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āEllieās arm. Iāll get you a cool one.ā
āā¦Huh?ā
Ellie blinked her yellow eyes. As if she had heard something she couldnāt even conceive.
āYouāre getting me a new arm. What do you mean by that, Jonahā¦?ā
āJust as it sounds. Iām going to get you a new arm, Ellie.ā
āIf you mean reattaching it, thatās impossible. My right arm was completely obliterated by the breath. Even if it had remained until now, without special treatment, it would have rotted away.ā
āI didnāt mean getting your old arm back and reattaching it.ā
āThen are you trying to make it grow back? Iāve heard that some species with high regenerative abilities can do that with the help of a High Priest and under certain conditions, but not for a wolf hybrid like me. Iāve already been healed by the Archbishop before.ā
āEven the Pope herself wouldnāt be able to regenerate Ellieās arm. The healing power of the Goddess of Love is merely a symbol of compassion, not a force that touches the essence.ā
āā¦The Archbishop said something similar before. What does that mean?ā
āIt means that unless the God of Life, who is already dead and gone, comes back to life, it will be difficult to heal Ellieās arm. Ah! The Goddess of Love could perform a miracle directly on Ellie to regenerate it! But that would only be possible if we go to the very bottom of the Labyrinth.ā
āā¦ā¦ā
I gave a faint smile toward Ellie, who had a dubious expression.
āEllie. In fact, there are more ways to fix your arm than you think. The problem is that theyāre all dangerous and take a long time.ā
For example, the Elixir that the Alchemistsā Union, the Truth Society, might be making around now.
The Homunculus, the Philosopherās Stone, and the Fragment of Truth are called the three great achievements of alchemy. If itās an Elixir, it can even bring back the dead, so whatās the big deal about a severed arm.
Wellā¦as you can guess from the fact that I know this setting, the Elixir of the Truth Society will be the starting point of all kinds of incidents and accidentsā¦.
Anyway, the important thing is that such a thing exists. It might even be on the gacha list. I donāt know if I can pull it, thoughā¦.
Besides that, thereās also the Beast Godās Source of the Wilderness left on the sixth floor, and despite the Goddess of Loveās adjustments, sometimes thereās a distortion of time and space, so I could get an arm from the past Ellie.
Thereās the minor issue that to get the Source of the Wilderness you have to go up to the sixth floor, and the space-time distortions occur purely by chance, beyond the Goddess of Loveās controlā¦.
Anyway, there is a way.
However, all of them are realistically difficult or take too much time.
In the meantime, what about the magitek prosthetic arm that can be obtained on the third floor?
Since itās merely an object, it wonāt grow with Eli like a real body wouldā¦but it will still be quite useful.
For starters, isnāt it an over-technology from the era of the War of the Fallen Gods? It will more than suffice until we acquire an Elixir or the Source of the Wilderness.
Above all, thatās the quickest to obtain among the alternatives Iāve thought of.
There are two clear conditions for each floor.
One is to repeatedly grow and achieve specs superior to the average monsters of that floor.
The second is to achieve a great feat on that floor.
A great feat here means solving an incredible secret or subjugating the Floor Guardian.
In other words, it means I have already cleared the first floor.
The next time we go to the Labyrinth, the path to the second floor will be open.
āAlthough I had Miss Lydiaās help, it took me about a month to clear the first floor. It wonāt take long for the second floor either. The upper levels are completely mapped out, with all the information available, right?ā
āWellā¦thatās true.ā
Ellie, who was pondering for a moment, glared sharply at meā¦then failed and just pouted her lips.
āJonah, you know well. With the skills you showed this time, reaching the third floor wonāt be difficult. Butā¦ā
The second floor is classified as an upper level, and all information about the Labyrinth is publicly available through the Guild.
Thanks to that, many people die on the first floor when they start as adventurers, and it takes quite a bit of time to learn various things and clear itā¦
Conversely, thatās why the second floor can be cleared much faster than the first floor.
Well. The moment you go to the incompletely mapped third floor, you have to risk your life and strategize every single step again.
Thereās a reason why itās called the mid-level from the third floor.
āBut itās dangerous, right? I know.ā
āOf courseā¦!ā
āBut you know, Ellie.ā
After a brief pause. Holding Ellieās empty sleeve, I smiled at her.
āLiving as an adventurer is dangerous from the start. You kept trying to stop me until I was kidnapped by the Twin Daggers Clan, right?ā
āā¦ā¦ā
Seeing Ellie at a loss for words, I continued, counting on my fingers.
