Chapter 11
The Labyrinth
‘Come on. Get yourself together, Serena. I can’t die here. Stay positive!’
Serena widened her eyes and shook her head.
Even after being reincarnated, she was still afraid of death.
In fact, she feared it even more than before, because she now knew death wasn’t necessarily the end.
‘There’s no guarantee I’ll be born as a princess again.’
Would she even be reborn as a human?
And even if she were, what if she ended up in terrible circumstances?
Even in her previous world, just a little farther north from her hometown was a living hell.
Her previous life had been ordinary, and this life had made her a princess.
Wouldn’t the odds say her next life was more likely to be worse than better?
‘Just look at me. I lived an ordinary life before and was reborn as a princess. Whether you’re good or bad doesn’t seem to matter. Isn’t it all just random luck?’
Since she had finally been reborn as royalty, she wanted to enjoy the privileges at the very top of the social hierarchy until she died of old age.
To do that…
She had to survive and escape this place.
“Lavenda. Tell us everything you know about Labyrinths.”
Huji had no Labyrinths, so it wasn’t part of the information network shared among the nations that possessed them.
Philia’s husband came from the Empire, the country with the most Labyrinths, but Serena doubted he had spent much time telling his beloved wife about something she had no interest in.
That meant that among the five people trapped here, the one who knew the most about Labyrinths was Lavenda.
Having visited one several times as a tourist hardly made her an expert, but she still began to speak.
Everyone quietly listened.
“Vieta’s Labyrinth, as some of you may know, has been developed as a tourist attraction. It was discovered around a hundred years ago during the reign of King Lido V, the great-great-grandfather of our current king, His Majesty Nido III.”
It happened about a century ago.
A shepherd boy searching halfway up a mountain for a lost baby goat discovered the ruins of what appeared to be an ancient structure.
Thinking it was nothing special, he stepped inside.
But the place was actually a Labyrinth filled with mysteries and wonders.
“Labyrinths are mysterious places beyond common sense. Anything can happen inside them, and nothing that happens should surprise you. They are unknown realms where you’ll witness things no one who has never entered one could ever imagine. The shepherd boy entered such a place simply looking for his lost goat.”
“…Why do you suddenly sound so fluent?” Chrome asked.
“That’s the speech the tour guides give before visitors enter the Labyrinth. I’ve memorised it.”
She even copied the guide’s dramatic tone and exaggerated delivery.
Perhaps because she was imitating the guide, Lavenda gradually relaxed as she spoke.
“The shepherd searched through caves covered in Labyrinth moss, filled with Labyrinth rats and Labyrinth slimes while looking for the baby goat. All he carried was a torch and a dagger, but he bravely explored the cave.”
‘Everything has “Labyrinth” added to it. Do they really call them that?’
The shepherd wandered through the complicated cave, following the cries of the goat.
Eventually, in the deepest part of the Labyrinth, he found the baby goat being attacked by the Leader Labyrinth Rat.
“They say the shepherd bravely defeated the Leader Labyrinth Rat using only his dagger. As a reward, he received gold coins. Then he escaped with the baby goat and reported everything to the guards.”
The guards immediately informed the king.
King Lido V, who ruled Vieta at the time, was said to have shouted with joy.
Inside a Labyrinth, monsters and resources regenerate.
Walls, floors, and ceilings restore themselves.
If the Labyrinth contains trees, the trees regrow endlessly.
If it contains stone, new stone appears forever.
Gold coins eventually return.
Monster corpses can be harvested repeatedly.
And that wasn’t all.
There were magical tools that could only be found inside Labyrinths.
Some magical items required once-in-a-century geniuses, enormous national budgets, and priceless materials to create.
Yet those same treasures could simply appear inside treasure chests within a Labyrinth.
There was even a small chance that defeating a boss monster would produce another one.
That was why nations possessing Labyrinths tightly controlled access and kept all related information secret.
‘At least they don’t require people to keep entering them.’
Some fantasy stories featured Labyrinths that would overflow with monsters if ignored, forcing people to conquer them.
Fortunately, this world’s Labyrinths didn’t work that way.
