35. In the Midst of War

“Returning?”

“Going to the 8th floor.”

“It’s almost night, why don’t you rest first?”

“No. It’s fine.”

“You seem full of energy. Be careful not to hurt yourself.”

With this, my highest reached floor is the 8th. My goal for this labyrinth trip is the 10th floor. Honestly, I was surprised at how easy it was. It’s so convenient traveling alone.

By constantly switching muscles, I didn’t accumulate any fatigue in my body, and except for the battles with goblins, I was mostly just running, so my mind isn’t particularly tired either.

“Take care.”

“Sure.”

As I stepped my right foot beyond the blue portal, I felt a slow pulling sensation as my entire body was sucked in.

Before I could even open my tightly shut eyes, I was hit by a stench that pierced my nose.

‘Was there a fight around here?’

A thick smell of blood invaded my nostrils. There was also a strange fishy smell, and although it was definitely a forest, it was clear that a fight had taken place.

I hurriedly organized my equipment, holding a machete in my left hand and a war pick in my right, and spread my senses around. Based on the direction I opened my eyes, it seemed like there had been a battle at the 7 o’clock direction. The fishy smell was wafting over, and while it was indeed the smell of blood, it was somewhat different.

‘Is it a Lizardman?’

Anyway, these labyrinth b*stards said you hardly ever see Lizardmen, but here they are as soon as I reach the 8th floor. Can’t trust what the guild says. Should I avoid the place where the battle took place? The compass is pointing towards the site of the battle.

Let’s avoid it for now. It’s not like there was a huge war here, so I should be able to get around it with a slight detour. Should I check it out just in case? I don’t know much about what makes Lizardmen special, but I know they aren’t perceived as weak in terms of individual combat power.

As I approached the direction of the blood scent to check, I found creatures with lizard faces and human-like bodies covered in scales, lying on the ground bleeding.

‘There’s a living one.’

When I switched my left eye to that of the Direwolf leader, I was able to find a living Lizardman among the corpses. The magic remaining in their bodies continues to drain after death.

Most of the Lizardman corpses had almost no magic left, but there was one with its magic still intact. It wasn’t in good condition, but it was still breathing.

—Kirrk..!

As I slowly approached, the fallen creature turned its head while lying down, saw me, and let out a dying sound while struggling.

Both legs were cut off below the knees, making it impossible to stand. The arms were also tattered, not looking like they had fought a human. It seemed like there were factions among the Lizardmen. Two groups with slightly different colors were entangled and fallen.

“Go peacefully, I can’t save you because I don’t have healing magic.”

I swung the machete I was holding and cut off the neck of the one lying down, and I could see the magic power starting to drain. Is there any use for the Lizardman’s magic power?

‘Did they say it activates when it touches water?’

Who knows. Just like Direwolf blood is good for fighting at night. Maybe I should drink it in case I have to fight in the swamp on the 9th or 10th floor.

First, I opened up the chest of the one whose neck I had just cut. I’m not a scavenger, but I feel a bit bad every time I eat corpses like this. But what can I do? This is a well-matched skill.

“Ugh, damn it, the stench. How can the blood smell like water?”

The smell of dirt and water like freshwater fish is overwhelming. There shouldn’t be any parasites in the blood, right? It’s not like it’s going to go into my stomach and get digested, so it should be fine.

-Crack

After splitting the ribs to the side, I tore out the heart and drank the blood from the artery. The smell was so bad that I changed my esophagus to that of a Direwolf, but the terrible scent was still rising from inside.

“Phew, I’m really going to throw up.”

If I don’t find a way to make this process a bit easier, it won’t be easy to get stronger. Eating corpses like this is also not good for appearances.

I noticed that high-ranking adventurers are treated like idols or heroes even in the labyrinth city. A hero who buries his face in a corpse and gulps down blood? Honestly, that’s not cool at all.

“Let’s go quickly.”

As I moved away from the place where the Lizardmen had fought, the water smell disappeared. Did these guys just crawl out and fight outside? Why did they fight in a place that’s not even a swamp? It was just the middle of the mountains.

While I was thinking about various things, I came down to a rare forest. I went straight to the base, and before I knew it, the 8th-floor base was right in front of me. I must have fallen closer to the portal than I thought.

The sky was dyed red with the sunset, and the hunting party adventurers who were active on the 8th floor were returning to the base one by one. The 8th floor is a very famous farming spot.

There are a moderate number of Wild Boars, and there are no extremely dangerous ones like Orcs. They say Lizardmen are rarely seen, but I don’t know why I keep seeing these supposedly rare ones.

“The 8th-floor base is really big.”

They cleared all the surrounding trees and built a very large base. There are buildings used by people from the dismantling clan for selling Wild Boars, and there are about six guild staff members who guard the portal in pairs, acting as intermediaries between the dismantlers and adventurers.

Wild boar meat accounts for 30% of the meat consumed in the labyrinth city, so it’s a huge business with many people involved. There are even sturdy, well-built buildings similar to inns.

