Furthermore, Yuka’s claim that the Holy Church was trying to seduce her into their camp were more than just baseless accusations. On every single trip Aiko had gone, they had, without fail, assembled a team of good looking knights to accompany her. And without fail, each and every one of them had tried to make a move on her. All in order to control the one person in the world with the ability to completely revolutionize agriculture. But as Taeko had said, all of the knights had instead become her loyal followers. The same charm that had led all of her students to love her had toppled the army of hot guys as well. Aiko herself was as dense as a dating sim protagonist though, so she hadn’t realized that little tidbit as of yet.
She was glad her students were worried about her, and that they’d recovered enough to want to try again, but at the same time, she was worried about the dangers they would face on the road. Unable to resolve the conflicting feelings inside of her, she just cradled her head. A few seconds later, she could hear a huge commotion coming from across the courtyard.
Aiko and the girls turned around and saw the knights bringing over their carriages. However, there was an unexpected group of guys facing off against them, so they were seemingly in the middle of a heated argument. Aiko’s eyes went round in surprise, while Yuka and the others looked taken aback.
“T-Tamai-kun? Aikawa-kun and Nimura-kun, you’re here too? Why are you all...”
“Oh, Ai-chan-sensei. How’s it going? We’re coming too.”
Atsushi and the others greeted Aiko casually, a complete turnaround from the stern glares they’d been sending the knights mere moments ago. Aiko opened her mouth to argue, but Yuka cut her off before she could.
“You’re coming? That’s a surprise.”
“Shut it... You’re not the only one. We wanted a chance to stop being losers too. Though I think the rest of the guys are still too scared.”
“I see. Well, welcome aboard. Let’s do what we can with what we’ve got.” Yuka shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. Despite their nervous expressions, the boys still let out a spirited cheer.
One last student showed up to join a few minutes later. After multiple altercations with the knights, Aiko’s agricultural reform expedition was finally formed. Everyone burned with the resolve to stand up on their own two feet once more.
“I can’t believe I let it happen again... I couldn’t even hold back a single one of them... I’m such a bad teacher... Waaa...!” Aiko cried by herself in a corner of the carriage. The knights all felt moved by her plight and tried to offer a helping hand, or words of condolence. However, Yuka and the other girls snarled angrily at them to keep them at bay. No one noticed that their constant bickering was giving Aiko, the person they were supposed to be protecting, a headache. And it seemed their journey would continue along those lines for quite some time...
In a certain room far underground, three people huddled together close to a wall that was glowing with a faint blue light. Hajime, Yue, and Shea.
They were sitting with their backs to it, Hajime in the middle, Yue to his right, and Shea to his left. The room was silent, but if one listened closely they would hear the sound of soft breathing. Yue and Shea were sleeping. They each had their arms wrapped around one of his, using his shoulders as pillows.
A week had passed since they’d entered the winding Reisen Labyrinth. The never-ending barrage of traps and annoying insults had been more mentally exhausting than physical. They’d been sent back to the start seven times, triggered lethal traps forty-eight times, and suffered minor pranks like getting stuck in birdlime, being covered with smelly white liquid, and hit on the head by falling tubs one hundred and sixty-nine times.
At first they’d been furious with Miledi Reisen, but around the fourth day or so, staying constantly angry had become too tiring, so they’d just become apathetic.
Their overwhelming stats kept them from dying, and they’d brought plenty of food, but those were the only silver linings in the godforsaken maze. They slept intermittently, like they were now, as they continued exploring. After a week of searching they’d noticed that there was a pattern to how the maze rearranged itself. By using his Tracking skill, Hajime had been able to figure out where each block was moved.
They were finally making progress. Pleased, Hajime looked down at the two girls sleeping on his shoulders.
“I can’t believe you guys are sleeping so peacefully... We’re in the middle of one of the Seven Great Labyrinths, you know?” He whispered softly with a smile on his face. It was his turn to be on watch. He somehow managed to extricate one of his arms and started gently running his fingers through Yue’s hair. Her lips curled up in a faint smile. Hajime, too, smiled as he gazed down at her.
