Published: February 1, 2026
Rizel clearly remembered the “Library of the Non-Human Beings.”
The new labyrinth had no prior information. There were also monsters she had never seen before. They progressed through trial and error, defeated the boss awaiting them, and obtained the reward for conquering it. And there were lots of books.
“Jill, is there any labyrinth in the Capital City (Parteda) you haven’t been to yet?”
“Huh?”
At this point, Rizel found herself interested in labyrinth exploration, the hallmark of adventurers.
“What are you saying to a labyrinth maniac? There’s none.”
“I avoid troublesome places, but I thought maybe…”
In front of the adventurers' guild quest board, Rizel and the others were chatting freely with Jill next to them.
Jill just gazed at the quests in exasperation. Veteran adventurers in the Capital City, who were also looking over quest sheets, overheard the conversation and listened in.
“If you travel far, there might be some.”
“How far?”
“Three days by carriage.”
For some reason, new labyrinths often appear near populated areas, so there are quite a few labyrinths reachable within a day’s trip. The reason remains unknown, but adventurers accept it with a thought like, “The labyrinths are quite assertive,” similar to the great invasion.
It's one of the “seven wonders of the labyrinth,” renowned for being good at reading the atmosphere. By the way, no one knows all seven.
Considering the great invasion, that’s convenient, but there are still labyrinths far from human settlements.
“Three days is rather far, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, three days… Oh, leader, what’s that?”
“Hm? That? Well, I’m not very familiar with ores.”
“Ah.”
Eleven pointed at a quest saying, “New ore discovered on the southern grasslands?” Rizel didn’t seem interested, and Eleven nodded in understanding.
He thought she’d like it, but apparently, it didn’t strike a chord. Maybe she just wanted to dive into labyrinths, literally.
“When looking at ‘Dream Crossing,’ you hated labyrinths, right?”
“That wasn’t about the labyrinth itself.”
They moved from looking at D-rank quests to C-rank ones.
“It’s like when you think you're ready to go out, but then it turns out to be a dream, and you have to get ready all over again after waking up.”
“Ah, I get it.”
“Me too!”
An adventurer behind reached for a quest sheet, and Rizel stepped half a pace aside to let them have it.
Her back brushed against Jill’s arm, but in front of the crowded quest board, it was unavoidable. Jill didn’t mind and continued scanning the sheets.
“Sorry about that.”
“No problem.”
Rizel followed the torn-off quest sheet with her eyes but quickly looked away. Suddenly, Jill looked down at her.
“By the way, what about the reward?”
“I’ve been having good dreams lately, so maybe that’s it.”
“But you were smiling the most on the day we cleared it.”
Eleven muttered, somewhat sulky, and as Rizel adjusted her position, Jill’s arm reached from behind and slapped Eleven on the back of the head. Eleven grimaced in exaggerated displeasure.
They had reported the clearing, so they accepted it. No need for venting.
“Eleven, you’re pretty dry even with your family, huh.”
Rizel smiled wryly at Eleven, thinking he probably couldn’t understand the joy of reuniting with friends after a long time.
Despite appearances, Eleven genuinely enjoyed labyrinth exploration as part of the party. He disliked bringing in outsiders for the clearings, especially when they seemed to enjoy it more than usual.
Rizel tilted her head gently to meet Eleven’s gaze as he averted his own.
“If it’s a labyrinth you absolutely have to clear, I’d call you guys.”
“…I know.”
His pupils widened slightly as he finally looked their way and then curved in an arc.
Apparently, he barely passed. Rizel smiled happily, and Jill, indifferent, asked:
“What kind of dream reward?”
“I rode a dragon’s back looking down on the Capital City, or pulled a legendary sword from a treasure chest in the labyrinth. It felt really real.”