Passing through several monsters, we reach the stairs to the first floor.

The first floor resembles a town, with many small rooms that seem rarely visited.

"Is this a good spot? I'd like to ask a question in exchange for the potion's cost—okay?"

"Mew… I don't mind, but… are you a spirit mage? I've never seen such magic before…"

"Is dark spirit magic rare?"

In point exchanges, fire, wind, earth, water, light, and darkness were all equally valued.

There didn't seem to be anything particularly rare about darkness alone.

"I don't think so. I sometimes see light mages… but I might just not know much about it, so I can't say for sure…"

Hm. Then perhaps it's better if this magic isn't widely known?

From my perspective, someone who prefers to stay unnoticed, it was fortunate to learn this information at this precise moment.

Asking the cat beastman about what I wanted to know while maintaining the darkness, I was surprised to find that the cat beastman was quite knowledgeable and shared many details with me.

In summary, this is what I gathered.

First, regarding the labyrinth.

A labyrinth is a distortion that arises at the center point when three or more great spirits are gathered and evenly arranged in one location. This town, it seems, was created by collecting four different types of great spirits, making it a notably large labyrinth.

Moreover, because the great spirits are present, the city has a low likelihood of being invaded, making it relatively safe.

For this reason, people keep coming from surrounding towns, causing the city to grow ever larger.

"So, does that mean there are great spirits in this town?"

There are great spirits of fire, water, wind, and earth, you know. My goal is to save up money and make a contract with the great spirit of wind.

"Huh...?"

I heard that even after coming to this world, there's a way to learn spirit magic, and that method seems to be making a contract with a great spirit.

Well, it doesn't matter to me anymore, and I don't have any good memories of the great spirits, so I'll just stay away from them.

"What was that thing you mentioned a moment ago—'the Hungerbeast Underground Prison'?"

"It's the name of the second layer, you know. I don't know who named it, but that's what it's called."

"Then what about the first layer?"

"Twilight Mortal Street."

"I see... "

They've named it directly after its characteristics.

Is that more understandable than just calling them the first and second layers? Honestly, I'm not sure.

"So why were you barefoot?"

I couldn't help but ask.

Couldn't afford shoes, maybe?

"Scouts gotta move silently, or their purpose is lost. But the second layer's dark, so you can step on things that cut your feet..."

"Ah, so that's why you were barefoot."

Of course, being a cat-like beastman, you probably don't need shoes anyway.

Either way, getting injured would be a poor trade-off at Jyendō.

...Well, I suppose if you knew that already, it's not my place to say anything.

"You should pick your partners more carefully from now on. This time was just luck."

"We're hired scouts—we don't get to choose our clients."

"Life's harsh, isn't it?"

It was like being suddenly fired while lost in a labyrinth. Her low status was obvious, yet it was still harsh.

I was just lucky enough to pass by this time—otherwise, that cat-beast might have been sacrificed, perhaps something that happened all too often.

　

Afterward, I managed to gather information about labyrinth exploration from her.

It seemed to be common knowledge one should know before entering the labyrinth, and she was surprised I didn’t know anything.

It might have been lucky I stayed hidden and unseen.

By appearing unusually ignorant, I avoided standing out.

In the labyrinth, when a person dies, their body vanishes entirely, leaving only a spirit stone; spirit energy swirls downward into the depths, and the monsters grow stronger the deeper one goes.

Mazes contain monsters.

Monsters are not animals, but entities formed through spirit power.

When monsters are defeated, their bodies vanish completely, leaving only spirit stones behind.

However, monsters that exit the maze undergo incarnation and become monsters.

Explorers earn money by cashing in spirit stones.

The operation of spirit stone excavation is managed by the nation.

In principle, spirit stone excavation is entrusted to explorers.

Although I had vaguely suspected this was the case, it's important to confirm it this way.

"…But, if you don't know this, aren't you not really an explorer?"

"It's a secret."

