Return of the Former Hero

Chapter 151 – Former Hero is impatient

When I think about it again, we are already on the 11th floor.

It’s an unknown place…not really just because very few people had ventured here.

[So dark! How scary!]

The path was leading downward.

Beyond that, the lighting had yet to be installed so it’s pitch dark there.

This is much scarier than I thought.

It’s not like I believe in ghosts or something. It’s just my human instincts kicking in.

But well, there ARE ghost-type monsters.

Ah, no, I don’t know about this world, but probably there is.

That said, if something jumped out from the shadow, I had all the confidence that I won’t shout in fear.

Well, not like I can say [Yosh, let’s head back] either.

Everyone invoked magical light on their hand and proceeded onward.

Along the way, we also installed some lightings.

After a while, while absorbing the surrounding magic power, the light fixtures began to shine dimly.

This could count as a marker, signifies that we’ve passed through here.

[It’s almost like Hansel and Gretel.]

Looking back at the passage we’ve passed through, the light fixtures gave me such impressions.

[Who again?]

Celes, who was drawing the map next to me, responded.

[Ah, it’s a fairytale from my…. Ah, yeah. well… my hometown.]

Whoa there, Elcure does not know that I came from a different world yet.

Apart from that, Elcure won’t have any idea what ‘Earth’ is, so I chose to rephrase my words.

[It’s about a brother and sister who got lost in the forest. They used something like a pebble; no, crumbs of bread as a marker to return back home safely or something like that]

[I see. That sounds similar to Stock’s Great Adventure.]

Sto..ck? Eh?

Celes looked back at me, nodding in confirmation to my confused look.

I’m not really sure yet, but apparently there is a similar story in this world.

The gist of the story is pretty much the same despite being an entirely different world.

We chatted casually as we proceeded through the labyrinth.

Unlike the 10th floor, we had no detailed map so more time is spent exploring.

In addition, the monsters had not been cleared yet so we encountered quite a lot along the way.

There seemed to be no change in the monster’s strength. Tanya and Leon made short work of them.

And as before, I was left with nothing to do.

At best, all I could do was to install light fixtures along the path.

When I think about it now, did Elcure do anything at all?

Aside from that.

While I was in the process of installing yet another light fixture on the wall, it happened.

Pichon

[Hiiee…!?]

Suddenly, a cold sensation spread ran through my neck, making me yelp involuntarily.

Everyone’s attention was focused on me, and it’s embarrassing,

[Ermm, there is something on my neck…]

When I put my hand on my neck, I felt that it’s a little damp and sticky…

Uwa…what the hell is this? Definitely not water.

Looking up at the ceiling, I expected something sticky hanging there.

I was pretty sure that a monster was hanging there a moment ago, body fluids dripping on me. But when I looked up, I saw nothing there. Just the ceiling.

No, really, some kind of sticky liquid was dripping down from there.

Apparently those slimes has also been accumulating together on the corner of the wall.

[What is this?]

I squatted down and scooped up some of those slimy things and nudging it with my finger.

Glomp glomp

It’s not as solid as a slime, but it’s also too thick to be called a liquid.

[Isn’t this magic water?]

[Magic water?]

As I played around with the slimy substance, Leon told me its real identity.

[Yes. This place has so much magic power that it can turn rocks into magic stones. So the spring water might have accumulated a lot of magic power as well.]

Eeh, is that so?

Certainly it’s not something I’ve ever seen or heard before.

[Can it restore magic power when drunk?]

[Some say it’ll restore a very small amount, but it’s a common mistake.]

I wonder.

If it brings more benefits when drunk, I guess it should be a more well known and popular item.

However, it won’t hurt to give it a try, right?

Glomp glomp

Hmmm…hmm…

[Is this ‘magic water’ a rare commodity?]

As I hadn’t moved away from my earlier spot, Celes peeked back curiously.

[Nn~….no, speaking of rare, the greater the magic power absorbed, the more viscous it will become, right? That made me thinking.]

[That’s right. The stronger the magic power, the more viscous it’ll become. That’s why Onii-san’s sper… Aah…!]

Celes finally realized what I’m about to do.

[Ahaha… well, no… Never mind…]

Her face promptly turned bright red. Damn, she’s cute.

What am I going to do?

You also considered the possibilities after thinking about it, didn’t you?

Let’s talk about it more thoroughly when there is no one to disturb us next time.

Fuhehehehe.

[Oーy! Come on now, let’s get going!]

Tanya who was very focused on her job urged us to continue.

[Nn. That’s right. Let’s go.]

I ran some water over my hand to wash off the magic water, then gave Celes, whose face was still covered with blushes, some pats in her head. We resumed the exploration afterward.

[Uu…]

It wasn’t easy to recover her composure after that, so Celes walked around with her face still blushing for a while.

Leon didn’t really understand the meaning behind our exchange just now, but he decided not to say anything, as it didn’t bother him.

Elcure seemed to be in a weird condition when we started exploring, but now she looked alright after glancing at Celes, nodding once while whispering something to herself. What is going on with her?

=====

――――――――――

After about 4 hours of exploring, we reached the 14th floor.

