you were right. There really is a monster in here.」
Roxanne's sense of smell truly is amazing. She has it all: stunning looks,
she's great in bed, and now she's also of great help in the Labyrinth! A
perfect hat-trick for someone like me.
「Let's do this then.」
「Alright. I'll be right behind you, master.」
「Nah, you just sit back and let me handle this one.」
This time I was the one who stopped Roxanne from charging at the enemy. I
brandished Durandal and went ahead. I ran up to the Needlewood and slashed
at it from the left downwards. The Needlewood fell onto the ground and
turned into a puff of green smoke, disappearing.
「It… it really fell with just one hit. Amazing!」
Roxanne caught up to me and showered me with words of praise and gave
me a look of admiration. I gotta say, being praised by someone as beautiful as
her was the best feeling ever, and a massive ego boost for me. It's moments
like that that make me really glad that I decided to invest enough Bonus
Points in Bonus Weapons to obtain Durandal. Looks like the value of my
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stocks in Roxanne's eyes have risen again, and I have it to thank for it.
「As I thought, this sword is truly remarkable. Very well maintained at that.
It's practically as good as a brand-new weapon.」
Roxanne says as she inspects Durandal carefully. She seems to be really
pleased with it's condition and how well-maintained it is, but I think that's
because apparently all of my equipment's condition is brought back to its
highest value whenever I am performing a Character Reset. If it wasn't for
that, then considering that I have been using it nonstop ever since I came to
this world a few days ago, its condition would have probably been even
worse than the ones of the Copper Sword or the Scimitar, and Roxanne was
quite angry with the state those two weapons of mine were in. If it wasn't for
her, I probably wouldn't even have thought about performing any kind of
maintenance on the at all, and that would have probably came back to bite me
in the ass sooner or later.
「If I can ask this of you, then please keep the existence of this sword a secret,
alright?」
「You want to keep the fact that you have such an amazing weapon
confidential?」
「Yup, it needs to be kept as secret as possible. If it is not, then, for
example…」
I grabbed Roxanne's hand and forcefully pulled her towards me. Then I
turned her around and placed Durandal's edge next to her throat.
「Eh?」
「If you care about this bitch's life, then hand that sword over to me or else…!
Something like that might happen.」
「Y-Yes, you're right, master. If that sword really ia as amazing as I think it is
then that is certainly a possibility. I understand. I won't tell anyone about it.」
「Sweet.」
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I released Roxanne from my villainous grasp. What I did just now might have
been confusing, but just like Roxanne said just now, it's a scenario that might
end up happening for real if we were to brag left and right that we have such
an amazing weapon with us.
「But if such a thing do ends up happening, then please, be sure to choose the
sword over me.」
「Now that's a promise I cannot make, because if I had to choose between the
sword and you, then I would choose Roxanne without a second thought. You
are more important to me than the sword. But if it was at all possible, then I
would have like to to avoid losing either of you.」
「I… I see. Thank you, for thinking so highly of a simple slave such as
myself.」
I know I just said that such a thing might happen, but I don't even want to
think about such a scenario.
Roxanne knelt down and picked up the branch that the Needlewood left when
it died. She then handed it to me, and I have safely placed it in the safety of
my backpack.
「Alright, which way should we go now?」
「If we continue to head straight, we should eventually reach the point where
we will be able to go to another level.」
「Okay, straight ahead it is then.」
「Th… thank you very much.」
Roxanne said that out of the blue while bowing her head down deeply.
「Huh? What for?」
「In the past, when I was taken to various Parties as one of the members
everyone either ignored or disregarded my opinions simply because I was the
newbie of the group. Not only that, whenever there were battles, I was always
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ordered not to get in everyone's way or to try and launch sneak attacks on the
enemies.」
「What a waste of your talents. But fear not. You have such amazing skills on
your disposal, so I intend to put them to good use. I mean, what's the point of
having some useful abilities if you're not going to utilize them for the good
of the Party.」
「Yes! I am happy that I can be of service to you, master!」
So Roxanne was being disrespected in the previous Parties she was a member
of? So the relationship between Party members can also be like that,
especially when we take into account the difference in experience between
the veterans and the newcomers.
Great, another thing that I had no idea of because I a a newcomer to this
world myself. Just fucking great.
