Toward the Last Labyrinth

Jayr POV - Jayr's Soulbound Territory - 2013

I remain stunned on the spot because no one else should be here, and the only unexpected voice that I could hear is that of Culture, but then the strange tiny voice continues, "The Holy Cup became even more strong and alive, I can clearly feel its presence watching over us all..." that makes me wake up from my stunned state.

So I turn around to see the one who just spoke, but all I see is the huge Treant behind me, but even so, something about the Treant seems different almost wrong, and as I focus on the huge tree, I once again hear that strangely young tiny voice that says, "Lord, where are you looking? I'm down here."

And following the voice, I see a 40 cm tall plant-like young girl, she has grass-like long green hair, branch-like horns coming out of her head with a smaller version of the fruit that grows on the Treants on each side, big blue eyes, caramel skin tone, and bark like mark on her forehead in the shape of a circle surrounded by 2 rings.

Overall, she looks fairly human, at least part of the upper body, because the rest of her body is clearly a tree trunk, looking at this small being pure smile, I lower my guard, and at the same time, I realize what is wrong with the Treant, it lost all his Cosmo, but as I focus my senses even more, I realize that I'm wrong, it isn't that the Treant lost his Cosmo, but that this small creature has it all, moreover, it is clearly connected to the Treant, 'No, it's the Treant, it is basically one being in two bodies... Moreover, it has a fully developed soul and sentience... It has evolved!'

(Image Here - Evolved Treant)

Realizing this, I kneel down and say, "You don't have to call me Lord, calling me by my name is fine... You are the Treant, right...?" but the small girl shakes her head and says, "Noope! Not anymore, the Treants are a race of ugly and bad monsters... I refuse to be associated with such beings... And you ARE our lord, you brought us to this peaceful place, made us grow, and evolve... So you are our Lord and as such, I ask you to give our race a new name...Pretty Please?" at the same time, she use the ultimate weapon of all cute things, the puppy eyes.

Unable to withstand that terrifying weapon, and seeing some truth in what she just said, I think about it for a few moments before saying, "What do you think about Nymphs, in ancient Greek folklore they are minor female nature deities regarded as personifications of nature..."

Hearing that, the small plant girl's eyes start sparkling before she nods, then she yells, "Did you hear everyone? From now on we are the Nymph Race!!" at the same time, I hear many girlish voices around me that say, ""Yay!!!""

I look around me and see that in front of all the former Treants, there is also a smaller Nymph, all with different hair and eyes color, but with the same skin tone as the one standing in front of me, but I also notice that these seem smaller reaching around 30 cm of height.

Then I look back at the bigger Nymph and ask in an uncertain tone, "So... it appears that you are the leader of your race...?"

Hearing that she nods and says, "Yes! I was the first to be planted in this place and be bathed in that awesome energy that allowed us to change and start evolving..." which makes me nod, then I say, "Well, I can't continue to refer to you as "You"... What do you think of Meliae, it is the name of the Ash Tree Nymphs in Greek mythology, and your hair kinda reminds me of the leaves of an ash tree."

Hearing my suggestion, her smile grows bigger as she nods and says, "I like it! From now on my name is Meliae!!" then Meliae looks at me and says, "Well, it is better to leave you alone, we have to still to adjust to these new changes... Once again thanks for making us evolve from the feral monsters we were before!" and after saying this she disappears into the ground, but I clearly feel that she just went back into the tree as now her Cosmo and Magic Power are once again joined together.

After this small episode with the new race that lives in my territory, I focus back on my Cloth, which with a simple thought, move and equip itself on my body, and I can now feel the difference even more clearly now, 'It's amazing, Crateris is now a class of Cloth on its own... Before, the Cloth only communicated with me through Cosmo, but now it is a lot more active, in fact, it is telling me that it can help me with using spell and techniques in fact, it can cast spell in my place, but it also can warm me of incoming danger before it happens better than before, as its ability to see the future got a lot stronger, of course, to see the future I still need to see it reflected in the water poured into its Constellation Form, but now during a fight, it can also warn me kinda like a spider-sense...'

And those aren't the only changes, the Cloth became a lot harder, in fact, it is harder than a Gold Cloth, it is almost comparable to the Sagittarius God Cloth, moreover, it can now also be used with Magic Power, but the most important change is that now it can turn into a God Cloth without using Saori or another god's blood, I just have to reach the 8th sense and enter in my Cosmo-Mana state, and we will enter in what from now on I will call God Mode, in fact, from what it tells me, with the Crateris God Cloth I don't have to worry about the unlimited energy produced by the Cosmo-Mana state as the excess energy will be absorbed by the Cloth to make it even more durable and in case of damage to restore it.

Another little perk is that it contains now a piece of my soul, so that can be used in case the main one is destroyed to fully restore it.

