Chapter 34

CHAPTER 1 Deep Within the Plateau of Primary Colors Part I: Still Waters We soon realized all the mud golems we’d come across had been defeated in order to force the Clay Giant to appear. Gathering the cursed soul stones on their foreheads evidently created a special condition that allowed you to summon the Named Monster. Shirone exploited that tactic and used what’s called a magic-manipulation talisman to control the Clay Giant and sic it on the Four Seasons. Elitia said that, back when she left the Brigade, Shirone had been at level 12. I took that to mean once you achieved that high a level, you could even bend Named Monsters to your will and use them for nefarious purposes. Of course, we still didn’t know if she’d managed to control it because she was a much higher level than the monster, or if that species in general was easier to manipulate. “Arihito, don’t you think our levels went up after fighting that Clay Giant?” asked Elitia. “Right, let me check… Me, Theresia, and Igarashi have all leveled up.” We’d done our best under the circumstances, but it was a shame we hadn’t gotten to take the Clay Giant down with the rest of our party; we could have all gotten more experience points that way. The Four Seasons members might have also leveled up—theirs was certainly a desperate battle, but they’d come out of it in one piece. ♦Current Party♦ As I’d expected, the members who hadn’t grown in level had also accumulated a large amount of experience points from the battle. My license showed five of the bubbles measuring Elitia’s EXP had been filled, and she was much more advanced than the rest of us. I gathered you needed to fill all ten EXP bubbles to level up. Melissa had also filled quite a few of her own bubbles in one go and was probably on the verge of leveling up soon. “This is a first. We normally check in with our levels back at the Guild after reporting back on our latest expedition,” I noted. “I think that’s usually for the best. Our levels actually rise while we’re still in the labyrinth, but I prefer to take my time when I choose new available skills,” said Elitia. “Let’s just keep in mind we have more skill points now if we need them. Thanks for pointing that out, Elitia.” “…I know we’re in a tight spot, but it’s still exciting to see you level up,” added Melissa. It seemed she’d started to expand her interests beyond rare monsters and into people—okay, maybe that was a little harsh. She had such a wide range of skills available to her, so I was honestly excited to see her advance as well. The same applied for the others, too, of course. “Wow, this place really does go on forever…,” I said. “Atobe, should we just keep going straight in?” asked Igarashi. “Yes. I can’t really explain it, but I can kind of sense the direction Shirone went… Maybe it’s from that move she used on me earlier.” Shirone’s Magic Marking skill had allowed her to make her Return Scroll apply only to me. Maybe that skill was why I could sort of tell which way she’d headed, although I wasn’t sure how long the effect would last. I really hope it wears off when she leaves the labyrinth or after some kind of time limit… I suppose I could also ask her to remove the mark when I catch up to her. Of course, she might not be in any condition to talk at that point. Just one more reason we can’t abandon her now. I decided to focus only on our search for Shirone. Each floor in the Plateau of Primary Colors stretched on for what felt like ages; the landscape seemed to repeat itself, making it difficult to tell how much ground we’d covered and cementing in our minds just how vast it was. We found the pond-size puddles that dotted the Clay Giant battlefield all over the rest of the second floor, as well as a few kinds of monsters, some of which looked like salamanders. ♦Monsters Encountered♦ SLOW SALAMANDER A Level 6 Friendly Resistance Unknown Dropped Loot: ??? SLOW SALAMANDER B Level 7 Sleeping Resistance Unknown Dropped Loot: ??? They measured about six-and-a-half feet from their noses to the tips of their long tails, and horns thick as branches sprouted from their heads. I wondered if they might use those to attack us somehow—but the one waking monster just sat poking its head out of the puddle and watched us with a curiously charming expression. “This might not be the time to say this, but that monster is so laid-back…,” said Melissa. “Its face looks like a stuffed animal…” “They may look cute, but they go crazy and will attack if something agitates them or if it starts raining.” “Wow, Ellie, you know so much,” said Igarashi. “I—I guess we can’t let our guard down then, can we?” “That ‘slow’ in its name might mean it’s got attacks to decrease its enemies’ speed. Or maybe it can send us flying to slow us down that way,” I said. “…!” Theresia, seated atop my knees, bristled. She’d seen angry-looking Slow Salamanders coming up ahead of us, waiting right in the middle of