During the days spent trapped within the labyrinth, I've had a question nagging at me.

Whenever I'm inside the labyrinth, I gradually come across other explorers. Well, that's to be expected. The labyrinth houses many monsters, but also many explorers.

But the issue lies in timing.

I only enter the labyrinth after sunset, staying until deep into the night. I always leave before dawn and return to my lodgings.

So, when exactly are these people sleeping?

Are they deliberately exploring at night to avoid competing with other adventurers and monsters? ...Well, that's not impossible.

But the labyrinth is vast, and it doesn't really feel like there are so many explorers that they'd be fighting over monsters. That's what made me wonder.

Even now, a group equipped with fairly decent gear passes near me, hiding in the darkness.

(Are they also exploring at this hour...?)

It's currently 8 PM. Maybe they're night owls.

I decide to keep my distance and follow them.

I lacked information on how other explorers were spending their time in this labyrinth.

I’ve memorized the map of the second layer, the Hunger Beasts’ Underground Prison, fairly well. Even from a distance, I won’t lose sight of them.

If they notice me, I’ll just run.

I’ve seen several exploration parties before, but this one I’m following consists of six members—quite a solid-looking group.

(Three warriors, one scout, one spirit mage, and the last one... maybe a pack carrier?)

First comes the scout—here in this labyrinth, almost every party brings one, and for some racial advantage, it's always a cat-like humanoid.

(Wait, is that Grapeflour?)

With a bluish tabby coat, a slender sword that looks like it could snap at any moment strapped to the waist, and only a leather cuirass for armor.

It's reassuring to know that, after all that, they've managed to continue their livelihood as explorers—more precisely, scouts.

This time, they seem to be hired by a relatively strong party.

Conversely, even veteran parties still hire scouts. That's how important they are.

Why are scouts so crucial?

Even I, who've never fought a battle, can understand.

Because the foundation of dungeon exploration is fighting favorable opponents under favorable conditions.

If there are powerful monsters or swarms too numerous to handle, the best course is to flee without hesitation. That judgment falls to the scout.

While a human could certainly serve as a scout, a feline beastman would surely be even better at slipping into the shadows to observe the situation.

The warrior holds a torch in one hand, armed with a longsword, shield, and chainmail—quite the formidable warrior.

A scout’s strength is evident from their gear. Most novices still lack proper armor, fighting skeletons with crude, wire-bound wooden planks as armor and makeshift clubs.

"Over there, there's an ogre. Just one. A battle-axe type."

Grapefloo returns after spotting a suitable monster.

　

"Ogre. If it's just one, we can handle it, right? Perfect warm-up."

"What's the plan?"

"If things get bad, we can each take one shot."

"Got it."

After a brief discussion, they moved forward, and the battle began.

The ogre was a large man wandering the second floor, either one or two in number, wielding weapons or fighting bare-handed.

Honestly, the difficulty of taking it down would change significantly depending on whether it had a weapon or not, but that's exactly why scouts are sent out early—to assess such details.

This time, the ogre was armed. It carried a fearsome axe in one hand.

Getting hit directly by that would easily cleave a human in two.

Before the enemy noticed, three warriors leapt forward in unison.

The female spirit mage and the young baggage carrier remained in place, waiting.

Though the boy was holding his short sword, there was no way he could do anything against that ogre.

Grapefloo seemed to be on watch duty, scanning the surroundings.

The three warriors fought in remarkably synchronized fashion.

Skillfully dodging the ogre's swinging axe, they steadily accumulated damage with hit-and-run attacks.

But one of the warriors was struck by the ogre's axe on the arm, forcing him to pull back from the front lines.

It looked like just a shallow cut, but that would make wielding his longsword difficult.

"Damn it, I'm using magic!"

"Please!"

"Take this! Gravel Mist!"

The remaining warriors focused their spirit energy, generating sand or gravel that floated around the ogre.

The ogre grimaced and clutched its face, as if stung by fine particles suddenly appearing in its eyes.

Though utterly unimpressive in appearance, the eyes are clearly a vulnerable spot. An effective technique.

(Earth spirit magic. I've never seen someone else use magic like this before.)

　

This is probably equivalent to Dark Mist in the realm of darkness, but it's remarkably practical in battle. Compared to this, Dark Mist seems quite dull.

In any case, the technique created a decisive opening.

Then, the two warriors attacked from opposite directions, driving their long swords into the ogre. The battle was over.

(I see, spirit magic really is powerful...)

Even though I’m the kind of person who couldn’t do anything without Dark Spirit Arts, I never thought that the spirit art I’d probably learn first could create a decisive moment like this.

The warrior likely used Earth Manifestation.

Well, I mostly use Dark Fog, which is essentially Dark Manifestation, so it might be both an initial technique and an ultimate skill…

"Oh, nice! It’s an Earth Spirit Stone."

"This size should be worth a silver coin."

The warriors pick up the spirit stones, their spoils from battle.

When monsters die, they lose their bodies and become spirit stones instantly.

No need to carve the stone out of the body one by one—seems pretty convenient.

"How about you?"

"Yeah, this’ll do. Healing Water!"

A female spirit mage chants a healing spell upon a warrior injured in battle.

This must be water spirit magic.

It seems water spirits have spells for healing. Perhaps that woman didn't join the combat because she was designated as a healer.

Soon, though not immediately, the deep gash begins to close up.

It might have a similar effect to the five-crystal potion I once gave to Grapeflue.

"There you go. Don't drop it."

"Y-yes, sir!"

The warrior A hands the spirit stone spoils to the boy carrying the supplies.

So that's how it is—effectively only three out of the six are fighting, the rest serving as backup.

Quite educational, really.

Even after that, the explorers continued forward, avoiding monsters and engaging in combat only with opponents that seemed easy, steadily moving deeper into the dungeon.

"Alright, let's camp here for tonight and start exploring the third layer first thing tomorrow morning. Got it?"

"Yeah! We'll take turns on watch, right?"

"Ah! I-I can't do much, but I'll take watch! I'll stay awake the whole night...!"

They decided to camp right next to the staircase leading down to the third layer.

So that was the plan—rather than exploring during the night, they'd reach this point by nightfall and begin their third-layer exploration fully rested.

"Are you kidding? You're barely even a grown-up. How can I trust you with watch duty? Just stay quiet and sleep properly so you can keep up tomorrow."

The young packbearer, as expected, was still just a child.

Maybe the veteran party is having the rookie gain experience by making them carry supplies and such.

Well, even if that's the case, if they die, the boy will die too, so it's a high-risk, high-reward job for the boy... that might be said.

...No, perhaps dungeon exploration itself is inherently high-risk, high-reward.

Even after they began their camp, I kept watching them from the darkness.

The crackling sound of wood burning.

Occasionally, monsters would appear in the distance, but I quietly used Shadow Runner to lure them away in another direction.

It seems the area near the stairs has a natural property that keeps monsters from approaching closely—only about three monsters in five hours. Probably, setting up camp right in front of the stairs is based on that expectation.

A good party, I'd say.

Whether the Grapeflour was temporarily hired or permanently joined as part of the party, considering that some members had died due to their own recklessness before, this party seems like a great success.

Still, I wish everyone could return safely.

Just before sunrise,

the explorer party rose and descended into the third layer.

(Hey, wait—leaving trash behind like that?!)

The explorer party had left behind food scraps, burned wood remnants, and various items used during equipment maintenance.

(Ah... that's why there's so much trash. I should clean up.)

I collected the trash they'd left behind and hurriedly exited the labyrinth.

It's hard to leave the dungeon before dawn, as darkness makes it easier to sneak out.