Overall, the Crateris Cloth became what can be considered a cheat code, as it grants me, infinite health, mana, stamina, and respawn, to truly kill me now, one has to totally erase, my body, soul, and Cloth at the same time, after confirming that everything went well, I'm about to return back to my villa with the Pandora Box when the Crateris Cloth tells me to leave it here as it likes the Nymphs' company but to pick it up when we get out as it wants to experience this world.

I nod with a smile thinking, 'My partner truly became more alive, well I don't have to worry about its possible betrayal, no matter how alive Crateris becomes, like me, it's loyal to Athena and her belief, and most important when I equipped it before, the Crateris Cloth used Spirit Magic on its own to bind a piece of its soul into mine, binding our fates together even more...'

Then with a smile, I walk back to my villa and mutter, "Maybe one day it could take a human form like Enkidu from the Fate Franchise..."

Jayr POV - Tortus, Schnee Snowfield - 2013

An ocean of clouds glistening in the sunlight is all I can see above us, basically, it covers the whole sky, at the same time, all around us there is only an endless expanse of snow and ice.

While I was admiring our surroundings, I hear Freid's voice as he says, "Well, there you are. This is the Schnee Snowfield a heavy snow field, which is covered in cloudy weather throughout the year so that even during periods when it doesn't snow, the earth remains smothered in snow and ice. It is located between the Sea of Trees and the demon country of Garland... This is as close as I can lead you guys, after all, as Miledi and the others said even reaching the Labyrinth itself is part of its trial. Now I'll go back to Verbergen... Have fun!" and I turn around just in time to see him flee back into the gate opened by the spell Cosmic Rift.

The reason why Freid is in so much hurry is quite simple, he wants to stay as far as possible from the tense and heavy air generated by a clearly upset Eri, and the glowing Tio.

The cause for such tension, isn't what happened between Tio and me, because Eri has already acknowledged Tio's feelings for me as genuine, and gave me her silent albeit slightly reluctant approval, nope the reason she is upset, is because this morning Tio came to our room and started to service me with her big melons, waking up both of us, then she said something like it is her duty as a slave to give her master what the lover can't, obviously enraging Eri, and one thing led to another, and I found myself in a threesome where Eri showed her sadistic and dominant side, to the immense joy of Tio, that enjoyed every moment of it, so much that it started to call Eri, "Mistress."

And as a result, now Tio doesn't bother only me with her perverted requests, but also Eri, making her regret the fact that she lost control.

And so while Tio begs Eri, hugging her and rubbing her cheek on her face, "Come on, Mistress! Let's do it again tonight~. You can humiliate, insult, hit, and spit on me while master ravage this one ass~ Ahh~ only thinking about how you guys manhandled me makes me wet..." feeling the familiar weight of the Crateris Pandora Box on my shoulders, I focus once more on our surroundings.

The interior of the snowfield houses a considerably large gorge, likely formed from the ice and the snow, and from what Freid told us the last of the Great Labyrinths should be at the tip of the gorge, the Frost Caverns of Schnee, but even if we don't have Freaid to guide us and don't know the exact position, we can still easily find it using the Compass of Eternal Paths.

As why I'm using this instead of the Mana Compass I built, is pretty simple, the Compass of Eternal Paths is way better, it is a Concept Magic Artifact, while to cost of magic power to use it is still very demanding, this compass is not only it points at the direction I want, but it also gives me a sense of the exact location and distance as well, in fact, I tested to see if it can also point me toward the Saint Seiya Universe something that my Mana Compass can't do, and indeed with it, I was not only able to see its direction and coordinates but also able to feel its general direction, something that I confirmed using the 8th sense in my Cosmo-Mana state and sensing Saori's familiar Cosmo.

While I'm holding the Compass of Eternal Paths, Tio asks, "Master, this is the first time this one sees thou holding that metal box that contains that strange cup... now that this one thinks about it, why do thou have that cup in your dimension and care so much for it, is it some kind of artifact?"

Hearing that, I realize that I have never explained to Tio and Eri about the Cloth, so I reply, "Well, this is more or less right... You see, this "cup" true function is that of an armor that protects and enhances our control over Cosmo..."

Then, I continued to explain to them that the humans in my Universe are very similar to the ones in this one, they have a very fragile and weak bodies, and after that, I told them a brief history of Cloth and their creation.

Hearing my story, the way Tio looks at the Pandora Box changes as she says in an impressed tone, "Amazing to think that this Cloth is so old and strong..."

While this is happening, we continue to move toward our destination, when all of a sudden, Tio timidly asks, "By the way, master... Since we are finally... when all this is done... I would like to bring you to my home, the Dragonman Secret Village, to meet my grandfather and receive his blessing... What do you say?"