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Part 6
「I hate to be the one to calm your enthusiasm, but I can pretty much one-shot
everything on this floor, so you'll have to put up with it for a while longer.」
「I do not mind, because that just proves how strong you are, master. The
monsters here are clearly no match for you. That being said, are we not
heading up to the next floor?」
「Up? I thought this thing will be going down.」
「No, it actually goes up. And if you pay a small fee to one of the Explorers at
the Labyrinth's entrance, they will take you to any floor that you have
previously been to, and higher than the level that you're currently exploring.」
「Duly noted, but since that would be my first time in there, I think it would
be best if we didn't get too ahead of ourselves. Let's fully explore this floor
first before we go advancing to a higher one.」
The prospect of getting my hands on some nice treasure from the upper floors
is certainly appealing, but I prefer to play at a steady pace for now. That
being said, I'm quite surprised that the Labyrinth actually goes upwards
instead of extending further underground like in most video games that I
encountered in my life. And then there's also that stuff about the Explorers at
the entrance taking you to the higher floors. I'm learning quite a lot of things
that I previously had no idea about today.
「Of course. If that is your wish, master, then I will do my best to follow it to
the utmost of my abilities.」
It's great that she's so eager, but it would be foolish of us to think that we
will be able to clear the entire Labyrinth in just a few short days, and it's halls
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are bound to hide dangerous monsters that we won't be able to defeat just yet
or floors that we will not be able to access right now. And let's not forget that
running into a room filled to the brim with monsters like that last one I had
encountered is the last thing that I wanna do right now, so in order to avoid
plunging head-first into such dreadful traps, the best approach is to proceed
carefully.
「Now then, allow me to lead the way.」
「Please do.」
For the next part of our current Labyrinth excursion I allowed Roxanne to
take the lead and we proceeded along with her guidance. Having her around
was a huge improvement, because due to her keen sense of smell we were
able to go from one monster-filled spot to the next in a matter of a few
minutes, making the exploration process at least twice as effective. And we
managed to get so many items while prioritizing not combat, but exploration!
No monster group was able to harm us, and soon we covered pretty much the
entirety of the first floor. Towards the end of the exploration, both our
backpacks were filled with so many branches that I began to worry that they
might end up bursting from being overfilled.
「Amazing.」
「And it's all thanks to you, Roxanne. Your ability to detect monsters with
nothing but your nose is nothing to sneeze at. Are you able to tell their types
apart as well, by any chance?」
「I can recognize them if they are of the species that I have fought before, and
I can sort of tell how many of them there are, but not perfectly. Also, if the
enemies will be hiding behind hidden doors then I might not be able to detect
them, and there's no guarantee that my nose is going to lead us down the
shortest path to get to them.」
「Be that as it may, your ability is amazing enough as it is.」
Since our backpacks weren't able to hold anymore items even if we tried to
stuff them there, we decided to go back through the Warp portal and head
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straight to the Adventurer's Guild to sell the entirety of today's haul. Even
though it was already bright outside, it was still too early for the reception
counters to be manned by the guild's employees, so we just returned to the
inn for the time being. Once we hit the room to drop our luggage off, we
went down to the dining area to have breakfast. When we finished our meal,
we returned to the room to have some well-deserved rest.
「Thank you for taking me to breakfast together with you again, master. But,
do we really have to eat so much?」
「Well, since they are serving meals here anyway, then I say why not go allout once in a while, especially since today we definitely had a reason to
celebrate. Seriously, if it wasn't for you then I would have never been able to
accomplish so much in a single day.」
I thanked Roxanne and sat down on the bed. In fact, her help was invaluable
to me. Her ability to detect monsters is going to be a huge asset to me, and I
intend to utilize it to its full extent to make the Labyrinth bouts as easy as
possible for us.
「Yes, thank you very much. That was the first time I saw someone single
handedly defeating so many monsters. This just goes to show how incredible
you are.」
「That was my first time killing so many of them as well. After all, I am still
relatively new to this whole Adventuring business. I also had your guidance
and expertise to rely on, so the success of today's foray into the Labyrinth
was largely possible thanks to you, so I'll be looking forward to our
expeditions to the Labyrinth from now on, Roxanne.」
「Not at all. The deciding factor was still your overwhelming strength and
abilities. Therefore, I'm looking forward to continuing working with you as
well, master.」
Roxanne bowed to me as she continued to stand near the entrance to the
room. Looks like that habit of hers still needs some working on. And here I
thought that all those compliments and praises might have helped her to
loosen up with her servant-like behaviors.
