At 7 in the morning on the 11th of crossing the maze, after sending the three people out of the crack, we returned to the forest.
«Umm, why don't we eat something first?»
«That would be the best».
Finally realizing our hunger, we met and cooked a meal. It was human nature to feel sleepy on a full stomach.
«...Let's sleep for today and do the rest tomorrow».
Fatigued, we set up camp and we all fell asleep. Not only did we stay up all night before, but we played the mafia game in the third chapter, which made us waste energy, and we even held a Player Elimination event, in addition to the ensuing fight against the doppelganger boss.
Hooonnkkkk!
Sleep came as soon as I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, a whole day had passed. Although I fell asleep at 8 in the morning, when I looked at the time, the needle had gone back an hour, until 7 in the morning. That meant he had slept almost twenty-four hours.
«Oh, are you awake?»
«...Why didn't you wake me up?»
«We just woke up too.»
So you weren't being considered, I see.
Quickly washing my face with the water from the bottle, I smelled something delicious nearby.
«If you are awake, grab a plate and sit down. Oh, wake up Ainar before that. At least she listens to you».
After waking Ainar and eating together, we wandered through the forest and picked what we needed, a wild herb growing in the Doppelganger Forest. «Don't limit yourself to following me and check the terrain in your path. This costs 10,000 stones per root».
«Mr. Yandel.»
Kwaaang!
Crushing the seal stones, which were of no use, Fragments of Bad Sealing now fell with some probability.
«How much does this cost?»
«About 1 million stones each.»
«I see. I'll buy five as they come out».
I took five of the seven total fragments, because the effect was zero after that.
[You have taken a Fragment of Evil Sealed. Permanently increased Mana resistance +1.]
For reference, Missha purchased the two remaining fragments. «Hey? I?»
«You made a lot of money anyway. Don't hoard it».
«I don't, but...» Missha looked at Ainar with an apologetic face. I really should be more selfish, like an explorer. Ainar would consume an essence with a lot of additional Mana Resistance, so it was more reasonable for Missha to eat this. It wasn't like she wasn't paying for it.
«Ugh, looks like it's not going to come out».
«We have one day left. Let's keep looking».
Although there were no monsters, it took us a whole day to search this vast forest. However, we invested even the next day to search the entire forest once again and finally found what we were looking for: mandrake root, an ingredient that went in an elixir.
«Everyone, cover your ears-no. Stay behind. I'll take care of this one». Once Raven protected herself with magic and pulled this off the ground, all of our tasks in the Doppelganger Forest were complete. However, she asked: «I'm so sorry, but could you give me a little more time? I want to see more of this place».
«Because?»
«It's purely a personal curiosity».
At Raven's request, we decided to stay here longer. Surprisingly, no one objected.
«Correct, the Complete Book of Cracks. That person who wrote that can't know everything about this place!»
«If we're lucky, we might find out something».
Anticipation lingered in everyone's eyes. Well, I thought that the possibility of us finding a hidden piece that I didn't know about was almost zero, but at least he asked. When we met at the Bloody Citadel, there were no words of apology. Raven only used the dwarf and me as her servants and had us assist in her investigation.
«So where are you going to look first?»
«In the cave at the beginning».
Starting from the Cave of Shadows in the first chapter, we reach the extortionist's hideout and search meticulously. We destroyed everything that looked suspicious while searching. As expected, there were no rooms or hidden objects. However, we encountered numerous questions along the way.
«Why did they have to be steel bars?» Raven said.
«Wouldn't it be because we had to wait for the other teams to come in?».
«So it's more rational to just time it. Just like when we entered and left the maze».
Why did the Doppelganger Forest start with being imprisoned behind bars? What was the Memory of Sacrifice that we obtained from the altar and why was it described as a sacrifice? Why did the clones become imperial soldiers after the third chapter? No, what was the Empire?
«Now that I think about it, it's a shame. Although he was inarticulate, he could still speak. We could have learned something if we captured one...»
