Chapter 3: The Hero’s Retreat and the Saintess’s Rumor (Eliza)
When Eliza responded to the summons and arrived at the Lemone Guild, her eyes widened in astonishment.
She had seen countless famous S-rank Seekers, yet even with her own eyes, the three who stood beside the Hero were in a league of their own.
The Saintess Mika, the Divine Reflection.
Angelica Honest, the Mage said to surpass even the Sages.
Eris Gladius, regarded as the strongest Sword Saint in history.
Standing at the center of them, uniting these remarkable women, was—
The Hero Ryuguin.
Eliza was captivated by the brilliance of these three and the fact that Ryuguin had already conquered seven Labyrinths, causing her to lose sight of her usual cautious approach.
It was undeniable that Ryuguin’s impassioned, almost incendiary speech clouded her judgment as well.
Among the Arcana Saviors, Eliza, who should have been able to notice the abnormality of the situation with her original abilities, only recognized her mistake when she found herself in a dire predicament.
She felt ashamed for overestimating her judgment, thinking that her age granted her more wisdom than the younger Seekers around her, but it was too late for regrets.
Once a member of a major Clan, she had retired from being a Seeker to raise orphans as her own daughters. However, as her daughters grew and expressed their admiration for Seekers, she reluctantly returned to the life of a Seeker to help nurture them.
Despite being busy with motherhood and approaching her forties, Eliza’s beauty only seemed to deepen, rather than fade.
She had been courted numerous times by high-ranking nobles connected to the royal family, heads of prominent merchant guilds, and even famous S-rank Seekers known by both children and adults alike. Yet, she had never accepted any of their advances, as her love for her daughters was so profound that she couldn’t bear to part with them.
In the first place, she had wanted to decline this exploration due to its dangers. However, since it was a mandatory exploration order from the country at the request of the Hero, she had no choice but to reluctantly accept the summons.
And now, because of that, her daughters were on the brink of death before her eyes. She was truly in a place of despair.
As she reflected on the past, her regrets multiplied with every thought. There were countless concerns weighing on her mind.
Upon arriving at the Labyrinth, the party known as the Wandering Zephyranthes, composed of teenage girls, seemed restless. They lacked the tension one would expect when preparing to face even the weakest monsters, displaying an unsettling ease that was detrimental.
Eliza knew that if they were in their usual state, they wouldn’t have acted this way. They felt secure because there was already a Hero Party that had conquered seven Nexbee.
To give them some credit, Seekers in a meritocratic society often unconsciously adopted an authoritarian personality. It was only natural for them to think that since the higher-ups, the Heroes, were relaxed, they could afford to be as well.
Had everything from the start been a mistake? Eliza questioned herself.
She had felt a slight discomfort in her body when stepping into the Labyrinth. In Labyrinth exploration, even the slightest sense of unease could be fatal—why hadn’t she voiced her concerns?
Eliza’s thoughts raced. She realized that she had let her guard down, feeling reassured by the fact that they were exploring alongside the Hero Party that had already conquered seven Newly Constructed Ultimate Labyrinths.
Even if they were under some debuff, they had the Saintess with them. If it truly became necessary, they could ask her to dispel it once the battle began. Besides, asking for dispel every time might waste the Saintess’s precious Mana.
She had convinced herself of this, even though the Labyrinth they were about to enter was anything but forgiving.
It would later be revealed that within the Labyrinth of Time, the flow of time fluctuated between 0.8 to 1.2 times its normal rate at regular intervals.
It was one thing to get used to a fixed rate, but very few could adapt to a fluctuating rate with a first strike.
However, perhaps due to the large number of members, the journey to the first-floor boss was not particularly daunting. This time, that worked against them.
Having reached the innermost part of the first floor without much struggle, Eliza and the rest of the joint party began to underestimate the Labyrinth of Time unconsciously.
If they were truly serious about clearing the most challenging Labyrinth, they should have acclimated to its peculiarities while still in a layer that allowed for easier exploration.
As they explored the first layer, the thought of suggesting this crossed Eliza’s mind, but she dismissed it, believing that too many leaders would only complicate matters and decided to leave all judgments to the Hero, Ryuguin.
This was the biggest mistake of their exploration.
The boss of the first layer of the Labyrinth of Time was overwhelming.
As they opened the boss room, the enemy stood there, a massive figure wielding a close-combat weapon. This monster was said to be composed of one of the three Divine Myth Stones, with a sharp body made of Mithril and possessing razor-sharp limbs.
Here, this monster was referred to as Mithril First (First Floor Mithril).
Eliza analyzed her opponent. Judging by its weapons and physique, it seemed to be a melee-focused enemy. Therefore, they should be fine. The room was quite spacious, and there was still distance before they would engage.
This assumption, made within the bounds of common sense, was Eliza’s second mistake.
Distance was irrelevant.
The moment Mithril First swung its serpentine sword—Gyariri!—the Sword Saint reacted with lightning speed, deflecting something.
It was only after seeing the wound on her fallen daughter beside her that she realized it was the enemy’s sword.
Even as a high-ranking S-rank Mage, she couldn’t even follow the movement with her eyes.
“Tankers! Shielders! Focus on defense! Healers, recover the critically injured! Hurry! Faster! Now!”
Thoughts of how many leaders there were vanished from her mind in an instant. Eliza urgently shouted concise orders to the joint party.
At that moment, despite not showing any inner turmoil or anxiety, Eliza was one of the few members who could assess the enemy’s combat power at maximum alert level. Thus, she couldn’t help but think that there were more than ten threats within this Labyrinth that surpassed the monster before her, nearly screaming in fear.
On the other hand, Ryuguin, who grasped none of the dire situation, glared at Eliza and shouted in a high-pitched voice, “I’m the one giving orders!!”
As Ryuguin continued to rant and complain, Eliza, driven by urgency, pushed him aside and placed her hand on her chin. She caught sight of a member who was lagging behind in recovery.
What she needed to prioritize—
Immediately, she raised her voice, pleading with the Saintess.
“Saintess! Please cast Healing Magic! On the party members!”
The Saintess, who should have heard her, glanced at Eliza with an expression like a mask before turning her gaze to Ryuguin.
With the choice left to him, he shook his head as if to get back at her, and the Saintess did not cast Healing Magic on the critically injured, as if she hadn’t heard Eliza’s plea at all.
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