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Hans A. He had been my first night companion and the first person I killed in this world. Thanks to him, I was able to change to a more civilized lifestyle and adapt to life in the labyrinth. In the process, I was also able to meet Erwen.
Is it because his name was Hans? It's still a thorn in my side, even dead.
His small family portrait had been the first thing I threw aside when I rummaged through his bag after looting it. Was he like a cursed doll from a horror movie that would keep chasing me no matter how many times I threw it?
«Hm? So it's an object that was left behind in the maze...»
But what...? When did Amelia get here? When I became aware again, I realized that all my colleagues had been listening to our conversation while they continued doing their work. I guess it made sense: adventurers used to have good hearing.
«...Then maybe this is a place where everything that has been left behind in the labyrinth ends up». Versyl quickly came up with a hypothesis, like a true magician. The truth is, after hearing my story about the family portrait, it was a theory that could have occurred to anyone.
«Oh! It's amazing! So will I be able to find my lost shoes now? They are my favorite pair».
«If you're lucky, Miss Ainar».
«Wait a minute, Miss Gowland», Amelia intervened. «If we are guided by your hypothesis, what is the explanation for all the furniture in the water? It doesn't seem likely that all those dressers and tables were things the adventurers left in the maze.»
The question tripped Versyl. «It's... true», she murmured, almost to herself. «Why are they there?»
Amelia's observation seemed to refute the hypothesis that that place was the labyrinth's garbage dump. That was until, surprisingly, our navigator was able to offer a plausible explanation.
«If you allow me... I think they could be pieces of furniture that were in large warehouses».
«¿Big ships?»
«I heard that before subspace magic developed, ancient adventurers struggled to explore the sixth floor, as they couldn't summon ships out of thin air like we can do now».
«¿Ah, si?»
«Yeah. So they cut down trees on the Island of Beginnings and built a boat themselves so they could sail the seas on the sixth floor. That is the first part of history that all sailors learn».
«...How is it possible? If they built a new ship every time, they would only be able to reach the nearby islands. And I can't imagine they wanted to go to the trouble of building a new one every month only to throw it away later.»
«You're right. Apparently, the problem was solved with magic. At that time, subspace magic was not as advanced as it is now, but that does not mean that other similar types of magic did not exist.»
Auyen didn't know the details, but according to him, a type of magic caused the ship to automatically sail back to the Island of Beginnings, carried there by the tide regardless of which island you were on at the time of casting the spell. spell.
«So they took advantage of the fact that time on the sixth floor continues to flow even if the maze closes».
«Yes», Auyen confirmed. «However, I also heard that there were many disputes and theft cases as a result of this practice. Oh, and also that sometimes ships capsized when they found their way back to the Isle of Beginnings, instead of their usual one»
«I see. Thanks for the valuable information». I felt bad about having to interrupt Auyen while he enthusiastically demonstrated his knowledge. I didn't really mind hearing him ramble, but right now I needed him to focus on sailing. «But let's focus on our jobs for now».
«Oh... of course!»
«Erwen, stop letting us distract you too. And Ainar, your mop doesn't move».
I quickly ordered everyone to stop eavesdropping and get back to work. The chests or chairs floating in the sea could be interesting, but the real reason they were there didn't matter to us at all. Only one thing mattered, and that was the fact that this place was apparently full of objects, perhaps even treasures, that had been left behind when the maze closed.
«Versyl, keep taking whatever comes floating next to the boat. There could be valuable things mixed in».
«Sí, use haré.»
Right now all we had was this useless family portrait of Hans A, but who knew what else we might end up finding? There could be a numbered item or a high-quality piece of equipment. Surely there would be countless long-forgotten treasures, just as we had to abandon untold amounts of equipment on the Ice Rock.
If you think about it that way, this place is more of a grave than a landfill. Since it is full of all kinds of expensive things from the dead.
I was finally beginning to understand it. At first, I had wondered why so many adventurers risked their lives, waiting for the portal to open even though they knew Berzak was on the loose. But it was really worth risking your life for this opportunity.
New monsters, new essences, new experiences and countless treasures floating in the sea...
How much would we end up earning once we got back to town and sold everything we could find?
«Sir!» Suddenly, Erwen, from her position on the bridge, screamed at the top of her lungs. «An island! There is an island!»
...It wasn't another rank one monster again, was it?
***
In the end, what Erwen saw was an island. Or, well, «island» wasn't the right word. At least he wasn't a monster.
«...It looks like a temple.»
