Chapter 30

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Translator: Vine

Chapter: 30

Chapter Title: Olive and Young

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"Hmm~ Feels like a waste of time, but sure, I'll play along."

The petite woman stretched her arms high with a big yawn, then bowed dramatically with an exaggerated flourish.

"Name's Olive! Labyrinth adventurer, guide, trap-disarming expert, and treasure hunter extraordinaire. Age? That's a big fat se-cret!"

Olives came in two colors: green and black. And Olive was a captivating woman who embodied both shades perfectly.

Her small, compact frame was paired with smooth brown skin. Her eyes gleamed like green olives, and her short, glossy hair shone as black as the ripest black olive.

She wore pants loaded with pockets, while her top was simpler but clung tightly to her body, outlining her upper figure perfectly. The toned muscles on her diminutive build radiated healthy vitality.

Her voice was cheerful, her expression bright. Olive winked playfully.

"Right before and after we got here, it was just me and Zero, so I'll spill after Zero's intro! 'Kay?"

Olive pointed at Young with both hands, as if saying it was his turn next. Young nodded in greeting.

"Young. Archer."

"...?"

No more words came, no matter how long they waited.

"That's it?"

"Yep."

Young was tall—over 180 centimeters, by the look of it—with broad, swimmer's shoulders that looked solidly built.

For whatever reason, he was dressed head-to-toe in pitch black, making his bare face and ungloved right hand seem like they were floating disembodied in the air.

'Gloves? Nah, that's bandages.'

Young's left hand was wrapped meticulously in black bandages, fingers included. Whoever had done it must have been skilled to tie it so neatly.

'Personal style. Gotta respect it.'

In stark contrast to his all-black attire, his hair was a bright golden blond that sparkled like honey in the light. His expressionless face detracted a bit from his appeal, but his refined, sharp features gave him a classical beauty.

His cool aura was unique and alluring. He had the refined air of someone who belonged in a gothic manor more than a labyrinth.

"Zero's so quiet that folks say that's how he got the nickname. Cut him some slack, everyone!"

Olive jumped in to explain for the taciturn Young.

"We bumped into each other at the inn and were having a drink when suddenly the ground started shaking!"

She flailed her arms wildly for emphasis.

"Thought it was an earthquake, so we ran outside, and next thing we know, boom—labyrinth! Lucky for me, Zero was nearby, so we teamed up to hunt for the exit. Found some stairs going up, climbed 'em, and ran into you guys. That's the story!"

Young nodded, confirming her tale.

"So? We've done our intros. Your turn."

Serena, Philia, Ralph, and Lavenda introduced themselves in order.

Olive was stunned to meet a princess for the first time, then speechless at Philia's beauty, letting out an admiring gasp.

She was shocked again to hear Lavenda hailed from Vieta.

"Vieta? That's like the boonies of the boonies! Impressive! I've been there myself. Those labyrinth rats running on their wheels? Hilarious. Plump little things with fur so glossy they looked thrilled with life."

"Agreed."

"Zero's been too, huh? Makes sense—you gotta check it out at least once if you're a real adventurer with time on your hands. A labyrinth that's just one stratum, one floor? That's a labyrinth? My local hillside's riskier."

Olive clutched her belly laughing. It was exactly how the neighboring monarchs must have chuckled at King Rido V.

"Anyway, that gives me the gist. Yeah, got it."

Her ever-grinning face suddenly turned serious.

"We've been swallowed by the labyrinth."

Her eyes sparkled, her smile deepening.

"This oughta be fun."

To Serena, it didn't look fun at all. More like they'd drawn the short straw.

"Swallowed by the labyrinth?"

"Wasn't it just the earthquake dropping us in here by chance?"

"You sure it's not just a rumor?"

The group's agitation stirred at the words of a true labyrinth expert. They all turned to Serena with eyes full of expectation.

"If the expert thinks so, then it must be."

Even those experts probably couldn't imagine an entire castle and city vanishing into the labyrinth. Serena affirmed the specialist's view before stating her main goal.

Serena nodded slowly. All eyes locked onto her. It seemed impossible to draw attention with such a small gesture, but royalty could manage it.

"I've heard that even if the exit is sealed, pushing through the labyrinth will open a path out eventually."

"That's right."

"You're in the same boat as us, swallowed by this place, aren't you? I'm not asking for free help. I want to hire you—labyrinth adventurers."

It was smart that the gacha reflected greed, but wrangling the results was on Serena.

She remembered novels where summoned heroes obeyed their summoner unquestioningly and inwardly wept with envy.

She'd offered them a spot in the party, even bringing up a contract, but the response was lukewarm.

"Huh? Nah, pass. Maybe the knight over there, but a princess, a countess, and a masseuse? Total dead weight."

Olive was brutally honest. Better than Lucas hiding his disdain, at least.

"Frankly, even that knight doesn't inspire much confidence. So, what do you say? Wanna jump ship and join us?"

Olive flashed Ralph a flirtatious grin, offering him a job switch. Ralph straightened up and stood by Serena.

"I'm the princess's knight!"

"Then no dice. I don't drag people along who don't wanna come."

"We'll make sure not to be a burden. Care to join us? I'm inexperienced, but I can use magic."

"Even if the princess casts a spell or two. Right?"

"Insolent! Lady Serena's blood is divine, unlike you lowly folk—she even communed with the Labyrinth God and received that bread tree as a gift!"

Philia finally snapped. She'd bottled up her anger at her lady being dissed until it exploded.

"What? Pfft—hahaha!"

Olive doubled over laughing, pointing at the bread tree while gasping for air.

"That's just a tree you sometimes find deep in labyrinths. And there's a god in here? I've been crawling through these since I was a kid, and I've never seen a trace of any god."

