Chapter 9: Border City
It should be about time... soon it will come into view.
The cramped mountain road continues for a while. After passing through a rugged and desolate rocky area, one side of the mountain breaks away, and suddenly the field of vision opens up, revealing the panoramic view of Termwills from a high place, with the vast ocean stretching out behind it.
"Oh, wow! Amazing!"
"Wow..."
Cheers from Forest Bird and the others outside the carriage can be heard. I couldn't help but smile at their expected reaction.
"Theo-kun! Grace-san! It's amazing!"
Lucian informs us excitedly from the driver's seat.
Grace and I lean out of the carriage window, and there it is, a magnificent view.
"This... is truly incredible..."
Grace also couldn't help but exclaim at the sight. I can feel my heart fluttering at the sight, which I haven't seen in a while. Honestly, I think Termwills seen from this high place is the best.
If the day comes when travel magazines and such are created here, just like in Japan, photos taken from around here will decorate the cover during the Termwills feature.
Termwills is a city with an outer wall that is almost perfectly circular in shape. The first thing that catches the eye is the royal castle, Seorem, towering in the center of the city. With the setting sun and the sea as its backdrop, it presents its silhouette to us.
Seorem is a gigantic and towering structure that would never be found in any other city. Its imposing presence overwhelms anyone who sees it. Made of white stone, the royal castle was indescribably magnificent.
Next to Seorem, there is a temple that serves as the entrance to the labyrinth. Unlike Seorem with its unreasonable scale, it is a relatively modest building... but it was designed and planned later to harmonize with the royal castle.
Around such a castle and temple, the streets of Termwills spread out. The closer to the center, the older the buildings become, with more buildings of elegant stone construction. Conversely, as you go towards the outer periphery, more conventional buildings increase.
It is said that both that castle and the cityscape around the central area were originally part of the labyrinth, but the truth of this statement is uncertain. If it is true, it would be like making use of the ruins, but aside from the fact that the scale and decorations inside the castle are extraordinary, the structure itself seems reasonable. Reasonable, in the sense that it hasn't turned into a labyrinth, that's all there is to it.
"I had heard about it, but it's amazing."
It seems Forestbird also had a longing for the border city, but it seems they were thinking of gaining strength in the countryside first. So, it turns out that everyone is visiting the border city for the first time.
"There's a labyrinth underground in that city, right?"
"This place is the same."
When I added supplementary explanations to Monica's words, everyone's gaze gathered.
"Huh?"
"Well, yeah. You can think of it that the labyrinth extends beneath the road we're on right now, as well as inside this small mountain. The mountain over there that you can see is also the same."
"What? Really...?"
"Well, the interior of the mountain was originally a mine, but it got eroded by the labyrinth, causing changes in its internal structure."
It's the reason why it's called the Living Great Labyrinth. Not only the structure but also the environment itself changes. There are even places where you go underground but find yourself surrounded by plants like in a forest. The forest area known as the "Twilight Forest" is completely different from the usual ecosystem.
There are also areas connected to the sea... The fact that the lower layers are not flooded indicates that it's indeed different from normal.
There are frequent transfers between sectors, and it's impossible to know the overall structure of the labyrinth. Thanks to that, scholars and researchers are constantly scratching their heads. There were even quests for neurotic researchers to go on field surveys.
When we organize it to create an overall map and schematic, there are clearly areas where the size of the sectors is strange in terms of their positional relationship and internal structure. There are also cases where new places that should not have existed before suddenly appear or disappear... Those things happen regularly. It's like a ghost story.
The reason why it's said to be connected to another world or called a border city lies there. The "Old Mine Shaft" directly below this place is a relatively safe and conventional labyrinth because it's a shallow level, but as you delve deeper, abnormalities gradually become more apparent, and the monsters that appear become more dangerous. The exploration of the deep levels progresses very slowly.
"I'm sorry... I might have underestimated Termwills."
"In the Great Labyrinth, if you go to a different level or sector, you won't be able to return to your original location, so be careful about that. I think you already know that."
"There are one-way doors... or something like that, right?"
"There are... In fact, all the staircases from the eleventh floor and below have that kind of structure. The one-way doors connecting to neighboring sectors are designed to be recognizable as such."
It is a hearsay, but it is based on a personal experience. There was a sentence like that in the book I read in my father's study, so it's probably within the realm of common sense.
"Well, once you enter the depths of the labyrinth, how do you get back?" Grace asked. It was a reasonable question, although the Forestbird group seemed to know the answer.