There was some kind of building, one in the shape of two cylinders, floating in the water. We took the boat and looped around it to explore it, but in the end, all we could see from the outside was an entrance leading inside. In other words, getting in was our only option if we wanted to find out what was in there.
«What should we do?»
«What else? We are adventurers. We should go explore it».
As the water level around it was shallow, we had to change to a smaller boat and paddle towards the building.
«...What a strange place».
Going down from the rowboat and heading to the temple, we took a look around, but couldn't see much due to the lack of light.
I can only see about five meters ahead.
All we could see was a wide staircase leading somewhere below. The height and width of each step was enormous, almost as if it had been built for something other than human. Of course, that worked perfectly for me.
[You have put gigantization.]
A ladder I could comfortably go down even in giantization mode? It was enough to make a grown man cry.
Stomp, stomp, stomp.
I took the lead as we went down the stairs to repel any attack that might come our way. But a long time later...
«Is it still going on?»
We should have already gone down at least two hundred steps. What the hell was this place? Spatially speaking, how did this make any sense? But I decided not to think about it too much. After all, it would be ridiculous to expect this world to follow the laws of physics.
Step hard!
Finally, we reach the bottom of the stairs.
«Ugh... es tan dusteriento.»
The chamber we entered had a musty smell. Due to poor visibility, it was difficult to make out much, but as we ventured deeper, our surroundings began to light up.
In fact, in an instant, the entire space lit up as if someone had turned on the lights.
The entire team was startled and immediately went on high alert, waiting for an enemy to appear. However, when nothing came to light, we all turned to look at each other with a lost gaze.
«This place...»
The ceiling was very high, approximately as high as the stairs we had climbed were long. Not only that, but the entire room was lined with huge shelves that reached to the top.
«What is this place? It's like a library...»
The first thing that came to mind was a library, but it was different from all the ones we had seen if only because of its enormous size. The books were so big that you needed to use all your wingspan to hold just one, and each shelf was filled with thousands of them.
«Oh! Doesn't it weigh as much as I thought?».
But for some reason, each book was light enough that anyone with the strength of an adventurer could easily pick it up.
«Miss Fenelin, could you help me open this book?»
«Of course!» Ainar quickly grabbed a book from the shelf for Versyl, then placed it on the floor and opened it. «It's empty...»
That? Are they just accessories, then?
«Versyl, you will be in charge of researching the books here. Ainar, you will stay here and help her. And be sure to protect her if something happens».
I left Ainar and Versyl with the books while the rest of us headed to investigate our surroundings a little more. The chamber appeared cylindrical, and around its outer walls were large curved shelves that reached to the ceiling.
«...What the hell is that thing for?».
In the center of the room was a stone slab shaped like a table. There was also a large stone door wedged between the shelves, in front of the staircase we went down. A thorough investigation revealed nothing more.
This seems to be a place where we have to activate something...
Since there didn't seem to be any monsters or traps around, we split up to investigate. Finally, we found something.
«Mr. Yandel, I found a book here with something written! But it's in the old language, so I think you should come and read it to us».
My knowledge of the ancient language was already bearing many fruits. I ran to Versyl to look at the book I had left on the floor. It was open on one page with an illustration and a passage written on the other.
«The illustration appears to be of the rank nine monster Rat Wall-Mole... but I can't read what it says».
As Versyl speculated, the drawing was of a Wall-Mole Rat. It was written next to the drawing: his name, his habitat, his abilities. The description even spoke of the origins of its name, the characteristics of its essences, its unique habits and much more.
«Looks like a page from a field guide. Is this the only thing inside?»
«Yeah. No matter how many pages I flipped through, they were all blank».
tarareé. «Ya veo…»
«It sounds like you have an idea».
«There is a lot to process».
First of all, this book alone was incredibly valuable. If Raven were here, she'd be running around excitedly, rambling about how incredible this discovery was, like the story fanatic she was. I, however, was not interested in all that. Adventurers were not like magicians. Instead, we valued other things above knowledge.
How can we use this?
That is, we cared about what a new discovery could do for us. No, more than that, we were trying to figure out why that thing - whether it was a magic item, a useful bug, or a hidden feature - existed in the first place.
But instead of investigating, we did things the adventurer way: trying everything we could think of and seeing what worked.
«Everyone, get together». I immediately called a team meeting.
«Have you discovered something?»
«No, but I think I have an idea worth trying».
«Is it worth a try?» Amelia tilted her head, but it would be quicker to teach him than to explain it to him. Especially since I wasn't even sure it worked.
