Foreigner Volume 5, Chapter 46

Volume 5 Chapter 46, Labyrinth ~ 04

　As soon as he entered the cave with the light in his hand, he saw human bones scattered about. As expected, Satoru shuddered at the evidence that this was indeed a dangerous labyrinth. Praying for the souls of the poor victims, he continued on his way, and soon the cave was inhabited. 20 steps led down to a floor half a meter high and one meter wide. The floor was about half a majors (4.5 meters) high and one majors (9 meters) wide, enough room for a Giant Killer.

　The floor, walls, and ceiling all seem to be rock walls. The situation is the same as in the 【Deepest Labyrinth】, where Leia was.

「Come to think of it, Leia. How many layers were there in the labyrinth you were in?」

「The Deepest Labyrinth, where I was the master, had 100 layers. I'm sure it's about the same here.」

「Uwahh........It's a pain in the ass. But we have to do it.」

　There was no sign of anyone around. It may be because they've just entered the labyrinth, but surprisingly, there are no monsters or beasts in sight. It's too quiet for a place where monsters and demons are supposed to be spewed out of the labyrinth.

　Rico, who was cautiously searching the area, stopped Satoru's movement. She put her finger to her lips and pointed to the ceiling with a gesture. There seems to be something there. Satoru's eyes didn't see anything - or rather, he concentrated his gaze on the area and saw that there was indeed something there. There were five or six large bats hanging from the ceiling, watching them. Their natural appearance, blending in with the surroundings - a mimicry that is only apparent if you look closely - is magnificent.

　Satoru immediately thought of the many fireballs he could create, and as soon as about 20 fireballs appeared around him, Satoru attacked the swarm of bats hanging from the ceiling. In the end, they were swallowed up by the fireball and scattered easily. This is a different variation of the 【Scattered Flames】 that Leia used to kick out the flock of saber tigers that were attacking Rico.

「......It was so easy.」

　Rico, who had been preparing herself for an attack, cowered in dismay at the viciousness of Satoru's magic. The monster hanging from the ceiling must have been a Giant Vampire Bat. Rico remember from her time in the thieves' guild that it was a tough beast, with quick movements and high evasion capabilities, but it didn't give Satoru any trouble at all.

「Nonono. This is because of my Lord's soul. Anyway, Rico, how did you noticed them?」

「Hmm, I guess. That's what I'm good at.」

　At Leia's compliment, Rico smiled wryly. Basically, she's not used to being praised.

　Leia also has night vision as a characteristic of her race, but the Giant Vampire Bat was mimicking a rock and she did not notice them. She is amazed at Rico's keen intuition.

「Well, if you think of my Lord's soul, they'll probably blow away some of the affinity, but some monsters, for example, are completely immune to fire. There is no choice but to get used to it, but ......My Lord」

「Hmm?」

　When he poked the giant bat that had turned into charcoal with the Giant Killer, it seemed to have carbonized and collapsed. I'm amazed at how powerful I am, Satoru thought, looking back at Leia.

「If possible, please put your words on it. It's hard for us to deal with something when we don't know what kind of arts you're going to use.」

「Even if I was told put words on my arts. I don't know the names of any specific arts.」

「No, it doesn't necessarily have to be the name of the art. I think a spherical art would suffice, but if you could just tell me the type of art, sword, earth, water, fire, wind, etc.」

「Oh, okay. Got it.」

　Satoru agreed that it would not be too much trouble.

　This was the first time Satoru had used his magic to destroy an enemy. The first time at the Flying Dragon's Nest was all flesh and blood, and the only time he used his 【Roar】 was against Galhassan's guild. This was the first time he had actually taken a life, since his goal was to neutralize the enemy.

　However, he didn't feel too guilty. It was probably because he was dealing with a monster. He doesn't know if he would have been able to cast the attack arts without hesitation if it had been against a human. With just a little imagination, magic can be used to easily vaporize an opponent... Once again, Satoru is reminded of the horrors of this world.

　And it seems that the magic training Leia gave him was accurate. He knew that his own magic power was an order of magnitude greater, but it would be meaningless if he didn't know how to use it to some extent.