I knew it. Mapping the labyrinth would take a lot of time.

Even so, with the current pace, we should be able to reach the 20th floor, mine the magic stones, and return back to the city in a single day.

We should find a good place to spend the night soon.

[Haruto.]

[Nn?]

Tanya who walked ahead of us as usual, suddenly called out to me.

And then, she conveyed her intention so directly.

[Pee…]

Now now, Tanya-chan.

It’s been several times already today, but would it hurt for you to say that you want to go to the toilet instead?

Certainly, during normal occasions, that [pee] would sound like music to me, but there is Leon with us here too.

[Ah… okay. Let’s take a restroom break for a bit.]

With the exploration on a short break, Tanya and Celes immediately disappeared to a corner.

Now that I think about it, considering the risk of surprise attack, wouldn’t it be unwise to act separately? Or is it?

Without Leon here, I would’ve had to be more careful.

First and foremost, I need to enter a distance where I can still confirm those two’s conditions with Search.

The flow of magic is particularly strong in this labyrinth, so using Search in a wide area is impossible.

Celes seemed to be on the lookout, while Tanya had already started squatting down.

…..

This is so that the two will still retain some wariness of the surroundings, so there won’t be any unnecessary troubles. There is no other way.

Now, if there was no one to bother us, normally, I would just let them take a piss here so that I can watch them directly, wouldn’t I?

……

Yes, I would.

[Speaking of which, is Elcure alright? You haven’t gone to have any restroom break today, have you?]

Originally, I refrained from asking because I don’t particularly know how to say [Do you want to go to the toilet] to this girl from Demon King Army, but she didn’t show any sign of wanting to go up until now.

[I’m fine…it’s alright.]

However, for some reasons she responded with a blushing face.

Tch.

Really now, I didn’t feel that I’ve done something wrong just now. That’s strange.

Then why did I feel that I was at fault?

Well, if she said it’s alright, then it’s surely alright.

In fact, maybe she’s just too shy. Later, once we decided on the place to spend the night, maybe she’ll go on her own secretly.

I need to be more vigilant.

It’s my duty as the party leader.

Yep.

After a while, Celes and Tanya returned.

Then it’s Leon and my turn. We both went together.

After I’m done, it’s time to talk about how we should spend the night.

[Let’s explore a little more, then secure a place to rest. If we find a good spot, we could stay there. And if we don’t, we can just backtrack a little.]

[That’s right. I think that’s a good idea.]

Celes supported my suggestion and no one showed any objections either.

The best spot we are looking for is a dead end where there is an open space and wide enough for all of us.

It’ll make it more convenient for us since we’ll only have to watch over one passage.

We found one spot like that along our way here, but it’s a bit bothersome to backtrack our way there, so I hope we’ll find similar place ahead.

And so, as we continued to forge on ahead, I felt somewhat uncomfortable.

Thankfully it’s still within the area where my Search can reach.

[Tanya. Be careful with your steps. There is a hole there.]

[Nn? Whoopsie, it’s true.]

Tanya stopped walking in lieu to my advice.

And right before her was a large and seemingly deep hole.

It’s dark so I couldn’t see it clearly, but I think it’s at least 20~30 meters deep?

No, probably deeper?

[Waa, amazing.]

Celes looked down from the edge of the hole.

She immediately drew the huge hole on the map.

I tried to look for the bottom by shedding some light from the magic light, but I still couldn’t see the end of it. Only utter darkness.

[Uwaa… scary.]

As if it’s a bottomless hole. I have no idea how deep this hole goes.

At the very least, I couldn’t judge its bottom through Search.

Standing at the edge of such a big hole felt like it’s calling us to jump in.

[Is it…a cave-in?]

Leon muttered as he looked at the hole.

A cave-in?

Is that really possible?

[So, what do we do? If we jump in, it may lead us to the deeper level faster…. But I guess it’s too dangerous, right?]

[Better refrain from doing so.]

[I know right?]

Celes denied my idea this time. Naturally.

Fortunately, the road was not broken off completely so we could still proceed forward.

[Okay, let’s ignore the hole and move on.]

[Understood.]

With my command, everyone walked around the hole.

At that point…

[Wha-!]

I heard a small voice from behind me.

There should only be Elcure behind me.

However, when I looked back, Elcure was not there anymore.

Eh? Are you kidding me? She didn’t fall into the hole, did she!?

I thought she was a bit under the weather today, but it couldn’t be, right?

[Uo!] [Kyah!]

While I was looking back, voices could also be heard from the front.

Eee!?

When I hurriedly looked to the front, there was only Leon.

Celis and Tanya weren’t there.

I asked Leon what had happened, but I could already guess the situation here.

Leon is looking from the edge of the hole.

[Haruto-san! Something grabbed the two of them instantly! Sorry!]

Leon shouted with an unusually impatient face.

[Elcure is no longer behind me as well! Probably the same thing]

I suppose I also felt impatient as well.

Dammit!

To think it would only target the girls while in our presence.

How come we didn’t even notice?

No, we must not waste any more time. We should go for the chase instead.

[Follow me.]

[Yes.]

And with that, Leon and I jumped into that hole.