We discussed the issues raised by Raven as a team, but could not find any answers. And so, the rift expedition ended there.
«I'm sorry, everyone. We wasted two days for nothing because of me».
«Do not apologize. You are the magician of the team. It was a fair request. We were the ones who agreed to the search».
«Is right. And it was fun, I felt like a real explorerrr. Right, Ainar?»
«Hey? I thought it was boring.»
«Please take the hint. Hmm?» Ainar followed Missha like an older sister these days, so when she scolded her, Ainar became sullen.
Raven smiled as she looked. «Thank you all. But now that I think about it, I don't think there's anything to regret. Even if we sell a single mandrake root, it makes up for a few days of hunting, right?».
«Our magician is finally back to normal».
»Normal»? Mr. Urikfried, what do you mean by that?».
Mr. Bear simply shrugged his shoulders and avoided responding. Raven made an expression of doubt, but did not insist further.
[You have entered the Tower in Heaven, on the fourth floor].
On the afternoon of the fourteenth day, after returning to the labyrinth through the portal of the chief's room, we continued our exploration. It took us about six days to reach the fifth floor. After that, we took the Hellfire Gorge route as planned and pretended to be busy hunting while actually looking for Mila Roden. For reference, once the black moss was found, everything else was a breeze. I didn't even have to tell Raven to use detection magic. Having enjoyed the previous scan, Raven cast detection magic every five minutes.
«...He didn't come out again».
As a result, we were able to hunt a total of three Mila Rodens, but they were all a losing ticket. Actually, this was the norm. The chance of succeeding with a distortion spell and Mila Roden's corpse remaining there was 20%.
This time that was ruled out.
Although there were only five days left until closing, we didn't bother looking for more Mila Roden. Even if we managed to get in, we wouldn't have time to do anything. It was a shame, because he planned to try a new area with the Fire Orb.
[You have defeated a Stone Burner. EXP +4]
[You have defeated a Fire Dead. EXP+2]
[You have defeated a Red Mud. EXP +3]
[You have defeated an Infernal Flame. EXP +5]
Still, the hunt itself wasn't bad. It was the only advantage of the failure of Noark's conquest. With more than 90% of the clans occupying the field now missing, the entire fifth floor was infested with monsters. Of course, this situation would not last long. Within a few months, the clans that had repaired their damage would return, and many clans would not have entered this time because the situation was unstable in the first place.
More time passed like this. The day of return dawned.
[You are transported to Rafdonia.]
***
The sunlight warmly enveloped my skin. As always, I went blank, enjoying the heat for a while. Looking around, I saw explorers doing the same thing here and there.
Okay, let's go.
When I headed to our rank checkpoint, I could see that my companions had arrived before me, all but one person. «I see Abman hasn't arrived yet».
«Oh, there it is now. With someone else».
It was a strange sight every time. No matter how big the square was, how could you get lost here?
«Haha, the line isn't too long this time», Abman said.
«Not because you came quickly. "I think it's because the number of explorers who entered the maze this time was small»", Raven said.
«Ahem, I didn't say otherwise».
Anyway, while we were waiting together in line, our turn came soon. The entry of mana stones was much less than before.
«7.08 million stones».
Divided into five, it was 1.41 million per person, almost four times less than the last time. But this was inevitable. Not only were we unable to enter the Hidden World, but it was difficult to earn mana stones in the Doppelganger Forest, in which we invested our time.
«That's all?»
«Yes, congratulations on your earnings». Since it wasn't an outrageous amount of money, the employee didn't give us suspicious glances. However, as we were about to leave the checkpoint, the employee stopped us urgently. «Wait, please!»
«...Does something happen?»
He quickly added: «Team Apple Narak, and team leader Bjorn Yandel. It's right?»
«Yes and?»
«...They will have to wait here a moment. That includes your team members».
