Chapter 263: The Theatrical Man
“Well then, I’ve filled my stomach, so let’s get serious. Note, hand over the map.”
“Here you go.”
Note presented the map to Dinoss.
“Retze found traces of the black spirit here and here. They’re heading in this direction. Even when possessed by a black spirit, they often act according to the container’s purpose. Back when it was the spirit moss and the burrowing wolf for me, what’s the money-making target in the current Twentieth Layer?”
“The spirit moss is only found beyond the Twenty-Fourth Layer now. The burrowing wolf hasn’t changed, but it’s not around. You had a hammer in your gear, right? There are a few spots where you can mine some magic silver. Based on the traces, it should be here.”
Retze pointed to a spot on the map.
“Alright, let’s aim for that.”
And so it was decided.
Holding the lantern, we moved through the darkness, this time without paying attention to the ground or walls, quickening our pace.
After a while, Dinoss raised one hand, signaling us to stop, placing his index finger in front of his mouth. Retze extinguished the lantern’s flame.
As we crept forward, voices reached our ears.
“Man, it’s taking a while to find anything.”
“If we hit a layer with silver, it’ll be a goldmine.”
“Can you tell me a good blacksmith in the Fortress City that handles magic silver?”
“Sure thing, leave it to me.”
The adventurers were chatting in a rather cheerful tone. Yet, there were no sounds of chisels, hammers, or pickaxes breaking the walls. How can they tell where to dig in this pitch darkness?
Amidst their conversation, a faint scratching sound echoed. Oh no. —These people are clawing at the stone walls with their bare hands.
“One, two, three… all nine of them are here,” Dean whispered.
This is terrifying. Is everyone else okay with this? Seriously? I won’t cry, but I’m definitely feeling fidgety and suspicious.
“I might fail, but can you let me handle this for a bit?” Chris said, as if he had come up with an idea.
“Sure. But I’ll let you know the positions of half of them that are possessed, just in case we end up in a fight. This is where they’re all headed. The woman on the right is on her right shoulder, the man with her is on his left shoulder. The mage is in the middle of the shoulder blades, and the guy with green hair is on his right side.”
Dinoss explained.
“In this darkness, I can only distinguish between the woman and the big guy. I might recognize the mage by their fighting style,” Dean grumbled.
“Yeah, if you can’t see the spirits, you won’t even see their silhouettes,” I added. It seems that most wild spirits appear as faint glowing orbs… The black spirits glow darkly and hazily. And only the silhouettes of people close to the spirits are faintly illuminated.
“Are you okay? Can you lend me your lantern?” Chris asked.
“Sure.”
Chris had his own lantern, but it was attached to his gear, so he borrowed Retze’s and lit it.
“Hey there, hello!” Chris suddenly called out to the nine.
“…”
The conversation halted, and an uncomfortable atmosphere settled in. Physically, I felt no fear, but I was succumbing to the tension. Am I not supposed to strike?
What if Chris gets attacked? It would definitely be more peaceful if I took it upon myself.
“Have you found any magic silver? If you want, my friends and I can cast a spell to help you dig up a lot of magic silver!”
As soon as Chris mentioned magic silver, the rough energy around them dissipated.
“…You can dig up a lot of magic silver?”
“Of course!”
Still, it felt strange.
“Then could you line up for me? I’d like to know your names. The place where I cast the spell depends on your names!”
Chris cheerfully announced.
“After you, lady.”
“Jasmine.”
“Oh, Jasmine, you’re on the right shoulder!”
The black spirit contorted its face in a way that resembled a human, but it seemed that human consciousness or desire was still stronger.
And as a person, it seemed they didn’t find this situation odd, prioritizing their desires.
“Oh, I’ll cast the spell on everyone at once!”
Asking for names was just a pretense; Chris and Dinoss turned the spirits to make them easier to cut down.
Ten groups, thirty-one people. Seven groups remaining, twenty-two people.
With eight against nine, it was over in no time. And the nine who had lost their will to fight lay there. Are we supposed to carry them?
Karn had two on his shoulders, Ash and Dean each had two, while Retze, Note, and Chris had one each. I illuminated the ground with the lantern, while Dinoss remained empty-handed, ready for anything.
“Should I carry one too?”
“You’re the mage, just stay put.”
I offered to help, but Retze declined.
“What are you on guard against?”
Karn asked.
“The Vice Guild Master of the Fortress City, or rather, the Adventurer’s Guild is more aligned with the ruling powers. If they find out I have power equal to a hero, they’ll start trying to recruit me as a piece against the hero,” Dinoss replied, waving his hand dismissively.
It would be nice if I could help people without any strings attached, but if I’m not careful, I’ll end up with a lot of complications. Dealing with Rosa’s group alone is troublesome enough, but if organizations like the country or guilds get involved, I’ll be stuck.
I could escape, but if they push the “helping people” narrative or take hostages, the ones targeted would be the weakest links: Tina, Baku, and En.
“While I pretended to be a stranger to Lord Jean, it wouldn’t take long for us to find out one person is missing if we investigate,” the Butler said.
Ah, we came in with eight, but one is missing from our labyrinth exploration.
If they set their sights on me, without any clues to follow, it’s plausible they’d investigate Dinoss and the others who were with me in the labyrinth.
I had been trying to be cautious since we came here without using Kanum’s [Teleportation], leaving plenty of footprints, but I need to tighten up my act a bit more.
“I made the reservation at the inn. I only mentioned my name, but I showed my Adventurer Tag at the gate, so if they wanted to, they could connect the dots right away.”
Retze said with a grimace.
The Butler has three Adventurer Tags that I know of, and he seems to use them interchangeably, but that’s not something most people do. I thought, putting my own situation aside. I wonder how Soleil is doing? Has he noticed the “Spirit’s Branch”?
“Foreseeing is impossible.”
“I don’t want to go in alone either.”
Returning to the conversation with Ash’s words, I said to Retze.
“This guy can’t handle seeing someone die right in front of him. If he lets his guard down, he tends to overdo it to prevent anyone from dying. That’s fine and all, but if that draws attention and I get used, once I cross a certain line, I can only see a future where I blow up the Fortress City to smithereens.”
Ah, Dinoss is terrible.