On his other shoulder, Shea had her mouth open and was drooling all over his shirt. Such a soundly sleeping face didn’t fit the harsh environment of this labyrinth at all. Hajime suddenly remembered that she’d always wanted to have her head patted too, so he softly placed his hand over her pale blue hair.
He ran his fingers over her fuzzy rabbit ears as well. Her normally relaxed expression loosened even further. She was completely and totally at ease. Perhaps she felt secure knowing Hajime was keeping watch. Or perhaps she was simply happy to sleep next to him. He twisted his mouth into a wry expression as he ran his fingers through her pale hair.
“Seriously, what do you even see in a guy like me that you’re willing to follow me all the way out here?” He looked down at her with surprising tenderness as he said that. While he doubted he could ever fall in love with her like Shea wanted, he was still amazed by her overly positive attitude and her stubborn streak that kept her going even when her face was a mess of tears. That was why he’d grown a little kinder toward her.
And in that moment, Shea decided to mutter something in her sleep.
“Mmm... Oh Hajime-san, you’re so bold. Doing this outside where everyone’s... watching.”
“......” The kind light suddenly vanished from his eyes. He stopped stroking her hair and instead pinched her nose, while also covering her mouth. Her peaceful expression quickly transformed into one of extreme discomfort.
“Mmm... Mm? Mmmm!? Mmmmmmm!!! Pwah! Haah... Haah... Wh-What was that for!? I know I told you to attack me in my sleep, but I didn’t mean like that!” Hajime just looked at her coldly while she drew in deep ragged gasps.
“And? Just what kind of pervert do you take me for in your dreams? What was I doing with you outside, hmm?”
“Huh...? Wait, that was a dream!? Nooo...! I finally got to see you be nice for once, Hajime-san. And then, because you were unable to control your burning emotions, you said all these embarrassing things to me and took me in broad— Bweh!?”
Unable to listen any longer, Hajime strengthened his fingers and flicked her on the forehead. The force of the blow made Shea smack her head against the wall behind her, and she crouched down in pain. In the end, she’s still the same worthless rabbit.
Gingerly rubbing the back of her head, Shea muttered her complaints.
“Feels like I was having this really great dream... but I can’t remember it now.” She must have unconsciously noticed Hajime stroking her hair in her sleep. But if he told her that she’d get carried away again, so he kept quiet. Since Shea had already been awoken, albeit rather forcefully, Hajime decided to wake Yue up too.
“Mmm... Hwah?” Yue slowly opened her eyes as Hajime gently shook her. She looked up at him and nuzzled her head against his shoulder for a moment longer before getting up and straightening her clothes.
“Man, Yue-san looks so cute... That’s how a girl’s supposed to wake up! Compared to her, I’m just...” Yue gave Shea a confused stare, but then came to the conclusion that “that’s just how she always is” and decided not to say anything.
“Come on, you always knew there was a huge gap between you two. Now pull yourself together, we’ve got more exploring to do.”
“Is it just me, or are you even meaner than before?”
�
�Huh...? Hajime’s always nice.”
“...Hic... Only to you, Yue-san. Hmph.”
After pouting for a bit, Shea finally stood up. Yue and Hajime were already ready to go. Praying they wouldn’t be sent back to the start again, the three resumed their search.
They had spent so much time in the labyrinth that they had reached a kind of enlightenment. Annoying traps and insulting messages had ceased to affect them.
And today, they finally found themselves in a room they hadn’t seen since the first time they’d run into it a week before. It was the golem room that had taken them back to the start for the first time. However, this time the sealed door was already open, and instead of a room, it lead down a passage.
“Here again... It’d be a pain if we let them surround us. The door’s already open, so let’s make a run for it!” Hajime barked his orders.
“Yeah!” Yue quickly agreed, clearly favoring the option.