āIt is also dangerous to fight the Pope, to thwart the ambitions of the Workshop Union, to stop the crazy emperorās crazy plan to invade from outside Pangrave, and to break through all the floors of the Labyrinth!ā
āWait, wait. Fighting the Pope and conquering the Labyrinth, fine, but whatās that about the Workshop Union and the Empire?!ā
āIs that important right now? Whatās important is that delaying our trip to the third floor because itās dangerous could make things even more dangerous!ā
āIt is important! Thatās not something you can handle alone!ā
āOh, itās fine. Itās just a possibility, not a certainty.ā
āYouāre saying itās not a prophecy but a hint?! Thatās too unsettlingā¦!ā
Ellie was shivering. Now that I see, Lydia isnāt much different. They all lack faith.
āI donāt understand why youāre so worried. Iām going to handle everything anyway.ā
āā¦What?ā
āIs that even possible?ā
āYou got it wrong, Miss Lydia. Itās about making it possible. With the help of the goddess, itās achievable!ā
Yes. With the help (gacha) of the Goddess of Loveā¦!
Maybe it was the gleam in my eyes filled with the desire for a five-star. Ellie stared blankly at me before letting out a sigh.
āI was just planning to raise you up to the second floor so you wouldnāt get beaten up somewhereā¦ā
But soon enough, she seemed to make up her mind and nodded.
āAlright. Then I guess I have to return as well.ā
āWhat? What are you talking about? Ellie, you need to stay here and run the Fairy and Silver Coin as usual.ā
āYou want me to just sit back and watch? Jonah, youāve seen it yourself. Even with one arm, Iām strong.ā
āItās not that Ellie is weak, but that we might be under surveillance. You know why Karen the Inquisitor moved separately today.ā
āā¦The Temple, perhaps.ā
The Pope is not an incompetent being; the Temple she moves is never incapable. If it were, she wouldnāt have been able to reign as the de facto ruler of Pangrave until now.
By now, even if they are not certain of our relationship with Karen, they would have harbored some suspicions.
They are probably just watching, considering the backlash of oppressing two renowned high-ranking adventurers without clear evidence.
āSo, we mustnāt act differently all of a sudden. At least until I bring back the arm. Then weāll have a reason to return, wonāt we?ā
āIām angry, but youāre right.ā
Ellie, drained of strength, drooped her shoulders. But what can she do? This is just the beginning.
āWell then, letās wrap this story up hereā¦and move on to the main topic, shall we?ā
āThe main topic?ā
āYes. Ellie. Miss Lydia. You both remember the bet we made, right? That if we defeated the Floor Guardian on the first floor, youād each grant me a wish.ā
āAh.ā
āā¦Ah.ā
Ellie, who had become like semi-dried squid, and even Lydia, who had secretly taken an expensive drink from the counter, flinched.
I shrugged lightly, enjoying their reactions.
āA wish. What should I use it forā¦?ā ĘŠ³eeweÉną«¦vel.com
āIsnāt there something more important to talk about right now?ā
āSenior Ellie is right. There must be something more.ā
āNo. Weāve solved all the urgent matters among the complex ones today. The only things left might or might not happen much later, so we just need to build our strength in the meantime. Thatās what weāve been talking about so far, right?ā
āUghā¦ā
āUht.ā
Swallowing their saliva, they both nod reluctantly. Realizing thereās no valid reason to stop the wish execution, they start to propose conditions.
āJonah. You know, right? Nothing too excessive, okay?ā
āUh-uh. Jonahās excess is different from ours. Letās clearly set boundaries here. If you make me drink a beer, Iāll keep watch while Jonah has her way with Senior Ellie.ā
āLydia! You traitor, youā¦!ā
Ellie grits her teeth. Lydia desperately pretends not to notice Ellieās glare.
Laughing at the sight of the two getting along, I shook my head.
āCome on. Do you really think Iād make such a weird wish? Thereās a lack of trust here. Iāll ask for something that can be passed off as a joke, so donāt worry.ā
āā¦Really?ā
āPhew.ā
Ellie, who brightened up, and Lydia, who sighed in relief. Nodding vigorously, she pointed her index finger at Ellie.
āEllie. From now on, whatever I do, donāt move an inch for ten minutes.ā
āā¦I just canāt move my feet, right?ā
āYes. You can do whatever you want with your hands.ā
Next, I pointed my index finger at Lydia.
āMiss Lydia.ā
āYes. Do I just need to stay still too?ā
āNo? Miss Lydia, please let me touch your chest.ā
āā¦ā¦?ā
Lydia tilted her head as if she couldnāt understand what she just heard. For her sake, I repeated it clearly once more.
āIām asking you to press your chest against me in front of Ellie, who canāt move.ā
āā¦ā¦!ā
Lydiaās eyes widened in shock. Reflected in those red eyes was Ellie, who had a look as if the world had collapsed.