Chapter 42 – Scout

“Three on the ceiling, and two in that deep water area—five in total.”

Sheila’s ears twitched slightly, and she occasionally sniffed the air before declaring this as if delivering a prophecy.

“Grace-sama, leave the bats to me.”

“Then I’ll take the frogs.”

Grace headed toward the deep area while Ashley approached the shadows where the bats were hiding while chanting a spell.

Suddenly, a frog leaped out from the water. Another’s tongue shot out with a groaning sound. But Grace cleanly sliced the one that jumped at her with the axe in her left hand, while using the blade of her right axe to catch the other’s tongue whip and forcefully yank it toward her.

As the frog was violently pulled from the water, Grace swung her arm wrapped haphazardly with chains, sending it flying straight to flatten against the wall.

“—Venom Mist.”

As for the bats flying down from the ceiling, they plunged into the purple smoke Ashley released, suddenly losing speed and falling to the ground. As a fourth-tier Water Magic spell, it was probably one of the more difficult spells for Ashley to cast from her repertoire… but knowing the direction they’d come from in advance allowed her to prepare the magic with ease.

“Excellent. With no oversights, we avoid ambushes.”

Grace smiled.

Indeed. Even without magical Enhancement, Sheila’s five senses were extraordinary. Her vision, smell, and hearing were beyond human comparison, giving the impression of a living radar. She certainly had the skills to promote her own abilities.

While there are detection spells like Life Detection, the more eyes and means of detection you have, the better.

Now then—after that, since it didn’t seem appropriate to have a long conversation with Irmhild who was still recovering from her illness, we cut it short at a reasonable point and decided to delve into the labyrinth as planned.

The kidnapping victims apparently hadn’t been treated roughly, as it was to “maintain the quality—that is, the price—of the goods.” And since Irmhild herself had been hiding her identity as a Lamia, her weakness was just from not being able to eat, so her recovery and exhaustion didn’t seem too severe.

As for why Sheila was accompanying us on the labyrinth Exploration… there were two main reasons. Our interests aligned, and Chester’s behavior seemed to have greatly angered her, as she was already on edge about Irmhild.

So, Sheila proposed to me that she would gather information about the Knight Order before the event in five days.

Compared to the other two, Irmhild’s position was somewhat delicate. Sheila seemed to view the unfortunate timing of Irmhild hiding her race while living in the city coinciding with the discovery of the demon Linette disguising herself as a human. Because of that, her treatment remained somewhat unclear.

Irmhild was registered as an adventurer and had built up a fair record through Requests and labyrinth Exploration, and she’d apparently been encouraging the other kidnapping victims, so the Adventurer Guild was on her side. While she likely had some allies among the adventurers, that was solely the Guild’s stance and unrelated to the Kingdom’s position.

So—for Sheila, having someone like Chester, whose motives were unclear and who held a public position, intervene like that was very problematic. Especially since he seemed the type to disregard procedures and formalities.

It wasn’t impossible that he might arbitrarily try to judge Irmhild or, after returning to the Knight Order, spread subjective slander… One couldn’t say it wouldn’t happen.

In addition to this resentment toward Chester, and considering Irmhild’s current position, Sheila apparently wanted to promote herself and establish a connection with me. She probably saw me as trustworthy since Grace was by my side.

Well… if it’s that kind of give-and-take, I’m happy to welcome it. Having access to more information or means to gather it can become a powerful weapon or shield.

Personally, I don’t much like the Thieves Guild due to my own feelings, and I still have few acquaintances here. Even if I use information brokers in the future, having Sheila’s involvement would make things easier both in terms of effort and emotionally.

Hence, Sheila joining the labyrinth Exploration.

Even though it’s give-and-take—it’s not as simple as just receiving information from her and then merely providing convenience to Irmhild in return. In having her gather information, I want to make it clear that I’m backing her.

Whether she’s acting on her own or acting on my behalf makes a difference in her treatment if something happens—like if Sheila gets caught while gathering information.

In this case, who proposed it isn’t important. Since I agreed to the plan, I believe I should take responsibility. I don’t have extensive connections to be a powerful backer, but… doing this should help protect her to some extent.

I had previously mentioned to Heather that I might form a Party with Sheila, so by exploring the labyrinth together, we’re making it clear that she has a connection with me.

