The Strongest Onmyoji and the Shikigami With AI are Unparalleled in Another World ~ A Second Life Properly Enjoyed Using Artificial Intelligence ~ - Chapter 218

We passed by the street vendors and approached the cave.

There was a vertical shaft sloping downward, revealing stone steps.

“Stairs, huh? These aren’t man-made, right?”

“That’s correct. At this point, it’s basically a monster called a labyrinth.”

We were about to enter the belly of the beast.

Then, we would collect the belongings of dead comrades and sell them.

Not exactly a pleasant line of work.

“Annie, get off Koma-chan. I’ll leave the rear guard to it.”

“Well, alright… I’m counting on you.”

Annie dismounted from Koma-chan and gently patted it.

“Master, I’ll take the lead.”

“I’m counting on you. The rest of you, stay behind me or at least behind Koma-chan, got it?”

I gave instructions to the four in the back row.

“Yup, I won’t go ahead.”
“…Just like always.”
“I’ll support from here!”
“Make sure to call out before you shoot magic or arrows, alright? Friendly fire is the worst.”

Well, we should be fine.

“Alright, let’s move out.”

We began descending the stairs with AI-chan at the front.

But suddenly, I stopped.

“Huh? This is a cave, right?”

“Yeah…”

“Why is it so bright?”

“…Maybe there’s some kind of lighting?”

“There’s nothing like that.”

“Maybe the walls are glowing?”

As we started down the stairs, I considered asking for light magic, but it was already bright enough around us.

It wasn’t as bright as the outside, so you couldn’t see far ahead, but it was definitely enough to move without using light.

“A labyrinth, huh… Layla did say to just accept that that’s how they are…”

“Master, I think it’s better not to think too deeply. Let’s just be grateful we don’t have to use light spells and lose combat power.”

That’s true.

Last time in the cave, every mage had to use light magic, and the only ones who could fight were me and my shikigami.

“Got it. Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

We began moving again, descending the stairs.

At the bottom of the stairs, there was a straight passageway.

“It’s bigger than I expected.”

The passageway was over five meters wide, and its height was about the same.

“Indeed. And it’s still bright.”

“Seriously. AI-chan, you installed the map, right?”

“Yes. Perfectly.”

As expected of AI-chan.

“I’ll leave the route to you. It’s just a trial run today, so we don’t have to aim for the depths.”

“Understood. In that case, I will aim for the thing called a Safety Area.”

“I’m counting on you. I’ll be scouting too, but I’ll need you to search as well. And if monsters show up, fall back immediately. Even if you can’t die, I’d rather not watch you die if it can be helped.”

She’s like a tiny version of Mother.

“Understood. Then, shall we proceed?”

We began walking in the formation we had discussed earlier.

Soon enough, the path split diagonally, but AI-chan walked left without hesitation, so we followed.

“Hey, without a map, wouldn’t we definitely get lost here?”

Natalia asked, glancing back.

When I looked back to check, the fork we just passed looked exactly the same as the one in front of us.

“The same angle, huh.”

Yeah, it’s definitely confusing.

“…I don’t get it at all. Lily, do you understand?”

“Nope… Impossible.”

Of course, it would be impossible for Lily, who’s practically a regular at getting lost.

“Is it because it’s an advanced labyrinth?”

Annie asked.

“Maybe. AI-chan, are you keeping track?”

“Yes. But the sense of distance feels slightly different from the map. I’ll start creating one.”

AI-chan pulled out paper and a pen and began drawing a map.

I wondered if she could handle mapping while walking in the labyrinth, but it was AI-chan, so I reconsidered and kept moving.

Then, I felt a surge of magical energy.

“AI-chan, fall back. It’s a monster.”

As soon as I said that, AI-chan immediately retreated.

“…Yuuma, what do we do? Should I use magic?”

Alice pointed her staff toward the end of the corridor and asked:

“Shall I?”

“No, I’ll check it out first.”

I took out a talisman, created a sword, and waited there.

Soon enough, I could sense the enemy getting closer and closer.

“Enemy detected. Distance: 20 meters,”

AI-chan informed me.

“Hmm? A bear?”

I saw the enemy, but it was just a bear walking on four legs.

“Yuuma! That’s a Mage Bear! A bear that uses magic!”

The moment Lily shouted that, I felt a surge of strong magical energy from the bear.

“Fox Fire.”

I aimed my sword and unleashed golden flames.

At the same time, the bear also seemed to cast fire magic, but there was no way it could overpower my Fox Fire.

The flames engulfed it and struck directly.

The bear, wrapped in golden flames, thrashed around, but my Fox Fire did not fade.

I stepped forward toward the defenseless bear and swung my sword.

With that, the bear was sliced cleanly in two and collapsed.

“Huh?”

The bear stopped moving but then turned into smoke and vanished.

Only a magic stone remained.

“So this is what they were talking about.”

I picked up the magic stone and stared at it intently.

No matter how I looked at it, it was definitely a magic stone.

And its quality was quite good—better than any magic stone I’d obtained before.

“It’s convenient that it doesn’t need to be dismantled, but it feels kind of strange.”

Natalia came over and looked at the magic stone.

“Yeah… Lily, do you know anything about that bear from earlier?”

“Yup. It’s famous for not being tasty. It’s not poisonous or anything, but among elves, it’s said that you’d rather starve than eat it. That’s how bad it is. By the way, it’s a B-rank monster.”

Well, it vanished, so we can’t eat it, but I’m a bit curious.

“B-rank, huh… I became B-rank too, but I don’t think I could beat that thing…”

“Me neither, probably…”

“Right? We only made it to B-rank thanks to Yuuma.”

Natalia and Lily seemed a bit self-deprecating.

“…Just so you know, I was originally B-rank, but I still couldn’t do it.”

“Well, you’re a healer-type mage and an archer, right? Rear guards can’t be expected to beat a bear. We all have our own roles.”

That’s how comrades support each other.

“Exactly. All of you have your own important jobs. Master protects you and guarantees your livelihood. Feel free to cling to him and depend on him as much as you want. That is your happiness.”

AI-chan…

Hide your true feelings a bit more.

“All I heard is ‘have Yuuma’s child‘.”

“…I can’t interpret it any other way.”

“AI-chan’s always been like that, huh?”

“Lately, she doesn’t hide it at all.”

The women looked at AI-chan with exasperated expressions, but AI-chan just kept her smug look.