It wasn't a security guard who came to grab me like in the past, but it was enough to make me realize something was wrong. The same thing happened with the magician on our team. «Sorry, shouldn't you explain what's going on first?». Raven spoke aggressively on my behalf as I was about to have my PTSD activated.
«Inspector, is that them?»
«Ah yes yes! That's right!»
Then a gentleman entered the checkpoint. Raven's face turned gloomy. «Why Mozlan...?»
Mozlan: an executive body made up solely of knights of noble origin, and an organization with many infamous stories.
«Bjorn». Having seen Dwalkie being arrested before her eyes, Missha shuddered.
However, the knight was surprisingly kind, at least more so than those arrogant bastards back then. «Nice to see you. I'm Elmeras, from the executive board of Mozlan». Although he spoke nonchalantly like a lord, this was the natural trait of a nobleman. This was considered separate. More than anything, he was offering a handshake. For now, this man was not so hostile to us.
«...Bjorn, son of Yandel.» Inside, I sighed in relief and responded to the handshake. However, my anxiety had not completely disappeared. Why did the inspector stop us and why did Mozlan come looking for us?
«Hello».
«Hmm, and young lady, are you?»
«I'm Arua Raven from Altemion School. I want to hear why you have come to see us, Sir Elmeras».
The gentleman answered Raven's question with a laugh. «There is only one reason why the inspector has detained you. An arrest warrant has fallen on your team».
It was truly lightning from the sky. «Excuse me? What...?»
«Don't be too alarmed. Judging by the details of the order, it doesn't seem very serious».
«But why are they stopping us?».
The knight smiled and replied: «The manifestation of a special ability within the city, and entering the maze without permission against the instructions of the guards.»
Oh that...
Everyone, including Raven, fell silent. Having experienced so many things in the maze, we had completely forgotten about it. First of all, we thought that would end with a simple fine.
«I do not understand. Isn't the standard punishment for that a fine?» I couldn't help but ask in an argumentative tone. No matter how I thought about it, there was no reason for an arrest warrant to fall on us or for Mozlan to get involved. If so, how had it happened?
«We must consider the situation at hand. Instead of a simple misdemeanor, you can say that you have all violated royal orders».
That's how it was. The situation made sense now.
It seemed like Raven understood it too. «...You mean they are cracking down on the scouts.»
«What can I hide from a magician? It's like you say. Although only a day has passed, news of your team is already spreading among explorers.»
«About us?»
«They call themselves stupid for following orders instead of running blindly into the maze. Senior officials have judged that something similar will happen again if it ends with a simple fine».
In short, it was an exemplary punishment, punishing one person to instill alarm in the minds of a hundred.
«If control over the scouts is loosened now it could lead to a bigger problem. I hope you understand».
I could see why they had chosen me. Since I had gained some fame beforehand and had become a hot topic due to unauthorized entry, they probably judged that the news would spread.
«So what happens to us now?»
When I delved into the heart of this meeting without hesitation, the gentleman clarified one thing before answering. «To be precise, that's what happens to you, not them».
The only one punished would be me. The rest would end with fines. Apparently, circumstances suggested that the rest had been dragged into the situation because of me, and since this punishment was only intended to make a statement, we did not all have to suffer.
«Oh, reasonable! Yes, that makes sense!» Seeing Ainar delight in that hurt my feelings.
Raven also didn't step forward and called it unfair. Mr. Bear was only relieved to have prevented a beating from his wife. Was I the only one defending myself?
Just as that distrustful mentality lingered in my head, Missha asked: «Umm, Mr. Gentleman? If it's just for the show, can I get the punishment instead?».
Missha was the only one who defended me.
«What are you saying, Missha?» I chuckled and pushed her away. I was grateful, but it was unlikely to work. To be picky, I was to blame for this incident anyway. Furthermore, it seemed that the punishment would not be too severe from the way he spoke. «Nothing happens. I will take responsibility. So tell me. What will become of me now?»
Then the knight casually blurted out: «Go live in Bifron for twenty days».
It was a temporary exile.