Chapter 49 - Companions (3)

Polished looks and fine blond hair. A scrawny frame somewhere in the mid-160-centimeter range. A rank-8 mage who knew domestic and administrative magic, a few curses, and ice magic.

Leor Wuerv Dwalki.

The more we talked, the more strongly he reeked of a con man.

'Fuck, is he even a mage?'

That suspicion suddenly struck me, so I checked a few things. Surprisingly, he really was.

And looking back, he hadn't actually lied, either. He'd only said his aunt's husband was the baroness's third younger sibling, not that he himself was a noble.

Well, even he must have known where to draw the line. Impersonating a noble was a serious crime, one that left you no grounds for complaint even if you were executed on the spot.

"Well? Have I passed?"

After much deliberation, I decided to let him join the team.

"... From now on, you're one of us."

"Haha! Excellent. This will be my first expedition, so I wanted a team with as many warriors as possible."

A personality full of bluster and bravado, and absolutely no experience exploring the Labyrinth. Those were two definite flaws...

But he was still a mage. He wasn't demanding a larger share, and he promised to follow orders in the Labyrinth. I figured that made him manageable enough.

'There's always a reason something's cheap.'

Besides, once word got out that we had a mage, the quality of our applicants was bound to improve again. A mage's personality didn't show up on paper, after all.

"I'll contact you again once we've found the rest of our companions."

"Understood. Until then."

After Dwalki left, the dwarf, who'd been stiff throughout the conversation, let out a long breath.

"Isn't he impressive? A mage and a noble, yet so humble..."

I answered with complete sincerity.

"Hikurod, you're the truly impressive one."

I meant it one hundred percent.

* * *

My routine in the city was simple after that. Apart from my weekly visits to Raven's laboratory, I woke up at seven, threw together something to eat, and headed straight to the library.

"Farcitiev."

"Well, keep up the good work."

"..."

Counting my earlier visits, I'd been showing my face almost every day for two months now, but I'd still never had a proper conversation with the librarian.

GROWL!

Usually, I read until closing time, stopping for a meal every four hours. But not today. I had an appointment.

I was about to leave a little before closing when the librarian unexpectedly spoke to me first.

"I have a question."

"... What is it?"

"Why do you wear armor every time you come to the library?"

Oh, so that was what she'd been wondering about. I gave her an honest answer.

"What if I leave it at the inn and someone steals it?"

"... If that's your reason, I understand."

The moment I finished answering, she closed her eyes as though our business was concluded.

"I thought you had no interest whatsoever in other people. I suppose that's not entirely true?"

For some reason, I felt like I'd lost, so I added that remark. A faint trace of displeasure crossed her face.

"The other patrons have been filing repeated complaints. They say you're so distracting that they can't read."

"... I-is that so?"

"Yes. If you're finished here, would you please leave instead of disturbing me?"

Disturbing her? She'd just go straight to sleep once I left.

I wanted to say something, but getting banned for bothering her would be a real headache. I practically fled the library and headed to our meeting place.

It was a little after nine in the evening.

"Over here, Bjorn! What kept you so late today?"

"Sorry. You're so small I couldn't find you."

"Hahaha! You're getting better at jokes! Come, sit!"

I'd started meeting the dwarf for drinks more often, about three or four evenings a week. Of course, we weren't meeting that frequently just to socialize. We always discussed the team.

"So, how was the man you met this time?"

"A serious, dependable fellow."

No, not that crap. How good was he?

"Ah! Despite my concerns, he wasn't bad. He's been an explorer for a long time, and I think he could pull his weight in any situation."

"I see."

"... So, what do you think?"

After a moment's consideration, I nodded. The dwarf's face lit up.

"Whew, that's a relief. I was worried you'd reject this one too. We don't have much time left, you know."

That sigh conveyed the hardships of a dwarf who was, in practice, little more than a figurehead team leader.

To be fair, he'd done the most work. I should give him some praise. It wasn't as though that cost anything.

"You've worked hard, Hikurod. You're an excellent team leader. I was right to choose you."

"Hahaha! You think so?"

"Of course. Where else would I find a leader who respects his teammates' opinions like you do? Don't lose that attitude. Keep doing what you're doing. Then you'll become an excellent leader, unlike that idiot who kicked you out."

"Haha! Oh, you flatter me! I was worried, since I've never done this before, but I'm glad I have you!"

His words suddenly filled my heart with emotion.

This was the same dwarf who'd once complained about my constant interference. And now he'd become such an excellent team leader!

"In that spirit, tonight's drinks are on you!"

"... Again? Didn't I pay last time?"

"As I've said before, an excellent team leader mustn't be stingy about these things!"

"I-it's not that I'm being petty...!"

Exactly one week remained before the Labyrinth opened.

"Oh, fine! I'll pay tonight! We've finally got the whole team together. What does a little drinking money matter?"

At last, our team was complete.

* * *

Games and reality are different.

Completing a team didn't mean you could simply enter the Labyrinth. There were other things to take care of first.

Everyone had to meet and get acquainted. We had to decide how many floors we'd climb and where we'd mainly hunt, and, like the money-obsessed explorers we were, argue over whether the shares were fair.

If there were still no problems after that, we'd register as an official team with the guild. Finally, we had to practice working together every day and finalize our exploration plans, among other things.

'That flew by.'

The busiest week since I'd awakened in Bjorn Jandel's body had passed.

And the long-awaited moment arrived.

「You have entered the first floor: Crystal Cave.」

Crystal Cave, on the first floor of the Labyrinth, was bathed in a soft glow of brilliant colors.