‘That’s why I let my guard down.’
If they had, she would have spent her whole life wondering if she’d been reincarnated specifically to conquer one.
Even after she’d outgrown her “main character syndrome,” she should have stayed prepared.
Her family might have been miserable, but the world itself had been peaceful.
Who could have imagined she’d end up trapped inside a Labyrinth?
‘Now I understand why people prefer possession stories. A reincarnator who knows nothing has it rough.’
Anyway, King Lido V happily assembled elite soldiers, dreaming of the endless resources the Labyrinth would provide.
The results were disappointing.
Not because the expedition was wiped out.
There was simply…nothing left to conquer.
“So…people can safely wander around a Labyrinth?” Chrome asked.
“Not every Labyrinth,” Lavenda replied. “But Vieta’s is safe. It’s already been completely conquered.”
“I heard Labyrinths are supposed to be difficult.”
“Vieta’s Labyrinth only has one floor.”
It was a one-floor Labyrinth.
The Leader Labyrinth Rat defeated by the shepherd had been the final boss.
It was the weakest Labyrinth on the continent.
The rarity of resources found in a Labyrinth was proportional to its rank.
Since Vieta’s Labyrinth only had one floor, it was officially a Rank 1 Labyrinth.
King Lido V refused to believe the Labyrinth discovered in his own kingdom was nothing more than the continent’s weakest one.
He searched every corner.
It was a complete waste of resources.
All he accomplished was confirming that Vieta possessed the world’s only Rank 1 Labyrinth.
The only things it regularly produced were medicinal herbs, low-grade healing potions from treasure chests, and, on extremely rare occasions, a few gold coins.
The greater the expectations, the greater the disappointment.
Unable to overcome his despair, King Lido V eventually handed the throne to his eldest daughter.
The new queen thought differently.
Even then, Vieta was already famous as a tourist nation.
So she opened the Labyrinth to the public.
Since it had already been completely conquered, detailed maps existed, along with the locations of every trap, monster, treasure chest, and herb field.
Because the Labyrinth had been cleared, monsters and traps regenerated very slowly.
The monsters that occasionally reappeared were weak enough for ordinary soldiers to defeat.
Once every two years, they simply closed the Labyrinth, cleared out the monsters, disabled the traps again…
…and reopened it.
After that, all they had to do was charge visitors an entrance fee.
“People actually pay money to see that?” Chrome asked.
“Of course. It’s one of Vieta’s must-see attractions. Visitors come from all over the continent.”
“People sure have too much money.”
“I’d love to visit someday!” Hanson said excitedly.
“So would I. I was planning to go with Lady Serena.”
That was true.
After the Founding Festival ended, Serena had planned to take a holiday and visit Vieta’s Labyrinth.
Since it would look improper for an unmarried princess to travel alone across the continent, she had intended to join Philia and her husband’s trip.
‘I never imagined I’d end up taking a Labyrinth tour right outside my own home.’
Serena sighed inwardly.
Chrome kept muttering that paying to look at such a place was ridiculous.
Hanson’s eyes sparkled as he listened to stories about foreign countries he would never normally hear.
“That’s everything I know.”
Since Lavenda had gradually slipped back into the entertaining style of the tour guide, everyone felt a little disappointed when she finished.
“Isn’t there more?” Serena asked. “When you first mentioned the Labyrinth, you said something about people being swallowed alive.”
“Oh…that.”
Lavenda glanced around, reluctant to ruin the brighter mood.
“Those are only rumours…”
“Tell us anyway.”
“…Very well. Have you heard of the Mesa Labyrinth? It’s said to be on Mesa Island, north of the Empire.”
“I’ve heard the name.”
“So have I.”
“Isn’t that the most famous Labyrinth there is?”
“Lady Serena, I know about it too!”
Everyone had heard of the Mesa Labyrinth.
If Vieta’s Labyrinth was the weakest in the world…
Mesa’s was the strongest.
Its estimated difficulty was Rank 9.
For two hundred years, even the mighty Empire, despite pouring enormous resources into it, had failed to conquer it.
According to the Imperial Treasury, countless priceless treasures had already been recovered from inside.
