-Name Sera Raydiant HP269/269 MP109/109 Class Knight
　　　Level 22.
　 Strength 6.61 Strength 8.24 Skill 9.54 Speed 11.02 Wisdom 5.74 Magic 8.00 Magic 1.57--
--Inherent skill: Intuition 1.77
　　　Acquired skills swordsmanship 2.14 sacred magic 0.90--

--Magic "Grim Reaper", rank 19--

　I finish checking the status of Sera and the Reapers.
　As we walk through layer 31, I notify everyone of the policy.

"First of all, why don't you leave it to me and Rustyala? We want to see what we've been training for.

　Reaper and Sera don't have much initiative in the labyrinth. They didn't have any objections, and their opinions were accepted.

Then I'll just watch.
'I'll just think of protecting the young lady and the Reapers.

　Me and Rustyala lead the way, looking for a monster that looks easy to defeat.
　Then we find one small monster that strays from the pack.

--Crystal Ant, rank 26--.　

　These are crystal ants that I often saw in the upper levels.
　After taking the first strike with 'Dimension', me and Rustyala chanted a magic from a little distance away.

''-- 'Flame Arrow'!
-'Quartz Parallax'!

　Ahead, a blazing fire erupts from Rastiara's body, turning into a firebird and attacking her.
　Unlike the normal 'Flame Arrow', the flames glided through the labyrinth as if they were alive. Crystal Ant, who was walking down the corridor, noticed the flying flames and tried to dodge them by lowering his small body even lower.
　Rustyala chuckles.
　He stands with the index finger of his right hand and waves it like a commanding rod. Then, like a trained tame bird, the flames begin to chase the crystal ant.

　It's a brilliant magic operation.
　I can't afford to lose either.
　I use the treasured sword of the Ares family, Rowen, to gouge out the sand on the ground and infuse it with the magical power of the earth attribute. The sand turns into crystal and its shape becomes sharp like a stake.
　The magic like a shotgun blast attacked the fleeing Crystal Ant.

　However, despite being chased by the two magics, Crystal Ant persisted with his amazing physical abilities. It dodges the firebird, dismisses the crystal's scattered bullets, and escapes by moving its multiple legs impatiently.

　Or rather, it's partly because our magic manipulation is lax.
　Me and Rustyala roar and put more power into our magic.

　I let more stakes grow from the side of the stake that was avoided, like branches, to catch the Crystal Ant off guard. Rastiara splits the firebird into two birds of fire, blocking their escape.

　So the two magic finally succeeds in getting a direct hit on Crystal Ant.
　However, they still couldn't break through the Crystal Ant's crystal body. The surface was slightly scorched and only a few thin stakes were pierced.

''This, this - 'Flame Cutter'!
The end-- 'Quartz Barrett'!

　Add magic to the magic and add to it. It's not a very popular act, but it was unlikely to be defeated otherwise.
　This time it's a magic that focuses on offensive power.

　Sharp blade-like flames and a triangular pyramidal crystal with high penetrating power run through the air.
　The magic hit the crystal ant, whose movements had been slowed down by the damage, directly at the crystal ant.
　However, it still wasn't enough.

　If the magic manipulation was lax, the power was also lax.
　It's clear that yesterday's training has made us grow. It's a good thing that the average wizard on the continent will be stunned by your improvement.
　However, our opponent is an unprecedented 30-layered monster from the labyrinth. It's not that easy.
　As a result...

"'Flame cutter,' 'Flame cutter,' 'Flame cutter,' 'Flame cutter'!
'Quartz barrettes,' 'quartz barrettes,' 'quartz barrettes,' 'quartz barrettes'!

　We'll settle for a series of shots.

　The crystal ants, which have been eroded by the quantity operation, turn into light and disappear.
　We see it off with sweat on our faces.
　We pick up the magic stone in silence and try to resume our search in the labyrinth.

　Then the Reaper says simply.

''Hmm, wouldn't it be faster to cut it down?''

