Chapter 38: Glasses Girl Overdrive
The morning after I returned from Bardybardy, or rather two days after being blocked by a horde of undead on the third floor of the labyrinth, the party set out for the labyrinth again with the break of dawn.
Unlike usual, the members were gathered in the hall of the lord's mansion and provided with silver weapons. They were on loan from Mr. Gens.
Even seasoned fighters like Greon and Larouque seemed to handle them for the first time. They looked curious and carefully chose their own weapons.
"These were borrowed from Sir Gens by Shiro. Although weapons are consumables, we will return what remains after the subjugation, so please use them carefully to avoid having to buy them if possible," Karena explained, sounding like a poor lord.
It was a bit pitiful to see a visibly displeased expression when Gens's name was mentioned. After all, he had been kind to us. I couldn't ask him about what happened in the past.
"Because we can't assume that the enemy will be only undead, choose your weapons with the assumption of taking regular ones as well. Silver swords are not so durable," Sebastian, who claimed to have fought undead in the past, advised.
"I don't want to carry something heavy, and my main weapon is a bow," Larouque said. She had an abundance of silver-tipped arrows and carried a silver short sword on her waist, as well as a few small throwing knives.
Greon and Cecily were bringing silver longswords and silver-plated shields in addition to arrows.
As for me, I had two slim swords, one of which was for Lina. I passed on the shield since it was heavy. I also brought a few arrows and a couple of throwing knives since I had the throwing skill.
"I-Is this alright?" Beth, who had been changing in another room, came in blushing, dyeing her entire body red.
Uh, this is...!
"I'm still too embarrassed!"
Beth, who had crouched down, was wearing a silver sleeveless leotard, or something like that? It resembled the costume of a race queen from the bubble era in Suzuka that I had seen in a news video, complete with silver boots and gloves that went up to the elbows.
Her childlike figure stood out, emitting a somewhat perverse eroticism.
Among the equipment Mr. Gens had loaded onto the carriage, there was this mysterious armor designated for female members.
According to the manual, it was an armor that "gathered the wisdom of the world and pursued the defense against undead to the utmost limit. It also amplifies the magic power of the entire party, so at least one female member who uses spells is required." The leotard and gloves were made of a special blade-resistant fabric, and although they seemed to be silver-plated, it was written that they had the defensive power of plate armor despite being lightweight.
However, the dimensions were Gen-san's Lolita-sized preference, and not only Karenna, Cecily, but even Lina, all together in unison said, "No way, even if I die!" and the moment Larouque saw it, she disappeared using her invisibility skill.
How much are they disgusted by Gen-san...?
Beth ended up wearing it by process of elimination.
Heartlessly, Lina said in a wooden tone, "It suits you well."
In a rush, Karenna, as if she couldn't stand being left out, emphatically declared, "Yes, Beth, it's wonderful!"
No, in the first place, it's impossible for Princess to wear it because of the size, even if it has elasticity, especially the chest...
That's right, I forgot an important thing.
"But there's something I want to give to Beth from me..."
"?"
Taking out the package I received from Gen-san, Beth stood up while embracing herself with both hands in embarrassment. Oh, it's a high-cut. Underneath, she's wearing tights with anti-blade and anti-magic properties, but they look like bare legs due to the translucent material.
Avoiding eye contact desperately, I said, "Um, it's a souvenir from Bardebarde."
"Eh, f-for me? Is that so?"
She's flustered.
Is something attracting attention?
Huh? Cecily's eyes look scary.
"Even though he's my servant, he's putting me aside..."
She muttered. Isn't she misunderstanding something?
"No, no, it's not like that..."
I desperately denied it and opened the package.
"This is..."
"?"
Beth seems to not understand the meaning.
Well, that's natural, because it's something that doesn't exist here.
When I took "it" in my hand and brought it close to Beth's face, she flinched for a moment, but as if she had made up her mind, she closed her eyes, lifted her chin a bit, and poked out her lips a little.
It's a pose that could be misunderstood.
Cecily, please stop emitting an unhappy aura.
"Open your eyes and see."
When I said that, Beth cautiously opened her slightly narrowed eyes and widened them in surprise.
"This is!?"
"Can you see better now?"
Beth froze in surprise for a moment, then shook her head vigorously and looked around.
"W-What is this!?"
I guess it's something that's not known in this world after all. There seems to be magnifying glasses and microscopes, but even a knowledgeable girl like Beth doesn't know that they can be used for vision correction.
"This is called glasses. In the world where I came from, people with poor eyesight used this tool normally."
Yes, I've been curious about it for a while.
Even though she's timid, she furrows her brow, stares at people as if she's glaring.
Her Magic has power, but the accuracy is strangely low.
And in this dimly lit world, an unparalleled book lover.
It hit me. I thought this child might be nearsighted.
So, when I saw Gen-san wearing silver-framed glasses, I thought, "This is it!" and asked for more details during breakfast yesterday. As expected, glasses are not yet known in this world, so Gen-san hired a dedicated artisan at a high cost and taught himself the principles, experimenting with glass processing to create them.
And so, I received several sets of nearsighted lenses that Gen-san had made as prototypes.
Since returning here yesterday afternoon, I have been using my clay skills in the cell to process and adjust ceramic frames. I used my memory and adjusted the width based on Lena's model, and it seems to be mostly accurate.
"Lenses... this transparent part affects visibility, so there are several types. Try them out to see which one suits you. I think this will also increase the accuracy of your magic hits."
Beth's magic accuracy increasing line made the other members also look serious.
