'The oracle said, "Save Abel the Brave. So I'm here to help Mr. Abel.
　When I said that, the brave Abel popped his big mouth and stilled.

''..............................eh?　You mean..........................me?
　After freezing for a good ten seconds, the brave Abel opened his mouth.
　But he wasn't speaking well.
　So I went ahead and piled on the words.

I'd like to say that I'm very grateful for your help.
"............... Well, yes. It's nice to meet you too... yes, please.
　The brave Abel nodded with a curt nod.
　Okay, I've taken my word for it.
　I'm in Abel the Brave's party!

　I glanced down at the Great Sage-sama (Momo) who was cooing on my lap.
　Momo is Abel the Brave's 'true companion', so he should just stay with her.
　Then there's 'Saint Anna' and Lucy's great-grandfather Jonny Walker.
　That's when I suddenly wondered.

(How long am I supposed to stay with the brave Abel?)

Miss Makoto.....
　I heard Momo talking in his sleep.
　I can't go anywhere without Momo.
　For now, I guess I'll accompany him for a while.

　Come to think of it, did the Goddess of Destiny (Ila) say, "Find me"?
　Maybe I should consult with Ila, the goddess of destiny, because I can see the future.
　But the goddess's prediction is not very good.

　When I looked at Abel, the hero is leaning against the wall and breathing in his sleep.
　He looks exhausted.

　--Myo Kagami skill

　I used my skills to drowsiness and took a lookout.
　Fortunately, no pursuers came while I was on guard.



　◇



　Over the next seven days, we arrived in the Great Maze.

Wow, that was a long way...

　Because we used to take a flight by airship in Fujiyan.
　A thousand years ago, in principle, the means of transportation was 'walking'.
　The brave Abel, being a brave man, has excellent physical abilities.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about it.
　It was all I could do to keep up.

''Mako-san, we're almost at the entrance of the Great Maze.
Makoto-sama.......are you okay?　Would you like me to give you a piggyback ride?
..........
　I didn't have the energy to reply.
　In the distance, I could see the entrance to the huge labyrinth.


　-- "The Great Labyrinth," Labyrinthus.


Unchanged....
　I came here a thousand years ago and everything was different, only this place was the same as the last time I visited.
　It's a little emotional.
　However, there was no adventurer's city before the Great Labyrinth, and there were no city roads.
　I've been weeding through the weeds to get here.

''Wait a minute. You can't see it from here, but there are guards. I'll go ahead and tell them about the two of you.
　With that, Abel headed to the entrance of the labyrinth (dungeon).
　It was just me and Momo.

''Mako-sama........ I'm a demon race, but is it really okay for me to accompany you?
I'm fine. I'm fine. Abel told you that if you're unapologetic, no one will notice.
　In addition to the human race, there are elves, dwarves and beastmen in this great labyrinth lair, but apparently there are no 'vampires'.
　However, since they are all of different races, they don't care about the details.　
　As soon as I waited for a while, the brave Abel came back.

"Mako-san, Momo-chan. Let me show you around, come in.
　We entered the Great Maze through a loophole-like entrance.


　◇


"...wow,
　Momo exclaimed in admiration.
　Although he couldn't see it at all from the entrance, a long, long city stretched along the upper passages of the Great Maze.

　It was lined with a row of stone buildings that had probably been built by magic.
　There were many inhabitants, human races, elves, beastmen, and many other races that I had never seen before.
　The common denominator is that they are all 'warriors' or 'wizards'.

　They carry some kind of weapon and wear armor or robes.
　It seems that this is a city of fighters.

The first thing that comes to mind is the fact that you're not the only one.　Momo-chan!
　The elven woman hugged me and Momo.
　She looked different from the last time I saw her in her tight green armor, but her face was familiar.

''I see you're safe, Tree Hero (Julietta),''　
I was so worried about you, you know.........peach. The way you look....
　The change in the peaches was immediately noticed.

'Miss Julietta, can we talk over here?'
　I moved to a secluded spot and explained the situation.　

