C142
"Le- Let's just leave already! Any complaints? Hey, open this iron door!”
The leader pounded on the iron door. His pride was crumpled and he couldn't bear the cold glares from his comrades.
"Does everyone agree?"
The man asked, but there was no need for translation. The mercenaries nodded without a word and headed towards the door.
Their spirits were low. Coming here had been a grave mistake. He hoped to make a profit from Loop, but their loyalty was hurt, and their money was wasted.
"Guys, let's get out of here quickly. Come this way."
The mercenaries' attitudes were different from before. Though they were disheartened, they knew that it would be wise to be on their guard when dealing with the children.
However, Shirone's party remained unmoved, watching the mercenaries intently.
The mage quietly became uneasy. The ominous feeling seemed to prove true as Amy spoke coldly.
“We don’t want to go out yet?”
The mercenaries' heads turned in unison. All sorts of emotions crossed their eyes, including anger, confusion, and fear.
At least the quick-witted mage swallowed her anger and spoke in a soothing tone.
"Why don't you guys want to leave? It's already over, isn't it? We are too tired, and we don't want to continue."
"That may be your opinion, but once we entered here, we became one. Don't you know? If we just leave without considering everyone's opinion, it would be problematic."
The mage was upset, but he had no choice but to accommodate Amy's wishes for now.
"Fine. I didn't pay attention to that part. So, let's leave."
"Sorry, but that won't work. We have to go through here and go to Kerugo.”
"But there's no way to go! Ah...!"
The woman's face turned pale. There was a way.
This was the room of Achievement and Sacrifice. It didn't necessarily require only achievements to prove oneself.
The man with the white tattoo said quietly.
"Will you leave or leave someone behind? If you want to prove your abilities, pass through the Labyrinth of Time and Space. If you want to prove your sacrifice, send four people as sacrifices to save four."
"Huh? What are you saying?"
As soon as Rian asked, the archer translated. Of course, it was a completely distorted and transformed language.
"Oh, if you're done with your business, go quickly."
Amy said with a smile.
“Huh, that’s strange? I've definitely heard this. You can send 4 people at the expense of 4 people.”
The archer's eyes were filled with shock.
"You…. Did you know the native language?”
“What are you talking about? That's what I heard when I first came. What kind of fool do you take us for? You don't even remember what you've heard once?"
The archer's mouth hung open. Oh, is that how it was? No, not really? Wasn't it strange to remember something you heard for the first time?
"Anyway, sacrifice four people. One, two, three, four. Exactly four."
The blood drained from the mercenaries' faces. That girl really meant to sacrifice someone.
Rian and Tess also felt tension as if they were in a real battle. In particular, Tess trembled with fear when cute Amy suddenly changed.
"Shirone, is this okay? Hng, Amy is so scary.”
"It's fine. She's just doing it on purpose."
“She mean that on purpose? It doesn't seem like it."
"Just wait and see. Amy will take care of it.”
The mercenaries looked at each other. If they fought, they would lose. Rian and the warrior are equal, and Tess is stronger than the leader.
In addition, they was overwhelmed in the mage's battle, and even the existence of an archer was useless in front of Shirone's Photon Magic.
"Come on, let's go. These are faces that don't want to sacrifice. Anyway, we need to do our best."
"What the hell is wrong with you? Is it because of what we did at the tavern?"
Amy tilted her head as if it was adding salt to the wound.
“Hm?”
The archer realized that he could not alleviate the situation with a half-hearted response. He walked to the place where Shirone and the others were, bowed politely as he spoke.
"I'm sorry! We looked down on you and made a mistake. Please forgive us just once. Hey, you guys should come and apologize.”
As the archer bowed his head and turned around, the remaining three also reluctantly walked over. However, since it was a life-and-death matter, their attitudes during the apology were respectful.
"We're sorry! I was too arrogant. Please forgive us."
"We won't do that anymore. We've learned a lot from this incident. So, can we just forget about the mistakes we made at the tavern?"
Amy said, furrowing her brow.
"Hmm, I really don't understand. What mistakes are you talking about? Wait, tavern? You mean, the tavern we were at? That's strange. Why didn't I see you guys?"
The mercenaries' faces turned beet red. It felt like they were being stomped on the ground, unable to move due to their wounded pride.
This time, even Shirone couldn't help but shiver at Amy's stubbornness.
'If you make Amy angry, you will end up like that.'
Among the insults they received at the tavern, Amy and Tess were the ones who suffered the most.
The time when they were subjected to various humiliations and shamed simply for being women. Amy would never forget it, even if decades passed before she sought revenge.
However, in a sense, this tenacity to pursue efficiency could be called the essence of a mage.
Even if it might not be necessary to go that far, the mage was irritated by the fact that she couldn't utilize the advantages given to her 100 percent.
That is why it is often said that mages are eccentric. In fact, many mages lack human empathy.
But it was precisely because of that tenacity in pursuing efficiency that magic had advanced until now and would continue to progress in the future.
'What do you want us to do? Damn it.'
The mercenaries didn't know what to do and just kept their heads down. The sound of grinding teeth seemed to be heard from where they stood.
Only then did Amy get to the main point.
"I have one proposal. If you accept it, we might go out together.”
"What...?"
"To enter this place, you need to know a password, right? What's the password?"