a path we had no way of avoiding that was surrounded by ponds. “There’s…something in its mouth…,” said Melissa. “…I think it’s Shirone’s short swords,” replied Elitia. She was exactly right: As cute as these monsters were, we couldn’t let our guard down around them. The damage Elitia had inflicted on the Clay Giant when we defeated it had also hit Shirone in what my license called backfiring. Shirone had managed to manipulate the monster, but doing so had also evidently put her at risk; any damage sustained by the monsters she controlled could come back to bite her, as well. “Shirone was pretty badly injured… I don’t care how strong she is, there’s no way she could’ve taken these monsters down in that state,” I said. “She lost all her weapons but still headed deeper in the labyrinth…” A troubled expression came over Elitia’s face. Anyone could see Shirone was basically throwing her life away. “…Shirone attacked and made these monsters hostile,” Igarashi deduced. “She must’ve escaped their detection range, because they’ve got their sights locked on us…!” The monsters were still some distance away, but at the speed Alphecca was racing along, we’d close that gap any moment. I considered asking if she could ram into them with Aura Spike or something, but then I looked over and thought I saw hesitation cloud her ghostly, half-translucent visage. “Alphecca, what’s wrong? Is that type of monster hard to handle?” “We all have our limitations. We are resistant to most types of magic, but we are not entirely immune to all its variations,” Murakumo explained in Alphecca’s place. In other words, that must mean Alphecca was particularly vulnerable to the Slow Salamanders’ attacks. “I am ill-equipped to face attacks that would reduce my speed…and I cannot overutilize my skills that might dispel status inflictions as they require blood of the purest maidens to activate.” She still should have been able to use long-range attacks such as Rose Javelin, but I figured she probably chose not to try them on opponents she was ill-matched to face. I had no intention of forcing our armaments to follow my commands; their feelings were no different than a person’s, and to me, they were equally important members of our party. We all had our weaknesses and needed to back one another up. “Igarashi, let’s hit them with a long-range attack!” “You got it!” “Awooo!” Mounted atop Cion, Igarashi looked like the bravest of knights. Her silver armor accentuated the effect; it was absolutely stunning. ♦Monsters Encountered♦ SLOW SALAMANDER D Level 7 Hostile Resistance Unknown Dropped Loot: ??? Equipped Item: Heaven’s Stiletto +4 SLOW SALAMANDER E Level 7 Resistance Unknown Dropped Loot: ??? Equipped Item: Bloodsucker +3 The Salamanders wrapped their tails around each of Shirone’s short swords—it looked like they might be able to swipe at us with them. “Attacks of this ilk…are an insufferable pestilence!” bemoaned Alphecca. The Salamanders turned their horns toward us and from a distance did something before we could even get our attack together. ♦Current Status♦ > ARIHITO activated HAWK EYES Increased ability to monitor the situation > SLOW SALAMANDER D activated BREATH OF STAGNANT WATER Target: Mid-range vicinity > SLOW SALAMANDER E activated BREATH OF STAGNANT WATER Target: Mid-range vicinity Their attack was invisible—well, almost invisible. I could just barely make it out with Hawk Eyes, but it was incredibly difficult to see at all, much less determine how far it extended. With no idea what was coming, I had only one move: aim my slingshot at the Salamander that Igarashi didn’t already have in her sights. ♦Current Status♦ > ARIHITO activated FORCE SHOT (FREEZE) > KYOUKA activated THUNDERBOLT > BREATH OF STAGNANT WATER hit targets Reduced ALPHECCA, MELISSA, and ELITIA’s speed THERESIA was unaffected > BREATH OF STAGNANT WATER hit targets Reduced CION and KYOUKA’s speed > BREATH OF STAGNANT WATER reverberated Speed reduction strengthened to Level 2 > KYOUKA’s THUNDERBOLT activation was delayed “Whoaaa!” “……?!” What’s with this skill…? I can hardly see anything, and it’s so overwhelmingly powerful…! Both Alphecca and Cion slowed down at exactly the same moment. The attack hadn’t worked on Theresia or me, but the sudden jolt sent us flying forward. I activated Yoshitsune’s Leap, caught Theresia in midair, and somehow managed to land safely. I hadn’t expected that letting Theresia ride on my lap would pay off like this, but fortunately either her armor or something intrinsic about her had deflected the attack and nullified its effects. It had gotten to Igarashi’s Thunderbolt, however, which crackled and fizzled out before it got to race through the air. Their attack clearly affected skills as well, but it hadn’t canceled mine. The frost stone–powered magic bullet hit one of the Salamanders squarely in the head. “…GYEEE…EEE …” ♦Current Status♦ > FORCE SHOT (FREEZE) hit SLOW SALAMANDER D