'Yeah!　Momo-chan became the Demon King's household, but Mako-kun cut the 'causal thread'!"?
　The tree's hero (Julietta) held her mouth in amazement.

''I couldn't believe it when I saw it in front of me. Makoto-san's actions are too out of the norm........
Who is Makoto-kun?
So I'm just a regular guy who came here as an oracle of the Sun Goddess.
　I explained to the brave Abel and the wooden hero (Julietta), but they looked at me suspiciously.
　'I'm not saying that I'm lying.

'Well, okay. I'll tell the Earth Hero (Wolf) about this as well. Let's keep the fact that Momo-chan is a vampire secret from the others. By the way, what are Mako-kun and Momo-chan's plans for the future?
I just want to rest for now...
　My legs are killing me.

I'll stay with you, Mako-sama.
　Momo is like me.

All right. Abel, there's a vacant one in your neighbourhood. I think it would be a good idea for you to use that place.
Yeah, I guess so.
I'm sorry, but we don't have room for two rooms in this town. Makoto-kun and Momo-chan will have to share a room, though.
　Apparently, me and Momo will be in the same room.

"Momo, is that all right with you?
'Of course!　I'm rather happy about that!
"?　Okay.
　Momo seems to be fine in the same room.

Makoto-san, I'll show you around then.
　I followed the brave Abel as he walked.
　Soon, I arrived at a simple apartment building made of stone bricks.

''This is the room. There's no one here right now, so feel free to use it.''
　With that, Abel left.
　Me and Momo were left alone in the room.
　The room was small, with only a bed and a simple table.

'Momo, you can take the bed,'
　I looked around the room, trying to figure out where to sleep.
　That's when I spotted a small hand mirror that had fallen off.
　I picked it up and looked at the back.

　--Orga

　And the name was engraved on it.
　The name sounded familiar.
　I took out the book "The Legend of Abel the Brave".

　Abel the Brave's teacher, 'Olga the Fire Brave'.
　A famous person.
　The daughter of General Talisker of the Fire Nation must have gotten her name from the legendary Brave Master of a thousand years ago.

　And at the moment, the Fire Brave is dead.
　I understood why Abel the Brave had looked a little gloomy earlier.

(I see, this room is the room of the brave Abel's master...)
　I'm afraid........

''Makoto-sama........?
　Momo spoke to me anxiously as I was thinking about it.

'Sorry, sorry. Momo can go to bed first.
'Well I'm afraid I'm the only one who will be allowed to use the bed, so why don't you sleep with me?'
　It was tantalizingly suggested.
　But the bed is too small and too cramped for two people.

'Don't worry, I'm used to sleeping on the floor.
'But. Cuddle and sleep with each other and we'll both be together!
I'll see you next time.
Well yes.
　I wanted to go to bed early, so I plopped down on the floor.
　Momo was also lying in bed.

　It's been a long time since I've had a roof over my head, so I was able to sleep peacefully.



　◇



Lord Makoto!　Lord Peach!　I'm really glad you're safe!
I don't have a lot, but you two saved my life, so eat a lot.
　When I woke up, I was called by the wooden hero (Julietta) to the diner.
　It seems that this is the only diner in the city of the Great Maze.
　The brave man of clay (Wolf) is wearing full body armor (plate armor).
　A huge battle axe is propped up on a chair.
　I guess that's his weapon.

　The cafeteria is crowded with many warriors other than us.
　It might resemble the tavern of the Adventurer's Guild in the City of Water.
　After coming here a thousand years ago, we've finally come to a lively place.

''By the way, Momo-chan. Your magic power seems to have risen a lot since the last time we met, have you had Abel 'appraise' you?
No, I couldn't afford it.
Well, I think you should check it out.
'Well I don't have any great skills but...'
''Momo-chan, when a human race becomes a vampire, it's like a 'reincarnation'. So when they do, their physical abilities can be enhanced or their skills can be changed.
　The wooden hero (Julietta) is explaining to Momo.
　Well, Momo is a great wise man, you know.

