The Desolate City of Potram

While Yohane was securing his new employee, Azu and the others were making their way to their destination.

First, they stopped at the smithy to pick up their gear.

"You've been taking good care of it."

The craftsman who'd known Yohane since he was young said that as he returned Azu's sword.

The Sealed Sword Grungaus had been polished to a mirror finish, reflecting Azu's face in its blade.

"Really?"

"Yeah. No chips at all. Treat a weapon right and it'll always answer you."

"I'll keep taking good care of it."

This sword had been with Azu since the day she'd obtained it.

A blade won at the cost of Yohane's mother's keepsake.

She felt as though they'd grown together.

At first, she couldn't use its power properly at all, but now it was one of her trump cards.

If only she had more mana, but that demanded both talent and steady growth.

The one time they'd had Alexia try using the Sealed Sword Grungaus at full power, it had left a massive scar in the backyard. Quite the incident.

They'd even discussed whether it might be better for Alexia to wield it instead.

According to Alexia, it was a fine weapon but too delicate for her tastes.

She preferred something she could swing around as roughly as a battle-axe.

Armor retrieved as well, preparations were complete.

They used a portal to reach the Royal Capital, then transferred north from there.

Their destination was the Kingdom's northernmost reaches.

She'd heard that using portals in quick succession could make you sick, and sure enough, she felt a bit queasy.

After Elza performed a healing miracle, they all drank some water and caught their breath.

They hadn't been able to get a map in Kassad, so they'd need to find one locally.

The place they arrived at was far too run-down to call a city.

Potram, the city nearest to the Hill of Lament.

Its walls were little more than reinforced fencing, and livestock grazing was visible even from inside.

After paying the usage fee and stepping out of the portal shack, the locals glanced their way before quickly looking away.

"What a peculiar place. Adventurers can't be that rare here."

"Small towns tend to be nosy about outsiders, so maybe that's it?"

"Elza-san, keep your voice down…"

Azu hurriedly checked their surroundings, but it seemed no one had overheard.

She let out a relieved sigh.

She took a fresh look at Potram's townscape.

Generously described, a quiet city. Less generously, a desolate backwater.

"There seem to be inns at least, but stocking up on supplies here is out of the question."

There was no tool shop like Yohane's to be found.

Just a handful of stores carrying basic necessities.

They couldn't find a map, but the Adventurer's Guild, which was combined with a tavern, did yield the location of their destination.

Enduring the alcohol-reeking breath of an old man, Azu extracted the Hill of Lament's position from the staff.

Mission accomplished, she hurried out of the tavern.

A moment longer and she'd have punched the drunks trying to grope Azu and Alexia's backsides, or Elza's chest.

"Drinking in a tavern in the middle of the day. Honestly."

"Well, there's probably nothing else to do around here?"

"They're just slacking off, I'd wager."

The thought of being touched by anyone besides Yohane was intolerable.

If they'd actually laid a hand on her, she would have retaliated with everything she had.

And that would have made things complicated.

"There weren't many adventurers in there. The ones who were there were all drunk, too."

"Strange, isn't it? You'd think being close to a labyrinth like the Hill of Lament would draw more."

"It simply means there are that few adventurers at mid-tier or above."

The Hill of Lament offered steady earnings, but the difficulty was on the higher side.

The monsters there were strong, and with few places to hide or disengage, pure combat ability was essential.

"Looking at the food options here, it's boiled grain, smoked meat, or pickled vegetables. Want to just head straight there?"

They had plenty of provisions with them.

Rather than choke down bad food before departing, they were better off eating rations on the move and maximizing their haul.

The other two nodded at Azu's suggestion.

This wasn't a place any of them wanted to linger.

They set off immediately.

Several hours of travel on foot.

The monsters along the way were entirely unfamiliar.

When withered trees started dancing and encircling them, Azu doubted her eyes for a moment.

Not that they posed any threat to her party.

Elza's mace was particularly effective, pulverizing the Withered Tree monsters one after another.

"Lots of plant-type monsters near the mountains, it seems. The ones in the Hill of Lament should be…"

"Slime-type monsters and armored Undead."

"It was built on old battlegrounds, right?"

They reviewed the information gathered at the tavern.

In ages past, nations had clashed at the site of the Hill of Lament, and the fighting had devolved into a bloodbath.

The sheer scale of death had caused grudges to coalesce and transform the area into a labyrinth, or so the story went.

"That's just an old tale, though. No way to confirm it."

"True. We don't even understand how labyrinths form in the first place."

"Is that so?"

They gnawed on travel rations, bars made from wheat flour mixed with potato and honey, baked until the moisture was driven out.

Nutritious enough, but the downside was how parched they left you.

Fortunately, with Alexia the mage in the group, water was never a concern.

They crossed a river, cut down monsters, and pushed through a small forest. What lay beyond was clear.

An unnaturally jutting hill.

Fog or something similar obscured the depths.

The distinct, unpleasant aura of a labyrinth hung in the air.

"Let's go."

Azu readjusted her pack, placed a hand on her sword's hilt, and stepped forward.

The instant her foot crossed the threshold, the space around them lurched.

"This is…"

"It's fine. The higher-tier the labyrinth, the more the space warps."

Elza steadied Azu's shoulder as she stumbled.

"… You know a lot about labyrinths, don't you, Elza?"

"Do I? Just a coincidence."

She deflected Alexia's probing with a casual answer.

Azu was curious too, but when she looked ahead, she switched focus.

Two monsters were approaching.

Clanking as they moved.

Knights in metal armor, bearing swords.

Except what occupied those suits of armor were corpses.

"Get ready. We're fighting!"

At Azu's call, Elza began chanting a blessing, and Alexia started preparing her magic.

Azu drew her sword, same as always, and charged the enemy to draw its attention.