Hearing her question, I smile and reply, "Sure, in fact, if your grandfather and the others want they can also come to live in my Soulbound Territory when it gets big enough, or even my home Universe..."

Hearing my answer, a bright smile appears on Tio's face, as she lunges at me yelling "Master...!!" and hugs me shoving my head in her huge valley, this continues for a few seconds before Eri slaps Tio's butt with her staff and yells, "Calm down, you Ero-Dragon!! There is a time and place for acting like this!"

Tio lets me go and with a perverted smile on her face, she says, "Yes, Mistress~" and starts to hug her, making Eri once more groan at the new form of intimacy developed between them.

After walking for only a few seconds, I realize that the Labyrinth's trial is finally starting as we are instantly enveloped in a snowstorm cold enough to freeze our thick clothes.

Soon Eri and Tio start shivering as they hug each other and Tio says, "That's certainly severely cold, as Freid said, that is not this one's forte..." and Eri adds, "A-and neither is mine..."

Meanwhile, I continue walking as if nothing is wrong even while I still wear a simple t-shirt, and ask, "Really...? I find this temperature quite mild..." but Eri scoffs and says, "We aren't like you that swam in the frozen water of Siberia naked..."

And realizing the truth in her words, I grab some of the necklace artifacts, I made to protect them from cold and gave it to them, making them easily withstand the freezing cold of this area.

After that, we continue walking through the snowstorm using the Compass of Eternal Paths as a guide and finally, we reach our destination, where the entrance to the Frost Caverns of Schnee should be located.

However, upon reaching the end of the gorge, the cave entrance is yet to be seen, and Tio asks, "… Nn? Does it end here? The compass says it's still further ahead, right?"

But Eri using the glasses given by Oscar is the first to notice something, then she points at one place where the width of the gorge apparently narrows up ahead, and says, "Over there...!"

Looking at where she is pointing I see a place where the ice and snow have piled up, creating a huge domed passage, leading towards the inside, seeing that I lead them toward that point.

We continue to move forward as we are attacked by large swaths of snow coming up into our faces as the snowstorm gets fiercer, so I stand in front of the to act as a barrier as the simple artifact I made only keeps their bodies warm so that they aren't unaffected by the cold, it doesn't protect them from such attacks.

As we continue walking, all of a sudden, I notice something and warn my companion, "Be careful! We are standing over the entrance, and the ground is about to collapse!!"

And quickly I leap back pulling Tio and Eri with me as the ground we were standing on a few moments ago collapses forming a massive crevasse that opens into a deep hole.

Seeing the deep ravine in front of us, Eri comments, "Oh come one! I lost count of how many times something like this happened!!" and Tio adds, "Indeed it seems to be a constant of the Great Labyrinths... So are we gonna leap?" I nod in response to Tio's question and without hesitation, I say, "Okay pals, let's do this..."

And after taking a deep breath, I leap down yelling, "Leeroooy Jeeeeenkins!!" soon after, I sense Tio and Eri following after me, at the same time, I hear Eri yells, "Let me go you Ero-Dragon!!! I could've jumped on my own!!!"

After falling for a few seconds, I safely land and look up for Tio and Eri, and see that Tio is hugging Eri as they fall, and just as they are about to land, I jump up to grab them and help them with their landing.

After that, we continue moving following the Compass of Eternal Paths, everything in the surrounding area is covered with ice and snow, even the temperature got a lot lower than before, and lumps of ice and icicles that seem to grow from the ground appear more and more the farther we advance, the wind also seems to blow stronger, and the temperature continues to drop lower and lower.

Tio and Eri are having more and more difficulty moving through this cold wind even with the help of the artifacts, so much so that Tio comments, "This is a little troubling." then Eri looks over at the Compass and says, "It should be within 500 meters. It's dangerous with the snow fluttering around and obstructing our views. Tio, can you please disperse the wind?"

At Eri's request, Tio says, "Understood." and gathers her magic to disperse the wind to the left and right making our advance easier, as a wind barrier envelopes us, and as the snow and wind hit the barrier, the power is dispersed and thrown to the side, softening it to a gentle breeze.

With the storm averted, we start to move much faster and finally reach our destination, in front of us there is a crack with a beautiful isosceles triangle at the tip of the dead end, in that crack there is the entrance to the Labyrinth, a really dark cave whose darkness seems to swallow everything.

Seeing this, a confident Tio says, "It looks like we're here, but Master…" followed by Eri who simply utters, "Uhn..."

At the same time, she takes a guarded stance, I notice the same thing and prepare for the fight, but seeing that Eri is still confused, I say, "Eri, prepare yourself. Something is coming!" at the same time, I sense the presence of 5 enemies coming from the dark cave in front of us.

We don't have to wait for long as they make their appearance as they let out some strange creepy yell, ""Ggigigigigigigi"" and soon they come out of the cave moving around fiercely.