"Hmm, well, I suppose there's a chance you might not know, so I'll tell you—no matter who finds the treasure, absolutely no one is allowed to steal it.

A firm tone.

Stealing treasure. Is that really such a taboo? Is it a matter of ethics?

'The treasure is meant for the individual explorer who finds it. The Lilimoo says they won't tolerate anyone who steals it.'

'What's Lilimoo?'

'A divine beast.'

In short, it seems the treasures obtained within the labyrinth are bestowed directly by the divine beast upon the explorer who discovers them. Transferring the treasure after leaving the labyrinth is fine, but even exchanging it inside the labyrinth is considered dangerous...

This taboo is deeply ingrained—though, in fact, very few people have actually seen the divine beast appear.

""Got it. Well, I've never seen treasure myself, but I'll be careful."

"Treasures are spherical inside the labyrinth, but they revert to their true shape once outside. You'll know it right away when you see it."

"I see."

While scavenging corpses, there was always a chance I'd end up touching someone else's treasure, but if it's always a sphere, just avoiding those should be fine.

I'd learned quite useful information, so I escorted the cat-like humanoid to near the labyrinth's entrance.

"See ya. Don't get hurt again."

"Ah, um!"

"What is it? Did you forget something?"

"I'm Grapeflour. Grapeflour from Links. Could you please tell me your name, too? ( ) Just tell me your name!"

"……No, we'll probably never meet again, so don't go telling anyone we met, okay? And don't mention our encounter to anyone else."

I said that just in case something unexpected happened.

Since meeting Grapefloo, I've never once emerged from the darkness, so my appearance hasn't been seen. As long as it's just my voice, they won't be able to locate me.

I still haven't earned a single coin today.

I turned back and went straight up two levels—no, all the way back to the Hunger Beasts' Underground Prison.

◇◆◆◆◇

(Now that I look at it... yeah, there really are some junk items scattered here.)

It's fine to stay still and blend into the darkness, but thinking about it, viewers can't see into the darkness anyway. That means no one would know what's happening inside it.

Remembering the tragic sight of Grapefloo, the feline humanoid, left injured and bleeding on the ground, I found myself instinctively starting to clean up the debris scattered on the floor.

Fragments of equipment, sharp stones, splinters of wood—these are scattered here and there.

Occasionally, spirit stones fall to the ground—likely items left behind by explorers who failed to collect them after defeating monsters, or overlooked in the dark. These abandoned spirit stones are a valuable source of income for me, especially since I possess dark vision and night vision.

Despite the overwhelming aura of death in this place, no bones are scattered about.

In a world where both humans and monsters turn to stone upon death, it's perhaps difficult for bones to remain as bones.

Even the skeletons here in the Twilight Necropolis don't retain bones after dying—they simply become stone.

(That's when the Shadow Bag comes in handy.)

No need to pick them up by hand.

Just open the mouth of the Shadow Bag beneath the debris, and everything is automatically stored.

I've managed to find a few spirit stones here and there, so this job might not be so bad for a side income.

After walking for a while, I came across the tragic end of the explorers.

(Ah... karmic retribution.)

The explorers, having left their Grape Flour behind, had peacefully transformed into spirit stones.

Probably, when scouts were present, they managed to cautiously navigate past dangerous monsters. Now, without scouts, this is what happens.

It must take considerable skill to traverse this floor with only three people. From what I’ve seen, the largest group of monsters I’ve encountered exceeded twenty.

I quietly collect their equipment and spirit stones.

It’s unfortunate they’ve died, but with three individuals, it’s worth a decent amount.

Besides, since they abandoned their comrades, I don’t feel any guilt about taking their belongings.

　　

On that day, they found no other dead explorers besides themselves.

I had basically just walked through the labyrinth, cleaning it up as I went, and I thought I did a pretty good job.

It was strange that I could find enjoyment in such a thing.

I escaped the labyrinth before sunrise.

I stopped by the morning market, had a little something to eat, then returned to the inn and slept until nightfall.