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「Well, what are you standing there for? Come here.」
「Y-Yes, of course!」
I invited Roxanne to come sit next to me. If I work on it hard enough, then
maybe the day will come when she will start doing so without specifically
being told to?
「Listen up, because what I'm about to say will be really important, okay?
From now on, whenever we'll be coming back here, feel free to sit wherever
you want without waiting for me to order you to do so… or you know what,
scratch that. I want you to sit as close to me as possible. I know that you
might feel somewhat uncomfortable because of what happened last night…
but it's not like I will always push you down and do that sort of thing to you,
you know?」
Roxanne came to the bed and awkwardly sat next to me, so in order to prove
to her that I was telling the truth, I gave her a hug that had no ulterior motives
behind it; just a friendly embrace to ease her tension. That being said, I'm
going to have to work on my own restraint as well, because right now, just a
glimpse of her white skin peeking from under her tunic was enough to tempt
me with a myriad of lewd thoughts going through my head.
「I-It's… alright with me. I didn't really mind that, so…」
I could only respond to such a declaration by hugging her more tightly. This
is bad. Whenever she's saying things like that with such an innocent
expression, she doesn't even realize how dangerous she is to me!
But then… does that mean that she really wouldn't mind if I pushed her
down again? Ahh, I want to do it again so badly! But I can't! I have to stay
true to my own words and grab a hold of myself! So in order to calm myself
down, there is only one option left for me!
I gently grabbed her doggy ears and started playing with them. Ahhh, so soft
and elastic, a true ointment for my tormented soul. Touching them feels so
good no matter how many times I do it. So maybe…
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「May I have a taste of your ears?」
「Eh? But I don't really think they are going to be all that tasty, given how
furry they are.」
「Just kidding, I'm not really going to eat them. Just wanted to try saying that
at least once. If it hurts or makes you feel uncomfortable be sure to tell me
right away and I'll stop immediately.」
「Alright, but I'm really fine with it, as long as it's not anything too strange.
Also, uhm… it, it feels really good… when you touch me like that…」
Oh my God I want to gobble that angelic creature right away!
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Part 7
Jesus Christ, what are you saying, Michio?! I know, okay? I want to eat her
out, but I know I shouldn't. But when she's sitting in front of me like that, all
flustered and embarrassed… then it should really be alright for me to… no!
Don't fall into temptation! Just… just find something to divert your attention
from how erotically-cute Roxanne is right now! Something! Anything!
Oh yeah! Her ears! Her doggy ears totally remind me of something!
Something puffy and delicious… cream puffs? No. Marshmallows? Nah, not
even close. Chiffon cake? No, that's not it either. Something… something
even puffier… That's right, isobeyaki! (TL NOTE: Mochi rice cake with
seaweed). How come I didn't notice that earlier?! Those droopy ears have the
same feeling as those stretchy roasted rice cakes, and have the same softness
and elasticity that can melt even the most stone-cold of hearts!
Isobeyaki, huh? This used to be one of my absolutely favourite foods that I
loved to stuff my face with, but I don't think I will ever have another
opportunity to eat it. I don't even know if this world even has the ingredients
necessary to make it such as mochi, seaweed or soy sauce to begin with, but
if I searched hard enough…
「You wouldn't happen to know if there are any places that serve isobeyaki
here, wouldn't you?」
「Isobe… yaki? I have never heard of such a dish. What is it?」
「Oh, right, I guess you wouldn't know it under that name, huh? It's one of
my favourite dishes from my homeland, consisting of a sweet rice cake
wrapped in seaweed.」
「I don't know about anything around here, but if you want seaweed and
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grilled fish then your best bet would probably be at one of the cities located
near the sea that have beaches.」
Yeah, I figured as much, but what I wanted to eat right now was isobeyaki,
not grilled fish. Maybe that's how isobeyaki was translated into Brahim? But
that would mean that the concept is not always properly translated, since
grilled fish and isobeyaki are two entirely different things, with their only
common element being seaweed.
