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Chapter 2-3 : The Girl Learns About The Great Labyrinth
「Prox, we’re counting on you today.」(Elle)
「Gyau, gyau! (I’ll take you there safely!)」(Prox)
Leaving the city, they went to an open area near the forest. After confirming there was nobody else around, Elle asked Prox to return to her original form.
She moved away from the others and stretched her wings. Her body shone and then grew into a huge fire dragon.
「Grraauu! (Hop on, everyone!)」(Prox)
「Wow, you’re bigger than I imagined!」(Yoyo)
「Grrraauuu! (I’ll take it as a compliment)」(Prox)
Yoyo, who saw Prox’s original form for the first time, was surprised by how big she was. Looking excited, he jumped and crawled onto Prox’s back, followed by Elle and Ingrid.
However, Flamberge didn’t move at all.
「Hm? Flamberge, what’s wrong?」(Elle)
『N, nothing.』(Flamberge)
「Then hurry up.」(Elle)
『Ou…』(Flamberge)
Looking somewhat reluctant, Flamberge floated onto Prox’s back and laid down next to Elle.
Now that everyone was already sitting on Prox’s back, Ingrid drew an arrow enhanced with a protective spell and held it up to activate it. An invisible wind barrier was then created surrounding them.
「The barrier is up.」(Ingrid)
「Thank you, Ingrid. Prox, time to take off.」(Elle)
「Grraaaauu! (Aye, Ma’am!)」(Prox)
Prox extended her wings to the side, flapped them, and soared into the sky at high speed.
「Wooohoo!」(Yoyo)
『Hiiiiiiiiiiiiyy!!』(Flamberge)
Everyone was excited to soar through the air above the royal capital except for one.
Flamberge screamed and leaned its handle against Elle’s thigh.
「Flamberge?」(Elle)
「Arara~ Are you afraid of heights? Phu phu!」(Ingrid)
Seeing the sword trembling, Ingrid teased him.
『H, huuh!? Don’t be ridiculous! I used to be the famous Crimson Hero, you know!』(Flamberge)
「Then why are you trembling~?」(Ingrid)
『N, noo? Wh-what are you talking about?』(Flamberge)
Although he didn’t have a face, everyone could tell that he was afraid of heights from his tremble.
「If you’re feeling uncomfortable, you can disappear. Or do you want to rest in my magic bag?」(Elle)
『No, there’s no need. Th-this is nothing.』(Flamberge)
「But…」(Elle)
「You’re such a stubborn sword. You can fly, right? Yet you’re afraid of heights. That’s kinda funny, phu phu!」(Ingrid)
『I said I’m not afraid of heights!』(Flamberge)
「Ingrid, that’s enough. Here, I’ll hold you until we get there.」(Elle)
Elle held Flamberge’s handle tightly and rested him on her lap.
『Aaahhh~ My princess! You’re so kind~! Unlike a certain dark elf woman!』(Flamberge)
「Aa-ahh~」(Ingrid)
Seeing Elle spoiling the sword, Ingrid sighed and shrugged her shoulders.
「By the way, Ingrid, are you sure you can complete that magic vehicle?」(Elle)
「Mowtowcycle, was it?」(Ingrid)
「Motorcycle.」(Elle)
「Yes, that. Well, thanks to you, I was able to decipher the blueprint, but whether I can complete it or not depends on the materials we’re going to collect.」(Ingrid)
「I see.」(Elle)
Several days ago, Ingrid received an order from a newspaper company to make a magic vehicle for delivering newspapers.
They had been using a horse-driven carriage and were thinking of switching to a magic vehicle. However, the magic vehicles on the market were big and were not very practical. They took a lot of space on the street, not that different from horse-driven carriages.
Therefore, they came to Ingrid and requested a custom magic vehicle that was fast and didn’t take much space on the street.
Luckily for Ingrid, she had the blueprint of a vehicle from another world called “Motorcycle” left by an otherworlder hero. She found it along with some other blueprints written on the wall in an ancient ruin years ago.
She thought that this “Motorcycle” met her client’s criteria, and thanks to the help of Elle, who could read the ancient language called “Japanese,” she was able to decipher the blueprint and was now working on it.
「This vehicle used a weird engine powered by a fluid called gaawsowline.」(Ingrid)
「Gasoline.」(Elle)
「Yes, that… Hahh, I think I need to learn Japowneezee.」(Ingrid)
「It’s Japanese.」(Elle)
「…..Anyway, I think your high-quality magic stones will suffice to replace that fluid. We won’t have a power issue, that’s for sure. The problem is not the power, but the materials.」(Ingrid)
According to the blueprint, they would need a sturdy metal resistant to heat to make the body and other parts, especially the engine. As for the tire, ordinary rubber wouldn’t do. They needed strong rubber material that was resistant to friction.
