A few days later—the day of the labyrinth conquest arrived.
I woke to a familiar warmth and weight pressing against me. Peering down through half-lidded eyes, I saw a mop of light-brown hair tucked against my chest. Lene was clinging to me, her breathing soft and rhythmic as she slept.
Perhaps because today was the day of the operation, her anxiety had got the better of her. We had ended up sharing a bed just as we had on that first night. The result was this: her arms, which usually swung a massive greatsword with ease, held me in a surprisingly firm lock. It was going to take some effort to disentangle myself.
(I'm sorry, Lene...)
Slowly, I pried myself loose and slid out from under the covers, moving with surgical precision to avoid waking her. I straightened her posture, pulled the blankets back over her shoulders, and finished my own preparations before slipping quietly out of the room.
(I can’t afford to wake her now.)
For the past few days, she had trained harder than anyone.
Under the Knight Commander’s instruction, she had rebuilt her fundamentals from the ground up. By swinging what was essentially a block of iron—heavier than any standard blade—she had sought to master the perfect balance of speed and destructive power.
At first, she had struggled with the transition, but within two or three days, she was wielding the iron mass as if it were her own limb. I vividly recalled how the instructors had watched her in stunned silence.
Yuu and Ciel were no different. Much like Lene and me, they had spent every waking moment at the training grounds with the Knight Commander or seeking advice from veteran adventurers, pushing themselves to their absolute limits.
Elysia had spent her time refining our strategies, trying to account for every unforeseen variable to raise our survival rate by even a fraction. On top of that, she never neglected her own training and still found the energy to bolster the spirits of the other students. She really was an incredible woman.
I had also seen Rio countless times, clutching her toolbox as she dashed across the academy grounds. She was everywhere—performing final maintenance on magic tools, checking the golems, and ensuring everything was combat-ready. That small back of hers was always in motion.
Everyone had steeled their resolve.
Everyone was fighting to fulfill their role.
(Then I have to do my part, too...)
I knew that if I told them my plan, they would try to stop me.
Lene, certainly, and Elysia would insist on standing by my side. Even Yuu and Ciel, despite our short time together, would likely demand to come along. If Rio found out, she’d probably try to talk me out of it as well.
Lost in these thoughts, I moved silently down the hallway.
Outside the window, the sky was a deep, bruised ultramarine—the threshold between night and morning.
Muffling my footsteps, I slipped out of the dormitory and into the chill of the morning dew. I walked alone through the hushed silence of the royal capital.
The cobblestones were slick with night mist, and my breath came out in pale white puffs. The air was taut with tension. I caught the eye of a knight on patrol in the distance; I returned his silent bow and kept walking.
Once clear of the capital, I made the rest of the journey by carriage. I climbed into the pre-arranged transport and closed my eyes, letting my body sway with the motion of the wheels.
By now, Lene would be waking up and realizing I was gone. She would be frantic. She would be crying. Even though I wasn't there to see it, the scene played out clearly in my mind, and I felt a pang of guilt that manifested as a wry, lonely smile.
Eventually, the carriage came to a halt. The door was opened by the knight serving as the coachman.
Stretching out before me, just as it had during our reconnaissance, was the massive abyss. It was as eerie as ever. From the depths of that bottomless chasm, sounds like distant human screams echoed upward in a never-ending cycle.
"..."
I glanced to the side and saw a temporary base that hadn't been there before.
Simple tents had been pitched, surrounded by rows of various magic tools. The crews must have worked through the night; several lanterns still flickered with a faint, dying light.
At the center of the camp stood the Headmaster, Dietrich.
"You are on time, I see..."
"Yes, sir."
I gave a short reply to his low, tempered voice. Dietrich tapped the ground lightly with his staff.
"The main force enters in one hour."
"Understood."
As I gave my brief confirmation, Dietrich’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"We estimate the Core this time to be a 'weak entity'... but that is merely an assumption based on historical records. The internal structure of that thing—the Primal Labyrinth—shifts every time it manifests. The number of floors, the scenery, the layout of the passages, and the distribution of monsters are all subject to change."
