Slave Harem in the Labyrinth of the Other World (LN)
Volume 1 - Ch 4.04

Finally being left alone in my new temporary base of operations, I sat on the bed to test it out. It wasnt particularly soft, but also wasnt as hard as I was initially expecting it to be. Overall, it was not bad, like a solid 5/10 or 6/10.

I lowered the backpack on the floor and took all of my luggage out of it. I think that my old jersey can be left here without any regrets. The Village Chief thought it was pretty valuable, but he couldnt have been more mistaken, so even if it was stolen from me, I wouldnt have been shedding many tears because of it. The same principle can be applied to the leather shoes which are currently on my feet. They were cheap as dirt, so even if I lose them I can buy myself another pair anytime.

Next I took off the Scimitar and Copper Sword in order to rearrange the way I was wearing them. Since I was training kendo from a young age I was more accustomed to fighting with a two-handed sword instead of a one-handed one, but I wasnt going to use Durandal in a fight unless I had absolutely no other choice. Since the Scimitar was a relatively light weapon, it would be best to place it at my waist.

Finishing my rearrangements, I placed the rest of my things in the closet and locked it, storing the key safely in my backpack. I did the same with the Bandits Bandana since it was so light that adding it there made no difference to its weight. The last thing which ended up there were the two drawstring bags filled with my money.

Inspecting the key to the room, there was something written on it. Probably my rooms number, but it was written in a rather peculiar fashion. The Intelligence Card contained Arabic numerals, but those were different from them. They were more reminiscent of the ones I saw on the posters back at the Explorers Guild. Could it be that the letters they were using there are the standard, or normal letters used by the inhabitants of this world?

.

Okay, now that I got myself accommodated, I feel it is high time for me to go hit the Labyrinth. I will accomplish nothing by simply sitting around on my ass doing nothing. Yup, that sounds like the best course of action for now.

I got up, pulled the backpack back on my shoulders and left the room. Back at the lobby floor I just left the key on the counter in front of the Innkeeper who gave me a small nod and I left the inn and made my way towards the town gate which was facing the castle in the distance.

There were no gatekeepers at the gate, so I just crossed it without being bothered by anyone and made my way towards the nearby forest. According to the Slave Merchants instructions, the Labyrinth itself should be nearby.

While I was passing by the wheat field, I noticed that a suspicious black wall suddenly appeared between the trees right in front of me. Its a good thing that I managed to stop myself right in my tracks, otherwise I would have surely bumped into it head-first and then who knows what might have happened? What the hell is this thing? Is this some kinda trap?

As I was thinking that, a group of six people before me approached it as if it was the most obvious thing to do. Is this some kinda transportation device? A teleporter, perhaps? Thats amazing and cool in all sorts of ways! I want to give it a go immediately. But wait a second! Identify! Just like I suspected that Party has someone with the Job of a Wizard among their Ranks. A friggin Wizard!

Here. This is the place.

Umu.

All of them exchange a few sentences and the knight who I suppose is the Partys leader proceeds forward and enters the forest. Despite his fairly low level, he looks like a pretty proud and self-important fellow. For now, maybe I should try following after them to see where they will go and what they are going to do.

Following after those guys (at a reasonable distance, of course) to the other side of the portal, I happened upon a small hill with the same kind of portal I passed through just now. Is that the entrance to the actual Labyrinth? I said that the portal was on a small hill, but to be honest, rather than a hill, it looks like just a sizeable mound of fresh soil. My guess is that this, lets call it entrance for now, is the only thing thats sticking above the ground level and that the dungeon itself is actually hidden underground.

Apparently, someone was waiting for the group at the entrance. Looks like an Explorer. When the Party I was following approached him, he began the conversation almost immediately.

How far have you gotten?

The second level. I got out just now.

What kind of monsters have you encountered?

Needle Woods on the first floor and Green Caterpillars on the second floor.

He gave them a short, methodical answer.

Well, you heard him. So? What should we do?

I think we can handle the first level.

The knight presented his opinion. So he really must be the partys leader. The rest of his comrades nodded their heads and approached the black wall one by one, and then disappeared. So that really is the entrance.

Should I go in as well? Ah, but before that, I guess I should do another Character Reset. I opened the menu and got rid of the 30 % discount and replaced it with Bonus Weapon 6. Now I have 1 Bonus Point left, because the second one was used to get the ability to shorten the casting time of Skills and Spells, since using them in-battle was difficult enough as it is. Not casting them should be easier for me, even if only for just a little bit. I am lucky that such a Skill has been implemented into this game I mean world. Upon closer investigation, that 1 Bonus Point should shorten the casting time of Skills and Spells for about 10%. I decided to place the last Bonus Point I had left into Critical Strike Chance Increase. Just like with the reduction of the casting time, one Bonus Point seems to be equal to a 10% increase. If that is the case, then I wonder what is the maximum cap for such abilities? 30%? 50%? !00%? Or does it vary from Skill to Skill, depending on what it is and the method of its use?

With that out of the way, I closed the settings screen. Durandal is placed on my waist next to the Scimitar.

With the preparations done, I finally approached the entrance to the Labyrinth. I was half-expecting the Explorer who stayed near the entrance to comment on how I shouldnt be going into such a dangerous place when Im clearly not ready, but he just ignored me and didnt even look my way. Okay, that works just fine for me I guess.

I tried going through the black wall myself. When I inserted my hand into the portal, it went through it without encountering any kind of resistance. Encouraged by it, I went there properly. and ended up in a room-like cave, or perhaps a cave-like room.

It was a small square space covering about 4-5 square meters. There wasnt any artificial source of light, but thankfully it wasnt so dark that I couldnt see my surroundings at all. The dim light emitted by the stone walls was enough to give me the vague idea of where I should go to proceed.

So this is a Labyrinth, huh?