WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Mordor

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Surviving the Frozen Dark Fantasy as a Genius Mage ◈

Chapter 70: To the Third Floor

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Unfortunately, despite exploring the second floor several times, we hadn't found any magic items.

Then again, countless ordinary low-floor Expedition Party members went years without even seeing one.

We were the abnormal ones.

'I also kept an eye out for a Secret Dungeon, but none appeared.'

It felt as though our rapid growth had stalled.

It was as if the Labyrinth itself were telling us there was nothing left for us here.

'It seems to be telling us to go higher.'

···

We had gained all the experience we could.

Our bodies had grown tougher too.

Sitting at a tavern table, I decided it was a good time to bring it up to my companions.

"What do you think?"

I meant going to the third floor.

Alejandro entered the Labyrinth with us whenever Daisy was away, but lately, he had been absorbed in his research again.

Gimlius, Hans, me, Elena, and Daisy.

In the end, there were five of us.

"I don't know. It was my first time on the second floor too."

Hans was a lucky Scout who had spent years struggling on the first floor before meeting our party and swiftly reaching the second floor, and he spoke cautiously.

But he only said that because he didn't know himself well enough.

"Don't say that. Hans, you've worked harder than anyone."

Daisy was right.

I knew how hard Hans had worked. Whenever he earned money, he bought information about the Labyrinth, improved his equipment, and sharpened his skills as a Scout, all to somehow keep up with us.

"Thank you, Daisy. But I'm old enough to know there are many things in this world that effort alone cannot accomplish."

Hans gave a bitter smile and looked at me.

There was faint envy in his wrinkled eyes.

"Hahahaha! Hans, you worry too much! What is there to worry about with Ian here!?"

Gimlius laughed heartily, declaring he would be riding our coattails.

This dwarf bastard?

"How difficult the third floor is depends on whether the party has a mage. But we have Ian, so what could be difficult? Besides, we have Miss Daisy, a Priest!"

"Well, that's true."

He was right.

Expedition Party members with over three years of experience who had explored up to the third floor were called veterans.

They were rank-seven to rank-six Expedition Party members, meaning they had reached a level recognized by the Guild.

Famous Expedition Party members and clans also began operating in earnest from the third floor onward.

It was a kind of turning point.

'Most people decide at the third floor whether to quit being Expedition Party members or go higher.'

It was a natural trial created by the Labyrinth.

Those with talent passed through it easily. Those in between wandered or broke.

Those without any?

They died.

'The Labyrinth is cruel.'

The funny thing was that the gap in talent widened even more from the fourth floor onward, but I thought our party had more than enough strength to explore the third floor.

'Because our party has Elena and me.'

Of course, from the third floor onward, a Floor Master, a Labyrinth Guardian, could appear, so we had to be careful...

'It can only be summoned after meeting several troublesome conditions.'

'Even the dark elves and those Secret Society bastards don't mess with it.'

Its appearance rate was extremely low, so we should be safe.

Or would we?

"Then everyone except Hans is in favor?"

"Of course! I'm sick of the second floor already!"

Elena shouted as she set down her beer mug.

Gimlius spoke to Hans, whom he usually got along with, sounding disappointed.

"Hey! Hans! Are you really going to sit this one out!?"

"···"

Hans considered it for a moment, then gave a roundabout answer.

"If there is no suitable Scout, I will come along."

Good.

That settled the members...

I recalled the three regions found on the third floor.

The Emerald Forest.

The Pig Den.

The Plaster Banquet Hall.

I began explaining each area's characteristics in detail, including the monsters, traps, and gimmicks we needed to watch out for.

"Ugh, they sound fucking awful just hearing about them. I hope we don't get the Pig Den."

"How do you know all this? Even if you're a Magic Tower mage, that's far too much knowledge."

Questions like that came up now and then, but...

"I'm a genius mage."

"Mm, I see!"

"Ah-ha!"

As usual, that simple explanation settled everything.

Afterward, we went to a general store and bought survival supplies for the expedition.

Torches were essential, and we stocked up on Black Oil Flasks too.

A hammer would be useful for the Banquet Hall, but Elena brought one as a weapon instead.

'I should bring blood pouches too.'

Then I headed to the Magic Tower with my companions.

There were things I needed to buy and do there as well.

-···

After the field training with Kulkin, the mages of both the Heide School and the Luminous School looked at me differently too. The Masters were such important people that they felt like teachers, but Kulkin was more like a successful senior, so the rumors seemed to spread faster.

"Hehe."

This was why connections mattered.

