====
[What was that missed teaser just now?]
Suddenly, there’s a lot of talk about furries.
Have we finally gained recognition from the world?
— No, it’s a funeral.
— It’s too early, go back in.
— Something fun happened on the 9th floor~
— The representative of the Mittier School came out.
— Got sniped, and it was the leader of the Furry Gang, but now it seems like they’ve cleaned up everything by turning them into cleaners?
— Hmm… the identity of that Gonick, who suddenly had no activity history, is exposed, and I remember a certain scoundrel’s methods sometimes.
ㄴ It was just a simple system error~
====
====
[Don’t badmouth our ‘Dog Lover’!!]
The Dog Lover floods the furry memes every morning and while lobbying here and there to create a Furry bulletin board, they mistakenly changed their profile picture to that of the representative of the Mittier School!!!
They are different from the person who collapsed on the 9th floor!! Don’t believe in false rumors!!
— You’re the worst lol
— The pranksters have already started to have fun, haven’t they?
— Flooding furry memes? This guy was a total jerk lol
ㄴ Hey, don’t call Arthur a jerk, it’s hurtful
— We, the Slippery Reptile Association, support Arthur!
====
====
[What? Is this snipe just a simple thing?]
Did Administrator stab someone again?
— If you hurt someone who hurts you, what remains for you?
ㄴ Well… fun?
ㄴ Ah, fun is important lol
— There’s no evidence that Administrator did it?
ㄴ If there’s no evidence, you can’t assume he did it?
ㄴ Gasp!
— It could be a curse. There are crazy guys who can’t even snipe properly with a random box to find out the contents.
ㄴ Hmm… then the suspects suddenly narrow down.
ㄴ Let’s bring in the Gonick who took third place in the Magic Festival~
ㄴ Prinana: It’s not me, you idiots. And stop badmouthing the Administrator.
====
Certainly, when a person gains power, the treatment changes.
It was the first time I had stretched my legs and sat leisurely at a café in the Marylin Hall, where hourly fees were added in addition to drinks.
“Me, a Furry…? No, but why are these pictures in the archive? Could it be… really me?”
The first-year representative of the Glesia faction, who had seen a person break down in front of her eyes, treated me with a businesslike attitude.
Even though she referred to reality correction using the gallery as magic, if she believed so, there was no need for me to correct the misunderstanding.
“Oh, Sir Clark… You have such a high understanding of the grace…! I’ve been interested in curse magic since a long time ago, so I wanted to create such an opportunity!”
“Really? If that’s the case, I’ll introduce you to our school once. Since I heard that the renovation of the 2nd floor counter was completed not long ago, a transfer is also possible if you wish.”
“Please save me. I’ll do anything except that.”
After receiving light gossip and begging for my life, I could hear about the purpose of Sera’s visit.
“We need Sir Clark’s help for this conquest of the Great Labyrinth. Do you happen to know anything about the fog of the labyrinth?”
“I have some knowledge.”
The fog spread throughout the Great Labyrinth serves as a kind of debuff.
It blocks vision, reduces magic sensitivity, confuses the target, or makes it impossible to identify enemies, and there are various types of effects.
Moreover, the most difficult part is that this fog with such effects accumulates every day upon entering the labyrinth.
In other words, as time passes, it becomes harder to find the exit, and if you proceed forcibly, there is a risk of losing your life to the monsters in the labyrinth.
Dividing ranks and restricting entry periods.
Pushing apprentices into the Dark Forest, an environment similar to the labyrinth, is also to mitigate such damage.
The reason why representatives of the 1st year from the Mittier and Glesia Schools came to me was also the same.
“Our faction and the Mittier School, which is located right over there, will account for nearly 30% of all apprentices in this labyrinth exploration.”
“Once an accident happens, it’s unstoppable.”
“Yes. That’s why we need countermeasures against the fog as much as possible.”
“Indeed, I understand. If you need a curse-lifting magician to dispel the fog, I will gladly…”
“No? We want to borrow the power of a curse-lifting magician to increase resistance to curses.”
“Yes?”
“?”
A moment of silence.
I couldn’t help but reconsider the flow of events that had arrived at the opposite destination despite starting from the same starting point.
“Weren’t you planning to move while lifting the fog, which is similar to a curse?”
“How can we lift that when hundreds of people are scattered all over? And every day.”
“Isn’t there something like a medium causing the curse in the labyrinth?”
“Are you referring to the core of the labyrinth? If we find it, we can just break it with magic. Looking for it in the first place is a waste of time, and if we happen to see it while going towards the exit, it’s just luck.”
“…”
Haeju School, trash major.
Confirming that fact once again, I had no choice but to refuse Sera’s proposal.