「Is that so? Then we might as well go try it out whenever we will get the
chance.」
「U-ummm, master? Are you planning to… to return to your homeland one
day?」
Roxanne asked me. She must have been quite worried about that matter.
「My homeland, huh?」
「Yes.」
「I am way happier with what I have here so far. And you don't have to worry
about that.」
As I continued to play with Roxanne's ears, our conversation has taken a
rather serious turn. Time after time, I have to remind myself that this is not
Japan, which has both its advantages and disadvantages. On one hand, I will
probably never be able to eat isobeyaki again, but on the other, there is bound
to be a multitude of dishes that can serve as its substitute. All I have to do is
to put in an effort to find them. Worst case scenario, anything that is soft,
smooth and elastic will do. Also, I know that the matter of my returning to
my old world is something that I will have to consider eventually, I guess that
for now…
「I'm not going back to my homeland. Or rather, even if I wanted to go back
there, I can't.」
Roxanne contemplated my answer in silence.
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「So you really won't be going back?」
「Yeah. As I said, at the current time I cannot go back there, so I guess that
means that I won't be able to set you free.」
「No, that is not why I asked about it…」
「It's fine. I understand.」
I picked her ears and shook them playfully.
「It's just… it's a common practice here to sell your slaves when you no
longer need them, so I thought….」
I see. Another part of the twisted common sense of this world? In any case, I
get it now. So Roxanne was worried that I might sell her to someone else if I
wanted to leave this kingdom and go back home.
「You don't have to worry one bit. I plan on keeping you with me for as long
as I live.」
「Understood, thank you very much. Your kindness truly knows no bounds.」
「But in order to get our Party stronger, we will definitely need more
members, so I intend to gather them up in the foreseeable future.」
「Yes, of course, such a thing is only natural.」
What I said just now could very well be interpreted as a proclamation of
getting myself a harem, but Roxanne doesn't seem to have any qualms about
that. And let's be honest here, if anybody wanted to nitpick, I specifically
said that I'm going to increase the number of Party members, not my
personal slaves. But if I had to choose between making a dude or a beautiful
girl a member of my Party, then I think that my choice would be obvious to
anyone with more than one brain cell in their head.
Just like Roxanne said, increasing the number of Party members is the natural
thing to do for any aspiring Adventurer who wants to make a living out of
Labyrinth exploration. Sure, more Party members means more expenses for
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me as a Leader if I wanted to ensure that each member is going to have the
best equipment in top condition, but it also means earning that much more
money to split between all the members. Not a bad way of living, but I cannot
stop wondering if there is another way to go about it?
But what can I do? I do not have any specialist knowledge in the areas that
might be useful in this world such as agriculture, cooking, commerce or
transportation, and I have no guarantee that if I tried to make something
based on my modern knowledge it would actually work.
Once upon a time long, long ago I happened to read the biography of that one
fellow, James Watt was his name, I think. He was a great inventor who came
up with the steam engine, but his success in that field only came after he won
the patent trial with his rival. I wonder if this world even knows the concept
of a patent to begin with?
What about midwifery? It might be under a different name, but they should
have midwives in here, and I bet that a vast majority of them are women. And
if they don't, then that would be a great niche to fill!
When taking care of the children right after they are born they could disinfect
their hands with limewater. Medical instruments such as scissors and the like
could be sterilized with boiling water. Sheets and towels could be sun-dried
and sanitized. Those steps alone should be enough to significantly reduce
deaths from infections and puerperal fever.
Yes, the more I think about it, the more prosperous the prospect of
introducing the profession of midwife becomes. With enough work put into
it, maybe the day where gynecology and abortions could be implemented into
the healthcare system (assuming this world has something like that to begin
with.) That was the theory, but as we all know, the theory and practice can be
worlds apart from each other, and from the practical standpoint this whole
endeavor was not very realistic.
First of all, it would be difficult for Roxanne to be a midwife due to the
differences in biology of humans, elves, dwarves and beastmen. And even if
she could work with all the races concurrently, the incidence of puerperium
might be different for all of them. Not to mention that with the current level
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of medicine, which should be about the same as that of medieval Europe,
there's no way that I would allow her to touch the babies with her hands
washed with just some hot water mixed with plain old herbs. Nononono, such
unsanitary practices are absolutely out of the question!