I had saved up a fair amount of money even after paying off my debt, so I could finally buy this.

At the shop and service desk run by the Magic Tower, I asked for it.

An Expansion Backpack.

It had a space-expansion spell cast on it, allowing it to carry about 1.3 times as much as its size suggested.

The mage running the shop said, "Five gold coins."

"I'm Ian of the Astrafe School. Can't I get a fellow mage discount?"

"That is the discounted price. Normally, it costs six gold coins."

"Ghk."

It was fucking expensive, of course.

Still, being able to carry more meant bringing extra consumables to prepare for crises and unexpected variables. It also meant we could carry more loot.

"If we're going to the third floor, we have to do this much!"

The companions who had come with me each bought an Expansion Backpack as well.

After that, there was only one thing left to do...

'Magic research.'

"Don't touch, break, or lick anything."

"Of course not! Are we children?"

"Yes."

"Haha! Let's go look over there!"

"You can't just enter the Magic Tower whenever you want... You're fortunate."

Leaving behind the troublemakers I worried might do something stupid, I went to my private laboratory.

Using the experimental materials and various catalysts I had prepared in advance, I conducted magic research.

Ah, I also used some of the useful evil catalysts left behind by the Witch Isanna.

Bubble, bubble.

A foul smell rose from the flask. Mysterious light flickered, and phenomena that violated the laws of physics occurred.

As the Grimoire within me rejoiced, I felt a sense of fullness and learned another new spell.

This was...

[Arcane Doppelganger]

I had expected an attack spell, but another support-type spell came out.

Still...

'It has plenty of uses.'

I didn't have the money for further experiments.

Satisfied, I left the laboratory, reunited with my companions, and made an exploration plan.

"Today is October 18th, 1421. The Contraction Period has passed on the second floor, and the third floor's Contraction Period begins on the 21st."

"By the time we pass through the second floor and enter the third, the Contraction Period will be over."

"That's right."

"Can't we just enter during the Contraction Period? A Secret Dungeon might appear, like last time."

Elena said something insane.

"The third floor's Secret Dungeon is too much for us at our current level. The second floor would be one thing."

I immediately shook my head.

The monsters in a Secret Dungeon were usually around 1.5 times stronger than the average monster on that floor.

Its guardian would be even stronger.

No matter how much of a genius mage I was, that would be suicide.

"Really?"

"Really, you foolish elf. Don't be so greedy."

"What the...! You said greed was an essential enterprising drive for Expedition Party members!"

"Even that has limits."

"Scaredy-cat. Boo."

As I shook my head, Elena suddenly made a serious face.

"Ian."

"Yeah?"

"Diz..."

"What?"

"No, never mind. We're about to head out anyway."

She muttered something strange to herself, then shook her head.

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

"I was going to ask if you wanted me to kill you, hehe. I learned a new technique from the Swordsmanship Guild this time~"

"Fuck off."

How could someone like you kill me?

Anyway, once our preparations were complete, we entered the Labyrinth.

"It's the Ruined Prison. We should move quickly."

We appeared in a musty underground prison crawling with undead.

While the others prepared to move at speed, I quietly clung to Elena's back like a shell.

"Elena mount mode activated."

For reference, I controlled the speed by manipulating her ears inside her helmet.

"Shut up before I shove you into a coffin."

"That's harsh."

Thanks to the experience we had accumulated, we passed through the first floor even faster than before and entered the second floor.

The place that appeared before us was...

The Burning City.

* * *

Whoosh!

The light disappeared, only to be replaced by an even more dazzling glow and scorching heat against our skin.

The Burning City, one of the second floor's regions, was exactly what it sounded like, a medieval city burning in flames.

The monsters found there were Fanatics and Fire Elementals.

Unlike the Rotting Swamp or Salt Cave, this was also a region where mages were far more important.

Without a mage who could handle Water or Frost spells, an Expedition Party would struggle badly.

Fanatics were one thing, but Fire Elementals were immune to physical attacks. You had to fight them with spells or enchanted weapons, and what low-floor Expedition Party member had those?

'Avoid the monsters, or accept the losses and use consumables to fight them.'

The Salt Cave was avoided because of the instinctive disgust it caused, while this place was avoided because it wasn't cost-effective.

But...

Our party had this genius mage, so there was no problem.

I timed it deliberately and entered around 5:50 a.m.

When it became six, I immediately began to Memorize.

[Ice Spike] [5] [Frost Burst] [3] [Magic Missile] [3]

[Arcane Barrier] [2] [Rising Water Jet] [3]

[Ice Spear] [3] [Water Mist] [3] [Ice Weapon] [2]

Since we were in the Burning City, I naturally memorized Water and Frost spells.

