Chapter 19: Labyrinth

Of course, Ayame is certainly grateful, as she had just expressed, but she doesn't kneel and kiss my feet for my 'otherworldly generosity.' I understand that this is because she didn't have a master yet. If she had been cruelly mistreated for a long time and then experienced me treating her like a normal human being, maybe she would feel more grateful. But I'm not complaining. I'm happy to see her behave more like a normal person than a liberated object.

As I said previously, I don't have a savior complex.

Now that I think about it, if I ever feel like parading myself around as a savior, which I don't expect to happen, I should get a dog-kin girl. If they've inherited the personality traits of their animal equivalents, a dog-girl should be very loyal and grateful for the barest affection I show her. There's a reason why they are touted as humanity's best friends. If she has a good sense of smell, she could be a good scout, and since dogs are social creatures, she shouldn't have a big problem with me having a large harem.

"So," I say after I'm done with my internal theorizing session regarding the human and dog-kin psyche's behavioral patterns, "what's our next move? We have gear, clothes, and soon, food. What's the plan?"

Ayame doesn't need to think for even a second to reply, with more energy than she usually exhibits. "We have to begin your training. Normally, I would say that we should train for a few weeks before you get the chance to fight monsters properly, but if my memory serves me well, there's a labyrinth in Aldoria. The first few floors are easy enough that I can ensure no harm comes your way. Maybe we can start your training while actually giving you a feel for real combat and earn some rewards while doing so."

My eyes light up. "Labyrinth! Sounds amazing! Could you tell me how this labyrinth thingy functions?"

She nods. "They're said to be created by the Goddess herself to allow adventurer wannabes a chance to learn the ropes in a more controlled way than rushing into the wilderness to try their luck. A labyrinth is an artificially created dungeon, each believed to house at least a hundred floors, though reaching such a high floor is a legendary feat you can only hear about from bards. Each floor is more difficult than the last, with the first floor only spawning a single level 1 monster in each chamber. That is where I intend to drill the basics into you. And yes, the monsters are also artificially created and respawn after a while."

"Oh! That sounds like a great way to farm XP!"

Ayame smiles at me mischievously. "You're not the only one who thought this. Maybe due to the Goddess's intervention or just the basic function of the labyrinths, monsters give a lot less XP and give less loot than natural monsters found in the wild."

Damn. It was too good to be true; I should've seen a big, fat, 'but' coming at me from a mile away.

She sees my dispiritedness and speaks up, "That is not to say that a labyrinth can only function as a training ground. On the higher floors, I would say after floor 10, earning a living and leveling up at a good pace is possible. Of course, one needs to be strong enough to thrive there as you die in the labyrinths just like outside if your HP reaches zero. There are many people who are exclusive labyrinth clearers. Instead of calling them adventurers, they have the title 'explorers.' There's an Explorer class for them too, so the Goddess herself acknowledges labyrinth climbing as a viable profession. Actually, leveling up one's Explorer class to fifty is the requirement to unlock the rare Adventurous Pioneer class, which is a strict upgrade in all aspects when compared to the previous one."

Interesting. I can't help but smile at my cute and reserved samurai's talkative nature when it comes to this topic. She really is a combatant at heart. It's not like she becomes an anti-social recluse that refuses to speak normally, as we did have some conversations while shopping and such, but now she really is in her element.

Our food arrives, interrupting our conversation. The plates are piled high with roasted meat, vegetables, and slices of bread. It smells beyond heavenly.

"Let's eat first," I say with a grin. "We can plan more after we've filled our bellies up."

Ayame nods eagerly, and we dig in. The food is as delicious as it smells, and we both eat with gusto.

Watching the great appetite with which she was feeding herself filled me with a strange sense of happiness and fulfillment for some reason. I guess doing good for someone else for a change isn't so horrible. My parents always said that gifting feels better than receiving, a sentiment I never understood while I was on Earth.

Once we were done with our meal, I asked for the bill.

After today's expenses, I have a single silver and 72 bronze coins left in my pouch, which means we've spent over 2 silver coins today. I'm not frustrated, though, as getting proper clothing was important, and we bought more than one of each type so we don't have to wait around while sitting on our thumbs for them to dry off after washing them. Ayame also got a pretty decent pair of shoes, which is a crucial expense that I didn't want to skimp on.

I was hopeful that we could buy some makeshift armor at the start of our shopping trip but that was quickly shot down. According to Ayame, even good leather armor costs a lot relative to the cheap clothes we bought, so first we need to make some money.

We head back to the inn where I stayed yesterday to grab my two weapons and single armor piece. As I'm checking out of the room, the receptionist/owner tells me that I can leave my stuff in their storage area since I have a lot of unnecessary items on my person, and come back for it later today, which I'm happy to take him up on. I didn't want to haul all our newly acquired clothing and toiletry items on my back.

As we head out, Ayame tells me to hand over the bag to her because she should be the one carrying it since she is much stronger and also because I will be the one doing the fighting today.

She doesn't need to say it twice, I swiftly oblige. We ask around for directions from the locals and then head toward Aldoria's labyrinth to finally have my first combat experience.

I'm thrilled beyond words.