"It's true! That bread tree is a gift from the Labyrinth God to our princess!"

"Yeah! It's a divine statue!"

Strangers badmouthing the princess who'd brought down the bread tree? Ralph and Lavenda joined Philia in proclaiming Serena's greatness.

'Stop them? Or let it ride?'

Maybe she could sway the adventurers by invoking the Labyrinth God.

While Serena pondered, Olive took another look at the ugly statue and burst out laughing again.

"A divine statue? That? Pffft!"

Olive covered her mouth with her hand and pointed accusingly at it.

"That's a cursed idol. You find those sometimes in labyrinths too."

Serena furrowed her brow. She could buy not believing in the Labyrinth God story, but calling a divine statue a cursed idol? That bordered on blasphemy—could invite divine punishment or bad luck.

"Cursed idol?"

"Yeah, 'cause if you mess with it unluckily, you're cursed with rotten luck till you escape the labyrinth."

"Well, of course. Dare touch the Labyrinth God's statue recklessly in here, and you'd deserve the punishment."

It was the most logical thing Serena had ever said in her life.

Whatever. Olive waved it off like it wasn't worth hearing more.

"Ah, gotcha. Good luck, then. I'm outta here."

Olive filled her canteen from the fountain and approached the bread tree. Ralph blocked her, but stepped aside at Serena's glance.

"Best to pick the bread early, dry it out, and wait for fresh ones to ripen. Pro tip—service for the pretty countess!"

Olive plucked a few large loaves, pocketed them, and headed down the passage. She made it back after Serena blinked three times.

"Zero! You not coming?"

Indeed. Young hadn't said a word while Olive chattered, and stayed in the lobby even as she tried to leave.

"Were you dozing standing up? C'mon, wake up and let's go!"

"The contract talk isn't done."

"What?"

Olive gaped in shock. Serena was surprised too, though she hid it better.

'Interested in a contract? Then why stay silent?'

She'd assumed he agreed with Olive's babble since he hadn't spoken up. Either way, interest in contracting was good for Serena.

"Young, was it? Any specific terms you want? Speak."

"Zero, are you nuts? Taking these deadweights down into the labyrinth? Even if it's just the first floor—this is a labyrinth!"

"I'm where I need to be."

"Suddenly playing the good guy? Or did the countess's beauty blind you?"

"Think what you want."

"Ugh."

For the first time, Olive dropped her fake smile for real emotion. She clamped her mouth shut, pondered, then sighed deeply.

"Fine, whatever. Better than soloing it."

She circled back to Serena.

"We have standard contracts in our line of work, but given the situation, let's keep it simple. Sound good, Princess?"

"Agreed."

"Normally, hiring adventurers like me or Zero takes more than cash. You need connections and rep too. You're lucky, Princess. I don't work without an upfront fee."

"Countess Landry."

"Here."

Philia pulled a pouch of gold coins from her pocket.

Olive's lips pursed sharper as she silently counted the coins without opening the pouch fully. Not because it was too little—too much, and it slipped out.

"Well, this'll do..."

She cinched the pouch and stuffed it into her pants pocket.

"Damn, Countess came prepared. Thought you all dropped in empty-handed like some people."

'Talking like it's someone else, but that's her.'

Unlike Young, who'd at least grabbed his bow, Olive's only possessions were her clothes and whatever was in her pockets. Even the canteen was Young's.

'Explains why she gave up on going solo.'

She'd planned to team with Young, but since he wouldn't budge, she had no choice but to bend.

As Serena tried offering Young the same amount, he shook his head.

"No need."

"Zero, turning charity now?"

"I have terms."

"Yes! That's more like it!"

"Don't kick me from the party until the end. Pay after."

Young's terms were oddly specific.

"The end?"

"The end as the princess sees it."

Young's deep black eyes fixed on Serena's single orange one.

Blond hair, black eyes—a rare combo that felt more mystical than her own mirror-seen orange gaze.

Serena and Olive exchanged other terms. Serena demanded all labyrinth info Olive knew; Olive required fair treatment for party members.

"Loot and treasures from the labyrinth get split equally among everyone except the princess and countess. No backing out if a fancy magic item drops. Got it?"

"Escape is my priority. No interest in magic tools or riches."

"Spoken like a princess from a rich kingdom. One more thing."

Olive stressed it was even more important than loot shares.

"No ditching us to save yourself, Princess. Deal?"

"I promise."

"You'll prioritize food and hygiene for the princess first, right? Got it?"

"Share every bit of labyrinth knowledge as it comes to you."

"You know how pricey labyrinth info is? Oh, right—Hwaji. You wouldn't. I'll share, but take good notes. Clear?"

Serena, Olive, and Young wrote up the contract and copies in Lavenda's notebook, stamped them, and divvied them up.

"So~? On the way here, we saw you'd taken down the first-floor boss. Why weren't you heading down? Resting after the stratum boss?"

Olive and Young had seen the boss room's undead labyrinth rat corpse. They mentioned coming from the second floor but skipped the minotaur.

'Did they loot without asking? Nah.'

The boss rat was worthless, but the minotaur had value—at least its horns.

"We lost comrades on the second floor and were debating how to give them a proper burial."

Labyrinth pros like them must handle this often and have better ideas. Olive looked baffled at Serena's honesty.

"Strip their gear, chop the bodies to bits, and scatter 'em. What's to debate?"

"Isn't that desecration?"

"Princess is so naive. Minimum is hacking off limbs and dropping them separately. Labyrinths got a high undead respawn rate, y'know?"

Olive didn't give them a chance to argue and strode toward the passage.

"C'mon! Hurry! Time to chop!"