Hit.
I took the book that Versyl had found and placed it on the stone plaque in the center of the library.
About three seconds later, Amelia broke the silence. «I guess there are times when even you are wrong...».
¡Saaaaaa!
Suddenly, the slab began to glow a deep blue. That meant something was going on, and since this was Dungeon and Stone, chances were whatever it was, it was dangerous.
«Bjorn! There! The stone door is opening...!»
I ran in the direction Missha was pointing and positioned myself in front of the pack. «Everyone, prepare for battle!» I screamed urgently.
The team got into position, alert and ready to face whatever came. The tension in the air was dense as the seconds passed.
One second. Of the seconds. Three seconds…
After four seconds, the monster finally appeared, slowly emerging from the crack in the stone doors.
Screech.
It was a rat installment.
¡Squeak!
And only one of them.
The first monster we found in this new plant was a rank one monster. As a result, everyone, including myself, had been extremely cautious about whatever came out of that stone door.
«¿A rat installment…?»
What we got instead was a singular rank nine monster.
«Don't let your guard down. Something else could come out».
Although I was the leader, I was also momentarily lost. However, it wasn't long before I was able to pull myself together enough to realize what was going on.
...So that's what's happening.
There was a passage about the Wall-Mole Rat written in that book. When we placed said book on the stone slab, a Mole Rat appeared through the stone doors. How can that be a coincidence?
«Erwen».
The moment his name came out of my mouth, Erwen let the arrow she had strung fly. Was he a psychic or something? How did I know what I was going to ask him as soon as I said his name? I had no idea, but that didn't matter now.
The mole rat, which had run towards us, died without a word.
¡Shaaaaaa!
There was a burst of light as a singular rank nine mana stone fell where it had been. Since Beginner's Luck didn't work, it didn't release any essence. Although she was of such low rank that we probably would have ignored her.
¡Rumble!
As soon as the monster died, the stone doors began to close again.
«¡Oh! ¡Sr. Candle! ¡Allí!»
Suddenly, a ladder appeared leading to the second row of the huge bookshelf. In a game like Dungeon and Stone, this was an obvious signal to the player.
He told us to keep going up to summon more monsters.
However, before going up the stairs, I checked the book I had placed on the stone slab.
«The image and text have disappeared...»
That meant a book couldn't be used twice. I threw the book, now empty, on the floor as I walked up the stairs, and a sudden thought flashed through my mind.
Can't I skip the stairs and go get a taller book?
If it had occurred to you, you could try it.
I took advantage of my height to hold on to the bottom of the third row of shelves, which the stairs did not reach, and then used the strength of my arms to climb. However, when I tried to take out a book, it didn't move in the slightest.
So, even if we are physically able to go up to a higher level, we cannot put out a book.
But what would happen if it went up to the top? Curiosity was gnawing at me, but I decided to check it out later, when we reached a dead end or had some time left. We already had enough to do.
«Everyone take a book and look for a page with a drawing».
Once I gave the orders, everyone quickly dispersed to grab a book and flip through the pages. With all of us searching together, it only took us a few minutes to find something. This time, there were two monsters in the same book. One was the rank eight Nightplar.
«Oh! I know this one! Isn't that monster with the same essence as the Vampire we met in the Bloody Citadel?».
The other monster in the book was Gullfrog, which we had encountered quite a few times on our way here.
«...So what is written about him?»
«I guess it already has an official name, huh? So we voted for no reason».
Since we had been the first to discover this monster, everyone seemed curious about what might be written about it.
So let's see his real name...
However, as soon as I read what was written at the top of the page, I stiffened.
«...Hey? Bjorn? What happens to you suddenly?» Ainar, worried about my sudden change in attitude, approached me.
Versyl, who was nearby, also seemed worried. «...Mr. Yandel? Is there any problem?»
Tardé en responder. «Gullfrog».
"¿What?"
«En este libro, el nombre escrito es Gullfrog.»
«...What? What do you mean by that? I'm sure it was you who came up with that name, Captain...»
Exactly. It didn't make sense.
«Isn't that an incredible coincidence...? "I can't believe you chose the same name...»" Auyen murmured to himself as I silently looked at the book. He understood where it came from, of course. It would make a lot more sense to assume that this was an incredible coincidence.
But...
Name. Habitat. Essence.
I quickly skipped the rest of the data and went straight to the origin of the name.
Bjorn, son of Yandel, who was the first adventurer to enter the Basement One Plant Archives, named the monster after being the first to discover it.
What the hell was this?