"Hard to find a good spot here..."

Even if it's a cliff, I could manage if there were ledges here and there where I could rest, but no matter how far we go, it's just a sheer vertical cliff, like it's been cut off.

Even with Aya-chan's help, it's impossible to climb like this.

Every time we spot a creature, Aya-chan knocks it down, turning it into a meal and emergency rations.

We haven't seen the big lizard since then. The environment doesn't seem to support many living things, so the chance of being attacked is low.

While waiting for Aya-chan's meal, I pick out some useful items from the status board's inventory.

Rope, hook, hammer.

I've only tried free climbing a few times for fun, just hanging out with Serika-chan, but I've never done anything other than free climbing—climbing using gear. I suppose you just hammer in a piton, hook the rope onto it, secure your harness, and gradually climb upward—

but no, that's impossible. Even if it were 100 meters, that's one thing, but this is several times that height. Even professional climbers would hesitate at something like this.

I guess I'll just have to rely on Ai-chan, or find a normal place to climb.

There might be such places up north, though.

Still, wouldn't it be nice to have a rope at least?

Anyway, it's all just speculation until we find somewhere that seems manageable.

◇◆◆◆◇

As we continued running along the wall without finding a good spot, time passed.

The main issue is being attacked by beasts, but since Aichan is here, I basically didn't have to do anything at all.

It was incredibly helpful since I wanted to conserve ammunition.

It's basically me being carried on her back, but from Aichan's perspective, she's just hunting for her own food, so she sees no problem.

In fact, she says it's easier because normally creatures that wouldn't attack me will come straight to me now that I'm here.

It's great that I'm serving as bait.

The only issue is my own food supply.

Right now I have some points to spare, so I can afford sandwiches or onigiri, but three crystals per day amounts to thirty crystals in ten days—equivalent to one full point.

There's a saying: "Remaining points equal remaining lives." I must conserve as much as possible.

Incidentally, water can be produced by Ai-chan using spirit magic, so there's no problem there.

In short, I decided to share dinner with Ai-chan.

While monster identification reveals detailed information about the creature, I used the fact that corpse identification provides material evaluation to check for poison. Although there are almost no large poisonous creatures on Earth, it seems to be the same here—none of them appeared to be inedible.

The giant lizard's name is Giant Abyss Lizard. No poison. Its skin is highly valuable as a material and frequently traded.

I've eaten crocodile or alligator meat before at festival stalls, but this is my first time trying lizard. I sliced off a tasty-looking portion with a knife, grilled it with salt, and found it delicious—similar to grilled chicken breast with a rich, juicy texture. Ai-chan happily devoured it.

The giant bird's name is the Giant Andean Condor. It has no poison.

After all, it's a bird above anything else. It was easily edible, though I might prefer the lizard.

Nutrition balance is a concern with just meat, but since we're in no position to worry about that, we'll focus on calories for now.

While running, we passed two spots where water fell from a cliff—essentially small waterfalls, albeit tiny—where we were able to wash ourselves.

It felt a bit wasteful, but I swapped my shampoo for a crystal to wash my hair, and gave Ai-chan a full bath. She's now even fluffier, smells wonderful, and I'm thoroughly satisfied. Ai-chan said it smelled weird, though.

I also enjoyed washing my body naked in nature—it was quite liberating.

As for the broadcast... I don't really care, but still, since it's a perfect opportunity to use the manual camera mode, I took a fixed shot of Aichan floating vaguely in the air.

Everyone will probably be happier seeing the cute Aichan anyway.

◇◆◆◆◇

"Finally... I found it...!"

I managed to locate a climbable spot on the third day, having run nonstop while resting occasionally with the barrier stone.

I grew anxious and ended up asking for hints four times during that time.

They all gave the same answer, though.

"A staircase, right...? But why...? No, maybe someone actually has business here."

An artificial structure—a staircase. Simple, carved from rock, but unmistakable.

However, looking up, there's a stage-like structure jutting out from the cliff, covered by a lid, so even if you climb all the way to the top, you can't get out onto the cliff's edge.

It's probably designed to be used only when necessary, preventing creatures from climbing up from below at other times.

But if that's the case, we could just have Aichi float her up at the very end—it would solve the problem.

We could also break the lid-like stage (or whatever it is), but since it's been covered for a reason, we can't just go around destroying it recklessly.

"Well then, Aichi. We're finally escaping from here~. Once we get out into the open, you'll probably see lots of people like me, but remember—don't attack them or eat them. And don't go attacking other creatures on your own."

— What if I get hungry?

"Just let me know, and I'll take care of it."

— Got it.

— It's fine.

Ai-chan is cute, but it's unclear how locals would feel about her.

There's no doubt she's a strong creature, and she might inspire fear, but unlike a dragon, she doesn't look menacing, so I wonder if things might work out after all.

There are also issues on Ai-chan's side. She's never been to other regions.

Going forward, she'll be encountering countless things she's never seen before, staring at them with her large eyes, so saying she has no anxiety would be a lie.

I think we'll need to teach her about everything—people, towns, fields, pastures, and every aspect of human settlements.

Living alongside humans is my own selfish desire, but I believe Ai-chan is intelligent and will manage somehow.

Either way, living in the human world will surely bring hardships.

Still, A-chan mostly just hovers aimlessly except when eating, and has low aggression. It's unclear whether A-chan will grow comfortable with people other than me, but there's a calm confidence typical of strong beings, without any tension or nervousness, and unlike a dog, never growls. In fact, A-chan doesn't make any sounds at all.

From the standpoint of food expenses, living in the labyrinth district would be the most sensible choice, and A-chan likely understands that, so the likelihood of being forced into a reclusive life seems low.

Anyway, A-chan was planning to head straight to Hii-chan anyway, so if locals feel uneasy, we can just avoid interaction. After all, A-chan can use a spirit magic to become invisible.

Still, thinking about food expenses, I feel like I might go bankrupt right away if I don't reach the labyrinth early. Though I can easily find enough food for Ai-chan in a place with danger level 5, it'd be hard in peaceful areas.

The hint said spirit energy potions could become food, but even that has limits. Points aren't infinite.

Currently, I have twelve spirit stones stocked, but if I use one per day, that's only enough for twelve days. That's hardly reassuring.

(…………Twelve days?)

Since I'm bringing this child along, I bear the responsibility.

If, by some chance, we run out of food and end up attacking humans, saying sorry won't cut it.

No matter how cute this child is, it's not human. I can communicate with it because I have the ability, and I know it's intelligent.

But that's only true for me.

If we're taking this child into human society, we must do everything possible to eliminate the risk of them hurting people. Naturally. There's no need to leash them like a dog, but it would be

similar in principle. To others, this child is truly a "monster

." "…Ai-chan, let's gather some food here a little longer." Now

that the exit had been found, the child had gained a bit

of mental relief—enough to start thinking about the next step. And that next step was simply reaching the labyrinth city safely, and making sure Ai-chan always

had enough food

. —It's fine— Just

follow me, Ai-chan replied, floating gently in the air.

I need to reunite with Hii-chan as soon as possible, but things are going much more smoothly than I expected. After leaving this place, it probably won't be too dangerous. Thanks to meeting A-chan, I've gained some leeway in every aspect, though I suppose this encounter was just lucky.

I would have been in a much more difficult situation otherwise.

It could have been a complete disaster.

Therefore, I should take this opportunity to prepare even more carefully here.

It's fine to use up some of my points.

With extra resources available, I can ensure thorough preparation.

To avoid stumbling at the next stage.