　At first, Satoru was able to use the sphere magic of the four elements to freely control a single huge object, but that was overkill. Even if he could overpower multiple enemies, as he was doing now, there was a good chance that he would miss them, and too much power could cause the labyrinth to collapse. Even Satoru would be helpless if he were buried under several hundred million tons of earth and sand――probably.

「Also, I'll make a map just in case」

「I'll leave that to you.」

　Satoru's not good at using his head. It's probably best to leave it to the right person. A labyrinth that had been discovered hundreds of years ago, and had so far refused to be touched by human hands, of course it would not be a simple task.

　He was prepared for this, but the search for the labyrinth proceeded surprisingly smoothly.

　After all, Satoru's firepower is too high. Even fire-resistant monsters were overwhelmed by his fire magic, so his firepower was truly unparalleled. Minerva, on the other hand, never used any magic at all and just yawning. Satoru took care of almost everything by himself. Leia took care of the rest.

　However, this was only possible because of Rico's high sensing ability. She was aware of the monster's presence before Satoru and Leia were aware of them, and were quick to warn Satoru and others. 10 layers later, a certain combination was forming.

「They say you can't be too careful, but ...... it's too tough, and it's hard to walk.」

「No, that's because we have Satoru. It's strange that we can get through ten layers so easily.」

　Riko said with a half-smile. It's been about an hour since they started the search so far. There are no traps, and they just keep going deeper and deeper, fighting off the occasional monster or beast.

　According to Rico's information, the highest floor in the labyrinth is the 67th floor, and while the traps are mostly cleared up to the 20th floor, it's hard to say where it goes from there. The real challenge will probably come from the 21st floor onward.

「Minerva too, is getting a little bored.」

　At the moment, Minerva is really just following him around, so that can't be helped.

　From time to time, the corpses of people, probably adventurers, are lying around. It seems that it's been quite a while, so there seems to be no need to bring back any mementos. In fact, he never come across a living person here before.

「Let's take a break. It's almost dinner time.」

　Realizing that he was getting a little tired, Satoru suggested that they take a break. They found a small, independent room, where Leia set up multiple effective wards. The most important thing here is to avoid monsters. Apparently, the wards are designed to prevent monsters from coming to this area unconscious. It must be a technique with a mild hypnotic effect.

　If they were in an encampment, Minerva would always come hunting for Satoru, but that's not the case in the labyrinth. They had some beast meat that they could use as food, thanks to Leia and Rico's knowledge, and Rico started cooking with it. The wood for the fire was made from the branches of plant monsters.

「Well, thanks to my Lord and Rico, we've had it easy.」

　Leia muttered, her face a little thoughtful. Satoru is in charge of the vanguard, Rico is in charge of sensing, and Leia is in charge of wisdom and rearguard. At the moment, Minerva has no definite role to play.

「What's the matter? What are you thinking?」

　At Satoru's voice, Leia tilted her head slightly.

「No, not really. I was thinking that there might be a way to make things easier.」

　Leia herself had a feeling that something was stuck in her back teeth. The journey here is easy. There are no traps in the labyrinth, and Satoru just kicks away the monsters that they encounters several times. At this point, they hadn't been attacked in any case. Rico's high sensing ability allows Satoru to take the initiative, which is a big advantage.

　When Satoru jokingly asked Leia if they could use 【Transfer】 to get to the end of the labyrinth, she replied very seriously that it was impossible unless they knew the exact coordinates. If even a small part of the body gets mixed in with the rock, the soul of the magicians themselves will be destroyed. That's why it can be used for escape with an escape route in the sky, but not for infiltration. There is also a method to check the coordinates called 【Signpost】, but the longer the distance, the less accurate it becomes. He remembered being lectured that he couldn't take such a risk, because the deeper you go in a labyrinth where the layers haven't been breached, the more likely it is that magic will be blocked.

　Other than that, what's the easiest way? Satoru twisted his head.

「What's easier? Smashing the floor?」

　At Satoru's joke, Leia widened her eyes and said, "Ohhh".