Weak spot attack Inflicted FROZEN status The Salamander’s horns completely froze over. I was sure the shot had inflicted quite a bit of damage, but it was hard to deal a decisive blow without adding any support damage to the attack after all. These guys are bad news… That move can’t immobilize us, but if it hits me, it’ll take a huge bite out of my speed…! “What’s…going on…? I’m…so slow…,” Igarashi struggled to say. “Im…possible…,” Elitia added. “Not…on this…floor…” The two Slow Salamanders’ attacks reverberated against each other and amplified their combined effect. They probably wouldn’t have slowed us down this much if we’d fought just one at a time. Shirone must have had no other choice but to cast aside her weapons in order to escape the scope of this attack. I couldn’t help but thank our lucky stars these Salamanders hadn’t intervened in our battle against the Clay Giant. “…GYEEE…” “…KRAAAH…” The Salamander I hit stood frozen in place, but the other opened its mouth wide to let out a menacing call and took off scurrying across the ground toward me. It would lose a footrace against a Komodo dragon, but its speed still took me by surprise. “We must…escape the enemy’s range or else…,” Alphecca warned. I would’ve done more to try and avoid them if I’d known they had the power to inflict such devastating status ailments, but since Alphecca had expended all her magic in the fight against the Clay Giant, she didn’t have enough power to activate Float and carry us this far through the air. Even if we’d run here on our own two feet, we would’ve almost certainly collided with these two Salamanders either way. But since it had come to this, all we could do was fight for our lives. If it worked out, we might also recover Shirone’s weapons. “Theresia, I need a favor… Try to stay as close as you can in front of me, okay? Or else that speed reduction might hit me, too.” “……” Theresia nodded and readied her Razor Sword and buckler. The two of us prepared to crush the enemy ourselves, hoping the status ailment afflicting our friends would eventually wear off. I loaded up my slingshot, aimed it at the Salamander chasing after us, and got ready to land the first blow. Part II: Water Spirit The Salamander slithered along the ground as it scurried over to us and opened its mouth to unleash another attack—not the speed-eating strike, but one that summoned spheres of water out of the pools around us and left them bobbing in the air. “Don’t even think about it!” I yelled. “…KAAAH!” ♦Current Status♦ > SLOW SALAMANDER E activated ELEMENTAL AQUA ELEMENTAL AQUA initiated autonomous attack > ARIHITO activated FORCE SHOT (FREEZE) Hit SLOW SALAMANDER E Weak spot attack Inflicted FROZEN status “……!” “KWAAAH!!” The Salamander completed its attack before my bullet got to it and conjured up floating spheres of water that seemed to pulsate like a steady heartbeat. Who could’ve guessed a regular, run-of-the-mill monster would have so many different attacks in its arsenal? It wasn’t even a Named Monster! But this was no time to be griping about that. Theresia and I were the only ones with any real mobility left. Theresia raised her shield and turned to look back at me. That one glance was enough to tell me exactly what she was planning to do. “Go for it, Theresia!” “—!!” Theresia charged at the Elemental Aqua. The water bubbles pulsed violently and spewed jets of water toward her at a furious clip, when: ♦Current Status♦ > ELEMENTAL AQUA activated GUSHING GAG > THERESIA activated MIRAGE and SHADOW STEP > THERESIA evaded 6 stages of GUSHING GAG She dashed and darted through the air so quickly that for a second it looked like she’d produced several clones of herself. Elemental Aqua shot jet stream after jet stream at her; they all seemed to meet their mark but managed only to pierce through the fleeting images she left in her wake. She’s not just evading their attacks… She’s making sure none of them get by her and hit me…! ♦Current Status♦ > ARIHITO and THERESIA earned a Trust Level Bonus Activated COUPLED EVASION Theresia adjusted her position to steer the enemy’s attacks, ensuring all the jet streams missed me right behind her. I stood in the midst of a ferocious onslaught but didn’t feel the slightest hint of danger. This was one chance I couldn’t let slip by. I set up a combined attack with Theresia, determined to end this battle once and for all. “Freeze!” “……!” ♦Current Status♦ > ARIHITO activated FORCE SHOT (FREEZE) Hit ELEMENTAL AQUA Weak spot attack Inflicted FROZEN status > THERESIA activated AZURE SLASH Hit ELEMENTAL AQUA Super effective against FROZEN enemy Fatal blow Blue flames licked the edges of Theresia’s Elluminate Razor Sword as she brought it down in one fell swoop over the Elemental Aqua I’d frozen with the frost stone. Her sword slashed the spheres of water in half; in an instant they all evaporated and completely disappeared. “KWAAAH!” One of the Slow Salamanders