3 bar menu

Chapter 220 — Part 1

In the center of the garden surrounded by a brick wall, a man with droopy eyes and a figure that looked like he was in his thirties was wielding a short spear that was about as tall as himself, swinging it around in all directions. In his mind, he was fighting a mock battle against an imaginary enemy.

His upper body was completely uncovered, his flesh bore the scars of old wounds that had never faded away, and his body was as tough as a rock, well-honed from his training.

As his skin heated up, sweat ran down the lines of his muscles and the raised skin of his scars, scattering in the air with his movements and glittering in the sunlight. He saw a splash of blood spurting out of the illusionary enemy in his mind, which he had just stabbed in the chest with his spear.

He had always trained by fighting mock battles against illusionary enemies, but it had been a long time since he had done so with such accuracy, that he even saw the non-existent blood splattering.

Until now, he had been in a slump due to laziness, but one thing led to another, and it resulted in him training again with a passion that he had lost long ago.

After slaughtering six of these imaginary enemies, he brought the short spear to a stop and began to catch his breath, sweat dripping from his forehead.

The man’s name was Luskrow. He was a veteran adventurer from the maze city Mazelinth, located in the Union of the Gujashi Islands in the southern part of Arkrest Kingdom.

「Well, well, I guess I was a little slow warming up. I’d like to think I still got it」

As Luskrow grumbled that to himself, he walked over to the bucket he had left by the roots of a tree growing in the garden, dipped the small hand towel hanging on the handle into the water in the bucket, and used it to wipe off his sweat and cool down his burning body.

Luskrow had once come to the city of Mazelinth with dreams of becoming a great adventurer, but in what he considered to be his prime, he had challenged a certain labyrinth, but he was defeated without reaching his full power. Although he didn’t lose his life, his pillar of confidence was destroyed, and until just recently, he had only been going through the motions in life.

However, when he took on the role of mentoring some rookie adventurers, he was able to throw new fuel into the smoldering flame within himself, renewing his resolve. And here he was now.

After Luskrow finished wiping away most of his sweat, he put on a cotton shirt, grabbed the bucket and towel in his hands, and went back to his room.

He finished changing his clothes in his room, then put on a breastplate and gauntlets made of tanned leather with light metal pieces sewn into it, and he tied a small bag of essential first aid supplies and preserved food to his waist. Then he grabbed two daggers and his favorite short spear, and headed for the Adventurers’ Guild.

Due to the rewards he was receiving for taking on the request of mentoring the rookies, his pockets were currently quite full. The lessons on the basics were finished, so now he wasn’t always working together with them anymore.

He was trying to stay close to Mazelinth, so that he could easily respond in case the rookies had any requests or were seeking advice, but now he spent his days diving into the labyrinths alone in order to retrain his dulled perception.

The reason why he was heading to the Adventurers’ Guild was because he wanted to see if there were any messages for him from the rookies, and to see if there was any work that could be done within or near the city.

The city of Mazelinth, belonging to the Gujashi Islands, was a key trade city between the northern and southern parts of the continent, and it was overflowing with adventurers pursuing their dreams. They, along with many merchants and nobles looking for treasures in the labyrinth, brought tremendous enthusiasm and vitality to the city.

Ever since his confidence was shattered back then, he had felt guilty seeing all the vitality in the city, and tried to leave several times.

In the end, he just couldn’t imagine himself living anywhere else, and ended up staying here until now, living indecisively. But now that he’s trying to start over again, the vitality emitted from the people on the streets, the exchange of loud and angry voices, the scent of food from all the stands and restaurants, and the intoxicating smell of the grape wine, fruit wines, and beer separated into caskets, barrels and pots of varying sizes was…

It was as if all of these things emitted from human activity was spreading to every cell of his body, reviving him from his irresponsible sulkiness.

「Hey there, Melsha, it’s Luskrow here」

As he entered the Adventurers’ Guild and pushed his way through the other adventurers chatting idly around, he spotted a receptionist that he knew, and he approached the young girl with a frivolous smile on his face.

Until now, it had been a smile that was as superficial as it looked. His smile was similar to a blade that had dulled from lack of use and maintenance, but now it was regaining the glow from his past, and was starting to return to a smile that had the sharpness of a blade kept safe in its sheath.

He wondered if Melsha, sitting at the receptionist desk, had noticed that.

「Hello, Mr. Luskrow. Your face is looking a little tougher today」

「Hahaha, really? I’m happy to hear that. I’m even taking care of my beard, you know. Well, I’ve turned over a new leaf, you could say.

So, sorry to cut to the chase, but are there any messages from Dreissen and the others? If not, then I’d like some suitable material collection requests, if you have some」

In Mazelinth, with its many labyrinths of divine origin, there were always new discoveries every day, such as special metals, liquids, and plants, which can only be found in certain temples. It was normal for new requests for unknown materials to be sent out every day.

Luskrow thought that Dreissen and the others were among the strongest in Mazelinth, but they still lacked accomplishments as adventurers, so they weren’t trusted much by the guild yet.

In addition, they themselves were not very interested in becoming famous as adventurers, and instead were more interested in helping out with daily tasks, capturing low-level labyrinths, or supporting other adventurers.

Based on this un-adventurer-like behavior, Luskrow suspected that they had come from another country, and were trying to make use of the labyrinths, or are using Mazelinth as a reference for something.

Even Luskrow was concerned, so he was sure that the higher-ups of the guild were concerned as well.

Melsha swiftly looked through the shelves near the receptionist desk and at the papers at hand, and then she replied to Luskrow.

「Yes, I have a message for you from Dreissen and the others. They have something they want your advice about, so they want you to come to the “Pearl Crown Pavilion” at your convenience.

They said at least one of them will stay behind at the inn, so you can hear the story from that person when you go there」

「Got it, understood. By the way, I don’t mind if it’s just within what you’re allowed to tell me, but are Dreissen and the others’ activities becoming well-known?」

「Their activities themselves are the same as always. They seem to be carefully progressing in their investigations of the labyrinths, and now they’ve started work on the Hizmel Labyrinth. Mr. Luskrow, are you not going to go with them?」

「Just a little while ago, I gave them a lecture on the tendencies of the monsters that appear in Hizmel, and ways to counter them.

With their skill, and the knowledge they have, they should be able to get back up again, no matter how many times they make a mistake. They’re a group of talented people, they don’t seem like beginners」

「Yes, it’s just as you say. Hanma in particular is quite popular among the others. Even if it is revealed that her true identity is that of a high priest, she definitely has the ability to convince us. Even the Dragonians Quinn and Dreissen are both tremendously strong」

「You’re right. I would hate to imagine that all Dragonians are that strong. Well, anyway, thank you for telling me. I’ll treat you, so if you ever feel like it, let’s go out to eat sometime」

「Yes, someday」

「Haha, yeah, someday, it is」

Whether it was a polite rejection, or an encouragement to stay alive until the day they can have dinner together someday, only the two of them know.