Chapter 102 : One Per Household
Added 2022-11-27 06:03:44 +0000 UTCTL:SummerPeanut
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4 August 2030.
“Don’t you think, your sister-in-law obtained an excellent property.”
“It's true. Ede is the envy of everyone.”
“May I ask how you got acquainted at first?”
“......”
We're inside a wagon on the way to the labyrinth away from the city of Mesalius.
Inside the wagon are the Reimei girls, Ike, and glasses senior.
The reason why Ike and senior are here is so that they can retrieve this wagon after we dive into the labyrinth.
And inside the four-seater wagon, six people are being crammed in, and inside the wagon, they are facing each other in two rows.
They are split into Misha, Ike, with Karen, and Clarice, senior glasses, with Ellie.
And Ike and senior glasses are being questioned by the Reimei girls.
“Well…because I don't have to look for a man anymore, I no longer have to join the Knights of Regan... and there's definitely no man better than Ike in the Knights of Regan. But I don't know what will happen because Ike's father is against us..."
Misha asked when the senior glasses said it bluntly.
“Tell me how you got to know each other. When did you start liking each other? When did you start dating? Which one of you confessed?”
Ike was uncomfortable in the wagon and took refuge next to me.
The five girls in the wagon are increasingly engaged in their girls' talk.
“Sorry about that. Brother Ike. I'm sure everyone’s like that from joy.”
“Aah. It’s fine. Besides, I think I understand a little bit of what Mars is going through.”
“Hahaha. But if you start from the outer moat, even father might relent a bit, and I know it's a hassle, but please entertain the Reimei girls a little.''
“I guess so. Mars, you’re right. Let's ask the girls to help us. Of course, Mars, I'd like to ask your help too...okay?"
“Of course. Since it's senior glasses, you're more than welcome.”
We chatted happily as we made our way to the labyrinth.
“Even so, there are a lot of magic beasts here...especially orcs...”
Ike said so and burned the orcs to death with Fire.
It's true that orcs and kobolds appear more frequently here.
“Is labyrinth overflow happening?”
“The probability exists...... since we, the Red Lotus, turned back halfway through the first floor.”
By the way, the status of the orcs is like this.
Name: -
Title: -
Race: Orc
Threat: F
Condition: Good
Age: 0
Level: 1
HP: 32/32
MP: 1/1
Strength: 10
Agility: 2
Magic: 1
Dexterity: 1
Durability: 15
Luck: 1
About the same as a hobgoblin or rather they are easier than a hobgoblin.
Their low agility is such that even Karen can evade their attacks.
However, they are sometimes mounted on the kobolds that come out with them.
When that’s the case, one needs to be a little careful.
Well, then again maybe you don't need to be that careful since kobolds have a threat level of G...
Name: -
Title: -
Race: Kobold
Threat: G
State: Good
Age: 1
Level: 2
HP: 6/6
MP: 1/1
Strength: 2
Agility: 4
Magic: 1
Dexterity: 2
Durability: 1
Luck: 1
We departed from Mesalius and arrived at the labyrinth after an hour's ride in a wagon.
We unloaded the large amount of luggage we had stuck on top of the wagon and said goodbye to Ike and senior glasses.
“Thank you for accompanying us. Is your right arm better now, senior glasses?”
“Yes. It's still a little uncomfortable but I'll get used to it.”
“Mars. Please be careful. When you have thinned the numbers to a certain extent, you can leave your luggage behind and come back to Mesalius. I'll have others come back later to collect your luggage.”
“Thank you. Take care of yourselves then, both of you. Senior glasses-...no…sister-in-law please take care of Brother Ike, please.”
When I said this, Ede was surprised and then smiled.
“All right, Mars. Leave Ike to me."*1
We saw them off and went into the labyrinth.
The formation is in the same order as we talked about last time but I and Clarice have a lot of luggage.
I can use Wind magic even when my hands are full so it's only natural that I should carry the luggage but I can't let Ellie and Misha, the vanguards, carry them.
And Karen would be unable to move if she carried the luggage, so by process of elimination, it was decided that Clarice would carry some of the luggage.
