The Labyrinth Maze(2)

"The Labyrinth Maze." I chuckled, as I repeated the name of the second layer. "What kind of name is that, even?"

While I had to admit that it didn't sound bad in theory, its meaning was just stupid.

Labyrinth-Labyrinth.

Even though I knew that I had a terrible naming sense, even I could've done better than giving it a name like that.

I sighed, deciding to stop wasting my energy on such useless thoughts.

While it was a stupid name, I could actually see why they called it that.

The second layer of the Depths wasn't just any labyrinth.

It was 'the Labyrinth'.

A semi-infinite labyrinth with only two exits.

Contrary to the first layer, however, the second layer was actually very habitable, with many friendly monsters living on the second layer and their own civilization existing down there.

Right in the middle of the Labyrinth — if you could even call it that, a capital city run by monsters existed.

However, not every single monster in the second layer was friendly, of course. In a way, the second layer was very similar to some kingdoms in the Overworld.

Just the Depths version of it.

As I stepped into the Labyrinth, the Walls behind me closed, before disappearing into nothingness, leaving me behind somewhere inside the labyrinth.

Although I was practically lost, without any clue where exactly I am, it wasn't that difficult to locate around inside the labyrinth due to the Depths reacting to one's wishes.

However, the major difficulty inside the labyrinth were-

Thud!

I stopped instantly when I felt a slight change in the ether density in the atmosphere.

Suddenly, the ground beneath me fell apart, revealing mummified hands reaching out of the hole and trying to grab me.

However, its arms weren't long enough to actually be able to reach me, thus just flailing around in vain.

It's the traps.

The traps were the most dangerous thing inside the labyrinth.

"It is really easy to discover traps with this ether density..." I observed as I tried to take a closer look at the ether quality.

While the influence of ether was higher the more you go down in the Depths, I wasn't used to it being as high as it was now.

It was lucky for me, though, for two different reasons.

First, me being able to detect changes in the atmosphere easier and second, my ether was charging up way faster than it usually did, especially in the second layer.

Realizing this, I decided to take my speed up a notch, as my ether regeneration was heightened inside the second layer, anyway.

I ducked, putting both of my hands to the ground as I readied myself to start sprinting.

Flexing my leg quadriceps, I pumped ether into it, as I decided that I would finish my expedition as fast as I can.

For my own safety, I also wrapped my own body in ether, as I know that it could end badly, when I travel too fast without protecting myself first.

BOOM!

A photonic boom occurred as I vanished in a blue glow.

I could feel the ground beneath me cracking into pieces as I started running.

While I could feel my ether draining rapidly, I could also feel it regenerating just as — if not even faster, than it drained, thus letting me run at my maximum speed for an indefinite time.

Although a heightened amount of ether density usually was a threat for most people, as the monsters will also absorb that ether to an extent, it was a blessing to me.

The more ether existed, the faster my body absorbed it, thus giving me the opportunity to just let loose and not worry about my remaining ether.

I expected the ether density to be high, but not this high.

The regeneration of my ether was as fast as the regeneration on some lower layers, which surprised me quite a bit.

Time felt like it stopped as I blitzed around the labyrinth, ignoring the laws of nature and running at a speed that wasn't supposed to be possible.

These were the effects of ether.

Although not versatile, its power was just ridiculous.

In the end, it took me less than a second to arrive at the capital of the labyrinth.

I stopped when I started to feel the presence of many living creatures nearby, judging that I was near the capital.

While I couldn't understand what these monsters were saying, it didn't sound very aggressive or intimidating to me, which lead me to assume that it had to be the capital.

A farfetched assumption, I know, but nonetheless, one that was right.

As the monsters didn't bother learning the Overworldlers' language or their culture, they didn't even bother to name their capital, thus just calling it 'the middle' in the monster language.

When I stopped, the first thing I did was pull out some pills from my dimensional storage.

They were enchanted pills that an old friend gave me to help me converse with the friendly monsters of the second layer.

While some types of magic also had the same effect, I wasn't capable of using any magic, so that was the only way for me to converse with those monsters.

As I had already realized, while ether was ridiculously powerful, its uses were only limited to combat.

Holding the pills in my palm, I counted them all again.

Each pill should last for around a week, so four should've been enough. However, I also put in 4 more just to be safe.

After all, it was better to be safe than sorry, wasn't it?

Putting one in my mouth, I stored the other pills inside my dimensional storage again before entering the capital.

I grimaced as I felt the taste of rotten eggs filling my mouth.

Sometimes I wished to be able to use mana just to avoid having to result to such options.

Gulp.

