The festival had been a great success, and a few days had passed since then.
The aftermath of 《Culture Day》 was gradually fading away, and the usual routine was gradually returning.

　That's when it happened.


"There's been an underground labyrinth?


　After school.
　I couldn't help but raise my voice when my homeroom teacher, Erika, told me this in class.

In King's Landing, the Treasure Labyrinth in the basement of the Magic Academy is famous. Something similar to that has appeared in the outskirts of the city. Those who are confident in their abilities should go talk to the guild, that's all.

　Ms. Erika thumped her textbook on her desk and left the classroom.
　At the same time, the classroom suddenly came to life.

"Hey, hey, Kurt. I'm sure you've heard of them.
It's pretty infrequent, but it's ...... not unheard of.

　You'll be able to find a lot more than just a few.
　It's rare for a dungeon to appear suddenly. In a previous life, a castle in the sky had suddenly appeared and I had gone on an adventure.

　But.

However, the sudden appearance of a dungeon is not a good thing.
Why?
Because it attracts bad magic.

　For example, in the Sky Castle in the previous life, there were seven demons called the "Seven Demon Lords" living there.
　For example, in a previous life, there were seven demons called the "Seven Demon Lords" living in the castle in the sky, and they were planning to eradicate the humans on the ground while they were in the sky.
　They used their vast magical power to do so and built the castle in the sky.

This is a mythical story, but I've also heard that ...... castles appeared a long time ago.

　Marise also came up to me and said in a serious voice.
　Oh, she seems to know about the sky castle.

Oh, she knows about the Sky Castle.
"I don't know if it really existed, though.

　It's true.

What happened then?
According to the literature, seven demon lords ran rampant, and at one point the world was in danger of being destroyed. ......

　That's a lie. A thousand years ago, when the castle in the sky appeared, I immediately went there and eradicated the Seven Demon Lords.
　Thanks to this, mankind ...... and the earth were not harmed in any way.

But, if the current world exists, then someone defeated that Demon Lord, right?　Who defeated him?
"Well, according to the ...... book, he was dead before you knew it.
"Haha, what's that? Why is that part of the story so random?

　Well, because I rode into the castle alone, as usual. That's because there's no one to witness the battle.

　Either way.

"Shall we head for the labyrinth?

　Pulling up a chair, I stand up.
　A dungeon is a resource. Some of the treasures can be resurrected after a certain period of time, and adventurers dream of getting rich.
　It's a good way to pass the time.

"Wait, Kurt!　I'm coming with you.
I'm with you!

　Lara and Marise hurried after him.

"Hmm ...... we should invite Cynthia too. The four of us will conquer the dungeon.

　After that, we met up with Cynthia and headed for the guild.

　The entrance is about an hour from the city.

　The entrance was about an hour's walk from the city.
　Of course, it would have been foolish to walk all the way, so after asking the guild about the location of the underground labyrinth, we used a transfer spell.
　At the entrance, I saw many people who looked like adventurers.


"A new dungeon is emerging. ......!　My arms are clapping!
Hey, we don't even know what kind of monsters are lurking inside.
We don't even know what kind of monsters are lurking inside.


　There are some adventurers who remain vigilant, but most seem to be in a state of flux.
　Perhaps it was a reaction to the fact that the only decent dungeon in the world until now was the Treasure Labyrinth.
　Rather than being afraid of the dungeon that had suddenly appeared ......, they seemed to be excited about the new treasure.

"Has anyone been inside yet?

　Lara approaches one such adventurer and asks, "No.

No. ...... Some of them are already in.
"Some of them?　Do you mean the first team?
"That could be, but ...... no one's come back yet. It's been a long time.

　No one has come back yet. ......?
　I have a bad feeling about this.

Shouldn't we be more concerned then?

　Lara asks from the side.
　But the adventurer patted himself on the chest forcefully.

Don't worry about it. After all, the hero is diving with us.



　I said confidently.

　The hero ...... is coming to King's Landing or something like that.
　It is said that this brave man is called the strongest ever.
　So that's why they're taking it easy even though no one has come back from the underground labyrinth yet.

"Hero-sama?　Is it just one person?
No,......, I'm diving into the underground labyrinth with some of the girls who were in the guild at the time. It's a brave party, if you will.
Why do you emphasize the "girls" part?
I'm not sure what to make of it. It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

　The adventurer said with regret.
　It's a stinker.

"Lara, Marise, Cynthia. Lara, Marise, Cynthia... I think we should go into the labyrinth.

　I've finished gathering some information.
　I wanted to avoid going into the labyrinth without any information, because it was too unguarded. ...... I don't think I'll get much more information than that.

　So, as soon as I tried to enter the labyrinth...


"Oh, my God!　There's a powerful demon in the first layer of the labyrinth!　Somebody come and reinforce me!


　A breathless adventurer came out and shouted.

"A powerful demon?
Oh, ......, it's a phantom wolf!
That's a Phantom Wolf!　That's a disaster level. How can such a thing be a single layer ......?

　The adventurers are in an uproar at the mention of it.

　A phantom wolf, huh?
　It brings back memories of the past.

"That phantom wolf is raiding our offerings again!　Well, he's weak, so I can kill him quickly, but ...... he's really annoying.

　It's a weak demon that the gravekeeper, who is not an adventurer, used to worry about.

　There's no need to be in such a hurry, but in this world a thousand years from now, it will be quite a troublesome demon. I know that much.

Kurt!
Let's go!
We need ...... help. ......

　I'm sure you've heard of it.

"...... Yeah, I know.
"Why are you so unenthusiastic?

　"Why are you so unenthusiastic?

　In any case, we hurriedly dove through the entrance of the underground labyrinth and ran to the Phantom Wolf.


"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!


　The phantom wolf howled.
　The Phantom Wolf howls, and around him are several bleeding adventurers.

"Are you okay?

　Lara rushes to the adventurers and casts a healing spell on them.
　The wound seems to be minor. The wounds seemed to be minor and Lara could handle them.

"Well...

　I stepped in front of the phantom wolf and looked him straight in the eye.

Can I let you off the hook for now?
Whoa, whoa, whoa!

　The Phantom Wolf is a very good man, but he is not a good man.
　However, the Phantom Wolf is a fast running demon. Give it a little damage, and it might try to flee at once.
　Let's get this over with.

"Phantom Delete.

　You mutter the name of the spell.
　Then several spheres appeared around the phantom wolf.

"Whoa!

　The phantom wolf makes a cute noise that doesn't match the yell it just made.

　And from the spheres that appeared, electric shocks shot out.
　Some of the blasts hit the Phantom Wolf in succession.
　The phantom wolf struggles to escape, but the sphere that fires the electric shocks moves as if to follow it.

　Soon after, the Phantom Wolf disappeared without a trace.

You may be familiar with it by now, but ...... Kurt is still amazing.
It's a great way to make sure you're getting the most out of your money.
Even Cynthia has ...... never seen magic like this before.

　It's not just Lara, Marise, and Cynthia, but the other adventurers around them were stunned as well.

　But I was more distracted by other things than the fact that I had defeated the Phantom Wolf.

There's something wrong with this labyrinth.

　Something bad is happening.
　It's just like the castle in the sky a thousand years ago.
　Let's get this over with before it's too late.