After discovering the Mesa Labyrinth, the Empire shifted its national policy away from conquest and focused instead on exploring the Labyrinth.
That only made it even more famous.
“I heard Mesa Island was a large island near the continent. It had magic stone mines and nearly fifty thousand people living there.”
“Fifty thousand?” Hanson gasped.
“Hujichen only has a hundred thousand citizens!”
“That island would sink with that many people.”
“The Empire really does have a huge population.”
Whether the numbers were exaggerated or not, Lavenda continued.
“But two hundred years ago, a Labyrinth suddenly appeared…and swallowed the entire city and all fifty thousand residents.”
Everyone froze.
“There are rumours that the people swallowed when the Labyrinth appeared can still be found inside.”
“Sometimes they’re corpses.”
“Sometimes undead.”
Her voice became quieter.
“And sometimes…”
“…living people who still believe the events of two hundred years ago happened only yesterday.”
Silence filled the room.
Finally, someone spoke.
“Then…does that mean we were swallowed by a Labyrinth too, Lady Serena? We didn’t fall in because of an earthquake?”
“So it wasn’t an earthquake?”
“The whole city shook… Surely not all of Hujichen…”
“Impossible.”
Serena deliberately answered firmly to crush their growing fear.
“I’ve never heard of a Labyrinth swallowing entire cities. Count Randy’s wife was probably correct. There was an earthquake, and we simply fell into a Labyrinth beneath the ground. Don’t let wild rumours frighten you.”
“Yes,” Lavenda agreed. “They’re only rumours. That’s why I didn’t want to mention them.”
But the reassurance wasn’t enough.
Everyone still looked uneasy.
“Everyone, look at me.”
Serena deliberately raised her voice.
“It’s natural that Lavenda’s story reminds you of our current situation.”
“But instead of focusing on uncertain rumours, we should focus on one undeniable fact.”
Everyone was seated.
Serena stood alone, looking down at them.
“Just now, Lavenda told us that a single shepherd conquered Vieta’s Labyrinth.”
“He wasn’t even an adult.”
“He carried nothing except a dagger.”
“Yes,” Lavenda nodded. “The clothes he wore are even displayed in the museum.”
“And how long did it take him?”
“Half a day. He entered at noon and came out before sunset.”
“There. You all heard it.”
“A child younger than us, armed with nothing but a dagger, conquered a Labyrinth and escaped in half a day.”
“That means we can do it too.”
“…But his Labyrinth probably had an open exit,” Chrome muttered.
Just as Serena was trying to raise everyone’s morale while hiding several unpleasant truths, Chrome poured cold water over her speech.
She barely resisted the urge to attack the old man instead of respecting her elders.
“Ahem.”
“As far as I know, some dungeons contain escape routes or teleportation circles that lead outside.”
“I’ve heard some Labyrinths are like that as well.”
“Oh! That’s right!” Philia suddenly exclaimed.
“My husband mentioned something like that!”
“He said some Labyrinths have teleportation circles or magical transportation devices that let you leave!”
“Count Randy told you that?”
“Did he say anything else?”
“I wasn’t really listening because I thought it was boring…”
Philia desperately tried to remember.
Her husband always talked endlessly in hopes of entertaining his beloved wife.
She had listened with one ear and forgotten everything.
Now she deeply regretted it.
‘Dear, I’m sorry! Next time you tell me something boring, I won’t ignore you. I’ll just honestly say it’s boring!’
She silently apologised to her absent husband while searching her memory.
“Ah! I remember!”
“He said those things are usually found in the boss room!”
“If you defeat the floor boss—or the area boss—they have a high chance of appearing!”
“But…what exactly are floor bosses and area bosses?”
“Lady Serena, do you know?”
“Of course I do.”
They’re just bosses.
She’d seen plenty of them in games.
Now that Huji’s Royal Mausoleum had become Huji’s Labyrinth, there was no reason to keep searching for the burial chamber.
Their objective had changed.
“From this moment on… we conquer this floor.”
With those words, Serena and her companions began their conquest of Huji Labyrinth – Floor One.