The monsters have an appearance similar to a gorilla covered in white fur, they stand three meters tall and walk on two legs, in fact, they kinda look like Yetis.

But before I could do anything, I hear Tio and Eri chant at the same time, "Soul Shock!!"" and a pale white wave hits all the Yetis at the same instant, and all of a sudden, the Yetis fall to the ground dead, then I hear Eri say, "Let's move on, this is the last Labyrinth, after this, we only have to deal with Ehit, and then you can finally bring me home to meet your parents and girlfriend, then we can marry!"

And next to her, Tio nods and adds, "That's right! But remember that Master also needs this one grandfather's blessing... Well, it isn't really important, after all, this one already belongs to Master."

I shrug my shoulder and say, "Okay then, let's move and conquer the last Labyrinth..." but at the same time, I think, 'Well, I have to admit that at this point we are kinda over-leveled for this challenge... the only difficulty is the trial itself, not the danger... In fact, with only Soul Shock, a Spirit Magic that bypasses all defense and strikes the soul directly, Eri and Tio can wipe out most of the enemies without breaking a sweat...' and without hesitation, I lead the girls into the Frost Caverns of Schnee.

Jayr POV - Tortus, Frost Caverns of Schnee - 2013

The last of the seven great labyrinths, Frost Caverns of Schnee is like a house of mirrors.

The passage inside this large labyrinth is a considerable area, large enough for ten people to stand side by side, the walls made from ice possess the transparency of crystal, and thanks to the reflections one could easily become confused as to the number of people present increases, the end result is a confusing and mysterious internal structure.

Although another thing could be said to contribute to this mysterious feeling, within the cave, snow is always falling, of course, being a cave the snow doesn't fall from the ceiling, the snow is blown through the cave, moving along the wind, however, it isn't blown in from the entrance, but blown out from within the recesses of the cave.

Moreover, this isn't the normal kind of snow, if it touches a part of the body it causes instant frostbite, but such a thing isn't a problem for us since Tio is using both her wind and fire magic to create a barrier around us that block and melts this dangerous snow.

While walking through this cave, my gaze stop on the corpse of a man buried among the wall of ice with closed eyes like he was sleeping, he seems to have sat down after becoming tired with his back to the wall and then become frozen there, 'There isn't a wound on the body he died of Hypothermia, lost all his body heat and stamina and died as he fell asleep...'

As I was checking the corpse, Eri says, "Jayr, that isn't a normal corpse... it is a reanimated one... right now there isn't any magic power coursing through its body and wall, but for me is clear as day that it is just in its inactive state..."

I look closer and notice that what she said is true, the corpse is almost swallowed by the wall, no to be more correct became one with the wall, and while it still has the appearance of a corpse it is in fact just made of magic ice at this point.

Realizing this, I ask, "What do you say, should we destroy it?" but she checks something with her glasses Eri, then shakes her head and says, "It is useless, from what I can infer, even if we destroy the corpse, it will be regenerate using the surrounding ice, the only way is to find the core and destroy it..."

Hearing that I nod and say, "Well finding it won't be a problem...", and once more pick up the Compass to find the position of the core.

As we continue to move forward, Eri suddenly asks, "By the way, Jayr, I noticed that you appear as clueless as about some of the things that we find in the Labyrinths... Shouldn't you already know this? After all, you told me that you have read our original story...?"

Hearing that, I scratch my cheek in embarrassment and reply, "Well... it is true, I have read the novel... until the protagonist started to conquer the Haltina Labyrinth, then I was too busy with my work and other things in my life and didn't read it anymore, and just looked at the spoilers in the end to satisfy my curiosity... So some details are unknown to me..."

Hearing my answer to her question, Eri looks at me and says, "So that is why..."

After that question, we continue to advance through this complex cave with many branching paths, but thanks to the compass, we are able to move without hesitation and take the right turn.

Along the way, the walls are littered with a lot more corpses trapped in the ice wall, and Tio comments, "… 50 people so far, most demons... if all these become active and can regenerate almost endlessly this could be annoying to deal with..."

But Eri quickly reassures her, "Don't worry, if it is about numbers we won't lose, my puppets are more than the five hundred, and since these are mostly made of ice they seem to be quite weak..."

Tio then realizes, "I see! Probably their scope is only to delay us and make us exhaust ourselves so that the cold can finish us off... Quite nasty as usual..."

While we were talking we continue to advance until we reach a 4-way intersection with a ten-meter width and height.

And as soon as we step inside, I sense that the frost corpse finally starts to move, and so I say, "It seems that the first trial of this Labyrinth has truly started... Be ready the corpse are coming... from all four sides!!" at the same time, they hear my warning, Tio and Eri also prepare for taking on the first obstacle standing in the way of our labyrinth conquest.