「So you think we can find them in the Great Labyrinth?」(Elle)
「I hope.」(Ingrid)
「You hope?」(Elle)
「Honestly, I’m not sure myself, but that dungeon is called “Great” for a reason. They said you could find anything there.」(Ingrid)
The legend said that the materials to make the legendary weapons used by the heroes from the past were found in the Great Labyrinth. Therefore, it was said that if you needed any rare materials, you could find them there.
「Interesting. Have you ever been there before?」(Elle)
「Yeah, once. I went alone, so I only made it to the seventh floor back then.」(Ingrid)
「Seventh… How many floors are there?」(Elle)
「Nobody knows, but according to the Adventurer Guild’s report, there was an adventurer of Infini Rank who reached the 150th floor ten years ago. That means there are more than a hundred and fifty floors.」(Ingrid)
「That’s so many… That adventurer must be an amazing person to reach that deep.」(Elle)
「Yeah, but unfortunately, they never return.」(Ingrid)
「Never return?」(Elle)
「You know how the guild card works, right? Whenever we complete a mission, kill a monster, or go into a dungeon, the information will go to the guild. The last time the guild received information from that adventurer’s card was when they reached the 150th floor. They’re most likely already dead.」(Ingrid)
「If that’s the case, does that mean their body is still on the 150th floor?」(Elle)
「Yeah. Their relatives submitted a request to the guild with a huge reward, asking to recover their body and belongings, but it hasn’t been completed yet. There’s still no one who can reach that floor except for that unfortunate adventurer.」(Ingrid)
「Looks like the Great Labyrinth is a more dangerous place than I thought.」(Elle)
「Yeah, because of that, the guild has set some restrictions for safety reasons. The adventurer of rank Six can only go up to the 10th floor, rank Cinq up to the 20th floor, Quatre 30th floor, Trois 40th floor, Deux 60th floor, and Une 80th floor. As for the highest rank, Infini, they can go as deep as they want. You can go solo, but it’s recommended to form a party.」(Ingrid)
「I see. Since I’m a Quatre now, I can go up to 30th floor.」(Elle)
「Well, yeah, but let’s hope we won’t have to go that deep. It’s said that the Great Labyrinth is growing every day. Sometimes you can find something that will make you incredibly rich or something that will change your life, but those come with a price, and that price can be your own life, just like that poor adventurer.」(Ingrid)
「Ugh, it’s like the Great Labyrinth devours people…」(Elle)
「Oh, that’s a good metaphor. Well, in fact, so many lives have been lost in that place. Monsters, traps, magic spells—that place has so many things that can kill you.」(Ingrid)
「I see…」(Elle)
Elle lowered her eyes, feeling a bit uneasy.
Ingrid noticed it and patted her head.
「Don’t worry, I will protect you. We won’t go deep this time. We collect the materials we need and then get out right away.」(Ingrid)
「Un. Is there anything I need to pay attention to?」(Elle)
「Traps, obviously. You need to be careful and keep your eyes peeled. Also, there are weird monsters that can disguise themselves as treasure chests. They will eat you alive if you open them.」(Ingrid)
「I think I’ve read about them in a book. I believe they’re called Mimic.」(Elle)
「That’s right. People said that half of the treasure chests there are Mimics. Those monsters make the fairies living in the labyrinth work for them, telling them to collect valuable items throughout the dungeon for them. They will then use those items to attract their prey.」(Ingrid)
「Hmm, so there’s a possibility the materials we need are in those chests.」(Elle)
「Exactly. It’s kind of troublesome…」(Ingrid)
「In that case, we don’t have to worry.」(Elle)
「Hm? Do you have a solution for this?」(Ingrid)
「We can leave it to Yoyo.」(Elle)
「Eh? Me?」(Yoyo)
Being mentioned all of a sudden, Yoyo pointed his paw to his own face and tilted his head.
「Yoyo is sensitive to malice. He can warn us if the ones we find are Mimics.」(Elle)
「I see! Well then, we’re counting on you, Chef!」(Ingrid)
「Yoyo, we’re relying on you.」(Elle)
「Ou! I’ll do my best!」(Yoyo)
Yoyo puffed his chest, trying to look dependable.
The Great Labyrinth was full of danger, but Elle felt rest assured thanks to her reliable companions.
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