"Not a bad haul."
Along the way, after blasting away a few more monsters, Frieren finally reached the end of the corridor.
And the reward at the end didn't disappoint her either.
A mysterious magical artifact of unknown use, piles of silver and copper coins, and most importantly—
A treasure chest that seemed to emanate the aura of a highly valuable spell book.
She instinctively dismissed the result of the Chest Identification Magic. As a great mage, it was her duty to pursue that one percent chance—only then could great discoveries be made in magical history.
"Hmm-hmm~"
Frieren hummed triumphantly, reached out, and pushed open the treasure chest in front of her.
"Precious spell book, come greet me!!!"
...
The next moment:
"So dark!"
"So scary!"
From the gaping maw of the Mimic, Frieren's frightened voice echoed out.
With no companions nearby and no rescue to rely on, she was forced to blast the Mimic from the inside with attack magic, vaporizing it from within.
"Huff—Huff—"
Frieren gasped for breath. "I'm saved..."
Slumped weakly beside the disintegrating Mimic, the elf mage was covered in slime from the creature's mouth. Her sleek hair now curled into messy twin tails from the explosion, which would probably take some time to recover from.
"How embarrassing. Good thing no one saw me like this."
"Better tidy up a little."
Just as she reached for her suitcase to fix her appearance, an ominous sensation surged through her heart. She immediately gripped her staff, thrust it forward, and a layered defensive magic dome enveloped her instantly.
...
An hour earlier, elsewhere:
Having entered the labyrinth from another entrance, Gut's party of four had completed their exploration of the four diverging paths under Himmel's lead.
Unfortunately, the results were disappointing.
Not only had they encountered no monsters, but they also found nothing of value.
All paths, from the three narrow ones to the central wide avenue, had already been cleared—long ago.
Given that the only apparent entrance was the one they used, and the layers of dust covering the labyrinth floor, it was evident that any previous visitors had come centuries earlier.
At the fork, Mut hung his head low, clearly discouraged.
He had sacrificed much in pursuit of the Spring Sanctuary said to drastically increase one's strength: running away from home, nearly dying multiple times in the wild...
Fortune had favored him so far—unexpected encounters, help from benefactors—but now, at the final step, to see his plan unravel was painful.
Noticing his mood, Himmel placed a hand on Mut's shoulder.
"Frustrating setbacks are part of adventuring," said the Hero. "But we've still one path left. And the map shows four such possible points. There's still hope."
"Besides..."
"Your goal isn't treasure, right? It's the Spring Sanctuary that boosts strength."
Soothing words from his idol brought Mut back to himself.
"You're right," he exhaled deeply. "I'm here for the sanctuary, not treasure. I can't give up yet."
With resolve, Mut stepped into the final path on the far right.
Himmel smiled, following him with the others.
But reality is rarely kind.
Nearly an hour of walking and still no trace of any value.
Eventually, Serie paused. She had detected the corridor's endpoint.
Just as she was about to speak, her disciple Gut lightly tugged her sleeve—
indicating they should let Mut be the one to discover it.
A few minutes later...
Staring at the blank wall, Mut chuckled and accepted it.
"So... the sanctuary isn't here after all. Seems neither the map maker's theory nor my own research was accurate."
"Then again, if it were, why wouldn't the map maker come for it himself..."
"Wait a moment."
Suddenly, Serie stepped forward, placing her palm against the wall.
"What is it, Master?"
Gut caught up, and Himmel, wary, grasped his Hero's Sword.
"Just now, I felt a faint magic ripple from behind this wall," Serie murmured.
"Huh?"
Gut frowned. Though this wall was slightly thinner than others, probing it with magic only yielded resistance. His magic detection vanished almost instantly.
But Serie, now certain, grinned slightly and turned to the others.
"Step back. I'll set up an anti-light barrier and blast this wall open."
"A mage of the peaceful era, huh?"
"Let me see what you can really do."
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Powerstones?
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