Most of the taverns in the city also served as lodging houses.

"Do you want to see my special abilities up there?"

She offered to rent a room to show me her abilities. This had happened before, so there was nothing strange about it. However...

"I don't think I can do it.

—... And?

Seeing Ervena's bewilderment, I resolutely refused the offer.

"It's too late. It's time for me to go home.

A cat was waiting for me.

"You'll show it to me later, when you have the chance."

"Oh... Ok!

I knew myself well. As a gamer interested in this world more than others, if I saw this special ability now, I would spend the night experimenting with it.

"Are you at home?"

When I parted with Ervena and returned home, Misha, who was reading a cookbook in the living room, came up to me and sniffed me.

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"It smells like you haven't drunk very much.

"I didn't want to.

"Hmm, really?"

I had not committed any crime, but for some reason it was difficult for me to look into her eyes. Maybe it's because I didn't tell her I was dating Ervena? Hmm, maybe that was the reason. But if I had told her, she wouldn't have liked it... I had no choice.

Naturally, I changed the subject.

"Anyway, where is Einar?"

"He sleeps in his room.

—... Got it. It's time for you to go to bed too.

When I finished this short conversation and was about to go upstairs, Misha stopped me.

— Подожди, посиди вон там.

Did I get caught?

"Before going to bed, it is useful to let the stomach digest food. I'll cook stew for you.

"Oh... Thank you.

As ordered, I sat down at the kitchen table. Misha put on her apron and began to cook, and I silently watched her from behind.

—…

Its tail moved.

*Swipe, Sweep*

As if something bad had happened. I didn't have to think long.

"I met Ervena today.

I honestly admitted it before I missed the golden time.

—... Really?

The answer came a little late, but she didn't look too surprised.

"Are you angry?"

Misha grinned at my question.

"Why would that?" We'll leave it for those who have a chance," after saying that, Mike threw the pot of stew into the trash. Now her words did not correspond to her actions.

"Why are you...?"

"Oh, it didn't taste good.

"Do you understand?"

"Wait, I'll cook you another one."

Soon Misha cooked a new stew and served it on the table. Then she went to her room, saying that she was tired.

What was it just now?

Even feeling strange, I ate the stew from a bowl. As always, the stew suited my taste buds perfectly and was easy to swallow.

And in the first one, did she make a mistake with seasonings or what?

No way.

When I finished eating, I somehow cleared the table and opened the trash can.

—…

I froze in a daze, holding on to the lid.

... It's good that I was honest.

The stew in the trash can was full of carrots. She already knew, from the moment she came to sniff me, who I had met today.

***

Time was like flowing water. You can't reach out and stop him, and what happened once can't be turned back. We had only one way out - to get into this boat called life and row it to our goal, no matter what.

A new day has begun.

As I rolled out of bed, I looked at the mirror for a moment to motivate myself. It was a gamer's trick, in order not to get tired of repetitive quests, you had to do at least something like that.

"Bjorn, are you awake?" Then go and wake up Ainar for me.

"Good.

Since it was a recurring quest, my life these days was exactly the same every day.

Wake up at 7 am, wake up Einar, eat the breakfast prepared for us by Misha, and get ready for the road.

"Library again?"

"Do you want to come with me?"

"No, I don't want to. I'll take Einar to the training center later.

After breakfast, Misha and Einar went to the training center, where they bought a monthly subscription to stretch their bodies, and I went straight to the library.

"Did you come to read that book again?"

"It turned out to be more interesting than I thought.

"Haha, be grateful. I thought so, so I took it in advance.

Lately, I've been reading an extra-long series of novels. It was recommended to me by Ragna, and it turned out to be more interesting than I expected.

Since the action took place in the Labyrinth, the content was informative.

True, the characters are all kind and sweet, so there is no sense of reality.

Still, as a novel, it wasn't unbearable. To be honest, it was good entertainment. Other than drinking, there wasn't much entertainment in this world, and that was a problem.

"Have a good day."

As always, at about 13:00, I closed the book I was reading, left the library and went to lunch. The menu was a meat lunch box prepared by Misha. After eating it by the fountain, it was soon time to meet Rothmiller.

"You're late today. For about 30 seconds.

—…

— In order to become a good guide, you need to know the value of time. Since you're late, let's start the lesson right now.

More than six months have passed since I began to study with Rothmiller. To be honest, I thought it would be over in a month or two.

Rothmiller's knowledge was like the sea, and no matter how much I learned, there would always be something I didn't know.