"There are teleportation stones called 'Tengaiishi' rolling inside... If you use them in front of scattered stone monuments, you can return. If it's a red Tengaiishi, you can return immediately, but if you use it, you can't bring back anything you found inside the labyrinth."
"Red ones are for emergency evacuation, right?"
"That's right. By the way, normal Tengaiishi cannot be taken back. Red Tengaiishi is different; you can take it outside the labyrinth, so it's highly valued. Many people mistakenly die because they can't use it in situations where they should use it to bring back red ones. It's a good idea to discuss and decide beforehand for various situations."
When entering the labyrinth, if you have been to a certain level from the labyrinth entrance stone monument, you can teleport... But if you take a normal Tengaiishi outside the labyrinth, it will collapse. The deeper the level, the higher the risk of teleporting becomes.
Therefore, Tengaiishi only functions inside the grand labyrinth, and local procurement is essential.
There are situations where you find a stone monument but have no Tengaiishi to return, or you go to search for Tengaiishi and get lost, or get killed by monsters and respawn... Such things can happen, unlike in BFO where respawning doesn't exist.
"Well then, let's discuss it later. I don't want to argue or die over something like this," Robin said, and everyone nodded. With this understanding, Forestbird should be fine.
"By the way, with Tengaiishi, you can also transfer supplies from inside the labyrinth, right?"
Lucian tilted his head and asked, and I nodded.
"Yeah. You can draw lines like white chalk... and create a simple teleportation gate to transfer items. I think if you go to the guild to get permission to descend into the labyrinth, they probably have a brief training or something."
"I'm not good at remembering those little details."
Fitz furrowed his brow.
"I don't think it's that difficult, though. At least according to what I read in the book."
By drawing a corresponding exit magic circle in advance outside the labyrinth, it becomes possible to send items from the inside of the labyrinth to that location.
If the diagram of this magic circle is correct, it can be drawn with regular ink, but the person who draws it must be the same individual; otherwise, the teleportation will not function. It is desirable for the entire party to draw it together.
That's why in the border city, businesses like rental warehouses are thriving. There are rental warehouses attached to inns, and there are also inns for adventurers that include accommodation fees... However, it is strictly forbidden to draw teleportation magic circles in rooms of inns that are not intended for adventurers.
While living creatures cannot be transported with normal teleportation stones, it is because considerations are made for potential dangers such as fires and so on.
"Theo, you're quite knowledgeable."
"I studied from books."
"...Anything else we should be careful about?"
"When teleporting down to the labyrinth from the entrance, it's important to double-check the lunar phase. Well, except for the new moon... it's absolutely better to avoid the full moon days. Well, I think at that time the staff at the entrance will give you a warning."
"What will happen...?"
"On the day of the new moon, the walls simply close or open and the route changes, but on the day of the full moon, if you teleport from the entrance, the destination itself apparently becomes a dangerous area."
Or rather, it's not just "apparently," it actually happens.
Among BFO players, it's called the "Secret Labyrinth"... Well, it's profitable in terms of earnings.
"Just having the walls close or open is scary enough."
"Since it changes in places where no one is watching, it's not that dangerous, I suppose. If you already know the timing from the beginning, you won't get lost due to preconceptions, and it won't become an impossible-to-escape structure. During the new moon and immediately after the full moon, new treasures also drift in from the depths, so it's a good opportunity to aim for them."
I don't hear stories about parties being divided or people dying due to structural changes, so maybe it's user-friendly... However, maps are not very useful during the new moon, and even if you use them, they need to be regularly updated.
While it is possible to come up with countermeasures based on the tendency of objects with the same nature and attributes to gather in the same area.
"Well, I said a lot, but it doesn't seem to be that bad up to around the 20th floor. When considering whether to proceed or not, it's good to have some leeway depending on the availability of dimensional stones."
"I can't feel relieved when you say it's not that bad, Teo-kun."
"That's true."
I apologize.
"I wonder who made something like this for what purpose."
Grace asked a question that relates to the core of the matter.
"It's said to be a trial ground or something that protects ancient treasures... There are various theories. But the truth is not well understood. There are no records of the deepest parts, and no one has seen them."
It's like humans are making use of it just because there's a labyrinth, and they even built a city around it. Humans are resilient, or something like that.
While talking and listening about various things inside the labyrinth, the Termwills gradually draw near.
Descending a small mountain and passing through hilly terrain, a meadow spreads out before them. A gentle road continues toward Termwills.
Even though the sun is about to set... There is a long queue at the outer gate to enter the city. It's probably because this is a large city, you can enter the city day and night... But at this rate, it seems like the waiting time will be quite long.