Chapter 48

While carrying Carol, I ran.

The sound of our footsteps echoed through the labyrinth.

"Should I... check Carol's status...?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

"But Carol's status is—"

"Just do it!"

Pressed by my voice, Carol reluctantly muttered, "Status open" in a small voice.

I can't see the back of her head, so I don't know what kind of face she's making.

But the strength with which she held onto my neck weakened for a moment, so I slid my left hand under her buttocks and grabbed her hand with my right. This is not a perverted act; it's an emergency measure. I'm not enjoying the feeling of her buttocks—though if I were to make an excuse, people might think I'm a lolicon, so I'll just say it's an emergency measure.

"Carol, hold on tight!"

"Ah, yes!"

"Once you see, you'll understand that you've lost all your powers as a Seducer. There's a possibility you could be attacked by a Minotaur."

"...Why is my job now a Commoner!?"

"It's the blessing of the goddess."

I laughed and lied. Well, it's not entirely a lie, since I discovered the secret of the Unemployed skill thanks to the growth cheats I received from the two goddesses.

"Just now, when I prayed to the statue of Lady Traille, I met the goddess. I consulted her about Carol's job, and 15 minutes later, she changed your job back to Commoner."

I thought I could lie so boldly. Back when I was in Japan, I lived by the principles of honesty and integrity.

"...What? To Lady Traille!?"

"Yeah, when we get back to town, make sure to thank the statue in the square."

I presented my achievement to the goddess,

"Carol! What do you want to be?"

"Eh?"

"What do you want to be? A job. Now that you're a Commoner, you can change your job, right?"

"...Carol wants to be a Merchant! Like Papa and Mama! And I want to become a first-class merchant like they wanted to be!"

"That's great! It feels like you're working!"

"Can I do it?"

"Of course! (I'm still unemployed) I say it! It's for sure!"

In my heart, I can't help but point out, "I shouldn't be the one saying that," since I'm still unemployed.

"If that's the case, we need to raise your Commoner level to 10! Hold on tight!"

I said this and turned the corner.

In front of me was a Minotaur with its back turned.

"I'm going to kick the Minotaurs until we reach the stairs!"

I started running again. In front of me was a Minotaur.

While kicking the Minotaurs, I said to Carol,

"Carol! Live! Live and be happy! I'll be happy too!"

I felt Carol nod slightly behind me.

※※※

By the time we reached the 23rd floor, we had defeated three Minotaurs, and Carol's Commoner level had reached 10.

It would be difficult to use the goddess's excuse if I changed her job to Merchant here.

We returned to the stairs leading to the 23rd floor, and when we went up, Haru and the others were waiting.

"Master, it's good to see you safe."

"Well, it was easy. Everyone, due to the blessing of Lady Traille, Carol's job has changed to Commoner. Her unique skills have also disappeared, so there's no need to worry about monsters gathering."

I lied as a matter of course.

Everyone seemed to believe it because of the phrase "blessing of the goddess," but Haru seemed to have noticed the truth.

"More importantly, let's get back to town. We need to treat Sebastian... so, let's use the monster repellent incense to return."

I burned the monster repellent incense and started ascending the labyrinth.

I also put Carol down.

"...Haru, what's wrong? You don't look well. Could it be because of the skill you got from the roulette?"

"Eh, no. The skill I got is called 'Forgery Appraisal,' which allows me to determine if an item is genuine or fake."

I see... It might not be very attractive to Haru, but it seems like a useful skill.

So, there must be another reason for Haru's strange behavior.

What could it be?

"Carol's job changed from Seducer after Master went to the 24th floor, right?"

"Yeah, but so what?"

"That monster repellent incense is genuine..."

"Yeah, it's probably genuine."

"...Why wasn't the Centaur attracted to Carol's skill? And it doesn't seem to mind the monster repellent incense. Centaurs are supposed to be friendly to humans but are still monsters."

...Now that you mention it, that's true.

The Centaur didn't try to get close to Carol at all.

Why is that?

As I watched the Centaur,

"Hey, Centaur, that's not the way!"

"Centaur, no, don't just eat the grass."

The Centaur ignored Joffre and Elise's instructions and ate the grass growing inside the labyrinth with all its might.

It didn't look mysterious at all.

"Maybe its nose is stuffed?"

"...That might be it."

We decided not to think about the Centaur any further.

It's fine to leave it alone.

No, if we leave it alone, we'll never have enough time.

I took out a goblin stick, a rope, and a carrot from my item bag and did a little work. The result was a stick extending from the Centaur's head with a carrot hanging from it, allowing some movement to the left and right.

The Centaur started moving forward, trying to eat the carrot hanging in front of it.

Good, this is a success.

This is not animal abuse; it's an emergency measure to keep it safe in the labyrinth.

While thinking of an excuse for animal welfare organizations, we headed for the exit of the labyrinth.