broke free from its frozen status and charged at us. Theresia wouldn’t be able to cover me from her position if it activated that Breath of Stagnant Water at me now; it’d kill my speed and take me out of the battle. Maybe this’ll work… It does live in the water… Here goes nothing…! “Theresia, hit it with the back of your sword!” “……!!” ♦Current Status♦ > ARIHITO activated ATTACK SUPPORT 2 Support Type: VINE SHOT > THERESIA attacked SLOW SALAMANDER D > VINES captured SLOW SALAMANDER D > SLOW SALAMANDER E’s FROZEN status was removed Vines shot out of Theresia’s sword the instant it touched the Salamander and trapped the monster in a tangled web. She rushed behind the remaining monster before it could start attacking once more—and cinched the win. “……!!” ♦Current Status♦ > THERESIA activated SNEAK ATTACK Damage to SLOW SALAMANDER E doubled > THERESIA lightly attacked SLOW SALAMANDER E > VINES captured SLOW SALAMANDER E ““…KWAAAH…!”” Theresia attacked the enemy from its blind spot, giving her strike twice the power. She must have known her next blow might be fatal, so she intentionally held back and only lightly tapped the hilt of her sword against the enemy, activating the vines to sprout once more and successfully capture the Salamander without killing it. The six-foot-long salamander-type monsters flailed about in the thorny binds that held them suspended above the ground. These vines rendered even monsters with the most vicious attacks completely powerless. ♦Current Status♦ > ALPHECCA, MELISSA, ELITIA, CION, AND KYOUKA’s speed reduction was removed “…Phew, finally back to normal… Atobe, Theresia, thank you.” “…Now that I can move all of a sudden, it feels like I’m going super fast,” said Melissa. “You’ve got that right…,” agreed Elitia. “That’s the last type of monster I want to fight. My job is all about speed!” Melissa and Elitia came riding over on Alphecca, and Igarashi caught up to us on Cion. “I recommend disposing of these monsters,” Alphecca suggested. “However, the final choice is yours to make, Master.” “I was planning to do just that, but I think their skills might come in handy at some point. Plus, we don’t have to finish them off to find whatever loot they have on them.” “Y-yeah. I don’t know if I could dissect something that looks so much like a stuffed animal…” “Their tails are delicious. You can sometimes find them for sale in District Seven,” Elitia mentioned. “Any equipment you make out of their skin will have waterproof properties, and you can use the things on their heads as hand-to-hand combat weapons.” Humans could be truly frightening—although that’s more than a little hypocritical of me to say after reaping the benefits from so many items made of monster parts. “…Hm? Atobe, look at the monsters… They seem really wary of Theresia.” “What…?” Upon closer inspection, the captured Slow Salamanders appeared to be trembling slightly in their vines. Both sets of beady eyes were glued to Theresia. “Theresia is a Lizardman…and these are Salamanders. Maybe they don’t trust lizards…?” ““…KWAH!”” the two monsters cried in unison, as if to confirm Elitia’s guess. But Theresia was just silently watching them—or actually, she was licking her lips. Maybe they looked tasty to her. I wasn’t sure if it would work, but I thought that might be enough leverage to try and negotiate with them. “Don’t worry, we’re not going to eat you. I promise we’ll find you somewhere safe to live. Would you come with us later?” I asked the Salamanders. ““……”” ♦Current Status♦ > SLOW SALAMANDER D and SLOW SALAMANDER E are no longer hostile > Successfully entered into service Though they said nothing in response, they did apparently agree to my terms. I lifted the Vine Bullets’ bind on them, but they didn’t run away and simply watched me silently. Hm? What’s this…? A small, light blue crystal had fallen to the ground when Theresia destroyed the Elemental Aqua. I picked it up; it was smaller than a magic stone but probably useful for something. “Oh… Atobe, there’s something stuck to their tails. Do you think they’re magic stones?” “They’ve also got Shirone’s swords,” said Elitia. “They’re covered in something sticky, but they don’t look damaged.” “Yeah, looks like the Salamanders’ skin is coated with some kind of phlegmy substance… Melissa, do you think it’s poisonous?” “No. You can add salt to thin it out when you cook with it.” Theresia’s stomach let out a low growl at the word cook. Melissa fished some meat jerky out of a pocket in her overalls and handed it to Theresia, who crammed it in her mouth. “Let’s treat ourselves to something tasty after we find Shirone and make it home,” I told her. “……” Theresia nodded. I wasn’t sure if it was because we’d managed to get these two on our team, but the other hostile Salamander that had poked its head out of the water was nowhere to be found. It looked like choosing not to defeat these monsters was already paying off. ♦Current