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Part 8
So now that we've thrown the idea of Roxanne being a midwife out the
window, what are the other thing she could be doing in order to earn money
in a peaceful way? Hmm, maybe we could form a band and have her play an
instrument, or be the lead singer?
If there is one thing that you can be sure of, it is the fact that no matter where
you go, music will always be popular, so with mu knowledge of music from
my old world, we could definitely try giving it a shot. Of course, not every
song I am familiar with is an international masterpiece, but we wouldn't have
to worry about it here. If I were to count them off the top of my head, then I
guess you could say that I am familiar with, give or take, two hundred or
three hundred musical pieces from various genres, like popular songs, oldies,
children's song or even some kuchi showa (TL Note: method of learning
and teaching songs played on the Japanese drums, taiko. Wikipedia is
your friend here if you want to know more) and classical music pieces.
And the best part if we decided to this way? It's that we wouldn't have to
worry about those pesky patents and copyright deals if we wanted to play
songs that are not originals written by us, so we could just go to town with
the songs of all the popular musicians of my world without worrying about
giving away some of the earnings, and if we really included all three hundred
or so songs that I know into our repertoire, we would probably have a lineup
of songs that could last us for 10 years at worst, or if we decided to take the
slower approach, then maybe they would even be enough to last us a lifetime!
Then again, the biggest obstacle here is, once again, my sorry little ass,
because truth to be told, I can't read musical sheets, I am unable to play even
the simplest of instrument and I wouldn't be able to carry a tune even if my
life depended on it, so Roxanne would have to carry us with it once again,
and relying on her to do literally all of the heavy lifting would be straight up
pathetic of me.
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So, in the end, I guess going into the Labyrinth is the most solid option of
earning a living, considering the abilities of the both of us (especially mine).
Of course, going into the Labyrinth is not all bad, 'cause it definitely has its
merits. If there was ever a case of emergency where we would have to fight
for our lives, additional levels and new Jobs gained from such excursions
would be of invaluable help, especially since the Labyrinth itself turned out
to be not as dangerous of a place as everybody painted it to be. Then again, I
might be thinking like that just because I got myself a cheat-like weapon that
makes fighting monsters a total cakewalk, therefore I should fix that slack
mindset of mine if I don't want to be sorry one day. There's nothing worse in
life than getting used to things being too easy only to be slapped in the face
by reality at the worst possible moment. Then again, everything should be
fine as long as I won't suddenly decide to do anything stupid, like
challenging powerful enemies without preparation 「just for the thrill of the
challenge」. Basically, all I need to do is to take things slowly at a steady
pace, get more levels and grow stronger while doing so.
Also, instead of going to the upper floors, we can always stay in the lower
ones some more. Now that Roxanne has joined me in my Party the hunting of
monsters became more efficient than ever, up to the point where we could
earn more that a thousand Nars per day, so we should have no trouble earning
enough money for a decent living this way.
「By the way, the contract mentioned that the owner is responsible for
providing his slave with food, clothes and a place to live, but are you really
okay with living in an inn for the time being?」
「Yes, of course. I find nothing wrong with it.」
「And sleeping in the same bed as me?」
I asked her in hushed voice while giving her a hug.
「Y-Yes, I am thankful for that opportunity as well.」
She replied with her voice tinged with embarrassment. What kind of monster
would I have to be to allow her to sleep on the cold hard floor after seeing
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that?! That was such a cute reaction, maybe I should tease her more often?
Also, when I hugged her, the soft elasticity of her breasts enveloped my arm.
Looks like she's going braless under her clothes.
This is bad.
I want to push her down again, but I just promised her that I won't be doing it
literally every chance I get. But… on the other hand, she said that she didn't
mind it… so if she said so herself, then maybe it would be okay for me to
actually do it?
「It's the least I can do for you to repay you for going along with my selfish
whims. Now that I can bring you to the Labyrinth with me, I feel like my life
won't be as hard as it used to be anymore thanks to your exceptional
abilities.」
「Not at all, master. You're able to defeat monsters with but a single blow, so
that in itself is pretty amazing.」
Oh, come to think of it, while we are on the subject of daily life… I
completely forgot about taxes.
「By the way, can you tell me more about taxes and how do I pay them?」
「Oh, ahh, um…. About taxes… 」
Roxanne had difficulties assembling her words. Did I say something I
shouldn't have said?