The archer realized their intention. These kids were planning to challenge again. After going through numerous investigations and verifying sufficient possibilities, they intends to come back here.
"Keltia, Lo Hoima. Arkasia, Withmia Benzene. That's the password."
"What does it mean?"
"Knock on my door, and it will open."
Amy ooked at the man with white tattoos. Then, she pronounced the ancient language that the archer had told her without a single mistake.
"Keltia, Lo Hoima. Arkasia, Withmia Benzene?"
The natives guarding the exit noticed Amy's intentions and nodded.
The archer was in a bad mood. No, in a way, he was amazed. He was filled with admiration for her meticulous side.
"Damn it! Trust people a little! Do you think I would lie even in this situation?"
"Who said that? There's nothing wrong with being sure. Anyway, I got it. Thank you."
Amy approached her friends with a happy face as if she had never done that. Tess stuck out her tongue at the way her emotions changed like a chameleon.
"So you were trying to figure out the password? Do you know how tense we were, thinking we had to fight for real?"
"Haha, anyway, if we're going to come back again, it's better to know. Anyway, let's get out of here."
When Shirone's group and the mercenaries all expressed their intention to leave, the man with white tattoos pulled the device next to the iron gate.
The entrance shook violently, leading the way out.
Just like when they came in, the mercenarieswent up the stairs first.
But the atmosphere itself was different from that time. Everyone hung their heads like defeated soldiers, and no one exchanged any words.
Shirone's group was no different; they remained silent.
They couldn't enter the autonomous zone, but that problem could be dealt with by devising a strategy from now on.
Rather, the thought of the Labyrinth of Time and Space that he experienced today made his head complicated.
'Labyrinth of Time and Space. Why on earth did Miro make such device? And why did she establish such cruel rules? What's in Kerugo? What is the connection between Kerugo and Miro in the first place? I would like to know. Perhaps Miro is...'
While Shirone analyzed Miro, Amy, who followed him, was also immersed in her own thoughts.
'There's not just one way to investigate the ruins. Let's devise every possible strategy. Shirone seems to have his own ideas, but I can't rule out the possibility of exploring the underground through the Spirit Zone. Even if we pass, there's an issue with translation. When we go outside, we will find someone who can translate. I should look for a local who can help.'
Tess was also deeply impressed by this place. In particular, being able to quantify and confirm one's prowess was a significant achievement.
'The impact of a rapier can be counted more than that of a blunt weapon. But in the end, it's still not on par with magic. Can sword warrior get through that door? If possible, to what extent? Shirone's magic was close to 5,000, which means my single blow is about ten times weaker than that. Would it be possible for Dad to roughly double the acceptance criteria? Ugh, if I only knew the pass line, I could set a goal. Since Shirone said we'd come back, I'll have to go and investigate further.'
Rian, who followed last, remained silent as well. There were wrinkles on his forehead, indicating that he was deep in thought.
'What should we eat when we go out?' (H:🤦♂️)
After walking for about 30 minutes, Shirone and the others arrived at the altar on the surface.
When they knocked on the door from inside, the native opened the door, but the group was still tense from the problem they experienced in the underground.
As they stepped outside, the refreshing air cleared their lungs. Although it had only been a few hours since they started their journey, the sun in the sky seemed different, as if it didn't belong to today.
Shirone's group and the mercenary group split in opposite directions. However, they didn't disappear from each other's sight. Shirone's group wanted to savor the experience, while the mercenaries were on the verge of collapse.
Shirone organized the events.
"What should we do now? It was more successful than expected, so shall we finish today's ruins exploration with this?"
Amy was also in favor.
"Let's do that. I've been working hard for a while and I'm tired. We should go back early and make a plan."
Rian said as if he had discovered something amazing.
"Before that, how about having a bowl of noodles? That place before was good."
Tess gave Rian a piercing look.
"Do you eat noodles again and again? At least have some cold noodles with me. That's why you’re so simple.”
"What's so strange about it? I put a lot of thought into making that decision!"
"So what? It's just going in a circle."
As Rian and Tess were fighting with menus, the mercenaries approached. Shirone and the others stopped talking and looked back at them.
There are warriors, mage, and archers, but the leader was missing and nowhere to be seen.
The mercenaries hesitated to speak and exchanged glances. Eventually, the mage was reluctantly chosen as their spokesperson and stepped forward.
However, even she seemed awkward, taking quite some time before speaking.
"Um... Would you guys be interested in joining our mercenary party?"
"A mercenary party?"
"Yes. You see, there are many good things about being a mercenary. You can earn a lot of money as well as fame. Especially with your skills, you will rise as a star right away. As you can see, our leader just left, so... Oh, of course, you can be the new leader if you want. If you give us orders, we'll follow them without question, and if other people join, we'll treat them really well. How about it?"
Shirone stared at the mage's shining eyes. And he said it straight away, as if he hadn't even thought about it.
"No, thank you."
After saying that, he turned around and left, and his friends followed Shirone without any regrets.
"Let's just have noodles. They were delicious, right?"
"No. You're just doing it because you want to fill your stomach first. If you endure a little bit, you can eat something much tastier.”
The mercenaries stared blankly at Shirone and the others.
The mage's face turned mournful, and a sigh mixed with sorrow escaped her lips.
"Ahhh, my wretched life."
---
Tags:
Infinite Mage (Novel)