There were quite a number of orcs in the labyrinth.
There were probably as many as the goblins in the Irgusia labyrinth.
We defeated the orcs with Ellie and Misha as the focus.
Then Karen made a surprised face.
“Are you sure you're not planning to defeat all the magic beasts we encounter?”
“Huh? We are going to defeat all the magic beasts we see, aren't we? Is Karen and the rest not thinking the same?”
Karen sighed as I asked this.
“Normal adventurers don't ever take on every single enemy they encounter because of the risk of injury. In our normal case, we'd go into the labyrinth with several parties and divide up the roles. But well, this party has Mars so that means we can afford to take some damage...”
Misha is defeating more and more of the enemies she encounters.
It seems to be a good experience gain for Misha.
As we progressed further and further down the corridor, we arrived at a large room.
A large orc is holding a spear and watching us.
And next to the orc is a huge kobold-like magic beast.
Name: -
Title: -
Race: High Orc
Threat: D
Condition: Good
Age: 1
Level: 4
HP: 45/45
MP: 1/1
Strength: 22
Agility: 8
Magic: 1
Dexterity: 3
Durability: 28
Luck: 1
Special Ability: Spearmanship (Lvl 1/G)
A upgraded version of the goblin general but with the same threat level of D.
Just the right training partner for Misha.
And the wolf-like magic beast is…
Name: -
Title: -
Race: Kobold Lord
Threat: D
Condition: Good
Age: 1
Level: 2
HP: 20/20
MP: 1/1
Strength: 15
Agility: 25
Magic:1
Dexterity: 5
Durability: 10
Luck: 1
It's a so-so troublesome level enemy.
Misha ran into these two alone.
She seemed to be completely out of control so...
“Misha! Watch out! This isn't like anything you've ever seen before!"
“I know! But I can't wait, because I want to be able to fight next to Mars!”
W-what a brave child...she's not just a runaway elf, and so is Karen.
“I will participate in this fight too! I must catch up with Clarice and Ellie as soon as possible!"
And then she showered the orcs with fire magic from behind Misha.
Orcs and magic beasts of the beast type are basically weak against fire magic.
It might have been dangerous if Misha was alone, but Karen's participation made it an easy victory.
“......that......"
After defeating the High Orc and Kobold Lord, Ellie pointed in a certain direction.
In the direction Ellie pointed was a treasure chest. Then Karen said.
“That's a treasure chest! I've never seen one before! Can I open it!?"
When Clarice heard her, she talked about ‘luck’.
Karen looked down in disappointment and so I responded
“It's Karen's first treasure chest. Let’s get her to open it.”
Karen's face lit up but then she looked at Clarice and looked down again.
“If that's what Mars wants, then Karen should open it. I'm just telling you this but Mars has opened all the treasure chests in the past, I'm not saying he has to do so in the future. Above all, Mars is the leader of this party.”
“Thank you! Mars! Clarice! I love you!"
Karen then tried to open the treasure chest.
She appraised it beforehand to see if there were any traps but there didn't seem to be any.
When Karen opened the treasure chest, she found a gold ingot.
Well, it's money, so it's not a dud but Karen is clearly disheartened.
“I won't open...anymore…”
“Let's get back on track and keep diving. I can't wait to be free of all this baggage."
“True......my arms and shoulders are already aching.”
Apparently, Clarice has a lot of baggage to bear.
We're going through the labyrinth, destroying enemies as we go.
“This party is clearly abnormal... accomplishing the same thing as an A-rank party...”
Karen was mumbling as we proceed.
Misha is advancing with her spear ready to pounce on the magic beasts as soon as they appear.
This felt like a fun excursion trip.
“Clarice, I'll hold some for you.”
“Eh? It’s fine. Even now, Mars is carrying more than me......”
“Thinking about it, I wonder if it would be easier if I carried the luggage by floating them with Wind magic... I remembered previously when I was building houses and stuff in Irgusia, I used Wind magic to carry materials......“
I really wish I'd realized that earlier but when I said so... Karen said.
