This time, I decided to venture deeper.
If it weren’t for encountering a party of raiders in the middle, I could have easily taken down the lone rabbit.
Other adventurers tend to learn party play or read the actions of the lone rabbit to move first, but…
I’m faster than the lone rabbit, so dealing with it was easier than facing a strong goblin.
There’s really no reason to waste time when there’s nothing to learn.
“Right. Lydia, I’ll take the lead today.”
“…It’s too early. Right now, it’s more important to develop the ability to spot ambushes and traps than to find the way myself.”
Lydia sighed a lot today, but she shook her head firmly, as if determined to say what needed to be said.
I understand. It makes sense to stop me from taking charge when I’m a newbie who hasn’t even entered the labyrinth a few times but claims I can navigate.
But I really am confident. I just got the Pathfinding Skill, so I don’t think I’ll be lost on the first floor.
With that in mind, I shrugged my shoulders and joked around.
“It’s okay, it’s okay. Aside from the lone rabbit, have I made a mistake yet?”
“You haven’t. But the labyrinth isn’t a place where you can survive just by being strong. Jonah still doesn’t know the real terror of the labyrinth.”
“That might be true. But I do know one thing.”
I looked straight into Lydia’s eyes and continued.
“Like with the lone rabbit, no matter what happens, Lydia will help me.”
“Well, that’s true.”
“Just once, I’ll ask you for help. If I end up going the wrong way, then you can stop me right away. From then on, I’ll follow your instructions without question.”
“…….”
“I believe in you. My knight.”
“…Ugh.”
Lydia’s face turned red as she took a deep breath. After a while, she looked around awkwardly before finally letting out a sigh.
“Haah… Jonah, that’s cheating.”
“What?”
“…Okay, I’ll let it slide just for today. From next time, it’s prohibited.”
“Wow! Thank you, Lydia!”
I rushed towards Lydia with a big smile. I thought I could bury my head in her chest while hugging her.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
But I was stopped as Lydia held my forehead with her hand.
“Are you seriously being petty about a woman’s chest?!”
“Then why are you being so persistent? It’s just a woman’s chest!”
“That’s… that’s…!”
When the question was turned back at me, I had nothing to say. I had a lot to say, but none of it felt appropriate to voice.
Lydia smiled gently at my mumbling.
“…Don’t rush it so much. Even if it’s not tangled up with physical relations, I won’t abandon you or Ellie-senpai.”
“Huh?”
I widened my eyes, confused about what she was suddenly saying, and Lydia’s face softened even more.
I even felt a certain resolve in her eyes.
“It’s fine. You don’t need to rush into adulthood. That’s for me and Ellie-senpai. Jonah can take his time and move at his own pace.”
“???”
I didn’t quite understand why this conversation was coming up, but Lydia looked sincere, so I nodded anyway.
If I said something like “I don’t get what you’re saying,” we’d both end up in an awkward situation.
“Yes. I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Good. What a good child.”
Lydia stroked my head with a proud smile. I wasn’t sure, but I guess that was the right answer. I giggled and stretched out my hands. Lydia covered her chest.
“…No, not that. Give me the map and compass.”
“…Okay, but like Jonah said earlier, if something goes wrong, we revert back to our original positions.”
“Yes.”
After awkwardly nodding, I received the map from Lydia and aimed for a spot roughly in the center between our current location and the World Tree.
As soon as I made that decision, I felt something sharp like a stick suddenly piercing my mind.
Though I said “sharp,” it didn’t hurt. It just felt like an unusual sensation.
The stick, which only I could feel, began to spin and then started pulling towards one side.
Could it be? Did I just create another compass in my head that always points towards my destination?
Normally, I’d have to rely on a special compass that leads to the remains of a deity to find my way. It goes without saying that this was incredibly difficult and delicate work.
I had to accurately determine my current position, figure out the location of the remains, and calculate the angle towards the desired safe zone based on these two points.
If I deviated even a little while moving, I could easily stray off course, so I needed to constantly check my compass to adjust my route.
I might be able to manage it with enough practice, but it required a lot of time and effort to get used to.
But since this was the only method, everyone stuck to this inconvenient way of navigating like it was a necessary evil…
Thanks to my Pathfinding Skill, I no longer needed to frequently check if I was going the right direction.