　He would point out that we were fundamentally wrong.
　We couldn't help but nod after a little hesitation, with a look of frustration on our faces.
　Rustyala nodded and said with tears in her eyes like a spoiled child.

''Yes, but!　I wanted to be a wizard today!　I wanted to be like a wizard and destroy the enemy with a bang!
'Uh-huh, okay. So you want to fight with magic, big sister Rastiara. ...... Then why don't you take some time to weave some magic behind you so that me and big sister Sera can draw the enemy to you?
Yes, I will: ......

　Reaper takes the black scythe out of the air as he taunts Rustyala.

'Alright, Sis Sera. Help me out.
Yeah, I'll give you a hand. Hey, Kanami, just look over there.

　Sera-san responds to the Reaper's request with gentle eyes - or rather, greed-ridden eyes. I had always suspected it, but Sera-san is sweet to pretty girls. It's so sweet that it feels like a crime.

　I turn away, doing as I'm told. Then I feel Sera-san taking off her maid's uniform in Dimension, and I hastily turn off the magic.
　The sound of cloth smearing, embarrassing to a man, enters my ears.
　Then there is the sound of meticulously deforming flesh and bone, and the Reaper says on behalf of Sera.

'That's enough, brother. Take care of your sister Sera's clothes and weapons.

　I turned around and saw Sera, who had been 'beastified'.
　Apparently, she's serious.
　I put the freshly removed maid's clothes in my 'possessions' and we change formation.

I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about this. It's not just a matter of time before you get the chance to see them.

　An experienced reaper wastes no time in giving instructions to everyone.
　Then the search for the labyrinth resumes.

　We walk through the 31 layers of the Sea of Sand.
　Due to the Reaper's restless leading, we soon come in contact with a new monster.

　The one that appeared was a large monster in the shape of a spider.
　However, its slender body and smooth way of moving makes us understand that it is a different species than a spider. This monster is like a water strider running through a sea of sand. It would probably fight without being affected by the poor foothold.

--Sand Surface Rank 32--.

''I'm going to go disrupt with Sera's sister. --magic 'Dimension Saya (Dark)'

　The Reaper rides on Sera's back and erupts in magical darkness. The darkness envelops Sera's entire huge body, as if it were clothed in a black robe.
　And then the darkness runs. The beast's four legs kick the sand and spurts out a speed that defies bad conditions.
　In terms of speed in terms of status, Rastiara and I are far superior to Sera-san. However, the scene I see in front of me now is the opposite of those numbers. The Dark Wolf was running through the sea of sand faster than anyone else.

　Sand Surface was also running in a losing effort. Smoothly moving over the sand like a skate, the game resembled a car chase.
　Sand dust danced, and crystal water strikes and darkness intersected again and again.
　The game was soon tilted.
　Sera is not alone. She had an advantage as long as she had a dark and dimensional wizard on her back.
　The darkness remained after he ran, distorting the dimensions and blocking his vision.

　Combined with Sera's high speed movements, the two of them finally cut off Sand Surface's vision and took their backs.

''I got your back!''

　After the body hit by Sera's huge body, the Reaper's slash is unleashed. One of Sand Surface's many legs is slashed away.

　Despite losing its legs, Sand Surface uses its remaining legs to fight back.

'You're too slow to turn around!　You're not the enemy yet!

　But in vain, it only cuts through the empty darkness.
　The Reaper and Sera are no longer in that darkness. The two of them continue to move to the sand surface's blind spot, not letting it catch them at all.

　Their fighting style is far from disturbing. It can be said to be overwhelming.
　Even so, we were still concocting our magic as we were told. The Reaper's 'Dimension' senses the completion of that magic.

'It's about time. ......'

　The Reaper moves in what could be described as a man-horse motion with Sera, guiding the target to an easy place to release the magic.
　Then he snaps his fingers with a snap.

''--and the night dawns--''

　All of the darkness that had been filling the room clears.
　Suddenly the vision widens and Sand Surface is confused.

'Ei.'