Thanks to my experiences in the snowfield and our past explorations, the number of uses for several Frost spells had increased further.

Whoosh!

Streets that had once been the vibrant cradle of a civilization were now filled only with ash and the thick stench of sulfur.

The stone buildings glowed red as they melted like lava, and some collapsed with ominous groans.

"Watch your surroundings!"

"I know!"

Flames that sounded like mournful screams seeped out from between the stone blocks on the ground.

It was such a horrible environment that just walking drained our stamina, but we had no problem.

We regularly sprayed our equipment with cooling water we had acquired through the Magic Tower in advance.

Sizzle!

"Ugh, I can finally breathe."

As we moved, we heard strange murmuring.

Soon, masked figures appeared within the hellish cityscape.

Even with burn blisters bubbling across their bodies, their bare skin remained exposed as they wore clothing marked with religious symbols and scorched masks.

They had human forms, but their behavior was anything but human.

They were the Fanatics, monsters of the Burning City.

"Flamma cruenta, errorem comburete..."

It meant, "Burn false knowledge," in the ancient tongue.

The creatures muttering at us drew their weapons.

"Four Fanatics!"

Clang!

Elena charged first.

She concealed her sword behind her shield, then abruptly twisted her wrist to throw out a feint.

It was one of the sword techniques she had learned at the Swordsmanship Guild.

Her blade changed direction in an instant and cut deeply between the nose and eyes of the mace-wielding Fanatic.

"Kehk!"

"Uoooooooh!"

A Fanatic warrior rushing in afterward swung the claws fitted to both hands.

Elena blocked one with her shield and thrust out her sword, but the Fanatic warrior blocked it with the claw on its other hand.

Clang!

The three spread-out blades wrapped around Elena's sword like a snake.

But Elena forced her way through with brute strength.

The contest of strength that had made both sides tremble tipped one way. The claw blades snapped, and Elena's sword plunged deeply into its neck.

Squelch!

On the other side, leaving behind the corpse of a Fanatic whose head had been split open by an axe, a Fanatic jailer swung its burning whip.

"Uoooooooh!"

Gimlius blocked it with his shield.

The jailer pulled the whip with the strength of its massive body, but the weight's blessing allowed Gimlius to hold firm.

"Light, so light!"

Hans cocked the crossbow made from Drake tendons.

Thunk!

The bolt pierced the creature cleanly through the eye. It trembled, then collapsed with a thump.

The fight was completely under control and easy.

"I told you, it's easy now~"

Once their Mana Stones were extracted, their weapons could be melted down for iron, so we collected those too.

The next monsters to appear were Fire Elementals.

Troublesome creatures immune to ordinary physical attacks.

"Ian! That thing!"

"Okay."

At Elena's signal, I burned a parchment and cast a spell.

It was [Ice Weapon], a new spell I had learned after returning from the snowfield.

The blade Elena held shimmered bluish, cold frost swirling around it.

"Kyaaaah! Super-pretty girl Spellblade Elenaaaaaa!"

Elena rampaged through the battlefield, cutting down the Fire Elementals.

It would have been great if not for that nonsense.

Whoosh! Boom!

"Ghk!"

Maybe it was justice served.

Elena was soon struck by a fireball from somewhere and knocked backward onto the ground.

The Frost contained in her blade prevented it from being fatal, but she suffered burns and bruises all over.

"Elena!"

No sooner had Daisy treated her than Elena glared toward the burning building the fireball had come from.

Kyaaaaaaah...!

"It's a Salamander!"

A Salamander, a superior species.

A dangerous creature made entirely of fire.

Simply getting close caused severe burns, making it a troublesome monster for melee fighters to face carelessly.

"Ian!"

"Everyone, fall back."

[Water Mist]

I cast the spell.

The Salamander, flames pouring from its entire body, weakened as the water spreading around me enveloped it.

Kyaaaaaaah!

Whoosh!

The creature spewed flames fiercely as if it intended to evaporate the moisture trapping its body.

But I already held a spear of Frost nearly two meters long in my hand.

[Ice Spear]

Crash!

The Ice Spear I fired pierced the fiery beast.

It thrashed while impaled on the spear, then vanished, leaving only ashes behind.

We collected a Mana Stone larger than the others.

"There's a partially burned old book here!"

"It was part of a request, wasn't it? Take it."

Picking up some extra income, we made our way through the Burning City.

Then we found the portal leading to the third floor.

Footnotes:

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