The Strongest Onmyoji and the Shikigami With AI are Unparalleled in Another World ~ A Second Life Properly Enjoyed Using Artificial Intelligence ~ - Chapter 209

“So the question is, where exactly do we go. I have no idea.”

“Well, Yuuma is a reincarnated person, after all. But I don’t really know either, you know? It’s mostly just here and the royal capital for me.”

Figured as much.

“Hmm… that goes for Alice too, and Annie doesn’t leave her hometown. Traveling Lily is… well, she’s Lily, so that’s not going to work.”

“Huh? Lily is the reason? Why was I excluded?”

Lily, who had been diligently carving something, looked up.

“Just keep carving. Is it a fox or something?”

From the ears, it looks fox-like.

“Yup! I’ll be done soon, so I’ll give it to you!”

Uh, thanks…

“Pamela, do you know?”

Yeah, this kind of thing is definitely Pamela’s area.

“Hmm, I’d say the southern Axa Republic, maybe? I haven’t been there either, but it’s got a warm climate and towns where you can earn money. The royal capital, the free city of Tory, and the labyrinth city of Lian are well known.”

Not that I’d know, of course.

“Which one would you recommend?”

“Well, maybe the royal capital? But it’s far, you know. Leanne-sama, have you ever been?”

“No, only towns in the north.”

So at least we can teleport that far.

“What about the free city of Tory and the labyrinth city of Lian?”

What does “free” even mean?

And what’s with “labyrinth”…?

“The free city of Tory is a port town in the west. It’s a big city where commerce has developed, and since it’s a relay hub, goods from all over the world gather there. Naturally, there’s a lot of work too, but the security is extremely bad, and there are a lot of mafia, so I don’t recommend it for this group. I don’t want to go either, and especially not with Lily-san. Elves are a bit…”

“Would she get kidnapped?”

Because she’s rare?

“Yes. There are many such incidents. And once someone gets out to sea, they can’t be tracked.”

True enough…

You’d have no idea where they went.

“I can assign shikigami, but it’s better to avoid towns with poor security.”

I mean, besides Lily, we’ve got sexy girls, easy-to-trick girls, and three shorties.

“You’re all not used to places like that, so I think it’s better that way.”

“Then the labyrinth city of Lian? What’s a labyrinth?”

“A labyrinth is a cave where monsters spawn endlessly.”

Huh?

“Endlessly? Isn’t that super dangerous?”

Seal it off.

“No, monsters spawn inside the cave, but these monsters never come outside. Or rather, if they try to leave, they disappear like smoke.”

…Flexible.

I’m flexible.

“So, is it correct to think of it as a cave where strange phenomena like that occur?”

Makes no sense, but…

“Yes. Actually, when you defeat the monsters, they disappear in the same way. It’s said that the labyrinth itself creates those monsters.”

“For what purpose?”

“It’s said to be to eat people. When you defeat monsters, magic stones drop. Various other items drop too.”

To eat people?

The cave does?

“What kind of various items?”

“Money, equipment… all sorts of things.”

“Where do they come from?”

“It’s said to be the belongings of the people who got eaten, spit back out.”

That’s kind of gross.

“So it’s like this? The labyrinth lures people in with those things, lets monsters kill them, eats the corpses, and uses the leftover equipment to lure in more people.”

“That’s how it is. That’s why labyrinths are profitable for the capable.”

So the weak get eaten, and the strong collect the leftovers.

“Kinda sounds like gambling.”

That too—people with good luck profit, and everyone else gets drained.

And the house always profits no matter what.

“That’s right. As you can probably imagine, most people who choose the profession of adventurer are gamblers. People confident in their strength, thinking they’ll be fine.”

And then they die…

“Seems popular.”

“Yes. It’s very popular, and it certainly is profitable. Of course, the danger level is high though…”

I see—

“You guys knew about this?”

I ask the four who’ve been adventurers longer than me.

“I know.”

“Never been there, but I know about it.”

“Don’t knooow.”

“…I talked about it with Natalia a long time ago.”

Looks like everyone but Lily knew.

“Natalia, Alice, didn’t you ever think of going?”

No need to ask homebody Annie and clueless Lily.

“It’s scary.”

“…We don’t overestimate our abilities.”

So they’re not gamblers.

“Yuuma, people who choose a laid-back, chill clan like this in the first place don’t go to a labyrinth city.”

Annie says, half-smiling, in a self-deprecating way.

“So you’re against it?”

“If you say come along, I’ll go. If you’re there, anything’s manageable, and the dragon or the demon continent were way more dangerous anyway.”

Well, yeah, those were…

“Pamela, is it okay if we sell what we get from the labyrinth to your place?”

“Yes, no problem. Lian doesn’t tax labyrinth goods. That town grew big by attracting people that way.”

I see—

“Then, since I’m free, maybe I’ll go check it out. If it seems impossible, I’ll just quit.”

“How are you going to get there?”

Natalia asks.

“First, Leanne and I will go ahead and make it possible to teleport. Leanne, if it’s a town in the north of the Axa Republic, you can teleport there, right?”

“Yes. But it takes a week by carriage from there, you know?”

That’s far…

Leanne seems busy, and I’d feel bad keeping her tied up for a long time.

“Once we teleport to that town, let’s ride the bees from there. That should be quick.”

“Certainly, unlike the time with the dragon or the demon continent, we don’t need to be on guard this time.”

We can just fly in broad daylight, no problem.

“Leanne, is tomorrow okay?”

“Yes. Let’s travel the skies together.”

“Alright then. Let’s head out after breakfast.”

“Understood. In that case, I need to make preparations, so I’ll excuse myself first. Pamela, what about you?”

“Ah, I’ll head back too.”

Pamela picks up Tama-chan.

“Alright, I’m counting on you.”

“Yes. Good night.”

“Good night.”

The two of them and Tama-chan disappeared via teleportation.

“A labyrinth, huh…”

I wonder what it’s like?

“I think Layla knows. She said she’s been to various labyrinths before.”

Natalia tells me.

“Ohh… then I’ll go ask her.”

I stood up, left the room, and headed for the third floor.