“Don't waste your MP! Especially since Mars has access to precious Holy magic!"
“Oh. Thanks for the advice, I'll carry them myself when my MP drops below 1000."
“Right, until 1000, what are you talking about......? ......Mars, do you have more than...1000MP?”
“Hmm? Yes, I do. I learned magic before I held a sword.”
“B-but hat’s the same for myself! ......Mars never ceases to amaze me......”
“...Mars...Special...chosen...”
“Anyway, Clarice, put your stuff down. I'm really sorry I didn't realize this earlier."
When I said that, Clarice put down her luggage.
I lifted that luggage with a flick of my Wind magic and Clarice said.
“Thank you. Mars.”
And then she kissed me on the cheek. If only she would kiss me like......
No, no, no, no. I've been getting a lot of stimulation lately, so my thoughts and body are running wild. I have to pull myself together ......
How many hours have we explored already? As usual, only orc-ish and kobold enemies have appeared.
“Shall we camp around here for the day?”
Everyone nodded when I said that, but Karen said.
“Mars. I'm not proud of it but I've never camped before. And I don't think I can sleep without a bath, and I've never slept on the ground...”
When Karen said the above, Misha too gave her opinion.
“I'm worried because I've never done it before but I'll give it my try my best. But I wish I could have had a bath...... No matter how much I change my clothes, my body feels sticky, and I feel disgusted because I've been exposed to a little bit of the magic beasts' blood."
Clarice said to them.
“You don't need to worry about that. The only thing you need to worry about is which order you're going to sleep in.”
I was working in silence, listening to everyone's conversation.
The first thing I do is prepare the bath.
I use Earth magic to make three large bathtubs and fill the bath pots with warm water using a mixture of Fire and Water magic.
One of the three bathtubs was built a short distance away.
Next, a large number of tubs are made and hot water is filled in them as well.
Then I surrounded the baths with a big Earth Fortress.
“OK. I've made a simple bathroom. I've also built a simple toilet over there so you can use it if you need to water the flowers. I'm going to enter the bathtub that is far away blindfolded so the females can use the other two bathtubs. There is hot water in the tubs, but if there is not enough, Clarice can pour out water and Karen can adjust the heat of the water. Of course, Misha can offer to spawn the water if she wants."
“Mars... just... how much MP that you had used Wind magic all day and still able to make such a magnificent bathroom!”
I said toward Karen whose face turned red.
“Don't be so angry. I've left enough MP to make beds for everyone. And I don't think we need bedding. I'll use Wind magic, Fire magic, and Water magic to control the temperature."
“Sigh... I'm not angry...... I'm so surprised my heart felt like it was rent...”
Misha's mouth is also in a wide-open state.
“We've been living in the labyrinth for years, we're used to this sort of thing. Especially when Mars is... I once troubled Mars by saying something like Karen did at first. But then Mars responded as what you heard.”
“...every party...1 Mars is a must...”
Ellie jumped along the momentum and said as if I’m a must have gadget for every household.
Well, I guess it's a compliment so I don't feel bad about it...
“If we find a safe zone we'll use that as a base. I'll make something a bit more elaborate then. For now, bear with me with just this."
We took a bath, ate the portable food we'd brought with us, and decided on our sleeping order.
“Anyhow, the order in which we're going to sleep is from 20:00... which means Karen and Misha’s turn right now. Then I'll be next at 21:00, and then Clarice and Ellie at midnight, okay? I want Clarice and Ellie to make sure I'm awake before they go to bed, just like in the old days. This is not a safe zone, and the magic beasts will attack. We're hidden away with Earth magic but it's not as strong as the Earth Fortress. Don't lose your mind when the time’s come. Okay?"
Everyone nodded when I said that, and Karen and Misha immediately went to the bed I had made.
This is how our first night in the labyrinth as Reimei passed.
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Next>>
TLN: I always had the image of kobold being half-man doggie. I blame Suikoden 2.
TL’s note:
- Edean has always called Mars with honorifics but I usually do away ‘same’ level honorifics like ‘-san’ or ‘-kun’.