"Isn't this the thing Sir Gens wore on his face?"
Cecily asked.
"Yeah, these are called glasses. They're tools that correct vision... you know, improve visibility."
"W-What? Is that really possible!? So, it wasn't just a lewd toy..."
Karina-san, a lewd toy? What did they do to you guys?
Seeing Beth's slightly unpleasant expression, I desperately denied it.
*****************
We entered the labyrinth and once again took about two hours to reach the clay wall leading to the third underground floor.
Along the way, we found and defeated two or three kobolds. It's still a mystery how monsters reappear in the labyrinth after we clear them out, but it seems that we need to conquer the labyrinth itself and eliminate the root.
Except for Beth, who changed to the rare job of Glasses Girl Race Queen, everyone else holds a bow with a silver arrow.
Confirming that, I absorbed the clay wall.
I had expected it, and even with my detection skill, I knew it, but it sent shivers down my spine.
A swarm of zombies filled the three floors below. They may have sensed our presence for a while now.
As soon as the wall disappeared, they swarmed up the steep slope that connects to the second floor.
Arrows were shot simultaneously.
Zombies fell like ordinary soldiers. They were definitely effective.
But... there are too many of them!
The horde of zombies covering the area below will not be affected by a mere 100 or 200 arrows. How are they spawning in such numbers?
Our movements, which began to slow down, felt a sense of impatience. Just as we were about to lose momentum, Beth completed her incantation.
Unlike before, a thin, concentrated flame resembling a laser beam swept through the horde of zombies. By activating magic through her silver staff, the purification effect seemed to enhance, as it not only severed the zombies' torsos but also ignited them.
Impressive, isn't it?
The ones who were attempting to climb the steep slope were annihilated first, followed by the zombies in the front row that had filled the lower chamber, as they were systematically incinerated.
The horde of zombies, apparently possessing some level of intelligence, eventually retreated into the depths of the third-floor cave, as if the tide was receding.
"That's something, isn't it? Your level hasn't increased, right?" Greon muttered, who didn't excel in ranged combat.
Indeed, after the battle two days ago, only I had increased my job level, while the other members remained the same. Beth, too, was still at level 6, with the same variety of magic as before.
By the way, the ability I gained from leveling up is "Party Experience Boost," so I'm likely to contribute to everyone's level advancement in the future.
"Yes, I'm surprised myself. Since I can clearly see the opponents, I can concentrate the power of area-of-effect magic, and I feel like I've become incredibly strong," Beth said, looking at me with sparkling eyes and a bashful gaze.
"Thank you so much, Shiro-san. I feel like I've been reborn!"
Oh no, she's cute.
"Until now, you've been shooting at opponents you couldn't properly see, right?" Larouque said, exasperated.
******************************
We lowered the rope again and carefully descended to the third basement level.
Although we repelled the first wave, there are still numerous magical creatures lurking in the deeper parts, some of which seem to be of high level. We can't let our guard down.
While sharing information detected by Larouque's and my skills through party coordination, we cautiously advanced through the cave.
Compared to the upper levels, the walls emit weaker light, making it quite dark.
Karina speculates that this may be due to the massive number of undead present, which consume a significant amount of magic flowing into the labyrinth.
"Let's stop for a moment," Larouque instructed. It seems like we're about to encounter something.
From the darkness ahead, we sense the presence of another large group of undead. However, they seem oddly organized.
"It's not just zombies. There are high-level ones among them, seemingly directing the horde. Be careful of ranged attacks," Larouque warns.
Impressive as always, Larouque seems to have a detailed grasp of the situation.
As we took a few more steps forward, the horde of zombies suddenly lunged at us from within the darkness.
As usual, there is no great speed. Gleon, Cecily, myself, and Lina line up horizontally with intervals between swinging our swords, filling up most of the cave's width. From there, Raluc and the others take the simple form of attacking remotely.
Thanks to Zagoo's guidance and the effectiveness of the silver swords, Lina and I can easily take care of slow-moving zombies without any problems.
While we are concentrating on intercepting the hordes of undead that keep coming one after another, I suddenly sense a dangerous presence.
"Arrows!"
When Raluc shouted, I instinctively created a clay wall.
It's about 3 meters high with the width of the front row of four people, but it's not very thick because it's improvised.
Just barely in time, dozens of arrows got stuck in the clay.
They don't care if they hit their allies. Well, we aren't affected, so they are just sticking into the zombies' backs. But...
"They're fine, aren't they?"
The arrows the enemy is shooting are "ordinary" arrows. If they hit us, we would be done for, but they have no effect on the undead. That's why they can keep shooting us without fearing any collateral damage.
It's troublesome.
While I'm thinking about such things, we continue to cut down the zombies that have already entered on this side of the clay wall and the ones coming in through the gaps on the sides.
Karina, too, probably considering saving MP, swings her silver sword here instead of purifying.
Finally, when the waves of attacks subside a little, I create a few peepholes in the clay wall.
From there, Beth unleashes narrow, concentrated beams of flame again, mowing down the width of the cave back and forth at about torso height.
Finally, the archer attacks stop. But...
"They're probably dodging by entering the side holes."
Raluc is probably right. The enemy's presence hasn't decreased much.
The highly directional and powerful flames cannot hit the one hiding in the side holes.
I turn my gaze to Raluc, who sharpens her senses and uses her search skill to the fullest. Shooting an arrow back is probably not from a zombie. It's risky to step forward without knowing the opponent's strength, though.
Indeed, it seems we not only need to hold the defensive line but also initiate attacks from our side.