「I'm sorry, is something wrong? Did I say something bad?」
「I'm sorry, there was nothing wrong with your question. But, you see… taxes
are a bit of an… unpleasant memory for me. You see, master, after my
parents died I have been living with my aunt's family for a while, but my
presence soon became a burden on them to the point that they were unable to
pay their taxes, so…」
「… I see.」
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So she was sold because her family could not pay her taxes. I always thought
that stuff like parents selling their children to get out of debt was something
made purely for those cheesy historical TV dramas, but apparently it is a
practice that is all too real.
I placed my hand on Roxanne's head and patted her gently to reassure her.
「As for how the taxing system works, the tax itself is counted individually
for every citizen of the kingdom, and in the winter it is being collected and
delivered to the local lord. Usually taxes are one hundred thousand Nars for a
Free Citizen, and ten thousand Nars for a slave. But you don't have to worry
about paying the taxes this year, because I think someone has already paid
master's tax.」
「I see. That's good to hear.」
To whoever it was that paid the taxes for me this year: thank you. Dear sir or
madam, you are a true MVP.
So for the both of us, the total tax we would have to pay would be one
hundred ten thousand Nars, huh? I have to take that into account for my
future plans so that I could always have that much money safely stored away.
As I continued stroking Roxanne's head, I brought her closer to my chest.
「Uhm, I… if I may, I am very happy to be able to be of service to you,
master. And, well… I am happy to have you, and that you're so kind to me.」
She spoke those last words quietly, and then she leaned her head against my
shoulder.
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Part 9
After that, I asked Roxanne to tell me about the Labyrinths in as much detail
as possible, and in doing so, learned something that was quite strange.
Namely, that in this world, the Labyrinths are apparently treated as living
creatures (TL Note: So, like giant Mimics then? Dark Souls PTSD blasts
in full force).
What's up with that, you ask? That was exactly my reaction.
Anyway, as for the reason why Labyrinths are scattered is seemingly random
places across the entire world is because the creatures that act as their cores
live seemingly everywhere.
「So basically they are like the larvae of flies inside of antlions, so to speak.」
「Ant… lions? What is an antlion, master?」
「Nothing that we need to concern ourselves with, thankfully.」
To borrow another analogy, the Labyrinths can be likened to Venus Fly
Traps, only instead of luring flies, they lure humans inside them. They use
monsters that spawn inside of them to defeat the adventurers so that they can
absorb them and use the nutrients gained from them to grow larger and
eventually multiply.
The creatures use magic to create Labyrinths around them, so I guess it can
also be said that it acts as their shield, or barrier, or a protective shell, and that
is also why they cannot be damaged or relocated by digging around or inside
them. That might also explain why they are always going up instead of down.
The only known way to dispose of the Labyrinth for good is to climb up all
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the way to the topmost floor and defeat the Boss Monster, and exterminating
the threat the Labyrinths possess is the responsibility of every Lord who
governs an inhabited area the happened to spawn in.
「… Moreover, if you dispose of the Labyrinth in an area that was unable to
be populated because of the threat of that very Labyrinth, you will obtain the
right to becoming the Lord of that land yourself!」
Roxanne's explanation has gotten quite enthusiastic.
「I see. I understand now. Thanks for explaining it so thoroughly for me.」
「You're welcome!」
Well, that should do it for the lessons about the Labyrinths for the time being.
After we gathered our belongings, we've decided to go out once more.
「By the way, how many days are in a year here? I want to know if there are
any differences to the calendar we used back in my homeland.」
「Well, the entire year is three hundred and sixty days long, give or take a few
days.」
According to what Roxanne told me, the year is divided into four seasons:
spring, summer, autumn and winter, each of them lasting for about ninety
days, with one or two days off before the season switches each time, so I
think it would be safe to assume that the year in this world is the same as the
one back in my old world.
「And do you know which day it is today?」
「We have just entered the early spring period if memory serves me correctly,
but as for the exact date… I'm sorry, but I do not know.」
She said that taxes are paid in winter, so we still have a long way to go before
we enter another taxation period.