“You got it!”
They dashed forward as one. Like before, the golems started moving once they reached the halfway mark. But this time, Hajime shot down the ones ahead of him before they could even make it off their plinths.
They sped up, and were at the altar before the golems had a chance to catch up to them. The golems were chasing after them as fast as they could, but they wouldn’t make it before Hajime and the others slipped through the door. Sure that they were in the clear, Hajime smiled triumphantly.
But that smile was wiped off his face mere moments later. Because the golems hadn’t stopped at the door. They were still chasing them. And worse—
“Wha—!? They can run on the ceiling!?” Hajime screamed, clearly surprised.
“...That’s new.”
“Gravity, please start doing your job!”
Indeed, the golems were running across the walls and ceiling as they chased after the trio. The sight was made even more surreal because of how heavily their armor clanked as they did so. Even after all they’d seen, Hajime and the others hadn’t expected that. Hajime cast Ore Appraisal on the walls and floor as he sped by, but they were all made of materials he’d already examined. Nothing about the hallway suggested it was made of stone that reversed gravity, or had suction powers.
“How the hell are they doing that?” Hajime muttered to himself. When he risked a glance back, he saw something even more surprising. The lead golem jumped off the ceiling, flying like a cannonball at Hajime.
“What the—!? Damn you!” Recovering from his shock, Hajime pulled out Donner and fired a barrage of bullets at it. The hail of bullets destroyed the golem’s helmet and most of its shoulder. Its head and torso fell off, and it let go of its sword and shield. But instead of falling to the ground, its weapons and body parts kept flying at them.
“Dodge!”
“Okay.”
“Waah!”
Hajime and the others ducked and weaved through the golem’s head, torso, sword, and shield. The disparate golem parts kept flying past them and crashed into the walls, ceiling, and floor ahead of them, then kept rolling forward after that.
“Hold up, either I’m seeing things, or they just...”
“Yeah... it’s like they’re ‘falling’ forward.”
“Okay gravity, seems like you’re only planning on working sometimes.”
Yue and Shea both tossed their quips at Hajime’s words. It seemed these golems also had the power to manipulate gravity. But then, why didn’t they bother using it last time? Unless it’s something they can only do in this passageway, maybe?
Hajime’s thoughts were interrupted as the rest of the golems began “falling” forward toward them. One of them was spinning its sword like a windmill as it fell. Hajime and Yue used gunfire and the Rupture spell respectively to shoot down the golems from a distance, while Shea mopped up any they missed. They kept running as they did, and soon Hajime felt a presence ahead of them.
“Hmm... Hajime.”
“Yeah, I know. We knew they could regenerate, so I kind of expected this.”
“Th-They’ve got us surrounded.”
The golems that had fallen past them had finished rebuilding themselves. An entire row of them was waiting for the trio. With their shields out, they made for a formidable wall, and there was a second row behind them supporting the first. They’d already realized Hajime and the others could power through a single row.
“Tch, what a pain.” Hajime clicked his tongue and holstered Donner and Schlag. From his Treasure Trove, he pulled out another weapon.
Orkan, a rectangular twelve-shot missile launcher. Each of the missiles it fired was thirty centimeters long, and packed more explosive power than his hand grenades. With his creation magic, he had imbued Lightning Field directly into the ore the missiles were composed of. As such, they were constantly charged with static electricity, and that electricity ignited the explosives in the warhead on impact. Hajime smiled wickedly as he took aim with Orkan.
“Yue, Shea! Cover your ears! I’m blowing them out of the way!”
“Okay.”
“Wait, what on earth is that!?” Shea’s eyes widened in surprise. This was her first time seeing Orkan. Yue stuck her fingers in her ears. Shea’s rabbit ears were still standing straight up, but Hajime didn’t have any more time, so he pulled the trigger. The missiles launched with a whooshing noise, leaving a trail of sparks in their wake. Each and every one of them found their mark.
