Flesh Golem of the Labyrinth City - Chapter 50



49. Wait, Labyrinth

“Hmm.”

As Tresha mentioned before, the novice archer Lupina, who was one of the three novice party members I met in the labyrinth, has returned after recovering.

They said she would be able to walk in about a week, but is a leg fracture such an easily healed injury? Well, in a world overflowing with magic and skills, I guess that’s possible.

“So, what about your boyfriend?”

“N-no, he’s not my boyfriend…. Ant hasn’t regained consciousness yet….”

“Did you say your name was Lupina? Do you have any plans?”

“I’m… not fully recovered yet, so I don’t think I can enter the labyrinth.”

It seems she hasn’t fully recovered to the point where she can sprint. Honestly, even if her body was fully healed, asking her to go to the labyrinth to earn money is a bit much.

Besides, we don’t really need another person at the inn. I received some help from the landlady, and as I go deeper into the labyrinth, I won’t be able to help with the inn’s work, so I hired Tresha with my own money.

“Hmm, this is a bit difficult.”

Tresha seems to think this request is a bit too much as well, as she sits in the chair, fidgeting without saying anything.

Tresha has quickly adapted to the work and is helping with various chores. Even though she’s a novice, she was the vanguard of the party in the labyrinth.

She’s strong, has a good work ethic, and is polite, so she gets along well with Sera. I told the landlady to use her for about a month, but the landlady is so kind-hearted.

After spending about a month together, it’s obvious she won’t be able to kick her out, so I said that. It means I hired her knowing we’d see each other for a long time.

“Tresha. How much would it cost to take a carriage from here to the village?”

“About 10 silvers if you’re alone.”

“And the duration?”

“I think it would take about two weeks….”

It’s a bit far, but there’s no other choice. One person is fine, but two might be a bit much. Tresha is now working at a good pace, so there’s no need to increase the number of people unnecessarily.

And I’m a bit worried about Sera. If Tresha and Lupina stick together, Sera might have a hard time.

“Tresha. Come here.”

“Yes? Me?”

“Yes.”

Tresha got up from her seat and approached me. I took her to my room on the second floor, took out a gold coin from my pocket, and handed it to her.

“Make sure there’s no accident, and don’t let them get hungry on the way.”

“Y-Yes..?”

“Prepare some food and put them on a reliable carriage. Do you have any desire to follow?”

Tresha took the gold coin from me with both hands and looked up at me with a very blank expression.

“N-No! I’ll work here!”

“Is that so.”

“Yes! Thank you, brother!”

“What do you plan to do with that boy?”

Was his name Ant? The boy is still receiving inpatient treatment at the cathedral. They say it doesn’t cost much since it’s just protection until he wakes up.

“What will happen to him if Lupina returns to the village?”

“Um… It would be nice if we could go to the village together…”

Certainly, the church doesn’t do anything special. They just lay you on a bed and hook you up to something like an IV. There’s a place in the village where Tresha and Lupina lived that does something similar.

“Can you send them back together? With that money?”

“Yes, yes we can! Thank you!”

“Alright. Make sure you explain it well to Lupina. It’s unavoidable.”

“Even this much is a huge help…”

“Okay. Don’t cause trouble for Aunt Serana and work hard.”

Tresha nodded vigorously. This should solve the problem to some extent.

* * * * *

“Aven, where are you going today?”

“I have an appointment. I’m planning to go to the northwest for a bit.”

“Northwest..! That’s impressive, Euan! Are you going to such places?”

“It’s not like that.”

Tresha woke up early in the morning to prepare to send Lupina and Ant back to the village. She wandered around the streets, making various preparations. The aunt was very kind, and since Tresha was her friend, she even packed some food for them to eat on the way.

It was around 3:30 PM. Slowly moving towards the northwest, she wandered around, turning the map Theodora had given her this way and that, trying to find the location.

“Here it is.”

A dismantling yard located in a wide area on the outskirts of the northwest. It was part of the Golden Glove guild, which the Laimein family belonged to.

A wide open space with a low fence caught her eye, and looking inside, she saw the corpses of huge monsters she had never seen before, lying around here and there. They looked very strange and ugly, and at a glance, they seemed very powerful.

“Stop right there. What brings you here?”

“Ah, someone called me here.”

“Who called?”

I don’t have anything special to show, so what should I do? For now, I showed the map that Theodora had given me to the guard at the entrance. He glanced at it briefly and then disappeared inside, leaving only a word to wait.