「Let's do that then!」

「Oi-oi. Are you serious?」

　It was meant as a joke, but Leia nodded repeatedly as if she was convinced.

「The rocks in the labyrinth are covered with the protective magic of the Ancient Magic Kingdom. If you want to use earth magic to turn them into sand, or water and earth magic to turn them into mud, you can only get as far as a foot (30cm). But we have my Lord's magic power, no?」

　Satoru also put his hand on his chin and thought for a moment. Looking at the construction of the stairs, the thickness of the rock must be at least five feet (1m50cm). However, considering his tireless magical power, it seemed not impossible. A single hole for a person to pass through would have little chance of collapsing.

「You have point there.」

　Leia unfolded the map of the labyrinth that she had written on the parchment.

「At the moment, looking the map, it seems to be straightforward. If the floor can be broken through by my Lord's magic power, it may be possible to reach the bottom at once.」

　Fumu, Satoru nodded in agreement. If he could get to the bottom in one go, it would be worth a try.

　However, they had been walking for about an hour so far. There was a peculiar sense of tension as they explored the labyrinth. There must be some unseen fatigue.

「For now, let's take a rest for today. We'll do it tomorrow」

「Got it」

　On the other hand, Satoru noticed that Minerva's expression was not happy.

　He sat down beside Minerva, who was in a daze, watching Rico cook, and patted her on the head.

「What's wrong? Are you tired?」

「A little.」

　For Minerva, who is not in the habit of walking, it must be more painful than she imagined to keep walking. However, the sorrow in her smile was not only due to fatigue. When he look at her with a sorrowful expression on her face, he can see that she is a beautiful woman with a calm appearance.

「.....If you don't say what you want to say properly, it will be poisonous to your body.」

　Twitch, Minerva reacted with a twitch. She glanced sideways at her Lord's face. She hesitated for a few moments, and then finally opened her mouth.

「 ...... After entering the labyrinth, Minerva has been completely useless.」

　Oh, so that's what it is, Satoru thought to himself. In the open air, Minerva is a force to be reckoned with, but in the labyrinth, her usefulness is limited. At this point, Minerva is just following them.

「It's okay. We all have our own roles. Even Minerva has a your own roles, you know?」

「 ......I don't have any.」

　He stroked her head, and Minerva responded in a small, tearful voice as she moved her head. The roots may be deeper than Satoru thinks. Minerva seems to be very anxious that she can't be of any help. Satoru shook his head left and right.

「No, Minerva is definitely being helpful. If it hadn't been for Minerva, how long would it have taken us to get to this labyrinth?」

「That ...... may be true, but」

　At present, the pain of moving even more keenly now that he's walking through the labyrinth.

「Currently, it's hard to use Minerva's power in the labyrinth. That's why you just feel like you're not being helpful. Is your Danna-sama is the kind of man who would lie to you?」

「...... No.」

　Minerva shook her head from side to side. Her father, Erdeade, had taught her that humans are a race of liars and deceivers, but Satoru was certainly never tell a lie. Even in the battle when they first met, Satoru was able to beat Minerva with brute force. This was one of the reasons why Minerva was attracted to Satoru.

「I'm the kind of guy who only look in front of me. Minerva helps me by looking behind me.」

「Really?」

　【Really】, nodded Satoru emphatically. Satoru had noticed that Minerva was taking care of her surroundings, especially the rear, not Satoru, during the battle.

「The enemy doesn't always come from the front, right? Sometimes they come from behind. I don't have eyes in my back, you know. I can think that Minerva is protecting my back, so I can fight in front.」

「Minerva, she's useful」

　Minerva's expression clearly relaxed at Satoru's encouragement.

「Yeah. So, don't worry about it.」

　Caressing her cheek, Satoru kissed Minerva on her forehead. Minerva's eyes fluttered, she held her forehead, and then nodded her head.

「...... Yes. Minerva, will do her best.」

　Rico, who was watching the exchange, gave a small shrug.