There was a huge explosion as they hit. The entire passage shook from the force of the shockwaves. The golem knights were blasted to either side, blown up beyond recognition as they slammed into the walls. It would take a while to rebuild from that kind of damage.
Hajime and the others sped past the wreckage.
“My rabbit ears! My rabbit ears are—” Shea’s ears were lying flat against her head, with her hands covering them. There were tears in her eyes, but she still kept pace with the others. Rabbitmen had the best sense of hearing out of all the beastmen.
“That’s why I told you to cover your ears.”
“Huh? What’d you say? I can’t hear anything!”
“You really are a worthless rabbit...”
They both gave her exasperated looks, but Shea was too busy worrying about her ears to notice. After another five minutes of fending off golems falling at them, they saw the end the of the hallway. It opened up into a massive chamber. The chamber had no floor, and there was a square platform standing ten meters out from where the hallway stopped.
“Yue, Shea, jump!”
They both nodded curtly. From behind, golems were still shooting down at them. They continued dodging or intercepting them up until they jumped. With their body strengthening, all three of them could leap far further than any Olympic athlete. A jump that would easily have broken world records back on Hajime’s world carried them easily over the gap and directly toward the square platform.
Still, unexpected surprises were this dungeon’s specialty, so while they were still in the middle of their jump, the platform started moving.
“What!?” Hajime had lost count of how many times he’d yelled that down here. At this rate, they were just going to fall down. And a quick glance below showed that the hole was quite deep. Hajime thrust out his left hand, ready to fire an anchor, but Yue acted first.
“Updraft!” A surge of air lifted them up, carrying them a few feet higher. It wasn’t much, but it was enough. Hajime just managed to grab on to the ledge as he fell. He transmuted spikes into his left arm to keep him fastened there while Yue and Shea clung to him for dear life.
“N-Nice one, Yue.”
“That was amazing, Yue-san.”
“Mhmm. Praise me more.”
Hajime and Shea smiled, praising Yue for saving them from whatever hellish pit awaited below. Yue was exhausted from burning so much mana, but she still managed to puff out her chest proudly.
However, their celebration was cut short by an army of golems flying at them. This time they were just floating through the sky. It mu
st have been their gravity controlling powers at work. They headed toward Hajime and the others at frightening speed.
“Yue, Shea, get up there!” Donner was already in his hand before he’d finished talking, and he fired a barrage of bullets at the incoming golem knights. Yue and Shea clambered up over him and onto the platform. Once they were over, Hajime vaulted up himself.
One of the golems’ swords thrust into the platform’s side a second later. Had Hajime taken a second longer, it would have speared him. Taking advantage of the golem’s brief opening, Hajime bombarded it with bullets.
“Fuck. I don’t know if it’s gravity control or what, but these guys are getting more and more precise with their movements.”
“...It’s probably this place.”
“Ahaha, I don’t even know what common sense is anymore. Everything’s floating.” As Shea had so aptly stated, everything in the room they were in was floating.
The platform had taken them into a massive spherical room. In fact, “massive” didn’t do it justice. The room must have been two kilometers in diameter. There were numerous stone platforms floating around, moving every which way. Gravity may as well have not have existed in this space. Despite that, Hajime and the others were still affected by it normally. It seemed only objects made out of a certain material could ignore gravity.
The golem knights were able to fly in whatever direction they pleased. But it definitely felt like they were reorienting which direction gravity applied to them in, as their movements were jerky and sudden. Living creatures would have probably died from the G-forces that exerted on their frames. However, their movements had continued to get steadily more precise the further they went in, which meant...
“The golem’s controller should be around here, right?” Yue and Shea nodded in agreement of his statement and tensed up, ready for a fight. For whatever reason, the golems were just circling them without attacking. He looked around, scouting for any possible exits. There was no telling if this was their final destination, or if there was still more to come. Either way, this must be near the end of the labyrinth. The increased precision of the golems and the strange nature of the room supported his hypothesis.
Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest Vol. 2 Page 24