"Oho! So this is the Labyrinth!"

Unlike my previous visits, when I'd been alone or with just one other person, there were now five of us, men and women, including me. These were the new teammates who would share this journey.

To introduce them one by one—

"Riate!"

"Agh! Fuck! My eyes!"

The scrawny blond who'd cast that blinding spell before my eyes could even adjust was Leor Wuerv Dwalki.

Dwalki the bastard, for short.

"Have you lost your fucking—"

I was about to snap at him in irritation, but the dwarf beat me to it.

"Dwalki, conserve your mana whenever possible."

"Hmm, but it's so dark."

"By Labyrinth standards, this is very bright. If it's really too dark, we can light a torch."

"In that case, very well."

Things had changed with time. The dwarf had realized Dwalki wasn't a noble and started treating him more casually.

And, for some reason, they'd become quite close. The dwarf pretended otherwise, but whenever Dwalki acted like a loser, he'd grumble while looking after him. That more or less defined their relationship.

"Why did you pack so much for the Labyrinth? You really are a novice. Here, give it to me. I'll put it in my bag."

"I shall gladly accept your thoughtful consideration."

As the dwarf fussed over Dwalki's belongings as usual, a cheerful, high-pitched voice rang out.

"Leader, shouldn't we get moving, nyah?"

Misha Karlstein.

As the triangular ears on top of her head made clear, she was a therianthrope explorer. Twenty-five years old, and in her fifth year of exploring.

She stood in the low 170-centimeter range, with a slender, long-limbed figure. Combined with her haughty features, it gave her a chilly air, but...

"Stop fooling around and let's go, nyah. I want to start bashing monsters' heads in, nyah."

She had a strange habit of slurring only the ends of her sentences. She insisted it was an unavoidable pronunciation issue caused by therianthrope anatomy, but I'd never met anyone whose pronunciation was this bad.

Oh, and there was one other noteworthy thing about her.

"Haha! How could we refuse an order from our princess?"

"Grr! I told you not to call me princess, nyah!"

"But you are the daughter of the Red Cat Tribe's chieftain. How could this humble servant possibly—"

"I'll kill you, you dwarf, nyah!"

Misha Karlstein was a princess of the Red Cat Tribe, one of the five great tribes. Thirteenth, was it? Or fifteenth? I couldn't remember her birth order.

In any case, there was no need to give her special treatment. She was only a princess by comparison to human society, not an actual princess.

There was someone else we needed to be careful around.

"Murad, stop. Even if you're only joking, she clearly dislikes it."

Braun Rotmiller.

Human, thirty-four years old. He was only rank 7, but he had a full eight years of experience. However much the explorer business valued ability above all else, he was still the most experienced among us.

Perhaps that was why the dwarf always backed down when he spoke.

"Ahem. I did go a little too far, didn't I? I'll restrain myself from now on."

"Serves you right, you dwarf—"

"The same goes for you, Miss Karlstein. However angry you may be, is it appropriate to insult your team leader and threaten to kill him?"

"... I'm sorry, nyah."

Personally, he was my favorite teammate. In a sense, he was the only normal person on the team.

Though that did come with the drawback that I couldn't push him around the way I could the others.

"Murad, may we set off before we're delayed any further?"

"Ah, please do."

"Everyone, stay close behind me from here on."

Just as we were about to leave, Dwalki spoke up.

"Wait. Wouldn't it be better for Bjorn or Hikurod to lead? They are warriors, after all..."

"I'll need their help from the third floor onward, but until then, I can manage alone."

Honestly, I didn't know what he was worried about. Rotmiller was a professional Scout, and he'd survived eight years in the Labyrinth.

'His explorer rank is low for how long he's been at it, but...'

I actually thought highly of that. In eight years, he must have been through just about everything, yet he was still alive and well. Not through fighting prowess, but by making use of his other strengths.

'That's probably why he's so serious and inflexible about everything.'

Following Rotmiller's lead, we smashed the occasional monster that appeared and pressed onward until we finally reached our destination: the outermost part of the first floor, commonly called the Dark Region.

Even though we'd come straight here by the shortest route without getting lost, another explorer had already opened the portal.

"Someone beat us here again."

"Don't blame yourself. You did more than well enough."

"Murad, that is no reason not to strive. If you can no longer feel frustrated by your own shortcomings, your life as an explorer is over."

"I-is that so?"

For reference, it had taken us about ten hours to get here. I couldn't bring myself to say it in front of the passionate Rotmiller, but that was an excellent time for an ordinary exploration team. We weren't a speedrunning team chasing portal-opening EXP, after all.

Honestly, even I hadn't expected him to find the portal this easily.

'He's this good at finding his way, and he's not even a Guide...'

It made me think I could look forward to seeing his other abilities, too. At the same time, a small regret stirred in a corner of my mind.

'If I'd been with Aynar or Erwin, I could've gotten the opening EXP too.'

Dimensional instability.

By exploiting the method I'd privately dubbed the "bug," I could guarantee myself portal-opening EXP. But that was something I could only use if I could at least ensure secrecy through a "promise" or an "oath."

'I'll save that for later... until I have a team I can truly trust. It's not as though I desperately need EXP right now.'

As I let out a deep breath and shook off my lingering regret, the dwarf's voice boomed out.

"Right, let's get in there!"

The dwarf stepped into the portal first, and I followed right behind him.

'Please, let this trip be uneventful...'

Was that too much to ask after all?

「You have entered the second floor: Beasts' Lair.」

Our journey had begun in earnest.