　A reaper's kick slammed into his back.
　Breaking his stance, Sand Surface collapsed into a sea of sand.
　It was perfect. The moment the perfect conditions were set for tapping into the magic.

''Flame Arrow!''
'Quartz Barrett!'

　The two rear guards unleash their best magic.
　Flames of maximum firepower and crystal bullets of maximum output are launched into the sand surface.

　The flames of the red lotus flames flare up, and a spinning bullet pierces its center.

''Yah, you did it!

　Rustyala shouts. I respond in anticipation.

'You did it!'

　However, after the flames were extinguished, what was left was a sand surface that tried to move despite taking a crystal bullet to the chest.
　It was sure that he was seriously injured, but it didn't seem to be able to defeat him.

　Then, the Reaper's merciless scythe is wielded.
　The sand-surface that was quickly cut in half became light and disappeared.

''...... After all, wouldn't it be faster to cut it down?

　The Reaper smiles bitterly.
　It wasn't sarcasm, it was heartfelt advice.

　Me and Rustyala nodded a small "yes" and drew the sword that was lowered to my waist.
　As I thought, it's not going to happen overnight. You have no choice but to admit it.

''Since we're all here together, it's best that we all develop our respective strengths. If you are in a hurry to add a stopgap measure, you will end up with an accident.

　At Reaper's correct argument, me and Rustyala could only give another small 'yes' nod.
　I didn't have the energy to argue.
　We tried to show them the results of yesterday's special training with great enthusiasm, but the results were too disastrous.

　We walked with darkened faces.
　The reaper sees this and follows up.

But it's good to get rid of your weaknesses little by little. From now on, if you repeat the training, you might be a strong weapon one day. ......!

　The Reaper, who works tirelessly to encourage us to do what he does best.
　I wanted to die at the fact that I was making such a small child care for me.
　So I had to give another small "yes" nod. Inevitably, the tension that had fallen to the lowest level did not float away.

　The Reaper sighed and had no choice but to start leading us on.
　And so, with the Leader Reaper, we made our way through layer 31.


◆◆◆◆◆ ...


　Unlike before, this time the labyrinth search is easier to understand.
　The reaper is the first to search for the enemy, and if there is a monster that he is likely to contact, he cuts it down. The repetition of the process goes on and on.

　Basically, Sera-san would distract them and the Reaper would stab them in the back.
　That's because Sera-san's attack power can't damage the enemy. It might be better to prepare a special weapon for her when she's 'Beastified'.
　While accurately measuring the size of her wolf form with 'Dimension', I will watch the two of them fight.

　By the way, Rastiara and I are backing away from the shock. Even so, the battle is still going to end without any problems, so we can't recover from the shock. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I was hoping for a scene where I would help the struggling Reaper and Sera by saying, "Well, it can't be helped.

　Unlike the back of the room, where the tension is sinking, the front of the room is happily chatting away. Incidentally, since it's not possible to put on the maid's uniform again and again, Sera-san is only wearing one large cloak now.
　Her shapeshifting abilities were a sight for sore eyes, so I gave her one that fit. It's now a matching Reaper.
　The cloak will allow you to transform and still be able to fight.

　But that still doesn't fully neutralize the poison in your eyes. I'm not going to be able to say that I'm not going to be able to do anything about it. The Reaper dislikes underwear, so it's a criminal scene with two girls fighting naked and cloaked in the front.

'Great, Reaper. What's going on with your scythe?

　I can hear them talking together.

''This scythe is my very own, you know. As long as you have the magic power, you can go in and out!　It's a scythe only, but it's like my brother's 'possession' (di pouch)!
'I envy you that. I wish I had as many special abilities as you do: ......
"We can be a doggie!　Oh, I'm so jealous!
'Wan Wan ......!　No, that's not a dog, that's a wolf: ......?
'Oh, is that a wolf ......?　You're a very small wolf: ......
No, it's the bigger one in the family, but still.
What?　Really?
'I prefer to be called a wolf, if you can. A doggie is, well, embarrassing, and it doesn't look good on you.
'No, it's not: ......!　You look great on your pretty sister, wow!
No, no, don't do that. It's embarrassing to lie. Pretty is what I mean by pretty, just like you and your daughter.
'No, you don't!　Hey, brother!