Status♦ > Acquired 1 STAGNATION STONE > Acquired 1 WATER SPIRIT CRYSTAL > Acquired 1 sticky HEAVEN’S STILETTO +4 > Acquired 1 sticky BLOODSUCKER +3 Part III: The Blue Butterflies We hopped on Alphecca and started off once more down the path cutting through the pools of water. Suddenly, our surroundings began changing. “This feeling… We must be teleporting.” “That threw me off a bit; there wasn’t even a marker…just this fog coming out of nowhere,” Igarashi said a little nervously as she rode along next to us astride Cion. I worried for a second we might be under attack. This was the only way Shirone’s tracks led us, though, so we had to keep pressing on down this road. The fog began to thin after a little while to reveal that, though the sun had been high on the second floor, night’s dark curtain had already fallen here on the third floor. This took us all by surprise; we’d never before experienced such a drastic time change moving from one floor to another within the same labyrinth. Huge, curiously shaped stone formations and sparse vegetation dotted the vast wilderness that stretched out across this floor of the Plateau of Primary Colors. It reminded me of a similar landscape: the Guiana Shield of South America. I’d only seen photos of it taken in daylight, but maybe it would look something like this at night. The stone columns almost seemed to form a path, and farther past them on either side, tall, stony cliffs demarcated the boundaries of what appeared to be a canyon. “I wonder what kind of monsters live in a place like this…,” Elitia said as she leaned forward from behind me on the chariot, perhaps in an effort to see better in the dark. Her hair tickled me as it grazed my cheeks; she didn’t seem to notice, so I kept quiet. “I don’t have any trouble seeing at night. The dark doesn’t bother me,” said Melissa. “……” Evidently, Melissa had inherited werecat qualities such as excellent vision, even in the dark. Theresia also appeared to see without much trouble. I wondered what the world must look like through her lizard mask—was it something like night vision goggles? Or could she see clear as day? “Looks like Cion can see pretty well, too,” said Igarashi. “I think she might be tracking a scent… Mind hanging back a bit, everyone?” “Woof!” Cion kept her nose pressed to the ground and seemed to be sniffing out a trail invisible to everyone but her, just as Igarashi said. Maybe she knew how to trace footprints? We proceeded cautiously down the path, keeping an eye on our surroundings. Just as I wondered if there was any way I could see a bit better… ♦Current Status♦ > ARIHITO activated HAWK EYES Increased ability to monitor the situation …Huh, I guess hawks have pretty good night vision, too. I’d always thought most birds, apart from owls and other nocturnal species, were pretty much blind in the dark, but I guess I was wrong. My field of vision expanded all at once, though I still couldn’t see as far as I might during the day. From what I could tell, only a few small creatures scampered through the rough terrain. I didn’t sense any monsters, or any trace of Shirone, either. “…Wait. Cion’s acting a bit different…,” Elitia noted. As soon as the words left her mouth, Cion stopped in her tracks, sniffed around in a circle, a bit distressed, and crouched down on the ground. Igarashi hopped off Cion’s back and coaxed her to continue, but it was no use. “What’s wrong, Cion? Are you trying to say Shirone’s trail ends here?” Igarashi asked. “Hnnn,” whimpered Cion, looking troubled. She licked Igarashi’s outstretched hand and lay down on the spot. The rest of us soon caught up with them, hopped off Alphecca, and began trying to piece together what had happened, wary of any potential danger around us. Melissa got down on all fours and started crawling around looking for clues. After a few minutes, she got to her feet and lightly shook her head. “Her trail’s faint; it stops right here. She must’ve jumped or something, but I can’t find any trace of that, either.” We couldn’t find any signs of Shirone among the oddly shaped rocks shooting out almost perfectly perpendicular to the ground, nor amid the trees scattered in the area. But we knew for a fact Cion had tracked Shirone’s movements to this point. What happened here…? Did a monster attack her? Seems like she vanished a bit too suddenly for that. Maybe… “…It’s almost like she was spirited away. Do you think some kind of flying monster got her…?” Igarashi wondered aloud. She looked up at the black-and-white skies, where a thin fog draped over the hazy moon. The monochromatic heavens felt out of place for the Plateau of Primary Colors; it made everything feel much more surreal than even your average labyrinth, like something straight out of a fairy tale. “I find it hard to believe a Seeker at Shirone’s level would get caught totally off-guard…but the evidence does seem to point to that possibility,” I replied.