I quickly swallowed the pill and shook my head, trying to forget the awful taste in my mouth,

After just a few seconds, I felt the effect kick in, as the monsters' previous gibberish slowly became comprehensible to me.

-"Come on, you old sandcracker, just buy one of my fruits. Trust me! These 'apples' are sum good."

-"Bueh, they look like a worse version of guapa fruits."

-"No, trust me! They are limited edition! I traded them with Overworldlers!"

-"Dude, they are just apples!"

Not long after I entered the capital, I could see thousands of people and monsters roaming around, trading or just chatting with each other.

Unlike in the first layer of the Depths, chances of meeting other Overworldlers weren't that low, as most of the people gathered in one spot, namely the capital.

While the first layer was a place where humans and Depths monsters fought with each other, they all lived in harmony in the second layer.

Well, most of them, that is.

Just like every other place, the capital of the second layer too had many outliers or just violent monsters. roaming around.

I looked around, my gaze roaming among the adobe houses, searching for a place all too familiar.

Although I had already retired, just accepting a few requests here and there wouldn't be that bad, would it?

As the Overworldlers were pretty welcome inside the second layer, the mercenary guild also expanded their reach until here, also having a guild in the capital for Depths monsters to request their services.

"I can't just register myself under the name Voidwalker..." I whispered to myself, thinking out loud.

Accepting a request under my old mercenary name would just awaken the rumor that I returned from retirement, which just sounded like unnecessary trouble to me.

Thus, I decided to register myself under a new identity.

Even though I didn't particularly like working as a mercenary, one of the biggest advantages of it was the extensive information network that you could build up in a short time.

By solving the requests of your clients, you can build up some extent of trust and use that to either gain information from them, or get access to their information network.

That and freedom were one of the reasons why I decided to be a mercenary in the first place.

Opening my dimensional storage again, I pulled out a mask that a friend gifted me.

It was a mask from the Shinto kingdom on the eastern continent, one of his favorite places to visit.

A fox-like mask that is based on the characteristics of the so-called 'Kitsunes'. Although I have never seen one with my own eyes, I have heard that they were a beautiful race, even surpassing the beauty of the elves.

Putting the mask on, I forced myself through the dense crowd of people standing everywhere around the capital.

"Hey, look where you bump into!"

"Who the fuck dared to bump into me!?"

"What the hell, kid?!"

A small smile formed on my face, as the scene slightly reminded me of my first arrival in the empire.

While maneuvering through the crowd, I admired the interesting architecture of the labyrinth's capital.

Most homes had a roofed-in central room and smaller rooms attached. The central room was the most used room in the building, and the kitchen was usually nearby.

While the size of those buildings largely varied, the overall architecture was always similar, and the houses were always shaped in a cube.

As I finally passed the crowded places of the capital, I arrived at the more low-key area.

Long streets with small shops and stalls in a long, narrow space enclosing old alleyways.

"It should be somewhere around here..." I muttered, as my eyes trailed around, searching for the building that lead to the mercenary guild.

For some reason, the mercenary guild was always located in a completely deserted place or building.

I didn't know the reason for the location choices, but I guessed that they either didn't want to be targeted by rivals such as the assassin guild or that they just wanted to act mysterious and dangerous.

Walking through the alleyway, I found it after searching for some while, slowly recalling the building it was located in.

Although it was located inside the very densely populated capitals, for some reason, they made an effort to open it at a place that no normal person would look for.

It was on the ground floor of a small bar, near other small shops or restaurants, and protected by a special codeword that you had to utter to even enter that ground floor.

When I entered the bar, I was greeted with laughter and cheers from alcoholics who were drinking even though it was still daytime.

I sighed, feeling slightly disgusted by such primitive behavior, and ignored them.

As I arrived at the door that lead to the ground floor, I knocked on it three times.

It was quiet for a few minutes.

I just stood in front of the door and wondered if my memory was right while trying to ignore the loud voices of the alcoholics.

Fortunately, after a while, a deep voice responded from the other side.

"What do you want?"

I rolled my eyes while reciting the codeword one by one.

"Jeffrey's special order, please."

"Alright."

Click.

The door opened with a click, permitting me to enter the ground floor.

Not wasting a single second, I walked downstairs, suddenly stopping, as I caught a glimpse of a familiar face.

"What do you mean, there are no mercenaries available?"

The soft voice of a woman spoke, complaining to the receptionist.

Wait…

Could it be.?

"I am sorry, ma'am, but most mercenaries are located in Transilvania right now." The receptionist responded with a strained smile, obviously wanting the woman to go away.

"Hmph." The woman huffed."That's certainly bad..."

Listening to the voices of the two women, I confirmed my suspicions.

It really was her.

The saint of the church of lux.

Saint Aria.