After discussing these matters with Grace and the others, we concluded that having a thief or scout role in the Party would be beneficial for labyrinth Exploration too—leading to now.

While there were unclear aspects about Sheila’s abilities, for these lower Floors, I didn’t feel much problem or anxiety about bringing her into the labyrinth. We already knew about her high information-gathering skills and sharp senses.

“Next time, shall I take the vanguard myself?”

“Are you sure about that?”

“I’m confident. Since I’m asking you to value my skills, I want to show what I can do.”

“Understood.”

With Sheila leading, we explored the cave area. After proceeding for a while, she stopped.

“Found them. Going.”

Saying this, Sheila gripped her Dagger in a reverse grip. She ran toward a seemingly blank wall, moving at considerable speed yet making no footfalls. She ran up the wall, leaped high, and swung her Dagger through the empty space—where a bat emerged as if sucked out, only to be sliced in two and fall. She shifted her form in midair and landed on the ground.

“Impressive, Sheila-san.”

“Thank you.”

I see.

Since she knows their location and predicts their movements, she can attack faster than they can react.

Her Martial Arts are quite something too. If one were to fight her, they’d likely perceive her as faster than she actually moves. While her agility is her selling point and her Weapon is lightweight, so there are compatibility factors, being in the vanguard isn’t her main job anyway.

Well, whatever. It doesn’t seem like Sheila will be a burden.

At this rate, we should be able to progress more efficiently than before.

“—Next. Coming.”

From the depths of the cave, pig-headed Monsters slowly revealed themselves.

Orcs. Four in total. They have strong physical power and are Tough Warriors, but they’re not very smart.

They started appearing from underground Floor 17. Orcs are known for their strong reproductive abilities and chasing females of other races, but the Orcs in the labyrinth don’t do that… Well, they seem to be heading more toward Grace and the others than me.

“Bugiiee!!”

One raised its Battle Axe toward Grace, but she met it head-on. The Orc’s Battle Axe and Grace’s Labrys collided with a metallic clang.

But there was no contest. Grace was the victor. She bent the Orc’s iron-hafted axe like heated candy crafting, and with the same swinging momentum, mowed the Orc down. Without killing the centrifugal force, she spun like a tornado, catching another one and Crushing it. She treated the Orcs like utter infants.

Distracted by Grace, another Orc had its throat slashed by Sheila who descended soundlessly from above. Before the blood spray could scatter, Sheila kicked off its shoulder and leaped back to disengage.

One left. Ashley held back in the rear, and since I was unmarked, I stepped forward.

I spun my Magic Staff like a windmill, entangling the Orc, and slammed it head-first into the ground.

Simultaneously, I stomped on its throat and deployed a Magic Circle. I delivered the Finishing Blow with a Lightning Strike from my foot.

Well… Orcs, huh. They’re edible, so there are many parts to harvest, but… knowing what humanoid Monsters actually look like doesn’t exactly whet the appetite.

We decided to withdraw after finding the stairs to underground Floor 18 and a stone monument. Regardless of us, Sheila probably had a mountain of things to do afterward.

Back at the Temple, Sheila said something like that.

“I knew Theodore was strong, but… I’m actually losing confidence now.”

Grace is in a bit of a separate league, and Ashley is exceptionally talented compared to kids her age too. Sheila probably thinks she hasn’t showcased enough yet… but I don’t have such high standards myself. I am curious about how I’m perceived, though.

“No, you’re plenty capable. I look forward to working with you from now on.”

“…Yeah. Likewise.”

Sheila nodded.

“Now that’s settled, I’ll start the Investigation today.”

“Please refrain from crossing dangerous bridges alone for now. We’ll decide after consulting in such cases. I’ll lend you my Familiar then. After all, it’s in five days, so even just compiling a list of persons of interest would be sufficient. Also, if you could show your face once a day, we could confirm your safety, and it would put us at ease.”

“Understood.”

After conveying the plan to Sheila, she smiled, looking just a little happy.

Given my nature, Sheila doesn’t need to push herself too hard.

Even just knowing who to be cautious of and who might be trustworthy would make things easier for us to maneuver.

Well then—five days from now, huh. I wonder what will happen.