“Although Sir Clark is good at using spears, isn’t it true that the spells don’t work on the monsters in the labyrinth? If you help us until the Great Labyrinth opens, we will safely and quickly escort you to the exit.”
“Unfortunately, that’s impossible.”
“Why?”
“I’ve never used a curse in my life.”
As much as I’d like to help them, reality doesn’t always align with my desires.
Even the Witches of Walpurgis, known for their purity, are blinded by my innocence.
With a deep and sensitive nature, I can’t bring myself to wish ill upon anyone or execute actions of malice.
“…Indeed, that’s the concept.”
However, the inherently suspicious and wicked ice mage couldn’t accept my purity. Nevertheless, even if
I couldn’t cultivate immunity to curses, having the power of a top 3 magician in the party was highly desirable, so they still wanted me.
“I understand. So, is traveling together acceptable?”
“It depends on the conditions. What can you offer me?”
“Fair distribution of loot within the labyrinth… It doesn’t really matter much. If you help us, you’ll be allowed to freely access the facilities of the schools while staying in the training layers.”
“Same for Mittier. Agreed.”
Authorization to use the facilities of Glesia and Mittier schools from floors 11 to 19.
Even being able to access just the library where the scriptures were kept was a significant advantage for me.
It was obvious that the offerings of the Haeju School would be inferior without even looking at them.
The conditions themselves were satisfactory enough to nod immediately, but there was one more important factor for me.
====
SuperGeniusBlondeGirl: Administrator
SuperGeniusBlondeGirl: I’m leaving for a week.
SuperGeniusBlondeGirl: It’s really urgent this time, so I might not be able to contact you.
SuperGeniusBlondeGirl: Are you listening, devilish creature?
====
The labyrinth is open for a total of 7 days.
If Mariel and I are absent simultaneously, the forum management won’t work.
“Would this be satisfactory?”
“Could you accommodate additional people?”
“Do you have companions? But that depends on which school they’re from.”
“There are some schools that we don’t get along with.”
“In that case, it’s not a problem.”
In that case, it would be better to send them ahead first.
Fortunately, contrary to the worries of the two, Mariel didn’t have to worry about being in a faction that would clash with the Elemental School.
Because she already possessed the Mystery Fragment, she would not have entered any school.
*
Glesia and Mittier, who have cooperated on the 10th floor for generations, had agreed to move separately.
Typically, there wouldn’t be cases of staying in the labyrinth for seven days straight, so it was a system where one side would go first. When the vanguard informed the types of fog and the location of exits, the rearguard would try to bring out as many of those who had fallen behind as possible.
This time, it was Glesia’s turn to enter first, and I was scheduled to enter with the Mittier faction, led by Arthur, three days later. It was decided to place me behind because if I found the exit and left quickly, they wouldn’t be able to make proper use of me.
“All the items here are the equipment provided to our students. We have permission to lend them out for this expedition. Choose whatever you want. Dispose of the worn-out ones in the cleaning equipment box.”
Arthur led me to the Mittier School’s armory.
When he heard the absurd idea that my gum-stuck spearheads were equipment, he decided to support me for their safety.
When asked what would happen if they were damaged or lost, he lightly laughed and said he would take care of it himself.
He truly seemed like a rising star from a large school.
“Sir Arthur, are you alright?”
“I heard you fell victim to the witches’ prank.”
“We’re coordinating with the Intelligence Department to find the culprit. How dare they tarnish the honor of Mittier…!”
“Don’t fuss over it. If our honor is so fragile, it’s not worth it.”
Even though he wasn’t directly descended from the Seven Sages, he had a solid position within the school, being from a prestigious family. As time passed, he calmly accepted the criticism that would be talked about for a long time.
As I hugged five sparkling spears, I felt even more sorry for him.
Despite being the forum administrator, if I could help catch the culprit, it would be great, but my power to identify the wicked curse sorcerer was extremely weak.
“I’m sorry about this. There might have been a better way.”
“It’s okay. Experiencing the curse firsthand gave me a valuable lesson. Even if I’m from the Haeju School, I shouldn’t let my guard down. Anyway, I’ll leave the rest to you.”
Hmm.
I couldn’t help but applaud his admission of fault.
Unlike someone who unplugs the cord to the ice water dispenser every class, the magicians of Mittier all had noble characters. It’s just that their true worth was overshadowed by their fiery spirit of competition.
“Clark, but I have one thing to ask you…”
“Yes?”
But just as I was silently praising him in my mind, Arthur, who had received the farewell of the students, quietly approached and asked in a subdued voice.
“If you go to the Sensitive Bulletin Board… Can you get more pictures like this?”
“…”