Our next destination was the Adventurer's Guild to sell off the branches we
were carrying in our backpacks. We managed to sell everything we had for a
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total of six silver coins and a few bronze coins, meaning that we got…
around six hundred Nars. One of the factors here was my 30% Increase in
selling prices, which is as amazingly reliable as ever, but we never would
have gotten that much if it wasn't for the other backpack packed with the
branches we obtained thanks to Roxanne being in the Labyrinth with me. I
know that I'm probably sounding like a broken record now, but Roxanne is
amazing.
Our next order of business will be the purchase of the Magic Crystals, just
like Roxanne suggested during one of our earlier conversations.
「I would like to buy two Magic Crystals.」
I said to the lady at the reception counter.
「Of course. Are Black Magic Crystals okay with you, sir?」
Oi, Roxanne. What's the deal with those Black Magic Crystals? That's the
first time I've heard of them!
「Uhm, that is how the Magic Crystals completely depleted of magic power
are called.」
Seeing my confused expression, she offered a fast explanation.
「Two Black Magic Crystals then, please.」
「As you wish. Please wait a moment.」
「I will, thank you very much.」
The lady took the branches we gave her from our backpacks and headed to
the back of the building. As we waited for her to return, Roxanne seemed to
be reading through various announcements posted on the nearby bulletin
board. I gotta say, being able to actually read the letters yourself instead of
having someone else do it for you all the time sure is convenient.
「There you go, sir. That will be 10 Nars each.」
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Eh? 10 Nars each, as in, the original price? Huh? Why didn't my 30%
discount work here?
Even though I made sure to change my Skills properly, the discount didn't
work for whatever bizarre reason. Why? I'm doing everything as I always did
so far and the Skill is active, so why didn't I receive my 30 % discount? I
honestly don't know what the deal with this Skill is anymore. Normally,
when I bought more than one item it would work like a charm, so why did it
choose now of all times to suddenly stop working? I'm not sure, but I
definitely don't like it.
There is nothing I can really do here now, so I just handed the twenty bronze
coins to the lady. She took the first ten coins and handed me one Black Magic
Crystal, and then she did the same with the other ten coins and Crystal, after
which she carefully counted everything to check if there was no mistakes in
the transaction.
As for the Crystals themselves, they were the oval gems about the size of a
chicken egg. Just as their name implied, they were jet-black in color. Now
that I look at them, I am 100 % positive that I haven't seen something like
that in the Labyrinth, be it as a monster drop or just laying around. Then
again, maybe I really did overlook them due to their size?
Looks like I can perform Identify on it, so let's see… hmm, the appraisal says
that the name of this item is not Black Magic Crystal, but simply a Magic
Crystal.
「Sorry you had to wait, Roxanne, but we got what we came for: two Magic
Crystals. Black ones, to be exact.」
I showed Roxanne the Crystals that we got.
「You're right, they really are black indeed.」
「Is there any significance to their color, or is it a purely aesthetic thing?」
「The color of the Magic Crystals changes depending on the amount of
magical energy that is being stored inside them. It will turn red when you slay
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ten monsters, purple when you kill one hundred, blue after one thousand,
green after ten thousand, yellow after one hundred thousand and white,
meaning that it will be full, after one million monsters have been defeated.」
So the color changes indicate how full the Crystal is with magic power. Got it
memorized.
「Then, since it doesn't have any magic power stored in it, it is black, hence
the name Black Magic Crystal, right?」
「Yes, exactly. One thing worthy of noting is that the price of the Magic
Crystal changes along with its color. Normally people sell them the moment
the color changes, since it is more profitable than holding onto it until it turns
white. Most common selling colors are green or yellow.」
So even if I were to kill anywhere between hundred and nine hundred
monsters, because the color of the Magic Crystal would still be purple,
meaning that the price for selling it wouldn't go up. And it takes one hundred
thousand monsters to turn the crystal yellow and million monsters to make it
white, then it becomes obvious why people are not waiting with selling them.
Simply put, the amount of time and effort required to do it was just not worth
it. Let's assume that it would take an entire day to slay a hundred monsters to
turn the Crystal purple. Following that assumption, turning it yellow would
require three years of continuous, day-today monster hunting, and turning it
white a whooping thirty years! Effectively one third of your average human
lifetime just to sell one item at the highest possible price? Now that's a
turnoff if I ever saw one.
「Okay then, now that our business here is done, shall we go to the Labyrinth
again?」
「Umu!」
And with that we have left the Adventurer's Guild.