　The Reaper wanders around the topic, perhaps out of concern for the conversation-less rear.
　But the content is the worst.

'Why are you waving it at me there ......?　--See, he stared at me!　

　I can give Sera a look that would kill a person.
　Slowly, Sera threatens me.

'Honestly, Kanami. You've been acting as her guardian, haven't you?　It's your job to make sure things are true.
'Ummm, hmm, cuteness or ......'

　I have to admit, I think Sera is a pretty one.
　Unlike the others, she's compassionate, girlish and fastidious. And yet, she loves pretty things.
　Her inability to be honest is also childlike and adorable. The others are either too obedient or too observant, so they're not very cute.
　I'm even vying with Dia for first place in my opinion.

　By the way, Rustyala and Reaper are the opposite. Mentally too manly, which is a bit different from being cute.

　But I can't be honest about all of those things.

''If anything, Sera-san is a cool woman. But I also understand a bit of what the Reaper is saying. I think that she is both cool and cute.

　For now, I'll try to muddle through with a safe word that neither of us would choose.

'Ki, you!　That's how you brought those naughty girls into your life: ......!　You out-of-towner is ......!

　Sera's face turns red and angry.
　She didn't seem to like the socially awkward remark. Maybe she wanted a clear denial. But it's too rude to tell a woman that she's not pretty up front. It was a problem that couldn't be helped from the start.

　Sera turned away and moved on.
　I'd say she was half angry and half embarrassed.
　Honestly, no matter how I answered, I think I would have put her in a bad mood. But I have to believe that I could have made a better choice.

　I continue to walk behind Sera-san as she moves onward with the Reaper's hand in tow.

　Little by little, me and Rustyala's tensions are coming back, and we start to participate in the battle. Rather, if we didn't force the tension back and return, we were going to lose sight of what we were there for.

　We cut through the labyrinth with the forceful push of the four vanguards.

　However, the path was different from yesterday.
　The Reaper did not head straight for the stairs, but instead wandered around in the labyrinth.

The reaper, where are you going?　The stairs are over there, okay?

　My "Dimension" captured the stairs to the downstairs.
　It must have captured the Reapers at a distance, too.

'Yeah, I know. It's just that there's some interesting stuff over there.
Does it sound interesting?

　I expand my senses to match the Reaper's 'dimensions'.
　Then I find the 'interesting looking thing' she was talking about.

　An altar was erected in a sea of sand.
　I know something similar to it.
　It looks exactly like the 24-story altar where I found the Rufbringer when I was exploring the labyrinth with Snow.

　There is also a sword thrust into the altar, dedicated to it.

''Hey, doesn't it look interesting?　Maybe collecting things in the labyrinth wouldn't be so bad, right?

　Like a child finding the toy corner, the Reapers lead the way.
　We had no choice but to follow.

　The altar is trapezoidal in shape, like the top half of a desert pyramid cut out.
　The Reaper stares at the sword on top of the pedestal, his cheeks up in the air.

　Before the Reaper can move, I 'gaze'

--Laked Blade
　　　Attack power 5, mental pollution +1.50--

Wait, wait!　Don't touch it!
What? Why?

　He stops just before the Reaper's hand touches the sword.

'I picked up a cursed sword in the labyrinth before. ...... Apparently, it's no good either.

　The sentence 'displayed' is nothing short of disturbing.
　Wary, I try to examine every detail with Dimension.

　Then, like a chemical reaction, a horrible, thin mist begins to erupt from the sword.

''Oh!''　Suddenly the magic is leaking out!　This guy was wearing a cat!

　Reaper bounces like a beast and moves out of range.

'It's just a defective product (bad item). Let's break it.