"Now that you seem to know all the basics, let's move on to the intensive course.

"Before that, what happened to what I was talking about yesterday?"

"You mean the opening of the school?"

— Yes.

Rothmiller was the first to talk about the school, but the more I studied with this man, the more I thought the school would be a great success. Even if you didn't have the hearing of an elf, the nose of a beastman, or the innate skills of a guide, it was possible to acquire those skills.

The essence of Rothmiller is a master of hard work. That alone was attractive enough, but starting from the bottom, even this man's teaching skills were top-notch.

But he has not yet realized his own value.

To be honest, it was surprising why he hadn't done it yet. Unlike the dwarven's forge, it did not require initial capital.

"Think about it seriously. Since then, you have been playing for several months.

– I don't play, I use the time that I didn't have before for training.

"If that's the case, then you should do it all the more." Sometimes teaching others can help you learn something yourself.

"This... It's hard to deny. I really learned a lot from teaching you.

"So, what is your answer?"

"I still don't feel like it.

I clattered softly. It seems that Rothmiller did not want to leave the profession yet.

"Really?" Let me know when you've made up your mind. I will help.

"Thank you at least for the words.

"These are not empty words, I am sincere.

In fact, I already had a rough plan. At first, he could rent a training facility to use as a school and promote it to human children who hope to become explorers. Once he was established, he could advertise in the Explorers Guild and organize a separate class dedicated only to researchers. Either way, it will bring in more money. Of course, this will take a lot of time.

But Rothmiller is a man.

People pay less taxes. If he took a position and made a certain profit, he would have no problem with food for the rest of his life.

However, all this does not mean anything if he refuses.

If it was a question of capital, I was ready to invest to one degree or another. The concept of stock was still new in this world, but not quite non-existent. And it was the best fit for investment.

"For today, the lesson is over.

In general, after several hours of training, today's lesson was over. It was about eight in the evening. Maybe because it was an intensive course, the explanations were longer than usual, so the class ended an hour late.

"Then tomorrow... No, I won't be able to come tomorrow," Rothmiller said.

"Let's say 3 days to be sure."

"Good. Take care of yourself this time too.

In general, this was the end of the planned daily routine.

In the evenings, I used to have a drink with the researchers, who were introduced to me by the dwarf or Mr. Bear, and listen to the trends in the industry, or gather with the whole team to hang out, but today I had no one to meet. Now that I had completed my special daily routine, which came every midnight on the 15th, my schedule was completely empty.

I haven't had any free time for a long time.

Maybe I should go to the library again? Or go to the training center to warm up?

I thought about it, but just went to the tavern I saw on the way home and ordered myself a drink. Yes, there should be such days at least sometimes.

"Mmm...

Sipping warm beer, I organized the thoughts that were spinning in my head.

In recent days, nothing has really happened.

Such monotonous days were not boring for me. To be honest, it was convenient and pleasant. But on the other hand, the anxiety grew more and more, because I knew that these dream-like days would not last forever.

… However, they may not end yet. Nothing was said at the Round Table either.

The Round Table meeting I attended two weeks ago was not much different from previous ones. I was pouring information and being tough as usual, everyone else was looking at me in awe, and I was feigning boredom by actually focusing on the information that the rest of the participants were sharing. That was all that happened that day. Not only did no one say anything interesting, but the meeting itself ended after two rounds.

Oh, perhaps, there was one strange thing.

If I had to single out anything from this congregation, it would be one thing.

"Then see you next month. Hee-hee."

At the end of the meeting, the Clown said goodbye for the first time, not to me, but to the other participants, and in a somewhat meaningful tone.

Does this mean that something interesting will happen in our next meeting?

Well, for some reason I wasn't sure about it. It can be a simple whim. Such was the character of the Clown. I'm not a prophet or a telepath either.

I've got to go.

After sitting alone in the bar for about an hour, I got up and went home. When I got there, the melee sisters had already returned from the training center and were swearing. More precisely, it was closer to one-sided swearing.

"Ainar!" Didn't I tell you to put your laundry in one place correctly?! Do you really think that you can become a great warrior like this?

"This... I was going to do it later! I was really going to! I wasn't lazy, I just didn't have time!

"This is the last time. If you repeat it again, do it yourself... Oh, Bjorn. When did you come? Have you had dinner?"

— Not yet.

Although I drank, I didn't specifically order any food.

"Really?" I'll cook it soon, go wash yourself. Hey! Ainar! Where are you going? I'm not done talking to you yet!

"Click!"