''Well, I'm going to evaluate Momo-chan. Please look into my eyes.
Yes, sir.
　Momo replies to the voice of the brave Abel with a nervous voice.

''Momo-chan's race is........half vampire (half vampire). It seems that she hasn't completely become a demon race. Her status is tremendous. As expected of a demon king's family. The skills are........eh?
What's up?　Abel,
Hey, how's it going?
　The brave Abel was stuck for words in the middle of his appraisal.

''Momo-chan.......possesses the 'Sage' skill.
"Wha!
　Miss Julietta and Mr. Wolff shouted in amazement.

'Is this great?'
'It's great!　It's a skill they say is one in a million!
I've never seen you before either...
You don't seem surprised, Mako-san.
　I was quietly drinking my ale while the brave faces were talking excitedly when Abel the Brave pointed out to me.
　Oh man, was I too calm because I knew?

'No, great!　You did it, peach!
''Um........Makoto-sama. Can my 'Sage' skills be of any use to you, Makoto-sama...?
Hmm?
　As I was acting white, Momo took my hand in hers and leaned in with a superior look.
　Hmm.........I want you to use the skills of Grand Sage-sama for Abel the Brave, not me.

By the way, what are you going to do now, Makoto-kun and Momo-chan?　If you'd like to join us....　　
　The wooden hero (Julietta) was about to speak when a loud voice echoed through the cave.

'I'm back!'
The Great Warriors have returned from the depths of the Great Maze!
Come and get me!
Today's catch is a big dragon!
　It's not just one voice, it's like a lot of people cheering.
　When I look, I see that the elves and the beastmenfolk are gathered around.
　What is going on?

Oh, I see he's back.
　The brave man in the tree frowned.

'You don't have to hate me so much, do you?'
　The brave man of the soil chuckled.

''But he's not interested in defeating the Demon King despite his power. Even in the last battle, if those guys had cooperated with us, even Fire Hero (Olga) wouldn't have died...''
'Come on, Julietta. You can't regret that it's over.
'Yes, Julietta, that's right. He's not a brave man....
　Everyone's expressions are dark.
　As me and Momo looked at each other, the brave Abel hurriedly explained to me.

''I'm sorry, Mako-san. I shouldn't have spoken so strangely...''
No, could you tell me if you could?
　I'm going to live here anyway.
　I need to be informed.

''Makoto-san. There are several factions in this city of the Great Maze. One of them is the faction centered on us 'Fire Braves'. Our goal is to defeat the Demon King. And then there's the opposing faction centered on the 'Iron Brave'. Our objective is not to defeat the Demon King, but to "survive". In other words, we don't fight the Demon King.
...do you want to fight the Demon King?
''To be precise, these are the people who have challenged the Demon King in the past and given up on 'not winning'. And currently, that's the majority of them........　
....
　The giving up group is the ruling party........

''And the last faction. I mean, this is the largest, but these are the people who built this labyrinth city. Mostly the sub-humans. Elves like me, dwarves, beastmen........ They are the ones who have lived in this city all along.
　Julietta gulped down her ale in a gulp.

'Brave men of the human race, like us, are being sheltered here.
I see...
　I understand.
　Well, is it the smallest group (group) that the brave Abel belongs to?
　I had thought that if we came to this hiding place, the rest would be in unison.......but it seems I was wrong.

(It's a long road ahead...)
　I was relieved to have protected the brave Abel, and I was feeling high.
　We still have a long way to go.　

　One tall man quickly slipped out of the human wall.
　The rest of the guys followed.
　He seems to be the centerpiece of the group.

　His red-copper hair is tied up in a ponytail, and he carries a long sword at his waist.
　People around him are constantly talking to the man, but he walks slowly and disinterestedly.
　The sculptured face has a cold expression on it, as if everything in the world is boring.

''It's him. The great elf warrior Ji(y)o(y)ni(y). He's the chief who keeps the sub-race together.''
"?
　That's him Jonny.

　We found Lucy's great-grandfather.