Since this is the place with the freshest meat, you can enjoy cheap and high-quality meat dishes. It seems like they have most of the common meat dishes, and since it’s my first time going down to the 9th floor, I should fill my stomach well.

If I keep putting tasteless raw things in my mouth because of the skills, I feel like I’ll lose my sense of taste. Sometimes, you need to eat something good.

“One roast, please.”

“Yes, that will be 20 coins.”

20 coins for a big piece. You can’t find this kind of cost-effectiveness on the surface. It’s possible because it’s the origin of wild boar.

* * * * *

“Are you going down now?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“The sun is about to set completely.”

“It’s okay. I’m strong at night.”

“Oh, I see.”

The guild’s female employee guarding the portal pushed up her glasses and nodded. Guild employees have probably seen all sorts of unusual skills, so they don’t even question such stories.

But I’m curious, do you make a lot of money hunting parties on the 8th floor?

“How long have people been settled here?”

“Settled, that’s not the right expression. To prevent overcrowding of explorers on the 8th floor, we rotate monthly. Most of the people running hunting parties targeting wild boars on the 8th floor are authorized by the guild and are hunting.”

“I see.”

Hmm? So does Rubica only hunt here when it’s her turn in the rotation?

“Do you know Rubica?”

“Oh, that person… Yes, I know. She hunts wild boars on the 8th floor.”

“Does that person also do the rotation thing?”

“No, not him.”

Rubica catches and grills them herself, so it’s not like she catches a lot, and it’s fine.

“Hmm, I see. I’ll be going now.”

“Good luck.”

“Yep. Take care.”

From the 9th floor, you can find Aether Hyacinths.

“Wow, it’s so high.”

As soon as I set foot on the 9th floor, I could tell. This place is a very high altitude. When I moved slightly, a sheer cliff greeted me. Even the explorer’s compass was pointing towards the cliff, telling me to jump off.

It seems like it would be very troublesome to go down, isn’t there any other way?

“Huh, troublesome… wait a minute.”

There’s something around here. But what should I call this?

‘A bird? Is it a bird? A baby bird?’

It seems like there’s a nest of the red-feathered eagle owl that I was warned about. I can feel the tiny ones flapping around.

“A baby bird, huh? I should take a look.”

As someone who really loves animals, I can’t help but adore baby animals. Of course, excluding those that try to kill me like direwolves or blue-horned deer.

Well, aren’t those monsters in the first place? If you put it that way, the red-feathered eagle owl is also a monster. Anyway, baby animals are just irresistibly cute.

“Oh my. Look at this.”

When I walked towards the sound, there was something quite unique for a bird’s nest. It was a warm nest made of twigs and all sorts of animal fur gathered in a crack in the rock. When I looked inside, what a surprise.

“Hehe, how cute.”

Two chicks that had just hatched from their eggs were chirping loudly, unable to open their eyes. Next to them was an intact egg, but it seemed to have met an unfortunate end, as it showed no signs of movement.

“I’ll take it with me.”

The chicks, unable to open their eyes, wobbled and tumbled as I reached out my hand, not caring if I took their sibling.

I carefully wrapped the egg in a soft cloth and placed it in a sturdy container. This way, it wouldn’t break.

“Hmm, should I go down?”

No, it might actually be better this way. I need to find a flower on the 9th floor anyway, so being at this high altitude might be helpful.

I approached the edge of the cliff, closed my left eye, and opened only my right eye.

My right eye was originally mine, but since the Aether Hyacinth was said to be a glowing flower, it might be easier to see it in the dark.

“I can’t see it.”

Should I use the magic-detecting eye of the leader instead?

“Still can’t see it.”

There’s no choice. Let’s just go down. Having come this far, I think it’s right to reach the 10th floor. It’s better than ambiguously answering that I reached the 9th floor as my maximum.

“Solo to the 10th floor? This is beyond iron rank.”

It’s night, so my body is full of energy. I had a delicious wild boar roast, kept myself warm, and moved to the 9th floor. I even bought some cheap wild boar jerky. Delicious food really boosts one’s morale.

I walked away from the cliff, heading towards lower ground, and the sound of flowing water and the bright moonlight made me feel very good.

There doesn’t seem to be a swamp around, but there’s a valley instead. I filled my canteen with water, so there’s no reason to stop now.

“Let’s go to the 10th floor.”

If I’m going to do it, it’s best to find the Aether Hyacinth on the 10th floor and return. Whether it’s the 9th or 10th floor, returning to the surface is done in 5-floor increments, so it’s fine.

I quickly descended the cliff, reached the lowlands, and ran nonstop towards the portal. Even doing this, I didn’t feel out of breath. What a high-performance body I have.

“The 9th floor’s base is big too.”

Having finished all the business at the 8th-floor base, I can quickly head back in.

“Goodbye.”

“Yes.”

* * * * *

And so, the first view upon reaching the 10th floor was.

‘Damn, it’s a war zone.’

Lizardmen and Orcs were fighting like hell.