"I’m aware."
In gaming terms, it was a procedurally generated nightmare.
During the conquest in the original game, the size of the floors and the types of monsters varied wildly. There were grassland areas where a mysterious light shone from the ceiling, and lava areas choked with flowing magma. In some instances, there were even sections that resembled the skeletal remains of ruined cities.
If we were unlucky enough to be funneled into a complex, maze-like floor, it would be a grueling struggle.
"We cannot predict how long it will take for the main force to reach the Core," Dietrich continued. "At the earliest, half a day. In the worst-case scenario, it could take several days or more. During that entire time, you will be targeted by a relentless swarm of monsters. ...Do you still intend to go?"
At his question, I looked back toward the abyss.
The bottomless darkness. The updrafts of freezing wind. The constant, grinding sound of the earth that sounded like a choir of the damned. I felt as if the labyrinth’s will itself was reaching out to reject me.
I stood tall, squared my shoulders, and met his gaze with a confident smile.
"I’m going."
Dietrich fell silent.
He stared at my face for a long moment before finally speaking in a quiet tone.
"...I see."
I could hear a heavy mixture of emotions in those two words.
Since arriving at the academy, I’d had several chances to speak with him. We had coordinated the decoy operation, inspected the training grounds, and met with Elysia to discuss the conquest strategy.
Every time we spoke, a shadow seemed to hang over him.
Whenever he watched the students pushing themselves to the point of tears at the training grounds, his expression would cloud with grief. I had seen him hunched over casualty reports from previous conquests, sighing with a depth of weariness that seemed to age him decades.
Seeing those moments had fundamentally changed my opinion of him.
He wasn't just a figurehead who spoke about hundred-year cycles from a podium. He wasn't just a bureaucrat coldly calculating conquest policies.
He was, at his heart, simply an educator who cared for his students.
"Regarding the decoy operation... I officially authorize it," he declared. His voice was short, but firm.
"In my capacity as Headmaster, I should never approve a plan that intentionally sends a single student into a high-danger zone. However, based on our casualty projections, past precedents, and the expected large-scale spawns... this plan offers the highest probability of minimizing the loss of life."
His voice hitched, just for a second.
"—Therefore, I grant you permission for a solo infiltration."
He didn't even try to hide his pained expression. The weight of his decision was etched into every syllable.
"...But do not forget," he added, his voice dropping an octave as he turned his gaze toward the Primal Labyrinth. "Your role is not annihilation. It is to draw the labyrinth's attention. There is no need for you to push deep into the lower floors. As you know, the threat level of the monsters spikes the further down you go. Find a defensible position and hold your ground there."
It was a rational command, but the subtext was clear.
Strive to come back alive. That was all he really wanted to say.
I let out a small, soft laugh. "Understood. I'll try not to pick any fights too deep in the hole."
With that, I turned my back to him and walked toward the edge of the chasm.
The moment my foot touched the stairs leading down into the deep, I looked back over my shoulder one last time.
"I'll be back. Without fail."
Dietrich let out a long, slow breath. "...You had better. If you do not return, I will regret this decision for the rest of my life."
It was a quiet, honest confession. Hearing it, I turned my focus back to the abyss.
The wind continued to howl upward, carrying those eerie, discordant sounds. The moment the oppressive darkness swallowed me whole, a massive surge of mana erupted from the bottom of the pit.
"Kh...!"
The very air shivered. It seemed the labyrinth had sensed my presence.
Vigilance, hostility, and pure hatred billowed up from the depths, slamming into me with physical force. Sensing the mountain of malice directed at me, my lips naturally curled into a smirk.
(That’s right. Look only at me. Don’t you dare look away! ...Focus everything you have on me!!)
I crushed the rising spark of fear beneath the absolute weight of my conviction, and stepped forward into the dark.