I effectively skipped the most challenging steps.
Of course, the Pathfinding Skill wasn’t perfect.
I’d planned to stop at several safe zones along the way, but the skill only showed the fastest route leading to the final goal, overlooking that part.
Clearly, being a 2-star skill meant the mechanism of the ability was simplistic.
Of course, there was a way around this. I could designate the safe zones I planned to go through and keep moving towards the closest one.
Most adventurers do navigate this way when looking at a map.
However, if there were limitations on this method, they were clear.
I had to have a definite awareness of my destination, and I couldn’t set a separate path for the stops in between; the skill only showed me the shortest route.
Then its efficiency would drop dramatically in the middle floors without a map.
It’s pathfinding, not path pioneering, so there wasn’t much I could do about it. Trying to cheat my way through the middle floors with a 2-star skill would just be unethical.
“Alright. Let’s head this way, Lydia.”
“Be a bit more cautious… No, never mind.”
“You can give me a little advice, it’s fine.”
“…You wouldn’t know since you party with just me. There are some unspoken rules among other adventurers. One of them is that you generally don’t question the guide’s decisions.”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah. It helps the party function smoothly. Right now, we have a map and advice available, so it’s relatively manageable, but… think about why they call it a labyrinth.”
“Oh.”
That was something I was deeply concerned about, so I understood it well.
Honestly, “dungeon” seems like a more familiar term. It sounds cooler than a tunnel leading underground; a tower rising up into the sky is more impressive.
But Pangrave isn’t referred to as a dungeon or tower; it’s called a labyrinth.
The reason is simple: Pangrave isn’t a place where treasures are hidden or trials to overcome.
It’s simply the resting place of the remains of gods and the calamity they left behind in the name of miracles.
A place tangled with all sorts of powers that distorts concepts. Instead of tall walls, it’s a space where twisted time and space trap adventurers.
And that’s why Pangrave is where mortals are sacrificed alongside the gods.
Not everyone on the Pan Continent knows all this background, but… it seems they instinctively know what’s important.
The reason why a labyrinth is a labyrinth? I thought it was a piercing statement that penetrates the essence.
Speaking of which, it feels quite good that so many people recognized my painstaking effort.
I managed to hold back a smile that was about to escape and said, “I understand. I’ll always be cautious in the labyrinth, even if no monsters appear.”
“That’s the right attitude. …But why do you keep grinning, Jonah?”
“I just thought of something good all of a sudden.”
“Hmm?”
She looked skeptical, but since it wasn’t something worth arguing about, Lydia hesitated and began following behind me, as she said.
At first, it seemed like she was watching to see how much I could handle while crossing her arms, but as I navigated without any confusion, her mouth started to hang open in surprise.
Though she was quite clumsy in many ways, it was alright since the only ones who witnessed it were the monsters we’d encountered along the way.
By utilizing the special compass and my Pathfinding Skill, I soon reached the edge of the safe zone near the lone rabbit habitat.
Having explored the labyrinth much faster and safer than when she was the guide, Lydia let out a pouty complaint.
“This is cheating.”
“I guess my talents are a bit overpowered. Are you envious?”
“…….”
Lydia pressed her lips together tightly. But that sulky expression itself was an answer.
Shrugging again, I began to move towards the next safe zone. Before long, the atmosphere of the forest changed dramatically.
While nothing had physically changed—trees and vegetation were still the same—the quality of the air turned heavy. That’s the only way I could describe it.
As I cautiously navigated through the trees, the Pathfinding Skill suddenly tingled in my mind. It felt like it was warning me that something dangerous was up ahead.
It usually ends with a mere sense of caution, but this was a strong sense of rejection. There must be something there.
I picked up a suitable stone and threw it toward the spot the skill directed me to.
Swoosh… Thud!
“Grrr!”
A beast’s growl echoed from behind the tree. Had it noticed us? A massive figure emerged from behind the thick trunk.
With a frame as large as a bull and a coat as stiff as steel, along with sharp teeth and claws, here appeared the Iron Wolf.
“Ah! Wild Ellie has appeared!”
“…Stop joking and focus, Jonah.”
I can’t help it now. I’m just happy to see a wolf, not a wolf hybrid.