「That's good.」

「What's good?��」

「The way you treated Minerva.」

　Satoru cowered slightly. He didn't mean to take it lightly.

「I meant it. I'm not lying at all.」

「...... Minerva, rather than Leia?」 [TLN: sorry bit hard to translate, ……ミネルバが、っていうより、レイアじゃないの？]

　Indeed, Leia was able to kill Satoru's leaks with precision and efficiency. As a rule of thumb, Riko moves to the back of the line when a battle breaks out, but in most cases, the battle is over when she moves back. All the battles that have occurred so far have been one turn kills.

「I won't deny that Leia is like that, though. When it comes to fighting, Leia is looking at me. Minerva is looking behind us. That's the difference.」

「Oh, I see. I get it.」

　Although Rico is also following a wide area, she tends to neglect the back. This is especially true if a monster appears in front of them. Minerva trusts everyone, not just Satoru, so she doesn't think that the attack will be directed at her at all. That's why she makes sure to take care of the rear.

　Satoru muttered to himself as he watched Rico's handiwork, cooking quickly.

「You can do anything, Rico.」

　Rico laughed and shook her head left and right.

「That's not true. I'm not good at fighting. Satoru killed most of them with a single blow, so it looks like there's no problem, but even the monsters that have appeared so far are all ones that would be dangerous to someone like me if I took a single blow, you know?」

　The monsters that Satoru had dealt with so far had been neither formidable nor formidable, but they were still the most feared monsters in the world.

「I wasn't looking for Rico to be a fighting force.」

　At Satoru's assertion, Rico looked down slightly.

「...... It's a little hurtful when you say it outright.」

「But other than fighting, Rico has provided for almost everything else. If it weren't for Rico, I wouldn't have had such an easy time fighting, and I wouldn't have made the trip.」

　She takes care of everything in their lives, including cooking and laundry. When they enters a town, she does the shopping and gathers information, and when they enters a labyrinth, she quickly finds the enemy.

「It is the duty of those who are able to protect Rico to be useful. It's just a matter of each of us doing our part.」

　Thieves have their own role to play. The warrior's job is not only to destroy the enemy, but also to protect the magicians, thieves, and monks who provide firepower in the rear. It's the same in this world and in the world of fantasy RPG games.

「...... Sometimes, I almost forget that Satoru is from another world.」

　Rico gave a small laugh. He is a very reliable man, and he knows how to handle things from her point of view.

「You knows everything, you can do anything, and you can protect us. You're very cool, Satoru.」

「Really?」

　Satoru, who had never been called "cool" before, honestly showed an itchy face.

「For Leia, for Minerva... That's why I'm following you, Satoru. I'm the same way」

　She put the prepared meat into the pot and muttered to herself. It's unmistakably her true feelings. It's not often that she find a good man who is always honest, cares for others, and protects them with his great strength.

「...... Someday, I'd like to have Satoru's child, too.」

「.........」

　Satoru was unable to reply to the words that were muttered to him. Rico, realizing that she had spoken out her secret little hope, hurriedly made up for it.

「Oh, don't worry too much. Satoru will return to your world. I know that for sure.」

　Rico didn't know this because she was fainting, but when the three of them had sex in the city of Ares, Leia also cried for Satoru. She cried, imagining their separation. The same feeling was felt by Rico. The time to say goodbye would eventually come. Satoru is no longer a resident of this world. She know that, but at this point she can't imagine what will happen after Satoru is gone. Still, she have not wavered in her determination to stay with him until that time.

「Until that time, I want to be by Satoru's side. It's not just me, I'm sure everyone feels that way.」

「...... I'm sorry.」

　Rico just smiled and didn't give any more back.

「Okay, dinner's ready. Let's eat, Satoru.」

　Satoru nodded back, and thought about it.

　He thought about Alice in his original world. About his friends, of whom there were not many. About the president and his colleagues.

　And of Leia, Riko, and Minerva, with whom he had formed bonds in this world.

　For now, I'm going to home, though I'm moving with that in mind.

　But can I really leave them behind and go home without a care in the world? Even now, Satoru was aware that he was unsure.

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