　He readies his sword and tells everyone that he is going to destroy it.
　The Reapers nodded in sparingly, but nodded in agreement. But only Rastiara wasn't convinced.

'Wait!　NeNe, wouldn't it be kind of cool if you could handle the cursed armor?

　This time Rustyala's face lights up like a child inside the toy section.

'Hey, stop it?　I can't even joke about it.
It's the promise of heroic stories, isn't it? It would be nice to have a main character who desperately rescues a fellow hero who has equipped it. Hey, would anyone like to have one?　Don't worry, I'll get you out of there, all right?
'You're too much of a self-made (match pump). ...... No, this guy breaks it.
No, for example, if you took that sword and overcame a curse or something, wouldn't you think it would evolve into a very powerful weapon?
...... No, it's just a sword with a criminal record.

　I can't help but think about it for a minute. I didn't want to unravel a bit of the romance that Rustyala was talking about.
　Shaking my head desperately, I swung my sword out to the side.

　As a sword, it was far superior to the 'Treasured Sword of the House of Alais, Rowen'.
　Easily, the "Raked Blade" is broken.
　Rastiara laments with an unfinished business.

''Ah, ah, ....... Duh, if it weren't for Kanami's 'Gazing (Analyze)', ......!
It's a big deal.
But Kanami's ability to appraise objects is useful, to understand even the 'curse' of things. The other abilities can be explained by dimensional magic, but the mechanism of this one is unpredictable. I wonder what kind of magic construction it is: ......

　Rastiara touches the surface of my face with a flickering finger.
　He seems to be checking to see if there's 'something' wrong with my eyeballs.

　It's something I've been wondering about for a while now.
　It's a good thing that you're not going to be able to get a good deal more than you think. I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to get a good idea of what I'm looking for.
　How it works, why it works. If we can figure that out, I think we can fundamentally solve the answers to many questions.

　And (...), I'm on the verge of reaching (・・・・・・・) the answers (・・・・・・・・・).

　I've had all the information I need to get to it in my life in another world until today. And I have the ability to process that information accurately.
　However, the answer to that question is too--.

'But the collection of stuff the Reapers say isn't so bad!　Let's just keep searching at this rate, one after the other!
Oh!
Collect your weapons and power up!

　--We're in the maze now. It's not a good idea to let our attention wander.

　With the information we have now, we can guess, but we can't be sure. I'm not going to let my thoughts spin around aimlessly, I should be able to proceed with a solid search of the maze.

　He shook his head behind his friends who were happily leading the way.

　The reapers seem to be changing their policy of prioritizing the search for the altar.
　I don't have any objection to this, since you can take your time leveling up.
　I'm going to let the Reapers do what they want.

　The group proceeded to the 31st, 32nd, and 33rd layers, searching for the altar.

　It is our policy to basically ignore the flying monsters on the 32nd layer. There were times when reinforcements were called for, but thanks to the Reaper's dark magic, it was easy to shake them off.

　The Reaper's magic showed its true value in escaping.
　There was no way for the monsters to pursue them against the Dimensional Night (Dee Night), which can use dimensional magic to figure out the best escape route while blinding them with magical darkness.

　He would only fight those who were easy to fight and flee without fighting those he didn't like.
　The Reaper possessed the most essential ability in exploring the maze.

　He repeatedly fought and fled, finding several altars.
　However, there were no good items on the altar.

--Callout.
　　　Defensive value 6. Mental Pollution +1.20--
--Allecon face
　　　Defense 4, Magic Resistance 1, Mental Pollution +0.50, Confusion +1.00--
--Brad Sword
　　　Attack power 4　
　　　Having blood sucked out of you temporarily enhances your aggression.
　　　Mental Pollution +0.50 Excitement +1.00--

　Such as: .......

'You're cursed again: ......'
'Kanami, let's equip the cursed thing too!　I'm fine, I'm fine!　If this is a heroic tale, I'm the main character, I'll get over the curse and all that in plenty of time!