Leaving Ainar, who was scolded by Misha, I went to the bathroom to wash my face. When I returned, the table was already set. I suppose that since it will be difficult to eat like this tomorrow, she cooked more than usual.

"As always, thank you, Misha.

"As always, please...

After the meal, we played cards until late at night, which Misha bought at the market. After all, tomorrow it is better to wake up later.

"The sun is beginning to rise.

"I should have called Urakburak and Arura next time!"

"Don't talk nonsense. I don't know about Aruru, but Abman should stay at home. He has a wife.

"Then we can ask his wife to come too!"

What does it bring? If I left them alone, it would turn into a useless argument, so I stepped in and settled everything.

"All right, all right. Let's go to bed. We'll wake up as late as possible.

Tomorrow night the labyrinth will open.

***

[You entered the Crystal Cavern on the 1st floor].

***

We found ourselves in the dark, in which it was difficult to see anything at all. Considering that we had just entered the maze, it was a clear anomaly, but no one was scared. Since then, we have been through this several times.

"[Leith].

A sphere of light rose above our heads with a muted brightness, illuminating the space. The first thing we saw was the portal stone of the floor, located on the wall of the cul-de-sac.

"We've come to the right place again. In this situation, this is not an anomalous phenomenon, but a pattern.

This was a measurement instability bug with a 100% success rate.

As usual, Raven walked over first and placed her hand on the rock.

It seemed that the structure of the magic flow when creating the portal was so unique that she couldn't feel it after only one or two attempts. Of course, I didn't know where she planned to use this information. Was there any use for it?

[Portal opened for the first time. Experience +2]

Be that as it may, when we entered the portal, we were greeted by a dim air and earth, characteristic only of this place.

Bloody hell.

[You entered the Beast Lair on the 2nd floor].

Why this place again?

"Mr. Yandel, what are you going to do?"

— ... Let's go back.

Even though I had been in Rothmiller's classes for more than six months, the place was still hopeless. There were too many intersections and complicated rules. Even Rothmiller fought his way through this floor with his sense of smell and advised me to just surrender.

"So, the Goblin Forest again?"

Is it necessary to ask it at all? Going back down to the 1st floor, we headed to the Goblin Forest, which we used the most. Finding a way in the Land of the Dead or the Rocky Desert wasn't too difficult, but it was still the quickest.

"Maybe we can even earn achievement points for opening a portal. We'll be moving fast, so follow me.

I took out my compass and began to seriously look for my way.

We left the dark zone without getting lost once, and even after that, we crossed the border between the dark zone and the common area by the shortest route. I never even had to ask Mr. Bear for directions to the portal. This was because I had already mastered the Crystal Cave.

*Top!*

A little more than two hours have passed since entering the labyrinth.

"Mr. Yandel!" Raven, sitting on Einar's back, stopped me. "Something's wrong.

— ... What does "not so" mean?

"There's a surge of magic in the central area, as if dozens of people are casting a joint spell..."

Combined spells - This refers to the practice of mages combining their unique magical powers to use higher-level magic or enhance the power of a particular spell. For example, such a spell was often used during large-scale raids.

But why use it on the 1st floor...

—... Devilment. I can also feel damn mana.

To think that they even used black magic. The situation was becoming serious.

"It must be Noark, right?"

— Yes. It is common knowledge that there are many sorcerers on Noark's side.

"No wonder they were so quiet. This pain in the ass made itself felt again.

"What are you going to do?" Frightened by the situation, Raven uncharacteristically showed an unusual fluctuation of emotion.

Yes, I have to be vigilant.

— Nothing changes. Let's speed up a little more. Get out of the 1st floor as quickly as possible.

Quickly giving the order, I resumed our stopped movement.

About five minutes passed.

"Something is approaching from behind!" Raven suddenly shouted at the top of her lungs.

*Woom!*

A red blob of light swept past us in the blink of an eye from the passage behind us and disappeared on the other side. There was no time to evade or react to it.

— ... What was it just now?

"I--I don't know. I think it's mana, but...

It was insanely ominous. Some kind of magic that even Raven didn't know about?

"Hey, Bjorn... Shouldn't we keep moving?

On Misha's advice, I took up laying the road again and analyzed the situation. There was no clear answer. Perhaps this was the reason.

"We... we'll be fine, right?

—…

Even knowing the role of the leader in this situation, I could not answer this question. When everything was unclear, only one thing was clear. The days of peace, which seemed blessed and therefore all the more fleeting, came to an end from that moment.