About two minutes passed, and the guard who had just gone in came running back with a neatly dressed beast-woman.

“Welcome. Did you say Miss Theodora called for you?”

“Ah, yes. That’s right.”

“She is waiting inside. Please follow me.”

Following the beast-woman guide inside, I could see beyond the fence more clearly. Large monsters lay on their backs, exposing their bellies.

I could see huge cranes tearing out their entrails, or large non-human species working.

‘Wow, what kind of species is that?’

There was even a species with wings instead of hands. I think they were called harpies.

There were quite a few beast-people, and many other non-human species as well.

“Is this your first time seeing monster species?”

“Yes? Ah, yes. I’ve seen a few, but never this many.”

“The southwest has fewer monster species and other races. Golden Glove is a guild formed by those who have received monster species skills and were ostracized. The Rymain family is the most powerful and influential among them.”

“I see… That’s impressive.”

So that’s why it was hard to see beast-people or elves in the southwest. According to the guide, most monster species live in the southeastern slums. Goblins, orcs, and other such species.

The Rymain family is made up of beast-people, but they gained trust and power by employing ostracized monster species.

By the way, non-human species refer to races other than humans, such as beast-people, elves, and dwarves. Monster species are basic monster-based races like goblins, orcs, and harpies.

Of course, they gained skills and became monster species, so they only look like that on the outside and think like humans.

“You don’t seem to have any aversion to monster species.”

“Well, you know. It’s hard to say I’m completely human.”

“Is that so? You look like a human species to me.”

“Haha, well. The base is human, that’s true.”

About 80 percent of my body fluctuates depending on the situation. But for now, the base is human.

“Miss Theodora. You have a visitor.”

“Oh, you found the place, Aven.”

“Finding my way is no big deal.”

Theodora is sitting at her desk in a different suit from yesterday, working. Honestly, I thought she was just a rich girl with no skills and a lot of pride, but she seems to handle her work just fine.

“What are you doing?”

“Checking the order quantities we received. Managing the rare materials requested for custom orders.”

“Impressive.”

“N-no… It’s not that impressive. Could you wait outside for a bit? I’ll be done in ten minutes.”

“Got it.”

Theodora seems busy. As I step outside and look at the worksite, I see a variety of species mingling together. About half are beastmen, and the rest are special species called monsters.

There are also a few humans, distributed across various roles from management to fieldwork.

“Wow, what’s that?”

A monster about three meters tall is pulling a large metal cart into the dismantling yard.

On the cart is the corpse of a monster with a slightly bluish-gray exterior. At first glance, it looks like a long-legged lizard.

Since Theodora told me to look around, I guess it’s okay to get closer and take a look?

“Whoa.”

“What are you looking at?”

“Oh, Theodora. What’s that?”

“That… is a Cave Drake from the third layer.”

“What is it used for?”

“Well, its blood is used in low-quality, mass-produced stamina potions. Its belly skin is useful too, and the strong scales on its head are made into armor or shields.”

So, does that mean the other organs are not used?

“Are the other parts not used?”

“Except for the head scales of the Cave Drake, the other parts are not suitable as materials. They lose their strength the moment the magic drains out.”

“Can’t you just supply magic to it?”

“As long as it’s alive, the magic circulates constantly, so it’s fine. But it’s not cost-effective to use it by directly infusing magic.”

“Hmm.”

“If you supply magic, it does have top-grade strength, but it doesn’t have an organ to store the magic. The magic keeps leaking out, which is a common trait of drake species.”

So that means if it’s a living organ, it maintains top-grade strength.

“That, the tail, isn’t it used?”

“The tail… isn’t used? I think it’s the most useless part.”

“Then can I have the tail?”

“The drake’s tail? Why? Does your skill create body parts that don’t exist?”

“Yes.”

“Really…!?”

Just in case it might be useful, I wore clothes that open at the back. But since there are many eyes watching here, let’s show it later.

From noble mtl dot com

“In a dead state, the hardness decreases, right? Is it soft enough for a person to bite through?”

“Not quite… but it can be easily cut with a regular steel saw. Are you planning to eat all of that?”

“If you allow me.”

Theodora’s large tail is wagging so vigorously it could be blown away by the wind. It seems that beastmen find it hard to hide their emotions. It’s obvious at a glance that she’s curious.

“Alright. The tail doesn’t yield much meat, so it’s usually discarded. If you want it, go ahead. I’ll attach a magical cutter for you.”

“Accepted.”

Wait for me, labyrinth. Next time I enter, I’ll be a monster.