　Basically, it's all cursed things, and the description 'mental pollution' is always written.
　Beside Rustyala, who is spoiling, I silently destroy the cursed things. If you can't break the curse, it's dangerous to touch it, so it can't be helped. In the meantime, the pieces that are no longer in danger of mental pollution are frozen before being placed in my 'belongings'. It's because it might be possible to reuse them.

　Every once in a while I find an ornament that isn't cursed, but those things don't do much good. They're just ornaments with no magical powers.

　Useful armor is only good for one in ten.
　And after a few hours of labyrinth exploration, I finally find a decent weapon.
　It's a milky white sword with a feather design on it.

--The Holy Twin Swords of the Helvirshain Family, One Wing
　　　Attack power 2
　　　With one wing missing, your true strength is gone--

　Communicate the results of the 'watchful eye' to your colleagues.

-This is not cursed. It's like an old Helvirshine family item.

　Rustyala, with a crown of ornaments found along the way on his head, rejoiced.

'Ya, yay!　Finally!
''But it's only one of the twin swords. It looks like you're stronger with two, but ......, it doesn't make sense if you keep it up.
Find it!　Find me another bottle!

　Rastiara gave the command and let the Reaper deploy the Dimension.

'I found another altar just around the corner, sister!
Okay, let's go!

　The two of them were running as fast as they could, and Sera and I followed behind them.
　When we reach the altar, which is no longer new, Rustyala is standing there, stunned.

　His eyes are on the center of the altar.
　She is staring with tears in her eyes at the marks where the sword would have been stuck.

''Ka, it's empty. ......
'Yeah, it's empty. That's why the other one was here, I think.
Say it first!　I was expecting great things!
'I told you, but I knew you wouldn't believe it until you saw it, sister. I let her dream until the very last minute.
'I could certainly dream about it, thank you!　d*mn!

　I'm dripping cold sweat next to them both enjoying life.
　Empty is still good. As long as there are no marks left on it, it's fine.

　However, it's strange that there are still marks left from the sword's stab.

　We are on the 33rd layer.
　Anything beyond the 30th layer is an area that no explorer from the Confederation can reach. That's why we've been able to raid the untouched altar from earlier.
　And yet, there are signs that this altar has been visited by people.

　That means that someone is behind this labyrinth right now. Someone who went to the 33rd level before us and drew the sword from the altar.

'No!　There really isn't one!

　He quieted Rustyala as he searched around the altar.

''Rastiara, give up already. It was impossible to collect weapons in the labyrinth in the first place. I'd rather hunt monsters steadily than do that.
'Ugh, I'd like a shot at a treasure hunt: ......'
We've had our shot at this one. I think it's time to get serious and go deep.

　I suggest that we move on.
　Parallel Thinking" ends the speculation of "someone" at the back of the labyrinth, and my entire body floods with the will to fight.

　The first possibility of "someone" is Glen, the strongest person in the Federation. However, I don't think it's possible based on the feeling we talked about the other day.
　That leaves Fenrir-san, the Sword Saint, or the party of the 'Seven Knights of Heaven (Celestial Knights)'.
　And Palinclone Legacy with the power of the Guardian (Guardian).

　If it was Palinclone now, it wouldn't be surprising if he was advancing deep into the 30th layer alone. I don't doubt Reil's words that he is in the Valt homeland, but I still judge that it is possible for Palinclone to be there.

　The will to fight makes my body move forward.

'Come on, let's get to layer 34. Reaper, intercept any troublesome enemies.
'Yeah, okay. I'm getting tired of all the garbage and collecting stuff. It's time to move on.

　Leaving a sulking Rustyala behind, we headed for the stairs.
　I kept the approaching monsters away with the Reaper's "Dimensional Night (Di Night)" as fast as I could, so we were able to reach the 34th level straight away.

　All the way to the "Treasure Hunt--, evolving from a cursed sword to a holy sword--, and a reversal from ...... --" muttered a depressed Rustyala, who managed to calm himself down by allowing the Reaper to listen to him complain.