Chapter 465 – Starry Planet Garden

“Now then—is everyone ready?”

Claudia stood before the stone monument at the labyrinth entrance and turned around to speak. Everyone, including me, nodded in response to her words.

Our destination was the Full Moon Labyrinth. Beyond the door at the far end of the Grand Corridor. Since the Demon-Slaying Knight Order’s training was progressing smoothly, we decided to proceed deeper into the labyrinth as planned. After all, there were still several days until Duke Driscoll’s return.

When the light enveloping us subsided—we found ourselves in a new section. An area unknown even to me, one I hadn’t explored in BFO either.

“This is—”

It was different from the Grand Corridor of the Full Moon Labyrinth with its magnificent decorations.

Behind us was a wall with a massive gate. This was probably the door connecting to the Grand Corridor. The space we currently occupied was somewhat open, with a gazebo nearby. Considering this connected not only to the Moonlight Temple but also to Claudia’s castle… it felt like we’d emerged from the Grand Corridor into a courtyard.

The ground was covered in pure white sand, with stepping stones embedded to form a path. Here and there, garden stones with a texture like frosted glass were visible. Some of these frosted glass stones glowed faintly green or purple from within… creating a somewhat fantastical atmosphere.

From the plaza, the stepping stone path continued deeper. Areas beyond the path contained trees, hedges, and waterways, with beautifully-voiced birds singing somewhere… it was a beautiful place that didn’t feel like the inside of a labyrinth.

It was fairly bright with good visibility… but the ceiling was black. Tiny lights twinkled, recreating the appearance of stars. I could even see a brilliantly shining moon.

And separate from the starry sky, faint multicolored lights drifted about here and there.

“Is that starry sky and moon the same kind of mechanism as in the Labyrinth Village?”

When Ashley asked, Claudia nodded.

“Yes. The sky is a projected fake. This Star Sphere Garden was created so I could take strolls and relax. Rare monsters live here too… but most aren’t hostile. However, there are garden guards who will attack if they find intruders, so we need to be careful about them. Basically, you can assume anything that looks intimidating is an enemy.”

“Then… what about that creature…?”

Grace pointed toward a corner of the forest with a somewhat puzzled expression—where we could see some strange creature flying leisurely through the air.

It had what looked like a shrimp’s tail protruding from its face, moving its fins slowly as it swam through the air before disappearing deeper into the garden.

Was that… an Anomalocaris? But wasn’t Anomalocaris supposed to be a marine creature? Given that it was flying through the air, it might be a monster…

“Strange creature…”

“Yeah… It’s not an insect or a fish either…”

When Sheila murmured this, Irmhild responded. Marlene also nodded repeatedly with a dubious expression.

“From its movements, it doesn’t seem to be… an enemy. The labyrinth seems to collect information when gathering magical power… particularly in this section, it sometimes generates monsters, animals, and plants I’ve never seen before.”

I see. Rare beasts would indeed be suitable for ornamental purposes… right?

“It might be extinct in our current era. Sometimes fossilized remains of organisms are found in ancient strata… I think the labyrinth can collect information from those too.”

I voiced this speculation based on Kagehisa’s knowledge of Anomalocaris. On Earth, I think it was a creature from over 500 million years ago, from the Cambrian period.

At least in BFO, I don’t know of any flying Anomalocaris. There’s a possibility they survive somewhere in this world though…

“The flora and fauna here are intriguing. Well, if they’re meant for ornamental purposes, I’m not sure about taking them back indiscriminately. Especially that creature we just saw… I wouldn’t want to keep something with that design nearby.”

Rosemary had been watching the direction where the Anomalocaris disappeared for a while, but eventually shook her head as if collecting herself.

“…It’s a beautiful place, but since it’s a deep floor, let’s proceed carefully.”

Everyone nodded solemnly at these words. Perhaps because the Anomalocaris was so unconventional, our sense of caution had actually increased. It’s good that our concentration hasn’t broken. Well then, let’s proceed with conquering the garden.

The Anomalocaris we just saw was probably still a peculiar creature even in the Star Sphere Garden. The animals and plants we occasionally see in the garden are mostly things like small birds or rabbits—cute or beautiful things, I think.

Well… there are still rare beasts though. Like the Megatherium eating leaves from the garden trees… This is the ancestor of sloths, a herbivore. It’s quite large but docile.

While glancing sideways at these ornamental creatures, we proceeded along the path leading deeper into the garden toward the deep floor—the height of the hedges on both sides gradually increased until they eventually formed a maze using the hedges as walls. So it’s a labyrinth despite being a garden, after all. The hedges had roses blooming and fantastical light orbs floating about, making it quite beautiful in various ways.

“Can’t we go over the hedges?”

Sheila asked. The hedges were quite tall, but indeed, using magic tools, it seemed possible to go from above. However, considering this is a deep floor, it’s highly likely there’s a structure preventing us from ignoring the maze.

As expected, Claudia shook her head at Sheila’s question.

“There’s a barrier stretched just at the maximum height of the hedges. I wouldn’t recommend trying to break through the walls either. The barrier selectively captures intruders.”

“…So we have no choice but to break through the maze the hard way.”

That said, the maze was wide with sufficient height above, so the space was adequate for combat. It’s the kind of design that doesn’t rely on traps but rather eliminates escape routes before forcing combatants to clash and overwhelm each other.

Well then… The vanguard consists of Sheila and Irmhild. Seraphina riding on Irmhild’s shoulder. And me—. Having members with detection abilities leading the way is our usual practice.

The center formation includes Ashley, Marlene, Rosemary, and Claudia. Basically positioning those less skilled in close combat. Ignis and Dullahan protect those in the center.

The rear guard—is Grace and Lavigne, who excels at detection through smell. And Eclair, riding on Lavigne’s back, constantly monitors the rear.

As we proceeded along a long straight path with no escape routes to the sides, when a corner came into view, Sheila and Irmhild simultaneously stopped.

“…Something’s coming. Two large creatures. Both quadrupedal.”

“Many heat sources too. From that corner straight ahead.”

“…They’re coming.”

Clearly different movements from the ornamental creatures we’ve encountered so far. As we stopped warily, floating pumpkins began emerging one after another from behind the hedges.

The pumpkins had slits resembling eyes and mouths—with flames dwelling in both eyes. Below the neck, they wore dark-colored mantles. They held disproportionately large garden shears in both hands.

The moment they recognized our presence, they began moving their garden shears violently and coming toward us.

“Pumpkin gardeners. They attack intruders, you know.”

…A subspecies of Pumpkin Head, I see. They seem to be magical creatures.

Next—a woman’s upper body peeked out. However, the height at which this upper body appeared was strange. She looked down at us from quite high up in the hedges, grinning. As the woman came forward, her full form became apparent. From the waist down, she connected to a tail resembling a dragon-like quadrupedal monster.

“…An Amphisbaena.”

And the other one. Compared to the Amphisbaena with its massive build, this one was still smaller—but nevertheless quite large in stature. It was a black dog with three heads. Flames flickered deep within its mouths.

Cerberus. The hellhound. Needless to say, this is an opponent requiring caution.

The moment it saw us, the corners of its three mouths twisted as if smiling.

Pumpkin gardeners and two magical beasts… They seem fully intent on fighting. There’s a possibility other monsters might gather once combat begins. Particularly, we must be wary of Guardian interference… but first, let’s start by dealing with the group before us. Well then—battle begins.

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